A Loose Cultivator's Path to Longevity

[I deleted a bit from the previous Chapter, so if it doesn’t connect properly, please refresh.]

Lü Zhong was puzzled but didn’t ask any more questions.

As for that Jade Scroll...

He put on a hesitant expression, not because he was debating whether to accept it, but because he was faking it.

At this very moment, he was secretly overjoyed.

The Jade Scroll was right in front of him, which meant Lü Zhong could use the Gray Mist Space to interfere with reality and learn its contents.

After a long while, Lü Zhong finally managed to say, ”My apologies, fellow cultivator. You should take it back.”

Qingding hadn’t stated it explicitly, but Lü Zhong knew that obtaining this Jade Scroll would come with strings attached. There would surely be no shortage of conditions, like swearing an oath not to share the Small True Yang Talisman with anyone. That was a given.

At the same time, accepting this talisman would mean he was choosing to walk right into a storm.

He didn’t even know what was going on. Rushing into the situation now would be showing a complete disregard for his own life.

’Since I’ve already managed to get my hands on the benefits the other party promised, why would I have a crisis of conscience and agree to work for free?’

And so, Lü Zhong chose to refuse.

Qingding was stunned. He clearly hadn’t expected Lü Zhong to be able to resist the temptation.

This was a Tier Three Secret Talisman, after all!

Across the entire Southern Barbarian lands, Secret Talismans of this grade were exceedingly rare; you could count them on two hands.

”You have great self-control, fellow cultivator!” Qingding said admiringly.

At the same time, he secretly raised his evaluation of Lü Zhong.

”You flatter me. I’ve just seen the future clearly,” Lü Zhong said, half-joking, half-serious.

When Qingding heard this, he thought Lü Zhong felt his own aptitude was too low, with no hope of cultivating to the Lower Realm. He offered some consolation, ”Fellow cultivator, there’s no need to belittle yourself. In the history of my Changchun Valley, there have even been Supreme Elders with Three Spirit Roots who successfully cultivated to Nascent Soul.”

’Three Spirit Roots?’

Lü Zhong knew the other man had misunderstood.

’That’s to be expected, though.’

After all, common sense dictated that even if a cultivator with Four Spirit Roots was lucky enough to reach Foundation Establishment, they would later hit a wall at the Fake Pill Realm. Basically, not even one in a hundred could break through to the Core Formation Realm.

He couldn’t help but laugh to himself.

’Interesting. Someone actually thinks I have Three Spirit Roots.’

’I wonder, when I break through to the Nascent Soul Stage in the future, if I complain about my poor aptitude again, will someone else come along to console me, saying that even those with Dual Spirit Roots have a chance at Divinity Transformation?’

His thoughts raced, but he didn’t let a hint of them show.

”Thank you, fellow cultivator,” Lü Zhong replied.

Then, Qingding took his leave. Seeing his hurried steps, Lü Zhong figured he was probably off to find the next person on his list.

”Small True Yang Talisman...” Lü Zhong murmured, his eyes thoughtful as he watched Qingding transform into a streak of light and quickly disappear into the distance. ’Changchun Valley is in such a rush. Something big must be about to happen.’

The thought filled his Heart and Spirit with unease.

’Whatever. For now, I should focus on Talisman Making.’

...

He arrived at his Quiet Chamber.

He sat cross-legged on a meditation mat and put on the Bright Flower Jade.

After entering the Gray Mist Space, Lü Zhong immediately began to replay the recent scene. He then started using his Divine Sense to interfere with the Jade Scroll within that scene. It was an extremely difficult process.

It wasn’t that he hadn’t thought of this before.

Using the Gray Mist Space to steal the Cultivation Secret Techniques of other families and sects.

But it was only when he tried it that he discovered it wasn’t as simple as he had imagined.

At his Realm, there were few things that could catch his eye.

Those Major Sects and great families weren’t stupid. They wouldn’t just display their Cultivation Secret Techniques out in the open. Most of the time, they were hidden away securely, stored in the core areas of their Sect or family grounds, and very few people were ever allowed near them.

If that was the case even for their own members, it was even more so for an outsider like him.

He never had the chance to get close to those core areas.

In an instant, his Divine Sense was completely depleted.

Lü Zhong looked utterly exhausted, as if he had been completely drained. It was a sensation he had never experienced before. He had no choice but to exit the Gray Mist Space. When he recalled the information he’d managed to obtain, he realized it wasn’t even one-thousandth of the Jade Scroll’s total content.

At this rate, he feared it would take him ten-odd years to obtain the complete Talisman Making instructions.

He stopped thinking about it and began to meditate to recover.

Recovering Magical Power was easy; he just had to circulate his cultivation technique and refine Spiritual Qi.

But Divine Sense was different. There weren’t many ways to speed up its recovery, and any that did exist were incredibly precious.

There was nothing to be done but wait for his Divine Sense to recover naturally.

This process would take a great deal of time.

Replaying the Jade Scroll scene once would take over a month, at the very least.

After he was well-rested, the newly chastened Lü Zhong was more careful.

He didn’t deplete his Divine Sense all at once like before, instead leaving a small reserve. After all, that feeling of being completely drained was truly worse than death.

Once you’ve experienced it, you never want to go through it again.

...

Time passed.

In the blink of an eye, a new year had arrived.

Lü Zhong, who had been in the middle of his cultivation, suddenly woke with a start.

He pinched his fingers to make a quick calculation and only then remembered that today was his one-hundredth birthday.

”...” Lü Zhong.

He conjured a Water Mirror Technique and gazed at his reflection. His facial features were the same as when he had first arrived, showing little change, but his aura had transformed dramatically.

’A hundred years have passed in the blink of an eye...’

’If this were my past life, I would’ve been a pile of dust by now.’

’It’s nothing like now, where I’m not only eternally youthful and unaging, but also possess great power. These are all the benefits that cultivation brings.’

Thinking this, Lü Zhong walked out of the Quiet Chamber.

Yu Feng’Er was waiting outside. She shot him a reproachful look. She had been running around hectically outside, while the man of the hour himself had almost forgotten the date.

”Husband, this centennial birthday of yours... are we still celebrating it or not?”

”Of course, of course!” Lü Zhong said hurriedly.

It was just the auspicious hour.

The main gates of Ganquan Prefecture were wide open.

Inside and out, festive red lanterns were hung everywhere. A red satin runner stretched all the way to the reception hall. Outside, a temporary banquet pavilion had been erected, and it was already filled with cultivators who had come to offer their congratulations.