Perception

Feeling the changes in his body, a trace of a smile appeared at the corner of Hu Long's mouth.

It seemed his strength had increased significantly once again.

After downloading Innate Divine Strength previously, he had sought out a training gym to test it.

His limit strength had reached over 1,700 jin.

This meant the 1,000 jin inherent to Innate Divine Strength had been added directly onto his own.

This was also the reason why he had been able to lift the 1,200-jin Deer Cauldron with such ease during the Ancestral Rite.

And now, his strength had reached at least 2,000 jin.

Such power was terrifying; a single punch could easily shatter a person's skull.

At this very moment, he felt he had found his purpose in life.

If, before this, Hu Long had only wanted to survive, things were different now; he not only wanted to live, but to become stronger.

To see the scenery from even greater heights.

Humans are, by nature, creatures that never know satisfaction; once they have something good, they want something better.

Such is human nature.

But precisely because of this, humanity possesses the drive to keep moving forward.

Thinking this, Hu Long walked into the bathroom.

A bathtub on one side of the room was steaming.

However, it was not filled with water.

It was filled with a black liquid that nonetheless carried a faint, herbal fragrance.

Hu Long stripped off his only pair of trousers and stepped naked into the tub.

Hiss!

The moment his skin touched the black water, Hu Long's face twitched as if his entire body were being scorched by burning oil.

Intense pain surged in from every pore of his body.

This black liquid was the Black Stone Secret Medicine used for practicing the Mountain Standing Stake.

It was decocted from various precious medicinal ingredients.

Hu Long did not know exactly what was in it, only that it was an essential secret medicine to accompany the Mountain Standing Stake.

If one practiced without the secret medicine, long-term training in stake techniques—even if it produced internal force—would cause irreparable damage to the body's bones and organs.

The effects of this stuff were indeed excellent; after soaking, the soreness in his body would be swept away.

The only drawback was that the initial stage of soaking was agonizing, like being burned by fire.

No matter how many times he tried it, the sensation still made him want to leap out of the tub immediately.

Hu Long took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and ignored it.

He submerged his entire body, leaving only his face above the water to breathe.

At the same time, he began to circulate the Earth Vein Breathing Method recorded in the Mountain Standing Stake, inhaling and exhaling at a specific frequency.

Before long, the intense pain subsided slightly, replaced by a tingling, numb sensation.

It was a feeling of painful pleasure.

Ten minutes later, the tingling, burning sensation vanished.

Hu Long stood up.

The black liquid in the tub seemed to have faded slightly.

He paid it no mind.

He stood up and rinsed off the remaining black liquid from his body.

After showering and changing into his pajamas, ding-dong!

Just then, the phone placed to the side chimed, and the screen lit up.

Hu Long picked it up and swept his gaze over it.

It was a news notification about a homicide.

Back when he had slaughtered Xue Wu's family, Hu Long had kept an eye on the news for a few days.

This was likely a big data push.

Thinking of this.

He glanced over it.

[...The murderer surnamed Wang, who once committed a shocking bloodbath and carried eleven lives on his conscience, was recently found dead in his rented apartment.

The police issued a bulletin today; following on-site investigation and forensic examination, it has been confirmed that Wang died by homicide.

Currently, the police have established a special task force and are conducting a comprehensive investigation into the case, as well as an in-depth screening of Wang's social connections and background.]

Below the report was a photo of the deceased.

Seeing this.

Hu Long's expression tightened.

If it were just an ordinary victim, it would be one thing.

Hu Long naturally wouldn't have such a reaction.

The reason he felt this way was simply because he was very familiar with the deceased; it was none other than the identity he had borrowed and disguised himself as to slaughter Xue Wu's family: Wang Ting.

If an ordinary person saw this, they would only think it was a coincidence.

But Hu Long, knowing the inside story, immediately associated it with many things.

He could not rule out the possibility that the man had been tracked down by an enemy for revenge.

After all, the man had quite a few murders on his record, any one of which was enough to warrant execution, and he had plenty of enemies.

However, compared to that.

Hu Long was more inclined toward another possibility.

"Could it be the Pure Fire Sect?"

"If it is, could it be for that Green Bag Fragment..."

Hu Long's eyes flickered.

He had not forgotten that Liu was the one who stole that item before hiding her identity in Wulin Village.

The Pure Fire Sect, that cult which had mastered the Old Arts.

To have survived the encirclement and suppression by the Yu State authorities, one didn't need to think hard to know their strength was absolutely formidable.

There were definitely transcendents among them.

If that were truly the case, if they couldn't find him, would they lock their target onto his family?

After all, because of Hu Zhao, Xue Wu had been openly very close to his family.

According to the logic of such a cult, they would rather kill the wrong person than let one go.

Thinking of this.

He looked at the mirror on the wall.

The mirror reflected a face with sharp, angular features.

Short hair, high brow bones, three-dimensional facial features, and calm eyes.

The muscle lines of his trapezius from his neck to his shoulders bulged slightly, giving off a faint sense of oppression at a single glance.

Compared to when he first arrived in this world, it was a world of difference; no matter who looked at him, they would never imagine this was the same person.

However, that was not what Hu Long cared about.

He cast his gaze to the side.

Behind him was a wall, with nothing there.

He shifted his figure, changing his angle.

Soon.

He discovered a familiar dark green figure standing quietly beside the door frame behind him.

It seemed closer than before.

Its body was not completely turned away from him, but slightly angled toward him.

At this moment, following his gaze.

That ghost thing seemed to begin moving.

Seeing this, Hu Long immediately withdrew his gaze and left the bathroom.

"Reaching the Body Casting Realm is still useless; it seems I must break through to Skin Grinding."

Hu Long's brows knitted together.

The existence of this eerie silhouette was like a Sword of Damocles, hanging over his head, ready to fall at any moment.

It spurred him to constantly grow stronger.

"Moreover, the stronger my strength becomes, the closer this ghost of a thing seems to get, and the faster the erosion progresses. No, the threat has indeed increased, but perhaps that is also because my perception has become sharper..."

Hu Long's eyes flickered.

"As of now, there are only two ways to solve the problem plaguing me. Either I continue to increase my strength, reaching Skin Grinding, or even the stronger Blood Exchange or Origin Pellet stages. Or, I obtain the remaining parts of the Green Bag Fragment from the remnants of the Pure Fire Sect to thoroughly resolve this issue."

Hu Long did not believe that the Blood Soul Guide was unsolvable.

It was likely because the Green Bag Fragment was too incomplete; since this thing originated from the Pure Fire Sect, there was a high probability that a solution existed within it.

"However, strictly speaking, this is only one problem. If my strength is insufficient, encountering the Pure Fire Sect would still mean certain death..."

Thinking of this, Hu Long glanced at his Source Value.

[Source Value: 2.16 strands]

The method of absorbing Source Value by basking in the sun was far too slow.

Under normal circumstances, even if every day were perfectly sunny, he would only accumulate three strands of Source Value in a month.

Even if he traveled to a place of polar day and basked twenty-four hours a day, he would only gain six strands a month.

He could not wait that long.

He had to make preparations as soon as possible.

It was just a pity; he had originally wanted to rely on his own efforts to cultivate.

But reality simply did not grant him the time to cultivate through hard work alone.

It seemed that now, he had no choice but to use the Primordial Plain Panel to assist himself.