First achieve immortality, then cultivate immortality.

Xu Mu took the Golden Saint Mushroom and the pill formula, took out his own pill furnace, and processed them using his pill refining techniques.

Moments later, "Min Huo" refined the Golden Saint Mushroom into a pile of golden powder.

Depending on the quantity, each person takes half and puts it into a jade bottle for long-term preservation.

Xu Mu carefully examined the prescription and felt that half of it would be enough.

The efficacy of the Golden Saint Pill is determined by the content of the Golden Saint Mushroom, but one must also consider whether one can withstand it. It is not that the more one eats, the better; on the contrary, it can easily lead to sudden death.

Correspondingly, if the pills are refined into two separate pills and taken separately, their effects will be reduced because they will be diluted.

Xu Mu planned to refine the Golden Saintess powder in his hand into a pill to greatly increase his cultivation speed.

"Alright, you'd better watch yourself from now on," he said to the boy.

Liu Shaotian opened his mouth, then hesitated for a moment before cupping his hands and saying, "Thank you for saving me, senior. Farewell."

Xu Mu nodded, watching his thin and lonely figure leave, remaining silent and making no attempt to interfere.

His parents must have already arranged a way out for him, probably by using their status to join the Qinglan Sect and cultivate within the sect. Otherwise, how could he survive in this cruel world of cultivation on his own?

If he learns the second-stage alchemy technique and refines the Golden Saint Pill to improve his physique, he may achieve something in the future to comfort his parents' spirits in heaven.

……

Two days later, Xu Mu arrived at a town without city walls, with only a stone archway bearing the three characters: "Huashan City".

"This should be Qinghua Mountain."

I had heard Mu Changfeng mention Huashan City before; it is located at the foot of Qinghua Mountain.

However, the market was not in the city, but on the mountain.

The city was mostly inhabited by ordinary people, so in order to separate them, the market area for cultivators was set up on the mountain.

But going directly to the mountain is not an option, because the market is only open at specific times, and one can only stay in the city.

It's like wanting to buy something, but having to check into a hotel first and wait for the store to open before you can buy it.

In terms of population and scale, Huashan City is definitely larger than Nanlian Valley.

Perhaps it is this peculiar business model that prevents it from developing.

Or perhaps it's because independent practitioners are unwilling to come here, resulting in too few customers, so businesses can't keep operating.

He wondered if he could buy what he needed, or even if it was safe. The fate of Liu Qifeng and his wife made him more wary of this market.

Even in Nanlian Valley, robberies occur, so it's unlikely that they can be stopped here either.

In any case, he could only settle down in the city first and wait a few days until the market opened before going up the mountain.

The town was filled with buildings, and among the pedestrians passing by on the roadside were a few cultivators, mostly disciples of the Qinglan Sect and scions of local aristocratic families.

Disciples of the Qinglan Sect are easy to identify; many wear Qinglan Sect robes and waist tags to indicate their identity.

They must be the ones responsible for guarding this place, protecting production, or being in charge of production.

After all, the means of production are located outside the mountain gate, which inevitably attracts covetous eyes, so efforts must be made to protect them.

The sons of aristocratic families, on the other hand, often had an air of frivolity and were usually dressed in fine silks.

Some scions of powerful families are so powerful that even disciples of sects dare not offend them.

Just like Liu Qifeng and his wife, who were outer disciples of the sect, they still died tragically at the hands of the Cao family.

Around Qinghua Mountain, there are three famous families: the Cao family of Baiyu Mountain Villa, the Wang family of Huxin Island, and the Tan family of Zizhu Forest.

The three locations are three important resource points, possessing means of production, mining, aquaculture, and agriculture.

Just like Xu Mu's own Medicine God Valley, part of it was offered to the sect, and the rest was kept for himself, in order to strengthen his family.

This would be impossible without connections within the sect.

It might even involve elders in the Core Formation stage.

In many cases, sects do not reject independent cultivators; in fact, they are willing to accept independent cultivators into the sect to enhance its influence.

However, these powerful and influential families are often driven by selfishness, engage in monopolies, and bully others, which is the most despicable aspect of them.

……

"Hey! You!"

Xu Mu suddenly heard a sound, turned his head and saw two men dressed in Qinglan Sect Daoist robes walking straight towards him.

"I?"

"Yes, it's you."

"You've been conscripted. Blue Amber Lake is infested with fish, and we urgently need manpower to deal with it," another person said.

"Huh? But what does this have to do with me?" Xu Mu looked completely bewildered.

"Now we have it, come with us."

The two looked at him indifferently, clearly not there to discuss anything with him.

"..." Xu Mu glanced at the two men's cultivation levels; both were at the advanced stage of Qi Refining, and they represented the Qinglan Sect.

If he offends the other party here, he will offend the Qinglan Sect, and there's no guarantee that a Foundation Establishment cultivator won't come out to mess with him.

"...Is there a salary?" was all he could ask.

"Yes, the money will definitely be enough, otherwise why would we let you work willingly?"

"Isn't this all the income you rogue cultivators rely on? You won't lose out by coming with us," Disciple B said calmly.

That sounds a bit insulting, as if rogue cultivators are just cattle or horses that can be summoned and dismissed at will.

This feeling is somewhat familiar.

When he was an outer disciple of the Qinglan Sect, he was directly taken to Yulongtian to farm when he was facing Wu Zongping, an inner disciple.

Now that he's a rogue cultivator, he has to bow down to the outer disciples of the Qinglan Sect.

Disciple A remained calm and smiled, "Don't worry, it will be finished in two or three days. The Wang family will definitely reward you then."

"Am I all alone?" Xu Mu asked again.

"Of course not. You come with us first and we'll meet at the City Lord's Mansion."

Hearing this, Xu Mu felt a little relieved.

It appears that they are conscripting men all over the city, and he is not the only victim.

The role of the independent cultivators here seems to be merely to work as temporary laborers for them.

If this were a war, they would definitely be captured and used as cannon fodder.

Soon, he was taken to the city lord's mansion in the city, where he saw four other rogue cultivators who had been captured and forced into labor.

"Five people are enough, go ahead."

An old man waved his hand, too lazy to say more.

Several outer disciples bowed respectfully in response.

Xu Mu and the others also politely bowed.

This old man is the only one here who has reached the Foundation Establishment stage, so naturally he is the most senior person here.

"Come with us."

Disciple A waved his hand, and he and Disciple B took charge of "escorting".

Xu Mu glanced at the others; they seemed quite calm and showed no intention of resisting. He then flew off on his sword and followed.

It seems that some of them have been temporary workers before.

……

The group was escorted to Blue Amber Lake outside the city.

From afar, the vast lake reflects the blue sky and white clouds, rippling in the breeze and sparkling in the sunlight.

Occasionally, a few fish leap out of the water, their tails flicking, creating splashes that shimmer with golden light.

There is a small island in the middle of the lake, which should be the "Wang Family Island in the Middle of the Lake".

"What does 'fish infestation' mean? Is there something wrong with these fish?" Xu Mu asked the fellow cultivator in a low voice, puzzled.

"You don't know this? This Blue Amber Lake is a fish farm, raising a kind of spirit fish called 'Blue Amber Fish,' which is known as the amber of fish. It sells for 50 talismans per pound, which is very expensive."

Sometimes, another kind of monster fish called the "Cold Ghost Fish" will mysteriously appear in the lake, preying solely on the Blue Amber Fish. At such times, it's necessary to eliminate this fish menace.

"I see, so we're here to catch the Cold Ghost Fish?"

"good."

"The key is that this Cold Ghost Fish can also disguise itself. Apart from being a bit larger, it looks very similar to the Blue Amber Fish, which makes it very troublesome."

"They wouldn't call us rogue cultivators over if it weren't troublesome; they only give us dirty and tiring work."

"I hope you can give me more money..."