A Loose Cultivator's Path to Longevity

”Die!”

A wave of green light shot out, accompanied by countless roots and vines that lashed out from all directions. These were the monster tree’s Innate Divine Techniques, clearly meant to tear Lü Zhong to shreds.

Lü Zhong responded with composure.

He unleashed his Golden Devourer Sword and Magic Sword Skill simultaneously, hacking at the attacking vines and mowing them down like leeks. He also reactivated his Water Pattern Shield, blocking the incoming green light.

At the same time, a Spirit Ring on his hand began to glow.

BUZZ.

A rainbow-like pillar of light shot out, crossing a distance of over a hundred feet and striking the monster tree’s core. The Earth Wood Sharp Spear was incredibly potent, piercing straight through the trunk that was as thick as three people holding hands.

Its movements immediately froze.

PLOP. PLOP. The vines drooped lifelessly.

Seeing this, Lü Zhong did not let down his guard.

He cautiously scanned the area with his Divine Sense. Only after confirming that the tree’s core was merely dissipating Wood Spiritual Qi and he could no longer sense any trace of a Soul Spirit did he walk over.

After a thorough search, he ended up with a piece of the tree’s core, about the size of a fist.

He also found a Gold Token with the characters for ”Locust Tree Slave” carved on the back. The front depicted a black palace.

’If I follow this clue, I might be able to trace the origin of the Black Muzhu.’ Lü Zhong committed this thought to memory. After confirming that the monster tree truly had no Storage Bag, he chose a direction and left.

Not long after he left, an ancient tree that had been under the monster tree’s control suddenly began to tremble.

A moment later, a ”mini monster tree” rolled out, clutching a seven-colored bag.

’To develop Divine Sense during the Qi Refining Stage... he must be a genius of the Human Race. I absolutely cannot let him live!’

The Locust Tree Slave muttered to itself, then its branches quickly stretched out and grew. Its appearance changed drastically, and in moments, it had transformed into a Conical Hat Wanderer, preparing to return and report this news.

Just then, a laugh came from behind the Locust Tree Slave.

It was Lü Zhong, who had returned at some unknown point, watching it with a smile.

Lü Zhong was always cautious. He felt that killing the Tree Spirit had been too easy; it didn’t have the strength a Late-stage Qi Refining Spirit Monster should possess. So, he’d had a thought and, just as he suspected, had successfully tricked his opponent into revealing itself.

The Locust Tree Slave knew it couldn’t escape. It immediately fell silent and began to fight Lü Zhong.

With his Divine Sense, Lü Zhong had an absolute informational advantage. He killed the Locust Tree Slave in short order. This time, he not only obtained its Storage Bag but also a crystalline tree core the size of a pigeon’s egg.

’A thousand-year tree core?’

He stared at the core in his hand, momentarily unsure.

He placed it in a jade box, sealed it with a few sheets of Talisman Paper, and carefully put it into his Storage Bag. Then, he inspected the new Storage Bag he had just acquired and was immediately met with another huge surprise.

The items inside weren’t particularly valuable; the surprise came from the Storage Bag itself.

’Tsk, tsk, a Storage Bag with fifteen cubic meters of space!’

Lü Zhong had three Storage Bags on him, but their combined capacity was only ten cubic meters. No wonder he was so delighted.

Because he had always invested his resources into his cultivation, all his Storage Bags were spoils of war. He had been using his small Storage Bags for several years and had long wanted to get a new one. Now, his wish had finally come true.

There was nothing more to be said. He simply tied it to his waist.

After doing all this, he activated his Light Body Skill and hurried toward the Sect.

A long while later, to be on the safe side, Lü Zhong turned back again.

Seeing that the Locust Tree Slave was truly dead, he finally left with peace of mind.

...

「Half a month later.」

After some investigation, Lü Zhong learned the origins of the Black Muzhu and the pattern on the Token.

First, the Black Muzhu.

As he had guessed, the bead was indeed a Lower-grade Spiritual Artifact.

Spiritual Artifacts, like Magical Artifacts, were also subdivided. They were categorized into Lower, Middle, and Upper Grade. The difference between them lay in the number of Divine Techniques they possessed. For example, the Black Muzhu, being a Lower-grade Spiritual Artifact, had only one Divine Technique: ”Qi Absorption.”

The Qi Absorption Divine Technique could draw Spiritual Qi into the bead, thereby enhancing its power.

As for why Lü Zhong’s attempts to infuse it with his Spiritual Power had failed, it was because the Black Muzhu could only contain one type of Spiritual Qi at a time. If another type of Spiritual Qi was already inside, any attempt to transfer more Spiritual Power would fail.

Understanding the specific reason, he instantly had an idea for a solution.

Lü Zhong just needed to find a Sacrificial Refining Technique for a Spiritual Artifact, perform the ritual, and he would be able to use the Black Muzhu.

However, the bead’s greatest function was not as a Spiritual Artifact, but as one of the keys to a Secret Realm called ”Chenyuan Palace.” Owning it was equivalent to having a spot to enter.

According to calculations from ancient texts, the next time Chenyuan Palace would open was in twenty years.

After reading the exploration records of Chenyuan Palace in the texts, Lü Zhong’s heart pounded with excitement. The treasures inside were truly numerous. He couldn’t help but think, ’The Secret Realm only opens in twenty years. Perhaps by then, I will have broken through to the Foundation Establishment Stage. When that time comes, I might be able to go and explore.’

But for now, it was best to use the Black Muzhu as a trump card.

As long as the Black Muzhu was filled with Spiritual Qi, even if his cultivation had not reached the Foundation Establishment Stage, it could unleash considerable power. It might not be enough to fight a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, but against a Qi Refining cultivator—even one at the Qi Refining Ninth Layer—it was an absolute superweapon.

Therefore, Lü Zhong made finding a Sacrificial Refining Technique his main goal for the near future.

Then there was the origin of the Locust Tree Slave.

The Gold Token he found on it came from an ancient Demon Dao faction known as the ”Black Corpse Hall.”

According to ancient records, the Black Corpse Hall first appeared in Central Earth and, over the long course of time, gradually spread throughout the entire Cultivation Realm. It was a Demon Dao lineage skilled in Refining Corpse and Corpse Nourishing techniques, and it had caused a great deal of turmoil in the past.

Lü Zhong guessed that the Demon Cultivators causing chaos in Yongling, Yanling Mountain, and the Lanyue Three Domains very likely came from the Black Corpse Hall.

Even if they weren’t trained by the Hall, their actions were certainly related to a Cultivation Technique that had originated from it.

Lü Zhong didn’t plan to hide this information; he prepared to report it.

As for how to report it, he would naturally do it through his ’convenient’ master.

Thinking of this, he changed direction and headed toward the front mountain area.

Along the way, he passed a training ground where many disciples were practicing what looked like some kind of battle formation. Their combined attacks could shatter a ten-foot-tall green stone into dust.

’So this is the power of a battle formation?’ Lü Zhong committed this scene to memory.

He crossed a series of covered bridges and soon arrived at his ’convenient’ master’s cave residence.

He waited for a while, but there was no response.

’He’s either out or in seclusion.’ Lü Zhong had made the trip for nothing. He had no choice but to walk to the cliff’s edge, summon the Magic Skill Spirit Wind to protect himself, and prepare to head to Wangxian Town at the foot of the mountain.

Yesterday, Li Hejun had sent a message with someone, saying she had something to discuss and requested a meeting.

...

「Wangxian Town, printing workshop.」

KNOCK. KNOCK...

Lü Zhong’s knuckles tapped on the table. The rhythm was erratic, revealing his inner turmoil.

His gaze shifted to Li Hejun. Her appearance had changed quite a bit.

The lovely young girl he had seen before had suddenly matured into a young woman, as if she had aged four or five years in an instant. He estimated that in a little more time, her figure might blossom into that of a true beauty.

The cause of this was a fruit she had eaten a few days prior.

’Has her fortunate encounter arrived? A pity it’s a fortune a mortal cannot bear...’

Such things were not uncommon. Many Spirit Fruits were priceless treasures to cultivators, but if consumed by a mortal, they could have unpredictable and severe consequences, the most common of which was exploding and dying.

According to Li Hejun, the day she saw the fruit, it was as if she was being controlled. An irresistible, intense craving welled up inside her, and all her usual caution vanished as she swallowed the fruit in one gulp.

Whether her words were true or not remained to be seen.

Lü Zhong scanned her with his Divine Sense and confirmed that there was nothing wrong with her Divine Soul. Her current condition was equivalent to her growth rate accelerating, roughly ten times the normal speed. Based on the average lifespan of a mortal, she probably wouldn’t even live for ten years.

’If this were fed to a Spiritual Beast, it would absolutely be a precious treasure capable of influencing the Sect’s destiny.’

But now, it had become a deadly poison instead.

He glanced at Li Hejun. She noticed his gaze, and a blush spread across her cheeks as she shyly lowered her head, not daring to meet his eyes.

’Mortals... all they think about is procreation!’

If Li Hejun knew what he had just been thinking, she would be terrified.

To be honest, for a fleeting moment, he had truly considered refining her alive. By doing so, he might be able to extract a great deal of the Spirit Fruit’s medicinal power, which could then be fed to a young beast with immense growth potential, possibly raising an extremely powerful Spiritual Beast.

Using it as a guardian Spiritual Beast would surely ensure a smooth path for his future cultivation.

The chances of success were not small.

After careful consideration, Lü Zhong decided to give up the idea.

He wasn’t a cold-blooded and heartless person. Li Hejun had helped him quite a bit; even if her contributions weren’t great, she had put in the effort. As long as she hadn’t done anything wrong, he couldn’t bring himself to do something so cold-blooded.

’Hmm, what if I were to lure her into making a mistake...’

The moment this thought appeared, Lü Zhong’s expression changed abruptly.

’This is bad!’

He immediately realized something was wrong with his state of mind.

Before, such a thought would have never crossed his mind!