TL: Etude
After just a few days of cultivation, Ye Tian found himself in a bit of a predicament. It wasn't that his progress was slow; rather, the movements required for a Martial Warrior's cultivation were too expansive. Although there were only nine movements, each one could disturb the air, and the room at home was too small. He risked damaging household items with a single careless move.
"It's time to move. This location is on the edge of the base. If a beast invades the base, this place would be the first to be attacked. I'm not afraid, but my sister hasn't started cultivating yet and has no means of defense. I'll often venture into the wilderness in the future and won't be able to protect her. We must move to a small villa in the center of the base," Ye Tian decided.
The central villa area was very safe. Unless the base was breached, it was unlikely to be affected. However, the houses there were extremely expensive. Even a small villa would cost at least 10 million, which was unaffordable for an average family.
Ye Tian still had around 2 million in cash. Coupled with his status as a Martial Warrior, he could get a loan from the base's bank, enough to buy a small villa.
At lunch, Ye Tian discussed it with his sister Ye Yu: "Ye Yu, I'm planning to move to a small villa in the center of the base. I've looked into it, and the Central Garden community seems pretty good."
Ye Yu widened her eyes, walked over, and touched Ye Tian's forehead: "Brother, do you have a fever? A villa in Central Garden costs at least 10 million. We can't afford that!"
"Where did you learn to talk like that?" Ye Tian flicked Ye Yu's little head and then said with a smile, "Your brother has money now."
Saying this, Ye Tian placed two gold cards on the table.
"This is 2 million, and as a Martial Warrior, I can take out a loan," Ye Tian said, puffing out his chest proudly.
"Ah, you're a Martial Warrior now?" Ye Yu covered her mouth in disbelief.
She remembered that her brother had only been cultivating for half a year. Becoming a Martial Warrior so quickly was incredibly fast.
"Yes, I just broke through. But you can't tell anyone. After all, with a genius brother like me, others might get jealous, and that wouldn't be good for our family," Ye Tian quickly added.
"Okay, okay, brother, I promise not to tell!" Ye Yu nodded repeatedly, her eyes full of joy. Having such a talented brother made her feel extremely proud.
In the following days, Ye Tian went to complete the purchase procedures. This era didn't have complicated procedures like property certificates; a contract was all that was needed. The villas were already furnished, but the so-called furnishings were very simple in Ye Tian's eyes, resembling ancient courtyard styles rather than the modern villas he had imagined.
Perhaps the larger bases could produce modern villas, but Linhai Base lacked this capability, mainly because the cost was too high. The only consolation for Ye Tian was that the small villa was quite spacious, with a 50-square-meter courtyard, five rooms, two living rooms, and two bathrooms, totaling 400 square meters.
After purchasing the villa, Ye Tian began to move. There wasn't much to move, and in just half a day, he and his sister officially moved into their small villa in Central Garden.
However, the villa wasn't truly his yet. If Ye Tian were to fall or fail to repay the loan, the small villa would be repossessed.
So, Ye Tian wanted to pay off this loan as soon as possible. However, 8 million was not a small sum. Even for a Martial Warrior, earning that much money would take a long time. A regular Martial Warrior would likely need decades to repay it.
But Ye Tian felt he wouldn't need that much time. Given the rate at which he hunted beasts, he was confident he could repay the debt relatively quickly.
For the next half-month, Ye Tian ventured into the wilderness every day to hunt beasts. He chose smaller beasts and immediately brought them back to the base after killing them. Averaging one beast a day, each worth around 200,000, he had earned as much as 3 million in just over two weeks.
Such frenzied hunting was something other Martial Warriors dared not do. It wasn't a question of capability, but rather the risk involved. Who could guarantee a safe return every time? Most Martial Warriors wouldn't take such a gamble, especially when encountering a powerful beast could mean not even having the chance to escape.
However, Ye Tian was exceptionally fast. Even in the early stages of being a Martial Warrior, his speed surpassed those in the later stages. Coupled with the advantage of his shadow talent, he dared to hunt beasts so recklessly.
After this period of frenzied hunting, Ye Tian planned to take some time to cultivate and increase his strength. Another half-month flew by. With ample beast blood and the advantage of his high-level cultivation talent, Ye Tian's strength had increased significantly. He now possessed a force of 2,000 jin, and his skin had been tempered to be extremely tough, capable of resisting ordinary fine iron weapons.
In terms of his previous life's standards, he could now resist bullets with his body. Unfortunately, bullets didn't exist in this era.
One day, Ye Tian returned to the black market. He wasn't there to sell beast materials but to make a purchase.
"I want to buy a map of the Lake of Death," Ye Tian said.
The Lake of Death was located ten kilometers away from Linhai Base and was surrounded by numerous beasts. The lake got its name because it was home to many terrifying aquatic beasts. Even Elite Martial Warriors found it hard to survive there.
Ye Tian wanted to go to the Lake of Death because he was interested in a particular aquatic beast—the Immortal Jellyfish. Before the era of elemental energy, the Immortal Jellyfish was a micro-marine organism. But with the advent of this new era, they had mutated. They were no longer confined to the ocean and had become much larger, about the size of a human palm. They were also extremely hard to kill. Their tentacles could even pierce through a Martial Warrior's body.
It was said that even Elite Martial Warriors had to flee when encountering a swarm of Immortal Jellyfish, or else face certain death.
When Ye Tian learned about this beast, he became very interested in its abilities. He believed that the Immortal Jellyfish must possess some kind of healing or regenerative talent. If he could replicate it, his ability to survive would increase by several levels.
Although going to the Lake of Death was risky, he felt that the potential rewards were worth the risk.