The Long Journey to Immortality

Chapter 151 Revisiting the Path of Cultivation

Although Wen Erya only mentioned it casually and then immediately dismissed it, the two ultimately decided to give it a try, lest they completely neglect their "second best" friend in the Zhengyi Sect.

Wen Erya offered the Cold-Repelling Pill as a gift, while Han Lu was willing to squeeze out an hour of quiet meditation time as a grand gift.

Han Lu felt that advancing to the twelfth level of Qi Refining would not be difficult in the remaining time, and she had more than enough time to cultivate. Naturally, she was willing to be generous to her friend without harming her own interests.

Zhan Yujun, who had already reached the sixth level of Qi Refining, had devoted a lot of energy to cultivation in the past year.

An ordinary cultivator would be considered good if he could open one spiritual meridian in a year. She advanced two realms in a year, which is quite excellent. It is only because she had two geniuses by her side that her achievements on the path of cultivation became somewhat inconspicuous.

However, when many surprising things happen, people naturally become accustomed to them and no longer find them strange.

Having spent a lot of time with Han Lu and Wen Erya, Zhan Yujun naturally stopped comparing herself to them in terms of cultivation level and combat strength. She still held a grudge about it, just like when she first entered the Zhengyi Sect, constantly scheming how to defeat Han Lu.

Having completely calmed down and adjusted her position, Zhan Yuyun gradually drifted apart from Han Lu and Wen Erya due to her cultivation level, but her public image was no longer as strange as before.

How could someone with such a strong sense of self-respect shamelessly accept such a generous gift, which is worth at least seven spirit stones in the Zhengyi Sect?

When the two approached Zhan Yujun, her reaction was exactly as Wen Erya had guessed.

Zhan Yujun's righteous refusal and her gratitude to her two friends made Wen Erya and Han Lu feel inexplicably guilty.

Having not seen each other for about two months, Zhan Yujun, who had declined their generous gifts, took the initiative to invite Wen Erya and Han Lu to sit for a while in her secluded courtyard.

Upon seeing this, Wen Erya, who loves food, quickly took out some delicacies she had brought back from Bei Chao Yan Zhao's place from her storage bag and shared them with Zhan Yujun.

This time, Zhan Yujun didn't say much. She took a few things, stuffed them into her mouth, and exclaimed, "Delicious!"

Although the response was somewhat deliberate, it revealed a sense of helplessness in subtle ways.

It is indeed difficult for cultivators to maintain the friendship that mortals share.

The atmosphere in the courtyard was slightly awkward. The three of them, who were trying to maintain their composure, needed a special topic to make the atmosphere more lively and harmonious.

As the owner of the courtyard, Zhan Yujun took the initiative to find a topic to make her two friends fully understand her feelings.

It's difficult to speak frankly, so Zhan Yujun chose to mention a name.

"Senior Sister Wen, how is Zhu Cailian now?"

Even though they were only nodding acquaintances, the sudden mention of it made Han Lu and Wen Erya immediately understand Zhan Yujun's intention.

“She said she plans to marry that Senior Brother Shi in three months and even invited me to her wedding banquet,” Wen Erya said with a smile. “She plans to hold the wedding banquet entirely according to worldly etiquette. Most likely, she has already regarded finding a Daoist partner as finding a good husband, and her mind is no longer on cultivating immortality.”

“Last time she held my hand and asked me to help her think of a name, and she also said she wanted to have three children.”

“That’s interesting, but it’s also quite normal,” Zhan Yujun said, having deliberately mentioned Zhu Cailian. “Cultivating immortality is harder than climbing to heaven. Most cultivators, whether they are in the process of cultivation or after taking a few steps, will feel lost and confused. It’s quite normal to be attached to the mortal world.”

"After all, the last cultivator who ascended to the Spirit Realm was the Yellow Dragon Hermit a thousand years ago."

Huanglong Jushi was a cultivator from Xuanyang Valley. When he ascended to immortality a thousand years ago, the commotion was known throughout the north and south.

Xuan Yang Valley even held a grand ascension ceremony, inviting great cultivators from the Northern and Southern Dynasties.

Legend has it that cultivators from the Western Regions and the Southern Barbarians also traveled to the Northern Dynasty to observe the ceremony.

But whether it was the great cultivators from the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the Southern Barbarians, and the Western Regions who participated in the Ascension Ceremony, or the younger generation like Han Lu, Wen Erya, and Zhan Yujun, they all knew that this was not the end of the path of cultivation.

The Yellow Dragon Hermit who ascended to the Spirit Realm was only halfway there. Looking further ahead, he might have only taken one more step than juniors like Han Lu and Wen Erya.

“Legend has it that the spirit world is not as peaceful as ours, maybe it…” Zhan Yujun only got halfway through her sentence, but Wen Erya and Han Lu could both understand what she meant.

The topic was rather pessimistic, and Han Lu and Wen Erya tacitly decided not to indulge their imaginations here, lest their already clear minds, which had become clearer due to their rapid advancement in cultivation, be clouded by a layer of gloom.

“So,” Zhan Yujun looked at her two friends, “after advancing to the top 32 in this competition, I felt that it was a bit too foolish to be obsessed with something that couldn’t be accomplished.”

"I originally had the idea of ​​achieving the Golden Core stage, but I've lowered my expectations a bit," Zhan Yujun said with a smile. "I'm thinking that it would be good enough to become a Foundation Establishment cultivator."

"Isn't it a wonderful thing to spend two hundred years in this bustling and mundane world?"

Zhan Yujun, who was once an idealist who pursued everything, has been transformed into a realist by reality.

Upon hearing this, even Wen Erya and Han Lu, who had undergone a transformation of their Dao hearts and transcended the mortal realm on their birthdays and the eve of the previous year, couldn't help but nod in agreement with Zhan Yujun's idea.

As Zhan Yujun said, even geniuses with outstanding talent, such as Han Lu and Wen Erya, have experienced moments of confusion.

However, their resolve in pursuing the Dao is stronger, and their talents are more outstanding, so they are less likely to completely lose their way due to temporary confusion.

“However, don’t take my words too seriously. Everyone has their own path. I just took a different, better path,” Zhan Yujun said, her nose suddenly feeling a little sore. “I hope that in the future, maybe fifty years from now, I can brag to people about it.”

"Look, those two Golden Core cultivators from the Zhengyi Sect are my good friends from when I was cultivating."

It's normal to feel a little sad and heartbroken when you entrust your original dreams to someone else.

“Sigh,” Zhan Yujun rubbed her nose and sighed, “Back then, I decided to seek the Dao and ask about immortality because I longed to fly freely in the sky. If you can fulfill my wish when you reach the Golden Core stage in the future, then I will have no regrets.”

"That must feel great."

Wen Erya seemed lost in thought and remained silent.

Han Lu confidently assured her, "Don't worry, I will definitely help you fulfill these wishes."

Zhan Yujun rubbed her eyes and pointed to the Northern Dynasty snacks on the table, "They're really good."

"Zhan Yujun, I'm serious."

"Han Lu, I know."

[Author's Note] I quite like the mortal transformation plot in "Xian Ni". However, unlike other treacherous cultivation worlds, in the world of this book, you can leave at any time and return to the mortal world. Naturally, there will be more people whose Dao hearts are unstable, who are attached to the mortal world, and who only want to be a long-lived mortal.

Chapter 152 The Great Daoist Assembly

One of her only two friends in the Zhengyi Sect had lost his heart as a cultivator, but Han Lu felt no regret whatsoever.

She understood that her path of cultivation would not end here, and that she was destined to have entanglements and karmic connections with many more passersby, sooner or later.

Just like now, Wen Er Ya and she have similar cultivation levels and strengths, and the two have a close relationship.

But what about the future?

Han Lu felt that, given the current situation, the day she would say goodbye to Wen Erya wouldn't be very close, but it would definitely come someday.

Following Piaomiaozi's instructions, Han Lu and Wen Erya behaved themselves well for the next period of time, devoting almost all their energy to cultivation.

Although she had the "Cold Cicada Peak" cheat code, the cultivation improvement after the tenth level of Qi Refining was far more difficult than before. Even Han Lu could not guarantee that she would be able to advance to the twelfth level of Qi Refining before the selection competition began and become a cultivator standing at the top of the Qi Refining realm.

The Qi Refining Realm is divided into twelve levels, but as long as a cultivator opens ten complete spiritual meridians in their body, they can try to swallow Foundation Establishment Pills or use certain Foundation Establishment Secret Techniques to establish their foundation.

Foundation Building is easy to understand. It involves concentrating the spiritual energy from the spiritual veins into the dantian (energy center) of a cultivator's body, expanding the foundation for their future cultivation, and thickening the outer wall of the dantian so that this area can store more spiritual energy in the future.

Of course, the size and strength of the dantian and qi sea are also related to the cultivator's talent. Some cultivators are born with a damaged dantian, and even if they use a lot of spiritual power to repair it during the foundation building stage, it will only be a facade.

A mere decorative shelf cannot store a large amount of spiritual energy.

In the future, not only will there be constant troubles during cultivation, but even advancing to the mid-Foundation Establishment stage will be extremely difficult, let alone transforming the three states of spiritual energy and finally condensing it into a golden core.

In general, the more spiritual energy in a spiritual vein, the more perfectly this step can be performed.

The more spiritual veins there are, the more spiritual energy there is, and the more solid the foundation will be, which will be more conducive to future development.

Even without the ancient cultivation secret realm, young cultivators like Han Lu and Wen Erya, with lofty ambitions and goals of forming a high-grade Golden Core or achieving the Nascent Soul stage, would choose to continue their arduous cultivation after advancing to the tenth level of Qi Refining, only attempting Foundation Establishment after reaching the Great Perfection realm.

While Han Lu was making rapid progress in the real world, her journey in the Moon Pearl world was somewhat bumpy.

Ever since she secretly learned the complete "True Phoenix Manual: Illusionary Phoenix Chapter" from Feng Jiao, she has never found any opportunities in that world from 100,000 years ago.

However, after visiting the Moon Pearl World more than ten times, she finally managed to figure out what the Moon Pearl World was through her own efforts and mastered some methods and tricks to control that world.

Based on Han Lu's experiment, she concluded that the Moon Pearl should have the ability to record images of the surrounding world.

But she didn't know whether the images she saw were injected into the Moon Pearl by Feng Jiao or someone else, or whether the Moon Pearl recorded them spontaneously.

However, due to this attribute of the Moon Pearl, Han Lu's range of activities in the Moon Pearl world is severely restricted.

While Feng Jiao was reading the "True Phoenix Manual" or cultivating in seclusion in her room, Han Lu could only move around in Feng Jiao's room. Even if she tried to pass through the walls and explore the outside world, she could only see darkness.

If Feng Jiao carries the Moon Pearl around, Han Lu can move freely within a range of about one hundred feet from the Moon Pearl.

But this "free time" needs to be put in quotes.

She was unable to enter or leave other completely semi-enclosed rooms.

Han Lu felt helpless about this and could only consider it a flaw in the way the Moon Pearl recorded images of the world.

As for how to control the Moon Pearl, Han Lu said it was through trial and error, but it was more like she was reminded and guided by the Moon Pearl itself before she mastered it.

Since it's a recorded scene, Han Lu, the current holder of the Moon Pearl, is naturally allowed to fast-forward or reverse the footage.

It's called fast forward, but it's not actually that fast. The fastest Han Lu is allowed to fast forward is 32 times, treating two hours in the Moon Pearl World as sixty-four hours.

The discovery of this function saved Han Lu a lot of boring time from spying on Feng Jiao's privacy, allowing her to approach another known opportunity, which would most likely be presented to her in the Moon Pearl World, at a relatively fast pace.

Fang Lin undergoes tribulation and preaches.

Most of the records about the ancient cultivation world that Han Lu could find mentioned that the human cultivator Fang Lin advanced to the Nascent Soul stage and preached for three days afterward.

Both the oral traditions and the records in the Royal Library embellished this sermon as something extraordinary.

It is said that during the tribulation, the vast lightning tribulation that descended upon the Central Plains allowed many human Golden Core cultivators to comprehend a lightning technique while watching the ceremony, and several True Spirit Powerhouses stole a trace of the heavenly tribulation's aura from it.

Later, when Gu Xiu Fang Lin broke through to the Nascent Soul stage and advanced to the Deity Transformation stage, he held a "Daoist Assembly" to share his insights on cultivation and the world. This assembly allowed at least ten early-stage Golden Core cultivators to gain insights, achieve enlightenment on the spot, and advance to a higher realm.

Countless Foundation Establishment cultivators advanced to a minor realm after listening to the "Daoist Dharma Assembly" lectured by the ancient cultivator Fang Lin.

Han Lu felt that since it was just listening and watching, there were benefits to be gained from participating in the Taoist Assembly.

Since she traveled 100,000 years in the Moon Pearl World to participate in this grand event, she will most likely benefit from it.

Even with the ability to fast forward and rewind, there are still more than three months left before Senior Fang Lin undergoes his tribulation in the Moon Pearl World.

Han Lu will have to wait several more years in reality before she can become a student of Senior Fang Lin and listen to this senior master preach.

As for the other opportunities and benefits that Feng Jiao might be involved in, which Han Lu could obtain simply by listening or watching, Han Lu either hasn't analyzed and judged them yet, or they are too far removed from Han Lu's current timeline. Even if it were fast-paced, Han Lu wouldn't know when she would be able to get in touch with those things through Feng Jiao.

While Han Lu and Wen Erya were diligently cultivating their Daoist arts within the Zhengyi Sect, seeking advancement, a momentous event was unfolding in the cultivation world outside the Zhengyi Sect, Xuan Yang Valley, and the Seven Mountains Alliance.

The preliminary selection competition, organized by eight major sects from the Northern and Southern Dynasties, has begun.

This preliminary round is for the sole opportunity to enter the ancient cultivation secret realm to search for treasures, a spot created out of thin air by the three major sects of the Central Plains.

Although the three major sects are large, they only recruit about 40% of the cultivators in the entire cultivation world.

Sixty percent of the cultivators in the Central Plains are scattered among sects of all sizes.

Among these cultivators, those who were still at the Qi Refining stage began to strive for this opportunity that could help them and their sect advance further.