I Just Wanted To Live but I Somehow Became Better Than the Protagonist

Speaking of body-seizing, Long Tian was no stranger to the concept. When he first encountered the old man, he had suspected the old man might want to take over his body, only to later realize that the old man had no interest in such a thing. He possessed a sort of spiritual fastidiousness; rather than seizing a body, he desired to reconstruct his own. There is no love without reason in this world; his assistance to Long Tian was not mere charity but an investment, believing Long Tian had potential and could one day provide him with materials for a new body.

Reconstructing a body was no easy feat, especially for him as a celestial soul; the physical form had to be robust enough to withstand the process.

What needed to be done after reconstructing a body was similar to body-seizing: fortifying, nourishing, and strengthening.

The treasures in this hidden chamber were not solely for cultivating the soul.

“Yet if this secret realm has a master, what of the master’s intentions? Not even a ghostly shadow has been seen,” Long Tian pondered, perplexed.

“Perhaps this secret realm has been hidden for thousands of years, and the master’s cultivation is not high. Over time, the wear and tear has prevented their spirit from being preserved until now,” the old Immortal of the Fallen Stars explained.

Even though the old man’s reasoning was sound, Long Tian remained puzzled. The treasures within the hidden chamber were indeed valuable, yet they were of no use to him at present. Most cultivators needed to reach the Nascent Soul stage before they could begin to cultivate their spiritual power. Long Tian suspected he was different from ordinary cultivators, but he still had to wait until the late Golden Core stage.

Currently, he was only at the mid-stage of crystallization, a whole realm away from the late Golden Core stage. Bai Song had also set his sights on him, so rather than resources that would only be useful in the future, Long Tian yearned for things he could use right now.

However, wallowing in self-pity would not solve his problems. Better to have something than nothing at all. Long Tian stowed the items away and called over Qiu Li Gao, who was engrossed in his reading. The two made their way to the adjacent cave.

The layout was similar to the previous one, filled with numerous formations and traps. Just disarming them would require considerable time and effort. Once all obstacles were dealt with, Long Tian approached the altar and picked up a familiar, ancient box resting atop it.

“Qiu Li Gao, the third volume of the Battle Horse Continent you wanted has arrived.” Long Tian opened it with a blank expression, only to find it was not the Battle Horse Continent.

【One Hundred Ways to Cook a Spirit Pig】

“……” Long Tian was utterly speechless.

If it weren’t for the old Immortal’s insistence that the formation’s matrix and arrangement were identical to that at the entrance, he would have thought someone was playing a prank on him.

But the problem was, it was impossible for anyone to be faster than him. As for a fifth-grade formation master at the crystallization stage? Long Tian had only heard of a genius named Li Junxia at Tian Luo Sect. Such a talent would never come to a nameless little secret realm like this.

After much contemplation, Long Tian concluded that the master of the secret realm had deliberately cast out strange opportunities to confuse the cultivators seeking fortune, intending to seize their spirits when they let their guard down.

“‘One Hundred Ways to Cook a Spirit Pig’?” Qiu Li Gao took the book and flipped through it with curiosity.

Long Tian didn’t even want to mention that he also had a book titled “Postpartum Care for Spirit Pigs.”

With both birthing and cooking, was the heavens asking him to open a breeding farm and a restaurant, offering a full-service experience?

“This recipe is amazing! Usually, a regular cookbook only has the method for one dish, but this one actually includes a hundred different cooking methods… Just glancing at it has made me hungry,” Qiu Li Gao exclaimed, smacking his lips.

“Keep reading; I’ll take a look around,” Long Tian thought that since there were spirit pills in the next cave, there should be something beneficial for cultivation here as well.

Qiu Li Gao indeed sat cross-legged, engrossed in the cookbook. Long Tian wandered around the cave with the old Immortal of the Fallen Stars. Before long, the old man made a discovery, unearthing some heavenly treasures related to spiritual essence.

Long Tian felt an inexplicable weariness. He sensed something was off, yet he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

118 Compensation

Having done good deeds without leaving a name, Ye Yong was now joyfully wandering through the secret realm.

Since he was already here, and after being in seclusion for so long, he felt restless. Thus, he took his time searching for those spirit beasts not mentioned in the novels, eager to practice his skills on them.

This secret realm would soon be overrun by cultivators; even spirit beasts of the Golden Core level could not withstand the onslaught of groups of practitioners. Therefore, it was better to benefit himself than to let those who ran the dragon tricks take advantage.

“Block the protagonist’s small opportunity once, gain 20,000 reversal points.”

The system’s notification came without warning, and Ye Yong was stunned for a moment before regaining his senses. “System, are you mistaken? That’s a relic of the Nascent Soul level! I’ve nearly taken all the treasures from the cave, leaving only a few scraps. No medium opportunity, and yet only 20,000 reversal points? Surely those two books didn’t compensate for Long Tian’s losses, did they? One a parody novel, the other a cookbook—give me a reason!”

“This system cannot be wrong. The opportunities within the cave indeed belong to the intermediate level, but did the host confirm that he took them all?”

At this, Ye Yong fell into deep thought.

Could there be other hidden opportunities? But he had followed the plot of the novel precisely, without any oversight…

“After a cultivator seizes a body, they need to stabilize their soul.”

Upon hearing the system’s rare hint, Ye Yong seemed to have an epiphany. He took out his storage bag to inspect the treasures he had collected from the two caves.

Second-grade, third-grade, even fourth-grade elixirs and spirit plants were present, and there were four earth-grade magical artifacts. This was no small fortune, yet as he scanned the items, Ye Yong realized there was nothing among them that could stabilize the soul, which was quite illogical.

Those two Nascent Soul cultivators had long harbored the desire to seize the bodies of young practitioners, having planted the seeds of their plan hundreds of years ago. They would undoubtedly have prepared thoroughly; items for stabilizing the soul were of utmost importance…

Ye Yong realized he had made the same mistake as Long Tian in the novel—he had not thoroughly inspected the cave, overlooking those hidden soul resources. In reality, Ye Yong had swept everything clean, while Long Tian, unwilling to return empty-handed, would have been far more meticulous than in the novel. The system’s reward of reversal points was so meager because he had discovered that batch of soul resources, recovering a significant portion of his losses.

Perhaps at the current crystallization stage, soul resources were not particularly needed, but by the late Golden Core stage, their value would become apparent.

“World line repair compensation—truly worthy of being the Son of Heaven’s Path.” Ye Yong could not deny it. With this in mind, he was even more determined to find spirit beasts not mentioned in the novel, ensuring Long Tian received no other compensation.

——

“Ah-ha! Found you!”

Long Tian had just emerged from the cave with Qiu Li Gao when they encountered the group of troublemakers from outside the secret realm.

There was one cultivator at the Crystal Level Ten, three at Level Eight, five at Level Seven, and over ten below Level Six—altogether, a formidable force. Long Tian had not anticipated their swift entry into the depths, and he immediately pulled Qiu Li Gao back into the cave.

The Crystal Level Ten cultivator exchanged glances with his companions, leaving half of them outside to guard while the other half ventured into the neighboring cave to scout. Before long, the results of their search came back: the cave was stripped bare, not a single grain of rice left behind.

“Didn’t expect you two weaklings to make it here so quickly. Hand over your treasures, and leave behind a hand each. We’ll let this matter slide.” The burly cultivator, the first to take offense at Long Tian, shouted into the cave. Though he was only at Crystal Level Three, he was the most arrogant in the group, and the reason was simple—his cousin led the team at Crystal Level Ten.

“We’re doomed, we’re doomed, Long Tian!” Qiu Li Gao could hardly maintain his composure. He was just a Foundation Establishment novice; a single Crystal cultivator could toy with him as they pleased, let alone a group of them, with one nearing Golden Core.