William Carter still had some self-awareness. Although he admired her, and couldn’t control his normal physical reactions, he truly had no other intentions.

So after escorting the beauty ashore, he obediently stayed in the water, even deliberately crouching down so that only his head was above the surface.

“Achoo!” The water was already icy cold, and as soon as the beauty got ashore, the night wind hit her. Relaxing her guard, her whole body, soaked through, shivered, and she couldn’t help but sneeze.

“My jacket is over there, but it’s wet too. You can wring it out and put it on, but you’ll have to leave me my pants—I still need to go back later.”

William Carter, even if he wasn’t the most considerate man, was still a guy after all. Seeing the beauty’s long legs shivering in the night wind, he took the initiative to speak up.

“Then… what about you?” The beauty was tempted, but didn’t turn around, hesitantly asking.

“Me? I’m a winter swimming enthusiast. This bit of cold is nothing to me, I’m long used to it!” William Carter lied through his teeth. “Besides, I’m so fat—this body of mine is warmer than any clothes!”

After being doused in cold water, the beauty was now completely sober. Of course, she knew William Carter was just making things up.

A winter swimming enthusiast, and still that fat? Swimming here in the middle of the night? Who’s he trying to fool! But seeing that William Carter truly had no ill intentions, she finally suppressed her embarrassment, turned her head, and snuck a glance at William Carter as she asked, “My name is Sarah Bennett. Thank you for saving me. What’s your name?”

William Carter didn’t want to get further involved with this beauty, so he put on a righteous face and said, “Saving a life is more meritorious than building a seven-story pagoda. One shouldn’t expect repayment for a good deed. Miss, you should go quickly—don’t catch a cold…”

Since he’d even given up his clothes, there was no need to mention his glasses being crushed. Having finally done a good deed, he might as well see it through to the end.

Sarah Bennett secretly looked at that righteous, chubby face, thinking, “Actually, this fat guy isn’t ugly, and he’s got a good heart. It’s just… he’s a bit too fat… Oh my god, what am I thinking!”

A gust of cold wind interrupted Sarah Bennett’s wandering thoughts. Shivering from the chill, she could no longer afford to be polite. She quickly found the jacket William Carter mentioned, wrung it out a couple of times, and draped it over her shoulders.

With something to block the wind, she immediately felt much warmer.

William Carter didn’t care about that jacket at all. What he wanted most at this moment was for Sarah Bennett to leave quickly, so he could cross the river and look for his Seven Luminaries Grass.

Seeing that Sarah Bennett seemed to have more to say, he hurriedly stopped her: “Miss, I beg you, even though I’m very resistant to the cold, I’ve already been in the water for two hours. Please have mercy, leave first and let me come ashore to put on my pants, okay?”

“I’ll say it again, I’m not ‘Miss’!” Sarah Bennett thought this fat guy was deliberately insulting her. Her face instantly turned cold as she snapped.

Then, as if recalling the earlier awkwardness, a flush of embarrassment appeared on Sarah Bennett’s slightly angry, pretty face. In the end, with a complicated look, she glanced at William Carter in the water, turned, and ran off.

Delayed by Sarah Bennett, William Carter was already feeling anxious. Once Sarah Bennett was out of sight, he quickly grabbed his clothes from the shore, crossed to the other side of the river to get dressed, and, bare-chested, began searching for his precious Seven Luminaries Grass.

William Carter focused on sensing the faint spiritual energy, his whole body pressed into the grass by the riverbank, carefully parting the grass and searching along the trail of energy, not daring to be careless.

Found it!

William Carter was overjoyed! For William Carter, who was now desperate to improve his strength for self-preservation, no beauty could compare to this thriving patch of Seven Luminaries Grass!

Chapter 003: Kicking the Door in Anger

William Carter’s two buttocks, each the size of a washbasin, stuck up high, his plump body almost completely sprawled on the ground. The fine grass tips pricked his belly, making it ache and itch, but he didn’t notice at all, nearly pressing his face against the clump of Seven Luminaries Grass!

In the cultivation world, William Carter had never worried about all kinds of rare treasures, but at this moment, he was so excited he was nearly in tears!

He really hadn’t expected that on this aura-depleted planet, there would still be such spiritual herbs!

Contentedly absorbing the wisps of spiritual energy emanating from the Seven Luminaries Grass, William Carter immediately felt refreshed and clear-headed. He didn’t need to count to know—this clump of Seven Luminaries Grass was definitely seven stalks.

Seven Luminaries Grass: it either doesn’t appear, or if it does, there are always seven stalks at once. Each stalk has seven blades, growing by absorbing the sun’s essence during the day. Only when each blade has seven yellow-brown spots is it fully mature. If you know how to refine pills, you can even make Seven Luminaries Pills from it.

Pill refining happened to be William Carter’s specialty as an alchemy master. With fully mature Seven Luminaries Grass, he was absolutely confident he could refine a full forty-nine Seven Luminaries Pills!

Of course, to refine pills, you need at least first-level Qi Refining cultivation. Given his current state—not even at the first level of Body Refining—trying to use Seven Luminaries Grass for alchemy was nothing but wishful thinking!

Judging by the richness of the spiritual energy, William Carter estimated that these seven stalks of Seven Luminaries Grass were still growing. It would take about two more months for them to fully mature.

When fully mature, the spiritual energy released by the Seven Luminaries Grass would be at least five to seven times stronger than now, but it would only last for seven days. If not harvested and used in time, after seven days it would completely wither, losing all spiritual energy, and become no different from ordinary plants after they wilt.