Immortality begins with Becoming an Alchemy Grandmaster

Chapter 1663: Chapter 612

Luo Chen observed closely; the robes of those Foundation Establishment True Cultivators waiting outside the hall all bore certain emblems or insignias.

They were either family crests or sect emblems.

Though in the Ten Thousand Immortals Gathering, there were three Nascent Soul True Masters who commanded their own forces, the insignias of those forces were not the ones currently visible.

Wu Ruofu cautiously explained from the side: ”These people should be the prodigies of Divine Yuan City, coming to the Three Oceans Defensive Line to gain experience through Elder Sang’s connections.”

”Prodigies?”

Luo Chen raised an eyebrow.

His sharp gaze swept across the crowd.

As expected, most of these Foundation Establishment cultivators looked youthful, and even those appearing older were merely middle-aged.

Although cultivators could use Spirit Qi to enhance their appearance during daily cultivation, doing so expended Spirit Power—a practice avoided by those who aspire to Longevity.

If an entire group appeared so youthful, it could only mean they were genuinely young.

Wu Ruofu nodded, ”Indeed, as the ongoing war between the righteous and demonic factions grows increasingly chaotic, some forces compelled to participate are sending promising talents from their sects to neutral parties for safety.”

”After all, you can’t put all your eggs in one basket. And Divine Yuan City, being the base camp of the Tianyuan Business Alliance with the backing of the Tianyuan Daoist Sect of Zhongzhou, is currently the safest place in the North Sea.”

”Over the years, the number of talented young cultivators in Divine Yuan City has steadily increased. Initially, I felt quite embarrassed to see so many individuals in my realm who were decades, even centuries younger than me. But after encountering them more frequently, I became numb to it.”

As he spoke, his tone carried a hint of wistfulness.

However, Luo Chen did not respond.

This was because his gaze had fallen upon a particular individual.

Wang An, a Foundation Establishment Disciple of Langya Mountain.

Back then, when Luo Chen traveled from the southeast to Giant Whale Port, it was on a Langya Mountain vessel, with Wang An being the one who brought him aboard.

Yet it was unexpected to find Wang An here at the Three Oceans Defensive Line as well.

This individual was quite young, no older than his early thirties at the time; even now, he would be barely over forty.

However, his realm had astonishingly advanced to the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment!

Truly deserving of being one of Langya Mountain’s carefully selected prodigies—his cultivation progress soared rapidly in the absence of worldly distractions.

Nonetheless...

”I faintly recall that the elders of Langya Mountain had instructed them to focus on cultivation in Divine Yuan City, reserving their strength until the war between the righteous and demonic factions ends. Yet now, rather than staying put, they’ve ventured to the Three Oceans Defensive Line to engage in so-called training. One wonders whether they are overly confident in their abilities or recklessly ignorant.”

Luo Chen muttered quietly to himself before choosing to stride into the Quyang Grand Hall without hesitation.

Behind him, numerous gazes trailed his figure.

Once he entered, faint murmurs akin to the buzz of insects arose.

Most of the discussions revolved around the fact that Luo Chen was one of the three Golden Core guardians of Quyang Island, spoken with utmost reverence.

Among the crowd, a white-robed Wang An stared at Luo Chen’s retreating back in puzzlement, his naturally keen intuition picking up a trace of familiarity.

As though he had encountered an old acquaintance?

But how could he possibly have a connection to anyone within the Ten Thousand Immortals Gathering?

”Junior Brother Wang, what’s wrong?”

A senior from Langya Mountain patted him on the shoulder.

Wang An remained silent.

The senior chuckled, ”Don’t worry. The Quyang region belongs to the second defensive line; it’s not particularly dangerous.”

Wang An snapped back to attention and asked in confusion, ”Wasn’t the plan to go to the First Defense Line in the Liuyang Sea Domain to hunt Demon Beasts? I heard it’s been quite unstable there.”

The senior shrugged. ”If it were peaceful, how would we gain experience? These years of arduous cultivation have advanced our levels greatly, but only usable power counts as genuine strength—locking oneself away is absolutely inadvisable. It’s in perilous places that our skills are honed!”

As he spoke, he blinked playfully.

”Junior Brother, you wouldn’t want our sect to spend so much effort cultivating us only to turn us into mere showpieces, right?”

Fighting Demon Beasts not only sharpened spell battle techniques but also avoided the crafty scheming of human cultivators.

In other words, it was an opportunity to safely gain combat experience without excessive peril.

This was a longstanding tradition in the North Sea Cultivation World—sect family disciples with minor achievements in their realms would venture to hunt Demon Beasts in groups.

Only now, instead of going to the outer seas, they gathered here for the Ten Thousand Immortals Gathering.

Yet Wang An’s heart remained unsettled, uncertain whether it was due to Luo Chen’s earlier figure or his own vague unease.

”Langya Mountain’s orders weren’t like this. How will we account for this afterward?”

The senior grew somewhat impatient with his junior brother’s fretting.

”Don’t forget we paid a hefty price to secure Elder Sang’s connections—he’ll surely protect us when it matters. Besides, we’re not the only cultivators here from Langya Mountain; there are others as well. Do you see them worrying?”

Wang An opened his mouth, sweeping his gaze across the crowd. Most faces were filled with anticipation and excitement, brightened with a flush of eagerness.

Each and every person seemed ready to spring into action!

...

Within the hall.

A female voice tinged with restrained anger echoed softly through the space.

”These individuals are not cultivators of the Ten Thousand Immortals Gathering. How can we casually bring them into Quyang Island’s central grounds? Elder Sang, I’ll need an explanation from you!”

”Lu Shanjun, why so irritable? It’s not as though other forces’ cultivators haven’t operated along the Three Oceans Defensive Line before.”

”That was during wartime—they were reinforcements from various factions. How can that compare to now? Moreover, the central grounds of the three defensive lines have always prohibited external cultivators from entering. Elder Sang, you’ve been part of the Ten Thousand Immortals Gathering long before me; surely, you’re aware of this!”