Steam Era: The Lord of 'Puluo'-Chapter 38 - 31: Copper Lotus Flower, what are you going to do?

Chapter 38: Chapter 31: Copper Lotus Flower, what are you going to do?

As dusk fell, the people from the Medicine Shop left the clearing and headed toward the next location. Their departure meant that the Snake-Patterned Chrysanthemums in this area had mostly been harvested.

Old Smoker took a drag from his pipe, exhaled a puff of smoke, and continued to follow the people from the Medicine Shop.

After trudging for over an hour, everyone followed the Medicine Shop’s people to a second good spot: a somewhat sparse grove of trees, more remote and with even more flowers.

However, despite the abundance of flowers, everyone’s efficiency dipped.

The miasma of Kuwu Mountain was eroding everyone’s vitality, including the people from the Medicine Shop; all had become weak and sluggish.

Little Fatty was the least affected, while Li Banfeng was hit the hardest—his limbs went numb, and his vision blurred repeatedly.

By nightfall, the fog grew denser, worsening the group’s plight.

Miss Oil Peach had a pocket watch; it was past nine o’clock, and she too was struggling to hold on.

"Why don’t we pull out? This trip has been worth it already." Oil Peach had gathered 35 Snake-Patterned Chrysanthemums, which could sell for 2,975 yuan. Indeed, it had been worth the trip.

Li Banfeng had picked two more flowers than Oil Peach, which was close to his expectations. He felt that if they didn’t descend the mountain soon, their lives would be at risk.

Little Fatty refused to leave. He had gathered the fewest flowers, only 16, which could be sold for over 1,300 yuan based on the Medicine Shop’s price.

After deducting the expenses of the trip, would he even make a profit? There was a profit, yes, but it was smaller than he had hoped, and Little Fatty was not quite content.

The Snake-Patterned Chrysanthemums in this second location were clearly easier to find than in the first.

Also, Little Fatty was visibly in better condition than the others. By his own estimation, he could last until dawn without any problems. This was a golden opportunity to catch up and earn more.

He wouldn’t leave, and neither would the young girl, Cao Ye. She was sustaining herself with various Medicine Candies and, for the time being, had no significant health issues.

Old Smoker smoked another two pipefuls of tobacco. In his words, as long as he had tobacco to smoke, he could hold on.

Since they weren’t leaving, Miss Oil Peach decided to stay as well, partly because she too was reluctant to give up.

Seeing that her usually swaying, peach-like posterior was now almost still, Li Banfeng really wanted to advise her to rest.

But he lacked the strength to speak. With the intense dizziness, he feared he might vomit if he uttered more than a few words.

Moreover, his acquaintance with Miss Peach was superficial, and he was more worried about Little Fatty.

However, since Little Fatty adamantly refused to leave, Li Banfeng had to make his way down the mountain alone.

Before he left, Cao Ye stepped forward and cautioned him, "Brother Bai Sha, if you really are a Lust Cultivation practitioner, you should rest for at least half a month after you get back. Lust Cultivators are frail, and this poisonous mist causes the most damage to them.

"If you are from another Taoist Sect, you should rest for at least three to five days.

"If you practice Home Cultivation, then you can ignore my advice."

As Li Banfeng listened intently to this crucial information, he heard Miss Oil Peach interject from the side, "Sister, what about Home Cultivators?"

Cao Ye widened her eyes. "Sister, don’t tell me you’re a Home Cultivator?"

Miss Oil Peach smiled. "I’m just asking casually."

Cao Ye whispered, "Even a Home Cultivator without a House Spirit would recover after sleeping for seven or eight hours once they return to their residence. If they have a House Spirit, it wouldn’t even take that long.

"That’s the advantage of Home Cultivation; they have nothing to fear as long as they can return to their residence."

Miss Oil Peach sighed softly. "I wish I were a Home Cultivator."

Cao Ye shook her head. "Sister, Home Cultivators generally don’t venture out easily. Are you really...?"

As they spoke, Cao Ye’s gaze remained fixed on Miss Oil Peach, as if very interested in her Taoist Sect.

Miss Oil Peach caressed Cao Ye’s cheek. "After we finish this business, come visit me at my residence. Then you’ll know whether I’m a Home Cultivator or not."

Li Banfeng had no interest in their idle chatter. He whispered a warning to Little Fatty, "You stay here and gather flowers. Don’t move to another spot. After picking a few more, hurry down the mountain!"

Little Fatty nonchalantly agreed. He wouldn’t change places; there were indeed many flowers here. But he wouldn’t leave so easily; Little Fatty planned to endure until morning.

Gold-rimmed Glasses had said that the blooming time of Snake-Patterned Chrysanthemums was unpredictable, but they would definitely bloom for a full day and night.

The flowers that opened after seven o’clock this morning would undoubtedly last until seven the next morning. Over the course of the night, he could certainly gather another 20.

Once it was light the next day, he would descend the mountain. Even if it meant vomiting and diarrhea, he’d only suffer for a few days. A couple of good meals would set him right again.

Seeing Little Fatty focused on picking flowers, Li Banfeng left the woods. He hid his key in a secluded spot on the mountain path and returned to his Portable Residence.

He hadn’t descended the mountain. Cao Ye’s words had served as a reminder.

He decided to recover first in his own residence. Once he was mostly better, he would descend. Otherwise, there was a strong likelihood of encountering trouble on the way down.

There was something wrong with this whole trip—a significant problem.

He didn’t trust Gold-rimmed Glasses, even though most of Gold-rimmed Glasses’ actions seemed reasonable.

The behavior of the others was also reasonable. For a group of strangers, looking out for each other within reasonable limits was a wise choice.

However, one thing wasn’t quite reasonable.

They had been attacked three times by the same person.

On Kuwu Mountain, everyone wanted Snake-Patterned Chrysanthemums, so being robbed was understandable.

But being robbed three times by the same person? That wasn’t so reasonable.

The first time he ran into the Baldy on the road could be considered a chance encounter.

But what about the second encounter with the Baldy on the mountain path? Coincidence?

Then how could the third time the Baldy came to steal their flowers be explained?

To call it a coincidence again would be stretching it too far.

This Baldy must have been following their group, but how did he manage it?

On Kuwu Mountain, visibility was extremely poor, making it very difficult to track someone. Without Old Smoker, their group wouldn’t have been able to keep up with the people from the Medicine Shop at all.

Yet, this Baldy had managed to follow them all the way. Could there be a Cultivator among the Baldy’s group skilled in tracking?

Or perhaps someone had left signs for them?

Li Banfeng untied his cloth bag, threw it to the side, and lay down flat in the room. He tried to replay the whole process in his mind, but the intense pain spreading throughout his body made it impossible to concentrate.

It hurt too much. The fog on Kuwu Mountain was truly deadly.

The dizzying pain was accompanied by an urge to vomit.

He couldn’t vomit in the Portable Residence, at least not on the floor.

The room wasn’t ventilated. If he vomited on the floor, who knew how long the smell would take to dissipate?

But he really couldn’t hold it in any longer!

Li Banfeng tore open the cloth bag, poured out the Snake-Patterned Chrysanthemums, grabbed the empty bag, and retched into it until he had vomited up all the bile.

After emptying his stomach, Li Banfeng felt somewhat better. He tightened the cloth bag, threw it aside, and fell into a deep sleep on the ground.

He didn’t know how long he had slept when a strange smell suddenly awakened him.

In the Portable Residence, apart from dust, there shouldn’t be any other odors.

Could it be the scent of the Snake-Patterned Chrysanthemums?

On Kuwu Mountain, he hadn’t noticed any particular odor from the chrysanthemums.

The choking fog on Kuwu Mountain might have masked the scent of the Snake-Patterned Chrysanthemums.

Now, in the Portable Residence, with no other odors to interfere, he could smell the Snake-Patterned Chrysanthemums again.

It must be the scent of the Snake-Patterned Chrysanthemums, because he caught a whiff of a unique floral fragrance.

He almost forgot—Cao Ye had said the flower was poisonous! Eating one would be fatal!

Could the fragrance also be poisonous?

Li Banfeng paled with fright and quickly got up.

The Snake-Patterned Chrysanthemums were scattered carelessly around the room; he had to find a proper place to store them immediately.

He took out a match and lit a candle.

It had to be said, after that sleep, Li Banfeng no longer felt any pain, nor was his head dizzy. He felt almost fully recovered.

But in the next moment, his scalp began to tingle as if electric currents were rolling from his forehead to the back of his head.

Where are my Snake-Patterned Chrysanthemums?

The 37 Snake-Patterned Chrysanthemums he had painstakingly gathered—where were they? freeweɓnovēl.coɱ

Not a single one was left!

Losing the flowers and the money wasn’t the biggest issue.

But only I can enter the Portable Residence... so who stole the flowers?

I couldn’t have eaten them while sleepwalking, could I?

These things are poisonous! You can’t eat them!

Li Banfeng searched all around but couldn’t find even a single petal.

The candle’s light had a limited range. Li Banfeng, not paying attention to his feet, stumbled over something and nearly fell.

He held up the candle and looked back, realizing it was the Copper Lotus Flower on the ground.

Wait, is this the Copper Lotus Flower?

The Copper Lotus Flower had always been on the ground. Its position hadn’t changed much, but its state seemed a bit different. The flower had bloomed.

Li Banfeng saw the pistil and the lotus pod.

Inside the pod was a lotus seed—a ripened lotus seed.

Li Banfeng carefully peeled the lotus seed out. The Copper Lotus Flower immediately closed, almost pinching his hand.

The greenish-blue lotus seed trembled gently in the center of Li Banfeng’s palm.

Li Banfeng didn’t know the origin of this lotus seed, nor what he should do with it.

Suddenly, the lotus seed swelled, expanding to the size of a fist before exploding with a BANG.

Li Banfeng shuddered and quickly pulled back his hand. The exploded lotus seed released eight beads, each the size of a pinky fingernail.

Li Banfeng picked up one of the beads to examine it: it was white with black spots, as if inlaid with some kind of scales.

What is this?

PS: Shala has decided to release an extra Chapter tomorrow! Dear readers, please give Shala some encouragement!

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