The Long Journey to Immortality

"Perhaps, in the Central Plains, Xiao Ran, who had just arrived, fell in love at first sight with a fairy."

“At that time,” Mo Zhehan couldn’t help but smile as he thought of this, “I can finally rest easy.”

Seeing Mo Zhehan's inexplicable smile, Han Lu had a vague feeling.

My plan to watch a good show fell through before it even began.

"Xiao Ran, what's your plan now? Is it to make money? How do you plan to make money?" Han Lu temporarily shifted her gaze from Mo Zhehan's face and asked Xiao Ran about his plans.

Xiao Ran laughed and said, "Han Lu, you are from the Central Plains, so you don't know how a cultivator should make money in the Great Yu Dynasty."

Han Lu nodded and said, "Indeed, if I want to earn spirit stones and resources, I have to go to the sect's treasury to get a mission."

"Or directly in the East Sea, hunt magical beasts in a way similar to how mortals hunt, and exchange the materials for spirit stones."

To be honest, back when it was still Fengbai Road, Han Lu did lack various resources, spirit stones, and pills.

However, after acquiring some of the assets left by Xiaoyaozi and the resources given by her parents, Han Lu was already a cultivator who no longer worried about cultivation resources.

If we're talking about the skill and experience in earning spirit stones, Han Lu is probably the worst among the three.

Xiao Ran said, "In the Great Yu Dynasty, because of the numerous killings among cultivators and the resulting chaos, there are opportunities to make money everywhere."

"In slightly larger cities, there are shops that offer similar mission-giving services as the one provided by your sect's treasury."

"Many of the missions inside are dangerous, but also extremely rewarding."

"Of course, if you go hunting on the edge of the wilderness, you can earn quite a few spirit stones."

“By the way…” Xiao Ran had a plan, “Since you’re going to the Wilderness anyway, why don’t you drop me off in a city on the edge of the Wilderness?”

"I've been hunting in the wilderness for half a year now, let's see if I can earn two thousand spirit stones."

"Let's try again to find a mission to escort merchants to the Heavenly Palace."

"If everything goes smoothly, it should only take two years to set off for the Central Plains."

Mo Zhehan praised the plan, but then reminded him, "This plan is good, but the Wilderness is a dangerous place. If Fellow Daoist Xiao is not familiar with the magical beasts living on the edge of the Wilderness, it will not be easy for him to survive and hunt there."

"Even if you are at the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm, there are still many beings on the edge of the wilderness whose strength surpasses yours."

"You have to be extremely careful there."

Xiao Ran nodded and said, "Indeed, perhaps I should go there and find a treasure hunting team to join, do a short-term job, spend a month or two getting familiar with the situation, and then act on my own."

As Xiao Ran spent more time as a rogue cultivator, he developed a strong sense of independence. Based on Mo Zhehan's reminder, he came up with a solution in just a few words.

Han Lu was somewhat unwilling to see her friend go through all that trouble and risk for a little bit of spirit stones.

Han Lu suggested, "Xiao Ran, how about this? I'll lend you three thousand... no, five thousand spirit stones to help you with your travel expenses. What do you think?"

"When I return to the sect in about thirteen or fourteen years, returning five thousand three hundred spirit stones will be enough."

"Given how our Zhengyi Sect treats its elders, with a little effort, accumulating 5,300 spirit stones over a period of more than ten years should be a piece of cake, no problem at all."

"Xiao Ran, what do you think?"

Han Lu sought Xiao Ran's opinion, hoping that Xiao Ran would agree to her suggestion.

Xiao Ran shook his head and said, "Han Lu, we are indeed friends, but you have already helped me twice, so I'm embarrassed to ask you for money again."

“Besides,” Xiao Ran put it another way, “I am a cultivator at the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm, with a spirit sword by my side. Earning a mere three thousand spirit stones is not a difficult task.”

"Han Lu, are you looking down on me by helping me like this?"

This was obviously a joke, but it did remind Han Lu.

Han Lu said, "Xiao Ran, you're right. You'd better be careful in the next few years. I don't want to return to the Central Plains in a few years and not be able to find you again."

"Don't worry," Xiao Ran patted his chest and said, "Maybe when you see me again, Han Lu, I will have already settled down in the Central Plains, not only joined the Zhengyi Sect, but also found a Daoist partner and had a child."

After saying this, the three of them burst into laughter simultaneously.

"Since Fellow Daoist Xiao has made his decision, I wish him a safe journey and hope he can raise enough money to travel to the Central Plains soon."

Mo Zhehan took out a low-proof spirit wine from his storage bag and raised his glass in celebration.

Xiao Ran quickly took out a wine cup, poured himself a full glass of the fine wine he had treasured in his storage bag, and said, "Thank you, Fellow Daoist Mo."

After saying half a sentence, Xiao Ran quietly transmitted his blessings, "I also wish Fellow Daoist Mo a happy love life and that he and Fairy Han will live happily ever after."

Upon hearing this telepathic message, Mo Zhehan and Xiao Ran exchanged a glance and revealed a knowing smile between men.

"Han Lu, why don't you have a sip?" Holding up his wine glass, Xiao Ran asked, just as he had when he first met Han Lu.

Han Lu pondered for a moment, then nodded.

An ice glass instantly took shape in Han Lu's hands, and Mo Zhehan filled the ice glass in Han Lu's hands with light red wine.

"May Xiao Ran have a smooth road ahead."

After Han Lu finished her toast, the three of them drank the wine in their glasses together.

Chapter 941 Blind Bag, Searching for People

In the cultivation world, there is no such thing as not drinking and driving.

Mo Zhehan had a good tolerance for alcohol, but the spirit wine he took out from his storage bag was only of the quality that could intoxicate a Foundation Establishment cultivator in the early stages.

Naturally, despite having a glass of wine and smelling slightly of alcohol, Mo Zhehan remained clear-headed and able to easily steer the ark, flying smoothly along the predetermined path.

After sharing a drink, Xiao Ran reluctantly poured half a glass of wine into his own, savoring each sip as he swallowed, finally satisfying his craving for alcohol.

Seeing this, Han Lu couldn't help but laugh and tease, mentioning a sad story about Xiao Ran.

"Xiao Ran, you're still as addicted to alcohol as ever. Have you forgotten the pain of losing your storage bag because you were drunk?"

Speaking of this, Xiao Ran's face showed a pained expression. "Hey, hey, hey, Han Lu, I've been pretending to have forgotten about this. Why are you bringing it up again?"

Han Lu laughed and said, "This is not a warning to you, so that you won't make the same mistake again and have to pay for your travel expenses and the soft sword you're carrying around your waist."

The soft sword he used back then is still by Xiao Ran's side. It's not that he loves this magic weapon so much that he has to use it, but rather that he is short of money. Xiao Ran doesn't have seven or eight thousand spirit stones to find another suitable magic weapon to replace it.

"Is that so?" This was the first time Mo Zhehan had ever heard a story about a cultivator losing their storage bag.

Xiao Ran lowered his eyes and told Mo Zhehan the story with a depressed expression.

Upon hearing that it was a cultivator who had once been on good terms with Xiao Ran who stole the storage bag while Xiao Ran was drunk, Mo Zhehan could only joke, "Drinking leads to trouble."

“Yes,” Xiao Ran agreed, “so I now discipline myself and limit myself to one drink a day.”

"I'm happy today, but I've broken the rules. However, I'm sharing a magic treasure with Fellow Daoist Mo and Han Lu, so it's unlikely that I'll lose my storage bag again."

Han Lu was just joking and didn't mean to criticize Xiao Ran at all.

As just friends, Han Lu had no right to restrict Xiao Ran's freedom to drink.

"Xiao Ran, so many years have passed, and that storage bag was never found again, was it?"

Xiao Ran nodded and said, "Yes, it has most likely already been sold as a 'blind bag' at some auction."

"In the last thousand years, the blind bag business has been booming, and I can say that I've contributed my entire fortune to this bloody industry." Xiao Ran joked to himself, and indeed, as he said, he had already forgotten about the matter.

Upon hearing a new term, Han Lu asked curiously, "Blind bag?"

“Huh? Oh, there’s definitely no such thing in the Central Plains,” Xiao Ran, a victim with a strong sense of justice, said indignantly when talking about this bizarre product. “It’s just an elegant name for a storage bag that has been stolen but cannot be opened smoothly.”

“In some cities, at least a dozen or twenty of these storage bags will be sold at a single auction.”

"They were all obtained through various means of plunder, murder, and robbery."

"But because those evil-doing cultivators were unable to break the restrictions left on the storage bags by their former owners, they were resold and sold in this way to make a profit."

Because of numerous conflicts among cultivators in the Great Yu Dynasty, almost all cultivators have the habit of putting large locks on their storage bags.

It's not uncommon for stolen storage bags to be unopenable.

Not to mention storage bags like Xiao Ran's that were stolen.

Xiao Ran then chuckled to himself, "I bet my storage bag has already been branded as the storage bag of a pseudo-Core Formation cultivator and sold for a thousand or two thousand spirit stones, ending up in the hands of some Golden Core cultivator."

Xiao Ran had set up an ingenious restriction on his storage bag, but it still didn't require much effort from a Golden Core cultivator to break.

The difference in cultivation level makes the Golden Core cultivators in the Great Yu Dynasty the main buyers of these "blind bags," and many of them have even made their fortunes by finding treasures in these blind bags.

However, during the three hundred years that this trend flourished, there were also tricks that deliberately created fake "blind bags" to swindle money and deceive people.

The market for "blind bags" has become chaotic, which has also reduced the profits in this industry considerably.

However, the profession of "locksmith" also emerged. Those with high skill levels earned money by unlocking the restrictions on people's storage bags.

It is conceivable that as long as the Great Yu Dynasty maintains its current uneasy order, with supply and demand, this industry is destined to continue to prosper.

After a few words, Han Lu roughly understood what the so-called "blind bag" industry was all about, and couldn't help but admire the creativity of the cultivators who were striving for spirit stones.

"So, it seems you're definitely not going to get your storage bag back," Han Lu said with a hint of regret.

She knew very well that the value and significance of many things to cultivators was not as simple as how many spirit stones they could sell for.

Her storage bag also contained many inexpensive items that held memories and emotions.

Although it might be worthless at an auction and fetch a low price, it is priceless to her.

Xiao Ran said, "It's most likely that it won't be found. Even if it is, it will only give me a few more magic artifacts and some more spirit stones."

"It's more likely that I'll incur the wrath of a Golden Core cultivator who is practically unrelated to me."

"Even setting aside the inconvenience of searching for the lost item, it's still not worth the effort."

Mo Zhehan asked again, "What about that bastard who stole your storage bag? Aren't you going to settle the score with him?"

Xiao Ran smiled and said, "Fellow Daoist Mo, do you have the ability to find a specific person among the nearly one hundred million people in the Great Yu Dynasty?"

"I don't have that ability, at least not now." Mo Zhehan didn't rule out the possibility of a definitive answer.

Xiao Ran said, "I didn't. I'm not going to torture myself just to vent my anger. I don't have the time for that."

"Besides, I actually got along quite well with that petty thief. If it weren't for this incident, we might still be traveling together now, as good drinking buddies."

Speaking of this past relationship, Xiao Ran felt very regretful. "Even if he were to apologize to me now, I would be willing to turn the page and be friends with him again."

"Wow," Han Lu said, quite curious. "What kind of cultivator could you care about so much? Maybe in the future, Mo Zhehan and I will run into him by chance, just like we did a few days ago with you and Ci Daoren. You can describe him to us, tell us his name, and see if you have the chance to meet him again."

This chance encounter led the three people on the ark to believe, to some extent, that "fate" could bring cultivators together by chance.

Han Lu's words made a lot of sense, so Xiao Ran recalled what his friend looked like and described him to Han Lu and Mo Zhehan: "He was about the same height as you, Han Lu, and had chestnut-colored hair, which was his most distinctive feature."