A Loose Cultivator's Path to Longevity

After two years away, Wangxian Town had changed quite a bit.

Staring at the plaque before the town gate, which bore the two words ”Rising Sun,” Lü Zhong couldn’t help but feel how much things had changed. The traces of the old Heling Sect were fading. In a few more years, he suspected, there would be nothing familiar left.

He soon arrived at the workshop, which was still operating as usual.

A massive waterwheel, driven by the current, turned a series of gears that powered the hydraulic printing press at full capacity. From time to time, he could hear the shouts of the workers inside as they operated the machinery.

However, Lü Zhong didn’t go inside. Instead, he concealed his presence and went around to the backyard.

In the courtyard, Li Hejun was watering the flowers. A worried expression clouded her features, and she looked utterly dejected. She didn’t even notice the stray strands of hair that had fallen across her temples as she periodically glanced up at the sky.

Suddenly, she sensed something.

She turned her head and found Lü Zhong had appeared by the tea table.

Pulling her into his embrace, Lü Zhong asked about the item Shuini had left behind.

Shuini, who had once given her the Charming Maiden Technique, naturally knew about Li Hejun. Therefore, if she wanted to leave something for Lü Zhong in Wangxian Town, she would most likely have entrusted it to Hejun.

Hearing Lü Zhong’s question, Li Hejun reluctantly pulled away from his embrace, went inside, and brought out a jade box.

This was the jade box Shuini had left. She had also left a message, saying her ”dear disciple” would be able to figure out how to open it.

’Figure out a way to open it?’

Lü Zhong took the box. It was seamlessly sealed, and even with his Qi Observation Skill, he couldn’t detect any trace of Spiritual Light. Its surface was perfectly smooth and pristine, looking as if it had been carved from a single, solid piece of jade.

After a moment of contemplation, he decided against trying to open it rashly.

Lü Zhong had a rough idea of Shuini’s intention in leaving such a box.

’Evidently, after the Heling Sect fractured, she must have felt there was no one left in the Sect she could trust. That would explain why she left such a difficult-to-open secret box. If someone tried to break it open with brute force, the contents would probably self-destruct.’

After careful consideration, Lü Zhong tried dripping blood onto the box, but there was no reaction.

He then tried channeling Spiritual Power into it, with the same result.

’Knowing Master’s style, she must have been extremely thorough. She would never allow an outsider to open this easily. It must require a method that only I can perform—something others can’t replicate.’

’That’s it! There’s only one thing it could be...’

An idea flashed through his mind, and he extended his Divine Sense toward the jade box.

Divine Sense was unique. It originated from the same source as one’s Divine Soul, and its distinctive aura could never be perfectly replicated, no matter how close the imitation. For this reason, it was often used as a means of verification.

The moment his Divine Sense touched it, the surface of the jade box rippled with Spiritual Light, just as he’d expected.

In just a moment, a thin seam appeared, and the lid separated from the body of the box. It was no longer a single, fused piece.

He lifted the lid. There wasn’t much inside.

Just a single Spirit Bead and a letter.

Ignoring the Spirit Bead for the moment, Lü Zhong unfolded the letter. The handwriting was clearly Shuini’s. Her calligraphy style, which originated from Central Earth, was highly distinctive; throughout the entire Heling Sect, she was likely the only one who wrote that way.

”To my dear disciple...”

Lü Zhong read every word, finally understanding why Shuini had returned to Central Earth in such a hurry.

’I never imagined Core Formation was so perilous. Even with a Spiritual Object like the Golden Core Pill, Master’s foundation was still damaged when she failed. That’s why she had to rush back to Central Earth to recover!’

In the letter, Shuini had provided an address.

The Immortal Spirit Sect in Dafeng Country.

If he wasn’t mistaken, this was the faction where Shuini’s family resided.

She also stated that if Lü Zhong were to go to the Immortal Spirit Sect, she could arrange for him to become a disciple there.

Reading this, Lü Zhong couldn’t help but feel moved.

”She’s truly a good Master...” he murmured to himself.

After taking a deep breath, his gaze shifted to the Spirit Bead in the box.

According to Shuini’s letter, the bead was called a ”Dao Transmission Bead.” It was a precious vessel for information, a rarity that was difficult to acquire even within a Nascent Soul Sect like the Immortal Spirit Sect.

The Dao Transmission Bead’s function was similar to that of a Jade Scroll, but it could contain a complete inheritance.

Using it was also simple; he just needed to immerse his Divine Sense into it.

Lü Zhong did as instructed, and a joyful expression spread across his face. He had been worried about how he would obtain the subsequent parts of the Flying Star Inheritance’s Cultivation Technique now that the Heling Sect had fallen apart. He never expected that his Master, Shuini, had already planned for this, preparing both the Foundation Establishment Chapter and the Golden Core Chapter for him.

’This way, I won’t have to worry about my Cultivation Technique all the way up to the Nascent Soul Stage.’

He closed his eyes to absorb the information for a moment. Then, he mentally organized and archived the new data within his Gray Mist Space, sealing it away. He decided he would only unseal and study the contents when he reached the appropriate Realm.

A great weight was lifted from his heart, and Lü Zhong felt a sense of relief he had never known before.

The Heling Sect was now a thing of the past, and Shuini, the only person he cared for, was gone. There was nothing left for him here. He decided to sell the printing workshop and move to Lingyue Immortal City, which was under the jurisdiction of the Lingyue Sect.

As a hub where the elites of the region gathered, the competition among cultivators in Lingyue Immortal City was undoubtedly fiercer. However, that also meant cultivation resources were far more abundant. It was said that even Spiritual Objects that aided Core Formation, like the Golden Core Pill, would occasionally appear at auction.

...

「Tuoyang Sect.」

The great hall was brightly lit, yet it seemed unusually deserted. A red-haired, long-bearded cultivator sat on the main seat, and kneeling before him was a younger cultivator.

”Uncle, that Lü Zhong has left the mountain,” the young man said, a hint of greed in his eyes. ”Do you think we should...?”

As the former leading Foundation Establishment disciple of the Heling Sect, Shuini could afford to use a Spiritual Object like the Golden Core Pill for her Core Formation attempt. Her personal wealth was undoubtedly immense, perhaps even rivaling that of a Golden Core Cultivator.