Immortality: Starting with the Fruit of Taiyin

Click—

Tap tap.

After closing the door to the alchemy room, Wang Xuan took a breath of fresh air.

Leaving the scorching heat of the subterranean fire, even my mind felt much more relaxed.

The separate buildings for formal alchemists and weapon refiners are all built on a single spiritual vein node, which is the intersection of spiritual veins and earth veins. It is enlightened by a second-level "Earth Master" and is far away from the daily activities of the lower academy disciples.

However, since there are only a few formal alchemists in the entire Linzhang branch, the place is usually deserted and rarely seen.

Wang Xuan casually chose a forest path and relaxed.

Occasionally, birdsong drifts through the woods, accompanied by the rustling of leaves in the wind, creating a truly delightful atmosphere.

"……Varied……"

"...Is the news...really true?"

"...Of course it's true...this news has already spread throughout the major sects and families..."

"Um?"

After finishing his alchemy, Wang Xuan was preparing to return to his courtyard.

Unexpectedly, his spiritual sense seemed to detect some movement.

In the world of cultivation, once a cultivator reaches the Core Formation stage, their spiritual consciousness transforms into divine consciousness. The cultivation process also changes from focusing primarily on 'qi' with 'jing' and 'shen' as secondary aspects to advancing on both 'qi' and 'shen' simultaneously, with the latter even becoming subtly more important.

Therefore, most cultivation techniques with chapters at the Core Formation stage or above have the effect of subtly nourishing the soul, making the cultivator's spiritual awareness stronger.

His expression remained unchanged; he hadn't expected to run into other disciples from the lower courtyards here.

Wang Xuan didn't make a sound; he simply slowed his pace and listened intently.

In reality, information barriers are a more formidable obstacle than resource barriers.

Since the other party hadn't noticed, he didn't mind listening in.

"...Brother Ling...a message from the family...you should know...more than two years ago...a great battle between True Monarchs broke out on the border...traversing thousands of miles...nearly a hundred Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment cultivators were tragically affected..."

"...This is an old almanac, why are you bringing it up...It is said that back then, six people from the Zhao Kingdom's cultivation world...Liang Kingdom...and the Merchant Alliance...joined forces to hunt down an unknown...demonic cultivator...Just then, our Chen Kingdom's Heavenly Mountain Sect's 'Earth Lotus True Monarch' happened to pass by...and thus offered his assistance..."

"...Unexpectedly, after the great battle, 'Earth Lotus True Lord' and Liang...were severely injured, and their enemies ultimately escaped...What happened after this?"

"...Hehe...you wouldn't know this, would you..."

"...A few days ago, my elder brother sent word that the Heavenly Mountain Sect's Old True Monarch suddenly emerged from seclusion to inspect the surrounding areas, and two Nascent Soul cultivators within the sect went into seclusion one after another... Although I cannot guarantee it, 'Earth Lotus True Monarch' is likely far more than just seriously injured; he is in danger of perishing..."

"What?"

The voice suddenly rose a notch, then fell back down.

But judging from the tone of that "Brother Ling," he still couldn't hide the shock in his words.

"...The fall of a True Lord will inevitably affect the situation of a nation...but the Heavenly Mountain Sect has a long history, so there shouldn't be any problems, right? Do you intend to...?"

"Brother Ling, don't overthink it. Since this matter isn't a secret, it means everyone knows about it."

"I brought this up only to give you a warning on behalf of your uncle."

"The Tianshan Sect has more than one Nascent Soul cultivator, and nothing will happen to Chen Kingdom, especially since we are not members of any sect... But remember not to be too ostentatious in the future, lest the upper sect cultivators find a pretext to use you as a scapegoat..."

"You must understand, when it really comes down to it, the sect would rather kill a thousand innocent people than let one guilty person go free!"

"Hiss... Brother Ling's teachings are etched in my heart, and I will never forget them..."

"..."

His steps were light and slow, and he withdrew all his magical power.

Although the sublimation of cultivation techniques requires concealing one's supernatural abilities, the [Taiyin Jade Scroll] is also somewhat effective in concealing one's aura, at least in terms of its effectiveness against cultivators of the same level.

After a while, and only after confirming that the two were no longer discussing anything important, Wang Xuan quietly left.

Normally, one wouldn't run into a fellow alchemist near the alchemy room for months at a time, so the other person probably didn't expect someone to be eavesdropping nearby.

Of course, the bigger reason might be that this is not a secret at all, but something that is common knowledge among the upper echelons of the Chen Kingdom. It's just that rogue cultivators and sect disciples like Wang Xuan, who have no background, are unaware of it for the time being.

……

Nothing happened on the way, and Wang Xuan only relaxed a little when he returned to his meditation room.

Sit cross-legged and meditate, circulating your qi through three cycles.

Only after his magical power returned to its peak, and recalling the news he had heard before, did Wang Xuan begin to ponder the information it contained.

According to the "Worldly Geomancy" manual issued by the sect upon entry, Chen Kingdom is a medium-sized kingdom within the "South Cliff" cultivation world.

Throughout the Chen Kingdom, there exists a Nascent Soul sect called the "Tianshan Sect," which boasts two Nascent Soul cultivators, one old and one young, who intimidate those who disobey them, both inside and outside the kingdom.

In addition, there are six major Core Formation sects, including the Nanhua Sect, and eight cultivation families with varying numbers of Core Formation cultivators (both true and false). Overall, they are considered to be above average in the surrounding countries.

Internally, none of the six major sects and eight great families dared to challenge a Nascent Soul True Monarch; externally, a single Nascent Soul cultivator was enough to solidify the power of a medium-sized cultivation nation. The Heavenly Mountain Sect had an orderly lineage and had never faced any formidable enemy.

Even if what the two people I met today said is true, the 'Earth Lotus True Monarch' of the Tianshan Sect, who has only been promoted for a little over a hundred years, is seriously injured and difficult to cure, and is probably about to perish, the Chen Kingdom will at most experience some turmoil.

With established True Monarchs stabilizing the situation above and Nascent Soul seed cultivators undergoing closed-door breakthroughs below, as long as a small amount of the sect's resources are unleashed, it's not a big deal at all, and it won't affect these outer disciples of the Nascent Soul sect.

Similar events have occurred in other cultivation realms over the past few thousand years. However, they have all generally transitioned smoothly without any major incidents.

So logically speaking, this is really just gossip, and has no direct connection to Wang Xuan's interests...

"...However, even though that's what they say, there are other things like 'more than two years ago,' 'the Nascent Soul battle,' 'the Demonic True Lord,' and 'escaping to heaven'..."

"Why do these words look so familiar when put together like this?"

Wang Xuan's lips twitched slightly, and although he seemed to have no reaction, deep down he really had no reaction either.

Because from the very first encounter with the Dao Fruit, he knew that divine objects conceal themselves, obscuring the secrets of heaven. Even if a Nascent Soul cultivator were right in front of him, it would be impossible to detect its existence.

From beginning to end, apart from its owner, even if others accidentally "learned" of its existence, they would subconsciously forget or ignore it, including the demonic lord who failed to possess the body and instead gave away the treasure.

Even if he were alive, it wouldn't matter, let alone if he were dead.

According to Wang Xuan's intuition, only cultivators before reaching the Core Formation stage could temporarily have their Dao Fruit recognize them as their master and allow it to exert its effects.

Wang Xuan secretly speculated that this was likely related to the 'foundation'.

Only cultivators whose foundation aligns with the Dao of Taiyin can obtain the favor of the Dao Fruit. However, once the elixir is completed, there is no regret, and the foundation is already established... Of course, this was also another reason that prompted him to choose to sublimate his cultivation method in the first place.

The Taiyin Jade Book may not be the best choice, but it is certainly the most suitable choice for him.

……