Leng Feng

Under the scorching sun, the mountains trembled and the trees swayed, causing the leaves, alongside the warm breeze, to soar to Shadowless Peak where the laborers of the Black Lotus Sect, one of the demonic sects within the Wilderness, searched for defective pills.

Among the laborers was a snow-haired youth with sharp eyebrows and heroic eyes named Leng Feng. He had just turned 14 this year, yet he appeared more mature and intelligent than his peers.

While other laborers looked around in groups of twos and threes, stealing from weaker groups, Leng Feng silently searched in a less crowded area, grabbing as many defective pills as he could find.

"I've found six now, two of which are spiritual pills. Just four more, then I'll leave," Leng Feng thought as he continued rummaging through the bushes. When he raised his head, he spotted a small, round pill, pure and translucent without any cracks. With lightning-quick hands, he swiftly pocketed it.

"A Spiritual Pill! Leng Feng found a True Spiritual Pill!"

Before Leng Feng could celebrate, an envious voice suddenly exclaimed from nearby. He inwardly cursed and turned to see a horse-faced youth. He shot a gaze filled with murderous intent.

Frightened, the horse-faced boy quickly fled.

"Oh, a True Spiritual Pill? This is indeed my lucky day," said an ox-faced boy with a burly build, approaching Leng Feng with an arrogant attitude, as if he were the one who found the pill.

Leng Feng frowned as he looked at the ox-faced youth. He was familiar with the boy. According to his memories, this ox-faced kid was the number one in terms of cultivation and strength among the laborers.

Although he feared no one and wouldn't hesitate to kill, Leng Feng wasn't capable of defeating the ox-faced youth right now.

"Hand over the Spiritual Pill," the ox-faced youth ordered, extending his hand.

Leng Feng gazed coldly, tightly grasping the dagger hanging from his waist.

"Oh, you're not planning to hand it over?" The ox-faced youth's expression remained arrogant.

"Ten defective pills," Leng Feng stated firmly.

"What?"

"Ten defective pills," Leng Feng repeated, his gaze icy, like that of a beast.

The ox-faced youth's expression turned serious. He carefully scrutinized the unfamiliar Leng Feng. He had never heard of this person in the laboring circle and was sure his name was quite famous. No one had dared to offend him until now.

Who gave this kid the courage to offend me, Zhou Yan?

When Zhou Yan was about to teach this ignorant kid a lifelong lesson, he suddenly halted, noticing Leng Feng's cold and merciless gaze and the dagger at his waist, ready to fight to the death.

Why do I feel like I'm facing a madman?

Struggling inwardly, Zhou Yan eventually took out ten damaged-looking pills from his bag and tossed them in Leng Feng's direction. It wasn't worth offending a madman for just ten defective pills.

"Here you go."

The pills fell to the ground. Leng Feng lowered his head and collected the scattered pills. After counting them, he took out the Spiritual Pill from his pouch and threw it to the horse-faced youth. Then he raised his head, staring indifferently at Zhou Yan, whose face had turned ugly.

Zhou Yan wasn't stupid. This kid was clearly doing it on purpose. He snorted and walked towards the horse-faced youth.

"Give me the pill," he demanded impatiently.

The horse-faced youth was ecstatic seeing the pill, greedily clutching it. But upon hearing Zhou Yan's voice, his ecstasy turned to fear. Thinking of Leng Feng's actions just now, he forced a smile.

"Ten defective pills! If you give me ten—"

Zhou Yan, already furious, immediately interrupted him, grabbing the horse-faced youth's cloth. He exerted the power of the 2nd Body Refinement stage, delivering a powerful punch to the youth's face.

Thud...

A lifeless body fell to the ground.

"Someone like you dares to negotiate with me?" Zhou Yan sneered at the horse-faced youth's death, taking the Spiritual Pill and the youth's pouch.

"Count yourself lucky..." He glanced at Leng Feng, snorted coldly, and quickly left the area.

The laborers seemed unfazed by the fate of the horse-faced youth. They even smiled.

"That idiot... Did he think he could mimic Leng Feng?"

"Heh... Zhou Yan didn't attack because he wasn't confident about Leng Feng. But a nameless fool like him dared to extort the top laboring disciple! How foolish!"

Hearing the remarks around him, Leng Feng remained silent. He knew that death within the sect was common and everyone was accustomed to it.

A demonic sect is indeed evil like the ones described in novels. Even the upper echelons support it heavily. If I want to survive, I must be cold-blooded and ruthless.

Leng Feng glanced indifferently at the lifeless body nearby and released the dagger from his grip. When he stood up, he scanned the surroundings with a ruthless gaze, warning those who might provoke him. Then he quietly left the area.

"What a pity... If it weren't for that horse-faced kid, he would have made a fortune with that Spiritual Pill."

"A true Spiritual Pill is worth a hundred times the value of a defective Spiritual Pill! That Leng Feng is really... unlucky."

"But Leng Feng seems different now. He's like a madman."

"As far as I know, he participated in Brother Meng Chuan's experiment and fell ill. Maybe that's the reason?"

The remaining laborers on Shadowless Peak discussed among themselves as they continued with their activity.

...

Midnight.

On a stone in the middle of a lake, Leng Feng sat in a lotus position, his eyes closed. His surroundings were full of primal energies floating in tiny dots. From time to time, these tiny dots would enter Leng Feng's body, heading straight to his dantian.

One could see that Leng Feng was currently refining the primal energies, turning them into spiritual energies. But his refinement was extremely slow. It took him fifteen minutes to convert the wild, primal energies every time he finished one circulation.

Time quickly went by, and Leng Feng soon opened his eyes. He grabbed the pouch lying next to him and extended his hand inside it. He realized he was out of defective spiritual pills.

"With this sluggish speed, I'd probably need two to three months to reach the 2nd Body Refinement. This body's talent is really poor."

As Leng Feng continued to refine the primal energies, he thought about the cultivation realms he had learned about. Body Refinement was just the beginning; beyond it was the Essence Refinement, then Soul Refinement, and finally, the mysterious Heaven and Earth stage.

In Body Refinement, I need to refine the wild primal energies of the world, turning them into spiritual energies. But cultivating beyond Body Refinement is a mystery. Only by becoming a core disciple can one access that information. But with my mediocre aptitude, there's no way I can reach those realms in this life...

"Now that I think about it, it's still very unrealistic..." Under the bright stars of the night sky as the cold wind brushed him, Leng Feng stared at his reflection in the lake, seeing a split image of a 25-year-old white-collared worker instead of a youthful face.

Leng Feng couldn't help but feel a little emotional, remembering the shaking of the earth and the car's violent plunge off the mountain road, the screams of his friends, and the terrifying explosion that should have ended his life.

"To think that a normal summer trip would turn out like this..." Leng Feng sighed.

The new world he found himself in was vastly different from Earth. Leng Feng had yet to see the sea monsters of legend or the land monsters lurking in wild mountains. This was a barbaric world where the laws of Earth no longer applied; only strength could ensure his safety.

Unfortunately, despite arriving in this magical world, Leng Feng possessed a body with mediocre aptitude. Becoming a powerful cultivator like the novels he'd read seemed far out of reach.

"The world is always full of predicaments, and only those with strong will can overcome the challenges of life. If becoming a demon is the only way to defy my fate, then I'll be a demon."

Leng Feng's eyes were cold. Under the silver moon, his robe swayed lightly, making him look like a ruthless murderer. He took a deep breath and stood up, leaping to the shore of the lake. When he was about to head to the outskirts of Shadowless Peak, he suddenly heard faint voices nearby.

Leng Feng furrowed his brows. He curiously walked in the direction of the voices until he could finally hear them clearly...

"Meng Chuan, if you don't want to die, hand over the Soul Devouring Pearl!"

"Impossible! How did you know that I have the Soul Devouring Pearl?!"

"Reaching the 9th Body Refinement in two months and collecting a large quantity of souls? How do you think I figured it out? Dumbass!"