Grandpa Train said he would take Li Banfeng out of the Inner Provinces.

Li Banfeng asked excitedly, "How are we getting out?"

"Huff, huff~"

Grandpa Train turned his head and stared at him. "The train is about to leave. Are you buying a ticket first, or paying after you board?"

Li Banfeng blinked. "Wait... weren't we just talking about ... never mind, I'll buy a ticket first."

There was no reasoning with Grandpa Train.

Li Banfeng pulled out three hundred yuan. "One sleeper berth."

Grandpa Train's face crumpled like he'd just bitten into something sour. "Do you still want to get out?"

"I do!"

"And you think you can still leave if you buy a sleeper berth?"

Is there even any connection between the two? Li Banfeng thought.

Li Banfeng pulled one bill back. "Then... I'll take a hard seat."

Grandpa Train took the money and said, "Board the train!"

Li Banfeng climbed onto Grandpa Train's back. Grandpa Train gave the whistle a sharp tug and shot forward with him. And then... he slowed to an almost ridiculous crawl.

"Dear passengers, the next stop is Ms. Wang Chunfang's dream. As everyone knows, Ms. Wang Chunfang is a very kind person. You may want to take a closer look at the scenery outside the window."

Wang Chunfang really was a kind person. The sort who smiled at strangers, spoke gently to everyone, and quietly hoped the world might be kind to her the way she had been kind to the world. Unfortunately, such things could only exist in dreams.

Her dream seemed ordinary. Just a perfectly ordinary scene. However, Grandpa Train kept nudging Li Banfeng, telling him to look outside, to pay attention, to really look.

Outside, a field of bright flowers stretched as far as the eye could see, bursting with color like something painted just a little too carefully. Then, just beyond the last row of blossoms, there was this thin black line.

On the other side of the line stood an ancient city. Beneath its walls, tens of thousands of soldiers stood in rigid formation, tense and ready for war.

"The next stop is Mr. Feng Xiqing's dream. An outstanding general, with countless military merits to his name."

Li Banfeng finally saw what Feng Xiqing looked like. He did not resemble an ancient general at all. He was dressed like an ordinary student from the Outer Provinces. Clearly, he had the dream of becoming a general.

There was another boundary line beyond the ancient city. The other side of that line was a vast ocean. In its rolling waves stood a strong, handsome man, striking down with his spear and catching a fish in one clean, perfect thrust.

The man lifted his spear high and sang at the top of his lungs, his voice rising above the wind and crashing waves.

It seemed this man had the dream of being a brave sailor. And to be fair, with that build and that skill, he already looked like one.

Grandpa Train said, "This is Mr. Lui Daping's dream. His biggest dream is to become a fish."

A fish? The main character of that dream isn't the sailor?

Li Banfeng glanced at the fish skewered on the spear and thought, I thought there are no nightmares in the Dreambinding Tower? Or perhaps being stabbed by the spear is not a nightmare for him?

They passed through more than a dozen dreams in a row. At last, Grandpa Train blew the whistle and called out, "We are about to enter a tunnel. Passengers, hold on tight and watch your safety."

Li Banfeng was just about to lower his head when the scenery around him abruptly disappeared. Everything fell away into empty nothingness once more.

Grandpa Train asked, "Did you see clearly just now?"

"I caught a glimpse of everyone's dream," Li Banfeng replied.

"I didn't tell you to look at the dreams," Grandpa Train snapped. "What's so interesting about those?"

I am not supposed to look at the dreams?

Li Banfeng thought for a moment and said, "You wanted me to look at that boundary line between the dreams?"

Grandpa Train nodded. "That's the true exit of the Dreambinding Tower. Can you break through it?"

Li Banfeng recalled how thin the boundary had been and shook his head. "That line's too narrow. I can't pass through it."

"What if I make it wider?" Grandpa Train asked. With a casual wave of his hand, a rock three meters across appeared within the dream.

He drew a black line across the rock, then wiped it with his hand. The line widened, stretching into a strip more than a foot across.

"Can you pass through here?"

Li Banfeng looked at the thickness of the rock. It was only about ten centimeters.

"With the ability Path of Unhindered Steps, I should be able to pass through."

"Try it."

Li Banfeng activated Traceless Quick Step and flashed to the rock in an instant. Then he used the Path of Unhindered Steps and charged straight into it.

Even though it was a dream, Li Banfeng felt the pain clearly. The impact nearly split his head open.

Grandpa Train stared at him in astonishment. "Is that how you have been using the Path of Unhindered Steps all this time? This is a Wanderlust Cultivation ability that is meant to pass through obstacles. It's a wall-passing ability and not a way to smash your head into one."

Li Banfeng pressed his lips together and forced a smile. "I didn't mean to hit it with my head. The ability had a slight issue just now."

The problem was likely with the dream itself.

In dreams, a person's legs would sometimes fail to produce enough strength.

It wasn't too obvious while running, but before using the Path of Unhindered Steps, he had to trigger Traceless Quick Step first, and he had clearly failed to execute that step properly just now.

Grandpa Train made the rock even thinner. "Try again."

Li Banfeng charged at the wall once more. This time, he didn't slam into it. He could already tell that he was going to fail.

Grandpa Train made the rock even thinner. "Try again."

He tried again, but it still didn't work.

Grandpa Train stopped adjusting the rock. He looked at Li Banfeng and shook his head. "You should stop trying to leave and just stay here with me. Deep down, you don't really want to get out."

Li Banfeng's expression turned serious. "That's not true. This is a dream. I can't use my strength properly here."

"It's true that it's hard to exert strength in a dream, but you weren't using any strength at all. The way you moved just now didn't look like someone trying to escape. You looked more like a rickshaw puller!"

Li Banfeng answered honestly, "I really did learn these steps from a rickshaw puller."

"When you run, your thighs drive your calves. That kind of movement gives you endurance, but it's far too slow.

"If you want to escape the Inner Provinces, then your footwork has to be like a soldier charging into battle. Your heel should always feel as though it's just one line ahead of a bottomless abyss. If you're even the slightest bit slow, you'll fall in and be shattered to pieces. Understand?"

Li Banfeng shook his head. "Not really."

He really did not understand.

Ever since arriving in Puluo Province, he had always relied on the speed advantage of a Wanderlust Cultivator. This was the first time anyone had told him he was too slow.

Grandpa Train frowned. "You are at level five, right?"

"I just reached it."

"Do you know how to use a level-five ability?"

"Passing Flowers on Horseback. I have heard of it, but I have never used it. I heard that ability is not good."

"Who said it's not good?"

"Since it's a level-five ability, it consumes too much energy. With my current cultivation, I can only kill a Bleater. It's not worth it."

Grandpa Train's brows shot up as he stared at Li Banfeng. "That's because you are using it wrong. Let me show you once. I promise you that you will bloom, and it will be a beautiful bloom!" 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"No blooming!" Li Banfeng refused without hesitation. "Elder Brother, please just give me a hint. What does the footwork of charging into the front lines look like?"

Grandpa Train tapped the ground with his toe and instantly passed through the stone slab. "Do you understand?"

It would be a miracle if he could understand that.

Grandpa Train didn't bother explaining. Instead, he simply stepped forward, his foot tapping the ground, and slipped straight through the stone slab as if it weren't there at all. Then he stepped back through it again.

"See?" he said. "I come through. I go back. I blow the whistle. I let off steam. Do you get it now?"

Li Banfeng stared. At first, it just looked ridiculous. But after watching him go back and forth a few more times, something began to click.

The toes moved first. Then the foot followed. Then the ankle, the calf, the thigh... each part pulling the next along in a strange, backward chain. It was the exact opposite of how he usually moved.

Grandpa Train pointed at the rock. "Try it!"

Li Banfeng got up, took two steps, and immediately fell to the ground.

My limbs feel completely out of sync, like they belonged to someone else. I can't even walk properly like this, let alone use an ability.

Grandpa Train gave him a sidelong glance and tugged the whistle cord. "Toot, tooooooot~ The train is departing. Passenger, please board."

"Board what train!" Li Banfeng, feeling irritated and angry, snapped. "I haven't even mastered the footwork. How am I supposed to get out?"

Grandpa Train's expression changed. His eyes sharpened, cold and focused, and a chill ran straight down Li Banfeng's spine.

"You are still thinking of leaving?" he said.

So is this what it feels like... that terrifying focus behind Passing Flowers on Horseback.

Grandpa Train blew the whistle again, the sound echoing oddly in the empty space. "They can't see me right now," he said. "But they will come looking soon enough. And when they do... Where exactly do you think you will run?

"On a battlefield, one step too slow, and you are crushed. No second chances. Do you understand?"

Li Banfeng stood up, lowered the brim of his hat, and charged toward the rock again.

For a split second, a memory flashed through his mind. The valley. The scene of Qiu Luoye chasing him. If he had been even a step slower back then, he would truly have been crushed to pieces.

Bang!

When Li Banfeng was about to reach the rock, he stumbled and fell.

Grandpa Train shook his head. "Still not fast enough. Not even close."

Li Banfeng pushed himself up and charged forward again.

Bang!

This time, he made it right up to the rock, but before he could perform the ability, he slammed straight into the slab.

Grandpa Train patted the stone slab as if checking on an injured pet and said, "You have been slamming into it so many times, it's starting to crack."

Li Banfeng snapped, "Why are you worrying about a rock?"

***

In that endless emptiness, time had no meaning at all. Li Banfeng tried again and again, losing count of how many times he had failed. By the time he finally succeeded, he was battered, bruised, and completely worn out.

He did not know whether he was truly injured. After all, this was a dream.

He had only succeeded once and wanted to practice two more times, but Grandpa Train suddenly sensed something was off. Without hesitation, he hoisted Li Banfeng onto his back and dashed once more into the wild expanse where dreams intertwined.

"They might be sending people soon. Let's talk somewhere else."

They wandered across the wilderness for what felt like ages, drifting through one dream after another, each more fleeting than the last. Just when it began to feel endless, Grandpa Train gave the whistle another sharp pull.

"Passengers," he announced, "the train is about to pass through a tunnel. Please sit tight and hold on."

A moment later, everything shifted, and the two of them stepped back into that boundless, empty expanse.

Grandpa Train asked, "Do you remember where the boundary line is?"

Li Banfeng rolled his shoulders, loosening up as if preparing for another round.

"I remember," he said. "Let's try it a couple more times."

Grandpa Train shook his head. "No time. They are about to find us. They can't do much to me, but I am not sure what will happen to you.

"We will set off again in a moment. The instant you see a chance, rush out. If you can break through the gap between dreams, it means your body is still in Puluo Province.

"If you pass through and end up inside another dream... Then there is nothing we can do. You won't be able to leave."

Li Banfeng was very worried. "Then how do I know? After I get out, how do I tell if I am really in Puluo Province... or still dreaming?"

Grandpa Train let out a short laugh. "You are my brother. And you are worried you won't be able to tell?"

As they spoke, faint rustling sounds reached their ears.

Li Banfeng shouted, "Who's there?"

The rustling sound stopped abruptly. Grandpa Train's expression darkened. "A dog has come."

"A dog?" Li Banfeng called out again. "What dog?"

There was no response.

Grandpa Train said, "A dog that wants to become a land deity!"

Li Banfeng shot him a look. "Isn't that a bit much? Calling a land deity a dog like that?"

"What's wrong with it?" Grandpa Train sneered. "Listen carefully. If you make it back to Puluo Province, don't take any pills. Rest for a couple of days. You have been running around the Inner Provinces for far too long. Your cultivation will likely rise when you return, but your body might not be able to handle it."

Li Banfeng blinked in surprise. "I entered the Inner Provinces in a dream, and my cultivation can still increase?"

Grandpa Train gave a short laugh. "For Wanderlust Cultivators, once we have reached a certain level, we no longer walk on solid ground. The level-six ability is called Severing Paths to Forge a Way. Severing Paths to Forge a Way means exactly what it says. Cut the path if it's there. Create one if it isn't. Everything depends on your will."

Li Banfeng frowned. "I have only just reached level five. Isn't it too early to learn a level-six ability?"

"Not early at all."

As they spoke, the rustling sound rose again.

Grandpa Train snapped, "Get on the train. I will beat the dog. You will only get one chance, so don't mess it up!"

Author's Note:

PS: Why is Grandpa Train helping Li Banfeng so much?