Steam Era: The Lord of 'Puluo'

He was angry.

His strength lay in physical combat, not in tactical battles of wits.

"If you're not coming out, fine, I'll just wait here. If you dare make even the slightest noise, you won't escape my ears. By then, even crying will be too late for you!"

The wild boar lay on the ground, waiting for the Pioneer to show up.

The cold was biting; let's see who could hold out longer!

This was a test of pioneering; the wild boar had this kind of perseverance!

「...」

Li Banfeng sat on the edge of the bed, wrapped in a blanket.

His wife brewed a cup of tea and handed it to him.

Li Banfeng complained to his wife while drinking tea, "Do you know how cold it is outside? If it weren't for buying groceries for you, I wouldn't want to step out at all. Look how these past few days have chilled me to the bone."

CLANG, CLANG, CLANG...

"My dear husband, you must be exhausted. Little Servant will cook a bowl of hot soup for you to drink in a moment."

"Later, you also need to heat some water for my bath and warm a pot of hot wine for me. And prepare a few more hot dishes, what's the point of just having a bowl of soup."

"My lord, everything else you've asked for is fine, but let's put off the bath for a bit; we don't have an abundance of water at home."

Li Banfeng had been in the New Land for several days without replenishing his water supply. The remaining two buckets of water barely sufficed for drinking; his wife was a Steam Phonograph and also consumed a lot of water.

Just wait a little longer. As long as pioneering is successful, water wells can be drilled in the New Land, and then the water supply can be replenished.

If the pioneering fails, we'll have to go to the Orange Orchard to ask the old folks for some water.

I wonder if Ma Wu has reached the Orange Orchard yet.

「...」

Thirty miles was not considered far for a First Layer Cultivator. After covering more than twenty miles, Ma Wu could vaguely see the tall orange trees ahead.

In his mind, he repeated the instructions Li Banfeng had given him: once he reached the Orange Orchard, he must not break any rules and should always use resources sparingly.

As he pondered, he suddenly heard a cry for help, "Kind sir passing by, please lend me a hand."

Ma Wu's ears twitched, but he did not stop walking.

He was a Lust Cultivator, and many people thought that men who practiced Lust Cultivation should love and cherish women even more.

That was a misconception. Lust Cultivators were not the type to cherish the fairer sex; on the contrary, men who practiced Lust Cultivation tended not to value women as much.

This is the New Land; no one can be sure what might happen. It's best not to meddle in others' affairs.

"Kind sir, save me, please, I beg you."

The plea for help came again, and just as Ma Wu was about to quicken his pace, a sense of shame sprouted within him.

If a woman is stranded in this wilderness and I don't save her, will I regret it for the rest of my life?

"Just pull me up, and I can walk the rest myself; I definitely won't delay you."

Listening to her voice again, she doesn't sound like a bad person.

Ma Wu turned around and saw the woman calling for help amidst a thicket of brambles.

She was dressed in a red robe with a yellow silk band wrapped around her waist.

Her legs were entangled in brambles, which were wrapped from her ankles up to her knees and were slowly climbing up her body.

With all her might, the woman clutched at the brambles, and her blood flowed down the spines onto the blue-green vines.

Emerald Serpent Vine, an oddity that was indeterminable as snake or vine.

This kind of vine would cling to trees and remain motionless. Even if it was torn from the trees, thrown on the ground, and chopped with a knife, it would still not move.

However, sometimes it would suddenly spring to life. Whether it was a wild beast or a living human, as long as there was flesh and blood, the Emerald Serpent Vine would wrap around and crush it all, then suck it dry.

The Emerald Serpent Vine was difficult to deal with. Its thorns were poisonous, and the vines were incredibly tough. Approaching it to pull it off could likely result in Ma Wu being entangled along with the woman.

This particular Emerald Serpent Vine was exceptionally thick, instilling fear in Ma Wu. Yet, seeing the pitiful tears of the woman, he couldn't bring himself to just watch and do nothing.

I must save her. Since I've encountered her, this must be fate.

Ma Wu used a Charm Technique on the Emerald Serpent Vine.

As a First Layer Cultivator, his Charm Technique wasn't very powerful, but it was enough for the Emerald Serpent Vine.

When it came to pure strength, the Emerald Serpent Vine was comparable to a Third Layer Martial Cultivator.

But in terms of Spiritual Wisdom, the Emerald Serpent Vine was quite simple-minded.

With one glance from Ma Wu, the Emerald Serpent Vine suddenly felt favorable towards him, released the woman, and turned to chase after Ma Wu.

Ma Wu shouted at the woman, "Hurry, go!"

Struggling to her feet, the woman limped away.

Ma Wu watched her retreating figure, feeling a deep sense of loss.

She's so beautiful.

Even though I haven't seen her face clearly, I know she's beautiful.

But when Ma Wu snapped back to reality, he found that the Emerald Serpent Vine had disappeared.

That thing can burrow.

To be precise, its roots were originally underground, and at this moment, they were slowly enveloping Ma Wu using their massive system.

Ma Wu dared not run around carelessly, as a single misstep could land him in the clutches of the Emerald Serpent Vine.

This thing isn't smart, not smart at all!

Ma Wu kept reminding himself.

There will be signs before it surfaces; as long as I can discern them...

He couldn't see the signs.

He was not a Traveling Cultivator, lacking such keen perception of danger.

The Emerald Serpent Vine was about to emerge right behind him, and he was completely unaware.

Suddenly, the woman in red ran back, grabbed Ma Wu, and hobbled along, desperately running forward.

Ma Wu, astonished, said, "Why have you come back?"

With her back to Ma Wu, the woman's soft voice carried a hint of firmness, "I've come back to save you!"

"I don't need you to save me!"

"You saved me, so I will save you. That's fate and destiny."

Fate and destiny.

Ma Wu felt his heart pounding wildly.

Teaching a Lust Cultivator to genuinely love someone... it's a ridiculously absurd idea.

But I feel like I've fallen in love with this woman before me.

The Emerald Serpent Vine wasn't fast, nor could it leave the area of its roots. Ma Wu and the woman had already escaped its reach.

Yet, Ma Wu kept running after her, willing to run like this for a lifetime.

「...」

A huge wild boar was pacing back and forth across the plot of land.

It was irritated. It had heard some noises and searched the entire night, yet it had failed to find any trace of the Pioneer.

Is there even any Pioneer on this land at all?

The Local Deity has deceived me.

No, it isn't deception.

He's testing me.

If I can discern that there is no Pioneer here, he'll surely appreciate me and reward me handsomely!

The wild boar wanted to leave the plot of land but, just as it reached the boundary, it caught a certain scent.

The scent of humans, a very fresh scent.

The scent wasn't far, less than a hundred meters away.

Following the scent, the wild boar eventually came upon the traces left by Li Banfeng.

Just a while ago, Li Banfeng had urinated there, then returned to his Portable Residence, leaving behind a fresh scent.

There really is a Pioneer!

I've been careless!

Where is he?

The wild boar examined the surrounding tracks. Li Banfeng's footprints suddenly disappeared. With no trees within the plot, it wasn't possible for him to climb one, which meant he must have gone underground.

This Pioneer has the skill to burrow!

At the spot where the footprints vanished, the wild boar began to dig fiercely.

PS: Who exactly did Ma Wu meet? How could he fall in love so easily?