Chapter 1: Death is Not the End of Life

  Ladong Town is a very ordinary small town, with nothing out of the ordinary. In the market at the south end of the town center, in a narrow alley, under a dilapidated earth wall, lies a young man in tattered clothes. People come and go outside the alley, but no one gives the young man a second glance, perhaps they have long been accustomed to it.

  A black lightning flashed silently across the sky, and the young man's body suddenly shook, followed by a painful groan, but neither the lightning in the sky nor the young man's groan attracted anyone's attention.

  Just then, a girl of sixteen or seventeen years old turned into the alley, with two middle-aged men chasing after her and shouting loudly: "Miss, wait, miss..."

  The girl strode past the earthen wall, perhaps because she was annoyed by the people chasing after her, and suddenly stopped in her tracks. She turned around and shouted: "I hate it!! Don't follow me! Do you really want me to marry that damned dwarf?!" Before she had even finished speaking, the girl raised her hand and flung the necklace she was clutching with all her might.

  The middle-aged man running in front hastily stretched out his hand to block it, the necklace first hit his hand and then bounced outwards, drawing a trajectory, coincidentally falling on the "beggar's" forehead, the bead chain had broken, the bright red beads rolling down one after another, scattering all over the ground.

  Han Jin struggled to open his eyes, and as soon as he regained consciousness, the first thing he thought of was not his surroundings, nor the strange and inexplicable things in the chaotic flow of time and space, but how to alleviate his hunger!

  It stands to reason that Han Jin's willpower shouldn't be easily defeated by hunger, and this has something to do with his cultivation method. Han Jin's master was a one-of-a-kind person who pioneered his own path of spiritual cultivation. According to his master, spiritual energy is also a resource, just like gasoline today. A thousand years from now, the earth may no longer have oil because we're consuming it too quickly. In the distant past, cultivators were everywhere, each consuming large amounts of spiritual energy. By now, spiritual energy has been depleted, and it's extremely difficult to ascend through normal channels. Cars from a thousand years ago might only be museum exhibits by then. Similarly, the precious cultivation methods of the past may be nothing but useless trash to modern people.

  Han Jin's master also said that from the perspective of life forms, animals are higher than plants. Using tuina to absorb the spiritual energy between heaven and earth is undoubtedly a plant-like behavior. Rather than spending energy on the remaining spiritual energy, it's better to thoroughly change one's thinking! Modern science has proven that if the human body can fully digest and absorb food, a slice of bread is enough to supply a day's consumption. Supplementing life energy through eating is an animal-like behavior. Since animals' life forms are higher than plants, this way of supplementing life energy should also be more advanced than plants.

  In the system of Xiū Zhēn, the energy absorbed by humans through food is the acquired essence, which compared to the innate yuanqi, is only impurities and cannot be put on the same level. However, Han Jin's master insisted that although there are many types of energy, they can all be traced back to a single origin!

  Han Jin's master led by example, and as he walked further down this unprecedented path, some cultivators couldn't understand him and secretly ridiculed him as a glutton because his appetite was simply too enormous. The legendary Zhang Guo Lao was said to have eaten half a cow in one sitting, but Han Jin's master could eat several hundred people's worth of rations in one meal. Ridicule aside, only time can prove everything. As the years went by, Han Jin's master's peers gradually passed away, and even at their last moments, ascension remained an unattainable dream for them. Yet, Han Jin's master was able to survive all along. Regardless of whether this path was right or wrong, at least being alive gave him hope!

  Han Jin was a very lucky person. When he embarked on the path of cultivation, his predecessors had already practiced and refined a set of practical methods and steps, as well as the effects of each stage. He could simply apply them and achieve success. It must be admitted that this unorthodox method is indeed more effective and convenient than the traditional plant-based approach in some aspects. Han Jin only started cultivating at the age of 16, but within a short span of seven years, his strength surpassed that of the vast majority of his peers, including many young masters from renowned cultivation families, making him one of the most outstanding figures among the younger generation.

  If he didn't need to do anything else, Han Jin could spend his entire day eating, and his digestive absorption ability had already reached 99.9%, meaning that he could almost completely absorb all the food he ate.

  His physical body was destroyed, but in the last moment, Han Jin suddenly remembered his master's words: death is not the end of life! With his trust in his master and his persistence, his primordial spirit did not disappear with the destruction of his physical body. Instead, it struggled to break through an indescribable passage and finally arrived in this world.

  No matter whose body the 'beggar' belonged to, and whose soul it was, both of their energies had dropped to an all-time low. Han Jin urgently needed to replenish his energy, so his hunger pangs were amplified countless times, to the point where he could no longer control his emotions.

  As soon as he opened his eyes, Han Jin saw the scattered fire-red beads on the ground, with energy! This was Han Jin's first reaction. He then picked up a bead with a convulsive motion and stuffed it into his mouth, swallowing it immediately. As for what material the food was made of, he didn't care. After completing the foundation-building, he had eaten Tian Shan Warm Jade, Yang River Fire Essence, and even Xinghe Sand, all materials that other cultivators considered to be used for refining magic treasures. He could eat anything as long as it contained energy, and he could absorb it cleanly.

  "Hey……you can't eat that!" The girl who saw this scene exclaimed. In fact, the necklace she was wearing was made of Long Ear Rabbit's magic crystal, although it also belonged to the fire system magic crystal, but the Long Ear Rabbit's level was too low, and the round rolling magic crystal contained too little fire element, its ornamental value far exceeded its practical value, so it would be used to make necklaces.

  Han Jin's eyes bulged out extremely as the bright red beads slid into his throat, and he felt a sense of danger! The cultivation technique Han Jin learned also had its own limits. If he absorbed the energy of food grains, there was no problem, the more the better. However, if he wanted to absorb the energy of rare treasures, there were strict regulations. For example, if the energy stored in his body had reached 1,000, he could absorb 1 unit of energy within a day, with one-thousandth as the standard. If the absorbed energy exceeded 10 units, exceeding one percent of his own energy, it was possible to produce certain harm, or even go crazy. Now this body was empty and did not have any basic energy, in the past, these bright red beads were good things that could quickly replenish energy, but now, one bead could take his life!

  Han Jin used his last strength, thrusting his left hand deep into his throat and digging vigorously, while his right hand heavily struck his chest and abdomen. With a loud "plop", the bright red bead was spat out, and Han Jin's body slowly leaned forward, finally collapsing to the ground motionless.

  "This person... is ill, right?" The girl said softly while patting her own chest.

  A middle-aged man stretched out his hand and felt Han Jin's breath, his face changed greatly: "Miss, hurry up, this person is dead!"

  "What?" The girl's face also changed, and she hastily rushed towards Han Jin.

  "Miss!" The middle-aged man grabbed the girl's arm: "It's not worth getting into trouble for this beggar, let's go! Hurry!" He was very clear in his mind that Miss had already gotten into some trouble, and if someone with ill intentions took advantage of this to make things difficult for her, Miss would be in big trouble.

  "Let go, let me see! Maybe..." The girl was struggling with all her might.

  "Miss, stop messing around." The middle-aged man had already broken out in a cold sweat and gave another middle-aged man a signal. The two men forcibly dragged the girl away from the scene of the crime.

  It was unclear how much time had passed, but the hoarse and mournful cries roused Han Jin from his daze. He opened his eyes once more to find himself being held tightly in someone's chest, which was heaving violently. He could clearly feel the vibrations caused by the voice.

  Han Jin struggled for a moment, and his crying suddenly stopped. A face that made people unbearable to look at appeared in front of him. In fact, the face was quite delicate, with big eyes, a straight nose bridge, and a normal facial shape. But it was really too dirty, especially after he had just cried, with tears streaming down his face like gullies. His hair was also messy, emitting an unpleasant odor that made Han Jin, who liked cleanliness, take a step back.

  "Thank God! Young master, you're awake!!" The man let out a cry of extreme joy and tears, with tears gushing out of his eyes once again. He then held up a piece of bread in both hands and handed it to Han Jin's chest: "Young master, I know you must be starving, it's all my fault for being incompetent and taking so long to buy things, please eat quickly!"

  At this moment, Han Jin's mind was flashing with countless whys, but all the questions put together were not as attractive as that piece of bread. Han Jin almost snatched the bread away and stuffed it whole into his mouth.

  As he swallowed mouthful by mouthful, Han Jin felt an indescribable sense of fullness, a happiness that made him tremble, a satisfaction that brought tears to his eyes. He really hadn't expected that hunger could reduce him to this state! He remembered hearing about some miners who were trapped underground for five or six days and when they were rescued, one of them, who had maintained the most physical strength, avoided the doctor's supervision, ate ravenously, and ended up killing himself by overeating. Now he could fully understand what a tragedy that was!

  Although he had changed to another shell, Han Jin's cultivation method was still there. The bread he swallowed quickly turned into strands of energy, nourishing his nearly collapsing body and mind. Han Jin closed his eyes contentedly, while the young man grinned from ear to ear.

  In an instant, Han Jin opened his eyes again, got a replenishment of energy, and his mind became much more agile. Looking at the young man in front of him, he asked tentatively: "Stilberg?"

  "Master, you called me? What's wrong?"

  "It's nothing..." Han Jin coughed, the information he received was not an illusion, the young man in front of him was indeed his own house slave, and also the last property of a declining noble family: "Is there still bread? I..."

  "Ah? I see, you're not full yet." Stillberg jumped up: "Wait a minute, I'll go buy some more."