The Eastern Continent

Grrrr!

Ying stomach rumbled avariciously, causing his face to turn beet red as practically everyone in the room heard his 'call of the wild'.

Really, he had done his best to hide his desires, but it seemed the universe had other plans for Ying…

Then again, when had it ever not?

'Control yourself, you traitorous appendage! Oh for cripes sake, how the hell am I even getting hungry in a game anyway?! Doesn't make any sense!' Ying thought in a fluster as he tried to hush his gut, in an amusingly awkward way no less.

But unfortunately, the stomach never lies. This was not merely a truth, but a law of nature in and of itself.

Grrrr!

"Hahaha! Seems like Brother Ying really worked up an appetite after that fight! Come on, don't be shy—dig in!" Jiang Chu said, his enthusiasm a blinding light as he took his own advice.

Ying sighed and kept his head down, avoiding the watchful eyes of the staff while stealing a glance at Jiang Chu. The guy was like a rabid beast—his arm moving quick, but his mouth munching quicker.

The way food just vanished from the table, as though it never existed, was nothing short of downright frightening!

Honestly, had he been even half as quick and dexterous during his fight against Zhao Ming, he most definitely wouldn't have lost.

'What an idio...." Ying's musings trailed off as he bit back a scathing comment, shaking off the memory of his own recent embarrassment.

Ying turned his head once again, this time, to Xian Shan.

Unsurprisingly, the maiden was a picture of reserved elegance, her graceful eating style contrasting greatly against Jiang Chu's barbaric methods. Ensuring caution so as to not dampen her make-up.

After all, she was pretty, but not THAT pretty. She still needed make up.

But even still, how did a brute like Jiang Chu… end up with someone like her?

'Honestly, the more I see the less I understand. Are these two really lovers, or did the system just make something up to spite me...' Ying pondered.

His words showed how clueless he was in regards to matters of the heart. No wonder he was still a virgin, albeit already twenty.

Well, it was only natural. The circumstances of his… Peculiar, to say the least, past stripped him his chances of a conventional teenage life. But perhaps in the future…

'Ugh. What the hell am I even thinking about right now?!' Ying thought, disgruntled.

In the end, he decided to go for simple moderation. Yes, modesty was the best virtue after all. He did not devour the food too greedily; neither did he eat too conservatively.

Nevertheless, the food was amazing... no matter how you decided to go about eating it. Ying was honestly quite impressed with the meal.

"…"

As they ate, Jiang Chu and Xian Shan engaged in light-hearted banter, while Ying remained silent, uninterested in sharing personal details with virtual strangers. Still, he discreetly absorbed snippets of valuable information amidst their rather lively chatter.

For instance, the reason why Xian Shan's parents weren't here despite this being their main residence. It was because both of them were busy on important missions outside the City, leaving here in the care of the Chief Steward—the man who had invited them in, and whose name was Qing Lo.

Aside from that he also learned a lot about the world in general.

Apparently, there were two continents which took up most of the worlds' map, but both were separated by a massive Barbarian sea...

In any case, Ying learned that he was currently on the Eastern continent, a world ruled by the noble Emperors of the three great Dyanasties.

He was in a City named Pearly flower City, known for its abundance in plant-life resources. It was a municipality located in the further reaches of the Wang Dynasty's Northern Province, a region under the jurisdiction of the White Tiger Sect—one of the ten Great Sects.

Ying even learnt of a few prominent Cultivators… Jiang Chu especially couldn't keep his mouth shut about his own Master.

"Ahh! That was amazing...Thanks for the food, Xian Shan, everyone." Jiang Chu gave his thanks, followed by a loud burp as he emptied the wine glass. They had all finished their meals.

Feeling comfortably full, Ying leaned back in his seat, a satisfied breath escaping him. But then confusion struck; what was he supposed to do next?

'Maybe I'll just do some Cultivation for now… After that, I could head back into the forest, hunt some monsters, and make some more money. Who knows? I might even cross paths with a few affluent young masters along the way…'

Ying thought, eyes gleaming with mischief as he internally rubbed his hands, especially at that last part.

After all, it was still early afternoon. And from what he could tell, the time here was severely discordant with that of the real world—his world.

Just as he was mulling over his next move, a series of messages flashed across his vision, breaking his train of thought:

Ding!

[A foreign substance has been detected!]

[Your Physique has been awakened!]

[Purifying foreign substances…]

[Your body is adapting…]

[You have obtained 250 Qi!]

[Your power grows!]

…

"…"

Ying blinked.

Ying stared at the system with the utmost incredulity, barely—just barely, holding himself back from screaming outwardly.

'Holy cr*p!' Without a moment's hesitation, he opened up his status window whilst a smile crept up his lips.

[

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A strange omen follows you.

You are a very unlucky mortal with the absolute unheard of worst talent for cultivation, you will later on become the victim of countless failures and most likely eventually quit after accepting your fate. My evaluation is to give up while you still can.

]

Ying's eyes widened as he immediately noticed the changes.

Apparently, eating the food had not only awakened his 'Physique' and increased his stats, but also affected his Qi experience as well! His power had truly grown!

As he was now permitted to do so, Ying used a thought to open up his physique's window. It worked this time!

[

Grade: Heavenly

Description: All vile things that trespass your sacred temple shall be cleansed without exception!

Your blood possesses the ability to refine and purify all things that enters the physical body normally. It has the ability to determine the 'Bad',' Neutral', and 'Good' constituents!

Its growth potential is truly befitting its rank!

]

"Ha…" With that, Ying was now at the very brink of breaking.

His eyes flickered with excitement as elated thoughts popped up in his head. He was happy. No, a word as mundane as 'happy' could never even begin to express his current emotions.

He was ecstatic... overjoyed... exultant, even.

'Ha! Yes! Yes! Yes! I knew I would hit it big if I came here! So Ì can gather Qi AND level up my stats just by eating? A broken ability. And Heavenly Grade?! I knew all that bad luck had to have been for something!'

Ying thought as he smiled stupidly at the holographic screen, he simply couldn't care less about Jiang Chu and Xian Shan who were already shooting confused looks.

'Heavenly grade, heavenly grade, heavenly grade!' Ying chanted as he held himself back from banging the table.

It seemed that now, it was his turn to act like an overgrown child.