Li Banfeng scratched the back of his head, feeling that the Peddler's words made sense. "Let's not talk about Dark Matter first."
The Peddler continued, "The so-called exposure to Heavenly Light, in the words of you folks from the Outside Provinces, is called a Dark Matter Ray Flow. Dark Matter is everywhere, but some Dark Matter is rather special. In the terms of the Inner Nine States, this is called a burst of Taoist Fate. If you ingest Taoist Fate correctly, it won't be too harmful to the body, but a burst of Taoist Fate that's too violent is not something ordinary people can withstand. Those hit by the burst will have their bodies rapidly explode, and the residual Taoist Fate can even continue to harm others. So, if you want to live, you need to Enter the Path as soon as possible and use the Medicinal Primer for Entering the Path to guide the Taoist Fate in your body in a certain direction..."
The Peddler explained the mechanism of Heavenly Light in the simplest language he could, and Li Banfeng quickly grasped the key essence.
Dark Energy Users, also referred to as Cultivators in this place, are actually extraordinary beings who have undergone mutations after being invaded by special Dark Matter.
The mutation is chaotic and most likely fatal.
But the Peddler's medicine can guide the chaotic mutation toward an orderly one.
Ingesting small and regular amounts of Dark Matter, like Ma Wu and Qin Xiaopang, slows the erosive mutation. Only when the mutation reaches a certain level can they use the Peddler's medicine to be guided into becoming Dark Energy Users.
But Li Banfeng encountered a Dark Matter Ray Flow, and his body was eroded by a large amount of Dark Matter in a short time, posing a direct risk of exploding on the spot, so immediate guidance was imperative.
There are many kinds of medicine, guiding different directions and paths, hence resulting in different supernatural abilities.
Li Banfeng's body contained enough Dark Matter to choose any path, and barely managing to choose two similar paths was also possible.
But he chose two opposite paths.
Yet, this wasn't Li Banfeng's choice!
Li Banfeng's eyes widened as he exclaimed, "Where is Qiao Yuesheng, the Bird Person who bumped into me just now? This is all his..."
The Peddler pointed at a straw mat beside him. "Are you talking about him?"
Li Banfeng hadn't noticed the straw mat next to the Peddler before, assuming it covered some miscellaneous items.
Now, with his pointing, it seemed to wrap a person.
Li Banfeng asked in surprise, "This is Qiao Yuesheng?"
The Peddler nodded. "This matter started because of him; he has already given me enough compensation. And since you had an accident at my booth, I am also responsible, so I must give you compensation as well. It's part of doing business. From your condition, it seems you've survived the initial stage of Entering the Path, but the cultivation ahead will be very tough for you. According to the characteristics of a Traveling Cultivator, even if you don't seek to advance your cultivation level, you must walk at least twenty miles every day. And according to the traits of a Home Cultivator, you must return home at least once a day and stay there for at least two hours."
Li Banfeng calculated the time. "That doesn't seem difficult!"
It truly wasn't. Going out for a walk, twenty miles—think of it as a slow jog for ten kilometers. Going home to sleep, or reading novels or watching dramas—two hours was simply too easy. In this light, these two Taoist Sects didn't seem so incompatible after all.
The Peddler shook his head. "This is only the beginning of your cultivation. As you reach higher levels, the Traveling Cultivator has to travel further, and the Home Cultivator has to spend longer at home. Soon, the two will become incompatible. Moreover, once a Traveling Cultivator advances to higher levels, they cannot always stay in one place. Since a home is fixed, a Home Cultivator cannot wander everywhere. Therefore, these two Taoist Sects are natural enemies. Of course, that's for later; we'll find a solution then. For now, there's another difficult task: for a Traveling Cultivator to advance to the First Layer, they must spend a day and a night in a dangerous place. This can be troublesome. A Home Cultivator must go home every day; one day away from home could mean sudden death. How can you stay away for that one day and night?"
Li Banfeng blinked and asked, "What does 'a dangerous place' mean?"
The Peddler looked shocked. "Haven't you been to school? You don't know what a 'dangerous place' is? It's a place where your life could be taken at any moment."
"How is such a place defined? Sleeping in the middle of the road could also mean being crushed to death by a car at any moment!"
The Peddler nodded. "That's actually a pretty good idea. You can try it in the middle of the road, and if your cultivation level acknowledges it, you really could rise a layer!"
"My cultivation level can acknowledge it?"
"Why not? Your cultivation level is now a part of you. You have perception, so naturally, it has perception too. Have you decided to sleep on the road?"
"I was just saying..." Li Banfeng fell into deep thought.
Home Cultivators must return home every day.
But what about someone like me who has no home?
I never had a home to begin with, so which home are you asking me to return to?
Upon this realization, Li Banfeng asked directly, "Currently, I have no residence and no home to return to. Even if I sleep rough on the outside, that doesn't violate the rules of Home Cultivation, right?"
The Peddler nodded. "You're not wrong there."
Upon hearing this, Li Banfeng chuckled. "Then that settles it. I'll head to a dangerous place first, survive a day and a night, become a First Layer Traveling Cultivator, and then buy a house. Wouldn't that resolve the issue?"
The Peddler shook his head. "That won't work."
"Why not?"
"That would mean abandoning Home Cultivation. Dual Cultivation requires proficiency in both practices. If you give up one of them, you'll lose your life."
Li Banfeng hastily said, "I haven't given up. I will cultivate as a Traveling Cultivator first, then cultivate..."
"What's the use of just talking about it?" The Peddler interrupted Li Banfeng bluntly. "Your cultivation level is a part of your body; your actions represent your intentions. You've cultivated Traveling Cultivation to the First Layer, and your cultivation level has achieved some success. Yet, you don't even have a suitable house, and your Home Cultivation hasn't even gotten on the right path. Doesn't this amount to abandoning Home Cultivation?"
"That sounds a bit far-fetched, doesn't it? That's not my intention!"
The Peddler shrugged. "It's no use telling me. If you don't believe it, you're more than welcome to give it a try."
"Give it a try... that's not something I can try," Li Banfeng sank into deep thought once more, then gritted his teeth and said, "I might as well not advance in level and just bide my time, waiting until I find a solution!"
"Like him?" The Peddler lifted the straw mat, revealing the mangled corpse of Qiao Yuesheng.
To call it 'mangled' was an understatement. It was a mess of flesh.
If the Peddler hadn't previously mentioned this was Qiao Yuesheng, Li Banfeng wouldn't have recognized him at all.
"How did he end up like this?"
The Peddler covered the straw mat again. "He was a Dark Energy User, a glutton—that is, a Food Cultivator. Compared to Traveling Cultivators, Food Cultivators aren't particularly swift, but as long as they're well-fed, they're much faster than ordinary people. According to the rules of the Outside Provinces, Dark Energy Users are not allowed to participate in sports competitions; that's considered cheating. But this lad, for fame and profit, went all in. Dark Matter cannot be observed, and no one could detect his cultivation, but he was worried that someone would notice something off about him. As a Food Cultivator, he needed to eat 2.5 kilograms of food each day. Afraid of exposing himself, he dared not eat, nor dared he gain levels. He kept using his innate body talents but didn't cultivate using the correct methods. Just as you said, he kept at it, wasting away until he ended up like this. You can't keep stalling. You need to advance either your Home Cultivation or Traveling Cultivator path to a certain level. If you delay for too long, your fate will be the same as his."
"Does cultivating to the First Layer mean I can stop?"
"No. Even if you're not ambitious, you can't neglect the daily basics of cultivation."
Li Banfeng looked at the straw mat covering the corpse. "Until when do I have to continue cultivating?"
"There's no end," the Peddler shook his head. "From the moment you chose this path, you're destined to follow it for a lifetime."
Li Banfeng looked up at the Peddler. "Then what do you suggest I do about this problem?"
The Peddler looked back at Li Banfeng. "There are two roads for you to choose from. The first one: find a dangerous place to settle down, and I'll provide you with a house."
PS: Thanks to Torchbearer for the deadly constellations!
Two updates today, the next is at 5 PM.