Immortality and Cultivation: Starting with Improving Spiritual Root Aptitude

Fu Qianyu quickly composed himself, straightened his clothes, suppressed his anxiety, and deliberately made his voice friendly:

"Fellow Daoist Liu, you're too kind. Please come in!"

As he spoke, he strode forward, pulled open the door, and put on a perfectly timed smile, while his gaze subtly swept over Wu Fan.

Wu Fan stood outside the door, dressed in plain clothes, his aura steady, clearly at the sixth level of Qi Refining, exactly the same as when he was seen at the previous exchange meeting, without any abnormal fluctuations.

He looked up at Fu Qianyu, a gentle smile on his face.

His visit today was to test the effectiveness of the Qi Concealment Technique, and Fu Qianyu was the first "touchstone" he had chosen.

"Fellow Daoist Liu, please have a seat."

Fu Qianyu stepped aside to let Wu Fan into the room, closing the door behind him. Turning around, he picked up a cup of tea from the table and offered it to Wu Fan, his tone warm, "Fellow Daoist has been in seclusion for many days; you must have had a hard time. I wonder if you have gained anything from this seclusion?"

Wu Fan accepted the spirit tea, his smile unchanged, and slowly said, "I only refined one pill and barely improved my cultivation a little. It's nothing to mention. But I must thank Fellow Daoist Fu again for the last exchange meeting."

As he spoke, he subtly observed Fu Qianyu's expression, but never revealed anything unusual, already having a clear understanding of the situation.

The concealment technique worked as expected; Fu Qianyu failed to detect his true cultivation level.

Seeing Wu Fan's natural demeanor and flawless speech, Fu Qianyu's doubts lessened, and his smile became even more genuine.

"Fellow Daoist, you're too kind. It was nothing, just a small favor. By the way, now that you've finished your seclusion, you seem to be planning to visit the market again?"

Wu Fan nodded: "Of course."

"If you don't mind, fellow Daoist, why don't we go together?"

Fu Qianyu extended an invitation.

Wu Fan's eyes flickered slightly, but his expression remained gentle as he slowly nodded in agreement.

"Then I will trouble you, Fellow Daoist Fu. It would be wonderful to have you traveling with me."

Fu Qianyu was overjoyed to see Wu Fan agree and quickly said, "Fellow Daoist, there's no need to be so polite."

Wu Fan nodded slightly and said no more.

The two exchanged a few more casual pleasantries, mostly with Fu Qianyu inquiring about trivial matters during his seclusion, while Wu Fan offered only perfunctory answers.

A moment later, the two got up, with Fu Qianyu leading the way and Wu Fan following closely behind.

Before long, the two walked out of Fengxie Tower side by side.

......

For five consecutive days, Wu Fan spent his time traveling between Fengxie Tower and various shops in the market, and only participated in two separate loose cultivator mutual aid meetings.

His purpose in doing this couldn't be clearer.

To test whether the concealment technique he used could truly deceive cultivators of the same level.

Although the concealment technique clearly states that it is "extremely difficult to detect by those of the same level", Wu Fan is always cautious and naturally wants to have multiple people test it, since practice is the only standard to verify the truth.

Fortunately, the effect of this Qi-concealing technique was indeed well-deserved.

At both of the independent cultivator mutual aid meetings, the passing cultivators chatted and laughed with him, but none of them noticed his true cultivation level.

This outcome put Wu Fan at ease, and he couldn't help but think of his deceased teacher, Liu Shi.

In the past few days, Wu Fan has also been keeping a close eye on fire-attribute materials, so he hasn't come away empty-handed.

He spent some spirit stones to purchase a piece of red iron essence that had been repeatedly hammered and refined.

Although this red iron essence is not a top-grade fire-attribute material, it can still nourish the Five Elements Beads and add spiritual energy.

Wu Fan carefully put it away, and did not immediately let the Five Elements Bead absorb it.

His move was also carefully considered.

Although he had the Bai family's letter of recommendation, if he had to undergo a spiritual root aptitude test on the way to Meteor Valley, his outstanding spiritual root and spiritual charm would inevitably attract attention and cause trouble. It would be better to wait until he entered Falling Star Valley and then let the Five Elements Pearl absorb the spiritual energy of the Crimson Iron Essence to avoid its sharp edge.

In the past few days, Wu Fan has achieved all his goals, whether it was testing his Qi Concealment Technique or finding the Crimson Iron Essence. It's time for him to head to Falling Star Valley.

Yesterday, while attending the mutual aid society for independent practitioners, he deliberately spread rumors that he had found a well-paid job in the market and planned to stay there long-term.

Upon hearing this, the group of independent cultivators stepped forward to offer their congratulations.

The next day, at the beginning of the Yin hour (3-5 AM), while it was still pitch black, Wu Fan quietly left the market.

He dared not use the Wind-Riding Boat to fly directly through the air at night.

The azure light emanating from the Wind-Riding Boat was not noticeable during the day, but it became exceptionally dazzling at night.

Therefore, Wu Fan planned to get away from the market as soon as possible and wait until dawn before using the Wind-Riding Boat to travel at full speed to avoid any unforeseen complications.

He took out a speed talisman, flicked his fingertips to inject spiritual energy into the talisman, and a powerful burst of energy swept through his body. His figure instantly turned into a blur, and he sped towards Falling Star Valley, disappearing into the night in an instant.

......

Meanwhile, not long after Wu Fan left Fengxie Tower, Fu Qianyu, who was on duty monitoring him that day, checked on his whereabouts every half hour.

This time, when he examined the tracking marks he had left on Wu Fan, his heart sank and his expression instantly turned serious.

He discovered that the tracking mark was actually moving away from Fengxie Tower, and the distance was getting farther and farther.

That direction was clearly heading towards the exit of the market.

"not good!"

Fu Qianyu's heart skipped a beat, and he knew something terrible was about to happen.

He dared not delay for a moment, and immediately went out, hurrying to Sun Leiluo's residence nearby.

Sun Leiluo had just woken up when he heard the news brought by Fu Qianyu. His brows furrowed instantly, his expression became serious, and he asked in a deep voice:

"Fourth Brother, are you sure? Did Liu Xi sense something? Otherwise, why would he suddenly leave in the middle of the night without any warning?"

"Very likely!"

Fu Qianyu nodded, his tone urgent, "Regardless of whether he's suspicious or not, we can't be careless about this. We have to catch up quickly and absolutely can't let this easy target slip away! I have a feeling that this kid has some secret. If we can capture him, we'll definitely get a lot of benefits."

Sun Leiluo's expression grew increasingly solemn, and he said in a deep voice:

"So, does that mean he suspected us from the very beginning? From the moment we first met him, he was deliberately on guard, putting on an act the whole time? This matter seems serious and cannot be delayed. In that case, I'll immediately send word to my eldest and second brothers, informing them of this and asking them to come and provide support as soon as possible. Then, the two of us will set off immediately to give chase and make sure we keep him occupied, preventing him from getting too far!"

After saying that, Sun Leiluo took out a communication talisman with a paper crane drawn on it, and his fingertips surged with spiritual power, about to inject spiritual power to burn it.

But at that moment, Fu Qianyu reached out and grabbed his wrist, stopping him from moving.

Sun Leiluo suddenly looked up, his eyes filled with doubt and his tone with a hint of confusion:

"Fourth Brother, what's wrong...?"