A mortal cultivating immortality can nurture spirit beasts.

Tianxing City, Qinghe Teahouse

When Lin He entered the teahouse, the atmosphere was somewhat strange. The disciples he saw all looked grief-stricken and resentful, as if they had experienced some great setback. Several disciples also had serious expressions, which was completely unlike the harmonious atmosphere of a business setting.

Lin He felt a little strange. He told one of the female disciples his name, and the female disciple went back to her room to inform them. Soon, a series of slightly hurried footsteps came, and a beautiful young woman appeared in front of Lin He. It was Zhou Yuan.

Upon seeing Lin He, Zhou Yuan concealed her grief and indignation, forcing a smile. "So it's Fellow Daoist Lin. Hmm... your cultivation level..."

Zhou Yuan was taken aback. She had just subconsciously scanned the area with her divine sense and discovered that Lin He had already formed his core, becoming a cultivator in the early stage of the core formation, just like her.

"Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Lin, on achieving the Core Formation!"

Lin He smiled slightly, but quickly noticed something was wrong. Although Zhou Yuan was offering her congratulations, her face showed worry, indicating that she had encountered something troublesome. Although she tried her best to hide it, how could she hide it from Lin He, who had a keen sense of perception?

Zhou Yuan forced herself to stay alert and quickly led Lin He into the house, to a private room on the second floor. She immediately dismissed her disciples and activated a protective array to prevent others from spying on them before speaking.

"Fellow Daoist Lin, this way our conversation won't be overheard."

Lin He didn't immediately bring up the matter of the materials, but casually asked, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, has your sect encountered any trouble recently? Why does the atmosphere here feel a bit strange?"

"Alas!" Zhou Yuan sighed. "Fellow Daoist Lin has traded with our sect several times, greatly benefiting our sect. He also helped our sect tame that Earth Ape before. I am very grateful to Fellow Daoist Lin, so I will no longer hide it."

Zhou Yuan quickly began to recount how, ever since obtaining the Level 5 demon beast materials from Lin He, the reputation of the Miaoyin Sect had grown increasingly renowned. They had even made many Core Formation cultivators through this connection, and then used the Foundation Establishment female cultivators trained within the sect to establish relationships with these Core Formation cultivators, thus expanding the Miaoyin Sect's network of connections.

The Miaoyin Sect is developing rapidly, and has even begun to challenge the Six-Linked Palace. The two sides have launched various treacherous business battles. Apart from direct combat, they have used every means at their disposal, but they still cannot stop the strong momentum of the Miaoyin Sect.

"It seems your sect is developing quite well. In that case, Fellow Daoist Zhou should be pleased."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yuan shook her head and said, "I am not afraid to fight a fair and square business war with them, but I did not expect them to resort to underhanded tricks behind our backs. They actually sent people to ambush our disciples who were escorting the goods. They not only robbed the goods, but also killed all the Miaoyin Sect disciples who were responsible for escorting them."

Lin He frowned upon hearing this. It seemed that the Miaoyin Sect had indeed suffered a great loss this time. Not only were the purchased goods lost, but they also had to pay compensation for failing to deliver the goods on time. Furthermore, although the Miaoyin Sect disciples had died, if they had family members or relatives, they would also need to pay a sum of money as compensation. More importantly, the impact of this incident was extremely bad.

Miaoyinmen's inability to deliver the goods on time violated the agreement, which not only resulted in financial losses but also damaged its reputation, which was the biggest loss.

Zhou Yuan was clearly aware of these matters, hence her worried expression. However, she suddenly seemed to remember something and looked at Lin Hedao.

"Fellow Daoist Lin, your sect is by no means an ordinary small sect. I am absolutely certain of this. If your sect could lend a helping hand..."

Lin He quickly interrupted, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, let's discuss this matter later. Let's talk about the previous transaction first."

"It seems I was rash. Fellow Daoist Lin, please take a look."

Zhou Yuan quickly took out the materials list that Lin He had given her last time, and also took out two storage bags. Lin He took them and saw that all the materials had been collected and the quantities were marked on them.

These materials are used to refine Condensation Pills, Heart Protection Pills, and early-stage Core Formation puppets.

Lin He carefully examined the materials and found that he had collected all the necessary materials for the Condensing Essence Pill and the Heart-Protecting Pill.

As for the materials for the early-stage Core Formation puppets, they have been collected, but the quantity of materials is not large, only enough to refine eight puppets. Adding the four puppets that Lin He has, there are only twelve puppets in total. This is enough for his own use. With these materials and the demon beast materials he has, he can refine puppets at any time.

Lin He had already paid a deposit for a batch of level-five monster materials, and now he used another batch of level-five monster materials to pay the balance, which naturally made Zhou Yuan very happy.

After finishing the previous transaction, Lin He took out the materials list for this transaction. It included materials for refining a natal magic weapon, materials for setting up three sets of Core Formation stage formations, and various materials for refining a water-attribute magic weapon.

These things, except for the star stone, are not hard to find. After looking at them, Zhou Yuan's expression changed, and she said with a troubled look, "The other things will only take a month, but as for the star stone..."

Upon hearing this, Lin He quickly pressed for details, "The Star Stone is of great importance; does your family have any information on its whereabouts?"

"This..." Zhou Yuan hesitated, but seeing Lin He's insistence, she could only say, "I did hear a little bit of a rumor that this item was obtained by an elder of the Six-Linked Hall."

"Elder of the Six-Hall Alliance?" Lin He smiled insincerely. "Fellow Daoist Zhou, you've really got a good plan. Are you planning to use me to deal with the Six-Hall Alliance?"

Zhou Yuan said somewhat awkwardly, "I was just telling the truth."

"Fine, as long as the information is true, I can take action. I'll stay at the Yuelai Inn, just send someone to notify me before we act."

Zhou Yuan was overjoyed upon hearing this and quickly escorted Lin He to the door herself.

……

……

Lin He walked on the main street of Tianxing City, where cars and people were bustling about, and the city looked prosperous.

He was about to take a leisurely stroll through Tianxing City when he suddenly stopped, his gaze falling on the two beautiful women, a look of surprise on his face.

"Could it be them? No, how did they get here?"

A petite, round-faced woman was speaking to a young man in the late Foundation Establishment stage.

"My sister and I are very familiar with this place, young master. With us as your guides, we can save you a lot of trouble."

The other woman was even more stunningly beautiful, with skin as white as snow and so delicate it seemed to break at a touch. She wore a tight-fitting outfit, and her graceful movements made many male cultivators nearby swallow hard.

She said, "Young master, we know the shops here very well. With us as your guides, you can save more spirit stones when you buy things."

The Foundation Establishment stage youth was clearly very interested, especially when his gaze fell on the beautiful woman behind him, he looked quite smitten. However, a cough suddenly came from nearby, startling the Foundation Establishment youth. He quickly lowered his head and walked to the side, where a Foundation Establishment stage female cultivator was already waiting for him.

"So you do have a partner." The beautiful woman looked disappointed. "Yanli, we finally met a kind senior who brought us here, but this place doesn't seem to be what we imagined. Weren't there supposed to be tons of high-level cultivators in Tianxing City? How come we haven't encountered a single Core Formation cultivator after all this time?"

Yanli, however, did not lose heart. Instead, she encouraged him, "Yuanyao, we can't give up. Where can we get Foundation Establishment Pills on our own? If we can rely on a late Foundation Establishment cultivator, or even a Core Formation cultivator, our chance to establish our foundation will come. You don't want to be stuck in the Qi Refining stage for the rest of your life, do you?"

Yuan Yao nodded, and the two began to look around again, searching for high-level cultivators in the vicinity as they walked. They soon found their target again.

This was a handsome young man with a pale face and dark circles under his eyes, looking like he had indulged in excessive sexual activity. The young man was at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment, but the folding fan he held in his hand and the pair of bracelets he wore on his wrists were shining with spiritual light, and they were actually top-quality magic artifacts.

Upon seeing this, Yuan Yao and Yan Li quickly went over, but they stopped abruptly after only speaking halfway through their sentences and then looked to the side.

"Young master, my sister and I are very familiar with this place..."

The handsome young man only twitched his eyebrows when he saw Yanli, but when he saw Yuan Yao, his heart fluttered and his face lit up with surprise. He was about to say something.

Just then, a young man in blue happened to pass by. He made no attempt to conceal his cultivation level, and Yanli and Yuanyao naturally sensed his powerful cultivation.

"This powerful fluctuation of spiritual energy..."

Yanli and Yuanyao exchanged a glance, a look of surprise flashing in their eyes simultaneously. Seeing this, Yanli quickly moved closer, saying enthusiastically...

"Senior, I am Yanli and I am very familiar with this place. Why don't you let me be your guide?"

Yuan Yao said something similar, and the man in blue was naturally Lin He.

Lin He nodded and said, "Alright, I need a mentor."

Yuan Yao and Yan Li were overjoyed upon hearing this, but the handsome young man with a pale face said with great dissatisfaction,

"You all asked me first, so how come he's listed first in line?"

Yuan Yao and Yan Li were both embarrassed, but Lin He stepped forward and said, "Is it enough that my cultivation level is higher than yours?"

"You..." The handsome young man was instantly enraged, and a dark, demonic aura emanated from him, startling the two women. They never expected that this well-dressed young man was actually a demonic cultivator.

Suddenly, the handsome young man seemed to remember something. He withdrew his demonic energy, gave a cold snort, and said, "Just you wait."

After saying that, he left without looking back.

Yuan Yao seemed quite frightened, patting her chest, "I didn't expect him to be a demonic cultivator, I was almost in danger."

Yanli breathed a sigh of relief and quickly thanked her, "Thank you for your help, senior. Otherwise, we would have been in trouble."

Yuan Yao also realized what was happening and quickly thanked him. However, Lin He waved his hand and said, "This person is only at the mid-Foundation Establishment stage. Although he concealed his demonic energy quite well, how could he possibly hide from my divine sense? Now that his true form has been revealed and you are out of danger, I should be leaving."

Lin He said something indifferently, then turned and left, his feigned indifference now a masterclass in manipulation.

Sure enough, Yuan Yao and Yan Li had finally encountered a Core Formation stage cultivator, so how could they possibly let the opportunity slip by?

The two women quickly stepped forward and tried their best to persuade him. In the end, Lin He reluctantly agreed and allowed the two women to become his guides.

It must be said that Yanli has excellent speaking skills. In comparison, Yuanyao is more reserved, and Yanli usually does the explanations.

However, the two women did know a bit about Tianxing City, and there were some interesting stories that even Lin He had never heard of. He listened with great interest, after all, with two such beautiful women accompanying him, he was naturally in a good mood.

The day quickly passed, and the three found a place to sit and rest. Yanli and Yuanyao exchanged a glance and finally got to the point. Yanli spoke first.

"Senior Lin, we are deeply grateful to you for saving us this time. Otherwise, we would have fallen into the hands of the demonic cultivators. We are extremely grateful and would like to serve you in order to repay your great kindness. What do you say?"

Lin He smiled and said, "Fellow Daoist Yan, you really know how to talk. As a senior, how could I not give you anything in return for doing things for me? You have to give me something in return, right? In the end, you will gain quite a lot."

Yanli's little scheme was exposed, and she felt embarrassed. Seeing this, Yuan Yao quickly said...

"Senior Lin, my sister and I simply want to go further on the path of cultivation."

Lin He was quite pleased with her honesty and nodded immediately, saying, "That's right. You sisters have no background, so if you want to improve your cultivation, you can only take some shortcuts, even though this may bring you risks. For example, you might accidentally fall into the hands of demonic cultivators and become their furnaces for them to exploit, destroying your foundation and making it impossible for you to advance any further."

Lin He's words were pointed, and Yanli and Yuanyao both turned pale. They understood what Lin He meant. If Lin He hadn't appeared earlier, they might have really gone with that demonic cultivator, and this situation might have actually occurred.

Yanli quickly replied, "We are extremely grateful to Senior Lin for saying such a thing. After this incident, we dare not rely on others again. If you are willing to take us in, we will do our best to serve you."

"Do something?" Lin He shook his head and said, "What do I, a Core Formation cultivator, need you two Qi Refining cultivators to do? I'd take you in, guide you, and even reward you, but what do you have that's worth doing all that for me?"

Yuan Yao and Yan Li felt a pang of disappointment upon hearing this. Although Lin He's words were cruel, they were also true. Apart from their physical appearance, they had nothing that could attract a Core Formation stage cultivator.

With that thought in mind, the two of them made up their minds: "If you don't mind, senior, we are willing to serve you."

Lin He finally heard these words and said, "So, you've made up your minds not to go back on your word, right? You should know what terrible consequences would come if you did."

As they spoke, Lin He's powerful spiritual energy steadily suppressed the two women. Their lives were entirely in Lin He's hands. Sensing this pressure, the two women quickly said...

"We will never go back on our word!"

Lin He then withdrew his magic power and casually took out a flying sword magic weapon.

"Come on up, I'll take you to rent a cave dwelling first."

……

……

Lin He spent a lot of money to rent a cave dwelling for fifty years. Seeing how generous Lin He was, Yanli and Yuanyao were both delighted.

Lin He sent them to the next room before setting up an isolation formation. Then, with a wave of his hand, Lin He entered his personal space, where the level-five cold dragon stood before him.