Cultivation begins with alchemy and collecting runes.

"Why hasn't Fellow Daoist Feng returned yet? I heard she's gone deep into the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains to hunt demons again."

"Won't……"

Li Xiuyuan didn't expect that he would miss his target again.

Having experienced the dual-core assistance of spirit stones and elixirs in cultivation, he was itching to try the Feng family's ancestral method of neutralizing evil influences...

We can only wait and see...

Li Xiuyuan browsed other shops in the market and casually bought some spiritual meat and rice before returning to his cave.

the next day.

Li Xiuyuan made the stewed rice with meat that had been simmering overnight for breakfast.

He was getting ready to eat.

Boom boom boom!

There was a knock on their door.

He opened part of the restriction to take a look.

He looks familiar; he seems to be Su Sanmei's neighbor on the same street.

The specifics were unclear, but out of politeness, Li Xiuyuan led him into the living room.

"Having heard that Fellow Daoist Li has been promoted to a first-level alchemist, I have come to offer my congratulations!"

"This is just a small gift, nothing more, but I hope you'll accept it!"

After speaking, the man handed the gift basket he was carrying to Li Xiuyuan.

When the other party came to deliver the gift, Li Xiuyuan couldn't refuse and could only accept it with a smile.

As the man's gaze swept over Li Xiuyuan's spiritually rich cave dwelling, an undisguised look of envy appeared on his face.

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, the man noticed the atmosphere was somewhat awkward and took his leave.

After finishing his meal, Li Xiuyuan began his daily routine of playing with the Migu rats.

Half an incense stick later, he saw that the time was almost up.

I tidied my clothes and got ready to go out.

Today is a small gathering of the Lingbao Pavilion's contracted cultivators.

……

Ling Shan Restaurant, located within the inner city of Shanyangfang.

The lowest-ranking private room.

"Greetings, Fellow Daoist Wang."

"I've met the Narcissus."

"I have met Fellow Daoist Xiao."

……

Li Xiuyuan greeted the people in order of their cultivation level with clasped hands, and then took his seat.

Cultivators do not indulge in gluttony, and the large round table is only set with exquisite snacks such as spiritual fruits and wines. Six figures circle around the round table.

Li Xiuyuan sat in the middle of the round table, with the six advanced cultivators of the Hundred Arts gathered from left to right.

It is said that this small group also has another name, "Tongxinmeng" (United Hearts Alliance), which means: working together to overcome difficulties.

The initiator was a tall cultivator sitting in the center, named Wang Ming, forty-five years old, at the ninth level of Qi Refining, a first-grade high-level alchemist.

Following closely behind was Shui Yueyao, forty years old, at the seventh level of Qi Refining, a first-grade high-ranking talisman master.

Xiao Hanwen, 37 years old, Qi Refining Level 6, First-Rank High-Grade Spirit Plant Master.

Gu Tianle, forty years old, Qi Refining Level 5, First-Rank High-Grade Weapon Refiner

Shuang Feixue, 29 years old, Qi Refining Level 4, First-Rank Low-Grade Array Master.

Li Xiuyuan came to visit the "Tongxin Society" because he couldn't resist Wang Ming's invitation and had to come out of politeness.

There was also a purpose of investigation, because fighting alone in the cultivation world is useless.

In this world, you still need connections and influence.

These five people are all veterans of the Lingbao Pavilion, and they are not to be underestimated even among externally hired cultivators.

Li Xiuyuan didn't want to offend them unless it involved his personal interests.

If Li Xiuyuan wants to live a peaceful life in Lingbao Pavilion for the next ten years, making friends with a few people is still the best strategy.

Speaking of which, Wang Ming, who was in charge, was also a remarkable person.

The core principle of the "United Hearts Society" is "To be of one mind and one heart and to ascend to immortality together." In order to strengthen the cohesion within the society, Wang Ming also set several rules.

1. We do not accept disciples from sects or families; we only accept independent cultivators.

After all, cultivators from sects and families often have elders or masters as guides on the path to immortality, so the "United Hearts Society's" motto of "United Hearts and One Mind, Ascending to Immortality Together" doesn't appeal to them.

There is a clear boundary between independent cultivators and disciples of sects and families, and introducing them will inevitably cause unnecessary trouble.

Second, we will not accept those who like to cause trouble and have an unruly temperament.

Being restless in the cultivation world means lots of trouble. If someone accidentally offends a powerful figure in the cultivation world and ends up killing them all, that would be a huge problem.

……

Therefore, the two female cultivators that Wang Ming took in, Shui Yueyao and Shuang Feixue, were both plain-looking and had low attractiveness, making them very inconspicuous in a crowd.

They were all seasoned veterans of the cultivation world, well aware of the power of beautiful women as a source of trouble.

If someone is as beautiful as an angel and still intends to join the Tongxin Society, then we need to thoroughly investigate their background!

The "Tongxin Society" is more like a mutual aid society for independent practitioners. They usually communicate with each other, exchange resources, and pass on information.

……

As the banquet reached its climax, Wang Ming, who was at the head of the table, clapped his hands, attracting the attention of everyone present.

He smiled and said, "With everyone's concerted efforts, I, Wang, have broken through to the ninth level of Qi Refining, taking another step closer to ascending to immortality and establishing a foundation. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all my fellow Daoists for their help."

After saying that, Gu Tianle grinned sheepishly. Just as Xiao Hanwen was about to speak, Wang Ming reached out to stop him.

He then glanced at everyone and continued, "Since I will be busy preparing for the Foundation Establishment, I will not be able to focus on that... From now on, the Tongxin Society will no longer recruit new members!"

"Fellow Daoist Li will join us as the last member of the Tongxin Society!"

Wang Ming needs a large amount of spirit stones and cultivation resources to prepare for foundation building.

The Tongxin Association is still somewhat useful to him, but he won't prioritize it.

Therefore, today he is discussing the future of the Tongxin Society with others.

Managing new hires is also a burden.

After Wang Ming announced his decision not to recruit new people, he carefully observed everyone's reactions.

Everyone was clearly surprised, seemingly not expecting Wang Ming to make such a decision.

Li Xiuyuan was startled upon hearing this, but quickly calmed down.

Li Wangming carefully observed that although the expressions of the people present were different, none of them expressed any opposition.

After considering the pros and cons for a moment, Li Xiuyuan finally chose to join the "Tongxin Society".

Putting aside other matters, in addition to the "Tongxin Society," Lingbao Pavilion also employs many other small groups of external cultivators.

He was still thinking about joining the Lingbao Pavilion. With his Qi Refining Level 3 cultivation, he couldn't remain neutral and had to choose a side.

At present, the Tongxin Association may be his best choice.

The guild also has the strongest Qi Refining Ninth Level cultivator, as well as alchemists, talisman masters, weapon refiners, and even low-grade array masters.

They were a force to be reckoned with in the market.

The crowd wasn't stupid; they quickly understood Wang Ming's implied meaning.

Wang Ming has the highest cultivation level and is a first-grade high-level alchemist, so he naturally enjoys the highest say in the association.

Once he made a decision, no one else intended to object.

Moreover, Wang Ming is about to reach the Foundation Establishment stage. Offending a Foundation Establishment cultivator means that even as an external cultivator of the Spirit Treasure Pavilion, Wang Ming has enough means to deal with you.

……

Once Wang Ming made his statement, Gu Tianle and Xiao Hanwen, who followed closely behind, agreed. The five of them decided that after Li Xiuyuan joined the Tongxin Society, they would no longer recruit new members, and the membership would be fixed at six.

Then, the six people discussed the recent prosperity of the market and shared their predictions for future developments.

After a lively discussion, the atmosphere in the private room became quite active, and before they knew it, it was midnight.

At the end of the banquet, as usual, Wang Ming personally instructed the rest of the group in their cultivation, which brought a smile to the faces of all five of them.

To be guided in cultivation by a cultivator at the ninth level of Qi Refining is an opportunity that is rare and hard to come by.

Li Xiuyuan naturally wouldn't miss out on the 'member benefits,' and inquired in detail about the problems he encountered in his cultivation, gaining quite a bit of insight.

……

The small gathering ended with Li Xiuyuan at dawn the next day.

Shuiyueyao, Shuangfeixue, Gutianle and others left one after another, leaving only Wang Ming and Li Xiuyuan in the private room.

Wang Ming smiled and said, "Fellow Daoist Li, I've heard that you have a close relationship with Fellow Daoist Xiao Huo. Could you please introduce us?"

Li Xiuyuan was taken aback upon hearing this. He realized that the real intention was not what he was looking for, but rather Xiao Daoyou.

As he pondered, "Both of them are at the late stage of Qi Refining, but Wang Ming is still one step away from the perfect stage. The pressure that Fellow Daoist Xiao gives me is close to that of Huo Fentian. If the two of them were to fight to the death, they should be able to fight to a draw."

He didn't want to offend Wang Ming, nor did he want to betray his friends, so he carefully considered his words before speaking.

"I have very little contact with Fellow Daoist Xiao. The few times we've had contact were nothing more than simple transactions of spirit rice."

"I really can't guarantee anything regarding the introduction. If it doesn't work out, I hope you will forgive me!"

Li Xiuyuan smiled and replied that he would go see Fellow Daoist Xiao when he got back, and that he wouldn't make any definitive statements yet.

"Sure, sure!"

……

Li Xiuyuan sent a message to Xiao Huo informing him that Wang Ming of the Tongxin Society planned to meet with him.

A moment later, Xiao Huo sent a message: "Hmm!"

Li Xiuyuan relayed the message and then began to cultivate his internal energy.