Three Layers

"Did I kill someone?"

Wu Tao looked at the severed limbs and flesh in this small alley. The Gray-Clothed Loose Cultivator's upper body lay not far away, eyes wide in death, still bearing expressions of astonishment, terror, and bewilderment.

All of this was too much of a shock for Wu Tao. For a moment he stood somewhat dazed, his head muddled, not even knowing how it had happened. He picked up his spirit stone bag, along with the opponent's bundle, and in a daze conjured a fireball to burn everything clean before fleeing in panic.

Wu Tao's pace was fast. Walking on the street, he could not hear a single word spoken by the pedestrians brushing past him at all; it seemed there was only one person in the entire world.

Unknowingly, Wu Tao returned home. Activating the Sound-Proofing and Anti-Peeping Array, his back pressed against the door, fear still lingering on his face. At this very moment, he could hear his own heart beating violently with a thump, thump, thump.

Very clearly!

"I killed someone!"

He looked at his hands. Across past and present lives, this was his first time killing someone, and an uncomfortable feeling stirred in his heart. If he could, he did not want to kill anyone, but the opponent wanted to rob him of his spirit stones.

In his past life on Qidian, Wu Tao had read novels where those transmuted protagonists not only felt no guilt or discomfort after killing people, but acted as if nothing had happened.

Yet after actually killing someone himself, Wu Tao discovered that what was written in the novels was completely wrong.

As a fellow human, coupled with the nurturing of his past life's moral and world views, it was impossible for him to lack the slightest empathy or discomfort. Generating a sense of grieving for one's own kind was hardly strange.

Clutching his violently beating heart, after a long while, Wu Tao finally recovered his wits. The discomfort in his heart had already lessened considerably. He came to the table and sat down, self-warning, "It seems I haven't adapted to this world yet. This is an immortal cultivation world, ruled by immortal sects, where the fittest survive and the weak are meat for the strong. I should adapt as quickly as possible."

After some self-warning, he reviewed the events in his heart again. Everything just now had happened too fast and too suddenly; almost without thinking, he had struck in a split second, and then it was over.

"I was still too impulsive. I struck without even figuring out the other's strength. Spirit stones can be earned back once lost, but if your life is gone, everything is gone."

"However, come to think of it, the Dragon Spear Body Tempering Art combined with wind and thunder is truly formidable. With my Third Level of Qi Refining cultivation, I actually beat and killed that Fourth Level of Qi Refining rogue cultivator."

"The opponent didn't even have a chance to resist; it could be said to be a spike."

"No wonder body cultivation techniques are hailed as invincible in close combat. Actually, calculating it, my reaction wasn't bad either, and my handling was quite steady. Before striking, I activated the Wind-Speed Magic Robe and the Small Spirit Shield Robe—the Wind-Speed Magic Robe to get close to the opponent so the Dragon Spear Technique could be executed, and the Small Spirit Shield Robe to handle the opponent's attacks."

"For the first time, with zero actual combat experience, to be able to reach this point means I have talent for spell battles."

His heart stirred with a bit of excitement and joy, but he quickly realized he had unconsciously grown arrogant and immediately self-warned: "I cannot be arrogant and complacent. I am an artifact refiner who is not good at spell battles; I must keep a low profile in both person and deeds."

Afterwards, Wu Tao frowned and worriedly thought, "The West Outer City forbids rogue cultivators from fighting privately. Now that I've killed someone, will I be discovered by the Patrol Squad?"

Recalling that he seemed to have destroyed the bodies and eliminated all traces while in a daze, his heart slowly relaxed. "It should be fine, right? I'll stay at home for a few days first and wait for the storm to pass before considering going out. I can just use this time to break through to the Third Level of Qi Refining."

"Hm? Where are my spirit stones and pills?"

Wu Tao carefully recalled the scene of the incident. It seemed he had finally picked up his spirit stone bag. Searching the room for a moment, he found the spirit stone bag near the door, with a bundle beside it.

He had been too nervous when he returned, leaning against the door and dropping everything in his hands to the side without even realizing it.

Picking up the spirit stone bag and the bundle, Wu Tao sat back down in the chair. That Gray-Clothed Loose Cultivator had said he possessed a Godly Travel Talisman. Opening the bundle, he indeed saw a talisman inside.

It was precisely the Godly Travel Talisman.

It was talisman paper made from beast hide, with runes drawn in cinnabar upon it, executed in a single, continuous stroke. It possessed extreme aesthetic appeal while carrying a mysterious aura, and right in the middle were two runic characters: 'Godly Travel'.

A First-Rank Level 6 Godly Travel Talisman—once activated, it could instantly dash ten miles. If used for traveling, it could cover a thousand miles in a day.

Compared to the Lightness Talisman, it was countless times better.

This single Godly Travel Talisman was an essential item for escaping and pursuing enemies, costing over sixty Low-Grade Spirit Stones. As a First-Rank Level 6, one might feel the grade made it inexpensive, but one had to know that talismans were mostly one-time use items.

"I heard there are talisman treasures among talismans which are not one-time use and can be repeatedly used, though of course, they have a limited number of uses. They are equivalent to simplified magic tools, yet magic tools and talisman treasures each have their own merits."

"As long as a magic tool is not damaged, it can be used without limit, requiring only more spiritual power. While talisman treasures have a limited number of uses, the spiritual power required to activate them is very little, which can save a bit of spiritual power during a spell battle—and that might just be the bargaining chip for victory."

Putting the Godly Travel Talisman away, Wu Tao continued to look.

In this bundle, there were only seven Low-Grade Spirit Stones, which explained why the cultivator had taken the risk to rob Wu Tao.

Perhaps in the eyes of the Gray-Clothed Loose Cultivator, it hadn't been taking a risk at all. Judging from what he had said, he had been eyeing Wu Tao for several days, had figured out his home route completely, and even knew his identity.

In this immortal cultivation world, rogue cultivator artifact refiners were notoriously terrible at spell battles because they had no time to study spells, devoting themselves entirely to researching artifact refining.

It was precisely this inherent mindset that had cost the rogue cultivator his life.

"Viewed this way, the development strategy I formulated is correct. On the surface, I am an artifact refiner who is bad at spell battles; in reality, I am also a body cultivator, and body cultivators are invincible at close quarters."

"Before that Gray-Clothed Loose Cultivator died, I seemed to see pleasant surprise in his eyes."

Wu Tao grew even more determined to conceal his identity as a body cultivator.

The Gray-Clothed Loose Cultivator was very poor; besides some sundries, there was only a single nail in the bundle.

Wu Tao picked up that nail, feeling it looked somewhat familiar. A flash of inspiration crossed his sea of consciousness, and he suddenly understood: "Isn't this a Coffin Nail? For even a coffin nail to be carried so solemnly on his person—could there be something special about it?"

"Forget it, I'll break through to the Third Level of Qi Refining first, and then study it carefully."

Wu Tao took out the Qi Condensation Pills, came to the Cultivation Room, and prepared to cultivate.

Regulating his mindset, Wu Tao sat cross-legged on the prayer mat, banishing the very last trace of discomfort from killing a person out of his sea of consciousness. With Five Hearts Facing Heaven, he swallowed a Qi Condensation Pill into his stomach and circulated the Sanyang Technique to begin refining the pure spiritual power contained within the pill.

Three days later, Wu Tao opened his eyes. He felt the spiritual power in his dantian was already very full and only needed a tiny bit more to break through.

He swallowed another Qi Condensation Pill and began refining it.

As the Sanyang Technique circulated, wisps of spiritual power spiraled out from the pill and were subsequently guided by him into his dantian. The spiritual power within the dantian grew increasingly exuberant, and before long, it was completely sufficient.

"Break!"

Time passed bit by bit. This Qi Condensation Pill was already half-refined. Wu Tao sensed his dantian and felt inwardly that the opportunity for a breakthrough had arrived. Immediately, he chanted silently in his heart, pushing the Sanyang Technique with all his might to drive the spiritual power in his dantian forward in a surge.

The spiritual power abruptly erupted inside the dantian. With a single booming sound from the dantian, it suddenly expanded. The dantian space grew larger, the spiritual power plummeted fiercely, and in a flash, it settled to cover only the bottom of the dantian.

Following the breakthrough, spiritual power fed back into his body. Wu Tao felt his Five Senses and Six Perceptions become much sharper, and even his Divine Sense doubled in strength.

"I've finally broken through to the Third Level of Qi Refining!"

Wu Tao stood up in one long motion, unspeakable joy on his face.