Chương 37: Golden Finger (Part II)

Nascent Soul, Lucian thought, his eyes glistening. The peak of this unknown world is now in sight! Sitting down on the ground beside Xu Hua's corpse, his mood was improving as he processed the knowledge he had acquired. Previously, Xu Hua had informed him of four cultivation realms: Qi Gathering, Qi Refining, Qi Condensation, and Foundation Establishment. However, within Xu Hua's sealed memories, there was general knowledge regarding two additional realms. Core Formation and Nascent Soul, Lucian recalled.

If they were Mages, those stages would correspond to the Archmages, known as A-Tier beings, and Supreme Mages, the S-Tier. Vampires also possessed a hierarchy of strength, though in Lucian's view, there was only himself at the peak and everyone else beneath him. While his world clearly had A-Tier and S-Tier titles for vampires, he didn't care enough to remember. In Xu Hua's memories, Resonant Sea Ancestor told him she would seal his memories. It was a way of tempering his Sword Heart, Lucian thought.

But I sense there is something hidden. If a split soul had been inside him all along, why allow his daughter to die, his village to be destroyed, and, ultimately, for me to kill him? Hm, maybe that last part wasn't in her plans. She did act in the end. Of course, Lucian knew there was a possibility that the Resonant Sea Ancestor had mistaken him for another being and chose not to act before it was necessary to save Xu Hua.

Now that I recall, she didn't try to save him when I almost killed him during the Curse of Wrath, he thought, his eyes narrowing. She only acted when I threatened to devour his memories. She used a soul technique, which means she's an expert in the field. While Lucian held little regard for humans for countless reasons, he respected those powerful enough to interfere with his runes and wield formidable techniques.

For someone to be able to mess with a technique in his Sea of Consciousness was an impressive feat no matter how weakened he was. Because of how she affected the Rune of Lust, Lucian safely assumed that the Nascent Soul realm was at least close in strength to the S-Tier he was familiar with. Besides what happened to him, there were also Xu Hua's memories about her might. A mere split soul of the Resonant Sea Ancestor had annihilated hundreds of cultivators, he thought, grimacing.

In Xu Hua's sealed memories, Lucian learned that he had begged his teacher to avenge him after being crippled. After he did a few tasks and proved he could still become a Sword Master, the Resonant Sea Ancestor had rewarded him. Using her split soul, she had transported them above his sect and summoned her golden zither, pulling a few strings to create a serene melody. The melody brought a myriad of golden spheres into existence. No bigger than a fist, these projectiles fell like a hailstorm in the sect.

In a few seconds, where the sect once stood, there was nothing but a clear lake, devoid of signs of life. No trace of people, buildings, or anything else had survived a melody from the Nascent Soul cultivator. Whatever she did to me, I must deal with it as soon as possible. Lucian gritted his teeth, the sense of powerlessness he felt after waking up in this world returning. I need to cultivate! I need to gather blood!

Although Lucian did not know how to reach the Core Formation or Nascent Soul Realms, he had general knowledge of the other four previous realms. He also knew there was more than one way to cultivate. In fact, Xu Hua was taught four ways to gather Qi, each one depending on a person's talent, age, luck, or skill. If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

Most importantly, Lucian was almost sure why he couldn't deal with Qi once it entered his body when he devoured blood. I am just missing a Spiritual Root, he thought. Time to make a few experiments. Organizing his thoughts, he stood up and calmly walked out of the room. Then, covering himself with a bigger robe that Bai Xiaomeng left for him, he stepped out of the house. That girl is really perceptive, he thought, noticing his skin didn't burn because the robe covered his legs and arms nicely.

She noticed I had to use the carpet to walk under the sun, and prepared other clothing. Smart. It was obviously daytime, and not far away, he saw and heard Bai Xiaomeng and Wang Chen whispering to each other. Through his own enhanced senses, Wang Chen noticed Lucian approaching, a familiar pressure and instinctive submission settling over him. Lucian cast a glance at him, then turned his gaze toward Bai Xiaomeng.

"When you are ready to become my servant, you may serve me tea," he said before addressing Wang Chen.

"And you, Wang Chen, I will teach you the Two-Leaf breathing technique. Neither of you is a cultivator, but your current body can withstand the strain. I'm doing it so you can go stronger and get your revenge." That's a lie. I need someone to test the technique and ensure there are no hidden dangers Xu Hua was unaware of, he thought, leaving it unsaid. Wang Chen's eyes were wide in surprise. Meanwhile, Bai Xiaomeng stepped forward, cupping her hands, and asked in concern, "What about the Village Head's condition?"

"He did not make it," Lucian replied in a cold tone. Bai Xiaomeng closed her eyes for a moment, feeling a pang in her heart, and Wang Chen flinched at the bad news.

"We have more pressing matters," Lucian said.

"In a few days, Constable Mu, the one responsible for the nearby villages, will arrive."

"Oh. It makes sense." Wang Chen nodded with a frown.

"We should leave before he gets here." Bai Xiaomeng gave a pitying smile when she thought about the unknown Constable. And because of Xu Hua's memories, Lucian understood exactly why. Constable Mu was in deep shit. Having an entire village wiped out under his watch was problematic enough, but for a disciple of an official sect to be responsible for such a massacre meant the matter would need to be covered up!

What would happen if a tiny village tried to smear a righteous sect's name by saying some disciple murdered innocent people? Xu Hua had sent the young adults, teenagers, and children away, along with two grown adults to accompany them and report to the Constable. But they would not report the whole truth. Not only would they limit the casualties to a dozen, but they would also shift the blame onto a weak rogue cultivator.

As a previous cultivator himself, Xu Hua would never have dared to mention that it was a disciple of the Myriad Soul Transformations Sect, a minor sect under one of the Nine Sects, the Whispering Banyan Sect! If Xu Hua had known the corpse puppets would appear, he would have fled with the villagers and sent nobody to report instead!

But now, with fragments of corpse puppets scattered throughout the place and most of the Ganshou Village in ruins, it would be difficult to conceal such an attack or shift the blame to the rogue cultivators. Part of the reason Xu Hua didn't fight to resist his wounds was the fear that those who fled would probably be silenced once Constable Mu learned about Liu Tian's origin. Inwardly, he blamed himself for sending Xu Duan and the others to an early grave.

Given that most would want to stay away from such trouble, Bai Xiaomeng and Wang Chen were caught off guard by Lucian's next words.

"We will wait for Constable Mu here," Lucian said.

"And you, Wang Chen, will practice the breathing technique, while Bai Xiaomeng gathers supplies. Look especially for gold and Spirit Stones."

"We already have our supplies in the bag. We also spent one week looking for valuables here," Bai Xiaomeng said, biting her lip so as not to question his first order.

"You didn't gather everything." Lucian shook his head.

"I believe you didn't find the village's hidden stash." Without waiting for their response, Lucian walked southwest, toward a broken house. In Xu Hua's memories, it had belonged to a tailor, an elderly widow who preferred solitude and disliked being disturbed.

More importantly, as she had no close ties and few visitors beyond minor tailoring requests, Xu Hua had arranged for his adopted son, Xu Duan, to assist her with daily needs in exchange for storing his old belongings there, along with whatever the villagers gathered and wanted to safekeep.

Resonant Sea Ancestor had not provided him with money or Spirit Stones, but as a former disciple of a low-grade sect and a Young Master of Peacock Mountain, which was basically a mid-grade force, Xu Hua had his own methods of acquiring wealth. Adding what we have to this hidden stash, it would be more or less one hundred Gray Spirit Stones and twenty Jade Spirit Stones, Lucian thought, pleased with his gains. His mind raced as he planned how to use this sum to pave his path toward the peak of this world.