A Loose Cultivator's Path to Longevity

Shuini wasn’t just talking; she was taking action.

Lü Zhong struggled to refuse this shameless, morally questionable intimacy.

’I have a Dao Companion, after all.’

”Feng’Er can discuss the specific details of our collaboration with you, Master. As for now...” Lü Zhong glanced at the serving girl who had just walked in. She nodded in their direction.

”Alright, let’s eat first.”

After speaking, he realized his choice of words was off.

’It was all Shuini’s fault!’

He rested at Lintao Pavilion for over half a month.

During that time, he shared many tender moments with Yu Feng’er.

He occasionally exchanged cultivation insights with his master, Shuini, and both found it fruitful.

Once the Commerce Association had prepared the special Spiritual Objects from the Southern Barbarian lands and the materials for repairing the Transmission Array, Lü Zhong bid farewell to Yu Feng’er and Shuini and set out once more for the Northern Great Forest Sea.

He passed through the Green Jade Market and didn’t forget to restock his supplies.

He soon arrived at the Poisonous Insect Valley.

The tunnel he had dug before was now occupied by a new Insect Swarm, forcing Lü Zhong to spend time clearing it out.

Upon entering the Underground Palace, he began to reinforce its Defense.

The Transmission Array was of utmost importance and could not be damaged in the slightest.

Lü Zhong had no desire to travel to the Western Realm only to have to detour through Central Earth to return, nor did he want his hopes for Nascent Soul Formation to be dashed. Thus, he had specifically purchased a Tier Three Array to protect the entire Underground Palace.

After setting up the Array, he began to sprinkle Insect Repelling Powder.

He also fumigated the nearby soil, altering it into a type that Poisonous Insects despised most.

By the time he finished, more than a month had passed.

After confirming that the area around the Underground Palace had become a Restricted Area for Poisonous Insects, Lü Zhong finally began repairing the Long-distance Transmission Array.

The greatest difficulty in repairing the Transmission Array lay in restoring the damaged Prohibitions.

Fortunately, the principles behind this Ancient Transmission Array’s formation were similar to modern ones, also being a system composed of multiple units.

He could work in sections, repairing and testing them one by one.

The Gray Mist Space proved useful once again.

Within the replayed scenes, Lü Zhong could use his Divine Sense to interfere with reality and perform simulated repairs on the Transmission Array. This allowed him to confirm if his repair plan was correct, saving a great deal of time.

Even so, by the time he had completely repaired the Transmission Array, nearly half a year had passed.

「On this day.」

As the final Spirit Stone was inserted, the Transmission Array immediately let out a low HUM and erupted with a blinding Spiritual Light. Fortunately, the layers of earth provided insulation, so he didn’t have to worry about being discovered by anyone outside.

The phenomenon lasted for one ancient hour before slowly dissipating.

Soon, the light from the Transmission Array softened.

Lü Zhong performed a Technique Mantra, and the feedback he received indicated that both ends were now connected.

”To be safe, I should run a test first.”

The Transmission Array had a return function.

If an object could be sent over and then successfully returned, it would prove that the Transmission Array was working properly.

There was no time to delay; he began the experiment immediately.

After a moment’s thought, he went outside and caught a cage of Poisonous Insects.

He infused the Teleportation Order with Magical Power and then placed it on the cage.

Stepping off the Transmission Array, Lü Zhong performed the Technique Mantra.

BUZZ!

The low humming sound suddenly grew more intense.

Then, the space within the Transmission Array’s range began to blur.

It lasted for only an instant.

The cage and the Teleportation Order vanished without a trace.

He waited patiently for a month.

Only then did Lü Zhong issue the return command.

The space at the Transmission Array blurred once more. After a flash of brilliant light, the cage and the Teleportation Order reappeared. The Poisonous Insects inside were unharmed, merely lethargic after a month without food.

Upon careful inspection, he saw that the mark he had left on it had not been tampered with.

”The Transmission Array is fully functional. Next up is...” Lü Zhong’s gaze shifted to the array, and his usually calm heart couldn’t help but grow tense.

In the ancient texts, the Western Realm was always described as a chaotic and lawless place. He was certain to encounter many troubles there.

He replaced the forty-nine Mid-grade Spirit Stones, which had been depleted of their Spiritual Qi.

He took a deep breath.

Slowly, he stepped onto it.

His figure blurred and then vanished on the spot.

...

BUZZ! The low humming gradually faded.

Lü Zhong fought back the discomfort in his body and assumed a defensive stance, immediately surveying his surroundings. He found himself in another Underground Palace, just as pitch-black as the one he had left.

The air was foul, not fresh in the slightest.

He threw out several Strong Light Talismans.

He began his inspection.

Judging by the thick layer of dust on the ground, no one had entered this place for a very long time.

He once again used the Gray Mist Space to observe the surrounding five hundred zhang.

The results showed that this Transmission Array was located inside a mountain. Outside was a stretch of desolate mountain ridges with a pitifully low concentration of Spiritual Qi. It didn’t seem like a place cultivators would frequent.

Only then did Lü Zhong finally relax.

The entrance to this Underground Palace was also blocked by collapsed rock and earth. Fortunately, clearing it was not difficult, and he managed to get outside in less than half an ancient hour.

The sky here was a dark, crimson red.

As far as the eye could see, there were only twisted, bizarre trees.

They were completely different from the flora of the Southern Barbarian lands. Not a single green leaf could be seen on their branches. Instead, their surfaces were covered in strange, scarlet fungi, and some of their canopies even bloomed with crimson flowers.

When he tried to refine the Spiritual Qi here, an expression of horror appeared on Lü Zhong’s face.

”The Spiritual Qi here can actually corrode a cultivator’s Divine Soul?”

He could clearly feel his own Divine Soul being corroded.

This sort of thing usually only happened when absorbing negative types of Spiritual Qi, such as Death Spiritual Qi, Corpse Spiritual Qi, or Blood Spiritual Qi.

Logically, there shouldn’t be any problem when absorbing nature’s spiritual energy.

’Something’s wrong with this place!’ Lü Zhong thought.

The situation in the Western Realm was completely different from what was recorded in the ancient texts.

A possibility occurred to him, and he gave it a try. He discovered that the Spirit Forging Fire could eliminate this corrosion. As long as he incinerated the corroded True Essence, he could avoid being affected by the corruption.