Chapter 2

Bang!

Closing the door, Wu Tao collapsed on the bed like a dead dog.

Memories from his past and present life shuttled back and forth in his mind, intertwining into a dense web of frustration, injustice, pain, and unwillingness, suffocating him.

The more he thought, the angrier he became.

"Damn it, I won't take it anymore. To hell with compromise, I want to live my life to the fullest, I want to settle scores." The pent-up emotions from years of suppression burst forth. Wu Tao got up and punched the hardwood bed, a natural and fluid motion.

"Ouch!"

The result was that Wu Tao winced in pain.

After venting, Wu Tao's emotions quickly stabilized.

He needed to accept the reality of his穿越 (穿越 means "穿越" in Chinese, which can be translated as "穿越" in English, but in this context, it means "reincarnation" or "transmigration").

He also needed to face the upcoming challenges.

Wang Guan's actions had cut off all his means of survival. What could he do? In the rule of law in his previous life, he couldn't do anything, let alone in this world governed by immortal sects.

Without the compensation for the curse or the exorcism talisman, he would surely die in three months.

Wu Tao pondered, his gaze fixed on the flickering candle flame. The flame was small but burned with all its might, and it seemed to light up his eyes as well.

"This is a world where one can cultivate immortality; there must be hope. Did I face fewer setbacks in my previous life? I still stood firm. Yes, cultivation is hope. I can't easily fulfill others' wishes. Wang Guan, my twenty spirit stones will be stored with you until I come back to claim them."

"Leave the mine quickly to avoid Wang Guan's assassination attempt."

With this in mind, Wu Tao immediately took action, starting to pack the original owner's belongings.

Following his memory, he quickly gathered all the items left by the original owner.

Five low-grade spirit stones.

Twenty-five fragments of spirit stones.

In the world of cultivators, spirit stones were the universal currency.

One hundred low-grade spirit stones could be exchanged for one mid-grade spirit stone,

One hundred mid-grade spirit stones could be exchanged for one high-grade spirit stone.

As for the fragments of spirit stones, they were made from the waste or cut-offs of spirit stones. One hundred fragments could be exchanged for one low-grade spirit stone, but no one would be foolish enough to use low-grade spirit stones for this. They were typically used to buy daily necessities like clothes and food.

There were three cultivation books.

"The Three Yang Technique: Qi Refinement Chapter" was the main cultivation technique of the original owner; "Methods for Refining a Low-Grade First-Rank Robe and Five Seals"; "Five Basic Spells".

There were also two books on social conduct.

"How to Maintain an Attitude When Facing Disciples of Immortal Sects"; "The Art of Communicating with Cultivators More Powerful Than Yourself".

These last two books clearly showed the strong survival instinct of low-level cultivators in this world.

Twenty practice spirit boards for seal exercises, which the original owner used to practice refining seals.

Seven starfire stones.

Two pounds of first-rank low-grade demon silk.

One iron sword.

A set of spare clothes.

These were all the things the original owner left for Wu Tao.

Packing them into a bundle, Wu Tao left the mine where he had spent ten years, only to end up with nothing, like a defeated dog, with little time left.

Indeed, as they say in the modern world, working hard all your life can leave you with nothing, and in old age, you might even end up in the ICU.

Leaving the mine area, Wu Tao found a place to hide.

An hour later, seeing no one come to kill him, he couldn't help but mock himself: "I'm just a lowly cultivator, a dying man, why would Wang Guan care?"

He thought Wang Guan would come to finish him off, but he wasn't worth the effort. Let him die on his own, and even if he survived by chance, what could a lowly cultivator do?

After mocking himself, Wu Tao set off towards the mountain.

He needed to reach the cultivation city before nightfall, as it was unsafe in the wild at night.

...

At dusk.

Wu Tao looked up at a real estate agency called "Anju Immortal Residence Agency," pulled his hood over his head, and walked in.

A real estate manager in a professional robe was sitting behind the counter, clicking away on an abacus and muttering to himself. Seeing a customer, he looked up and asked, "Fellow Daoist, are you here to rent a room?"

Completely lacking in service attitude.

Wu Tao nodded and politely said, "Greetings, Manager. I need a single room."

The manager picked up a file and flipped through it casually. "Let me see. There's a single room in the Green Robe Alley of the Western Outer City. It has complete facilities, soundproofing, anti-spying, and lighting arrays. It costs six low-grade spirit stones per month, with a three-month deposit and one-month rent."

Wu Tao's lips twitched, and he bowed with a smile. "Is there anything cheaper? The soundproofing and other arrays are not necessary."

This Five Spirit Cultivation City was jointly built by Five Springs Mountain and Green Spirit Sect, divided into eastern and western sections. He had come to the western section, which belonged to Five Springs Mountain.

To be precise, it was the Western Outer City, built outside the city walls by the disciples of Five Springs Mountain to provide safe housing for independent cultivators, protecting them from wild beasts. At some point, the sect disciples became lazy and outsourced the management to small cultivation forces.

These small cultivation forces installed various cheap arrays, and the rent skyrocketed.

The manager glanced at Wu Tao and said, "The cheaper ones are all in the outermost areas, where safety is not as good as in the inner areas. Have you thought it through?"

"I have thought it through."

"There's a single room in Xin De Alley with no facilities. It costs two low-grade spirit stones per month, with a three-month deposit and one-month rent. There's a ten-fragment spirit stone night soil fee, a two-fragment spirit stone street cleaning fee, and a three-fragment spirit stone identity card management fee."

So many miscellaneous fees. Wu Tao sighed and smiled. "Can it be a one-month deposit and one-month rent?"

"You say you..."

An hour later, in Xin De Alley, Wu Tao looked at his future home.

A single room of about ten square meters, including a washroom but no toilet. He had to carry a chamber pot to a designated collection point every day to dispose of his waste.

Against the wall was a hardwood bed and an old square wooden table, covered in grooves, a testament to the passage of time. There was nothing else.

"Too difficult!"

Wu Tao couldn't help but sigh, taking out his last spirit stone. After much persuasion, he finally convinced the manager to give him a one-month grace period, allowing him to rent the room with a one-month deposit and one-month rent.

"After one month, I need to pay six spirit stones. It's too hard for independent cultivators. No wonder the original owner went to work in the mine; at least the rent wasn't so high."

After a day of travel, Wu Tao was famished. Cultivators in the Qi Refinement stage had not yet achieved complete fasting and still needed to eat, drink, and use the bathroom. However, cultivators ate special spirit rice grown by spirit farmers and meat from specially raised spirit beasts, which helped with cultivation.

Wu Tao, now penniless, couldn't afford spirit rice or spirit meat. He went to the market and bought thirty pounds of ordinary rice and ten pounds of ordinary meat jerky for two fragments of spirit stones.

This would last him ten days.

After cooking a simple meal, it was already dark.

The room was dimly lit by an oil lamp, and the surroundings were quiet. At night, Wu Tao felt a strange discomfort until he heard the sound of a neighbor locking the door and leaving, which brought him back to his senses.

"The most important thing now is to survive."

Wu Tao muttered, taking out the book "Methods for Refining a Low-Grade First-Rank Robe and Five Seals" and the seal practice spirit boards. He needed spirit stones to buy an exorcism talisman to remove the curse from his body, and he could only achieve this through refining.

Under the dim light of the oil lamp, Wu Tao picked up the book and began to read.

The book described the method for refining a low-grade first-rank robe and five seals: a first-rank first-level dust-repelling seal, a first-rank first-level rain-repelling seal, a first-rank first-level cooling seal, a first-rank second-level speed-boosting seal, and a first-rank third-level spirit light shield seal.

The first three seals were for daily life and were optional for cultivators.

Only the speed-boosting seal and the spirit light shield seal had value and marketability.

The speed-boosting seal could significantly increase speed, making it the best choice for escaping, while the spirit light shield seal could trigger a layer of spirit light to defend against attacks.

Wu Tao had already integrated the original owner's memories and had a basic understanding of refining. The most important part of refining was inscribing seals, which were then inscribed onto the preliminary refined robe, making it a magical item.

Cultivators needed to refine the seals within the magical item to use it effectively.

To avoid wasting materials, refining apprentices practiced on seal practice spirit boards.

"The original owner practiced the first-rank first-level cooling seal, but his talent was so poor that he couldn't even inscribe one percent of it over the years."

"I'll give it a try."

Washing his hands.

For good luck.

Calming his mind.

Praying to all the gods and deities he knew.

"Let's start!"

Wu Tao picked up a seal practice spirit board, focused his mind, and activated the familiar Three Yang Technique, carefully controlling his spirit energy. The spirit energy acted like a knife, leaving glowing lines on the spirit board.

The lines were winding and intricate, mysterious, and interwoven...

Suddenly, a sizzle, like a short circuit, and a spark appeared on the spirit board. The lines he had drawn instantly turned black and lost their spiritual essence.

Wu Tao frowned.

"Still stuck at the original owner's level. Does this mean my talent for refining is as poor as the original owner's? My soul is different, so my talent should have changed, right?"

"Is heaven trying to destroy me?"

His heart felt dead.

Just as Wu Tao was in despair, a light suddenly appeared before his eyes, forming lines of text.

[Cultivation Panel Loading...]

[Loading Successful, Scanning Personal Information...]

[Name: Wu Tao]

[Lifespan: 25/25 (3 months remaining)]

[Realm: Qi Refinement Second Layer]

[Cultivation Technique: Three Yang Technique Qi Refinement Chapter (Second Layer): 55%]

[Spells: Fireball Spell Beginner (60%), Cleaning Spell Beginner (12%)]

[Abilities: None]

[Loading Complete, Randomly Generating Your Main Profession...]

[Randomly Generating Your Secondary Profession...]

Staring at the text before him, Wu Tao's eyes gradually came alive, a flame of hope burning brightly in his heart.

"Truly, heaven does not abandon those who strive." He looked at the professions appearing one by one, silently praying, "Refiner, refiner."

[Main Profession Generated Successfully.]

[Refiner: When you choose this profession, you often have unexpected inspiration in refining, and you will be luckier in your career than others.]

[Profession Talent Bonus: 50% (Active)]

[Profession Luck Bonus: 50% (Passive)]

"Awesome!"

[Secondary Profession Generated Successfully.]

[Melee Mage: Hey, I'm a melee mage. Are you ready to get up close and personal? Choosing this profession, your understanding of close-range spells and physical cultivation techniques will become your buff, making you luckier the harder you work. In the path of cultivation, you will be even luckier.]

[Profession Talent Bonus: 50% (Active)]

[Profession Luck Bonus: 50% (Passive)]

"Oh this..."

...