Cultivation of immortality begins with an eighty-year-old eunuch.

Qin Taiyue paused slightly, holding his teacup. "The border is being guarded. The northern grasslands have been quite turbulent lately. Although those old fogies from the Wang family don't dare to act openly, they've been stirring up trouble behind the scenes. Qin Zhan has been stationed in Beifeng City for over half a year now, ordered by imperial decree. Before he left, he mentioned you, saying that if you didn't visit him after returning from Zhao, you'd be ungrateful."

Chen Fan's lips twitched slightly, but he didn't laugh. He simply stood up, cupped his hands in a respectful gesture, and said, "Then I won't bother you any longer."

Qin Taiyue waved his hand, his gaze lingering on Chen Fan's retreating figure for a moment before he suddenly spoke: "Chen Fan."

Chen Fan paused in his steps.

"I am aware that you killed the Fourth Prince in Zhao." Qin Taiyue's voice was calm and indifferent, as if he were talking about a trivial matter. "The Zhao court will not let this go easily. Although your cultivation has broken through to the peak of the Nascent Soul stage, you should still be more cautious in your future actions."

Chen Fan nodded, didn't turn around, and strode out of the bamboo forest.

After leaving Qin Taiyue's residence, Chen Fan bought some things in the city and then took a stroll around Baicaotang.

When Manager Qian saw him, his face was all wrinkled with laughter. He talked to him for a long time and then stuffed a few bottles of pills into his hands for him to take with him.

The next morning, Chen Fan set off north for Northwind City.

From the capital of Dayu to Beifeng City, an ordinary spirit boat would take seven or eight days to travel. Chen Fan, now at the Nascent Soul stage, possessed a speed far beyond what he used to be, transforming into a streak of azure light and reaching the black stone city wall in just two days.

Northwind City was even more dilapidated than when he last visited. Several new cracks appeared on the city walls, as if they had been struck by something heavy. The number of guards at the city gate had also doubled, and each of them had a solemn expression, with bloodstains still wet on their armor.

Chen Fan descended into the city on foot.

The streets in the city were much narrower than those in the imperial city, and most of the shops on both sides were closed, with only a few stalls selling spirit wine and coarse food still open. The air was filled with a mixture of herbs and rust, the unique smell of the border army camp.

He walked north along the main street until he reached the largest camp in the city, where he was stopped by two Foundation Establishment stage guards.

"Who is it?"

Chen Fan took out the gold medal offering token and waved it.

The two guards' expressions changed when they saw the words on the token, and one of them turned and ran back into the village.

Before long, the camp gates burst open.

A burly figure strode out from inside the door.

Qin Zhan wore his worn-out black iron armor, with several new cracks appearing on the plates, some of which faintly revealed remnants of demonic energy. His face looked much older than it had been two years ago, with a few more strands of white hair at his temples, but his tiger-like eyes remained astonishingly bright.

The two looked at each other for a moment.

Qin Zhan suddenly threw his head back and burst into laughter. His laughter was as hearty as ever, so loud it sent shivers down the spines of the camp.

He strode forward and slapped Chen Fan hard on the shoulder.

The palm strike was incredibly powerful, and Chen Fan's shoulder ached from the blow, but he didn't use his internal energy to defend himself.

"Good lad! I knew you wouldn't die!" Qin Zhan grinned, his wrinkles crinkling at the corners of his eyes. "Decades have passed, and you've already reached the Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul stage! When you were at the Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul stage, you could already slay Li Jiuyuan and fight Song Tianren to a draw. Now that you've broken through to the Nascent Soul stage, there probably aren't many people on Tiannan Star who can challenge you!"

Looking at the white hair at his temples, Chen Fan suddenly felt a strange mix of emotions.

I vaguely remember that decades ago on Yuwang's boat, this Eighth Prince was wearing a brand-new black iron armor and was talking to me about the selection process in Zhao.

When we meet again now, it's as if they've aged a hundred years.

"Your Highness has aged quite a bit," Chen Fan said calmly.

Qin Zhan paused for a moment, then laughed, a hint of nonchalance in his voice: "It's good to get old. Only when you're old do you know which wines to drink and which people to meet."

He put his arm around Chen Fan's shoulder, ignoring the surprised looks from the soldiers around them, and walked straight into the camp.

"Let's go! I still have two jars of fine wine in my tent. Tonight, we won't leave until we're drunk!"

……

That night, the two drank in Qin Zhan's tent until dawn.

The liquor is the Border Army's "Shaodaozi," brewed with the bones of an eighth-tier demon beast. It is extremely potent; a single sip will make your dantian feel like it's on fire.

Qin Zhan was still the same as always, pouring bowl after bowl of wine down his throat. As he drank, he started talking nonsense, talking about how he fought against demonic cultivators in the Boundless Sea when he was young. He said that when he was seventeen, he ventured into the Boundless Sea alone and fought against demonic cultivators for three years, and was almost killed by a Nascent Soul demonic cultivator.

Chen Fan sat opposite him, serving him bowl after bowl without interrupting, simply listening.

Qin Zhan had recounted these events once before on Yu Wang's boat, but now, as he spoke of them again, he added some new details and lost some of the youthful exuberance he once possessed.

"I've lived for over a thousand years," Qin Zhan wiped his mouth, leaned back in his chair, and looked up at the tent ceiling, a hint of reminiscence in his eyes, "What kind of scene haven't I seen? This is the first time I've been so easily manipulated by a Core Formation junior... No, you were still a Nascent Soul cultivator back then."

He laughed first, "But this is Zhao, not Da Yu. If I lose my temper, I'll only cause trouble for Da Yu; if I don't, I'll just be a coward..."

Chen Fan raised his wine bowl and clinked it against his: "It's all in the past."

Qin Zhan glanced at him and suddenly fell silent.

After a long pause, he whispered, "Sometimes I think, if I hadn't met you in the Valley of Ten Thousand Demons, I'm afraid I would have spent my whole life wasting away in this North Wind City."

Chen Fan did not respond.

He simply poured another bowl of wine.

The next day, Qin Zhan took him to inspect the camp.

The garrison in Beifeng City was much larger than before, mostly composed of elite troops drawn from various regions. Qin Zhan led Chen Fan on a tour of the camp, and along the way, people constantly saluted him, which he returned in kind, without the slightest airs.

As they reached the city wall, Qin Zhan pointed to the hazy northern horizon and suddenly said, "Do you know why I'm willing to guard this place?"

Chen Fan looked at the wasteland without saying a word.

"Because there aren't so many twists and turns here." Qin Zhan's voice lowered a few decibels. "The brothers in the border army, if you treat them well, they'll give you their lives. Unlike those people in the court, who smile and call you brother, only to stab you in the back the next day."

He turned to look at Chen Fan, his gaze filled with a complex mix of emotions: "You too. From the sealed land to where you are today, every step has been one of endurance, one of perseverance. Sometimes, looking at you, I think your eunuch-like temperament is even stronger than mine, a prince at the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm."

Chen Fan, holding his wine bowl, said calmly, "Your Highness is too kind. We're just used to it."

On the third day, Chen Fan did not accompany Qin Zhan on his patrol of the camp.

He sat in the tent all morning, sorting out some things he had accumulated over the decades and picking out a few items.

The sixth-grade Guiyuan Pill was refined by him during the selection process for alchemy in the Zhao Kingdom. It has six pill patterns and is of extremely high quality.

He casually crafted a set of seventh-grade protective array plates while in the Boundless Sea. Although it wasn't anything particularly rare, it was still a valuable life-saving item for a cultivator in the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm.

There was also a demonic sword seized from the Boundless Sea. Its blade was as black as ink, with a faint flow of blood energy. It was something I picked up on the spur of the day when I killed Li Jiuyuan.

He arranged these items one by one on the stone table, waiting for Qin Zhan to return from outside.