Chapter 02

After Shopkeeper Zhu and his wife had walked away, Gao Xian finally let out a long sigh of relief.

"Those two would eat people without spitting out the bones. You're really brave to mess with them..."

Not far from the gate stood a skinny old man, gleefully spouting sarcastic remarks.

The old man's hair was disheveled, his eyes dark and sunken, his face pale, and his black Taoist robe stained with grease and wine. He looked like a lecherous old man who indulged in debauchery.

Gao Xian suddenly remembered—this old man was his next-door neighbor, surnamed Wang, whose favorite pastime was visiting brothels for drinks and entertainment.

"What a shameless old geezer!"

Gao Xian didn't want to have anything to do with such a person, so he pretended not to hear him.

Seeing Gao Xian's meek demeanor, Old Wang became even more smug, letting out a sly chuckle.

Gao Xian closed the courtyard gate behind him, shutting out Old Wang and his laughter. He hurried back to his room.

From the stack of Taoist books left by the original owner, Gao Xian pulled out The Essentials of Alchemy and began flipping through it. Although Shopkeeper Zhu had been accommodating, alchemy was Gao Xian's livelihood, and he needed to master the craft as soon as possible!

Since the original owner had known how to refine pills, maybe reading more would help him recall the techniques.

After reading for a while, Gao Xian felt his head spinning.

He recognized every character in the book, but when combined, they made no sense to him. It was like trying to decipher advanced mathematics.

Gao Xian reluctantly put the book down. This wasn't something he could brute-force his way through.

He sat on the bed, thinking for a long time, but no solution came to mind.

A small black cat jumped onto the bed, meowing at Gao Xian twice.

"Are you hungry?"

Gao Xian affectionately patted the little black cat's head. The little creature was truly adorable.

After a few days together, Gao Xian had started to understand the cat's behavior.

When it wanted to be petted, it would wag its tail and meow softly. When it was hungry, its meows would be sharper, and it wouldn't wag its tail.

Getting off the bed, Gao Xian went to the adjacent kitchen to wash rice and prepare a meal.

The rice grains were a bluish-green color, about the size of peanuts, with a faint jade-like translucence.

This rice was called Green Jade Spirit Rice, rich in spiritual energy and quite expensive.

One low-grade spirit stone could only buy ten pounds of it.

And this was the lowest grade of spirit rice.

The original owner had been an alchemist, and with his alchemy skills, he had managed to live comfortably.

The house still had half a vat of Green Jade Spirit Rice and some demon beast meat stored in the cellar, where the low temperature kept the meat preserved for a long time.

At least for now, food and drink weren't a concern.

Gao Xian had grown accustomed to the life of a cultivator over the past few days and could now skillfully start a fire and cook.

The kitchen stove was made of bricks, with a large iron pot—similar to the kind used in rural feasts for stewing goose, though cruder in construction.

Gao Xian recited a few incantations, formed a hand seal, and pointed. A foot-long flame shot from his fingertip, quickly igniting the firewood in the stove.

Every time he used the Fire Control Technique, Gao Xian felt a thrill. This was real magic, not some cheap trick!

The Fire Control Technique wasn't particularly powerful—it was essentially a portable lighter. Even so, it completely defied the physical laws Gao Xian had known in his previous life.

It was the Fire Control Technique that made Gao Xian realize this was a real world of cultivators, where people wielded immense power...

In that sense, this world was a hundred times more dangerous than a place where everyone carried guns.

Having transmigrated to this world, whether he liked it or not, it seemed there was no going back.

As a middle-aged office worker who had endured society's harsh lessons, Gao Xian had long since learned to accept reality.

As the motivational saying went, "Everything happens for the best!"

Gao Xian's ability to stay optimistic despite his shortcomings was what had kept him relatively happy in life.

For now, he decided not to dwell on alchemy and instead focused on cutting the demon beast meat into chunks, frying it, then adding water, rice, and salt to prepare a fragrant hand-grabbed rice meal.

The large iron pot was fixed to the stove, making it suitable for steaming, boiling, or stewing. Cooking everything together in one pot was convenient.

Before long, the aroma of meat filled the air.

The little black cat meowed on the stove, too cautious to get too close.

Lifting the rough wooden lid, Gao Xian saw that the Green Jade Spirit Rice, already large in size, had swollen even more after absorbing water. He filled a large wooden basin with it.

Taking out a coarse ceramic bowl, he served a small portion for the little black cat.

The remaining rice and meat, Gao Xian devoured in one go.

It had to be said, the Green Jade Spirit Rice was incredibly fragrant, and the demon beast meat was even more so.

After eating his fill, not only were his taste buds and stomach satisfied, but the spiritual energy in his body also felt warm and abundant, bringing an indescribable sense of comfort.

Gao Xian let out a satisfied burp. If it weren't for Shopkeeper Zhu and his wife causing trouble, this simple yet fulfilling life could almost be called blissful.

He stroked the little black cat, which was busy gnawing on the meat, and said softly, "Eat up. When you're full, you won't miss home..."

The little black cat meowed twice, either in response to Gao Xian or out of sheer enjoyment of the meal.

Full and content, with his body brimming with spiritual energy, Gao Xian felt drowsy.

Forcing himself to stay alert, he took out the Fengyue Baojian once more.

This time, he looked at the other side of the mirror.

The Fengyue Baojian had two sides. One side reflected his appearance and displayed his various abilities.

The other side showed the image of a woman.

The woman was beautiful, dressed in a grand red high-waisted ruqun.

The dress was soft and slightly translucent, faintly revealing her snow-white skin and graceful figure.

The key was that this woman resembled his first love, as well as a colleague, Sister Lan—a generous and sensual married woman.

Well, the two had always looked alike! It was just that one had a pure aura, while the other was more alluring, making them quite different.

There were also differences in their figures. The married woman wasn't fat, with fair, smooth skin that exuded the plump beauty unique to mature women.

His first love, on the other hand, had a slender figure and tight skin, radiating the youthful vitality of a young girl.

The woman in the mirror combined the best of both—pure yet seductive. However, her demeanor and expressions carried a hint of temptation, making her seem somewhat improper.

After studying her for a few days, Gao Xian decided to call her Sister Lan for convenience.

He discovered that Sister Lan was "alive," though not a real person. She could interact with him... like an advanced interactive AI program.

Gao Xian gently tapped Sister Lan's image.

In the mirror, Sister Lan looked up and gave Gao Xian a charming smile. At the same time, a line of text appeared on the mirror's surface.

"The affairs of wind and moon are the utmost good and beauty in the human world.

Embracing the grace of romance and witnessing the beauty of love can lead to the ultimate Dao."

Human Dao Radiance: 335.

Secret Techniques: Lightning Dragon Hand, Great Doubled Spirit Method.

Lightning Dragon Hand: When performing certain simple actions, the hand moves incredibly fast, imbued with lightning energy. When activated, it delivers a delightful, stimulating sensation to those touched. (Proficiency: 188/300)

Great Doubled Spirit Method: The heart senses within, the spirit descends without. High and low connect, the dual energies merge to form divinity. Thirty years of delusional obsessions condense into a single spark of true spirit, with endless wondrous uses. (Expert: 321/400)

The first time Gao Xian read this text, he felt deeply ashamed and even a bit angry.

The Lightning Dragon Hand was self-explanatory.

The Great Doubled Spirit Method was clearly mocking him for fantasizing about beautiful women, treating various "teachers" as his wives.

It was downright slanderous! He was a decent, law-abiding middle-aged man who had never done anything wrong. Damn it, was it a crime to just imagine things?

Gao Xian could tolerate these descriptions, but the problem was that they seemed useless!

The Human Dao Radiance could only enhance the abilities on the reverse side of the mirror. It had no effect on alchemy or other skills.

He had a feeling that Sister Lan could be of some use! But exactly how to utilize her required further study...

However, it seemed like the Human Dao Radiance had increased by a few points?