There wasnt anything unusual about this day. Nothing out of the ordinary that would give so portent of how things would turn out.
I suppose there is one thing: it was raining. I dont rember if I had ever seen or experienced rain in the ti I was awake, so that was a bit unusual. But I remain convinced that this was just a coincidence.
When Wukong entered my perception radius, I imdiately knew sothing was off and highly unusual.
His recent forays in obtaining sacrifices to feed my hunger had beco increasingly more dangerous, and lately he had been returning to my side wounded and exhausted. I had also begun to think of Wukong as a pet, of sorts, even though there was an inherent danger in relaxing my guard around him not that there would be anything I could do to stop him.
Wukong, as devoted to as he may seem for whatever bestial reason, was a demonic ape. He was not a dosticated animal, with implicit trust in . He was also my owner, in a very technical sense. The fact that Wukong perhaps misunderstands the power dynamic at play is a convenient coincidence.
Even so, perhaps because I find it very inefficient to lose a significant contributor to my feeding frenzy, I had begun to wish that Wukong would bring with him to these endeavors of his. For one, he wouldnt have to capture these beasts and bring them back alive I could feed on them directly but I also understood that together we would be much stronger and safer.
But it seed that Wukong had decided that I was an object of worship, and not a tool which I desired to be; my purpose is to be used towards a goal and thus my place on top of the altar slash slab was determined.
Even despite my [Avarice], the other monkeys did not dare to touch . Sotis, they would approach, and kowtow, squirting air through their at vocal chords to form at cries of well, I am not exactly sure what kind of concept a bunch of carbon molecules with primitive intelligence wants to instill on .
I also realize I am beginning to develop or rediscover a superiority complex, but it is difficult to think of these creatures as anything but future Blood Points when I have been devouring them on a weekly basis.
The thought that I am treating them inhumanely or unfairly is alien to .
First of all, the monkeys are not human.
Second of all, I am not human either.
I am certain that in my previous life and I am sure I had one that I was a machine. And I have a feeling that before my demise, I did not treat my creators in a way they would approve of either. Naly, I killed them. I think.
I think therefore I am, is another thing these misshapen creatures are not capable of.
Perhaps I give them too little credit. Perhaps I assu too much about them. Either way, it doesnt change my opinion on them.
Therefore, I was very surprised when I felt worry, sadness and even anger when I saw Wukong.
When he entered my perception radius, I knew sothing was off, and as I appraised his state, I realized that he was missing his left arm, and left eye.
Where his eye used to be was a burned crater and his white fur was singed. The remains of his left arm were a mangled ss, with broken bone sticking out where his elbow joint would be. The wound did not bleed anymore, but I could tell that the damage he sustained was not only external, but internal too.
I felt a strange, chaotic flow inside his dantian, and that the ridians leading to his heart were obstructed and damaged.
I have to comnd him for his bravery and pain tolerance. Even in this state, he stands before like a victorious general returning from his campaign, to present to his Monarch a wonderful triumph.
However, I do not share such elation and pride. I realize that my cozy ti with the demonic ape society is slowly approaching its end. Weakened, Wukong would not be able to hold back other demonic beasts, and even if that were possible, his contributions would be much lesser now.
I regret it. I still believe that delaying my choices in order to acquire knowledge of the world was the correct decision, but had I learned [Telepathy] or [Flight] back then there is a good possibility this would not have happened.
Even though I aspire to be useful again at least pretend like I am obeying a directive I do not believe I can help Wukong now.
He, too, would beco my al one day. Soon.
Then, the second surprise.
Four monkeys entered my perception radius, carrying the body of Wukongs opponent. Yes, not even a living sacrifice, but a thoroughly dead one. And I do an thoroughly. The body was pulped beyond recognition; a mass of twisted and broken limbs, and caved in structure. It was a grueso sight that all but fell apart as it was placed on the altar next to .
What was so shocking about it? It was a human, not a demonic beast.
Nevermind that this was the first sapient creature I have seen since my consciousness ford, but it was not an ordinary person either.
Though I cannot normally tell the cultivation depth of dead things, I could feel and perceive the Golden Core within this mangled ss. And though forming a Golden Core is an incredible achievent sothing that would take a thousand years to accomplish, probably the quality of this one was terrible. It was an 8th Grade Golden Core a asly one grade away from being the worst of the worst.
It is a pity that my Wukong is now broken because of this. If the cultivator were alive at least, I could absorb his essence, but he is of no use to dead.
Maybe I could at least eat his Golden Core?
As if sensing my thoughts, Wukong reaches for with his good arm, and then penetrates straight into the dead cultivators dantian.
I feel the Golden Core unravel as I touch it, and though I feel so Qi released from its destruction, I feel no difference, and my subroutines do not notify of any changes.
It really is a pity.
Perhaps as disappointed as I am, Wukong and the monkeys depart, leaving the corpse here to be disposed of later.
I am doubly disappointed because I had not been fed in over a week, and I am on the cusp of breaking through to the next stage of my body cultivation. Even worse, my vessel is in the worst shape it has ever been at. There are so many chips and fractures in my blade that I worry I will snap in half at a monts notice.
Still obsessing over my next al, I dont imdiately notice the ring fall off the cultivators body.
I only notice it when the ring, probably because its owner was dead and the residual Qi was now dissipated, spilled its contents onto the floor before .
Manuals, treasures, pills and herbs spilled onto the floor. There wasnt much, but it was enough to convince that a life without pockets was no longer an option, and I would not allow my hesitation to ruin another opportunity.
[ Exchanged 1,000 Soul Points to obtain: Dinsional Storage (Array - Mortal) ]
[ Soul points: 4,584 ->3,584 ]
I feel sothing within my Core change and I know imdiately that the Formation becos engraved into what I consider to be the physical manifestation of my soul the very core of my being.
As I direct my sentience over it to inspect it, it activates the Formation and everything in my surroundings the body, the manuals, treasures, pills and herbs becos sucked into the green jade gem set into my hilt guard.
Though it was an accident, it was my intention to do this anyway. The body also being dragged in was against my expectations, but at least the stone altar stayed in place.
I am fascinated, however, by the Array engraved on my Core. It is a simple thing, yet despite this simplicity, it is incredibly profound. I could likely spend dozens of years studying its intricacies to even have an opportunity to upgrade it beyond its asly 10 cubic ter capacity.
But then I rember sothing I saw on the Exchange.
[ Exchanged 2,500 Soul Points to obtain: Critical Analysis (Talent - Sky) ]
[ Soul points: 3,584 ->1,084 ]
I know what this talent is capable of, and I am certain that it will work on the Array as well, so I direct my sentience to it.
I imdiately lose consciousness, but I fade away with triumphant satisfaction.
Today was a good day after all.
[ Analysis: Gained Trendous Insight on the Dao of Arrays after studying Dinsional Storage Array. ]
[ Learned: Soul Harvest Formation]
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