Dual Cultivation: Beasts and Women!

Second Class resources that could make pills, ointments, and potions—which cost less than weapons—were usually worth between 1 and 3 gold coins.

If it hadn't been for the remains of the third realm white tiger, he would have made far fewer coins from these resources.

But with more gold coins and merit points, Liam went to a Runemasters store, where he made an enormous investment!

He already had a bottle of ink and a brush. He could use the brush until he became a Second Class Runemaster, so he didn't buy another one just yet. But he would run out of ink after a few training sessions, so he took the precaution of buying more.

Besides the ink, he also bought another lamp, determined to repeat what he had done in front of Ann. Even though he had succeeded once, it was important that he could repeat the process to gain confidence and experience, thus reducing the risk of failure.

But along with the lamp, he also bought 5 more sets of materials, 3 for general use and 2 for combat use. With these, he planned to train and create five more different types of enchanted artifacts, and thus truly master the First Class of the profession.

To buy these materials, along with the ink, he spent 70 gold coins, an insignificant amount for someone who currently had more than a thousand coins in his wallet.

But the amount he had on him did not fascinate Liam. Once he became a Second Class Runemaster, he would have to spend 3 to 5 times as much as he did now to get the same amount of training materials.

His more than a thousand gold coins could quickly disappear, even if he only considered his journey as a Runemaster!

But he had not only to worry about his profession. With several enemies on the prowl, he knew he had to invest not only in himself but also in his women!

Before heading to the Lotus Temple, where he planned to use some of his 300 merit points to train in a level two room, he stopped at an Alchemist's shop. He bought recovery potions for himself and Mary, as well as pills for them to take in the future.

He couldn't use them now, but he preferred to buy them for his companion and something for himself in case he needed to strengthen himself again promptly.

He easily spent another 300 gold coins before stepping into the Lotus Temple.

...

"Liam... You're finally back, huh?"

As soon as he entered the Lotus Temple, Liam ran into the orange-haired woman he was allied with.

Felicity was as beautiful as ever, with a sparkle in her eyes that still made him uncomfortable.

But now he was stronger and better able to resist this woman's charm.

He nodded at her with a smile and asked, "Can we talk for a few minutes in my cultivation room? I'd like to ask you something."

She looked at him with interest and curiosity. "All right."

He led the way, having already paid 50 merit points to use one of the temple's level two rooms for two hours.

"By the way, how were your hunting days?" she asked, curious to hear his side.

Felicity had good contacts in City Thirteen. She wasn't entirely surprised to run into Liam. She knew he had returned and that some factions were a bit upset about it.

"Pretty good, I'd say. I finished my mission for this month and the next and got some good resources." He smiled at her, not talking about his kills, but giving the impression that he had eliminated some enemies.

She understood where at least some of those resources had come from and nodded at him positively. "That's good. Is that why you're here today?"

"Yes. I'm going to have a lot of free time in the next two weeks, and it's unlikely that anyone will move against me on the legal side. I'll focus on improving my level within my profession. If I can become a Second Class Runemaster, my prospects will increase exponentially."

"Indeed," she said, pleased to hear it.

She wanted Liam's strength—which could become great in the future because of his dual cultivation—to help her in her revenge. But she didn't ignore other advantages he might have that could make a difference to her.

If he could become a Third or Fourth Class Runemaster, that would be just as important to her as having his strength on her side in battle!

That's why she told him, "If you need help with your training without worrying about other things, talk to me. Right now, the best thing for you to do is to concentrate on cultivating with your partners and developing your profession.

"Then I thank you in advance." He smiled at her as he left the stairs behind him and walked to the room corresponding to his key on the fourth floor of the building.

As soon as he entered the small training and cultivation cabin without windows or decorations, Liam got right to the point as he summoned a key from his spatial ring.

"Do you know what this is?" he asked her, looking at her seriously and expectantly.

Felicity's eyes narrowed as she looked at it, easily recognizing the item everyone in Demon Gate received upon entering the sect.

"I see... This is what you want to talk about."

She smiled as she took the key from Liam's hands.

"This is, as far as I can tell, an opportunity or a trap. It depends on the clues you follow and how you interpret them.

Demon Gate is concerned with keeping its disciples competitive. The sect uses a treasure hunt type competition to encourage even the least competitive disciples to join the race for power.

Finally, to be more specific, there are several places in the sect where valuable resources and cultivation artifacts are hidden. If you can get to one of them, you can take whatever you can carry.

It's as simple as that."

She laughed and handed the key back to Liam.

"But it's not that easy to get to one of these places. There are many tricks behind this secret mission and you could easily lose your life trying to complete it.

I recommend you give up. Out of 10 disciples who try to complete it, 8 will die and 1 will disappear. And even those who complete it rarely have such a significant change in their status. Usually, those who can complete it are naturally talented and powerful, so it's just an extra point for them."

Liam considered Felicity's words thoughtfully, but he was still curious. "If this is a mission that everyone gets, what guarantee do I have that I'll get anything out of it? Couldn't others have gotten to the place my key would give me access to before me?"

She shook her head in denial.

"It's not that simple. And even if it happened, it's certain that the sect would replenish the place or even change the place where you would have to go with your key."

"I see... By the way, can I borrow your key? You haven't used it yet, have you?" he asked.

She laughed when she heard that. "You can keep it if you like. I have no interest in it." She handed it to him easily.

Liam felt his heart beat faster as he looked at the markings on Felicity's key and saw that it was a different type than the ones he already had that could contribute to his 3D puzzle.

"Don't you have any others? From the enemies you've already killed?"

She wore a face of innocence. "I have taken no one's life. It's something I haven't had to do."

He opened his mouth, not knowing if that was true. In a world like Twin Land, even more so in Demon Gate, how had she never had to kill?

Liam heard this and felt strange. He had only been in Twin Land for a short time and had already killed more than a dozen people.

Confusion clouded his expression, his eyebrows furrowing as he squinted at her, searching for any hint of jest in her eyes.

'It doesn't sound like a lie...'

She smiled, understanding what he had in mind. "You still have much to learn," Felicity said as she clapped one of her hands on one of his shoulders. "With the right configuration of Spirits, cultivation speed, friends, intelligence and gender, it's even possible to live in a place like our city without having to kill."

But Felicity wasn't weak or incapable!

'Killing can solve many problems, but it only creates more problems... You'll find that out soon enough, my friend.' She laughed bitterly before advising him.

She said, "Anyway, be careful. Your enemies will be more aggressive from now on. Avoid them as much as possible and try to become a Second Class Runemaster. It might help you in ways you can't even imagine."

He nodded to her, having wasted only three minutes of his time in this room on the second level of the temple.

When he was alone, Liam remembered the first time he had met Felicity, and for a moment he believed what she had told him that day.

'Maybe she really would keep my secret even if I hadn't made a deal with her...' He smiled, strangely feeling better.

With a sigh, he shook his head and turned his attention to the materials he had with him.

"Time to practice my inscriptions again!"