Immortality: Starting with the Fruit of Taiyin

……

"...So, are we really going to work for him?"

On an unnamed, desolate mountain, watching Lin Qingyi's departing figure.

Having toned down his previous arrogance, a complex look flashed in the eyes of the burly man.

Even in his fallen state, the true disciple of the sect remains so dashing.

If it weren't for the fact that I was just a mortal wanderer in my youth, I wouldn't have had the good fortune to encounter immortals until middle age.

Otherwise, with his own spiritual roots and talent, he could probably join a Core Formation sect and become an inner disciple... But given a choice, who would want to become a Tribulation Cultivator?

"Otherwise, a third-tier magic talisman, when combined with a cultivation technique, can greatly reduce the time and energy required to activate a second-tier talisman. Do you think this is a joke?"

The smile had long since vanished, and the white-haired old man who had tried to smooth things over earlier remained expressionless.

"I know what you're trying to say... but that's impossible."

"With Lin Qingyi's cultivation at the first or second level of Foundation Establishment, casting a mid-grade third-tier talisman might be a joke in front of a Core Formation True Person."

"The time it takes to activate a talisman just by crossing a realm is enough for a True Immortal to kill him ten times over, not to mention the difference in spiritual awareness... But it's different for cultivators of the same realm."

"Or would you like to test for yourself whether he has any other trump cards up his sleeve?"

"you--"

"alright."

The beautiful woman in palace attire waved her hand impatiently, too lazy to listen to the two arguing.

"This involves the 'Gathering Top Pill' and the 'Earth Element Golden Elixir.' As long as the pills are correct, my elder brother will never give up."

"The opportunity to form your core comes only once in a lifetime, so you'd better know how important it is."

"……snort."

After a moment of silence, the burly man snorted coldly and said nothing more.

Whether it's the Gathering Top Pill or the Earth Element Golden Elixir.

Although none of them can compare to top-tier aids for Core Formation like the "Golden Elixir Jade Rejuvenation Pill" or the "Eight Aperture Earth Spirit Pill".

However, the latter emphasizes "qi" and nourishes "spirit," while the former harmonizes the three elements; both are extremely rare elixirs.

Even within the Core Formation sects, in the past only true disciples could qualify for the queue after achieving perfect cultivation and paying sufficient sect contributions.

If it weren't for this great calamity at the mountain gate, and Lin Qing's access to many secret resources thanks to his grandfather's legacy, he probably wouldn't have been able to access such spiritual pills in the early stages of Foundation Establishment, let alone use them to lure them.

However, if they were to fulfill the other party's request and help him attract the pursuers nearby, they would inevitably have to defy the odds and take great risks.

After this battle, it's unknown how many of the so-called "Four Fiends of Hengyang" will still be alive...

"Hey……"

"Sect! Sect!"

"Pah!"

He chuckled and spat on the ground.

The burly man vanished in a flash, without a word, and turned to leave.

As they all came from humble backgrounds as independent cultivators, there might be considerable conflict between the three of them.

But he still had great faith in his eldest son.

If it weren't for the other party's exceptional skills and ability to navigate complex situations, sect thugs like them, operating in the gray area, wouldn't have been able to live peacefully until today.

If we can obtain these two spiritual herbs through this collaboration with the escaped disciple, our leader might actually have a chance to form his core... If there is no direct conflict of interest, even those aristocratic families and sects will no longer wantonly attack and kill them.

……

Several months later, Baihefang Market.

River Cave.

What happened thousands of miles away was still far off, and Wang Xuan couldn't possibly know anything about it inside the Water Palace.

Sit cross-legged and meditate, silently concentrating your mind.

At this moment, however, he had already reached the edge of the cave.

This was not intentional; rather, in the very center of the water palace, a demonic bird with a wingspan of several zhang, a body entirely silver-white, and feathers adorned with a few mysterious blue marks, was lying on the ground, continuously devouring the surrounding spiritual energy.

A powerful aura emanated from it, causing onlookers to feel a chill run down their spines.

Even if a second-tier demon beast is not known for its physique, its physical strength is often comparable to that of a second-tier human who also cultivates body refinement, second only to a true second-tier body cultivator.

Otherwise, they would not be able to consume such potent elixirs as the "Beast Spirit Pill," nor would they be able to adapt to the bloody and fierce battles in the wilderness.

"It's not just the physical strength, but also this vigorous vitality..."

According to ancient records, before reaching the third rank, the demon race's cultivation far surpassed that of humans at the same rank.

"After the third rank, the advantage in cultivation growth no longer exists, but great demons with Heavenly Grade bloodlines often have longer lifespans, especially turtle and plant-type demons."

"I heard that the exemplary rogue cultivator, the Changchun True Monarch who is active in the eastern region of the Southern Cliff, keeps a giant tortoise whose lifespan is several times that of cultivators of the same realm, and whose defensive power is unparalleled among those of the same realm."

"I wonder how Xiaoqing will compare to her in the future..."

Wang Xuan was not surprised by the changes in size, because he knew that as a bird-like demon beast with earth-grade bloodline, the Void Shadow Sparrow had the ability to change its size.

Although this kind of change is different from the transformation of the ancient great demon Mitianjidi, it is still possible to do something as small as a chicken egg or as large as a house.

The greatest benefit of this ability for Wang Xuan is that he can finally "fly by riding beasts".

With the speed of the Void Shadow Sparrow, even without using spatial power, it is enough to leave most Foundation Establishment cultivators behind.

"That's about it."

"After six months, this advancement is coming to an end."

"But by now, there should already be some commotion outside, right?"

Although Wang Xuan could not see the changes outside the cave, he knew them without even thinking about them.

When a demonic beast with a low-grade bloodline attempts to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage, the commotion is far greater than that of a human cultivator.

As a family that has been established for thousands of years and has reached the Core Formation stage, the Xuanfu Lu family must have kept detailed records of the different levels of Foundation Establishment phenomena.

This is the importance of orderly inheritance. Even if they are separated by a cave, one can still roughly guess the foundation of the person who broke through, what the attributes of the cultivation technique are, whether they are human or demon, and what their bloodline grade is.

However, the Lu family probably still doesn't quite understand his background and dares not act rashly.

So they did nothing but wait quietly outside for him to emerge from seclusion.

"Based on previous estimates, Xiaoqing's bloodline was temporarily evolved using Dao Fruit."

"The process of breaking through the barrier is similar to the mutation and reversion of a superior bloodline. I wonder if such a phenomenon will attract the attention of fake pills."

After pondering it over, Wang Xuan felt that the possibility was not small.

"Even Core Formation families should take a demon beast with Earth-grade bloodline seriously, and they are likely to send key figures here."

"But it doesn't matter, whether you have it or not, I never intended to meet you anyway."

With a flick of his wrist, an ancient book recording various rare and exotic beasts appeared in Wang Xuan's palm.

This wasn't some rare treasure; he had already looked through it many times.

Strictly speaking, these were just freebies that were casually taken from Yuqinxuan back then.

It contains brief information on nearly a hundred well-known demonic beasts, and is placed together with "The Hundred Nascent Soul True Monarchs of the Southern Cliff", "Anecdotes of the Great Zhou Dynasty", and "The Compendium of Myriad Wonders".

This is a document whose content is not guaranteed to be authentic, but is generally considered reliable.

I randomly flipped to the page about the Void Sparrow. In the illustrations accompanying the book, a huge bird, much larger and fiercer than Xiao Qing, was vividly depicted, flapping its wings.

This is a portrait of an adult Sky Shadow Sparrow. Even though it is just a picture, it shows the terrifying power of the demon overlord.