It had stopped raining some time ago. However, the evidence that it had rained was everywhere to be seen in the refugee camps.
Puddles of water decorated the streets at odd intervals, and the air was cold, crisp, and filled with a fresh and earthy scent that the rain had stirred from the ground.
Not every street of the refugee camp was paved with stone and clean. Some were just dirt paths. Others had dust and debris accumulating on them for too long. Once it rained, all these streets would be affected. As it had rained, the dirt paths had turned muddy while the dusty streets littered with debris had filled up with water, becoming hard to cross.
Not a single street lamp lined the path Sal was on, causing it to be draped in suffocating darkness, making it impossible for Sal to make out his surroundings. Even squinting his eyes and focusing barely changed that.
'Unless one is familiar with this street, they will find it difficult to traverse.' Shaking his head, he thought to himself, but he moved with a confident gait. It seemed like the profound darkness he was enveloped in affected him not one bit.
He was walking on muddied land. Although he couldn't see that, he could feel it.
The ground beneath his feet was sodden and soft, difficult not to slip. As he walked, he had to be cautious and attentive to avoid the ill and embarrassing fate of slipping in the mud and getting dirty.
The path he was on led to a dead end on one side and an open street on the other, which was also dark but the murmur of many voices and the sound of footsteps could be heard coming from it, so Sal knew where he had to go.
Soon he stepped into an open street which was sparsely crowded, with each individual minding their own business.
Curiously, he looked around, taking in his surroundings.
Around him, countless camps could be seen.
In the distance, a massive wall stretched towards the sky, at least 200 feet tall. The buildings behind the wall were tall and large. Some of these buildings had no more than 12 floors, while others had so many they threatened to touch the sky. They cast long looming shadows over the lesser structures around them.
Although separated by a wall, Sal could still glimpse them. They were just that large.
He found himself comparing. In terms of architecture, the buildings of Banu Fortress looked inferior to the heavenly palaces and the divine mansions found in the upper realms of the 3000 worlds, but he couldn't deny that these towering buildings were impressive in their own right, especially their heights.
He wondered what magic was used to create them.
"Hmm?" Sal squinted as he caught sight of something interesting.
Several of these buildings stood in a circle. Several pillars of support stretched out of their roofs. What these pillars supported couldn't be seen.
That area was covered in a thick mist. The mist didn't spread out, remaining stationary, indicating it was an illusion of some sort.
Sal couldn't see through it.
'What an interesting sight.'
'I wonder what secrets it is hiding.'
To look past the mist with the naked eye was impossible, but it didn't mean Sal was helpless. Although weak, his spiritual consciousness was capable of boosting his senses. Such simple illusions couldn't delude him.
Spiritual consciousness could be used to do a number of things: telekinesis, remote viewing, attacking the soul directly, sensing energy fields, and influencing objects at a distance.
Sal's spiritual consciousness was too weak. He could only utilize it in the most basic ways such as spreading it out to gain a clear view of his surroundings or enhancing his senses with it.
Basically, by enhancing his eyesight with spiritual energy, he could see past the mist.
However, he didn't dare attempt it.
There were two reasons behind that.
As stated before, his spiritual consciousness was weak. He couldn't afford to waste it just to satisfy his curiosity.
The second reason existed as the real hindrance.
A strong gaze that can see past the illusory mist might be noticed by the powerhouses of the Banu Fortress. The senses of an enlightened were too extreme. They could pick up even the most subtle of disturbances. An intense gaze that can see past illusion, they will not miss it!
If they noticed it, then they would surely investigate and it might land him in trouble.
After traveling through time, his cultivation has regressed to nothing. At this stage when he was so weak that even a minor shock could kill him, why would he ever attract additional trouble towards himself?
'How does the sky look?'
He was more curious about the view of the sky for a very good reason.
Sal looked up.
The technique he would end up cultivating would highly depend on what he finds.
The sky had sparse black clouds.
It would have been an ignorable sight if not for the fact that a thin layer of darkness spread throughout the sky.
'Am I seeing things?'
Sal rubbed his eyes and looked again, unable to believe it was real.
However, what he found was the same strange sky.
The thin layer blocked out much of the radiance of the setting sun, making dusk look like early night.
Sal found this odd phenomenon quite interesting, and questions filled his mind.
'Has it always been like this, or is it artificially created?'
'Is it permanent or temporary?'
'If it's permanent or stays like this for a long time every year, I can't practice the Ten Thousand Star Refining cultivation manual.'
Answers weren't going to come to him themselves. He needed to actively look for them.
Sal stopped a passerby and asked, "Does the sky remain like that all that time?"
"Why are you acting like this is your first time seeing it? The sky has been like that since the second disaster, which did a lot of harm and decreased human lifespan by 1/3rd," the passerby answered with a hint of annoyance in his voice. It seemed like he was the impatient sort of guy who didn't like being bothered especially by a stranger.
Sal felt intrigued, hearing the passerby's words. He couldn't help but feel the need to know more. The more information he had, the easier he would be able to navigate through the complexities of this unfamiliar world.
"Second Disaster? Doesn't that mean there was a disaster before that? What was the First Disaster like? And what happened in it?" Sal asked.
The passerby rolled his eyes as if he had heard something ridiculous, "Did you hit your head and lose your memories? How could you forget the worst parts of human history?"
Sal nodded, "You are right. I was hit in the head and lost my memory. Now, can you give me answers?"
"I have no time for crazies," the passerby looked at Sal one last time like he was looking at a retard that has escaped from a mental asylum before he quickly went away.
'Seriously?'
Sal's excuse had failed to work for the first time since he was dropped into this world. Moreover, he was mistaken for a crazy bastard. His left eye twitched nonstop seeing the back of the passerby he was talking to disappear into the distant crowd.
Tsk!
Sal clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction, but then he cheered himself up by thinking that he would know everything there was to know about this world once he solved the resentment of the original owner and got his memories.
Rumble!
He was snapped out of his thoughts by the cries of his empty stomach which was like the rumbling of skies in his ears.
He patted his belly after raising his hand.
'Let's solve the problem of hunger first.'
Cultivation requires calm and focus.
With hunger pangs clutching his stomach and gripping his heart occasionally, Sal knew it was impossible for him to enter the deep state of focus and concentration he needed to cultivate.
The sensation was too uncomfortable and cultivating while experiencing this kind of sensation was nigh impossible.
To solve the problem of hunger, he needed money, but from what he had heard so far, an entire day of hard work wasn't even enough to buy a satisfying amount of drinkable water.
He was planning to lay low and cultivate his strength before engaging in activities that court trouble, but considering how lowly earning through honest means was rewarded in his new surroundings, he changed his plans, deciding to take risks.
Pickpocketing, kidnapping, breaking into a house and stealing, extortion, all these dark and intrusive thoughts came into his mind.
All of these methods could be used to make cash quickly!
He just needed to find the right target.
If he targeted the wrong person, then considering his current circumstances, escaping with his life intact wasn't going to be easy.