The inn door closed behind An, cutting him off from the outside world. He stood leaning against the door, listening to the footsteps of the Bai family's steward fading down the hallway. Only when the sound completely disappeared did he allow himself to let out a long, shaky breath. He had succeeded. He had escaped the tiger's den.
But the feeling of relief lasted only for a few seconds before being replaced by a cold urgency. He had won a battle, but the war had just begun. Bai Wen was a shark that had tasted blood; sooner or later, his greed would overcome his arrogance, and he would begin to suspect. An didn't have much time.
He rushed to flip over the straw mattress, looking at his small treasure trove. Hundreds of jet-black Demonic Crystals lay there, silent and full of promise. This was his only path. He had to turn this potential into real power, as quickly as possible.
Without a moment's hesitation, An locked the door, sat cross-legged in the middle of the floor, and poured out a portion of the Demonic Crystals. He picked a medium-sized one, feeling the pure energy within it. He closed his eyes, circulating his spiritual power according to the optimized method.
A stream of pure, Yin-attribute energy from the Demonic Crystal poured into his body, quickly filling his Spiritual Power bar.
[Spiritual Power: 98/100]
[Spiritual Power: 99/100]
[Spiritual Power: 100/100]
The moment the spiritual power bar was full, a different sensation came over him. The vortex of energy in his lower abdomen, which had been just a weak flow, suddenly contracted and then exploded. A stronger, purer stream of energy spread through his meridians, like water from a small stream suddenly turning into a raging river.
His body trembled. His senses became sharper than ever. He could hear the person in the next room turning a page in a book, smell the faint scent of wine from downstairs, and feel the tiny dust motes floating in the air. A series of new notifications appeared.
[Breakthrough successful!]
[You have reached the first level of Qi Refining.]
[Level: 8]
[New Skill: Internal Inspection (Allows you to "see" the flow of spiritual energy and the state of the meridians within your own body).]
[Spiritual Power: 1/200]
An's eyes shot open, a puff of white air escaping from his mouth. He felt as if he had been completely transformed. He was no longer a creature relying on simple physical strength. He could clearly feel and control the flow of spiritual power in his body.
He tried activating the new skill, Internal Inspection. His vision suddenly turned inward. He could "see" every meridian lighting up inside his body, see the silvery-white spiritual power flowing strongly, and see the energy vortex in his dantian had become much more stable and clear. This was a quantum leap.
But the joy was quickly extinguished by cold analysis. Qi Refining Level One. Bai Wen was at Qi Refining Level Nine. The gap between them was still as wide as a chasm. This new power might help him deal with a few guards, but before a true cultivator, he was still just an ant.
He couldn't fight head-on. He needed a different strategy.
His plan was laid out with two parallel objectives.
Objective 1: Acceleration. He would use all of these Demonic Crystals to cultivate crazily, pushing his realm as high as possible in the shortest amount of time. Every level of power gained was another chance at survival.
Objective 2: Concealment. During this time, he had to become a ghost. He would no longer take conspicuous quests at the Adventurer's Guild. He would not show any sign of his increasing strength. He would blend into the crowd, into the hidden corners of the town.
He needed information. He needed to understand the Bai Clan, the Merchant's Guild, and the other powers in this town. He needed to know who were friends, who were enemies, and more importantly, who could be exploited.
The forest was no longer his playground. Now, his playground was the town itself.
An stored the remaining Demonic Crystals, keeping only a few loose coins. He put on his cloak, pulled the hood down, and stepped out of the inn. He didn't head to the Adventurer's Guild. He headed for the bustling markets, where the street vendors, porters, and drunkards gathered.
He sat down in a quiet corner of a cheap tea house, ordering a bowl of bland tea. His pointed ears, now even sharper, began to gather the snippets of gossip, complaints, and rumors.
He was no longer hunting monsters.
He was hunting data.