A Loose Cultivator's Path to Longevity

’Another breakthrough...’

Having just opened a new Acupoint, Lü Zhong felt the vast Qi and blood within his body, a look of delight spreading across his face.

With his cultivation progress currently moving at a snail’s pace, only this Body Refining Technique could give him any confidence.

As long as he amassed enough resources, and with the aid of the Gray Mist Space, Lü Zhong could avoid the dangers of breakthroughs and allow his training to advance by leaps and bounds. He finally got to experience what it felt like to be a genius.

’Although opening Acupoints gets more dangerous the further I progress...’

’...with the Gray Mist Space, it won’t be difficult to find the correct path as long as I run enough simulations. I might really be able to open all thirty-six Acupoints and gain a physique that rivals a Flood Dragon’s.’

At this thought, Lü Zhong couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement.

He then reined in his thoughts and began planning his next trip to the Western Realm.

The resources required for Nascent Soul Formation were immense. Unless one was a child of fortune favored by the Celestial Dao, they had to rely on the support of a Sect for even a chance to glimpse the Nascent Soul Dao.

Throughout history, ninety-nine percent of all Nascent Soul True Monarchs had taken this path.

Those who reached Nascent Soul through their own power were exceedingly rare anomalies in the long history of the Cultivation Realm.

As a Loose Cultivator, Lü Zhong couldn’t dream of receiving such support. He could only find another way. Fostering the Chengde Commerce Association wasn’t enough; he also needed to make frequent trips to the Western Realm to earn more cultivation resources.

A dignified Golden Core Master, constantly rushing about.

And all for what? For a single chance at Nascent Soul Formation.

’The Celestial Net Eye and the Spirit-Hosted Puppet are ready. As long as I act with caution, my safety should be better guaranteed. It’s a shame the Spirit Rice production can’t keep up, or I could profit even more from each trip...’

Lü Zhong thought with regret.

Only after in-depth research did he truly understand the importance of Spirit Rice.

This item served as a cultivator’s staple food, acting as a cultivation stabilizer. After all, if one’s Spiritual Qi intake was insufficient for a long time, their cultivation would regress. Therefore, one needed to consume Spirit Rice from time to time to ensure their cultivation level didn’t fall.

The supply of Spirit Rice could often affect the stability of an entire region.

Its production, in turn, was limited by the Spiritual Qi of Spirit Veins.

Just as Spirit Medicines required medicinal fields, Spirit Rice needed a corresponding number of Spirit Fields to be cultivated.

Therefore, the outflow of Spirit Rice was strictly controlled by the various Sect Clans. Usually, only after the internal needs of a faction were met would any surplus be sold.

And yet, each time, he was selling thirty to fifty thousand catties at once.

Naturally, it was extremely difficult for the Commerce Association to acquire that much.

Lü Zhong stopped dwelling on the matter.

’I’ll just bring more Spirit Stones over and purchase some of the Western Realm’s local specialties instead.’

It was just that by doing this, he couldn’t make a profit on both legs of the journey, which left him feeling a bit dissatisfied. Still, for his own safety, a few extra trips were nothing.

He had a persistent feeling that once his identity was exposed...

...he might really be hunted down by a Nascent Soul from the True Central Sect.

After all, the Western Realm currently resembled a grand game of chess. His, Lü Zhong’s, arbitrage activities could seriously affect the game’s direction, so it wouldn’t be surprising if he were seen as a thorn in their side.

...

「Three days later.」

Lü Zhong bid farewell to Yu Feng’Er.

She was the same as always, needing to be comforted at length.

To be cautious, he first flew out toward the Outer Sea after leaving the city. This was to prevent anyone with ill intentions from guessing his destination. Only after he was thousands of miles away from Changchun Immortal City did he turn north toward the Northern Great Forest Sea.

The Great Forest Sea was still thick with poisonous miasma, but traces of cultivators had become more frequent.

As a result, the conflict between Demon Beasts and cultivators grew sharper by the day.

There had already been multiple incidents of Demon Beast packs attacking cultivator encampments. As the development of the Northern Great Forest Sea continued, such incidents were bound to become more and more common.

There were even cases of multiple Demon Beast packs joining forces to attack cultivator encampments.

’Could this lead to a beast tide?’

Lü Zhong thought that it wasn’t impossible.

He didn’t dwell on it, because there was no point in figuring it out.

Although the Chengde Commerce Association had brought this issue to the forefront, the root cause lay in the cultivators’ desire for Longevity. In the struggle for Spiritual Objects and Spiritual Lands, the conflict between cultivators and Demon Beasts was bound to reach a fever pitch once again, just like the pioneering wars a million years ago.

A journey of tens of thousands of li was but a single day’s travel for him.

He did, of course, encounter attacks along the way.

The Northern Great Forest Sea was vast and boundless, home to countless Demon Beasts and Poisonous Insects.

Naturally, some of these Demon Beasts and Poisonous Insects had reached Tier Three in strength.

Once he trespassed on their territory, being attacked was inevitable.

Fortunately, Lü Zhong’s flying speed was extremely fast. Coupled with the aid of the Barbarian Ancestor Heaven-Swallowing Mantra, he could burn his Qi and blood to multiply his Escape Speed severalfold, allowing him to quickly shake off these pesky Demon Beasts and Poisonous Insects. Thus, his journey was safe and sound.

He soon arrived at the Poisonous Insect Valley.

Seeing the ever-expanding territory of the Insect Swarm, he couldn’t help but frown.

’This is not good!’

Lü Zhong only wanted a dangerous place to serve his purpose; he had never intended to create a disaster of Poisonous Insects.

Based on the current situation, if he didn’t intervene, the Insect Swarm might really start to snowball and create an insect tide crisis.

If that really happened, it would inevitably attract the attention of Changchun Valley.

At that point, the secret of the Transmission Array would very likely be exposed.

’Fine, I’ll clean them up a bit.’

’Besides, I’ve been craving something with more flavor lately. A bit of roasted Poisonous Insect barbecue might do the trick. With the results of my Body Refining from the Barbarian Ancestor Heaven-Swallowing Mantra, ordinary poisons have no effect on me, so I can eat them without worry.’

No sooner said than done, Lü Zhong began to cull the Insect Swarm.

He killed and ate as he went.

During this time, quite a few cultivators passed by.

Whenever they did, Lü Zhong would hide.

Only after they were scared off by the frenzied Insect Swarm would he resume his cleanup work.