A fierce aura burst out from the monkey's visage, bringing Me Feng back to reality. He was befuddled.
So I was actually weaker than this monkey-looking man. He grimaced, he should have not run his mouth carelessly.
As a person from a modern background, it was an everyday habit to jest around with his co-workers, and while they could get vicious at times, in the end, they'd laugh it off.
So Me Feng still had the habit of letting his thoughts run freely. Unfortunately, such a habit was very suicidal in a cultivation world, where a cultivator wouldn't hesitate to exterminate a whole clan over a single insult.
For cultivators, being belittled and insulted could potentially form a demon heart, and the only way to prevent it was to erase anything related to the source of the demon heart.
Realizing this, Me Feng cursed to himself. F***, what the hell, who the hell was I? To be weaker than this monkey-looking freak.
Seeing that Me Feng stayed silent, the teenager's monkey face sneered in disdain, "There you go. As soon as I showed my aura, you turned silent, like an obedient dog. You know what? I'll be straight with you, Brother Feng. I was initially thinking of sending you on your way, but given the fact that you dared to belittle me, I'll change my mind. Give me your lifesaving, and I will let you go after I cripple your cultivation. Or else..."
His monkey face distorted, "Die!"
Behind his indifferent facade, Me Feng was enraged. What's the difference between that and making me a slave my entire life? What's the difference between that and having no future prospects in a cultivation world?
What's the difference between that and detaining me into a living hell?
He cursed inwardly. What a ruthless monkey!
Me Feng did not show his intentions this time. What should be kept must be kept. Instead, he turned towards the neon panels that required him to open up his status.
Taking a leap of faith, Me Feng inwardly prepared himself to prepare for the worst. He was a man of high standing in the past, a man who was worthy enough for the world to not disdain him even when he wed the most beautiful woman in his country.
As long as he wished to, hiding intentions could easily be done.
Status!
| Name: Me Feng.
| Realm: Stage 1 Body Reinforcement, Skin Refinement.
| Spiritual Root: Low Ninth Grade.
| Karma: 12,750
| Cultivation Technique: Mortal Body Scripture Level 1 (+).
| Bond:
> Frozen Divine Hall's Seventh Elder, Chu Qing'er (Like)
| Detected that the host has enough karma points to exchange for a boon. Do you wish to exchange it?
| Detected that the host has unclaimed boons. Do you wish to claim it?
Me Feng didn't know anything about these prompts, lest having the time to actually contemplate them. He merely read the end of the phrases, trying his best to formulate a decision.
In a moment of peril, Me Feng suddenly had a sudden clarity. He compared the two panels, his thought running at a speed only possible when adrenaline running through the course of his veins.
Everything seemed to slow down as Me Feng used every means his body had to choose the best course of action.
Karma points? Unclaimed boons?
He narrowed his eyes, and with his experience worth of a lifetime, he knew what he ought to do. The first option was ambiguous, while the second one clearly stated the unclaimed boons he could get.
The unclaimed boons were absolute, while the first option was ever-changing. Who knows what can he get in the future if he accumulates a little bit more?
It did not sound make sense to his overloaded mind, but Me Feng trusted his heart. The feeling of doubt yet certain that he could not ignore.
Trusting his instinct, Me Feng screamed out, alerting the humanoid monkey, "Claim!"
| Unclaimed boons have been claimed!
| You received 10 years of cultivation!
| You received Yellow-grade Cultivation Technique, the Stance of the Snake!
| You received one chance to upgrade your spiritual root by a grade!
| Congratulations, you have upgraded your spiritual root to Low Eighth Grade!
| You received 100,000 Karma Points!
| You received Indomitable Spirit!
The monkey teenager was contemptuously looking down on Me Feng when a burst of aura shook him out of his core. Me Feng himself widened his eyes, feeling the surging source of power within his body.
Peak Skin Refinement!
Muscle Refinement!
Peak Muscle Refinement!
Bone Refinement!
Peak Bone Refinement!!!
The monkey teenager was petrified. He involuntarily stumbled when Me Feng stood up. 2 realms... Me Feng broke through 2 realms above him in an instant!
So he had been hiding his cultivation! What a despicable method! A tiger playing the pig!
The monkey teenager wailed in despair as he cursed Me Feng to death. He was so arrogant just now. Unless he could outrun Me Feng, he definitely wouldn't make it out alive! His squinty eyes hardened, ready to give his all to alert the disciples around.
In that situation, he could turn the table in his favor and would be able to force Me Feng to relent under the pressure of several disciples.
The monkey-looking teenager was confident. It was a fool-proof, easy tactic! Me Feng was just a country boy from a rural place, how could he understand this kind of wisdom?
As the monkey-looking freak was having a mental calculation, Me Feng was busy marveling, feeling his reinforced physical features. He put a little bit of force on his stomach, only to feel his rock-hard abs.
Me Feng grinned. Cultivation is really wondrous!
Decades of dedication were just but a realm when it came to cultivating. Me Feng sighed in pity, like an immortal feeling melancholic about his days as a mortal.
He looked at the monkey, who had threatened him just now. He initially had some reservations, but hearing how ruthless and shameless this monkey was, Me Feng had nothing to hold him back anymore.
F***** monkey, you peanut-sized brain, ugly-looking a**, piece of s***. Goddamn monkey belonged to the f***** zoo. Amongst the sper** your father busted, the worst one entered your mother's egg, birthing a heinous, calamitous being not even loved by other species, even Heaven was dumbfounded despite its nonexistent standard. Your ugliness transcends the boundary of species, space and time even a blobfish would die out of disgust looking at you. Space would be bent out of repulsion at the sight of you—!
Me Feng did not hold back, mercilessly decimating the monkey in his thoughts. Of course, he merely showed him a cold look on the outside.
A cultivator cannot let his mundane desires depraved from the seven sins control his actions. A cultivator must have control, and must be responsible for his power.
Me Feng ignored the rest of the panels for the time being. His focus was on this monkey, who had already knelt down to beg for mercy.
"B—Brother Feng."
"You have two choices. Give me everything you have while I cripple you, or die."
As a man, it was only natural for him to return the favor. Me Feng did not hold back, and swiftly choked the monkey's neck, showcasing his newfound power. He couldn't help but sneer at the monkey.
Eyes filled with desperation and madness, ready to give his all. Me Feng snarked icily,
"You want to shout for help to find the middle path, right? Unfortunately, the middle path was reserved for the strong. You're just a weakling who can't even rob someone like me. And even if you gave your all, you think you could resist me?"
Me Feng coldly squeezed his neck, and a hint of crackling sound started to resound in the hut, preventing him to scream out his concern. The monkey started sweating, and even a bit of tears started to fall from his small eyes.
His body spasmed, and his voice croaked, trying to resist against the overwhelming pressure. Me Feng merely watched this all with a flat look.
"What? So you do not want to answer me? Alright, I'll choose it for you."
The monkey cursed. F*ck! You didn't let me talk! You did not let me move my vocal cords at all!
"Bye."
With a satisfying snap, the monkey's eyes went up. Me Feng paused, his eyes scrutinizing the house for a cover-up. Finding his blanket acceptable, Me Feng snatched it from his bed and covered the corpse.
He creased his eyebrows. Damn arm, why did you have to stick out like that?
Having no other choice, he snapped it like a twig, forcing the corpse into the blanket.
"Haah, just alive again, yet some dumbass forced me to move my hands."
Me Feng was not a flower in a greenhouse. He was familiar with this kind of thing. To reach the top, it's inevitable for a man to plunge his hands into the world of the dark.
Besides, he did not wish to be annoyed by the series of events if this monkey did not die. He was too unfamiliar with this world. If some paranoid bastards accused him of an impostor, he would have no way out.
Just being alive again, yet immediately become a fugitive. Me Feng cringed, what a terrible prospect to live in!
Me Feng gazed out of the door, finding no one near his doorstep. It was night at the moment, which could be used to veil his questionable activity.
Relieved, he secretly went out with the corpse. After a quick stride through the neighborhood, which was packed with huts like he had, he found an inconspicuous, small clearing surrounded by bushes.
With a focused gaze, Me Feng dug the ground with his feet. His overwhelming strength and reinforced muscles and skin were not just for show, penetrating the ground as if it were sand.
After the hole was big enough, Me Feng threw the corpse in. He take a look at the face of this monkey one last time. Although his appearance was horrendous, even Heaven itself would grimace, he was just a cultivator who wanted to improve himself.
A pity, he found the wrong victim to take advantage of. With a few kicks, Me Feng buried the monkey man with a solemn expression.
"I hope fate won't treat you badly in the next life. In this life, it gave you a face even a grandma wouldn't love."
After taking everything the monkey had in his pocket, he quickly went back to his hut, where he could finally navigate the interface properly. He plopped his chin on his hands, curiously looking at it.
As for the belonging of that monkey, he could check them out later.
| Name: Me Feng.
| Realm: Stage 3 Body Reinforcement, Peak Bone Refinement.
| Spiritual Root: Low Eight Grade.
| Karma: 112,750.
| Cultivation Technique: Mortal Body Scripture Stage 1 (+), the Stance of the Snake Stage 0 (+).
| Bond:
> Frozen Divine Hall's Seventh Elder, Chu Qing'er (Like)
"Frozen Divine Hall's Seventh Elder, C—Chu... Qing'er?"
Me Feng's face turned white. His wife was actually a cultivator? And taking the identity into consideration—
Me Feng's breaths quickened. He was brutally hit by a sudden realization.
My wife, just how utterly far I was from your actual standing?
So this is the reason why you were so distant.
"It's... It's insurmountable..." He ridiculed himself.
Now he truly understood why she did not take him seriously.
Such a godlike woman, being pursued by a mere mortal, how could she hold any feelings? She who had thousands of years to live, being wedded by a mere mortal man who wouldn't even live for a hundred years, how could she take it seriously?
Me Feng's face looked bleak. So that's what I was missing in this confusing, frustrating puzzle he called love. It's not that she didn't care about him, it's just the sheer distance between him and her.
Even if she did like him in the end, like how the interface showed, so what?
It's just too far...