"You... you're standing!"
Liu Mei rushed forward, her face a mixture of shock and joy.
"Yesterday you could barely move! Your injuries were so severe! How—"
Chen Xuan carefully adopted a weak posture, adding a slight tremor to his voice.
"I found some old healing salves. Grandfather kept supplies in the storage rooms."
He gestured vaguely toward the building he'd emerged from.
"I used them last night. They helped more than I expected."
It was a thin lie—barely plausible.
But Liu Mei wanted to believe it.
Her eyes glistened with tears of relief.
"That's wonderful! Oh, Young Master, I was so worried! Yesterday when they brought you back, you were..."
She couldn't finish the sentence, her voice breaking.
Chen Xuan felt a pang of guilt for deceiving her.
But it was necessary.
Liu Mei was one of the few who'd remained loyal to the Chen Family through their decline. But she was only at Body Tempering Third Layer.
She couldn't protect herself against the forces arrayed against them.
The less she knew, the safer she'd be.
"I'm better now," he assured her. "But Liu Mei, I need you to keep this quiet. If word spreads that I'm recovering..."
He let the implication hang in the air.
Understanding dawned immediately.
She nodded vigorously. "Of course, Young Master. I won't tell anyone. Not even Elder Zhou?"
"Not even Elder Zhou," Chen Xuan confirmed. "Not yet. When the time is right, I'll explain everything."
Liu Mei bowed. "Your secret is safe with me, Young Master. I swear it on my life."
After she hurried off to begin her morning duties, Chen Xuan returned to his room in the servants' quarters.
The shabby space felt different now.
Smaller. Less oppressive.
Everything seemed different through the lens of recovered strength.
He sat on his simple bed and closed his eyes.
Not to sleep but to think.
'System,' he thought, 'show me the shop.'
[Accessing Devouring System Shop...]
[Shop now available with 2,500 Devouring Points]
[SHOP CATEGORIES]
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⟩ Cultivation Techniques
⟩ Martial Arts & Combat Skills
⟩ Bloodlines
⟩ Body Refinement Methods
⟩ Pills & Elixirs
⟩ Weapons & Equipment
⟩ Auxiliary Skills (Alchemy, Formations, Beast Taming, etc.)
⟩ Information & Intelligence
⟩ Special Items
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Chen Xuan focused on the first category.
A massive list appeared—hundreds of techniques organized by grade and type.
Prices ranged from hundreds of DP for basic Mortal Grade techniques to millions for legendary Primordial Grade ones.
But one entry immediately caught his attention.
Highlighted in red as if the system itself was recommending it:
[Advanced Devouring Technique (Spirit Grade - Peak)] ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Cost: 2,000 DP
Description: Upgrades the Basic Devouring Technique to allow devouring of dead cultivators up to one major realm above host.
Abilities Unlocked:
Absorb cultivation base directly from devoured targets Extract and learn techniques from devoured targets' muscle memory Acquire bloodline fragments from those with special bloodlines Absorb equipment and treasures, breaking them down into pure essence
Warning: Devouring human cultivators creates karmic threads—spiritual connections that can be sensed by powerful beings with karmic sight. Excessive devouring will attract attention from righteous sects and heaven's judgment.
Cooldown: None (but repeated devouring in short periods increases karmic backlash risk exponentially)
Additional Note: This is the true Devouring Path. Those who walk it must be prepared to take what they need from the weak to grow strong. There is no mercy here. No restraint. Only consumption and power.
Recommended for: Hosts who understand that strength requires sacrifice ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Chen Xuan read the description twice, carefully weighing the implications.
Karmic threads. Backlash from heaven. Attention from righteous sects.
The system was being very clear about the risks.
In his old world, on Earth, he might have hesitated.
The idea of devouring people—even dead enemies—would have seemed monstrous. Evil.
But Earth's morality didn't apply here.
This was a cultivation world where the strong preyed on the weak as a matter of course.
Where Ye Tianlong could cripple him in front of thousands and face no real consequences because he had powerful backing.
Where his parents had died from grief because their son was too weak to protect himself or his family.
The original Chen Xuan had tried to be honorable. To follow the rules. To trust in justice.
And he'd been destroyed for it.
Chen Xuan wouldn't make the same mistake.
'Purchase it,' he decided.
[Confirming purchase: Advanced Devouring Technique for 2,000 DP?]
[Current DP: 2,500]
[Remaining after purchase: 500 DP]
[Warning: This technique allows devouring of human cultivators. Once purchased, there is no turning back from this path. Are you certain?]
Chen Xuan's eyes hardened.
He thought of Ye Tianlong's sneering face. Of the Absolute Yin Palace elder who'd protected him. Of everyone who'd trampled on the Chen Family when they were down.
'I'm certain. Purchase it.'
[Purchase confirmed!]
[2,000 DP deducted]
[Remaining DP: 500]
[Advanced Devouring Technique acquired!]
[Integrating technique into Host's consciousness...]
[Progress: 1%... 25%... 50%... 75%... 100%]
[Integration complete!]
Knowledge flooded Chen Xuan's mind.
Ancient and profound understanding of the Devouring Dao.
It wasn't just a technique. It was a philosophy. A complete way of seeing the world.
The information came in layers:
The Mechanics: How to activate the devouring process. How to target specific aspects—cultivation base, techniques, bloodlines, treasures. How to safely store and integrate devoured essence without causing qi deviation or backlash.
The Principles: Everything in existence contained power. Living beings accumulated it through cultivation. Natural treasures condensed it over centuries. Even the laws governing reality were manifestations of power.
Most cultivators could only refine spiritual energy from the atmosphere, slowly accumulating strength grain by grain.
It took decades to advance through realms. Many never progressed beyond Body Tempering due to lack of talent or resources.
But the Devouring Path offered a different approach.
Take power directly from those who already possessed it.
A Foundation Establishment cultivator had spent years refining their spiritual energy to perfection.
Why spend decades doing the same when you could simply consume them and take that refined power for yourself?
The Warnings: Karmic threads were real—spiritual connections formed when you killed and consumed another's essence. The stronger the target, the stronger the thread.
Too many threads, and beings with karmic sight could track you.
According to the ancient knowledge flowing into his mind, righteous sects had hunted Devouring Path cultivators to extinction during the Primordial Era.
The last known devourer had died over ten thousand years ago.
Yet the techniques to detect and combat devourers had been preserved—passed down through generations in old sect texts as warnings against forbidden paths.
Even the heavens might send tribulation for violating natural order.
The knowledge came with a chilling realization.
He might be the first to walk this path in ten thousand years.
The Primordial Devouring System had been dormant since the ancient era, waiting for a host worthy of inheriting its power.
Which meant if anyone discovered what he was doing...
They wouldn't react as if facing a known threat.
They'd react as if witnessing the return of a nightmare from legend.
A monster that shouldn't exist anymore.
But the technique also included methods to minimize risk.
Ways to sever karmic threads. Techniques for hiding the devouring process. Understanding of when to devour and when to simply kill without consumption.
These methods had kept ancient devourers hidden for years before their eventual discovery.
Chen Xuan would need to be even more careful.
Chen Xuan opened his eyes, the knowledge settling into place.
He understood now what the system had meant by "no mercy, no restraint."
The Devouring Path was efficient but brutal.
It required killing enemies and consuming their very essence. Not just their possessions or techniques, but their accumulated life force, their cultivation base, everything that made them cultivators.
It was the opposite of everything orthodox cultivation sects taught.
They preached slow refinement. Respect for heaven's way. Earning power through enlightenment and hard work.
The Devouring Path said: take what you need from those weaker than you. Grow strong by consuming the strong.
The only rule is survival.
'So be it,' Chen Xuan thought. 'This is the path I've chosen.'
He stood and moved to the broken window, looking out over the shabby compound.
Chen Yue would wake soon—his fourteen-year-old sister, the only family he had left.
Elder Zhou would begin his morning duties.
Liu Mei would prepare what little food they could afford.
These people depended on him.
The original Chen Xuan had failed them through weakness.
Chen Xuan—the transmigrator, the one with the system—would not.
But he had to be smart. Strategic. Patient.
Two months until the Sect Entrance Exams.
That was when he could reveal his recovery in a way that seemed plausible.
A desperate youth who found lucky encounters and trained in secret, emerging at the exams as a dark horse.
Until then, he'd hide.
Hunt at night.
Devour beasts in the Hunting Grounds outside the city.
Grow stronger in secret.
And when the time came, when he was strong enough...
Ye Tianlong would learn what it meant to face someone who walked the Devouring Path.
[New Mission Available!]
Chen Xuan's attention snapped to the system notification.
[MISSION: First Hunt]
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Objective: Use the Advanced Devouring Technique to successfully devour your first target
Eligible Targets:
Spirit Beasts (dead or alive, up to Foundation Establishment Realm)
Human Cultivators (dead only, up to Foundation Establishment Realm)
Reward: 500 DP + Basic Combat Technique (Spirit Grade)
Failure Penalty: None
Time Limit: None
Note: This mission serves as initiation into the Devouring Path. Your first devouring will set the tone for your entire cultivation journey. Choose wisely—will you begin with beasts, or will you hunt human prey?
Accept Mission? YES/NO
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Chen Xuan accepted without hesitation.
The Hunting Grounds outside Lianyun City were full of spirit beasts.
And if he was fortunate—or unfortunate, depending on perspective—he might find a dead cultivator.
This world was dangerous. People died in those grounds regularly, killed by beasts or by other humans seeking their possessions.
Either way, he'd complete his first devouring soon.
A knock on his door interrupted his thoughts.
"Brother?"
Chen Xuan recognized that voice immediately.
He opened the door to find Chen Yue standing there, her eyes red from crying.
The moment she saw him standing, her face transformed from grief to shock.
"Brother! You're... you can stand!"
She rushed forward, then stopped, afraid to touch him as if he might break.
"Yesterday you were so badly hurt. I thought..."
"I'm recovering," Chen Xuan said gently, opening his arms.
"Come here, Yue'er."
She crashed into him, sobbing into his chest.
Chen Xuan held his younger sister, feeling the weight of responsibility settle firmly on his shoulders.
The original Chen Xuan's memories were full of love for this girl.
She'd been the one constant bright spot in his life after the crippling.
'I'll protect you,' he thought fiercely. 'Whatever it takes.'
Over Chen Yue's shoulder, he caught sight of himself in the bronze mirror on the wall.
His reflection looked back at him.
A young man whose eyes held determination that hadn't been there yesterday.
The original Chen Xuan had been a victim, broken by a cruel world.
Chen Xuan—the transmigrator, the Devourer—would be something very different.
He would be strong.
He would be merciless to his enemies.
He would walk the Devouring Path without hesitation or regret.
And one day, Ye Tianlong and everyone who'd wronged the Chen Family would learn what it meant to face someone who consumed everything in their path to power.
The Eternal Devourer had been born.