"I see… so this destructive effect does have its limits."
Liang Xiao wasn't sure whether to feel disappointed or relieved.
"Let's test the range."
He opened the window, took aim toward an empty stretch of air where no buildings stood, and flicked his finger.
A flash of light vanished almost instantly.
Resonating with the Special Golden Core, the needle streaked outward—and disappeared at exactly one hundred meters.
"The maximum range is… a hundred meters?"
He frowned, remembering something from before.
That's the same radius as the Small Reflection Phenomenon I caused… could it be related?
To confirm, he fired again.
And again.
Each time, the same result: within a hundred meters, the needle maintained its full power; beyond that distance, it simply ceased to exist.
"So it really is limited by the Small Reflection range," he murmured.
Despite the limitation, excitement surged through him.
This "accidental spell" was far more than it appeared.
If the needle's power was bound to his Special Golden Core—and that reflection radius—then as he continued weaving more layers of Golden Core, both its range and strength would increase.
In other words… this technique would grow stronger with him.
A secret weapon.
A hidden trump card.
And with its instantaneous speed and near-invisible trajectory, it was perfect for a killing strike.
Calling it the "Spiritual Needle" doesn't do it justice anymore, he thought.
The operating pattern was entirely different from the original spell anyway—he could name it freely.
He smiled faintly.
"If a needle can erase matter at a touch… then I'll call it the Destruction Needle."
Having christened his first original spell, Liang Xiao took a shower, the steam relaxing his tense muscles.
He would have liked to experiment further, but his True Qi reserves were too low—and the hunger gnawed at him again.
He still had exams tomorrow. Rest came first.
Inside his Dantian, the Special Golden Core shimmered faintly, restoring the depleted energy.
Three wisps of True Qi quickly returned.
Within that limit, the recovery speed remained astonishing.
But as always, the process left him starving.
Not being able to absorb Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi is such a pain.
Hopefully, once his Golden Core evolved, that flaw would be resolved.
He lay back, letting the remaining True Qi circulate through his meridians.
As long as it wasn't released, it wouldn't be consumed. And by keeping it in motion, he could still strengthen his control and familiarity.
True Qi can coat the fist for close combat, or be released as a projectile—but as raw energy, its destructive power is weak…
A thought suddenly struck him.
"Right—what about using True Qi for storage?"
In cultivation novels from his past life, he'd read about people wrapping items with True Qi and storing them in their Dantian.
He decided to try.
He focused on his phone, wrapped it with a thin layer of True Qi, and willed it inward.
Whoosh.
The phone vanished.
Startled, Liang Xiao looked inward—and saw it resting safely within his Dantian, floating near the Special Golden Core.
"It really works?"
His heart leapt. "Then let's see what else…"
He pulled the phone back into his hand with a thought—then began experimenting.
Admission ticket. Ballpoint pen. Even a few coins.
Every object vanished the moment he wrapped it in True Qi, appearing inside his Dantian.
No refinement process. No special materials. No resistance.
"This shouldn't be possible…" he muttered.
To verify, he searched Cultivation Home again. The site confirmed that, under normal conditions, only refined spiritual objects could be stored in a Dantian—such as magic tools or artifacts.
Ordinary items? Impossible.
Yet his could.
He frowned. "Is it because of the Special Golden Core… or because my Dantian was once perforated?"
Either explanation made sense.
A perforated Dantian might still maintain some strange connection to the external world—
and the Small Reflection Phenomenon proved that his Golden Core had a similar link.
Either way, it worked.
Unfortunately, it also consumed energy.
After several tries, his hunger spiked again. The Special Golden Core automatically began refining essence into Qi, drawing from his rapidly digesting food.
So even storage has a cost, he mused. A true Golden Core cultivator probably wouldn't need food at all. I'm still far from that level.
Yawning, he flopped back onto the bed.
"Sleep. Definitely sleep."
Nothing unusual happened that night.
When morning came, he awoke starving again.
He left early for school, stopping for a cheap breakfast along the way—three meat buns and two bowls of congee barely filled him.
His appetite had grown monstrous.
On both sides of the road, skyscrapers loomed hundreds of meters tall.
Despite the wide highway between them, the towering walls of steel and glass made the space feel suffocatingly narrow.
Jogging along the sidewalk, Liang Xiao treated the trip like morning exercise.
But as he ran, the scenery subtly warped.
The wide avenue stretched, twisted… and then narrowed.
The bustling noise of cars faded, muffled as if by a heavy curtain.
What… is this?
He slowed to a stop, every sense alert.
The busy city street had vanished—replaced by a dim, empty alleyway.
No pedestrians. No sound.
An illusion? No… a formation!
Cold sweat ran down his back.
"Evil spirit? In broad daylight?"
He instantly summoned a Destruction Needle, the faint flicker of gold forming at his fingertip.
A calm, feminine voice echoed behind him.
"No need to look. You've already entered my formation."
A woman appeared thirty meters away, her figure emerging from thin air.
She was middle-aged but striking, dressed in a close-fitting Taoist robe that accentuated her mature curves. Her beauty hadn't faded—but the way she looked at Liang Xiao made his skin crawl.
Predatory.
Detached.
Like a hunter to prey.
"Who are you?" Liang Xiao's tone hardened.
The oppressive aura around her was far stronger than his own.
The woman ignored his question.
Instead, she asked coldly, "How did you fix your perforated Dantian?"
Liang Xiao's expression darkened. "Senior, I haven't offended you. Why bring me here?"
"Answer me."
Her voice sharpened as her spiritual pressure flared—crushing down on him like a tidal wave.
The air itself trembled.
Third level of Qi Refining!
His anger burned, but he forced it down.
"If I answer," he said evenly, "will you let me go?"
The woman's lips curved into a mocking smile.
"Of course. I'm only after money."
If Liang Xiao hadn't been a transmigrator, he might have believed her.
But the malice behind her calm tone gave her away instantly.
He bowed slightly, lowering his gaze.
"Then thank you, Senior. The way I repaired my Dantian is actually quite simple…"
Her eyes narrowed, attention shifting for just an instant.
That was enough.
Liang Xiao flicked his finger.
A flash of golden light streaked forward.
"Overconfident fool!" she hissed, forming a blade of condensed True Qi and slashing toward him.
Bang!
The blade shattered instantly.
Her expression froze.
Before she could react, Liang Xiao flicked again.
Puff!
The silent flash struck her forehead.
A tiny hole appeared—followed by a mist of crimson spraying from the back of her head.
Her eyes widened in shock.
Then her body went limp, collapsing backward into the dust.
Liang Xiao blinked, stunned.
"…That's it?"
The oppressive energy vanished. The air stilled.
"Third level of Qi Refining is that weak?" he muttered, almost disbelieving.
He had been preparing to risk everything—yet the battle ended in two flicks of his finger.
Inside his Dantian, the Special Golden Core pulsed softly, automatically refining essence into Qi.
The two wisps he'd just expended returned within seconds, along with the gnawing pang of hunger.
Then, faintly, the noise of traffic returned.
Engines. Voices. The ordinary world, slipping back into place.
His eyes narrowed. The formation's collapsing.
He sprinted to the corpse, releasing his remaining True Qi.
Three wisps wrapped around the woman's body, and with a thought—he stored her inside his Dantian.
A flash of light. The body vanished.
When the world settled again, the alley was still there—but now pedestrians moved in the distance, and cars passed along the nearby highway as if nothing had happened.
Liang Xiao straightened slowly, heart still pounding.
So this… is the power of the Destruction Needle.
He glanced toward the sky, his gaze cold and sharp.
"And that," he murmured, "was only the beginning."