Chapter 63: Digestion

Inside Eliza's residence in Ghost City Fortress, Li Mochen felt his entire body burning. It was as if a furnace had been lit inside him, scorching his internal organs. His dragon vein was in a similar state, appearing drunk and dizzy, unable to fly or even stand, only able to cling tightly to Li Mochen's clothes.

Eliza looked at them with a hint of pride: "Most creatures in the Dark World are highly toxic, and the blue-eyed saber-toothed tiger is no exception. Without proper treatment, it can poison you. But after removing the toxins, long-term consumption of the meat near its heart can strengthen the body and enhance magical energy. It's more effective than so-called strengthening potions, oak potions, behemoth potions, and the like, with far fewer side effects. Of course, this requires the user to have a fairly strong digestive system. For you, the blue-eyed saber-toothed tiger's meat is too potent. Eating it at this stage is a bit of a stretch."

Then she saw Li Mochen making some strange movements in the room, resembling a form of Eastern martial arts, yet not quite—mainly slow and overly soft, with no value as combat techniques.

But as time passed, the flush on Li Mochen's face gradually faded, and his breathing slowly steadied.

"What's this again? Some Eastern secret art? Passed down from your father?" Eliza asked curiously. "It feels amazing."

Li Mochen didn't answer; instead, he shot Eliza a cold glare. He was certain this woman had given him an excessive amount of beast meat, just to see him make a fool of himself.

Still, the sensation of training through food was quite novel. In the Primordial Sky Realm, no one did this. Based on the principle of maximizing spiritual energy utilization, the cultivation sects there, even when obtaining high-level demon beast meat, would find ways to combine it with auxiliary ingredients to refine various pills, avoiding any waste. Moreover, the immortal sects there regarded demons as intelligent races and fellow cultivators, never hunting them indiscriminately, so few people directly consumed demon beast meat.

Afterward, Li Mochen began helping his Inferno Dragon, applying acupuncture and then massage techniques to gradually restore the little creature to normal.

But after all this busywork, it was already eleven o'clock at night. Li Mochen had no choice but to spend another night on the sofa. It wasn't until the next morning that he took a half-pound of beast meat and headed to the Cathedral of Light in the eastern castle of Ghost City.

Li Mochen had actually taken a full nineteen pounds, including about eight pounds of blue-eyed saber-toothed tiger meat. But he had no choice—the semi-basement room he was staying in was far too inviting for thieves. So it was better to wait until he changed residences before asking Eliza for the rest.

She was also returning to the Light World and had promised to keep the meat for him.

Although this was a bit troublesome, and prolonged storage might degrade the meat's quality, it was still better than letting thieves get it.

This beast meat was indeed very helpful for his magical energy cultivation. In just one night, Li Mochen's true essence and magical power had surged significantly, and his physical constitution had improved slightly—equivalent to ten full days of cultivation.

"I suggest you use the Wiltonstein family's magical energy array next time. It costs only twelve hundred gold shields for a round trip. The key is that there's a certain tax exemption quota, so if you have things to bring back to the Light World, you can save a lot of money. But spots are tight there; you might need to book a week in advance."

At the church entrance, Eliza reluctantly handed over eleven hundred gold shields to the duty priest.

Eight hundred was the entrance fee, and the remaining three hundred was the hunting tax for the seventeen pounds of beast meat she was carrying. Li Mochen couldn't avoid it either; he paid even more—four hundred fifty gold shields.

The American Federal Government levied heavy taxes on all magical materials brought into the Light World. Even large magical material suppliers couldn't escape.

But the latter usually had agreements with the federal government and knew various tax-exempt methods, allowing them to pay the minimum tax. Independent hunters and hunting groups didn't have that privilege, so they were accustomed to selling their catches in the Dark World, which was far more cost-effective than bringing them to the Light World.

As for the Wiltonstein family's magical energy array, due to the tax exemption quotas they had secured from the local government during the pioneering era centuries ago, it was highly popular among all magical energy professionals.

Li Mochen would have liked to book there, but the problem was that the original owner of this body didn't want to. He didn't want any connection with the Wiltonstein family before achieving fame and success—this guy's personality was really quite stubborn.

"Since you're only free on weekends, I'll stay in the Light World for a few more days. I haven't enjoyed a sunbath in a long time. I've been busy all the time, and even when I occasionally come out of the Dark World, it's to handle guild affairs. So the day after tomorrow, I'll go to the beach for a vacation. If you want this meat, you'll need to come quickly. Also, I'll be back on Friday afternoon to watch your MOS individual competition. You're participating, right?"

She thought that with Li Mochen's strength, there was no way he'd be eliminated at this stage; only after reaching the national top thirty-two would it be possible.

Nationally, there were still many prodigies, and some who deliberately misreported their age, being several years older than Li Mochen and thus much stronger. At this point, some children from prestigious families could even cultivate to level nine using family resources and master various top-tier secret techniques, giving them extraordinary combat power.

Li Mochen recalled his competition schedule and shook his head slightly: "I am participating in the MOS individual competition, but this round I have a bye. I'll see if I can find time on Friday."

"Then it's settled! I'll wait for you in the Dark World on Friday."

Eliza's eyes lit up slightly, then she remembered something and her expression turned serious: "By the way, you said you live in the Vagrant District, right? Then you need to be careful lately."

"Careful?" Li Mochen pondered. "Is it because of the Black Jail Skulls and Bloodfang? I heard the Black Jail Skulls stole an artifact that should have belonged to a big shot? They've already suffered a catastrophic blow."

This was what William Yake had told him; that guy liked to show off his well-informed connections in front of his 'buddy.'

"Suffering heavy losses is true, but calling it a catastrophic blow is an exaggeration. If there weren't other big shots backing them, how would Black K of the Black Jail Skulls dare to do such a thing?"

Eliza was clearly in the know, more so than William Yake: "The high-end战力 of the Black Jail Skulls are just lying low for now. Their高端实力 are stronger than Bloodfang's, and they have reliable allies. The gang war in the southern city is just heating up; there's plenty of trouble ahead. And I heard the Black Jail Skulls didn't actually get the artifact. Someone pulled a double-cross and stole it midway, now lying low in Atlanta and Ghost City. Both Bloodfang and the Black Jail Skulls are looking for him, and the government is on high alert. Haven't you noticed the tense atmosphere in Ghost City? Almost everyone is armed?"

Li Mochen was stunned. He really hadn't noticed that. Since it was his first time in Ghost City, he thought it was always like this.

"So you'd better be careful. The Lyndon family is powerful and tries their best to protect their students, but they've run into some trouble lately. As for Bloodfang and the Black Jail Skulls, they won't target students unless necessary, but there are exceptions. In any case, I suggest you move out of the Vagrant District as soon as possible. It can help you avoid a lot of trouble."

At that moment, the magical energy array began to emit a spiritual light, enveloping them both.