A Loose Cultivator's Path to Longevity

「The Northern Great Forest Sea.」

Ancient, towering trees stretched as far as the eye could see.

A group of cultivators had gathered in a clearing beneath the trees and started a bonfire.

The Forest Sea was fraught with danger, so a moment of rest was rare. Everyone kept busy.

Some cultivators, their faces green from severe poisoning, had already taken expensive Detoxification Pills and were now meditating to purge the toxin. Others had taken out bottles of secret-formula oil and begun their daily maintenance on the Magical Artifacts they treasured more than their own lives.

Still others had simply set up a large pot and were cooking Spirit Rice and spiritual flesh.

It wasn’t that they lacked Fasting Pills, nor did they find them unpalatable.

Instead, these few just wanted a bite of something hot and fresh.

Only then did they feel that risking their lives in the Forest Sea was worthwhile.

”Damn wench, is the food ready yet?!”

”Stop dawdling. We have to get back on the road soon.”

”Yeah, that’s right!”

With a moment of downtime, many of them started grumbling and cursing.

In front of the large pot, a seductive-looking Female Cultivator planted her hands on her hips, pointed at one of the men, and let him have it. ”I’ve been busting my ass since we stopped, without a moment’s rest! It’s bad enough you lot of ’great masters’ don’t lift a finger to help, but all you know how to do is nag, nag, nag! You really think I owe you something?!”

Nearby, a plainly dressed and average-looking Female Cultivator watched the scene, finding it both helpless and hilarious.

Ever since Shui Sujun joined their team, arguments like this had been a constant occurrence. This wasn’t even the most heated it got; the truly nasty insults were still to come.

She had lived for over fifty years, and the first time she’d heard such language, she had been utterly stunned.

Sure enough, someone decided to dredge up the past for a bit of entertainment.

”If you ask me, Water Lady, you should go back to your old profession. Ten Spirit Stones—no, how about twenty Spirit Stones a go? That’s double the price of the top girl at Yingchun Tower in the Green Jade Market. They say you should keep the good stuff for your own people. Instead of letting those pretty boys get a bargain, I say you should give your brothers here a treat!”

A pockmarked cultivator spoke up, immediately drawing whoops and hollers from the others.

”Cheng San Pockmark, you impotent piece of shit! You think the likes of you are worthy of sleeping with me?” Shui Sujun’s fiery nature instantly resurfaced, her verbal tirade at full blast. ”I’ll tell you what, even if you were the last man on earth, it still wouldn’t be your turn!”

”Oh, don’t be like that. Weren’t you a concubine before? And for the famous Master of Lintao Pavilion, I hear. We’ve all been benefiting from his good fortune lately. If the Chengde Commerce Association hadn’t set up all these supply stations, where would we find missions that pay this well?” Cheng San said with a sleazy grin, deliberately poking at a sore spot.

”Is that right? Come on, brother, tell us what happened...” someone piped up, their curiosity piqued.

Just as Cheng San was about to speak, he saw a cold glint of light fly toward him.

”THUNK!”

A cleaver stuck into the ground before him, barely half an inch from his crotch.

Shui Sujun’s face was a mask of ice. She wished she could kill the loose-lipped bastard right then and there.

But for all her fury, regret washed over her once again.

’If only I’d been a little more obedient back then,’ she thought, ’if my attitude had been just a little better, I wouldn’t have been kicked out the moment the contract ended.’

’Sure, she might earn thirty to fifty Spirit Stones a month now, but she had to risk her life and limb for every single one.’

’How could that compare to her time at Lintao Pavilion, where all she had to do was accompany him in his daily cultivation to have a steady supply of Pills and access to a Spiritual Land?’

’Hmph, I refuse to believe I can’t find someone better than you!’ Shui Sujun thought defiantly, but deep down, her confidence wavered. After all, a cultivator like Lü Zhong was one in a million in Changchun Immortal City.

’Even if she did find someone, they probably wouldn’t look twice at her.’

’More likely, they’d only be interested in her Yin Yuan Body, wanting to use her as a Furnace Cauldron for their own cultivation.’

Just then, the sound of carriage wheels approached.

Everyone turned to look.

It was a massive caravan.

The caravan flew the banner of the Chengde Commerce Association. It was flanked at the front and back by teams of cultivators riding Spirit Tigers. In the center was a massive carriage, six zhang long and two zhang high, pulled by three huge Azure-Scaled Bulls. Each of these Spiritual Beasts exuded an aura equivalent to that of a Late-stage Qi Refining cultivator.

”*Damn*, what a spectacle! Is that the Chairman of the Chengde Commerce Association in person?”

”Looks like it. Man, how can the gap between people be so damn huge!”

Cheng San looked away and snorted. ”She’s one of heaven’s chosen, born with a silver spoon in her mouth. She’s completely out of our league. What makes you think you can compare yourself to Chairman Yu?”

Beside them, Shui Sujun stared at the slowly passing caravan, and suddenly froze.

Her gaze passed through the carriage window to the intimate couple inside, and tears began to stream from the corners of her eyes.

She was filled with so much regret!

...

Inside the carriage, Yu Feng’Er glanced curiously out the window at a team of cultivators the Commerce Association had hired to scout the route.

Her gaze swept past Shui Sujun, who was standing by the large pot.

She recognized this Female Cultivator—wasn’t she her husband’s former concubine? Covering her mouth to hide a smile, she teased, ”Darling, is that an old flame of yours out there playing cook? How could you be so heartless? Why not invite her up for a chat and a little... ah!”

But before she could finish, Lü Zhong gave her a firm slap somewhere.

As Lü Zhong savored the memory of the soft, trembling flesh under his palm, he said, ”She was just a tool for my cultivation practice. I never touched her, not even once. How could she be an old flame?”

’He was the great Master of Lintao Pavilion,’ he thought. ’There was no need to grovel for a mere Yin Yuan Spirit Body.’

’There were plenty of other Female Cultivators in the world.’

”How are the supply stations coming along?” Lü Zhong asked, changing the subject.

”We’ve been spending Spirit Stones hand over fist, so everything is proceeding very smoothly.” Yu Feng’Er’s face lit up as she spoke, her voice full of excitement. ”The supply line to Green Jade Market is complete, and the one from there to the Bone-Transforming Abyss is halfway done. If nothing unexpected happens, we can start setting up the forward base at the Bone-Transforming Abyss by the end of the year. All we have to do is wait in Green Jade Market...”