Half a month later.
Hu Long had just walked out of a Buddhist temple, looking somewhat disappointed.
After dealing with Xue Wu's family and getting rid of the stuff in his bag and everything on his person,
he returned to his original appearance.
But after doing all that, he didn't choose to return to Huanyang City.
Instead, he followed the plan he'd made and began traveling around Nan Province in Yu State to clear his mind. That was also his excuse for being away.
Of course, this so-called sightseeing trip was only a cover.
The places he'd chosen to visit were all historic sites and ancient temples.
Naturally, he was hoping to find other sources of Source Value.
After experiencing a one-time gain of ten points of Source Value, Hu Long was no longer satisfied with slowly accumulating it by sunbathing.
Most importantly, he didn't have much time.
After downloading the Green Bag Fragment, he'd naturally learned how to read faces.
According to its records, his own face was a clear sign of misfortune, with yin energy seeping into his bones.
At this rate, the Blood Soul Guide might take effect before four years had passed.
That only made him feel more pressed for time.
Unfortunately, he'd visited more than a dozen Buddhist temples over the past half month.
He'd practically been to every famous temple and Taoist shrine in the area.
But he hadn't found anything.
This inevitably left him feeling frustrated.
Without a way to speed up his accumulation of Source Value, he couldn't download more skills and improve himself.
For him, that was no different from a slow death.
Under normal circumstances, he could have taken his time and waited. But the strange shadow inside him was like a sword hanging over his head, and he had no idea when it would fall.
Still, Hu Long understood that this sort of thing couldn't be forced.
Besides,
the matter of Xue Wu's family had finally unfolded in the direction Hu Long had anticipated after the story spread. No one had connected it to him.
At least, that was what the information he'd received indicated. It had gone more smoothly than he'd ever imagined.
Still, that wasn't impossible.
Technology was limited in this era. Even in his previous life, plenty of cases had gone unsolved.
Besides, even if someone managed to discover his identity, he didn't need to worry about being executed.
It wasn't because his original family had powerful connections or lots of money.
—it was because he was mentally ill.
As in his previous life, the mentally ill in Yu State enjoyed special protections. They simply couldn't be sentenced to death.
That was why he'd acted without hesitation.
Still, this was the first time Hu Long had killed someone in either of his lives.
It had left him feeling somewhat uncomfortable and sickened.
That was just human nature. The more intelligent a creature was, and the more human it looked, the more unsettling it was to raise a blade against it.
It was nothing like killing a dog or crushing an ant.
There was no doubt that no one in that family was a good person.
But if they hadn't tried to kill him, he wouldn't have done it.
Of course, even if he could do it all over again, Hu Long would make the same choice. He couldn't just stand by while someone tried to kill him. That wasn't who he was.
He returned to the hotel.
Hu Long reached back and shut the door.
He took something out from inside his clothes.
It was a yellowed sheepskin scroll, the Green Bag Fragment he'd taken from Xue Hai's home.
His fingertips rubbed the rough, cracked surface, but Hu Long felt nothing.
It was hardly of any use to him now.
Aside from a little information about face reading, most of what it recorded was useless to him.
He'd kept carrying it around because it could provide Source Value.
He'd always worn gloves before, so he hadn't noticed this property.
Only after taking off his gloves and touching the scroll with his fingertips had a faint, cool current seeped through his skin and into his body.
That made Hu Long realize that some sources of Source Value required direct contact to obtain.
He quietly made a note of that detail.
In the future, if he came across any strange objects, the safest bet might be to touch them first.
Missing out on Source Value would be a real loss.
He glanced at the Panel.
[Source Value: 9.91 wisps]
Aside from sunbathing, this thing had provided a full eight wisps of Source Value in dribs and drabs over this period.
As his thoughts turned, Hu Long looked down at the sheepskin scroll in his hand again.
Over the past few days, the cool current that had intermittently flowed from it had finally stopped altogether today.
Clearly, like the withered vine inside the Bodhisattva Lotus Platform, this thing was completely useless now.
Once he confirmed that there was no more Source Value to squeeze out of it,
he casually picked up a sharp pair of paper-cutting scissors from the table and cut into the sheepskin scroll.
He still couldn't open the Bodhisattva statue at Wood Buddha Temple, but he could cut into this. Besides, he'd already memorized everything written on it.
He wanted to see what the source of this Source Value really was.
The sharp snipping sound rang out particularly loudly in the silent room.
The sheepskin along the edge parted with a snap.
But when the scissors reached the scroll's innermost layer, it was like cutting into a sinew tougher than anything he'd ever seen.
No matter how hard he pressed, the seemingly thin layer wouldn't budge!
"There's definitely something strange about this!"
Hu Long's eyes narrowed. He stopped trying to force it and quickly cut along the edge instead.
After a few swift snips, he peeled away the outer layers of sheepskin.
Before long, a thin, translucent, jade-like object lay quietly in his palm.
It felt warm and smooth, with an unusual softness, like the finest silk.
But Hu Long didn't dare underestimate it.
The fact that the scissors couldn't cut through it was proof enough that it was extraordinary.
He walked to the window, slowly lifted the object before his eyes, and held it up to the sunlight shining through the glass.
The light passed through it.
He could clearly see countless tiny holes densely packed inside the jade-like material.
The holes were arranged with relative uniformity and density, and there were lines running through them.
It looked familiar.
He raised his other hand.
His gaze shifted back and forth between the two.
The next second,
Hu Long's pupils contracted slightly.
An absurd yet uncannily fitting thought surfaced in his mind, beyond his control.
"Could this thing... be human skin?"
For a moment, Hu Long felt that the object carried an indescribable, eerie quality.
But how could that be?
What kind of human skin could look like this, and be impossible to cut with scissors?
Still, when he considered where it had come from,
a thought stirred in Hu Long's mind. It wasn't entirely impossible.
"Maybe it's the skin of a supernatural being from this world. Yes, that's the only explanation that makes sense."
"But it was hidden inside the sheepskin scroll containing the Green Bag Fragment. It must have some other use."
At this thought, a look of regret flashed through Hu Long's eyes.
He touched the object, but the Primordial Plain Panel didn't respond. Clearly, he couldn't download a skill from this piece of skin.
At present, there were three possible sources of Source Value.
This piece of skin that might belong to a supernatural being, the withered root inside the Wood Buddha Lotus Platform, and sunlight. What did these three things have in common?
As he thought about it, an idea seemed to be taking shape in Hu Long's mind, but he couldn't quite grasp it.
Bzz, bzz...
Just then, a vibration came from inside his trouser leg.