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Chapter 6 - Chapter 6;Trait: Cellular Regeneration.

Back in the hut, Wuji placed the sixty-kilogram slab of meat he had bought from the village shops on the floor, near the other items he had purchased: a pair of knives, a basic longsword, and a shortbow with ten arrows.

His hands were still sore. His chest ached. But his hunger roared louder than both.

He grabbed the pouch hanging from his waist and opened it. Inside were one gold coin and a few scattered copper pieces.

In this world, one gold coin equaled one hundred silver coins, and one silver coin equaled one hundred copper coins.

"I never thought a single gold coin could feed a family for two months, and I blew it on a sword and a bow," Wuji thought, staring at the pouch with clenched teeth.

"If Yin Li could see what I have done, he would curse me."

He remembered that when Yin Li worked in town, he earned one silver coin per month.

That number seemed absurd and unacceptable to him now. He couldn't imagine working for that kind of money, even in a decent job.

But Yin Li hadn't had a choice. He had no special skills, no education, and no family support.

He had only hard labor, a dead-end job in a toxic environment, and a little sister to protect.

Unlike other villagers, his parents hadn't left him anything; no land, no knowledge, and no chance to send Meiyin to school.

He was left with just a pair of hands, a dying name, and a growing girl to raise.

He glanced to the left and saw that Meiyin was still asleep, curled up in bed with slow, steady breaths.

Although she wasn't his real sister, he felt genuine affection for her; a quiet, heavy warmth he didn't recognize at first.

Maybe it was Yin Li's lingering feelings trapped in the body, or maybe it was something else.

Either way, he didn't hate it; he had never had a family in his past life. He had no bonds, no roots, and no one waiting for him at the end of the day.

Meiyin might not be his true sister, but she was real. In a world where power ruled and justice was a joke, that meant something.

Without another thought, he walked to the corner, unwrapped the iron knife he had bought from the blacksmith, and began cutting the meat into thick chunks.

The blade slid through the flesh effortlessly.

"No wonder that grumpy old man boasted about his skills," Wuji thought, genuinely impressed.

He dropped the pieces into a pot, set it over the fire, and let the heat fill the hut.

Two hours later, the scent of cooked meat filled the air. Smoke curled lazily from the fire pit. Fat sizzled and popped as Wuji turned the final piece.

He sat down next to the pot, picked up a steaming piece of meat, and took a slow, deliberate bite.

"Delicious," he muttered, then dug in like a starving beast.

Seven minutes later, nearly three kilograms of meat had disappeared. His stomach bulged, and he was so full that he had to lie down.

As he stretched out on the floor beside the warm fire, digestion began.

He lay there for several minutes, waiting.

But nothing out of the ordinary happened and the cellular regeneration trait didn't activate.

His brows furrowed as he wondered, "Was it the desperation last time that triggered it?"

Then he paused and corrected himself, "No, maybe the nutrients just haven't kicked in yet."

And he was right. Deep inside his body, the nutrients had finally begun to reach the bloodstream.

That's when he felt a subtle, steady, unmistakable warm-cool sensation sweeping across his limbs.

His skin tingled. The tightness in his chest loosened and his fatigue faded like smoke in the wind.

"There it is," he thought. "It doesn't trigger just from eating. It waits until digestion's complete. When the cells are fed, then it begins."

He sat up slowly and reached for the sword he had bought from the smith. As he did so, he caught sight of his reflection in the blade.

The scar on his face itched faintly.

He touched it gently, the swelling had gone down and the skin around it was smoother and less red than previously.

"Another week, and it might vanish completely," he thought. Then he set the sword down beside him.

He rolled up his sleeve and examined his forearm.

The deep purple bruises from just a few minutes ago had faded to a dull yellow-green. "In a day or two, it'll be gone entirely."

Most people would need a week, maybe two, for that to happen.

He touched his leg and thought, "A broken bone usually takes six to eight weeks to heal. But after eating nearly half the meat earlier, I can already feel the bone knitting."

It wasn't healed yet, but the sharp pain had dulled. The swelling had gone down. "I've probably shaved off at least two weeks already," he thought.

He stared at his hand, "What a weird experience," he thought. "In my thirty-five years, I never thought I'd feel something like this," he muttered.

Then his gaze landed on the meat and he had an idea. "What if I eat more? Could I trigger cellular regeneration again? Maybe I'll heal faster, or even fully recover overnight."

The logic made sense. But deep down, he felt it wouldn't work that way.

Still, he needed to know. He immediately decided to cook another three kilograms of meat.

Two hours later, the pot was full again. As he stared into the pot, his mouth watered.

Despite having eaten three kilograms earlier, his stomach rumbled. The healing process had burned through his reserves, making him hungry again.

Several minutes later, the pot was empty. He lay down again, his stomach bulging.

"If this works, I'll never fear injury again," he thought excitedly.

But twenty minutes passed with no warmth, no cool tingling, no itching skin, and no signs of activation.

Wuji sat up slowly, pressing one hand to his chest. He glanced at his fingers and exhaled quietly.

"So, it doesn't work twice in a row. Makes sense," he muttered.

Leaning back, he let his thoughts unspool: "My body's still healing from the first round. The cells are probably still using the energy from that meat."

His eyes narrowed slightly as he thought to himself, "Cellular regeneration doesn't create energy; it just uses what's already there and accelerates the body's natural healing process, but only if the fuel's available."

He looked at the glowing blue panel hovering in front of him.

[Name: Ye Wuji

Innate Talent: Cell Dominion

Rank: Mortal-Class

First Trait: Cellular Regeneration (Low Tier)

Cultivation: None (no spirit root).]

"If the low tier just speeds up recovery, what would the mid tier do? Or high-tier?" he wondered.

"Can it rebuild organs? Regrow limbs? Adapt my body like a living weapon?"

Then, another thought clicked into place: "Maybe evolution depends on cultivation. Maybe I only have this trait because I was reborn in this world. Maybe that's the key."

His eyes settled on the last line: [Cultivation: None (No Spirit Root)]

"Do I really have no spirit root? Or is the chief hiding something because he's afraid I'll become his enemy?" He thought as he closed the panel.

"I'll wait for the sect cultivators to arrive. Until then, I'll train in the martial arts of the fifth elder."

He looked toward the bed. Meiyin was still fast asleep.

"I'll cook her lunch before she wakes up. Meat again? Or maybe something from my old world," he thought, a faint smile touching his lips. "God, I miss that food."

He stood up, stretched, and made his way toward the back of the village where the shops were located.

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