The Long Journey to Immortality

Han Lu's trip to Jiulong Mountain was not to cause trouble or do anything secret. When Xiao Ran asked, she replied, "My cultivation technique requires a few rare metals to aid in the cultivation, so I thought of coming to Jiulong Mountain to see if any fellow Daoists would sell the rare materials I want there."

"Of course, I also plan to get some True Essence Gathering Pills to aid my cultivation."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Ran sighed, "Alas, it's a pity that I still have nearly a hundred True Essence Gathering Pills in my storage bag, which I can no longer use. I could have transferred them to Fairy Han at a slightly lower price to do her a favor."

"No longer needed?" Han Lu discerned the unintentional information revealed in Xiao Ran's words. "Fellow Daoist Xiao has already reached the Pseudo-Core Realm?"

Mentioning this matter, Xiao Ran, who was somewhat dejected because of losing his storage bag, straightened his head and laughed, "A blessing in disguise. Half a month ago, I unfortunately lost my storage bag, but because of this, I got angry and unintentionally broke through the bottleneck, and a fake pill condensed in my dantian."

"If the timing and location are right, there is a good chance that this fake pill can help me break through and form a high-grade golden pill."

"After eighty years of cultivation, I have finally seen the opportunity to achieve the Golden Core."

Hearing that Xiao Ran had formed a fake core in such a way, Han Lu was speechless and could only sigh inwardly, "This kind of opportunity really doesn't know when it will come."

Seeing that the "envy" and "admiration" he had imagined did not appear on Han Lu's face, Xiao Ran was slightly puzzled and asked, "May I ask who Han Fairy's master is, how many years you have been cultivating, and what your cultivation level is? I, Xiao Ran, am quite experienced in Foundation Establishment cultivation. If Han Fairy does not mind, I would like to give you a few pointers and do you a small favor."

Han Lu's answer was not boastful at all; it was simply a straightforward statement.

“My master is a Golden Core cultivator. I have been studying under him for three years and am currently in the early stage of Foundation Establishment. If Fellow Daoist Xiao is interested, you might as well tell me about the technique of turning the spiritual energy in the Qi Sea into liquid.”

The second half of the sentence was just something Han Lu said casually, to make herself sound more like a polite remark from a Foundation Establishment cultivator in the early stages.

"Three years?" Xiao Ran knew that Han Lu had no reason to lie to him, and couldn't help but exclaim "monster" in his heart, but he still kept a smile on his face.

Among the thirty-two prefectures of the Great Yu Dynasty, this speed of advancing to the Foundation Establishment stage would rank in the top ten.

If Xiao Ran knew that Han Lu not only cultivated to the twelfth level of Qi Refining before advancing to Foundation Establishment, but also stayed at the twelfth level of Qi Refining for more than three months because of the Ancient Cultivation Secret Realm, it would be a huge shock.

I'm afraid he's about to shout out those words of "monster" and "demon" from his heart.

“Alright, whatever questions Fairy Han may have, I, Xiao, will answer. Once we settle down at Nine Dragons Mountain, I will certainly impart all my knowledge to you in order to repay your kindness.”

Han Lu nodded, "Thank you very much, Fellow Daoist Xiao."

Not far from Jiulong Mountain, the two tacitly slowed their flight speed and temporarily ceased their conversation.

Through his previous words, Xiao Ran changed his impression of Han Lu from "a beautiful, well-proportioned, and kind female cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage" to "a beautiful, well-proportioned, kind, and talented female cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage".

Such an evaluation, from the perspective of a cultivator, represents a significant leap forward.

Out of politeness, the two stepped on their spirit swords and landed back on the ground a hundred meters in front of the mountain gate, then walked to the gate of Jiulong Mountain.

Although Han Lu and Xiao Ran arrived at Jiulong Mountain seven days in advance, Jiulong Mountain still arranged for disciples to receive and guide them at the mountain gate.

The disciple in charge of welcoming the guests was only at the third level of Qi Refining. He bowed respectfully to Han Lu and Xiao Ran and said, "This junior disciple of Jiulong Mountain, Ping Zhili, welcomes you two seniors on behalf of Jiulong Mountain. Please show me your invitations so that I can lead you into the mountain gate and arrange your accommodations."

Han Lu held the invitation and looked at the blank space in the name column. Her expression changed slightly. At the moment of handing over the invitation, she gathered spiritual power with her fingertips and drew it across the blank space.

As if laser-engraved, in the blink of an eye, Han Lu and Xiao Ran's names appeared on the invitation.

Fortunately, neither of their names were complicated; otherwise, with a few more uncommon characters, Han Lu would have had to put in a lot more effort.

Upon touching the invitation, Heiji knew it was genuine, but only the kind of invitation casually given out by disciples.

He already knew the identities of Han Lu and Xiao Ran.

"They are probably two rogue cultivators who are acquainted with a Foundation Establishment senior brother."

Treating Han Lu and Xiao Ran as relatives, Ping Zhili naturally maintained sufficient respect for his seniors, and said with a smile, "So it's Senior Han and Senior Xiao, welcome, welcome."

As guests, the two Foundation Establishment cultivators temporarily have the right to fly in the Nine Dragons Mountain.

With Han Lu controlling the flying carriage and Ping Zhili's guidance, the two checked into a guest room on a low peak that had been newly opened for guests.

Because they arrived at Jiulong Mountain together with an invitation, Han Lu and Xiao Ran's rooms were next to each other to facilitate their communication.

This low peak was created by nine Golden Core cultivators from Jiulong Mountain who worked together to move mountains and transport stones.

One reason was to build a new house to entertain guests.

Secondly, it was to recruit more mortal disciples in the future, expand the sect, and prepare for the struggle for supremacy in Dongzhou Prefecture.

In the future, Jiulong Mountain may be renamed Shilong Mountain because of this low peak, in order to live up to its name.

The room, originally prepared for eight disciples, only had a three-meter-wide bed. When it was used by Han Lu alone, it was quite comfortable and spacious.

Although the furnishings inside were rather simple, most of the cultivators didn't care about them.

Taking out the set of array flags she had used before from her storage bag, Han Lu simply set up a small array in her room to isolate divine sense and prevent the Golden Core cultivators attending the grand ceremony from spying on her.

As for the divine sense of a Nascent Soul cultivator, this tattered array flag has no way to block it. If the Nascent Soul cultivator from Nine Dragons Mountain is a voyeur who likes to release his divine sense at will, Han Lu has no way to deal with him.

After walking around the house for a while, Xiao Ran knocked on Han Lu's door.

"What is it, Fellow Daoist Xiao?" Han Lu asked as she opened the door.

"Come on, Fairy Han, let's go take a look at the gambling place."

[Author's Note] "Overthrowing the Han Dynasty" is now complete. I highly recommend it; it's a really, really good story from a certain online platform.

Chapter 273 Fang Lin's Disciple

After finally settling into a room with a double bed, Han Lu was about to put on the mattress she had bought from the modern store in the ancient cultivation secret realm, so she could enjoy it on her back, when she was interrupted by Xiao Ran's urgent knocking on the door.

"What's wrong, Fellow Daoist Xiao?" Han Lu opened the courtyard gate and asked irritably.

Xiao Ran said, "Fairy Han, let's go take a look at the place where the gambling is taking place."

Although she entered Jiulong Mountain with Xiao Ran, Han Lu did not intend to follow Xiao Ran in everything.

In Han Lu's mind, during her short stay at Jiulong Mountain, she would keep a low profile, quietly spending spirit stones to collect materials, pills, and other cultivation resources. Finally, after the grand ceremony, she would leave around the same time as the other invited cultivators who had come to Jiulong Mountain.

As for the gambling match, Han Lu had no intention of getting involved at all.

Even with her current strength and the magical treasures she possesses, she can be invincible below the mid-Foundation Establishment stage without transforming into a true spirit.

However, there are at least nine Golden Core cultivators and one Nascent Soul cultivator on Mount Jiulong.

Han Lu is no longer in a position to save her life in front of Golden Core cultivators. She doesn't want to shine on the arena and attract the attention of these senior experts.

If the other party has malicious intentions, she will be completely helpless.

Therefore, when Xiao Ran extended the invitation, she subconsciously refused him.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao, I'm a little tired and would like to rest in my room for a while. You can go and find a place for the duel yourself."

Hearing this, Xiao Ran hesitated for a moment, but still shamelessly said, "Fairy Han, since you don't want to go, how about lending me five spirit stones?"

"Borrow spirit stones?"

“Yes,” Xiao Ran explained, “A duel naturally requires stakes. I just asked that disciple from Nine Dragons Mountain, and he said that for a late-stage Foundation Establishment duel, at least five spirit stones would be wagered before anyone would be willing to gamble with me.”

"It's not that I'm short of money right now, so I have no choice but to ask Fairy Han for alms."

"Fairy Han, please have some compassion and lend me five spirit stones, how about it?" Xiao Ran promised, "With the swordsmanship I learned from the ancient Eastern cultivator, Senior Fang Lin, I can definitely turn five into ten, and ten into a hundred. When I return, I will repay you with ten spirit stones in one go, how about it?"

Han Lu had intended to casually toss five spirit stones to send Xiao Ran away, but when she heard Xiao Ran mention "Senior Ancient Cultivator Fang Lin," her heart skipped a beat.

“Gu Xiu… Fang Lin.” Han Lu’s expression was very complicated.

Seeing Han Lu's expression, Xiao Ran assumed that Han Lu was ignorant. "Yes, ten thousand years ago, there was a Nascent Soul cultivator from the Eastern Human Race, Fang Lin, the number one sword cultivator of the ancient era. Hasn't Fairy Han heard of him?"

Although the Great Yu Dynasty and the Central Plains were separated by a very, very long distance, the "legendary stories" about 100,000 years ago were basically the same.

The cultivators of the Great Yu Dynasty knew that four exceptionally talented ancient cultivators had appeared in the other part of the desolate region during the ancient cultivation era. The cultivators of the Central Plains had also heard of the names of six Nascent Soul cultivators from the ancient cultivation era of the Western Human Race through legends.

"You studied under Senior Fang Lin?" Han Lu's question was full of suspicion.

Having received the teachings from Senior Fang Lin, Han Lu subconsciously felt that Xiao Ran, whom she had only known for less than an hour, was just talking big.

When asked this question, Xiao Ran slightly changed a few words, "A few years ago, I found an ancient book at a bookstall. It was written by a disciple of Senior Fang Lin and contained many records about Senior Fang Lin's deeds and sword techniques."

"In my opinion, this ancient book should be an authentic work."

"So, by a large margin, I can be considered a disciple of Senior Fang Lin's lineage."

When Xiao Ran spoke his last words, Han Lu looked at him, and he didn't seem as confident as he had been at the beginning.

Han Lu stretched out her hand and said, "Let me take a look at that ancient book."

Han Lu wanted to verify the authenticity of the story, and as a disciple and inheritor of Fang Lin's lineage, she wanted to see if anyone was using Fang Lin's name to swindle and deceive people.

"It's lost," Xiao Ran said helplessly. "I put it in my storage bag, and that little thief stole it along with it."

Seeing Han Lu's enthusiasm for this matter, Xiao Ran naturally assumed that Han Lu was curious about Senior Fang Lin's swordsmanship and wanted to learn from it. So he took the opportunity to say, "I have already learned half of the essence of the swordsmanship in that manual. If Fairy Han does not mind, you can come with me to the dueling arena and watch the battle. I will demonstrate it for you on the spot."

Han Lu nodded upon hearing this and said, "Good idea."

“Those spirit stones… without spirit stones, no one will be willing to fight me.” Xiao Ran stretched out his hand.

Without hesitation, Han Lu took out twenty spirit stones from her storage bag and said, "Here, twenty spirit stones. I'll give you four times the betting capital so you don't lose it all in one go."

"That's great," Xiao Ran said with a smile as he took the spirit stones from Han Lu. "With these twenty spirit stones, I'm sure some cultivators at the same level as me will be willing to gamble with me."

"I'll pay you back the thirty coins after I have a great harvest." Xiao Ran was still thinking about returning the spirit stones.

Han Lu didn't say anything, but simply said, "Just don't forget your promise from earlier."

Xiao Ran assured her, "Don't worry, Fairy Han, even if an ant comes up to the arena to fight me, I will still show you the essence of Senior Fang Lin's swordsmanship that I learned from the secret realm."

Seeing Xiao Ran's confident demeanor and thinking of his ever-present soft sword, Han Lu couldn't help but feel a greater sense of anticipation for him.

Xiao Ran had already found out the location of the gambling arena.

The two flew at a relatively slow speed, flying low over the territory of Jiulong Mountain, which neither wasted time nor failed to show sufficient respect to Jiulong Mountain.

Although the entire celebration lasts for ten days, starting five days before the ceremony and ending five days after.

However, there were quite a few guests like Han Lu and Xiao Ran who arrived at Jiulong Mountain seven days before the ceremony.

Some of these guests chose to stay in their rooms to rest and cultivate themselves.

The other group wandered around Jiulong Mountain, meeting guests and friends, setting up stalls in designated areas to sell cultivation resources that were usually difficult to sell.

In the latter part, some cultivators with nowhere to release their spiritual energy naturally lingered in the open arena area of ​​Jiulong Mountain, passing the time by gambling and fighting, and earning spirit stones along the way.

Because it was on Kowloon Mountain grounds, and also on this "joyful" day of celebrating the 2000th anniversary of the founding of the company.

The cultivators who had traveled from afar all maintained sufficient restraint and respect for Nine Dragons Mountain on the arena.

Before Han Lu and Xiao Ran arrived at the arena area, there was only one incident of a cultivator being seriously injured on the arena.

The casualty rate there is countless times lower than outside.

Upon arriving at the arena area, Xiao Ran, with twenty spirit stones lent to him by Han Lu in his pocket, did not rush to challenge anyone.