Immortality begins with equipping a worn-out talisman pen.

It took Li Mufeng a full half month to return from the Qingxuan Sect's mountain gate.

Since they were escorted by Zhou Zhengyang and traveled on the Qingxuan Sect's magic boat, their speed was naturally much faster.

On the return journey, the small flying boat they were traveling in was much slower than before. Fortunately, the journey was smooth and uneventful. It seemed that the gathering of the four major sects in Huizhou had caused the surrounding cultivators to become much more subdued.

Finally back in Black Stone City, Li Mufeng entered the familiar No. 13, Bingzi Cave.

The furnishings inside the cave were exactly the same as before he left. After carefully inspecting the cave, Li Mufeng activated the magic array inside.

Now he finally had the opportunity to carefully observe and experience his first spiritual embryo.

It felt cold to the touch. Li Mufeng tried using it without putting it in his equipment slot, and the result was the same as what the steward of the artifact tomb had said.

This spiritual embryo seemed to have chosen its master, and no matter how Li Mufeng tried, it did not react at all.

It was indeed just a more robust ruler-shaped magic weapon. For some body cultivators who were skilled in swordsmanship or staff techniques, it might still have some use as a cold weapon. But for Li Mufeng, a body cultivator who only had stats but no swordsmanship, this Spirit Embryo·Forgetful River was just something he could wield a little more nimbly.

A moment later, Li Mufeng laid the [Forgetful River] flat on his lap, his face showing no sign of discouragement. He gently ran his fingers over the jet-black ruler and smiled:

"You don't acknowledge me as your master, do you?"

"That's true. I have only average talent, I'm not good at weapon crafting, and I've never used my blood essence to refine you. In your eyes, I probably don't even have the qualifications to pick you up."

As if in response to Li Mufeng, the black ruler on his lap suddenly trembled slightly.

Deep within the ruler, a faint blue light flickered briefly before disappearing again, as if nodding.

Li Mufeng's lips curled up slightly as he gently patted the ruler.

"But you can't do that."

The next moment, a flash of light appeared in the equipment slot: [Spirit Embryo - Forgotten River Equipped Successfully]

In an instant, Li Mufeng felt as if a thread was vaguely connecting him to the spiritual embryo.

It was at this moment that Li Mufeng clearly felt the emotions emanating from this spiritual embryo for the first time.

This was something he had never experienced with any other equipment before—emotion.

Equipment can actually generate emotions? No wonder it's a spiritual embryo, he thought to himself.

At this moment, Wangchuan was like a frightened little beast. The wisp of spirit that had just been born seemed to have no idea what was happening. It only felt that it was suddenly gripped by an irresistible force and could not even resist.

Li Mufeng could even sense that the tender spirituality was shrinking into a tiny ball, hiding deep within the ruler, watching him warily.

Even equipment can be afraid.

As the connection was established, all of [Wangchuan's] abilities were fully opened to him.

With a thought, Li Mufeng gathered spiritual energy in his palm, and a water arrow instantly materialized.

However, the water arrow, which was originally only a foot long, stretched and compressed on its own, transforming into a crystal-clear, deep blue water gun.

The spear tip gleamed coldly, emanating an aura more than twice as sharp as before.

Effect 1: Increases the power of water-attribute spells by 100%.

Li Mufeng's eyes lit up slightly; even the form of his spells could undergo a transformation.

Then, Li Mufeng held the [Forgetful River] in one hand, and a blue ripple flowed out from the center of the Forgetful River like water waves.

Centered on him, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth within a radius of three zhang suddenly became viscous and sluggish, as if sinking into a quagmire.

Only he himself remained completely unaffected by the flow of spiritual energy.

Even in this area, he felt a sense of being at home.

This is the second effect of this spirit embryo, it's incredibly powerful.

As he held the [River of Oblivion], two completely different emotions flowed into his heart.

He could sense the spirit embryo resisting, doubting, and despairing, yet its effects remained undiminished. He seemed to understand the weapon even better than the creator of the [Forgetful River], able to unleash its full potential.

After removing it from the equipment inventory.

Li Mufeng placed the [Forgetful River] flat on his lap again. This time, the spiritual embryo seemed to have completely turned into an ordinary object, without any of its previous spiritual light, like a piece of charred charcoal.

The little thing is quite vengeful. Li Mufeng was slightly taken aback, then chuckled.

"Don't worry, we'll become the best of partners from now on. Now that you've developed a spirit, don't you want to see the scenery beyond the embryonic stage? Your previous master couldn't do it, but that doesn't mean I can't. Not to mention spiritual treasures, I can even help you forge magic weapons. One day, I will make your insignificant wisp of spirit truly transform into a weapon spirit, so you can see just how vast this world really is."

Li Mufeng casually drew a pie in the sky for the spiritual essence born from this embryonic spirit, without caring whether the other party could understand it or accept it.

After he finished speaking, [Wangchuan] on his lap resisted even more fiercely, seemingly with disdain, but Li Mufeng keenly grasped a hint of hesitation in it.

I smiled and stopped worrying about it.

He took out another crystal-clear magic orb from his pocket and equipped it in his equipment slot.

【Spirit Gathering Orb - White】

[Rank: High-grade Tier 1 Magical Artifact]

[Effect 1: Increases cultivation speed by 200%]

[Effect 2: There is a very low probability of entering a state of enlightenment during cultivation. Probability: 1%]

Upon seeing the description on the panel, Li Mufeng couldn't help but smile.

This Spirit Gathering Pearl is perfect for him right now.

With his current spiritual root aptitude, plus the amplification from the Spirit Gathering Pearl, it would be more than enough for him to cultivate all the way to the late stage of Qi Refining or even the Perfection stage.

Although it was a standard magical artifact of the Qingxuan Sect, it still allowed him to unlock an Enlightenment entry.

There is a saying that a moment of enlightenment is worth ten years of hard work; some people are even blessed with good fortune and use this to break through bottlenecks and soar to great heights.

Although the probability is only one percent, it is enough to make people look forward to it, given the tedious and lengthy cultivation process.

Since returning from the Qingxuan Sect, the images of the various sects' prodigies standing on the deck of the magic ship, their robes fluttering, have remained vivid in Li Mufeng's mind.

He once felt that there was an insurmountable chasm between him and those people.

But now...

For the first time, he felt that the insurmountable barrier might not be entirely insurmountable.

Thinking of this, Li Mufeng slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air, suppressing all the distracting thoughts in his mind, sat cross-legged, and began to circulate the Profound Water Technique.

……

The next morning.

Li Mufeng opened his eyes, feeling the spiritual power within his body grow stronger, and a look of satisfaction appeared in his eyes.

If he continues to cultivate at this pace, he is confident that he will be able to reach the seventh level of Qi Refining in at most two years.

This cultivation speed is in no way inferior to that of sect disciples with good aptitude.

Just then.

Boom!Boom!Boom!

Suddenly, a knocking sound rang out on the door.

Li Mufeng raised an eyebrow and subconsciously extended his divine sense.

Standing outside the door was a middle-aged cultivator in his thirties, with a refined appearance and dressed in a blue robe. His cultivation level was so high that it was hard to see through him; he was clearly more than just the sixth level of Qi Refining. Yet, he was a completely unfamiliar face that no one had ever seen before.

After a moment's thought, Li Mufeng opened the courtyard gate.

Upon seeing him, the middle-aged cultivator immediately smiled and bowed respectfully.

"This must be Fellow Daoist Li."

"My name is Huang Xuan. I just moved into the fourteenth cave next door yesterday."