The Longevity Family: Starting from the Foundation Establishment Ancestor

Han Yunge's hands were still trembling slightly.

The gray-robed cultivator's corpse lay before them, its blood staining the withered leaves on the ground. The other three accomplices, terrified by their leader's death, turned and fled. Li Yuanming and Zhang Lie tried to give chase, but Han Yunge stopped them.

"Stop chasing them." Her voice was a little dry. "Take the token and go quickly."

Li Yuanming then realized what was happening and hurriedly picked up the cyan jade talisman. The three of them quickly left the scene and walked through the dense forest for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn before stopping to make sure it was safe.

"Junior Sister Han, you..." Zhang Lie looked at Han Yunge's pale face, hesitating to speak.

"I'm fine." Han Yunge took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down. Her grandfather had said that's how the cultivation world is: if you don't kill, others will kill you. But that's just theory; the feeling of actually fighting...

"That formation just now..." Li Yuanming looked at Han Yunge with a complicated expression, "Was it taught to you by Senior Han?"

Han Yunge nodded: "My grandfather gave me a few array talismans, saying it was just in case."

In fact, Han Mu taught her a few simple formation setup methods, which, when used with specially made "Quicksand Talismans," could trap enemies for a short time. This kind of trick often proved surprisingly effective in battles during the Qi Refining stage.

"Senior Han is truly insightful and far-sighted," Li Yuanming remarked. "If it weren't for Junior Sister Han this time, we would probably have been in deep trouble."

Zhang Lie nodded in agreement: "Those four worked together seamlessly, clearly repeat offenders. It seems this treasure hunt is more dangerous than we imagined."

The three of them tallied their spoils. Besides the cyan jade talisman, they also found a storage bag on the gray-robed cultivator, containing more than a dozen spirit stones and several bottles of healing pills.

"We already have one token." Han Yunge put the jade talisman away. "According to the rules, we need at least three to have a chance of making it into the top ten. Let's keep looking."

"Head east," Zhang Lie said, pointing to the map. "There are two token locations over there, not far apart."

The three set off again, this time with even greater caution.

The Misty Forest was vast, and the thousands of cultivators scattered within it quickly dispersed. Along the way, they encountered several more battles, some between independent cultivators, and others between disciples of the seven major sects besieging demonic cultivators. Han Yunge chose to avoid them all; her only desire now was to gather the tokens as quickly as possible and leave this place of trouble.

Half an hour later, they found the second token location.

It was a small cave hidden behind a waterfall, with a simple protective array at the entrance. After Li Yuanming broke through the array, the three of them entered the cave and successfully obtained a red jade talisman.

"Two now." Zhang Lie breathed a sigh of relief.

Just then, the sounds of fighting came from outside the cave.

The three exchanged a glance and quietly approached the cave entrance to peer outside.

Below the waterfall, on the open ground, seven or eight black-clad cultivators were besieging a young man in yellow. These black-clad cultivators all exuded a chilling aura; they were disciples of the Ghost Spirit Sect. The young man in yellow, who appeared to be only sixteen or seventeen years old and possessed only the seventh level of Qi Refining, was barely managing to withstand the attack.

"They're disciples of Yellow Maple Valley," Li Yuanming whispered. "Should we...?"

"Let's take another look." Han Yunge frowned.

She noticed that although the young man in yellow was in danger, his eyes were unusually calm, and his movements were very methodical. Most importantly, he had a familiar storage bag hanging from his waist—it was a "Azure Pattern Storage Bag" made by her grandfather, and only she and her father each had one in the Han family.

"Are they from the Han family?" Zhang Lie also noticed.

"No," Han Yunge shook her head, "Besides me, no other Qi Refining stage disciples from the Han family participated. And..."

Before she could finish speaking, the situation on the field suddenly changed.

The young man in yellow suddenly threw out several talismans, which exploded with a bang, and he took advantage of the chaos to break out of the encirclement. However, he was seriously injured, with a deep wound on his left shoulder that exposed the bone, from which blood gushed out.

"Chase him! Don't let him get away!" The leader of the Ghost Spirit Sect was a hook-nosed cultivator at the ninth level of Qi Refining, who shouted sharply.

The seven men gave chase and were about to catch up.

Han Yunge gritted her teeth: "Save them!"

"But there are seven of them..." Li Yuanming hesitated.

"We'll launch a sneak attack." Han Yunge quickly devised a plan. "Senior Brother Zhang, use the 'Earth Prison Talisman' to trap the three behind you. Senior Brother Li, you deal with the two on the left. I'll handle the two on the right and that Qi Refining Level 9 guy."

"You're taking on three by yourself?" Zhang Lie was surprised.

"I have a way." A resolute glint flashed in Han Yunge's eyes.

It's time to use the life-saving trump card my grandfather gave me.

The three rushed out of the cave and attacked simultaneously as planned.

Zhang Lie threw out three earthen-yellow talismans, and three earthen prisons suddenly appeared from the ground, trapping the three Ghost Spirit Sect disciples at the back. Li Yuanming then summoned a flying sword, aiming straight for the two on the left.

Han Yunge's targets were the two people on the right and the hook-nosed monk.

She flicked her hands, sending out six black poison pellets that didn't attack the enemy but exploded around them, creating a poisonous fog.

"Poison again?" the hook-nosed monk sneered. "A mere trick!"

He raised his protective aura, ready to break free of the poisonous fog. But the next moment, dozens of vines suddenly emerged from the fog and tightly bound him!

"Wood-based magic?!" The hook-nosed monk was shocked.

Han Yunge cultivates the "Azure Origin Pill Technique," which, while primarily focused on alchemy, also incorporates some wood-based spells. She had secretly mixed a seed of the "Entangling Spirit Vine" into the poison pill, and now, activating it at full power, the vine grew wildly.

Taking this opportunity, she threw out three golden sword talismans, and three golden sword lights went straight for the other two Ghost Spirit Sect disciples.

The two men were only at the seventh level of Qi Refining. Caught off guard, one had his thigh pierced and the other had his arm slashed, and they retreated screaming in agony.

"You're courting death!" the hook-nosed cultivator roared, forcefully breaking the vines and striking Han Yunge with a palm.

This palm strike was incredibly powerful, and the wind from it carried a foul stench, clearly indicating it was some kind of poisonous technique.

Han Yunge neither dodged nor avoided, but simply took out a jade talisman and crushed it.

hum-

A layer of pale golden light enveloped her.

The hook-nosed monk's poisonous palm struck the light barrier, causing it to tremble violently, but it did not shatter.

"A Foundation Establishment stage defensive talisman?!" The hook-nosed cultivator's expression changed drastically.

Just then, a streak of cyan sword light attacked from behind him.

It was that young man in yellow! He had somehow circled around to the back and thrust his sword at the hook-nosed cultivator's back.

The hook-nosed monk hurriedly dodged, but he was still a step too slow, and the sword light slashed a bloody gash across his back.

"Retreat!" He made a snap decision and turned to flee.

The other Ghost Spirit Sect disciples also broke free of their restraints and fled in a sorry state.

Han Yunge didn't give chase, but instead looked at the boy in yellow: "Are you alright?"

The young man in yellow sheathed his sword and cupped his hands in thanks to her: "Thank you for saving me, fellow Daoist. My name is Han Li from Huangfeng Valley. May I ask your name?"

Han Li!

Han Yunge's heart skipped a beat. She had heard her grandfather mention this name before, saying it belonged to a newly initiated disciple of Yellow Maple Valley, of average talent but with a tenacious spirit. She never expected to encounter him here.

"Han Yunge of the Han family of Yanling Fortress," she replied in return.

"So you're from the same clan." Han Li smiled slightly. "I will remember your kindness today."

"It's no trouble at all," Han Yunge said, taking out a small bottle and handing it over. "This is 'Golden Wound Powder,' which has a remarkable effect on wounds."

Han Li accepted the medicine, thanked him, and quickly treated his wound. His movements were practiced, indicating that he was frequently injured.

"Why was Fellow Daoist Han besieged by the Ghost Spirit Sect?" Li Yuanming asked as he walked over.

"I found a token." Han Li took out a purple jade talisman from his pocket. "They saw it and tried to steal it."

The three suddenly realized. Tokens were limited, and murder for treasure was all too common at treasure hunts.

"What are Fellow Daoist Han's plans for the future?" Zhang Lie asked. "If you don't mind, we can travel together."

Han Li glanced at Han Yunge, then at Li Yuanming and Zhang Lie, and after a moment's thought, nodded: "Alright. But I need to go somewhere first to retrieve something."

"thing?"

"Yes, it's a kind of spiritual herb, very important to me." Han Li didn't elaborate.

Han Yunge recalled her grandfather's instructions—if she encountered Han Li, she could befriend him appropriately, but she should not delve too deeply into his secrets.

"We're also looking for a third token, why don't we go together?" she suggested.

A hint of gratitude flashed in Han Li's eyes: "Then I'll have to trouble the three of you."

The four traveled together, with Han Li leading the way, heading deeper into the Misty Forest.

On the way, Han Yunge noticed that although Han Li didn't talk much, he had extremely keen observation skills and could always spot danger in advance. Moreover, although his cultivation was only at the seventh level of Qi Refining, he had rich practical experience, and several times it was Han Yunge's reminders that helped him avoid traps.

"Fellow Daoist Han is very familiar with this place?" she couldn't help but ask.

"I've been here a few times," Han Li replied briefly, without elaborating.

Half an hour later, they arrived at a secluded mountain hollow. In the hollow grew a patch of purple spiritual herbs, emitting a faint fragrance.

"Purple Monkey Flower!" Li Yuanming's eyes lit up. "It's one of the auxiliary ingredients for refining Foundation Establishment Pills. One plant can sell for fifty spirit stones."

Han Li strode over and carefully gathered the flowers. He was skilled, taking only the mature stamens and not damaging the roots.

Han Yunge and the other two stood guard around the area.

Suddenly, a jade pendant at her waist felt slightly warm—this was a warning artifact given to her by her grandfather, indicating that danger was approaching.

"Watch out!" she whispered.

Almost simultaneously, a sinister laugh echoed from the entrance to the ravine:

"Hey, isn't this the kid from Yellow Maple Valley? And he has three helpers?"

Five black-clad cultivators entered, the leader being none other than the hook-nosed cultivator who had previously escaped. Beside him stood a pale-faced middle-aged man with a sinister aura, whose cultivation was clearly at the tenth level of Qi Refining!

"Wang Chan, a steward of the Ghost Spirit Sect," Han Li said in a low voice, his pupils shrinking slightly.

Wang Chan's gaze swept over the four people, finally landing on Han Yunge: "Little girl, it's time to settle the score from earlier."

He waved his hand, and five Ghost Spirit Sect disciples dispersed, surrounding the four.

Han Yunge's heart raced. The opposing side had a Qi Refining Level 10 expert in charge, along with four Qi Refining Level 7 or 8 helpers. Their chances of winning were slim.

She subconsciously gripped another jade talisman in her sleeve.

That was a life-saving trump card given to me by my grandfather; it could only be used once.