The blood had seeped deep into the floor, making it difficult to clean.

  After some thought, Xun Xie went to the stove, gathered ashes from beneath the pot, and scattered them over the bloodstains. The ashes quickly absorbed the blood, becoming damp.

  He swept with a broom - not perfect, but it looked less like a slaughterhouse. After fetching water and scrubbing until no traces remained, he finally stopped.

  The mosquito nets and quilts would have to wait - he had no replacements.

  Exhausted, he wanted to rest, but a donkey's bray pierced the silence. The animal seemed hungry.

  "I'm a little hungry too."

  Xun Xie approached the donkey, hoe in hand. The beast was thin, little meat on its bones. He sighed.

  "This donkey could be useful as a mount. Better keep it." He cut grass with his hoe and brought it back. The donkey quieted once fed.

  Xun Xie cooked himself a meal, ate his fill, then locked the door and collapsed into sleep.

  That night, some nightmare drenched him in sweat, his forehead beaded with moisture.

  He woke suddenly.

  Darkness filled the temple - it was late.

  Sitting in the black night, he heard the donkey's distant humming. Somehow, it made him feel less alone.

  After a long while, he lay back down and found more peaceful sleep.

  Three days later.

  After landing on empty slots twice, if he didn't 'win' this time he might burst a blood vessel.

  Xun Xie finished his meal, cut grass for the donkey, then spun the wheel.

  Whi!

  Whi!

  "You spun the lottery wheel and won Great Clarity."

  "Duration: 1 day."

  "Critical activated: Double critical obtained."

  "Great Clarity is doubled in effectiveness."

  This broken ability again. Clarity? What's supposed to be clear, greatness?

  And double critical? Why not ten thousand? How poor, pah!

  It stood to reason that Treasure Seeker worked perfectly - what was this one's issue?

  Thinking of this, Xun Xie sighed and shook his head.

  "Forget it, let's think about it later."

  These past few days had helped him gain a foothold, accumulating survival materials.

  Now he could expand his scope, contact more people, explore and understand this world's reality. His food was running low - he could eat what was there, but he came from the 21st century after all. No internet was punishment enough; no meat was a ten thousand critical! He refused to live without meat.

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  Especially when he was probably rich. Should he just leave the money to look at when bored? He wasn't a giant dragon!

  "A world with a man-eating bodhisattva is absolutely wonderful." Xun Xie's energy returned.

  Next exploration goals: Leave Novice Village and head to Blue Grain Town. Get Meat. Meat. MEAT.

  Thoughts became actions; Xun Xie began preparations.

  He dug a pit and buried his valuables - the silver taels, wild ginseng, and Ganoderma lucidum. He carried only copper coins divided into hidden bags, a bamboo basket, and his hoe. If their efficacy suffered, it was out of his hands.

  He closed the temple gate.

  Xun Xie looked at his land temple, his first real estate, and turned away without hesitation. He mounted the donkey and set off along the mountain road.

  He'd resolved himself these past few days. He couldn't stay cooped up forever. His cheats might work on people too - he needed to test them. The world was always dangerous; even back on Earth you could be robbed or meet a very unlucky accident.

  Xun Xie shivered, remembering when curiosity led him to follow a crowd to an accident scene: the loose eyeball, peeled-off face, bones poking through skin on the damaged bike...

  What a horrible way to go!

  Xun Xie regained his bearings and urged his donkey onward.

  There was only one path out of this valley.

  He watched the road as he traveled. After seven or eight miles, three paths suddenly appeared, leaving him confused.

  "Well, this road is the widest..."

  Common sense suggested the widest road should lead to populated areas.

  "Little donkey, go here." Xun Xie squeezed with his legs, and the donkey moved forward.

  But what lay ahead left him speechless.

  Less than a few miles later, another three-way split appeared, two paths nearly identical in width.

  "What's the situation? Why are there crossroads everywhere?" Xun Xie looked left and right. Which idiot - no, which group of idiots was responsible for this?

  Soon.

  Xun Xie's eyes narrowed as he spotted a dark-complexioned middle-aged man wearing a bamboo hat, carrying firewood bundles on a shoulder pole down the north road.

  Subconsciously gripping his hoe, Xun Xie smiled, dismounted, and waved. "Uncle, I'm lost. Could you give me directions?"

  The middle-aged man glanced at him, wiped his sweat, and stopped.

  "Young man, which village are you from? This place is known as the 'nine turns and eighteen bends.' Those unfamiliar with the roads inevitably get lost." He removed his hat, fanning himself.

  "I'm heading to Blue Grain Town, from the village over there," Xun Xie said.

  The man looked where Xun Xie pointed. "Ah, 'Yin Village' - the most sheltered place in the ten miles and eight villages."

  He gestured with both hands: left, right, right, then left to Blue Grain Town.

  Xun Xie listened carefully, a mental map forming.

  Later, he met three more people - an old hunchback and a married couple from "Rattle Village." Their directions matched the middle-aged man's, clarifying his mental map further.

  Xun Xie picked up his pace.

  About an hour and a half later, buildings appeared - white walls and grey tiles. A wide street teemed with moving figures.

  "So many voices - this really is a town."

  Eyes bright, Xun Xie dismounted and led his donkey into town. No walls or tolls blocked their way.

  A young man with a bamboo basket, hoe at his waist, leading a donkey - he blended perfectly with the crowd.

  Pah! Child labor, what's so special? Children belonged in fields and valleys!

  The street bustled with shops: grain, oil, salt merchants, medicine shops, and more.

  Small vendors lined both sides with their stalls.

  Xun Xie noticed fortune-tellers and candied haw sellers, but they ignored his poor appearance.

  Truly, though this was an ancient world, Earth's equivalent period had been far more miserable for common folk. Salt had once been precious beyond measure.

  Bang!

  A muffled sound erupted ahead of him.

  "Someone is fighting!" A shout went up, and the street instantly cleared.

  Everyone seemed to know exactly where to run, scurrying away so quickly it left Xun Xie stunned.

  As the crowd dispersed, the street opened up before him.

  Two men faced each other in combat stances.

  They rushed together, trading punches and kicks.

  Xun Xie watched intently, curious about this world's martial arts. Their movements were quick, but he could track each strike. Unlike the flashy moves in movies and TV shows, these held no theatrical flourish.

  They moved as they fought, from street center to curb.

  One fighter threw a punch. His opponent dodged, and the fist connected with the stone lion behind him.

  Boom!

  The stone lion's head shattered.

  "Fuck!" Xun Xie startled, suddenly understanding why the crowd had scattered so fast.