Wizard: I Can Refine Everything

The abdominal cavity was cut open, revealing to Richard a mass of twisted, deformed internal organs.

The old Daoist's organs were intertwined, resembling a giant tumor. If not for becoming a First Level organism, which allowed the organism to survive by absorbing energy from the air, this old Daoist would undoubtedly have starved to death due to the complete distortion of his digestive system.

"It shouldn't be like this."

Richard looked at the bizarre structure in front of him, his eyes filled with confusion.

Even though this Immortal Country Civilization has embarked on the path of Spiritual Evolution, it shouldn't have twisted one's body into such a form.

This structure could neither store more energy in the Energy Cycle nor mobilize energy faster, making it completely useless.

"The natives surely wouldn't mess up even copying, right?" A ridiculous thought flashed through Richard's mind.

As he dissected the chaotic organ complex, a foul stench instantly rushed into Richard's nostrils, and thick green fluid sprayed from the wound, resembling a small fountain.

Richard frowned slightly.

This stench was not the usual malodor; it was more akin to the smell of decay. The old Daoist had just died less than an hour ago, and being a Second Level organism, this smell shouldn't occur at this point unless…

"Could it be that the decay occurred while he was still alive?"

Richard continued the dissection, painstakingly attempting to separate the organs within this complex. However, it had reached a point beyond the capability of normal surgical techniques, with different organs directly fused together and even four or five organ cells appearing in the same area.

By the end of the dissection, Richard had already abandoned the attempt to segment the organs and instead neatly partitioned them into cubes.

After completing the dissection of the complex, Richard gazed at those chunks of flesh, lost in deep thought.

His guess was correct; this biological structure had actually decayed while the old Daoist was still alive. The chaotic flesh structure caused numerous cells to be deprived of nutrients, and lacking nutritional supply, these cells couldn't undergo normal division, resulting in gradual death.

Yet, due to the existence of the Energy Cycle, the body wouldn't completely die. His internal organs were rotting, while his brain could function normally thanks to the energy supply.

In other words, the Daoist was a living corpse while alive.

"So strange," Richard shook his head and said, "I need a new specimen."

Although Richard's intuition told him that the Daoist likely didn't mess anything up, his body became this way due to the Dao Technique. But as a Wizard, Richard never blindly trusted his intuition.

He needed new examples to confirm his intuition.

"The research into the Dao Technique must be halted for now."

The peculiar condition of the Daoist's body sounded the alarm for Richard; a wary heart is essential. If there's any hidden agenda in this Dao Technique or any components have been altered, it's challenging for Richard to detect at his current level.

His knowledge of Plastic Ability was insufficient, and his experience was too limited. Though he could claim the title of Great Wizard, especially in the realm of flesh-related knowledge, most of his expertise still remained at the Three Rings Wizard level in other aspects.

However, temporarily halting the research into Dao Technique posed no loss for Richard, as he could focus all his energy on studying the Pioneer Relics and Life Editing.

In ancient human history, their ancestors had evolved into various forms. Although these forms are unseen today, the Life Core fragments expressing these forms still existed.

After a decade of research, Richard had made some progress in mastering Life Editing. He recently planned to selectively express these ancient core fragments to construct what he named the "Perfect Human" form.

…

"Ha!"

A blade gleamed brightly in the air with a low shout accompanying it. Blood splattered, and a headless corpse knelt to the ground with a thud.

In the bamboo forest, Bai silently sheathed the knife. Surrounding him, a group of samurai bodies clad in exquisite clothing lay on the ground, with blood nearly soaking the earth.

Throughout this journey, he had killed many; some spared him, while others did not.

Bai whistled softly.

The next moment, the distant sound of hoofbeats drew near, quickly transforming into a jet-black steed racing to Bai's side.

Mounting the horse, Bai placed the hat back on his head and continued along the road.

Passing through the bamboo forest, the dazzling sunlight made Bai squint slightly.

The fragrance of peach blossoms wafted in on the breeze, and in the distance, a mountain city built against the hills seems to encompass the entire mountain—immortals love mountains, so almost all the families establish headquarters atop them. Even without mountains, they would create one.

At the base of the mountain city lies a vast metropolis inhabited by millions.

Not all families consist solely of samurai, and if mortals wish to lead a lavish life, they naturally rely on a large number of servants. But servants also need sustenance, requiring more people to serve them.

Thus, there's almost no powerful family hiding in the deep mountains and forests; every family has a city as their suburb at their feet. The larger the suburb, the stronger the family.

This suburb before Bai, roughly estimating, houses millions, a surprising figure even among the families. Those possessing such a vast suburb are qualified to compete for the position of Immortal Village Envoy—families are not all equal.

"Finally arrived at the place?"

Richard's voice resonated in Bai's ear. Apart from encountering formidable foes, Richard occasionally spoke during this period. The rest of the time, Richard seemed to be asleep, silent and still.

Bai looked toward the distant city. Although his natural eyes couldn't make out much, the prosthetic eye Richard gave him allowed him to see the Lu character flag on the suburb city walls.

"The Immortal Water Lu Family… this family has some skill, their choice of location with good feng shui is quite suitable for setting up formations."

Using Bai's eyes, Richard scrutinized the terrain surrounding the Immortal Water Lu Family. Although the mountain housing the Lu Family was artificial, the abundant water veins around the city are naturally occurring.

According to the Qi Men techniques Richard learned from the Wild Beastmen, this place naturally connects heaven and earth.

Richard found himself at a loss for words about the evaluation from the Wizard; the Evil Ghost wouldn't actually think he would slaughter the entire Lu Family to rescue the Young Master, would he?

"Evil Ghost, the Xianshui Lu Family and the Chengshan Quan Family are in-laws. Hundreds of years ago, the Quan Family was also a top-grade family, but over these years, talent has dwindled, leading them to decline into a middle-grade family.

And the Xianshui Lu Family and the Quan Family have always maintained a steadfast alliance."

"Isn't that even more suspicious?"

"..."

Richard's remark left the Wizard in silence. The Young Master of the Quan Family had just awakened his Bloodline only to be exterminated, and then remarkably, was coincidentally rescued by the Xianshui Lu Family.

These coincidences all seemed deliberately orchestrated.

"It's just suspicious, that's all."

"Suspicion warrants preparation. I'm still hoping you'll make more specimens for me."

As he spoke, the Wizard's prosthetic hand opened to reveal a Space Rift, from which a bottle of Magic Potion, thirty-six Array Flags, and a box sealed tightly fell out.

"Don't rush over just yet, take the Magic Potion first, and upgrade to a Third-Level Creature. Then plant the Array Flags as I instruct, and you can confidently go find your Young Master."

Looking at the items Richard sent, the Wizard found himself at a loss for words.

Even though he called Richard the Evil Ghost, through these days of contact, the Wizard could clearly feel that aside from Richard's frightening appearance, he was no different from an ordinary person. Compared to those offspring from influential families who acted human, Richard's behavior of studying corpses seemed exceptionally gentle.

"Thank you."

The Wizard whispered his gratitude.

Richard didn't respond, as these things were merely trivial to him. With a world and a Race loyal to him, the resources at his disposal were astronomical.

The resources seeping through his fingers were far more than what he had given the Wizard.

Finding a secluded place, the Wizard drank the Magic Potion Richard sent in one gulp. Subsequently, an immensely vast Life Energy began to seep from his abdomen, slowly infiltrating his body.

Under the influence of this Life Energy, his cells started to tremble madly. Those unable to withstand it shattered quickly, while those that could endure began dividing at a remarkable speed.

The process was intensely painful, so much so that even the Wizard grimaced in agony.

After an indeterminate amount of time, the Wizard tiredly opened his eyes.

At this moment, his clothes were soaked by a layer of viscous liquid, hardening as it dried. His body was emaciated, reduced to skin and bones.

Yet, the Wizard could feel, beneath the skin-and-bone physique, a force strong enough to crush his past self.

In the distance, the sun was setting.

"One afternoon?" The Wizard's voice was somewhat hoarse.

"No, it was twenty-nine hours. I initially estimated the process would take three days, but you managed to endure without passing out, something I hadn't anticipated."

Throughout this day and night, the Wizard tirelessly balanced his Energy Cycle, striving to maintain stable operation. This greatly accelerated the progress of the Evolution.

The Wizard gazed at the sunset and stood up.

"Where should these flags be planted?"

"Head north; I'll guide you bit by bit."

...

"Guard?"

The Gate Guard of Lu Family's Mountain City scrutinized the Wizard's robe of allegiance, casting a doubtful glance at him.

At this moment, the Wizard was wearing a hat on his back, a raincoat draped over him, with a gaunt face and a sword at his waist, bearing no resemblance to any so-called Guard. Instead, he looked more like a wandering ranger.

"Yes, I'm the Guard for the Young Master of the Quan Family," the Wizard confirmed with a nod.

The Gate Guard initially didn't pay much mind, but upon hearing the words 'Young Master of the Quan Family', his body immediately tensed.

"You're too late; the Young Master of the Quan Family has already been taken away by the Peng Family."

The samurai's reply made the Wizard furrow his brow slightly. In this world, there was only one Peng Family, which was one of the Seven Immortal Villages. It seemed reasonable for the Peng Family to take away the Young Master of the Quan Family.

However, the Wizard's nose told him that the Guard was lying.

Werewolves possess an exceedingly keen sense of smell, and after Party Bai became a Third-Level Creature, his sense of smell became even more useful than his sight.

He could easily detect the unnatural secretions on the Guard.

Yet, the Wizard didn't probe further, knowing this Gate Guard knew nothing.

"See, one must rely on oneself."

The Wizard disregarded Richard's taunting. After leaving the Mountain City, he found a secluded spot where no one could see him. With a subtle movement of his left prosthetic hand,

in the next moment, his body vanished from the spot.