Kid, you're awake?

"Kid, you're awake?"

"What's your name?"

An aged voice awakened the young man lying on the bed.

The young man's gaze was dull, his eyes filled with confusion: "I... I'm Li Yan, where is this?"

Looking around, he seemed to be in an old mansion, damp and cold, the air permeated with a musty smell.

Opening the quilt, the biting chill stung him, making him shiver.

He remembered.

Li Yan remembered.

He recalled attending a Hanfu enthusiasts gathering and accidentally falling off a cliff while hiking.

This was the last memory he had before losing consciousness.

Dazed, Li Yan looked to his right and saw a person standing by his bed.

Upon closer inspection.

The Daoist in front of him was an old man wearing a Daoist robe. His complexion was pale and gray, half of his right ear was missing, and his cloudy eyes were bloodshot, always carrying a sinister scrutiny when looking at people.

No matter how you looked at him, this Daoist didn't seem like a normal person...

Li Yan suppressed his discomfort and asked, "Old Daoist, my phone seems to be missing. Can you help me make a call home?"

Upon hearing this, a look of surprise flashed in the old Daoist's eyes.

He repeatedly shook his head: "It seems he developed hysteria from the fall off the mountain and is starting to talk nonsense."

"It's alright, this humble Daoist has pills to treat head ailments."

With that, the old Daoist took out a medicine gourd and poured out a scarlet pill from it.

"Here, take this pill, and it will suppress the hysteria in your mind."

When the old Daoist brought the pill to Li Yan, he frowned. Something was very wrong with this pill.

The pill was pulsating like a heart, with red light flashing from time to time, and he could see what looked like insect egg embryos inside.

This was a pill?

It looked like apple snail eggs!

Li Yan shook his head repeatedly and refused, "No need, Daoist!"

However, the cross-eyed, split-eared old Daoist pressed closer, bringing the pulsating pill to Li Yan's mouth.

"Kid, would I harm you?"

"Those wild words you just said, it's clear you're seriously ill. Take your medicine quickly."

With a whoosh!

The old Daoist's horsetail whisk seemed to come alive, and thousands of fine strands flew out, trapping Li Yan firmly.

The old Daoist with yellow teeth let out a series of low chuckles.

"I'm doing this all for your own good. Be a good boy and take your medicine."

Li Yan's eyes widened. He wasn't sick, he didn't need to take medicine!

Seeing Li Yan clenching his teeth, the old Daoist simply used an acupressure technique on his face, instantly opening his mouth, and the red pill was stuffed into Li Yan's mouth.

"Ugh!"

The moment the pill entered his mouth, Li Yan could clearly feel it pulsating and wriggling, probing into his throat.

There was definitely something wrong with this pill!

Once the insect egg hatched in his body, he, Li Yan, would become a living corpse controlled by parasites.

It was over...

Just as his heart rate accelerated and his breathing became rapid.

[Detected host has consumed a pill with strong side effects - Low-grade Blood Egg Pill!]

[Congratulations to host for awakening the 'Side Effect Collection System'.]

[The host is not only immune to all side effects, but can also collect the side effects and use them for their own benefit!]

When this voice sounded in his mind, Li Yan's body shook, and then he slowly calmed down.

Had he transmigrated? He had actually awakened a golden finger at this time.

Not only was he immune to side effects, but he could also turn them into his own skills?

This made Li Yan, who had read many web novels, immediately realize something.

He stopped struggling, and his expression gradually returned to calm.

Seeing this, the smile on the old Daoist's face became even more sinister: "Hehehe, it seems the pill I refined is working."

"Kid, how do you feel?"

Looking at the 'cross-eyed, split-eared' smiling old Taoist in front of him, Li Yan realized that he was no match for him.

The world he was in should be one where cultivators existed.

A wise man doesn't fight when the odds are against him. Before figuring out the situation, Li Yan decided to play it safe.

"Taoist priest, I feel much better."

The old Taoist grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth that emitted a foul odor.

"Little one, stay in the temple and recuperate in peace, hehehe."

As Li Yan watched him leave the room, the old Taoist muttered to himself, saying strange things.

Once the sound faded away, Li Yan let out a long breath.

But soon, he felt something strange in his stomach.

That Low-grade Blood Egg Pill was slowly wriggling inside him, crawling into his Dantian.

He could clearly feel that thing moving around in his stomach, and the feeling was creepy.

Just then, the system's voice sounded again.

[Low-grade Blood Egg Pill has hatched in your body]

[Low-grade Blood Egg Pill effects: Can suppress nerve excitement, restore calmness, better condense Blood Qi, and enter the Blood Condensation Realm faster.]

[Side effect: While the Blood Egg helps the host cultivate, it will continuously absorb the host's Blood Qi.]

[Immunizing you against the side effects, eliminating parasites, and converting the side effects...]

[Host has gained a new ability - Blood Qi Steal: Level 1.]

[Blood Qi Steal: When the target's strength is not higher than one major realm, you can silently steal the Blood Qi of cultivators within ten steps.]

This?!

Li Yan raised his hand, feeling a strange power within him.

Just then, footsteps sounded outside the door, and a young disciple with a pale face and dark circles under his eyes walked in.

He was carrying food in his hands and a wooden tag hanging from his waist.

The wooden plaque was inscribed with the words [Labor Disciple · Ming Che], probably a Labor Disciple in this temple.

While he was thinking, the other party threw a wooden牌牌 over.

This is your identity plaque. From today onwards, you are a Guest Diner of our Jingxu Temple.

Li Yan took the wooden sign and looked at it. His wooden sign read [Guest Diner].

The other party placed the food on the table and said to himself, "Master asked me to tell you the rules of Jingxu Temple."

"You are not allowed to walk around freely during the day. You can only move around in this Stone Workshop Eatery."

"You must return to your room at night. There is a curfew in Jingxu Temple."

Hearing these rules, Li Yan felt even more that this place was definitely not a proper temple.

His ID badge said Guest Diner, which sounded like he was here to eat at the temple.

But who was eating whom? This Guest Diner identity... it was like being livestock kept in the Stone Workshop Eatery.

At this moment, Senior Brother Ming Che's mouth turned up, making a suggestive gesture.

"Do you have any silver?"

Li Yan showed a puzzled expression: "Senior Brother, what do you mean?"

"What else could it mean? It means I want you to show some appreciation."

As he spoke, Senior Brother Ming Che placed two bowls of rice on the table.

"If you give me money, you can eat white rice."

"If you don't have money, then I'll have to give you this to eat."

On the table were two bowls of rice, one with normal rice.

And the other bowl was full of wriggling insect eggs.

Senior Brother Ming Che's eyes were greedy, staring straight at the gold necklace on Li Yan's neck.