Only I Cultivate
Chapter 37: A Fine Steak

Chapter 37: A Fine Steak

Feng Fan woke up the next morning on the bathroom floor, his head pounding like a drum. The first thing he noticed was the splitting headache, and the second was Straw Hat humming irritably on his head, as if scolding him with an I told you so.

Groaning, he gripped the edge of the sink with his left hand and hauled himself to his feet. When he looked in the mirror, he barely recognized the mess staring back at him.

’I look like I just came back from a 24-hour party...’

Dark circles hung under his eyes, and his cracked, dry lips stuck together, desperate for water. He considered splashing his face at the faucet, but flashes of the night before made his stomach turn.

’Never mind...’

He stumbled out of the bathroom and chugged a mouthful of water. Pain hit his throat every time a sip went down. Once he felt a little better, he grabbed the quickest snack he could find from the fridge and took a long, hot shower.

Afterward, feeling more refreshed, he muttered to himself, "Much better now. I swear, I’m never doing anything that reckless again. Curiosity almost got me killed."

He grabbed his phone from the wooden table and checked the time—10:25 a.m.

"Shit, I’m late for work!"

Rushing out of his apartment, he jumped on his motorcycle and sped toward the SIF headquarters. When he finally made it to the training center, he expected to see Zheng Tao waiting for him, but instead, he found Luo Li standing there with a frown so deep it looked like her eyebrows were about to fuse together.

"You’re almost two hours late. You think I have nothing better to do?" she snapped.

Feng Fan scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "Sorry, Luo Li."

"Hmph, don’t let it happen again," she snorted. "Today, I’ll teach you how to absorb a ghost’s spiritual energy. It’s not that complicated, the key is your mental state. A hunter must constantly resist the invasion of ghostly energy while also using it to grow stronger."

Feng Fan listened intently, keeping his focus sharp despite knowing he wouldn’t use the technique. He didn’t dare zone out, not wanting to set off her temper again.

The next month flew by as Feng Fan threw himself into training like a madman. His unarmed combat skills, chain techniques, and cultivation improved rapidly, and his hard work finally paid off when he broke through to the 4th Opening The Inner Palace realm.

👻👻👻👻👻

The new moon hung high in the sky, hidden from the eyes of humans on the Blue Planet.

A middle-aged woman stood on a quiet street, wearing a short black skirt that hugged her wide hips and a white blouse that revealed a generous amount of cleavage. Her curves looked like the work of a skilled surgeon, but the men glancing her way didn’t seem to mind.

Her skirt was so short that any passerby could see her panties if he paid enough attention.

She was used to wearing high heels, but tonight, they felt like a challenge. Her balance was off, and she leaned against a lamppost to keep herself from collapsing under the weight of her own drunkenness.

Cars continued to roll by, their headlights sweeping over her as she flashed a charming smile at the passing drivers. She’d been at it for an hour, but luck didn’t seem to be on her side—no one had stopped to pick her up.

Finally, a sleek black luxury car pulled up in front of her, the tinted windows and gleaming rims screaming money. Her eyes lit up as the driver’s window slid down.

"How much for the night?" the man inside asked, his voice cold and indifferent.

She leaned forward, pressing her cleavage against the edge of the window, her lips curling into a seductive smile. "Two thousand bucks, baby," she said softly.

The man clicked his tongue, clearly unimpressed. He’d seen plenty of women like her and knew when he was being played. "That’s too much for a cheap whore like you."

Before she could respond, he hit the gas, the sudden burst of speed making her stumble and fall backward onto the hard pavement.

"Cheap bastard!" she muttered, rubbing her sore backside as she tried to get back on her feet. Just as she steadied herself, she froze.

A man had appeared right in front of her. He was about average height, wearing a dark jacket and a soft cap pulled low over his head. A sandy-colored mustache covered his upper lip, and his broad shoulders blocked her view of the street behind him. Despite standing right under the lamppost, shadows hid the upper half of his face.

She forced a smile, trying to shake off the irritation from earlier. "Hey there, handsome—"

Her greeting was cut short when his hand shot out and wrapped around her neck. His grip was like a steel vise. He easily lifted her off the ground, showing how strong he was.

She tried to scream, but no sound escaped.

Panic set in as she clawed at his arm, kicking and thrashing wildly, but it was like fighting a statue, the man didn’t even flinch. Tears and snot streamed down her face as her desperate struggles weakened. Her vision blurred, and her limbs fell limp.

The man placed the woman’s body on the ground with surprising care, almost as if laying her to rest. His right hand morphed into a sharp, gleaming blade that caught the faint glow of the streetlight.

With surgical precision, he pressed the blade against her neck and traced a thin, clean line over her carotid artery. Warm blood spilled from the wound, creating a pool of blood beneath her body and spreading over the cold pavement.

He watched the blood flow with calmness, to the man, this scene was a piece of art in progress.

After a moment he plunged his blade into her abdomen, cutting through flesh like butter. In seconds, he pulled out one of her kidneys.

His mouth stretched open, revealing sharp, deformed teeth that glinted in the dim light. He shoved the organ into his mouth.

The man chewed slowly, savoring the rich taste of his victim. His jaw moved methodically, as if he were enjoying a fine steak rather than raw human flesh.

People passed close by, but it was as if he and the dead woman didn’t exist—like they were invisible to the world around them.

No one glanced their way. No one reacted to the blood pooling on the pavement or the grotesque sight of a man eating an organ straight from a corpse.