The Long Journey to Immortality

Upon returning to the Western Regions, Han Lu naturally traveled in human form.

This time, she was even more anxious than when she went to the wilderness, only thinking about returning to the sect as soon as possible.

Even so, she still deliberately took a detour towards the Western Regions capital to chat with the High Priest of the Holy Church.

Han Lu had already told her father about the High Priest back in Phoenix Forest.

Feng You naturally still remembered the High Priest, the Nascent Soul cultivator from the Western Regions who had given him some guidance.

Feng You did not react in any particular way to the High Priest's overtures.

They neither told Han Lu what she should do nor told her to stay away from these ambitious people from the Western Regions.

He simply asked Han Lu to meet the High Priest again on her way back and deliver a gift to express her gratitude for the High Priest's care of Han Lu.

The gifts were not valuable; they were just some common spiritual plants from the wilderness, about seven or eight kinds.

Han Lu didn't know much about these things and couldn't name the spiritual plants. She was simply helping her father deliver the gifts to the high priest.

Based on Han Lu's guess, she estimated that these spiritual plants could be combined to form a code.

The father had some message he wanted to convey to the highest authority in the Western Regions in a rather veiled manner.

If the other party understands, then everything is easy to discuss.

If the other party doesn't understand, then we'll stop here.

Han Lu had a very "interesting" idea, but whether it was actually true or just her own wishful thinking, she couldn't say for sure.

In fact, to verify her conjecture, Han Lu deliberately observed the high priest's expression when presenting the gift, to see if his expression changed from "confused" to "suddenly realizing".

As it turned out, the High Priest was just as "confused" as Han Lu, and like Han Lu, he wondered if Feng You was sending him some special code.

But clearly, he couldn't figure it out for the time being.

This directly led to the high priest and Han Lu's subsequent communication being somewhat dry.

The high priest tried to subtly probe through Han Lu to get information about Feng You's attitude, but little did he know that Han Lu was also completely clueless.

Fortunately, sensing that the atmosphere was not right, the high priest changed the subject and “demonstrated” a new erhu piece that he had practiced skillfully to Han Lu, which made the atmosphere between the two of them talk and laugh a little more normal.

When the high priest heard that Han Lu was returning to the Zhengyi Sect, he quickly took out his pen and ink, wrote a letter, blew the ink dry, and delivered it to Han Lu.

"I would like to trouble Fairy Han to deliver this letter to Xuan Chengzi, the leader of the Zhengyi Sect, as a gesture of goodwill and friendship."

The fact that the high priest deliberately used letters instead of jade tablets to convey information demonstrates the importance he placed on the matter.

And so Han Lu took on a new messenger job.

Stepping out of the seven-story pagoda where the High Priest resided, Han Lu touched the storage bag containing the letter and murmured, "I hope the High Priest won't be cryptic in the letter either."

After leaving the Western Regions capital, Han Lu continued eastward.

This time, as she approached the border between the Western Regions and the Central Plains, she chose to pass through the checkpoint in a proper manner, taking the route established by the Seven Mountains Alliance between the Central Plains and the Western Regions.

With the improved relations between the Western Regions and the Central Plains, or rather, between the Western Regions and the Seven Mountains Alliance, the several checkpoints now built on the border have largely lost their military significance and gained more commercial significance.

Merchants from both regions would choose to trade near the checkpoints, exchanging goods and services.

For cultivators, passing through checkpoints to enter the Western Regions or the Central Plains is a sign of respect for the Seven Mountains Alliance and the cultivation forces in the Western Regions.

Furthermore, in order to enhance their credibility and reputation by using the checkpoint as a token, the Seven Mountains Alliance would symbolically distribute a Seven Mountains Alliance token to low-level cultivators who passed through the checkpoint.

Although the token did not contain false or empty words such as "No matter where you are, the US government is your strong backing," it clearly engraved the Seven Mountains Alliance's symbol on it, as if the Seven Mountains Alliance was declaring "guarantee of independence" to the cultivators who held the token.

This thing seemed ridiculous to Han Lu, but in the hands of a low-level cultivator, it was like a reassurance.

As a Golden Core cultivator, Han Lu passed the challenges with great ease.

Fly through the air, overtaking caravans trying to pass through checkpoints, cutting in line, verifying identities, and making a symbolic registration.

The entire process was completed smoothly.

They came in a hurry, and they left in a hurry.

Before the Seven Mountains Alliance cultivator in charge of receiving Han Lu could express his goodwill to her, she flew away again as if she were "escaping".

Currently, Han Lu still can't think of a good way to deal with Feng Yufei in the Seven Mountains Alliance, so she can only choose to "run away".

Another day and a half passed, and Han Lu finally returned to Zhengyimen after two years and nine months.

Returning to Zhengyi Sect is like coming home. As a Golden Core cultivator, Han Lu, an elder of Zhengyi Sect, no longer needs to walk through the mountain gate as before and then use her privilege to fly on her sword.

With the letter in her pocket, Han Lu headed straight for the Five Elements Mountain Academy.

Firstly, to send a message; secondly, to "cancel her leave," lest Xuan Chengzi think she had disappeared halfway, having only been an elder for a year before vanishing without a trace.

Han Lu was lucky. That afternoon, Xuan Chengzi was not practicing in the training room, but was exchanging ideas with several vice deans of the mountain academy about the small competition that had just ended.

After waiting in the lounge for about half an hour, Han Lu met Xuan Chengzi.

Xuan Chengzi was very happy to see Han Lu return as promised.

Although he didn't know Han Lu's parents and relatives, he still treated Han Lu like a proper elder of the sect, showing concern for her family and asking about their situation.

Han Lu only chatted for a few minutes, sharing her life with an elder she was just a nodding acquaintance with.

Soon, finding a suitable opportunity, Han Lu took out the high priest's letter and delivered it to Xuan Chengzi.

Upon hearing that it was a letter entrusted by the High Priest of the Western Regions to Han Lu, Xuan Chengzi did not open it immediately, nor did he question Han Lu about why she knew the High Priest of the Western Regions.

“Elder Zhenfeng, you must be tired from your long journey. I won’t keep you from resting. In a few days, feel free to come see me at any time, and I’ll arrange some mundane tasks for you within the sect.” Xuan Chengzi clearly indicated that Han Lu’s privilege period had ended and it was time for her to begin taking on the responsibilities of a sect elder.

Han Lu had no objections; in fact, she was eager for Xuan Chengzi to assign her more tasks sooner.

"I will follow the sect leader's arrangements."

Just as he was about to leave, Xuan Chengzi suddenly remembered something.

“Elder Zhenfeng, three months ago a Foundation Establishment cultivator came to the sect looking for you, saying he was your disciple’s son.”

[Author's Note] The story begins with the sect's farming and showing off plot.

Chapter 718 So That's How It Is

"My apprentice's son?" Upon hearing this, Han Lu was completely baffled as to who could have come looking for her in such a capacity.

Xuan Chengzi continued, "He's currently staying with your Senior Sister Wen."

Xuan Chengzi knew about the relationship between Han Lu and Wen Erya, so he continued to address Wen Erya in that way to appear more affectionate.

"Thank you for the reminder, Sect Leader. I'll go take a look right away."

Han Lu hurriedly left, thinking of going to Wen Erya's place to see how she had inexplicably gained an apprentice, how the apprentice had gotten married and had children, and how her son had come looking for her.

Coincidentally, she had already planned to go find Wen Erya after leaving the Five Elements Mountain Academy, so the two things could be done at the same time.

About fifteen years before Han Lu advanced to the Golden Core Realm, Wen Erya finally overcame the bottleneck of the mid-Foundation Establishment stage and became a late-Foundation Establishment cultivator.

In the Zhengyi Sect, late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators account for less than one-tenth of all Foundation Establishment cultivators. Among them, only a few top-tier individuals like Xianyu Ji and Han Lu are able to achieve the False Core stage through personal cultivation and eventually form a Golden Core, becoming a sect elder.

Wen Erya is clearly among them.

When Wen Erya advanced to the late Foundation Establishment stage, Xuan Chengzi had just taken office and was implementing some kind of "resource allocation" and "key cultivation". Not only did he move Wen Erya's residence a little further up Hanchan Peak, but he also gave Wen Erya, who was already a "second-generation royal", a lot of cultivation resources.

Although 10+1 does not equal 11, it has indeed made Wen Erya's cultivation speed much faster than before.

Three years ago, when Wen Erya met Han Lu, they talked about the formation of the Golden Core.

According to Wen Erya's judgment, if everything goes smoothly, she can also successfully form her core after cultivating for more than 20 years in the late Foundation Establishment stage, just like Han Lu.

On her way to Wen Erya's residence, as Han Lu flew through the air, the faces of many old acquaintances who might be considered her apprentices kept appearing in her mind.

At the same time, she also screened and eliminated these people based on the possibility of "marriage and childbirth", thinking about who would come to Zhengyi Gate and what their purpose was.

For Han Lu, the journey from Wuxing Mountain Academy to Dongshan Academy was only a matter of five breaths; the time was too short for her to arrive at a definitive conclusion.

"I'm not going to guess anymore. Anyway, when we meet later, my senior sister will definitely introduce him to me."

Upon arriving at Wen Erya's residence, Han Lu knocked on the door, and a female cultivator who looked no more than fifteen or sixteen years old opened it.

"Hello, senior sister, is there anything I can help you with?" This disciple of the Zhengyi Sect, who had only been a disciple of Wen Erya for a year, did not recognize Han Lu, nor did she know the relationship between Han Lu and Wen Erya.

Han Lu said, "I've come to find Senior Sister Wen."

Han Lu didn't seem like a bad person, and Wen Erya had no enemies in the sect.

The young female cultivator, who was temporarily staying at Wen Erya's house and following her cultivation, opened the door wide without thinking and made way for her. "Senior sister, Master is cultivating in the garden. You can go there directly."

With a smile and thanks, Han Lu entered the courtyard where Wen Erya lived at a leisurely pace.

The courtyard is quite large and is arranged in accordance with the Five Elements Formation. The formation can be activated at any time using a mechanism token to trap enemies.

Normally, this courtyard is just a simple garden. Han Lu only needed to use her divine sense to scan the area and found Wen Erya's location. She was already walking towards the path closest to Wen Erya.

After wandering among the flowers for a while, Han Lu saw Wen Erya sitting in the spirit-gathering array set up in the garden pavilion.

As Han Lu approached and deliberately made some noise, Wen Er Ya suddenly opened her eyes just as Han Lu sat down on the stone bench in the pavilion.

When she saw that it was Han Lu who had arrived, the wariness in her eyes instantly turned into joy.

"Junior sister, you're back."

Their relationship couldn't be closer. Just as Han Lu still called Wen Erya "Senior Sister," Wen Erya still addressed Han Lu, who surpassed her in both cultivation and sect status, as "Junior Sister."

Han Lu smiled and said, "Yes, I'm back. I'm homesick, so I stayed with my parents a little longer."

Wen Erya stood up and sat down next to Han Lu, saying, "Tell me about your trip back to the Wilderness. I'm really curious. By the way, how's your brother?"

"Not very well-behaved, but a good younger brother," Han Lu commented simply, then changed the subject, saying, "Senior sister, I heard from the sect leader that someone came to the sect looking for me under a false pretense?"

Wen Erya couldn't help but laugh when she mentioned it, "They said it was your apprentice's son."

“Yes, yes,” Han Lu chimed in, “What, there really is such a person? And he’s staying here?”

“Of course, there is such a person. Since you are not in the sect, I helped you to entertain him and let him stay,” Wen Erya said mysteriously. “Why don’t you guess which of your disciples’ sons came to the Zhengyi Sect to find you?”

"Wow," Han Lu said upon hearing Wen Erya's words, "Judging from what you're saying, Senior Sister, you know my disciple too?"

“That’s right,” Wen Erya said, “I was right there when you took on your apprentices.”

Wen Erya's words made Han Lu eliminate most of the candidates in her mind.

"Then, I guess..."

Han Lu drew out her words, making her final judgment.