City Visit

Zhen Yinglong

Shit, who would have thought that one of those fuckers I devoured was a nephew of an elder? And from what I hear, the elder is looking for him. No wonder he was so arrogant. I'm on edge, knowing that if anyone links this to me, I'm finished. Fuck! Think, think! What can I do...

It seems I'll have to resort to something I truly despise—I'll need to use his identity. It's a family technique that allows me to take on the form of those I've devoured, but the sensation is so revolting that I can barely stand it for more than 5-10 minutes. It's like submerging yourself in a cesspool on a scorching day, and you have to breathe in the stench. It's an utterly disgusting technique.

I need to figure out a way to ensure his disappearance isn't linked to me. First, I'll need to get out of here and stay out of sight for a while. Everyone knows he was pursuing me before he vanished, and if he's missing, they'll start questioning everyone who might know something. I'll have to lay low, maybe in the outer circle, and avoid attracting attention.

Considering that people have already come asking if I've seen that idiot, it's only a matter of time before they start searching thoroughly, trying to piece everything together, and they might find a trail leading to me. Damn it! Bloody Fucking hell!

I needed to come up with a way to clear suspicion from myself. A long and complicated mission would be the perfect cover to leave for an extended period.

I could then appear somewhere with his face, maybe even take on a mission and head to a "dangerous" region, and use a teleportation array to vanish. If done swiftly, this might just work.

First, I needed to decide where to hide. I had no real desire to embark on an actual long mission. The upcoming auction was rumored to be unprecedented, and missing it was not an option. I hated unnecessary travel, and long-distance missions were usually mind-numbingly dull: a week to get there, find and kill the target, and a week back. Plus, it would be impossible to train or cultivate properly on the road. Though, on the bright side, the number of thrill-seekers in dangerous areas who might come after me was big, and I can devour them. 

I would take a mission and leave for the outer circle, hide there, and then come back under the guise of that damned nephew. I'd take a mission, make a scene, use a portal to escape, and then find a good place to lay low. There wasn't much time to waste.

Entering the mission hall, I put on a show of complaining about the lack of decent missions. After some loud complaints, I picked a long-distance mission, ensuring I was seen taking it and leaving the building. Summoning my cloud and hopping on, I flew off towards the mission's destination.

Once I reached a safe distance from the inner circle and entered the outer circle, I decided to take a stroll through the central city of the outer circle. I wanted to visit the library there. It had become a habit of mine to go through their catalog, occasionally finding unappreciated treasures. In fact, about half of the techniques I used were discovered this way.

To avoid drawing attention, I changed my attire, bound my chest, and wore a mask. Now, I looked just like any other disciple of the outer circle.

Xia Tao

The idea of combining other energies with spiritual energy intrigued Mei so much that she decided not to delay and flew off immediately to buy a soul technique. I insisted on accompanying her, as I had never been to the central city of the outer circle. We boarded Mei's cloud and took off. Damn, I really need to learn this cloud technique—it's incredibly fast.

After about an hour and a half, we arrived at what they called a city. It was peculiar, more of a small outpost on a hill, with a few main streets lined with various shops and establishments. As we approached the "city," we slowed down, and Mei explained what could be found here and which items were particularly useful. The more I saw of this city, the less I liked it. It was clean and well-maintained, but after being on our mountain, I realized I wouldn't want to spend much time here. There were too many people, too many shops, and no sense of coziness. It felt purely like a business district.

We descended and decided to walk to the library. Strolling along the street, I enjoyed the rare moment of just walking around—something we hadn't done in a long time. It was pleasant.

"Mei, have you been to the local library before?" I asked as we approached the building.

"Yes, Master. It has a vast collection of various techniques. I've rented some of them, though it was quite expensive and required a vow to share them only with our mountain's disciples."

"I'm thinking of looking for a technique that might help me develop a second stream of consciousness. The further I go, the more I realize I need to study, master, and ponder simultaneously. I've heard such techniques exist," I said thoughtfully.

"Master, I've looked into this before. It's something that interests me too, but I'm afraid you won't find it here. From what I know, developing a second stream of consciousness is best done when you start cultivating your soul. I've never heard of such techniques being available here, especially in the outer circle. There are some soul skills, but not cultivation techniques for the soul. Maybe something will come up during the auction—it's supposed to be quite special this time" Mei explained.

Listening to Mei, my enthusiasm waned with each word. It was disappointing. We quickly rented a soul technique, primarily to understand the mechanism of soul energy manipulation. Mei would document the details herself. As we left the library, I asked.

"How about we go for a walk to the Love Mountain? I just want to stroll with you. We've been all about training lately, and it's been a while since we relaxed and enjoyed a walk" I suggested.

"As you wish, Master" Mei replied, blushing slightly. It was endearing. Spending quality time with girls was just as important as training or cultivation, after all.

As we prepared to leave and Mei summoned the cloud, a masked disciple approached us.

"Hello?" he greeted me.

I looked at him, puzzled, and jumped onto the cloud. "Hello, what do you want?" My mind was already on the place where Mei and I would go.

Zhen Yinglong

So, it's that guy who saved us back then. The one who didn't even bother to ask my name. Bastard. Alright, I'll give him a second chance and greet him.

"Hello?" I said. He looked at me like I was an idiot and jumped onto his cloud.

"Hello, what do you want?" he asked. Then I realized, damn, I'm wearing a mask. Of course, he didn't recognize me.

Quickly lifting my mask so he could see my face and recognize me, I said, "Oh, it's me! Hello!" Already anticipating a barrage of questions, I heard him say, "Oh, it's you. Well, goodbye!"

In his eyes, there wasn't even a flicker of recognition. Turning to the girl next to him, he continued, "Alright, Mei, let's get out of here. That guy is weirdo, to hell with him."

Guy!? Guy, damn it! You bastard! How can you not recognize me? I'm the only one in this entire sect with this skin tone! I'll show you! Just as I was about to let him have it, they flew away. Fuck!!!

The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. Damn it, I went to the library! All the excitement of finding something useful in the library vanished.

You clueless, arrogant prick! I hope you trip and fall into a pit of spikes! May your cultivation crumble and your dantian rot, you worthless piece of shit! Next time I see you, I'll shove my foot so far up your ass you'll be coughing up my boot! Unbelievable, calling me a guy! You blind, brainless moron!

I fumed with anger!

I decided to proceed with the second part of my plan. Forget the library now! Damn, he called me a guy! 

The second part of the plan went better than ever. Being on edge made it easier to impersonate that wretch, and I even managed to injure another idiot who happened to get in my way.