Chapter 244: The Old Man of Liang
Chapter 244 - A Latecomer of Liang
"One hundred and fifty-five years old, eighth level of Foundation Establishment."
Lu Chang'an felt the majestic lake of mana in his body expand by about thirty percent.
Since it was not a minor breakthrough, the "quality" of the mana did not change significantly, so the strength increase was not great.
It was just a step further at the late Foundation Establishment stage.
"With the current cultivation progress, cultivating to the ninth level of Foundation Establishment will probably be around one hundred and seventy years old."
Lu Chang'an speculated.
At the ninth level of Foundation Establishment, one can theoretically impact the JieDan stage.
However, in order to increase their certainty, most pandan condensers would try to cultivate to the peak of the ninth level of Foundation Establishment and consolidate for two to three years if not more.
When Fu Xuemei first entered the ninth level of Foundation Establishment, she hadn't consolidated for long before she began to form pills. Due to the lack of foundation, the quality of the final pills was affected.
Even so, Fu Xuemei's Earth Spirit Root qualification, after the mind is enlightened, also barely formed a true dan.
Lu Changan's situation was different.
He wanted to take the route of "transforming the dan back into liquid and reshaping the condensed dan", which was not a quick fix.
When he first formed the dan, he didn't need to pursue the peak of the ninth level of Foundation Establishment.
If the quality of the elixir is high, the difficulty and risk of shattering the inner elixir will increase dramatically.
The first time you transform the elixir back into liquid, you are not experienced enough. To be on the safe side, it is best to be like Zhang Tieshan and form a false elixir first.
......
A few days later, Lu Chang'an left the prison and went down the underground tunnel to the bottom of the deep pool behind the mansion.
First, he checked the growth status of the Xuan Mu Gourd Vine.
This gourd vine has almost no signs of growth, and the small fruits it bears are withered, black, and dead.
"It seems that the 'Xuan Tian Gourd' recorded in the Hearing Sea Pavilion has completely failed to condense......"
Even Lu Changan's Evergreen Secret Technique is powerless to help.
He had consumed his life to nourish the withered fruit, but the result was like a stone sinking into the sea, with no response.
Luckily, the vitality of the gourd vine has stabilized, and the small section of green on the vine is more conspicuous than ever.
Compared to the situation at the ancient ruins when it was about to die, it was much stronger.
Lu Changan also looked at the Xuan Shui Turtle on the side, feeding it Evergreen Mana to promote its growth.
Over the years, ever since the Xuan Shui Turtle had been guarding the Xuan Mu Gourd Vine and irrigating it, it had rarely taken the initiative to suck in the remnants of Lu Chang'an's cultivation.
Lu Changan guessed that the Xuan Mu Gourd Vine brought some sort of benefit that smelled better in the Xuan Shui Turtle's mind than his own Evergreen Kung Fu.
With the benefit of Evergreen's magic power and the Xuan Mu Gourd Vine, the Xuan Shui Turtle's growth speed is far better than its counterparts. Normal Xuan Shui Turtles often take four to five hundred years to reach the True Dan level.
Lu Chang'an's Xuan Shui Tortoise probably won't even use half of that time.
"This turtle, as an Earth Grade bloodline, has qualifications far superior to that of a rock rat, and has been blessed with the unknown benefits of the Xuan Mu Gourd Vine. In the future, I don't know what quality of inner dan it will form?"
Lu Chang'an was looking forward to this and was curious.
Return to the ground residence.
Xia Wenyue is waiting outside the door, asking for an audience.
"Come in." Lu Changan waved his sleeve and opened the door.
Xia Wen Yue converged on a bow and said in a dignified manner, "Mr. Lu, just now a clansman sent a message saying that there is a Foundation Establishment Cultivator visiting you outside of Clear Sand Bay."
"Does that person have a registration number?"
"No, his person has concealed his appearance." Xia Wen Yue replied.
Lu Chang'an was about to refuse.
"That person claimed to be your old friend in Liang." Xia Wen Yue hurriedly added.
"Old friend from Liang?"
Lu Chang'an pondered for a moment and finally nodded his head, ordering Xia Wen Yue to bring that person here.
For a brief moment just now, he had the Earth Rock Rat go over to scout and sniff out a familiar scent.
The person who came was indeed an old friend, and his friendship was not shallow.
......
A quarter of an hour later.
Xia Wen Yue returned, followed by a broad-robed cultivator wearing a conical hat and a green veil.
His body was wrapped in robes, and he could not be seen as a man or a woman.
Xia Wen Yue tacitly retreated and closed the door to the side hall.
Lu Chang'an through the bucket hat and green veil, hazily met with a pair of ebony eyes and smiled faintly:
"Miss Shen, haven't seen you for twenty years, how have you been?"
At these words, the broad-robed cultivator's body stiffened for a moment, and then he removed the bucket hat and green veil.
It was a woman's face, about thirty-seven or eighty-eight years old.
The outline of the features is pretty, but the crow's feet lines are obvious, white skin slightly dark spots, black eyes are not bright, there is a kind of calm and deep through the years.
Lu Changan could not help but be stunned for a moment, seemingly unable to associate the gentle and quiet beauty of the year, skin as white as snow, with the "half-aged woman" in front of him.
"I'm sorry to make you laugh, Mr. Lu. I am an old woman, married with a child, I can't afford to be called a 'girl'."
Shen Bixin's voice was calm, but she could not hide her bitterness and loneliness.
"Fellow Daoist Shen need not be concerned! We cultivators, external appearance is not important, but a layer of skin."
Lu Chang'an spoke in a gentle tone, smiled and raised his hand, allowing Shen Bixin to take a seat.
Shen Bixin, is the eldest lady of Liang Tengxing Chamber of Commerce, once had business dealings and cooperation with Lu Changan.
The first time we met was when Jiang Yichen held her unconscious and came to Wuqi Mountain to seek medical treatment.
Shen Bixin was originally in love with Jiang Yichen, but was opposed by the elders of the Chamber of Commerce.
In the end, she married Song Wenshu, who had a great background and a bright future in the Li Huo Palace.
As he took his seat, Lu Changan motionlessly surveyed Shen Bixin and realized that her cultivation was stagnant at the peak of the late stage of Foundation Establishment.
"Divine qi is declining, and her mana is silted up."
Lu Chang'an judged that this woman should have failed in conjugating the Dan and had suffered a backlash, resulting in a major injury to her vital energy and damage to her body's foundation.
If not, with Shen Bixin's wealth, she would have taken the elixir to keep her face intact, so her face would not have withered so quickly.
This is not the worst outcome.
It is not uncommon for some of the failures of pills to die on the spot, or to fall in realm.
In fact, Shen Bixin's qualifications were good, and her origins were better than those of ordinary cultivators.
According to reason, the hope of forming a false dan is not small.
At least in Lu Chang'an's opinion, it was more hopeful than Fairy Shi, who hadn't been promoted to the third rank of Formation Master.
But things are unpredictable in the world of Immortal Cultivation, it is hard to have absolute certainty, and it is normal to fail.
"I wonder how fellow Daoist Song is doing?"
Lu Changan did not want to expose Shen Bixin's shortcomings and changed the topic.
Song Wenshu, as an elite of the Leaving Fire Palace, was not a small person and had some friendship with Lu Chang'an.
"Wenshu...... was unfortunately killed in action during the Immortal Cultivation War several years ago."
Shen Bixin's eyes were dim and her face was sad.
"Song Wenshu died in battle?" Lu Changan's expression was stagnant, not expecting to change the topic and reveal the scar of Shen Bixin, the undead.
The Immortal Cultivation War in Liang's territory had a heavy death toll.
The deaths of True Dan and False Dan real people were not few.
The deaths of Foundation Stage in battle are naturally not that eye-catching, unless it is a friend who is purposely paying attention.
As a result, Lu Changan only realized the news of Song Wenshu's death at this time.
"When did Fellow Daoist Shen come to the Jing Kingdom?"
"The Tengxing Chamber of Commerce, where my concubine is a member, transferred some of its direct lineage and industries over long before the war within the Liang Kingdom began....... Three years ago, my concubine brought her husband's flesh and blood and children, along with the Chamber of Commerce's direct lineage, to the Jing Kingdom for development."
Shen Bixin recounted the past a few years ago.
Lu Chang'an sighed, Tengxing Chamber of Commerce had planned ahead for a rainy day, and even laid out its manpower and industries in Jing Country in advance.
In this way, it would be less difficult to pick up the cultivators from Liang through the connections on this side.
......
"Fellow Daoist Shen's visit this time, masking his identity, should not be simply looking for Lu to catch up, right?"
Half an hour later, Lu Changan finished understanding the ups and downs of Shen Bixin's life in the last twenty years and finally entered the main topic.
"The favor that Rune Master Lu owed to my concubine back then, does it still count today?"
Shen Bixin looked directly at Lu Changan's expression.
"Counts."
Lu Chang'an didn't think twice.
He did owe Shen Bixin a favor.
In the past, when he was in the middle stage of Foundation Establishment. In order to collect a batch of materials, including the hard-to-find third-order materials, to speed up his body refining to the quasi-third-order, he had asked Shen Bixin's Chamber of Commerce for help.
At that time, Shen Bixin did not ask Lu Chang'an for any payment, but only promised him a favor.
"Rune Master Lu is indeed of high character, honest and reliable."
Shen Bixin was pleased and showed a smile for the first time.
"Oh, Fellow Daoist Shen wants to honor the promise of that year today?"
"No! My concubine has not reached the point of exhaustion. What I said just now was only to verify the integrity of Rune Master Lu's character."
"My concubine came here this time to be entrusted by someone to act as a go-between. Whether or not what I'm about to say is a success, I hope that Rune Master Lu can keep it a secret."
Shen Bixin's face was solemn as she turned to voice communication.
Lu Changan realized that what Shen Bixin mentioned was a big deal, and set up an isolation restriction at the same place.
The two of them looked at each other, lips wriggling, voice communication for a long time.
"The grandson of Elder Wang of Li Huo Palace, Wang Feng?"
Lu Chang'an was surprised, but he didn't move on the surface.
It turned out that the "Wang Gongzi" who was smuggled through the transnational spirit ship back then, his real name is actually "Wang Feng", and he is a genius with the Earth Spirit Root that the Li Huo Palace has been focusing on cultivating.
Wang Feng's grandfather, "Elder Wang", is the top three ranking Elder of the Fire Palace, with a peak cultivation at the late stage of JieDan.
Elder Wang's strength was definitely higher than Lu Chang'an's in his previous life.
Wang Feng was acquainted with Song Wenshu and was the object of the latter's friendship.
Shen Bixin, who married into the Fire Palace, also met Wang Feng once or twice.
Just a few months ago, "Mr. Wang", who had regained his Foundation Stage cultivation, sought out Shen Bixin and asked for her help.
Mr. Wang had two things to ask for:
The first is to return to the Fire Palace of Liang through the channels of the local Chamber of Commerce of the Jing Kingdom.
Secondly, he wants to find a highly skilled pharmacist to recuperate his body and repair the dark injuries from the fall of his cultivation.
If he can help, Mr. Wang will be grateful, and he will also be able to get the favor of a late stage JieDan cultivator of the clan.
"My concubine's chamber of commerce, with its shallow roots in the Jing Kingdom, barely has a foothold and suffers from the rejection of hostile forces. Both of Mr. Wang's requests can't be helped."
Shen Bixin transmitted her voice.
Lu Changan's gaze flickered slightly, seeing Shen Bixin's selfishness.
Song Wenshu s origins are related to the Leaving Fire Palace, and Shen Bixin gave birth to his heir.
If we can get on the relationship of Duke Wang and Elder Wang's lineage, it will definitely be beneficial to Shen Bixin's descendants.
Admittedly, the war situation is unfavorable to the Li Fire Palace.
But a behemoth like the YuanYing level sect, even if it loses the war and withdraws from Liang, its heritage is far beyond that of a sect like the Golden Cloud Valley.
"Elder Wang, Mr. Wang such a big shot, I'm afraid Lu can't afford to climb......" Lu Chang'an politely refused.
In this matter, Shen Bixin was simply acting as an intermediary and did not consume favors.
Lu Chang'an is not short of spirit stones and techniques, and has all the things he needs to complete his dan, so he doesn't have the heart to climb up to Elder Wang and Mr. Wang's lineage.
Elder Wang was once hunted by the forces of the Demon Cult, so there was a certain amount of risk in this matter.
"Elder Wang said that if Rune Master Lu agreed to help, his reward would include a third-ranked top-grade spirit bamboo."
Shen Bixin added.
Upon hearing this, Lu Chang'an couldn't help but be moved.
A third-order top-grade spirit bamboo was not easy to get his hands on when he was at the JieDan stage in his previous life.
Lu Changan had auctioned off a third-order mid-grade spirit wood at Liang's biggest auction, and at that time, he was unsure about refining a third-order treasure talisman's talisman embryo, which he still kept.
The power of a third-order talisman is immeasurable if it is used for cultivation.
In addition, Lu Chang'an's gong method is wood system, using the third rank top grade spirit bamboo as the main material, he can refine excellent wood system magic treasures.
"If Rune Master Lu is interested, go to the Immortal Seeking Mansion Inn in Cloud Smoke Immortal City within half a month...... At that time, Mr. Wang will personally deal with you."
"Well, I'll think about it."
Lu Chang'an didn't give a promise.
He was a little puzzled in the back of his mind, the Wang Gongzi he met years ago was so down and out, how come he could come up with such a generous reward nowadays?
......
After talking about business, the atmosphere relaxed.
The two of them no longer transmit their voices and talk about the past events of that year, simply catching up on old times.
Once upon a time, the three peak masters of Wu Qi Mountain, Lu Changan, Shi Xianzi, and Ye Fei all had a good relationship with Shen Bixin, and had cooperative dealings.
At that time, Shen Bixin was quiet, gentle, and generous, and even made Ye Fei of the Little Dan Peak move his heart.
"By the way, how is Daoist Jiang's recent situation?"
Lu Changan suddenly thought of Jiang Yuchen, the man Shen Bixin really loved.
Jiang Yichen was carrying a Soul Dao treasure. Without his help in restoring Fairy Master's memories, Lu Chang'an and his duo wouldn't have been able to obtain the important opportunity of the Ancient Ruins back then.
At the very least, Fairy Shifu wouldn't have been able to become a Third Order Formation Master so smoothly.
"Jiang Yichen...... concubine how can I be qualified to see him again?"
Mentioning this person, Shen Bixin looked downcast, no longer the delicate cheeks of the past, the wrinkles on her brow became more and more obvious.
Lu Changan heard the abnormality in the words.
Shen Bixin didn't say "I don't have the face to see him again", and the tone of her voice was full of regret and loss.
"A few years ago, he has been promoted to the true Dan, refused the invitation of the major clans in the Liang country, and then went to other countries to travel......."
"Jiang Yichen, promoted to the true Dan, refused the invitation of the major clans in the Liang country, and then went to other countries to travel....... "Jiang Yichen, promoted to True Dan?"
Lu Changan was moved and couldn't help but look at Shen Bixin.
He briefly runs through it.
Back then, Shen Bixin gave up her true love, Jiang Yuchen, to marry Song Wenshu, who had a much more promising background.
As a result, Song Wenshu was killed in action, leaving Shen Bixin as a survivor.
And Jiang Yuchen, who was considered to be eccentric in nature and not favored back then, unexpectedly formed a true dan!
More subtly.
Jiang Yichen's promotion to True Dan and Song Wenshu's death, these two events...... seemed to have happened in those years.
Jiang Yichen was Lu Chang'an's first deceased person in this life to confirm his voice and form a true dan.
Although their friendship is very ordinary.
In addition, there is also Zhang Tieshan, but there has been no news of him over the years.
The difficulty of a true elixir is too much higher than a fake elixir.
In many Immortal Cities, False Dan real people can be seen from time to time, but True Dan is very hard to come into contact with.
......
Shen Bixin was depressed and quickly said goodbye.
Lu Changan knew that this was because he had exposed her scars.
But he really didn't do it on purpose.
Lu Chang'an knew that Shen Bixin's life had been so twisted for nearly twenty years.
"Fellow Daoist Shen take care."
Lu Changan watched Shen Bixin's thin figure, covered by loose robes and bucket hat, fly out of Autumn Wind Island.
Shen Bixin's visit to hide her identity was because she was worried that Mr. Wang's matter would implicate Lu Changan.
According to her, Mr. Wang has been under intense pursuit for years. Though he wasn't wanted by the Chamber of Commerce, some of the Chamber's forces cooperated with the Demon Cult in secret. In recent years, the wind has loosened up a lot, and the pursuit has been greatly reduced.
Mr. Wang has recovered most of his cultivation, which has given him a chance to catch his breath.
Seven days later.
Lu Chang'an declared that he was in seclusion, and left a shadowy aura simulated by the "Illusion of Truth Talisman" in the secret room.
With the help of the Earth Rock Mouse's ability to escape, he left the Xia Clan in Qingsha Bay without realizing it.
If Lu Chang'an had avoided dealing with Mr. Wang under his real identity before the Rock Mouse was promoted to the third level, he would have been able to avoid the situation with Mr. Wang.
After all, it involves the upper echelons of the Liang Clan.
Nowadays, there are fewer concerns.
With the attraction of the top grade spirit wood of the third rank, he didn't mind meeting with Mr. Wang.
......
Cloud Smoke Immortal City, Immortal Seeking Mansion Inn.
This was the place where Lu Chang'an and the downtrodden Duke Wang first met in the Jing Country.
However, Mr. Wang had no idea of Lu Chang'an's identity at that time.
The Immortal Seeking Mansion's formation restrictions can at best only impede a False Pill Realist's divine sense from probing.
This could not stop Lu Changan, who possessed the Nine Seal Tablet, and with the added strength of his soul imprint from his previous life, his True Dan level of divine sense quickly probed the reality.
"This Mr. Wang has been hunted down for a long time, but he has learned to be cautious."
Lu Chang'an realized that in the guest room where the Immortal Seeking Mansion had agreed to meet, there was also a shadow left behind by an illusionary talisman.
The real Mr. Wang, pretending to be a servant of the inn, was secretly keeping an eye on the guest room.
Lu Changan confirmed that there was no ambush around the Immortal Seeking Mansion.
The highest cultivator living in the inn is a False Pill Realist, who is swimming in the water with a pair of twin female cultivators.
Lu Changan did not follow the rhythm of Mr. Wang.
He opened a superior guest room in the Immortal Seeking Mansion, then walked over to his face and asked Eunuch Wang to come and serve him in his room.
"Kid, come to the grand master's room for a massage and back pounding! Serve well, and the spirit stone reward will not be small."
Wang Gongzi pretending to be a servant, slightly confused, looked at the tiger-backed bearded man in front of him.
Nearby servants and maids couldn't help but feel a chill in their hearts as they watched the small-armed, thin-legged Prince Wang being pulled by the bearded man into the upper class guest room.
The first class rooms in the Immortal Seeking Mansion are in a single courtyard.
In the room, Lu Chang'an and Mr. Wang were staring at each other.
"Guest, you are......"
"That's right, I am the person you want to see."
Lu Changan's figure's breath changed and transformed into his original appearance.
"I, Wang Feng, have met Master Lu Fu."
Mr. Wang removed his turban and arched his hand in salute, his face blurred for a while, presenting a handsome man's face with sharp angles.
This was a completely different image from the arrogant young man with a greasy head and a powdered face on the Nine Stars Chamber of Commerce's spirit ship.
The other party definitely didn't show his true face at that time, and even his surname was fake.
Lu Changan didn't know what the real image of the original Mr. Wang was.
But after more than ten years of ups and downs, a normal person's temperament will change.
"Mr. Wang, there is one thing Lu does not know, please enlighten me."
Lu Changan took the initiative and took the lead to speak, secretly observing Mr. Wang's state.
"Rune Master Lu please ask."
Wang Feng's attitude was humble, without the slightest hint of the arrogance of a true disciple of the Li Huo Palace, the grandson of an Elder.
"I heard Fellow Daoist Shen say that Mr. Wang wants to return to the Leaving Fire Palace in Liang? Nowadays, the Liang cultivation world is in an unfavorable war situation, chaotic and dangerous. This is not a good choice."
Thinking differently, Lu Chang'an would definitely not want to return to Liang unless there was something and its importance that he had no choice but to do so.
Upon hearing this, Wang Feng smiled brightly:
"Rune Master Lu has a point! Just a short while ago, I changed my mind and decided not to return to Liang!"
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