I don't know if it's because the Calamity Iron is too special, or because the previous Edibility analysis was not comprehensive enough, or maybe the system secretly upgraded behind my back.

In any case, the changes in Edibility were recorded in a clearer and more detailed text.

[You were targeted by someone plagued with Resentful Energy. He released malice towards you, and you engaged in an intense fight with him.]

[During the fight, your extraordinary traits attracted some Resentful Energy to attach to you.]

[The Calamity Iron stored in your body was digested.]

[You harbored strong murderous intent towards the one plagued with Resentful Energy, and you took action. By attracting more Resentful Energy, the Calamity Iron stored in your body was largely digested.]

[Daily Settlement: Your current total Edibility of Calamity Iron is 3%, with a remaining storage of 3% in your body.]

[P.S.: The Edibility recording method has changed, with complete digestion and absorption by the body as the final settlement. What hasn't been absorbed but only ingested is counted as storage.]

Therefore, the Iron Eater's panel also underwent slight changes, with more detailed and accurate statistics.

Iron Eater: Tier 2

Available slots for absorbing metal traits: 2

Traits absorbed: Molded Embryo (White)

Current Edibility Slot 1: Pig Iron (Edibility 28.1/100%, Storage 0.)

Current Edibility Slot 2: Nine Nether Evil Iron (Edibility 3%/100%, Storage 3%.)

Feng Mu glanced at it only once and understood the difference between the two types of statistics; it's akin to the difference between settling the bill before the meal and after the meal.

The latter is more stringent with the timing of the statistics than the former.

Feng Mu wasn't concerned about the change in statistical methods; what he cared about was the new [Daily Settlement] notification, which clearly recorded the reason for the digestion of the Calamity Iron—[Resentful Energy]?!!

Good news, Feng Mu no longer had to guess how the Calamity Iron was digested.

Bad news, [Resentful Energy] was a brand new term he didn't recognize.

Feng Mu pondered for a moment, temporarily understanding [Resentful Energy] as the vengeful spirits or grievances of the deceased.

"Then, someone plagued with Resentful Energy must be someone who has killed, with lingering resentment or vengeful spirits of the deceased attached to them. In short, a murderer," Feng Mu thought.

"In other words, murderers possess the [Resentful Energy] I need. If they harbor malice toward me, or I harbor murderous intent towards them, it will cause the [Resentful Energy] on them to be attracted to me."

"Then, some unknown chemical reaction occurs with the [Calamity Iron] inside me, eventually getting digested and absorbed together."

"In fact, fighting isn't even necessary; just the murderer harboring malice toward me could suffice. However, fighting and killing are the most potent methods of absorption, especially when we both intend to kill each other and take action, at which point absorption efficiency peaks."

Feng Mu inferred this, then shook his head: "No, attempted murder isn't the peak; successful murder should be the peak."

Feng Mu's eyes sparkled: "So as long as I kill a murderer, at the moment of the murderer's death, the [Resentful Energy] on them will transfer to my body and be absorbed by the [Calamity Iron]?!!"

Although Feng Mu was merely speculating and hadn't yet verified it, he felt there was a high likelihood of it being true.

Unless the [Resentful Energy] dissipates partially when a murderer dies, in which case, perhaps keeping them alive and repeatedly exploiting might be the optimal solution.

"In the end, I have to find a murderer to personally verify it," Feng Mu calculated in his heart.

"Unfortunately, murderers don't wear their crimes on their faces, unless they've killed as many as Senior Brother and Sister, and the bloody scent can be sensed by me; otherwise, if they've only killed a person or two, even if they brushed past me, I wouldn't notice," Feng Mu frowned.

Feng Mu could order Ma Bin to catch some murderers for his experiments or "consumption."

However, the digestion of Calamity Iron is an accumulation over time, with the demand sure to be immense—far more than a few or a dozen murderers could satisfy.

Feng Mu thought, "Perhaps Ma Bin could control the Cyan Wolf Gang to bring me ten or even a hundred murderers, but that's probably the limit."

After all, even in Lower City where lives are cheap, it's impossible for every street to be filled with walking murderers, and identifying them is also a challenge.

As for groups like the Investigation Corps that meet these conditions, Feng Mu didn't have the guts to target them yet.

After contemplating for a while, Feng Mu realized finding [Calamity Iron] required [Resentful Energy] was only the first step; meeting the quantity requirement for [Resentful Energy] was the real difficulty.

"If only there was a place filled with murderers, and killing them wouldn't cause too much commotion," Feng Mu thought, struck by a sudden inspiration.

"A prison?!!" Feng Mu opened his eyes wide, with a dark line in his pupils, murmuring to himself, "Of course, the number of murderers imprisoned in a jail is still relatively small, but…"

A horrifying thought floated into Feng Mu's mind: "If I could control a prison, even if the number of murderers inside isn't enough, I could continually, almost like producing goods, create them in bulk….right?"

Feng Mu's Adam's apple moved, swallowing hard.

He was startled by the notion that emerged in his mind. This was no longer a question of morality; it bordered on the insane.

Feng Mu vehemently shook his head, casting aside that thought.

Yet bizarrely, the more he tried to abandon this idea, the more it popped up, like a seed embedded deep in his heart; even if not watered, it stubbornly broke through the ground, taking root and sprouting bit by bit over time, ultimately entwining the entirety of his heart with its roots.

A night of nightmares.

The next morning, when Feng Mu woke up, he had two dark circles under his eyes.

Hong Ya brought a meal into his room, comforting him with a few words, and upon turning to leave, all the fellow senior brothers and sisters in the courtyard learned that the little junior brother was worried sick over foes, not having slept well through the night.

They glanced at each other, quickening their speed at scraping the bowl bottoms.

By the time Feng Mu changed his medication and re-wrapped his bandages, when he came out, only a large wooden bucket and five bowls of differing sizes remained on the stone table in the courtyard.

Hong Ya squatted on a stone bench, holding a small bowl, eating in small bites.

Feng Mu sat down by the stone table with his bowl, biting down, his mouth filled with the aroma of rice and meat. When he raised his head again, tears flowed uncontrollably.

It's been three years since he last tasted natural food.

Although 3D-printed synthetic food looks more refined and the chewing sensation isn't too different, for some unknown reason, just one bite was enough for Feng Mu to perceive the subtle difference within.

It's not a difference of taste buds, but... Feng Mu couldn't quite describe it, more like an unreasonable instinct, where every cell in the body was cheering.

It was like a withered tree baked under the sun for over a decade finally tasted the flavor of water again.

More eerily, before today, Feng Mu hadn't realized at all that his body was like a withered tree, nor did he ever think this withered tree was so thirsty.

"Synthetic food not only fills the stomach but has been deceiving the body's instincts?!!"

Wiping away the tears at the corners of his eyes, Feng Mu wasn't trying to cry; rather, it was the body, finally perceiving the long-standing deception, silently begging himself for help.

"Perhaps, this silent weeping has gone on for eighteen years, and only today have I witnessed my own tears?"

Feng Mu could hardly fathom how desperate the body must have been.

It is like someone invisible continually shouting for help towards you for eighteen years, while you remain oblivious, akin to a deaf and blind person, offering no response whatsoever.

Until now, suddenly awakening to find standing before you a withered, emaciated person.

More terrifying is realizing that person is indeed yourself; this is your most authentic self. The familiar, plump face you see in the mirror is entirely an illusion deceiving you.

Your eyes deceive you;

Your ears deceive you;

Your body deceives you;

Your soul deceives you;

Not only do you deceive yourself, but others deceive you, and the whole world deceives you;

But you also deceive others, and they deceive themselves, and collectively, you even deceive the world;

You all act like mirrors unto each other, seemingly saying, "Look, we're all the same; there's no problem."

But the truth is…

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