Mutated Tao

Thwack! A heavy burlap sack thudded onto Feng Bawan’s sweat-soaked back, and his legs trembled.

“Another... another bag!” Feng Bawan shouted with a strained voice.

Another sack was added to his load, and Feng Bawan mustered all his strength and carried it to the construction site ahead.

Though it was exhausting work, he didn’t slack off at all, sustained by the promise of good meals.

Clang, clang, clang! The gong sounded. “Mealtime! Mealtime!”

The workers promptly set aside their tools and eagerly turned their attention to the heavy baskets being brought in on a shoulder pole. It was the moment they had been waiting for.

When the cover over the top was lifted, golden fried rice was revealed underneath, making everyone salivate uncontrollably.

The fried rice was seasoned with soy sauce. It also included wild vegetables, mushrooms, and, surprisingly, chunks of meat.

This wasn’t rice with fake meat. It was real pork, and nowadays, not many people were starving to death.

Feng Bawan didn’t even bother to wipe the sweat from his forehead—he grabbed his chopsticks and devoured the fragrant, flavorful fried rice.

Even though it was just a simple serving of soy sauce fried rice, it felt like he was eating something extraordinary, like dragon liver and phoenix marrow.

After finishing most of the rice, he finally took the bowl of soup. He saw the thin layer of pork fat floating on the wild vegetable soup and then drank it with delight.

His entire body shivered as he slurped it up, and the indescribable aroma lingered on his lips and teeth, refusing to fade away. It was truly delicious.

Niu San wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve and sighed in relief. “This is what living is supposed to be like.”

At that moment, he overheard some of the others discussing nearby.

“Hey, life is starting to look better. Look at how much soy sauce they put in. My wife wouldn’t have used so much soy sauce when she was alive.”

“Yeah, this is better than what I used to eat.”

“It’s all thanks to the Bodhisattva. These grains were all provided by him.”

“I heard he’s been sending food day and night and still hasn’t finished. The Righteous Monastery has turned into a mountain of grain!”

Feng Bawan didn’t join the conversation because he knew more than them. He had even seen the red-clad Bodhisattva with his own eyes.

While the Bodhisattva had a bad temper, Feng Bawan still viewed him as a savior.

At that moment, the stories he’d heard from the elders about the mysterious Bodhisattva became vividly real to him. He had even set up a clay altar at home, accurately depicting the Bodhisattva’s sword and red robes. ℟А𝐍ồВЕ𐌔

There was also a plaque in front of the statue that stated - Zhuge Yuan’s position.

There was no incense now, but he still worshiped it day and night. On the first and fifteenth of each month, he would save a little food to offer it at home.

Feng Bawan clutched his stomach in pain. It had started to hurt again. Ever since he had eaten the mushrooms he had grown, these occasional bouts of pain had become a regular occurrence. He didn’t know what was causing the pain.

At that moment, he caught a glimpse of red streaking across the sky.

“Zhuge Bodhisattva?” Feng Bawan stood up despite his stomachache, but the red streak had already flown far away.

Li Huowang didn’t notice the insignificant gazes below. He was focused entirely on the city’s defenses.

The once-decayed city walls were gradually being rebuilt. Even if nothing was inside the walls, a solid foundation needed to be established first.

Li Huowang couldn’t afford to become complacent—they were vulnerable to potential attacks from the army of the Tianchen Kingdom at any given moment.

He shouldn’t need to transfer too many people based on the speed and range of his spine sword’s travel. However, it was better to be safe than sorry, and there was nothing wrong with being prepared.

The newly established Surveillance Bureau of the Great Qi Kingdom had already learned about the Tianchen Kingdom’s origins. They had begun to keep watch and expand their numbers.

However, not everyone had the talent for it. Only a few sects could join, and the overall strength of the Great Qi hadn’t increased significantly.

The only thing that could expand quickly was the military, which was gradually reestablished thanks to more citizens enlisting.

Strangely, the Tianchen Kingdom didn’t seem to be in a hurry. Despite the Great Qi’s rapid revival, no one had come to attack or make any moves.

Li Huowang wasn’t anxious. Time was on his side. The Great Qi would only grow stronger with time.

If the Great Qi could be truly restored to its previous power, the Tianchen Kingdom would have no chance at all.

However, the recent strange occurrences made Li Huowang uneasy. He had not deceived anyone, but False Qi kept appearing.

There were quite a few occurrences, and their numbers kept increasing.

Although such False Qi would be useful in future battles, it was still odd.

What’s going on? Could it be a scheme by the Sitting Oblivion Dao? Is Shai Zi trying to get involved? Or are these Bei Feng’s methods?

After some thought, he deemed it unlikely. Bei Feng didn’t have such means, and he had thoroughly checked the Sitting Oblivion Dao’s Liar’s Scripture and never saw one that gave out False Qi.

They deceived others—they didn’t give things away.

Could it be a new trick? Using False Qi to deceive False Qi?

When I have the chance, I’ll get Suisui to stir up some trouble with the Sitting Oblivion Dao to prevent them from causing chaos.

While pondering, Li Huowang arrived at the inner palace of the You Capital and floated down directly.

The Mo family also rebuilt the imperial city of You Capital, but there was no emperor there anymore. The Chief had completely occupied it.

“Daoist, the Qian family members and some colleagues skilled in divination haven’t been able to predict where they will appear.”

Li Huowang wasn’t upset with them. People in this world could only calculate things within the world. How could they predict the existence of the Hometown of True Void?

Moreover, now that the feng shui of Great Qi had stopped, it was unlikely they could calculate anything further. Astrological predictions were even more fruitless.

“Since it can’t be calculated, let them stop trying. Focus on preparing for battle.”

“Okay.”

As soon as the military personnel left, the abbot of Righteous Monastery approached. “Amitabha. Benefactor Li, I have some news.”

“Are you sick? Is this the time for politeness? Speak quickly.”

After a moment of consideration, Chan Du said, “Benefactor Li, I believe this matter isn’t as serious as it seems. Perhaps we can negotiate with the other party.”

There was some substance to his words. Li Huowang looked at him thoughtfully, and a cold smile gradually appeared on his face. “What? Do you think the grain from the Tianchen Kingdom is better? Do you think it would be better for the Great Qi to cooperate with them?”

He continued, “Imperial Preceptor Chan Du, you are a monk, not a merchant calculating every detail with an abacus.”

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