[Reset detected, calculating... successful!]
[Spiritual Roots increased by 2!]
[Cultivation Speed multiplier increased by 0.03!]
[You gain a total of 3 Prestige Points!]
"Phew..."
A sense of lethargy settles on my shoulders as the warm energy within my body leaves from the pores of my skin. That feeling of emptiness is short-lived as the same warm energy enters my roots, flows within my meridians, and then swirls within my dantian. In an instant, strength returns to my body. It's not the same strength as when I reach the 2nd Stage, but it is enough to make me feel at ease even with the growing headache making itself known.
It's a disturbing feeling constantly expelling my qi. If I have to give an example, it feels like losing blood and feeling nauseous. It's all a mental thing, and it doesn't really affect me physically, but it is still a psychological thing because I am willingly weakening my soul by expelling qi that strengthens it.
Like imagine just willingly losing blood. It's the same for cultivators, and it is done at a near instantaneous moment when I expel all of my cultivation out of my body. If I am going to constantly feel like this each time I reset it, I can't really do that constantly. I think I might puke if I do it frequently in a single day. There is still the lingering lightheadedness on my head when I do my resets.
It is really inefficient if we think about it rationally. It's not like it is affecting me physically, but this uncomfortable feeling stacks within my mind. I think I can't handle expelling my qi ten times in a single day. I can feel a sour taste in my tongue and that acidic sensation rising from my throat when I try forcing my cultivation to reset five times in a single day.
I mean, I am curious. My current speed through passive cultivation can let me go straight to the 2nd Stage within five hours. I want to know if I can handle constantly resetting my cultivation. My maximum cultivation reset in a single day is five times. I think I will take that as a hard limit for my resets in a single day.
So, why am I trying to check whether I can reset as much as I can?
Well, the reason for that is the thing my pet demonic beast is currently eating just outside my residence. It's a giant bird-like creature with a long bald neck and a monstrous four-pronged beak. This monstrous creature that looks like it comes from an animal experiment gone wrong is surprisingly one of the weakest demonic beasts in this world. It's called the Flying Dodo base on Xie Wen's memories.
I don't know why they call it the Flying Dodo. It doesn't look like a dodo at all!
Anyway, this is the first time a demonic beast reaches the peak of this mountain. Thankfully it is just a 1st Stage Demonic Beast that comes here. I am incapable of fighting currently because of my constant resets, so I can only rely on Kuro to protect me. This bird just appears out of nowhere to catch Fluffy, who is frolicking beside the pond.
This happened three days ago. So a sense of crisis looms upon me, and I feel that this place is not as safe as it seems. If a weak flying demonic beast can reach a mountain peak that is tens of thousands of feet high above the ground, then it is not an exaggeration to expect a stronger flying beast to reach this spot.
Then, should I leave this place?
No! Of course not!
Even if there is a chance a strong demonic beast can reach this peak, it's still a low chance compared to land-based creatures below. I see the feeds from the sturdy, wireless, solar-powered security cameras that I install around the peak. I can't really do it around the middle part of this peak because of the wolf beasts surrounding the area, but I manage to put all-direction security camera orbs on key parts around the peak that will give me a good vantage point to see all sides of the area below this peak.
Those wolf demonic beasts are waiting for me. There are a lot of them. I estimate they are close to a hundred just roaming around the broken paths and stairs of this mountain that leads to this peak, and most of them are looking above with an intensity on their gazes.
I don't want to risk myself on the land. This place is still safer than going below this mountain.
Still, this sense of crisis forces me to push myself and try to reset as much as I can. This is why I learn the limit I can handle with the constant reset.
Of course, I can push myself further, but this sense of lethargy and then strength and the lingering lightheadedness that is slowly turning into nausea is something I can't handle. I don't really want to push myself so much that I am going to puke.
I still have time. My cultivation is getting faster and faster as time passes. I think within a decade, I can reach the Qi Condensation Realm within a single day. That is an optimistic assumption by myself, but I have to.
"Wan!"
Hm? Oh right, Fluffy is getting hungry...
"Sure, give me a moment."
I also have to think about Fluffy and Kuro. My pet demonic beast can sustain itself with pure, raw meat. Fluffy is not the same as it is a mortal dog breed. Obviously with its status as a mortal dog, it can't survive in this world. For it to have any chance of survival, it has to become a demonic beast.
It can't do that by eating demonic beast meat. It has to naturally evolve into one. I think that will take long, but if it constantly stays within my room, then I am sure it won't take at least a year before Fluffy becomes a demonic beast.
I just have to take care of it until the time comes.
----------------------------------------
With the new sense of crisis looming on my shoulders, I force myself to cultivate. In the following weeks, I delegated six hours of my time cultivating manually. At my current status, my cultivation speed and roots make it possible for me to reach 2nd Stage Foundation Establishment within two hours. If I force myself without resetting, I think I can reach the 3rd Stage Foundation Establishment in a single week.
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During that time, I am contemplating whether I should go along with my actual plan or stick to what Xie Wen knows. It takes me a few days of deliberation and in the end, I decided to choose my own path.
[Would you like to acquire the Gun Talent?]
"Yes."
Something clicks within my mind after my purchase.
That is right. The weapon I want to accompany me as a cultivator is not a sword.
It's a gun!
Just like one of my favorite isekai protagonists said, a gun is more reliable as a weapon than anything else. It is a ruthless and efficient weapon with no regards to technique and forms. You simply point it and then pull the trigger.
Of course, I think about it. This world works in a different way. I assume normal bullets can't pierce the tough skin of demonic beasts, much yet bruise the skin of a cultivator. Foundation Establishment practitioners are already superhuman in terms of physical capability alone. Swords and arrows don't affect them, and even those in the early to middle stages of Foundation Establishment can swat a shot cannon by a mortal.
There is a reason cultivators are being revered in this world. They are too strong compared to mortal people. People at the lower levels can't contend against a high level cultivator because the gap in their power is too large. Having a higher cultivation base is always better even if the person is an idiot because the strength they will acquire is that humongous.
So a normal gun won't do anything to this world.
But that doesn't mean it is entirely useless!
Just like how a normal bullet is useless against cultivators, normal weaponry made by mortals are also useless to them. Special materials like spirit stones or metals were used to create weapons and armors capable of withstanding these cultivators. Most of the time they do it on swords, or some weave clothes that can resist elemental attacks.
It's the same case on the guns. If a normal gun and bullet can't deal with cultivators and demonic beasts, then I just have to get a gun made by these spiritual metals.
It's normally impossible in this world to find something like that, but I have the Prestige Shop. It can sell anything to me.
With a simple search on the Weapon section, I easily find what I am looking for. It's also a very cheap one, costing 50 points.
[Would you like to purchase the Magical Pistol?]
"Yes."
A small black pistol manifests in my hand. I look at it from left to right, checking the handle and the magazine within.
"... It's loaded..."
That almost stops my heart. It is fully loaded with seventeen shiny rounds within. All bullets, I realized, are made of metals conducive to any forms of qi. The gun itself also has a certain weight to it that even me, someone who is at the 1st Stage Foundation Establishment can feel it. It's not as heavy as Xie Wen's original sword, but its weight is foreign like half the weight of a sword's handle.
Thankfully, watching many anime and playing games in my past life makes me somewhat knowledgeable about trivial knowledge. Basic stuff like not looking at the barrel of the gun, not resting your finger on the trigger, and looking for a safety pin is just something a person has to know if they want to handle a gun.
It's all rudimentary knowledge, but it is enough. With my Gun Talent, I have this instinctive understanding of how to use this pistol even with no prior training.
This is just the start. Next are the bullets. Qi conducive pistol bullets cost 1 point per ammo box. Each ammo box contains fifty pistol rounds. I bought five of these ammo boxes. Next are empty magazines. If I want to reload quickly, then I need to have a full magazine instead of manually reloading each round into a spent magazine.
Thankfully, the empty magazines for the model of my gun gives a bundle of them with each point. I use two points to buy two bundles of it so I can start loading each and carrying a few along with me.
Then I bought some basic kit for the military. A belt to store my loaded magazines, and a strap for my pistol.
After that, I buy the next important thing. Gun Technique!
Techniques are important for a cultivator. They are like special moves in a fighting game. Aces that can elevate the threat rating of a cultivator. Just like Xie Wen's Iron Edge, a sword technique that sharpens the blade he wields, doubling the slashing power of his swing.
The Prestige Shop has techniques for gun users too. This is the reason why I feel that using a gun is viable in this dangerous world. It is because of the existence of these techniques. Most gun techniques are pretty expensive, but there are few that are cheaper enough for me to afford. I buy one technique that is universal enough for range users.
[Would you like to learn the True Shot Technique?]
"Yes!"
True Shot Technique. An offensive technique that helps a cultivator take aim with their weapon, and shoot with inhuman accuracy. There is no guarantee that it will hit if the opposition is very fast or dodgy, but it helps increase the accuracy of a shot and make sure that at least the spot the user wants to hit will be hit.
There are some practitioners of this technique in this sect. Unfortunately, I think they are dead.
Going back on topic, included in the basic military kit was a target stand. I can train myself with this.
Before that though, I need to make sure to suppress the noise my gun will surely make after I use it. This might be a pistol, and I might be feeling more paranoid, but I don't want the sound of my gunshots to attract other demonic beasts. I am in the middle of the wilderness full of dangerous monsters. If I make a lot of loud noises, I think I might attract strong demons out of nowhere.
It's why I am not buying any game consoles in my Prestige Shop because I fear some sort of demonic beast will get attracted by the noise it will make. It will be dull if I just play without sound, so I just satisfy myself with light novels.
Anyway, this was the reason why it took a long time before I decided to settle on a gun. I fear the noise will attract trouble on my way. If I buy a suppressor, the suppressor needs to handle the bullet too. Mortal suppressor will break from a qi conducive bullet.
That is my assumption anyway because bows and crossbows in this world can't handle special cultivator arrows and bolts. They snap or even break on their own trying to do that. I think a gun and a suppressor act the same.
So, I spent 1 point for the magical pistol suppressor.
With all of these done, I feel confident enough to start my training.
----------------------------------------
Gu Rou watched his master as he pointed the weird tool in his hand on a wooden circular stand with layers of circular white and red paint on it. He pushed his finger within the lever-like trigger on that device, and Gu Rou's ears twitched as it heard a sound akin to a person sipping from straw from the tube of that small device.
A moment after that was the sound of brief wooden creaks that turned into a slight screech. Gu Rou gazed at the wooden circular stand and saw pinky-sized holes on the layer close to its center.
His tail swished at the strength displayed by the small tool. He shook his head, quickly changing his perspective on this tool and calling it within his mind as a weapon.
This small weapon was deadly. If it could bore holes on wood, then flesh would be torn by its swift and hidden projectiles. He hasn't seen what kind of projectile it shot, just that it shot something from the mouth of the tube. Something small that would be imperceptible to anyone but the most perceptive.
He diligently stood on guard a few meters away from his master. He doesn't want another surprise attack from a creature not part of its pack. A few weeks ago, a weak prey dared capture its small brethren. He showed the error of its way by swatting it with his powerful claws, and finishing it with his ferocious fangs.
No more intruders came after that, though he was still attentive to his surroundings. He knew of the mutts that stayed below their den. How they licked their snout as they stared at his master. Gu Rou waited for the time they would counterattack. This type of insult shouldn't be forgiven.
"Hmm... True Shot truly lives up to its name. Even standing sixty meters away from the target let me hit it still..." His master muttered under his breath.
Gu Rou wondered if the time for their counterattack was close. His master now has a weapon that could deal with foes with swift preciseness. Once again, his tail wagged faster at the thought of getting back against those wolves below this peak.