By evening, Kyle had finally been transferred to his new accommodation.
Although the village chief had referred to it as a guest quarter, Kyle quickly discovered that the description was somewhat misleading. What awaited him wasn’t a cramped room in a shared building but an entire small residence reserved for guests.
The property consisted of a traditional wooden house surrounded by a modest courtyard, with a covered porch at the front and several rooms arranged beneath a sloping tiled roof. The exterior walls were constructed from dark, weathered timber, while the sturdy wooden pillars supporting the porch had been polished smooth through years of use.
A low stone wall enclosed the property, separating it from the neighboring houses and providing a reasonable degree of privacy. The entrance opened directly into the courtyard, where a narrow stone pathway led toward the main building.
There was even a small garden along one side, filled with flowers and ornamental plants that gave the otherwise simple residence a pleasant appearance.
In other words, the village chief had handed him an entire guesthouse.
’Damn, Chief Xi. You really know how to treat your guests.’
Kyle had expected something along these lines. There was no way the village chief would simply throw a benefactor who had saved his entire village into some cramped room and call it a day. Even if the village wasn’t particularly wealthy, its chief would undoubtedly have a proper guest residence reserved for important visitors.
Still, Kyle was pleasantly surprised by the arrangement.
The house contained several rooms, including a bedroom, a sitting room, and a small space that could serve as a storage room. The furniture was simple but functional, consisting of wooden tables, stools, cabinets, and a bed fitted with clean bedding.
The bedroom was particularly spacious, with enough room to move around without constantly bumping into furniture. A wooden window overlooked the courtyard, allowing natural light to enter during the day and providing a clear view of the surrounding garden.
The house wasn’t luxurious by the standards Kyle was accustomed to, but it was certainly comfortable enough.
Compared with Elder Gu Yuan’s residence, the place felt considerably more spacious and private. The physician’s home had been perfectly adequate for treating his injuries, but this residence gave Kyle an entire property to himself.
Of course, when compared with his apartment back on Earth, the place was lacking in several important departments.
There was no refrigerator, no television, no computer, no internet, and certainly no convenient electrical appliances to make his life easier.
’Man, now that I think about it, my apartment wasn’t bad at all.’
He had never particularly appreciated those conveniences while living on Earth. They had simply been part of his daily life, things he used without giving them much thought.
Now, however, sitting in a traditional wooden house in a world that appeared to have been pulled straight out of a martial arts novel, he was beginning to appreciate just how convenient modern technology really was.
"This place is pretty empty. I want to purchase stuff from the marketplace, but then I wouldn’t get the most authentic Taoist experience."
Kyle sat on the porch, gazing into the courtyard with a thoughtful expression.
The porch was a particularly pleasant place to sit. Its wooden floorboards were slightly worn but sturdy, and the roof extended far enough to provide shade and some protection from the weather. A wooden pillar stood beside him, supporting the roof above his head.
From there, he could observe almost the entire courtyard without needing to move.
Several varieties of flowers had been planted along its edges, their delicate petals swaying whenever the evening breeze passed through. Some were familiar enough for him to recognize, while others possessed unusual shapes and colors that would have seemed unnatural back on Earth.
Fortunately, the System’s Basic Knowledge Transfer had provided him with some information about the local environment, including several common plants and their characteristics.
Without it, he probably wouldn’t have been able to distinguish an ordinary flower from something poisonous.
The marketplace, meanwhile, had become considerably more interesting.
After unlocking its first level, the selection of available products had expanded beyond the basic necessities he had previously been able to purchase. Although firearms and certain advanced technological products remained unavailable, he now had access to a wider assortment of household products, food, equipment, and other useful goods.
Some items were available permanently, while others changed daily.
The marketplace was essentially a rotating collection of products, giving him new options whenever he checked its listings.
’Honestly, this thing is more convenient than Amazon.’
His income had also continued accumulating while he was away from Earth. Before beginning his dimensional journey, he had scheduled his videos for upload, allowing them to continue generating revenue without requiring his immediate attention.
Consequently, his System Points balance continued increasing by hundreds and occasionally thousands of points.
He had more than enough to purchase almost anything available in the lower-level marketplace.
Yet, despite having the resources to furnish the entire house with whatever he wanted, he had deliberately refrained from doing so.
For once, he wanted to experience the ordinary life of someone living in a traditional martial arts world.
Just a quiet house, a courtyard, and the occasional opportunity to observe the world around him.
Kyle leaned back against one of the wooden pillars supporting the porch roof.
"For a world that’s always engulfed in some kind of conflict, it’s pretty serene. Not to mention, I can see those unnaturally humongous trees from right here, too."
Beyond the village, the colossal trees he had encountered in the forest rose above the surrounding landscape. Even from this distance, their enormous silhouettes were visible against the darkening sky.
Their trunks were so thick that several ordinary houses could probably have been built around the circumference of a single tree.
He still found it difficult to believe that such things existed.
Back on Earth, the tallest trees were impressive enough to attract tourists and researchers. Here, however, the vegetation seemed to belong to an entirely different scale of existence.
Considering the magical creatures inhabiting the forest, he suspected the trees were probably the least unusual things about this world.
Perhaps there were plants capable of moving on their own, flowers that emitted poisonous pollen, or trees that had existed for thousands of years.
He wouldn’t have been surprised by any of those possibilities anymore.
After all, he had already fought a magical wolf capable of tearing through his defenses and nearly killing him.
’Yeah, I’ll leave the exciting exploration for later. Right now, I’d rather not become someone’s dinner again.’
His injuries were still severe enough that even sitting upright for an extended period made him uncomfortable. Although Elder Gu’s treatment had stabilized his condition, he needed to allow his body time to recover before attempting anything strenuous.
He also needed to use his remaining Low-Grade Healing Potions carefully. Their effects had limits, and drinking them repeatedly wouldn’t instantly heal his severe wounds or replace the blood he had lost.
For now, patience was his best option.
Unfortunately, patience was never one of Kyle’s strongest qualities.
A particularly cold breeze swept through the courtyard.
*Swoop!*
Kyle shivered.
"Imma gonna catch cold at this rate. Should have also bought a fire-related skill. Would have been helpful."
He pulled his thick traditional robe closer around himself, hoping to keep the chill away.
It didn’t help very much.
The evening air coming from the forest was surprisingly cold, and despite wearing thick clothing, he could feel it creeping through the fabric.
’Seriously, why is it so fucking cold?’
He glanced toward the courtyard and noticed a leaf hanging from one of the plants near the stone wall.
Extending his hand, Kyle gathered a small amount of mana at his fingertips.
A faint glow appeared.
A tiny Mana Missile formed in front of him, no larger than a small pebble. It hovered for a brief moment before Kyle flicked his finger.
*Swoop!*
The projectile shot across the courtyard, passed through the edge of the leaf, and left a tiny hole in it before striking the thick stone wall behind it.
The missile dispersed immediately upon impact.
Kyle examined the result with mild satisfaction.
"Not bad."
It wasn’t particularly impressive, but he hadn’t intended to produce anything powerful. He had merely wanted to test his control and give himself something to do.
Still, the little experiment reminded him of something important.
His mana pool was full.
He blinked and checked his status through the System.
He hadn’t consciously attempted to recover his mana, nor had he been performing any particular exercise. Yet, somehow, his reserves had replenished completely.
More surprisingly, he realized that he had been recovering mana naturally throughout the day.
"I have just realized now, but my mana pool is full..."
He scratched his chin, thinking back to the System’s earlier explanation of his Mana Absorption skill.
He had initially struggled to refill his mana reserves on Earth because maintaining concentration had been difficult. His progress had been slow, and he had often needed to devote considerable attention to the process.
Here, however, the situation seemed different. Since, this world was more concentrated than the Earth in terms of supernatural energy.
His mana was replenishing itself without any conscious effort.
’So concentration really was the problem back on Earth.’
Kyle opened his status screen and checked his skills.
His Mana Absorption skill had reached its maximum level.
"Well, that’s nice. My Mana Absorption skill has maxed out, too. Now all that’s left is to increase the capacity of my mana heart, make it bigger, and launch fucking meteors at this hoe!"
He burst into laughter at his own ridiculous declaration.