Cultivating Immortality: Starting from Ferrying Passengers

Chapter 1: Soliciting Passengers
"We're going to Hongyefang. The whole journey is by water. There's only one person left. We'll leave once everyone is there. Would you like to go, fellow Taoist?"

At the entrance of Qinghefang Market, a handsome male cultivator in his twenties was shouting to the sparse number of cultivators in front of him. These people had just come out of Qinghefang and had different expressions on their faces regarding Fang Jingxuan's recruitment.

Some of them looked slightly wary, obviously having reaped a lot of rewards, so they just glanced over here and then took out their own travel tools and quickly flew away.

Some of them walked calmly towards the shantytowns in the distance, taking a leap of seven or eight feet in one step, obviously using some magic.

Seeing that no one paid attention to him, Fang Jingxuan didn't take it seriously. It was 1,800 miles from here to Hongyefang, which was not a short distance. Ordinary cultivators would not rush there unless it was an important matter.

But there were always customers. Fang Jingxuan called for a long time and finally waited for a cultivator who wanted to go to Hongyefang, but they seemed to have some disagreements on the price.

"Other people only charge eight broken spirit stones for the camel ferry, but why do you charge a whole low-grade spirit stone?"

Hearing the doubt, Fang Jingxuan took a deep breath and then showed a professional fake smile:

"My fellow Daoist, there's a reason why he's so noble. My pack animal is a low-grade, first-rank spirit beast with a trace of Black Turtle bloodline—the Water-Breathing Spirit Turtle. It's naturally endowed with the ability to control water. Wherever it goes, the wind and waves are calm, and it's the most stable thing to sit on."

Fang Jingxuan's words made the man nod his head repeatedly, but when it came time to pay, he was still a little hesitant:
"It's true that the experience is good, but it costs two Broken Spirit Stones. I don't think it's worth it. How about..."

Seeing that this person still wanted to bargain, Fang Jingxuan rolled his eyes secretly. This cultivator is really stingy. If it wasn't the last order today, I wouldn't bother to argue with you.

Helpless, Fang Jingxuan put away his smile and used his trump card:

"To be honest, this is the only camel boat from Qinghefang to Hongyefang these days. If you think it's too expensive, you can either fly there yourself or wait for the next one in three days.

It's a journey of 1,800 miles, and there are robber cultivators lurking along the way. You're traveling alone, so you'd better be careful. I assume you don't want to encounter robber cultivators, right?"

After Fang Jingxuan finished speaking, the man's expression turned unhappy.

Ever since the Golden Core Patriarch of the Danding Sect went into seclusion in order to reach a new realm, the world within a radius of thousands of miles has not been as peaceful as before.

Some independent cultivators who were driven crazy by poverty also started to form groups and commit crimes. A few days ago, a Qi-refining family 500 miles to the east had their mountain protection formation breached, and the entire clan was wiped out.

At present, it would take at least a day or a night to travel the 1,800 miles of water by flying alone. It is not worth taking the risk for such a small price difference.

Fang Jingxuan looked at the man calmly. Sure enough, after thinking for a few breaths, he simply took out a low-grade water-attributed spirit stone from his storage bag and handed it to Fang Jingxuan.

"That's right, fellow Daoist, don't worry. My beast ship is registered in the Qinghefang register and I've paid the membership fee. I guarantee your safety."

When Fang Jingxuan saw the spirit stone, his eyes lit up. He quickly took the spirit stone and scanned it with his magic eyes to confirm its authenticity and quality.

This is a thumb-sized, slender, transparent spiritual stone, like the finest glass-type jadeite. It seems to be filled with mist, and it obviously contains abundant spiritual energy. It does not look like it has been used.

In the cultivation world, spirit stones are divided into low-grade, medium-grade, high-grade, and top-grade spirit stones. Generally speaking, the exchange ratio of these different grades of spirit stones is one hundred to one.

But in reality, it depends on the market. For example, the output of water spirit stones at the seaside is higher, so their value will depreciate. When exchanged for higher-level spirit stones with other attributes, the ratio may be more than one hundred to one.

As for the top-grade spirit stones, they are generally not circulated in the market, but are collected as strategic materials by various families and factions.

After confirming that there was no problem with the spirit stone, Fang Jingxuan smiled happily and put it into his storage bag. Then he turned around and led the man to the animal pen not far away.

At this time, there were three monks waiting in front of the animal pen, two men and one woman. When they saw Fang Jingxuan, they were all shocked:
"Friend Fang, please leave quickly, or you'll miss the time." "Didn't you say you'll be back soon? Why are you delayed for half an hour?"

Facing the complaint, Fang Jingxuan smiled apologetically, whispered a few words of comfort, then opened a room in the animal pen and greeted a huge water turtle inside:
"Thank you for your hard work, old friend. It's time for us to set off."

Hearing Fang Jingxuan's call, the Xishui Spirit Turtle in the animal pen shook its head and slowly crawled out.

Only when they came outside did they see the turtle's true appearance: a head as big as a millstone, exposed jagged fangs, and a thick and huge shell like a boat. The overall impression given was that this turtle was definitely not to be messed with.

However, this turtle has a gentle temper. It came to Fang Jingxuan, lowered its head, rubbed Fang Jingxuan's hand, and then lay on the ground obediently.

"Everyone, let's go up."

Fang Jingxuan led the four cultivators up and asked them to find a seat.

The four monks divided the four directions, leaving a considerable gap between them.

There is a lot of space on the back of the Xishui Spirit Turtle, and it looks like a few more can be squeezed in, but Fang Jingxuan didn't do that because he knew that four cultivators at a time was already the limit.

Each monk has his own safety warning line. If this limit is exceeded, the interaction between Qi and machines will make each other very uncomfortable.

Unless they are familiar people, they must keep a certain distance from each other. If Fang Jingxuan forces too many people to pass through and the experience along the way is not good, it will be difficult for him to attract customers next time and he will have no business.

After the monks were seated, Fang Jingxuan sat cross-legged at the front of the Xishui Spirit Turtle's back shell. A thought came to his mind, and according to the contract signed by the two, he gave orders to the giant turtle under him.

Set off, destination: Hongyefang!
After receiving the signal, the Xishui Spirit Turtle took a step forward and crawled steadily into the clear river beside it.

Without any splashing, the huge body of the Xishui Spirit Turtle quietly sank into the wide Qinghe River, and then moved forward quickly.

"My fellow Taoists, this journey is 1,800 miles and is expected to take six hours. Please do not move around during the journey and just sit and meditate."

After Fang Jingxuan finished his opening remarks, seeing that no one objected, he closed his eyes and rested peacefully.

He had already run this route from Qinghefang to Hongyefang no less than a hundred times and could get there with his eyes closed.

Of course, this is mainly due to the credit of his companion beast, the Xishui Spirit Turtle. As the saying goes, an old horse knows the way. The Xishui Spirit Turtle is much more intelligent than an old horse. It knows how to go without Fang Jingxuan's command.

For this reason, Fang Jingxuan specially named it "Tuoyuan" in the hope that one day, this low-grade spirit beast with only a trace of black turtle bloodline would be able to hold up the entire ocean.

As for the origin of Tuoyuan, it is extraordinary. This kind of pack beast has always been of high value. No matter how you look at it, it is impossible for Fang Jingxuan, a casual cultivator with only the second level of Qi Refining, to own it.

This is indeed the case. If Fang Jingxuan wants to obtain Tuyuan based on his own abilities, his cultivation must at least reach the middle to late stages of Qi Refining.

However, as a time traveler, Fang Jingxuan came to this world, so how could he not be worthy of the time traveler's golden finger?
Thinking of this, Fang Jingxuan looked inward into his sea of ​​consciousness and saw a cypress tree less than an inch tall sitting in a small, dim space. It had thin branches and several light brown scars on its bark.

A shriveled cicada shell lay on the thickest branch. Its entire body was as grayish-white as stone, except for its compound eyes, which glowed with a very light gold, as if it was wrapped in a layer of faded yellow paper.

This is an old author with a new account, but I am still a newbie, so please support me.

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(End of this chapter)