"That guy won't get away."
A young man was running with all his might, being chased by a gang of thugs. Leading them was a burly man with a group of young men in their twenties.
"You motherfuckers, if you're so tough, come get me! If I escape, you're all dead!"
In truth, the young man was a rising thug, but he was being chased because he had been operating on these guys' turf. But he was no amateur; orphaned from a young age, he had to struggle daily to survive. Fighting was as common as eating for him since childhood, making him accustomed to it, which was why he possessed such high skill when he grew up.
"You, run over there and block him for me. Oh, never mind, that way's a dead end."
The leader told his underlings.
"Damn it."
The young man, due to his carelessness, had run into a dead end because he wasn't familiar with the area. But the price he had to pay for it was too great.
"What's wrong, why aren't you running, kid? Can't run anymore, huh?"
The leader smirked.
"I'm just unlucky. If you're so good, come fight me solo."
The young man also smirked, his face cold. Oh, I forgot, the young man's name was Lu Jing Tian.
"You think I'm stupid? Fighting solo would just let you hit me. Enough talk, get him! Teach him a lesson for daring to operate on my turf!"
The leader roared, and the whole gang immediately rushed in. Jing Tian was beaten black and blue all over, but the worst was his head, having taken a full blow from an iron rod. Although he didn't bleed, it was enough to make him dizzy and pass out.
A few hours later, a voice suddenly spoke:
"Damn it, I summoned the wrong one."
Startled by the voice, Jing Tian immediately opened his eyes and woke up. But he no longer found himself in the alley; instead, he was in a cave with a stream flowing in front of him.
"Where is this place?"
Jing Tian's head was still spinning, so he was still hazy about his surroundings. But after a while, he became a little clearer-headed and searched everywhere, but there was no exit. The only exit was at the top of the cave, but the cave ceiling was fifteen feet high, making it impossible to jump up to, no matter what. While searching, he found a pile of books in a small grotto nearby.
"It seems someone used to live here."
He blurted out. He began taking out the books to read. After a while, feeling bored, he picked up a history book and started reading. After finishing it, he felt dizzy again and couldn't believe his eyes. Because the book stated that this was a world called Shang Ming Continent, but with the difference that this place had something called 'cultivation.' Upon reading this, Jing Tian immediately slammed the book shut and cursed:
"What the hell is this? Who the hell wrote this? Only a madman would write something like this, and to call it history, that's just insane. This guy must be obsessed with..."
Before he could finish his sentence, an old man's voice suddenly came from behind him. The old man, wearing a black robe with flowing silver hair, stood with his hands clasped and spoke:
"Are you cursing me, young man? Although I don't understand everything you said, I can guess you're cursing me, aren't you, you stinky brat?"
After a pause, the old man sighed and continued:
"Ah, this is Shang Ming Continent. I didn't expect to accidentally summon you here. My apologies!"
Hearing the silver-haired old man, Jing Tian said in fright:
"G-ghost, ghost, help..."
But before he could finish his cry, he was so terrified that he fainted. When he woke up, he saw the old man sitting at a table, writing something in a book. The old man suddenly closed the book and said:
"Youngster, are you awake now? Are you calm enough to listen to me?"
Hearing this, Jing Tian immediately nodded. Seeing this, the old man continued:
"Youngster, my apologies. An accident occurred when I was preparing to summon a Rank Six Spirit Beast, and I ended up summoning you here instead. And there's something even more terrible: you are, you are... you are dead."
"What?! I'm dead? Aren't I talking to you right now? Don't joke like that!"
After the old man finished speaking, he stood motionless for a moment, then spoke.
"I'm not joking with you. The reason you're like this is because I've used some methods to keep your soul here. But unfortunately, your physical body has been destroyed, so it's no different from you being dead. Once again, my sincere apologies."
After a brief pause, the old man continued:
"However, I currently have a method for you to reconstruct your physical body."
"What method is it? Tell me!"
Jing Tian said.
"As long as you break through to Martial Master, I can help you reconstruct your physical body. If your cultivation level is higher, the chances of success will be greater."
The old man, with a solemn gaze, continued:
"But I am only a remnant soul; I only have about ten years left before I dissipate."
After speaking, the old man handed him a jade slip and said:
"This is a cultivation technique called the Thon Thien Thuc Dia Quyet. This technique can only be cultivated by someone who has never cultivated before and whose physical body has died, leaving only their soul."
"So, if I recover my physical body, I can't cultivate anymore?"
Hearing the old man say this, Jing Tian immediately asked him.
"No, you can still cultivate normally. This cultivation technique has an extremely heaven-defying effect."
The old man said.
"Heaven-defying?"
Jing Tian asked.
"That's right. This cultivation technique can devour the energy of heaven and earth to transform it into true qi that enters your Dantian. It has another effect: it can devour the true qi in other people's Dantians, medicinal pills, and Spirit Beasts' Spirit Cores to refine them into your own. It can even absorb killing intent."
The old man chuckled as he spoke.
"Damn, so heaven-defying! Where did you get it?"
Jing Tian, with an excited expression, said to the old man.
The old man said:
"Don't be too surprised. Start cultivating... Oh, wait a moment."
Pausing for a moment, the old man then threw Jing Tian a jade slip and said:
"Drip a drop of blood onto the jade slip."
Jing Tian began to follow the instructions, biting his fingertip. As a drop of blood fell onto the jade slip, a stream of information suddenly surged directly into Jing Tian's mind.
"Slowly, begin to memorize the incantation with your mind."
The old man then said.