Ways to Increase His Strength

Gao Yunyi sat cross-legged on the canopy bed, his palms facing upward, his eyes half-closed, and his back straight. Like an old monk deep in meditation, he wore a calm, natural expression, as still as an ancient well.

A translucent shield of light surrounded him, a faint white radiance flowing and drifting from it, making Gao Yunyi appear all the more graceful and transcendent, with an exalted immortal bearing.

There was no automatic idle monster grinding in the game Immortal Journey, but there was a feature for entering a meditative trance.

Meditation not only slowly restored Blood Qi and Law Power, but also granted experience, though the amount gained was very low.

Even so, quite a few players left their game characters meditating in safe zones whenever they had something to do or needed to rest, just to gain that small amount of experience.

He hadn't expected the game character he had brought to ancient times to retain this feature.

The discovery delighted Gao Yunyi, and he immediately tried meditating in reality for the first time.

After all, until he found another way to gain experience, the availability of meditation truly solved his most pressing problem.

Unlike in the game, Gao Yunyi seemed to enter a profound, mysterious state while meditating.

Neither fully asleep nor fully awake, his heart was tranquil and his thoughts still, the world and the self both forgotten.

But as long as he wished, he could immediately awaken fully from this mysterious state.

Then Gao Yunyi slowly opened his eyes.

His experience had increased by 2 points.

Gao Yunyi: "..."

Gao Yunyi checked the game time on the minimap and did some calculations in his head. He arrived at a fact that left him speechless.

Meditation granted 1 experience point per hour.

He currently needed 310 experience points to gain one level, which meant that relying on meditation alone would take a full 310 hours, nearly 13 days.

Moreover, as his level rose, the experience required would multiply, and the time spent meditating would become an astronomical figure.

The thought made Gao Yunyi's scalp tingle.

At this rate, he might not even reach the Golden Core Stage before dying of old age.

Wait...

Dying of old age?

Lifespan.

Gao Yunyi suddenly perked up.

The game Immortal Journey had no lifespan mechanic. If he was now a game character, did that mean he wouldn't die of old age?

Gao Yunyi searched the game interface carefully, leaving no corner unchecked, but found no explanation or information about lifespan.

Eternal youth and immortality.

He might die if his health bar was emptied, but as long as even a single point of health remained, he would never age or die.

Gao Yunyi smiled.

If he couldn't reach the Golden Core Stage in 100 years, then he'd take 200, 300, or 500.

For an immortal, the one thing he would never lack was time.

Of course, even so, Gao Yunyi still decided to look for other ways to gain experience and level up.

He wasn't some unfeeling stone. Doing nothing but sitting in meditation day after day might be fine for a short while, but if it went on too long, he would probably go mad.

Besides, leveling up through meditation alone was far too slow. In this unfamiliar ancient world, securing his ability to survive had to be his first priority.

He was still only at level 10 in the Qi Refining Realm, with a mere 110 Qi and Blood points. Even if this were just an ordinary ancient world, a hundred ordinary people armed with weapons could probably overwhelm him by sheer numbers, though only if he didn't fight back at all.

That was to say nothing of high-martial-arts, fantasy, xianxia, and cultivation worlds.

There were only a few ways to increase one's strength in Immortal Journey: skills, pills, equipment, Law Treasures, and spirit pets.

He didn't need to worry about skills for now. He could simply spend skill points on them after leveling up.

Law Treasures were obtained either as class Law Treasures rewarded for completing sect missions, or as general-purpose Law Treasures won in draws at the game shop.

They also had a minimum level requirement of 20, the Foundation Establishment Realm, so he didn't need to consider them for now.

Spirit pets had no level requirement, but their situation was much the same: they had to be tamed in the wild or won in draws at the game shop.

He couldn't even find the entrance to the game shop now. He couldn't just tame a stray dog off the street as a spirit pet, could he?

It would be beneath him, and the dog wouldn't be much use anyway.

So he didn't need to consider them either.

That left only equipment and pills.

He had seven equipment slots in all: hat, clothes, shoes, weapon, necklace, ring, and accessory.

They were all empty now.

Besides obtaining equipment as quest rewards or drops from wild monsters, he could also make it using life skills.

The same was true of pills.

Life skills were divided into two main categories: crafting and alchemy.

Crafting was further divided into three subcategories: forging for weapons, tailoring for hats, clothes, and shoes, and fine crafting for necklaces, rings, and accessories.

But whether it was forging, tailoring, or fine crafting, two things were required: blueprints and materials.

Only with blueprints and materials could he make the corresponding equipment.

This wasn't the game. Where was he supposed to get those blueprints and materials in the real world?

So his only way to increase his strength right now was to level up. That would not only grant him skill points, but also strengthen his attributes and increase his health and Law Power.

With that thought, Gao Yunyi stopped meditating. He rose from the canopy bed, opened the door, and walked out.

Meanwhile, County Magistrate Zhang had finally managed to pacify the townspeople gathered outside the county office.

To do so, he had set aside his usual lofty bearing as county magistrate, patiently persuading them in a kind, gentle, and approachable tone. He had even personally promised numerous policies for the people's benefit before finally convincing the agitated crowd to go home.

What County Magistrate Zhang didn't know, however, was that the people hadn't left because they had been pacified. They had fled in fright.

After all, in the eyes of the people of Heyang County, their magistrate was a greedy, stingy, cruel, and muddleheaded official.

The stark contrast frightened the people into scattering like birds and beasts, fleeing in panic.

"Heavens, is that really the magistrate I know?"

"Could an immortal have swapped out his heart to make him act like this?"

"He even smiled at me just now. It made the hairs all over my body stand on end. It was terrifying."

"Let's go, hurry!"

"..."

Watching the people obediently leave one after another after his pleasant, careful persuasion, County Magistrate Zhang happily stroked his beard, a tremendous sense of accomplishment welling up in his heart.

"So this is what it feels like to be a good official. It's really quite nice."

County Magistrate Zhang seemed to have found another path that gave him a greater sense of accomplishment and satisfaction than lining his pockets and playing with his concubines.

But while he was still immersed in this inexplicable feeling, a household servant came running out of the county office in a panic.

"Master, master, the immortal has come out of his room. He says he wants to see you."

On hearing this, County Magistrate Zhang abruptly pulled several hairs from his beard. With no time to register the pain in his chin, he excitedly pressed, "Is that true?"

The servant nodded frantically.

An unusual flush immediately spread across County Magistrate Zhang's plump face. He hurriedly hitched up the hem of his official robes and rushed into the county office like a whirlwind.

Official etiquette and the dignity of a county magistrate could all be damned.

Nothing mattered more now than being summoned by the immortal.