Immortality: Starting with the Fruit of Taiyin

"...Young friend, your progress is astonishing; I am naturally pleased for you."

Speaking earnestly, Han Changde seemed to be thinking of Wang Xuan's best interests.

"Even refining pills requires moderation. At such a rapid pace, young friend, you must be careful of pill toxicity."

"Thank you for the reminder, Elder."

With a smile, Wang Xuan explained:

"I have no high expectations; I know that Foundation Establishment is the end goal."

"As for Core Formation and Nascent Soul, those are things that geniuses like Senior Brother Lin and the Fourth Miss of the Lu family need to consider."

"So back when I was still in the sect, I deliberately chose a technique that was of average power but could improve the efficiency of refining pills."

"Furthermore, before the sect suffered its calamity, I had just been promoted to a formal alchemist and received an 'excellent' rating, thus gaining some resources... At least before reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, alchemy poisoning shouldn't be a problem."

In today's cultivation world, although elixirs can accelerate the cultivation speed of cultivators, the toxicity of elixirs is also an undeniable factor.

However, for the vast majority of cultivators, the toxicity of pills of the highest quality is negligible, and 90% of them can be eliminated through daily cultivation and breathing exercises.

As long as you pay attention to the intervals between taking the pills and leave enough room for adjustment, you don't need to worry about affecting your breakthrough of bottlenecks or even the upper limit of your lifespan.

The preciousness of premium pills stems from this – the intervals between doses are similar to those of regular pills, but their potency is far superior, and they are extremely easy to absorb, making them highly sought after by those from distinguished families.

Besides these, there are cultivation techniques similar to what Wang Xuan mentioned... Although the upper limit of these techniques is mostly the peak of Foundation Establishment, and at most one can be lucky enough to achieve a false core, that is enough.

Han Changde knew that for most cultivators, the inability to break through to the True Core stage was not a flaw at all; it was just a useless limitation.

They only regretted not having enough pills to refine, and didn't think there was anything wrong with this cultivation method.

Similarly, there are methods for quick mastery of demonic arts, which, although they may damage one's foundation and lifespan, have always been sought after by countless people.

"...Alright, alright."

"It's good that you have a plan, young friend..."

He took a deep breath, but the various arguments he had prepared could no longer be uttered.

It was only at this moment that Han Changde suddenly realized.

At this rate, Wang Xuan actually has a considerable chance of reaching the Foundation Establishment stage.

Even if one's spiritual roots are mediocre and cannot provide assistance at major cultivation levels.

But what if he gritted his teeth, sold the only mid-grade pill-making cauldron he had, and tried to buy a Purple Sun Pill to gamble his life?

If they succeed, the other party will fly away; if they fail, it's fine if they're alive, but if they're dead...

How can this be allowed!

A slight change occurred to her, and she exchanged a few more awkward words with Wang Xuan.

Han Changde didn't explain why he had been summoned today, and then made an excuse to leave.

Wang Xuan thought to himself that the other party was probably undecided and had sent a message to the family head, Han Changming.

After all, there is a clear difference between the two in terms of both cultivation level and intelligence.

Han Changde clearly wouldn't dare to act on his own initiative regarding such an important matter.

"But it doesn't matter."

"This is Baihefang Market, not Xiaozeshan of the Han family."

"The market formation prohibits all magical fluctuations above the late stage of Qi Refining. Unless one has an extremely rare second-tier 'Breaking Restriction Talisman,' it is possible to shake the formation, but that would be tantamount to declaring war on the Xuanfu Lu Clan."

"Even if something were to happen... compared to a few years ago, I am now a 'spirited person'."

"With a second-tier talisman in hand, it's enough to guard against the possibility of the Han family suddenly going mad."

Pushing open the door to leave, Wang Xuan had already prepared for the worst, but he felt it shouldn't come to that.

On the one hand, he has intentionally or unintentionally released some information in the past two years.

For example, when he was still in the sect, his alchemy skills progressed rapidly, so he was valued by a Foundation Establishment senior who provided him with a lot of resources for Qi Refining, allowing him to focus on alchemy.

For example, he has a former fellow villager who possesses a superior spiritual root. He has now joined the Xuanfu Lu Clan and may have the potential to reach the Foundation Establishment stage in the future.

Yang Yunzhi may not be of much use, but his skin is quite intimidating.

On the other hand, Han Changming doesn't seem like such a brainless person.

There are fools in the cultivation world, and quite a few at that. This Second Elder is of average intelligence, but this Han Clan Foundation Establishment cultivator should not be one of them.

Knowing that there's nothing they can do about him, the most likely scenario is that the other party will maintain the status quo and see if he can actually achieve Foundation Establishment.

……

Time flies, and January has passed quickly.

Seeing that the Han family hadn't made any further moves in the quiet room, Wang Xuan gradually relaxed.

At the crucial moment of Xiaoqing's promotion, it's better to remain still than to make a move.

In addition, before reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, a fire chamber for alchemy is indispensable.

So as long as the Han family doesn't do anything, he plans to let things take their course.

However, half a month later, when Yang Yunzhi came to collect the pills again, what the other party said surprised Wang Xuan.

"Brother Wang."

With eager eyes, Yang Yunzhi spoke urgently.

"We were from the same hometown in our early years, later joined the same sect, fell into hardship together, and finally met again in the market... You could say we have quite a relationship, right?"

"Hmm... Brother Yang is right."

Not knowing what the other party meant, Wang Xuan gave a vague answer.

"In that case, I have something I need your help with."

With expectant eyes, Yang Yunzhi asked directly, "I wonder how many more elixirs Brother Wang has brought from the sect?"

"As you know, I have a superior spiritual root, although I am temporarily short of resources... which has caused my cultivation to lag behind yours by one step."

"But in the Foundation Establishment stage, those with superior spiritual roots always have a small chance of success."

"If you are willing to lend me a hand, I will repay you tenfold in the future."

"Um?"

"Brother Yang, what do you mean by this?"

Slightly taken aback by these words, Wang Xuan didn't immediately understand what the other person meant.

"We've come this far, why must you still hide it from me, fellow Daoist?"

A hint of dissatisfaction flashed in his eyes, but thinking of his domineering, haggard wife, Yang Yunzhi still began to explain.

A few days ago, while chatting with a member of a collateral branch of the Lu family, he heard an amusing story that became a source of amusement.

It is said that the Han family of Xiaozeshan is indeed a newly emerging small family, and they have never even seen a real genius.

They actually used outsiders to educate their own children, urging them to practice diligently and strive to advance to the late stage of Qi Refining as soon as possible.

However, everyone knows that one's spiritual foundation is predetermined and difficult to change later in life.

At least in the Qi Refining and Foundation Building stage, if a cultivator's cultivation speed significantly exceeds that of their spiritual root level, it likely indicates that they have abundant resources.

That external alchemist of the Han family collected the 'remains' of his own sect after its destruction, which is why he had cultivation resources. How could an ordinary disciple of the Han family have such wealth?

Using this "corpse-picking alchemist" as a benchmark is nothing short of laughable.