[Dungeon Creation System]
[Name]: Li Am / Liam
[Realm]: Foundation Building Realm [Perfected]
[Lifespan]: 57 / 850
[Universal Essence / Points]: 890
[Techniques]:
Basic Spiritual Energy Gathering [Expertise]Spiritual Rain [Intermediate]Soil Movement [Intermediate]Basic Fireball [Intermediate]Basic Earth Wall [Intermediate]Basic Body Movement [Expertise]Common Sword Mastery [Expertise][Spiritual Arts]:
Spiritual Planter [Upper Level – First Grade]Spiritual Puppeteer [Low Level – Second Grade][Dungeon]
Available Dungeon Slot: 1
Tier 1: 1
[Pocket Space]
Wilden Wolves
Growth Limit: Qi Refining Realm (Peak)Rarity: 0.1Lifespan: 200 yearsSpecial Skills: Blue Claws, Flaming MantleWooden Boar
Growth Limit: Qi Refining Realm (Peak)Rarity: 0.1Lifespan: 300 yearsSpecial Skills: Hardened HideTyphoon Eagle [Bounded]
Growth Limit: Foundation Building RealmRarity: 0.2Lifespan: 700 yearsSpecial Skills: Typhoon Blades, Wind Slash, Typhoon ShieldShadow Worm
Growth Limit: Qi Refining Realm [Perfection]Rarity: 0.1Lifespan: 200 yearsSpecial Skills: Shadow Movement, Shadow Strike, Cocoon of Darkness[Permission Level]: 0%
Liam took a moment to go over the panel, eyes moving across the floating display.
A lot had changed.
From his list of techniques, some still embarrassingly basic, to the spiritual arts he'd slowly cultivated over time, the new panel laid it all bare.
It was concise and complete.
He gave the system a small nod of appreciation. This kind of update… it was long overdue.
Still, despite the neat rows of information and progress, one thing hadn't changed.
The permission bar remained at zero.
"But it won't be long…" Liam murmured, reaching to the side and gently plucking a flower by its closed bud.
It unfurled in his hand, a brilliant red blooming beneath the lazy sunlight.
"I just hope the chosen person doesn't take too long to get here."
He glanced off to the side, then released the petal between his fingers.
It drifted onto the surface of the pond, spinning slowly before settling into a gentle float.
Not far off, three puppets stood like statues.
The other one of them was assigned to monitor Ilya.
The others, five in total, were currently stationed on the dungeon's surface, tending the fiery blade plants that spanned across the ten-li field.
If everything followed the normal growth cycle, the next month would bring in the first harvest.
Given the field's size and the current health of the plants, he estimated the total yield to be around two hundred kilograms, maybe more, depending on several variables.
Plant condition. Soil saturation. Environmental fluctuations. Even random fate could tip the scale.
"But to increase yield, I need more land. And to get more land…" Liam sighed, "I need higher permission access."
A chain of requirements. Each link bound to another.
Question: How do you generate wealth when you have no materials, no resources, and nothing to sell?
Answer:
Well... I never said I was a good person.
Liam exhaled through his nose, eyes flickering with resolve. With a single thought, his gaze shifted, far, far away.
One of the puppets nearby, the one marked with his golden imprint, shimmered slightly... and disappeared.
Liam didn't watch it leave. His attention was already drifting.
Back to the pond and to the rippling reflection that mirrored his still frame.
He stood there under the gentle wind that thumped by.
His thoughts unreadable.
The surface of the pond didn't stir.
And then, without a hint of emotion, he whispered:
"Today… is such a bloody day."
Outer City – Blue Wolf Gang Manor
The scent of sweat, alcohol, and roasted meat filled the air.
Inside the grand hall of the Blue Wolf Gang manor, laughter rang out loud and crude.
Thick-armed men lounged around a long table at the center, each one gripping a hefty wooden cup filled with a strange, murky yellow liquid.
It reeked of fermented grain, cheap alcohol, probably homemade and strong enough to knock out a lesser man.
The hall itself was surprisingly lavish. High ceilings, polished floor tiles, thick red drapes hanging along the walls.
It was one of many buildings within the compound, but by far the most extravagant.
They had everything. A pharmacist hut stood quietly in one corner of the compound, while a double-story residence attached to the main hall loomed nearby.
There was even a weapons storage, and beneath it all, an underground chamber that led to who knew what.
Yet, in this moment, none of that mattered to the men inside.
They were too busy howling in laughter, slapping backs, clanking cups.
One of them had a woman on his lap, her expression glazed, lips parted in a woozy smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.
She didn't resist.
Drunken fools.
Clack!
A different sound this time. Not the hollow thud of wood hitting wood.
Then again came the clatter of cups as they all leaned in and knocked their drinks together in unison.
Faces flushed red. Grins wide. Eyes half-shut in drunken glee.
"To the great Master Lu!"
Roars of approval followed, spilling out into the night.
One man, wobbling a little as he rose from his chair, planted his cup on the table and made a gesture with his hand.
"Did you guys notice that Old Bakery Granny's daughter? Woohoo! That's a good one. A nice haul if we can get our hands on her!"
"Pfft! Hahahaha!"
Another waved a hand lazily. "You mean that old hag's girl? Nah, not yet. She's still busting her ass to pay us protection money. Let's keep her dangling a little longer."
"Hahaha!"
"The Red Mist's coming, boys! Might as well grab what we can before the whole place goes to hell. I'm calling first dibs though! Hahahaha!"
The laughter grew nastier.
"Oh, oh, remember last week?" one of them choked out between snorts.
"That sissy kid we made dress up like a little girl? Hahahaha!"
"Wait, someone actually did him, didn't they?!"
"ahahaha!"
"Of course, of course! Everyone's got their tastes!"
"Yeah, but the best part was when the kid begged for his life, remember? And our brother just, snap!, cut him down right there!"
They exploded into hysterics.
Beasts.
Monsters wrapped in human skin.
None of them were cultivators. Not really. Not in the immortal sense.
But for mortals, there was another path.
The path of ancient humans, the physical master's path, refining flesh and bone until it stood defiant against heaven itself.
It was a brutal road. Painful. Resource-starved. Mostly lost to time.
Few dared tread it. Fewer still survived.
But these men? They walked that path. Not far along it, but far enough to dominate the powerless.
Far enough to act brazen in the outer city where most cultivators choose to ignore the mortal lives.
Their confidence wasn't baseless either.
Their leader, Lu, was a middle-stage Qi Refining Realm cultivator, fifth layer.
Strong enough to crush any commoner like a bug. With his backing, they were untouchable.
Royalty of the slums.
Even the city guards gave them a wide berth. No one wanted to provoke Master Lu or get caught in the growing instability within the City Lord's mansion.
Coupled with the instability in the city center, none dared to make problems now.
And so, they lived like kings in a dying city.
Moments later.
While the room buzzed with drunken chatter and crude laughter, a soft gust of wind slipped through the main hall.
The heavy door creaked open.
A tall figure stepped inside, clad in a deep crimson robe that trailed faintly across the floor.
The atmosphere shifted the moment he appeared, like a predator had just entered the den.
Without a word, the burly men snapped up from their seats, excitement flaring behind their eyes as they saluted with practiced energy.
"We see Master Lu!"
"We see Master Lu!"
"We see Master Lu!"
Their voices echoed across the hall.
One of them stumbled forward, bowing low with his back bent stiffly, voice lowered to a reverent mutter. "Master Lu, as ordered, the monthly rent has been collected. All of it's been secured in the storage room."
"Good," Master Lu replied, not even sparing him a glance.
His steps were measured, boots tapping rhythmically against the wood floor, thud… thud… thud, as he continued walking forward without pause.
Then, just as he passed by a man who still had a woman draped in his arms, he stopped.
His gaze shifted, landing on the burly figure.
"Don't indulge too deeply in lust," Master Lu said, voice low. "Lose yourself in it, and you'll forget who you are."
"A-ah… yes, Master," the man stammered, quickly pushing the woman into his companion's lap and straightening his posture like a soldier under inspection.
Master Lu didn't scold further.
He simply sighed, eyes sweeping across the rest of the room, pausing briefly on each face before he turned back toward the front of the hall.
"Remember the balance between work and pleasure. We are the Blue Wolf Gang, not a pack of alley dogs."
With that, he continued forward and placed a hand on the massive door at the deepest part of the hall.
It looked like it could weigh several tons, thick, ancient wood braced with blackened metal beams.
Yet under his palm, it moved with ease.
He pushed it open.
And with a quiet groan, it closed gently behind him, sealing the hall off once more.
Beyond the threshold was a large stone staircase, spiraling downward into the dark.
Pale lanterns lined the walls, their dim light flickering lazily.
With a casual wave of his hand, a glowing orb of light rose into the air beside him, illuminating the corridor with a warm hue.
The lanterns still worked, but he liked having more light.
He didn't enjoy walking blind.
Back in the hall, the tension broke as the men resumed breathing, whispers passing between them.
"Master Lu's going in again this year… that's twice now, right?"
"Yeah… I wonder what's down there. And why that door's built like a fortress."
"Don't. Just don't. Those symbols on the wall give me the creeps every time."
"Probably just private business. Whatever it is, it's his."
"Immortals are different. You don't question it. That's how you stay alive."
Their voices lowered even further.
On the surface of the door Master Lu had passed through, strange symbols were carved deep into the grain.
A humanoid figure… with the head of a beast.
Its feet, tendrils.
Its hand extended, offering a strange, bulging fruit to a kneeling human, arms outstretched, head bowed.
A silent offering.