Chapter Thirty-Six: Practice and Dialogue

In the southern corner of the Golden Pine Valley, several humanoid training dummies, pieced together from battered iron scraps, stood silently. This was where the members of the outpost honed their martial skills; the dummies’ strength roughly matched that of the local creatures.

Liu Zong gripped a spear longer than himself, practicing here for nearly an hour. Throughout this time, he repeatedly drilled the skills of thrusting and piercing. Beside him was a small silver pot, its flame modest but steady, keeping the liquid within at a constant boil.

His efforts were earnest, if somewhat slow. He was practicing a polearm technique he had learned in a dream—a style meant to be executed atop the back of a flood dragon. Compared to the boxing techniques he had previously studied, this method was far more complex. Not only did it require mastery over the weapon’s movements, but also demanded an inscrutable footwork and specific patterns of breath and thought.

Liu Zong knew that the spear would become his primary weapon. Yet, he had not been able to fully execute even the first move. Each attempt barely amounted to half a technique before his form unraveled or his stamina was entirely spent.

Still, he persevered, aware that this art surpassed everything else he had learned and believing it to be the key to his future growth.

During his practice, Liu Chun arrived. He did not interrupt, simply watching from a distance as Liu Zong trained. Liu Zong noticed him but did not immediately stop; only after completing another round of thrusts did he plant his spear in the ground and turn to face Liu Chun.

“Brother Liu, you’re here too,” he greeted, approaching the small pot at his side. With a spoon, he ladled out a piece of meat and broth and brought it to his lips.

The meat stew was his own handiwork. Since leaving the dungeon, Liu Zong had come to appreciate the importance of having a practical skill outside of study. Thus, he had learned basic cooking, mastering three types of combat meals, rations, and training dishes.

Naturally, as Liu Zong’s affinity was primarily for the yin attribute, the nine recipes he had acquired were mostly suited for undead of the yin type, with ingredients consisting mainly of meat processed by necromantic means, mushrooms, or insects and other materials commonly found near yin-rich locations.

The stew bubbling in his pot was the training meal known as “Insect and Fungi Hotpot.”

[Insect and Fungi Hotpot: Restores 100% stamina in 30 seconds. If consumed in 15 seconds, grants a 10% experience boost for one minute.]

This dish was a relatively straightforward recipe—common insects or mushrooms chopped into small pieces, simmered in water. At first, it might not taste like much, but with repeated additions of water and ingredients, its flavor gradually improved. Most cooks would carefully save the final broth when leaving, reusing it next time for a richer taste.

Since mastering cooking, Liu Zong had always eaten Insect and Fungi Hotpot during his training. The broth was now over ten batches old. That morning, while completing his daily tasks, he had collected some local insects.

He had learned from the outpost residents the previous night that, over the years, they had subsisted mainly on these insects. He had found two main types: sand scorpions and mud worms. The sand scorpions were small, no larger than a palm, their shells unsuitable for equipment and their venom too weak to kill, but they made excellent food. Once cracked open, their flesh resembled crab meat; the younger, more tender ones tasted even better. The otherwise useless venom, when added to the stew, lent it a spicy, stimulating flavor.

The mud worms, found beneath the sand and stone, looked like plump silkworms but were harder to process. While highly nutritious raw, they were difficult to digest. The proper way to prepare them was to skewer them on iron needles and sun-dry them, or to sprinkle them with salt to draw out the moisture, then fry the remaining skins in oil. Their taste was akin to beef, and culinarily, they counted as regular meat.

During his tasks, Liu Zong had casually gathered plenty of both scorpions and mud worms, processing them before training. He kept the pot nearby, consuming a portion each time he rested and adding more prepared insect meat as needed, continuing until Liu Chun’s arrival.

Carefully, Liu Zong poured the aged broth into a silver flask and finished the remaining meat.

Only then did he address Liu Chun: “Brother Liu, have you finished today’s tasks?”

Liu Chun sat down opposite him. “Yes, I have. I thought I’d come here to practice a bit myself. I see you’ve switched weapons—are you giving up the Reaper’s path?”

Previously, Liu Zong’s affinities were for yin-element magic and martial force, allowing him to follow the dual cultivation of magic and martial arts. The most renowned path was that of the Reaper, wielding the scythe for martial strength, curses for magic, and ultimately enhancing control over the undead. On completion of this path, one became adept at both close combat and curses, and could command undead minions to claim lives with ease.

But now, Liu Zong had switched to the spear, raising understandable doubts for Liu Chun.

Liu Zong smiled at the question. “Didn’t you also try several different paths before becoming a Soul Prison Warlock? I walked the Reaper’s path for quite some time, but I realized it wasn’t truly for me. I’ve changed direction, and now I’m committed to this new path.”

“Is it because of that item you obtained in the dungeon?” Liu Chun pressed. “Though I don’t know what you found, I’ve seen your diligence these past months. The path you’re now on is vastly different from before. If you start over, all those years of effort will be wasted. Are you sure about this?”

“I thought about it seriously for a whole month before accepting the task,” Liu Zong replied firmly. “In the dungeon, I worried constantly about what would happen if I failed, since I had sold all my Reaper-path materials before entering. Fortune favored me, and I completed the task. I got the vital item. I believe I have enough time to start anew.”

“But your initial studies were in the wrong direction,” Liu Chun pointed out. “The Reaper path strengthens control over the undead, but now you’re aiming for the Undead Metropolis route. You should be learning necro-architecture, and you won’t be able to meet the standards in a short time.”

“What do you mean, Brother Liu?” Liu Zong asked, meeting his gaze.

“Today, I used necromantic summoning at Zhu Yan’s request,” Liu Chun said. “I think I know what Zhu Yan is seeking here. Among those items, there’s something useful for you. I can tell you how to obtain it—but you’ll need to help me.”