Immortality: Starting with the Fruit of Taiyin

"That's how it is, Brother Wang, please lend me a hand."

"Once I've established my foundation, I'll repay you tenfold!"

Yang Yunzhi spoke with such conviction that he was practically swearing an oath to the heavens.

Although he felt a pang of sadness when he first heard the news, he couldn't believe that Wang Xuan had reached the late stage of Qi Refining before him.

But when he came to his senses, he realized this was a good opportunity.

To advance to the Foundation Establishment stage, the younger the better.

This means that one has abundant Qi and blood, and is not easily severely damaged in the event of failure, but can recover quickly and prepare for the next attempt.

If he can get enough elixirs from Wang Xuan, he might be able to reach the Qi Refining Perfection stage several years faster than expected.

If I perform well in front of the Fourth Miss, I might be able to find a way to turn the Meridian Protection Pill promised by the Lu family into a Foundation Establishment Pill...

"Ahem... Brother Yang, you may have misunderstood."

Just as he was lost in thought, Wang Xuan's voice brought Yang Yunzhi back to reality.

"Brother Yang, as you know, when the sect was destroyed, I was only at the fifth level of Qi Refining."

"Although I prepared some resources and gritted my teeth to exchange for a Biyun Pill, this is already my limit."

"If it were someone else, it wouldn't matter, but Brother Yang, you were once a disciple of a sect, so you should understand the key points."

"As for more elixirs, I really don't have any more."

He gave a wry smile, but his heart remained calm. What Wang Xuan said was the truth.

He truly doesn't have a single pill that's beneficial for cultivation right now, and he's not joking.

Because recently, he has been busy gathering information and looking for suitable spiritual veins to rent for Xiaoqing's advancement.

Even when they have some free time, they only refine the most profitable breakthrough pills.

"what?"

"How could this be, Brother Wang...?"

Upon hearing this, Yang Yunzhi's expression changed, his illusions shattered; he hadn't expected such an outcome.

Without elixirs, how can he quickly establish his foundation and finally stand tall in front of that haggard old woman?

However, after calming down and thinking about it carefully, Yang Yunzhi realized that Wang Xuan's words made sense.

That's right, the Lu family collateral branch that told this as a joke also said the same thing, but he didn't pay attention to it at the time.

Generally speaking, alchemists in the lower courtyards of a sect do indeed live much better than others.

But no matter how good things are, it's impossible to accumulate enough resources to reach the pinnacle of Qi Refining in just ten years while cultivating.

Therefore, Wang Xuan may have used the privileges of an alchemist to obtain a large amount of medicinal herbs and resources in advance, or he may have gained the favor of a Foundation Establishment cultivator and received some investment in resources.

It's understandable for someone in the mid-stage of Qi Refining to prepare for the late stage, but there's really no need to think about Foundation Establishment so early...

However, Yang Yunzhi was still somewhat unwilling, and he suspected that Wang Xuan was just reluctant to part with his own pills.

"Really not? Brother Wang, you must believe me!"

"We've known each other for many years. If I successfully complete my foundation building, I will definitely never forget you."

"I'll talk to the Fourth Miss about it, and have you join the Lu family like me, get married, and have children..."

"No, really."

Wang Xuan shook his head again, his expression sincere.

"Brother Yang, you know how the disciples of the lower academy are treated."

"Although alchemists have more resources, they are still only about as good as outstanding inner disciples... I really have no way to help them."

"Of course, if Brother Yang really needs it, I have seven spirit stones here, which I saved up in my spare time from alchemy. Consider it my contribution to you."

After saying that, Wang Xuan pretended to be in pain as he took out seven low-grade spirit stones from his storage bag, which made Yang Yunzhi's eyelids twitch.

For ordinary independent cultivators, this is not a small amount.

But if it's for preparing for foundation building, then it's not even a fraction of the whole.

"This...sigh...it's probably not necessary."

"I was overthinking it. A gentleman doesn't take what others cherish. Fellow Daoist Wang, you're busy, I'll head back now."

With a sigh, the dough twitched, and Yang Yunzhi waved his hand in refusal.

If it were a pill worth hundreds or thousands of spirit stones, it would be worthwhile for him, a future Foundation Establishment cultivator, to owe a favor.

But these mere seven spirit stones are practically nothing more than a beggar's gift; they're not worth him having to swallow his pride and borrow them.

Shaking his head inwardly, Yang Yunzhi couldn't help but feel somewhat disappointed.

It's a pity. The alchemy cauldron is the livelihood of alchemists, and Wang Xuan would never sell it to lend him spirit stones.

In this way, his plans would probably fall through... However, Yang Yunzhi vaguely breathed a sigh of relief.

We were all disciples of the same sect, so there's no reason why you're so much richer than me.

Of course, words are not enough, so Yang Yunzhi kept a watchful eye on things.

He planned to keep an eye on Wang Xuan's cultivation speed to see if he would still be as fast as he was now in a few years.

"Oh, right."

Finally remembering the important matter of the day, Yang Yunzhi slowly said:

"Please remember, Fellow Daoist Wang, that you should also refine the pills to restore your qi and blood."

"My Lu family is large and powerful, and we will not skimp on your payment for refining pills."

In their conversation, they had already started referring to "my Lu family," adapting to their new identity quite quickly.

With a final word, Yang Yunzhi changed his address back to Fellow Daoist Wang and did not linger any longer.

After taking several bottles of elixirs to replenish qi and blood, the two quickly parted ways.

……

That day, they returned to Dan Pavilion.

Without wasting any time, Wang Xuan immediately summoned Han Li and asked him about everything related to the matter.

After watching the girl leave for more than half an hour, he finally understood the general cause and effect of the matter.

"Incentives, rewards, and dissemination."

"I see. Han Changming... he's truly insidious."

In the quiet room, Wang Xuan sighed softly.

Although the Han family's actions were clearly ill-intentioned, he couldn't help but admire them.

Is it wrong for the head of a Foundation Establishment family to praise him in front of his younger generation? No problem.

But even though there were no problems, trouble naturally came knocking.

This shows that although the methods are old, they are effective.

There's no need to do anything extra; just spread the message within the clan.

Even if most people don't take Wang Xuan seriously because of this, there will always be a few people who are interested in him and want to see if they can get something out of him.

And this is very likely what the Han family wants.

"Let me guess... what will you do next?"

Wang Xuan smiled without saying a word, his eyes flashing.

The plan was excellent. If he were truly an ordinary cultivator who had been brought into the sect at the age of twelve and was inexperienced in worldly affairs, it would be hard to say what would happen next.

Unfortunately, he wasn't.

Therefore, all of the other party's subsequent plans are destined to be fruitless.

Moreover, since the power of cultivators originates from themselves, Wang Xuan didn't care whether the other party's actions seemed problematic.

He felt that whether there was a problem or not would be the only standard by which he would make judgments in the future.

"Tsk."

"Corpse-picking alchemist... What a nice nickname. He doesn't seem threatening at all."

"Xiaoqing, don't you think so?"

"Chirp?"

He reached out and gently stroked the feathers of the Azure Shadow Sparrow, but upon hearing Wang Xuan's call, the bluebird merely glanced at him blankly, completely failing to understand its master's meaning.