The Long Journey to Immortality

"It is said that, taking this opportunity, the East Sea Dragon Clan also reached an agreement with the East Sea Human Clan cultivators, agreeing to cede some islands to the True Spirit Beasts of the East Sea every hundred years, for a period of a thousand years." Mo Zhehan told Han Lu about the humiliating treaty that the Bitter Tea Hermit and others had reluctantly agreed to.

Han Lu was still puzzled and felt that something was amiss.

But upon closer reflection, it's not surprising.

In terms of strength, the human cultivators of the East Sea are not stronger than the True Spirits and Demonic Beasts located in the east of the East Sea. Not to mention, under the unique environment of the East Sea, the human cultivators are more like a disorganized mess.

Meanwhile, the Central Plains, relying on its influence, attracted cultivators from the East Sea to come and join them.

With one side gaining and the other losing, it's no wonder that the Dragon Clan would repeatedly seek excuses to launch "reclaim lost territory" campaigns, attempting to restore the glory that the pair of dragons and phoenixes led the true spirits and magical beasts of the East Sea to establish.

Unless a real fight breaks out and brains are spilled, the East China Sea cannot expect the Central Plains to lend a hand.

This is the fundamental reason why the situation has become this way.

"It's a pity that countless mortals and cultivators who already live in dangerous places will have to leave their homes."

"But it's still good to avoid a war."

Once Han Lu understood the crux of the matter, she no longer felt that the powerful Donghai Chamber of Commerce was "profit-driven and treacherous" or "cowardly and afraid of death." Instead, she understood their helpless actions.

After crossing the New Territories, the two boarded an ark and spent another seven and a half days before finally returning to the Dragon Head Islands after more than a month.

Although it was a difficult situation, ceding land was ultimately a heartbreaking event.

Although there is no concept of nation or collective in the East Sea, when the human race suffers humiliation, even a wanted criminal will feel some empathy and express their anger.

Han Lu could clearly sense the unpleasant atmosphere on the Dragon Head Islands.

The Immortal Pavilion, which spearheaded the matter, naturally became the main target of attacks, causing the popularity of the Immortal Pavilion's high-rise buildings to drop by 70%.

Without disturbing the mostly depressed Bitter Tea Hermit, Han Lu went directly to the counter and successfully spent five thousand spirit stones to buy a large quantity of "Spirit Tortoise Shells".

Thus, the materials for preparing the elixir were gathered.

Chapter 1142

There were still many things to be done afterward, so Mo Zhehan and Han Lu agreed to stay on the Dragon Head Islands for five days before setting off back to the Central Plains.

After gathering all the materials needed to refine the "Turtle Breath Pill," the only remaining task was to find an experienced and highly skilled alchemist to help refine the pill.

Back when Han Lu was still on Fengbai Road, she had also considered learning alchemy to earn some extra money.

Unfortunately, he lacked this talent, and Feng Bailu's talent was not much higher than his cultivation talent.

Furthermore, improving one's alchemy skills requires refining a large number of pills, which in turn incurs significant "training costs."

Unless he could work in the sect's alchemy room and cultivate at public expense, Feng Bailu would have to go bankrupt before becoming rich if he wanted to become a capable alchemist.

Ultimately, this idea came to nothing.

There are cultivators in the Immortal Pavilion who specialize in providing this kind of service.

For a small fee of spirit stones, Han Lu could easily find an alchemist within the Immortal Pavilion who met her requirements to provide services.

If you also consider personal connections, Han Lu could probably refine all the materials in her storage bag into pills by spending only three hundred spirit stones.

It wasn't expensive, but Han Lu had a better idea.

"Why not return to the sect and find a Foundation Establishment disciple who is skilled in alchemy to help us?"

"Being able to refine so many pills in one go for practice must be a small favor."

"This will also help me to get a little closer to the disciples of the sect."

Han Lu had considered everything carefully.

Since she had plenty of materials, she wasn't short of ten or twenty pills, so she might as well do him a favor.

Over the years, she has been somewhat indifferent to the sect's affairs, both big and small, and indeed needs to extend some favors to the sect again so that the disciples know that there is a Zhenfeng Fairy in Dongshan Academy, thus making her presence felt a little more.

With no matters concerning elixirs to worry about for the time being, Han Lu and Mo Zhehan frequented the various merchant guilds and markets on the Dragon Head Islands, selling low-level magic treasures and taking the opportunity to learn about market conditions.

The invasion by the dragons east of the East Sea half a month ago has created a tense atmosphere in the East Sea's trading market.

Although the true spirits and magical beasts east of the East Sea did not engage in even a small-scale battle with the human race throughout the "Reclaim Lost Territory Movement," it could not prevent the cultivators in the East Sea from feeling panicked.

The prices of many magical artifacts used in combat have risen by at least 20%, and some elixirs that can be used in battle are in short supply.

Some cultivators from the East Sea were also seeking refuge in the Central Plains.

The prices of various colored flags have risen most significantly, climbing steadily.

This actually benefited Han Lu and Mo Zhehan.

Many magical artifacts lost when ancient cultivators and the true spirits and magical beasts led by dragons and phoenixes were defeated have become highly sought-after items in the market.

Even though these magical treasures had some flaws and imperfections, they still sold for a good price, allowing Han Lu and Mo Zhehan to earn a lot of spirit stones.

However, compared to the large amount of spirit stones and resources obtained from the Dragon and Phoenix Treasure Vault, this small fortune is insignificant, not even worthy of being called dessert.

The atmosphere in Donghai made Han Lu very worried.

"Could it be that in the next few hundred years, the dragons east of the East Sea will lead all kinds of magical beasts and true spirits to cause a big disturbance?" Han Lu worried. "If so, it will lead to internal strife and affect the overall situation."

Mo Zhehan, however, did not think that would be the case.

“They probably just want some land and resources,” Mo Zhehan shared some unique information he knew. “As far as I know, the dragons and humans east of the East Sea don’t interact as coldly as they seem on the surface.”

"When I delivered the last message, I also encountered two cultivators among the dragons who came to trade resources."

"Clearly, the dragon race now understands the benefits of exchanging resources."

"War alone cannot solve the problem of development."

Mo Zhehan cited an example: "This time, bringing the issue to the negotiating table to resolve it is an excellent example."

"The dragons, having tasted the benefits, might become even more demanding and even break the treaty."

"But most likely they won't actually engage in a major war with the East Sea human race."

The most important point was brought up by Mo Zhehan: "After all, although the Donghai Chamber of Commerce is a disorganized mess, the Xiange and a few other chambers of commerce still have some foundation."

"If we flip the table, we might even find out if there are any human Nascent Soul Realm experts in the East Sea."

The limitations of the world's boundaries are the fundamental reason why the current human race, despite its insufficient high-level strength, can still maintain the order established during the ancient cultivation era.

A cultivator at the Nascent Soul Realm possesses absolute power over cultivators below the Nascent Soul Realm.

Although a cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage could forcefully ascend by drawing upon the power of heaven and earth during a major battle.

However, in this short period of time, it is absolutely certain that they will severely injure the True Spirits, and at the very least, they will be able to kill some high-level True Spirits and magical beasts.

This nuclear-like threat is what makes the True Spirits "sing and dance," and dare not launch a war relying on their Nascent Soul Realm combat power, which far surpasses that of the human race.

Mo Zhehan's words made a lot of sense, and Han Lu felt much better after hearing them.

"I hope so."

"Otherwise, a major conflict would certainly affect the strength of the Central Plains and the East China Sea."

"If we really have to face off against cultivators from the Eastern World in the future, that would be bad."

Five days later, Han Lu and Mo Zhehan resolved some trivial matters in the East China Sea before setting off again. After spending several more days on the road, they finally returned to the Central Plains Zhengyi Sect.

"So, are you going to stay here with me for a while longer, or are you going straight back to the Great Yu Dynasty?"

Still outside the Zhengyi Gate, Han Lu inquired about Mo Zhehan, who was traveling on the same ark as her.

Mo Zhehan pondered for a moment, and after confirming that this was not a question that would lead to his death, he replied, "Let me stay for another half month. You don't want to kick me out, do you?"

“No rush,” Han Lu replied, her feelings slightly complicated. “You are a guest, it is only right that I entertain you.”

Han Lu's answer left Mo Zhehan slightly disappointed.

The relationship between host and guest was not one he wanted to accept.

He had hoped that the chance encounter with that brief kiss in the Dragon and Phoenix Treasury would give him a slim chance.

But now it seems that he was still delusional. Only by fulfilling his promise to Han Lu could the relationship between the two of them undergo a qualitative change.

"But at least it didn't get any worse."

"To be honest, I could accept it if we were just good friends."

"This can be considered a decent ending."

To comfort himself, Mo Zhehan didn't have too many expectations for himself to advance to the Nascent Soul Realm before Han Lu.

Calmly settling back into Han Lu's home, he planned to stay in the Central Plains for a while before returning to the Great Yu Dynasty.

Chapter 1143

Mo Zhehan's temporary status as her guest did not affect Han Lu's plans after returning to the sect.

Upon returning to her sect, she didn't rush to find the busy Xianyu Ji, but instead went to pay her respects to her long-lost master, Piaomiao Zi, and asked him for help.

As the master of Han Lu and Wen Erya, although Piaomiaozi still only had the cultivation level of the early Golden Core stage after about half a year, his role in the Zhengyi Sect became more and more obvious.

He served as the vice dean of Dongshan Academy and was in charge of the academy. To put it nicely, all the students of Dongshan Academy had some kind of master-disciple relationship with him.

Over the years, Piaomiaozi has taken on many disciples.

Although no more outstanding disciples like Han Lu and Wen Erya were cultivated, many Foundation Establishment cultivators were nurtured, contributing to the sect's development.

He enjoys a high reputation in Dongshan Academy.

If it weren't for his genuine lack of talent and ability, Piaomiaozi would most likely have become the dean of Dongshan Academy in the future, achieving his former goal.

Han Lu came to find Piaomiaozi for two reasons: first, to chat, and second, to ask if there were any disciples in Dongshan Academy who were skilled in alchemy, thus offering this small favor.

When Han Lu came to visit, Piaomiaozi, though feeling conflicted, still gave her a warm welcome.

The master and disciple chatted happily about various topics, both public and private, trying to bring their relationship, which had become strained due to differences in cultivation and talent, back together.

After chatting for about fifteen minutes, Han Lu brought up the matter of "alchemy" under the pretext of asking how many talented disciples there were in Dongshan Academy.

"Master," although her cultivation was far superior to Piaomiaozi's, Han Lu still maintained sufficient etiquette and respect for her master, "I wonder if there are any disciples in Dongshan Academy who are proficient in alchemy?"

Most of the cultivators in Dongshan Academy practice water-attribute techniques, but there are also disciples who supplement their practice with metal-attribute techniques, so some disciples still try to learn alchemy.

“There are some. What, are you looking for someone to refine pills?” Piaomiaozi replied casually.

“Yes, I will provide the materials, a lot of materials, and also the specific pill formula,” Han Lu explained. “I originally considered having the Immortal Pavilion cultivators do it for me, but after thinking about it carefully, it would be good to give the sect disciples a chance to practice.”