A Loose Cultivator's Path to Longevity

Late at night.

In the Quiet Chamber.

Lü Zhong sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion, his body wreathed in a Spiritual Light.

Strands of starlight streamed through the skylight, draping over him. Their tranquil radiance intertwined with the Spiritual Light, filling the Quiet Chamber with a dazzling splendor.

Suddenly, all the light converged. Lü Zhong exhaled a breath of Dense Qi and slowly withdrew from his state of cultivation. Sensing the change in his cultivation, a look of joy appeared on his face.

’I’ve been cultivating for so long, and I’m finally halfway there.’

To be precise, his current cultivation was equivalent to the Fifth-Layer Core Formation. He was only halfway to breaking through to the Late-stage Core Formation.

Rising from the meditation cushion, Lü Zhong decided to get some fresh air.

He went to the Waterside Pavilion.

Attendants were on standby here at all times.

As the patriarch of the Bihai Sect, he had to maintain a certain level of prestige.

Compared to the high-level cultivators of other Sects, Lü Zhong’s display of status could even be called ”shabby.” For this reason, Sect Leader Luu Baokui and the various Stewards had all submitted petitions, urging him to take on more attendants.

However, he had refused them all.

Back when he was at the Foundation Establishment stage, Lü Zhong would certainly not have acted this way.

But now that he had achieved Core Formation and weathered so many storms, he no longer had such desires. Instead, he felt that a simple, quiet life was what truly mattered. He was content just to have a beautiful companion by his side.

Before long, hot tea and fruit were served.

The Spirit Tea was the ”Bright Light Spirit Tea” gifted by Shuini. While it didn’t contain much Spiritual Qi, its flavor was first-rate. Drinking it felt like basking in the warm sun on a winter’s day, and it left a long, lingering, fragrant aftertaste.

He drank some tea and ate a few pastries.

In the blink of an eye, it was sunrise.

Although Lü Zhong’s Cultivation Technique didn’t require absorbing the morning glow, absorbing the violet qi at sunrise was still quite beneficial to his cultivation, so he sat down cross-legged and began to absorb it.

He cultivated until the morning sun had fully risen before stopping.

Then, he turned and went to the Tide Cave.

Not far from his Secluded Meditation Chamber, Lü Zhong had carved out a new stone room specifically for setting up the Refining Formation to create his ”Incarnation Body.” When the time came, the Tier Three Spiritual Vein on Bihai Island would also be channeled to connect to this place, satisfying the immense amount of Spiritual Qi required for the process.

He had already excavated a space a hundred zhang long and wide some time ago. Now, he needed to set up all the necessary Arrays.

He had to admit, this Refining Formation was incredibly complex.

There were many parts Lü Zhong couldn’t comprehend at all, but fortunately, he just had to copy the design like drawing a gourd from a model, and it would still function as intended.

Although this method lacked flexibility, most Secret Technique Arrays that came with Immortal Divine Techniques were in this state of ”knowing what it is, but not why it is so.”

The cultivators of this world could use them, but they couldn’t research the principles behind them, let alone analyze them to derive various Spiritual Qi application technologies.

He wondered if this was by design or by chance.

He set it up bit by bit, striving to avoid even the slightest mistake.

The entire Grand Array was exceedingly precise; he couldn’t imagine what would happen if he made a mistake.

He continued like this until noon before stopping. The process of Array Formation consumed a massive amount of his Heart and Spirit, placing a considerable burden on his Divine Soul.

He planned to take a break.

Leaving the stone room, he returned to the Waterside Pavilion.

Yu Feng’Er was there as well.

”Husband, why are you so exhausted?”

”Array Formation is just mentally taxing.”

”You must take care of yourself. You can’t let this damage your foundation,” Yu Feng’Er said, her face full of worry. She immediately served him a large bowl of nourishing Spiritual Food, piling it so high it nearly overflowed.

Lü Zhong took the bowl and ate a few bites before smiling. ”Don’t worry, I know my limits... Besides, don’t you know exactly what my body is like?”

”You always say such embarrassing things!” Yu Feng’Er feigned anger and shot him a look.

Seeing how quickly Lü Zhong was eating, she added some more to his bowl.

”Husband, did you know?” Yu Feng’Er paused her chopsticks and waited for Lü Zhong to look at her before continuing, ”A while ago, I went to Changchun Immortal City for that Kun Cultivator gathering. You have no idea how much those female cultivators envy the intimacy between us...”

”Of course they do. There aren’t many people in this world who can utterly defeat a Female Cultivator of Core Formation and send her running!”

”Hmph! A dignified Mid-stage Core Formation cultivator, and you can’t even say a single proper sentence.” Yu Feng’Er’s face flushed, and she didn’t dare continue, afraid of what other embarrassing words might come out of her husband’s mouth.

She fell silent, and Lü Zhong could finally eat in peace.

He ate like a whirlwind, not stopping until he had finished three large bowls of Spirit Rice and half a table’s worth of Spiritual Food.

”Take your time eating. I’m going back to work on the Array,” Lü Zhong said.

”Husband, I was just...”

Yu Feng’Er began to speak, but Lü Zhong cut her off before she could finish. The moment his wife opened her mouth, he knew exactly what she was going to say.

With a look of resignation, he said, ”Alright, alright. I’ll come find you tonight on time. Just don’t you go complaining about me again tomorrow. I’ll make sure you’ll be clinging to the walls to get out!”

Lately, thanks to Yu Feng’Er, his progress with the Jade Vein Technique had been soaring.

If this continued, he would be able to master the Third Layer in no more than three to five years.

He returned to the stone room and continued setting up the Array.

Lü Zhong was now laying the Array Foundation. It was larger than a typical Array, a full hundred zhang in circumference, and would require at least two ingots of Silver Essence. Auxiliary materials like Spiritual Jade and Spirit Communication Iron were needed in quantities of tens of thousands of jin.

It was no exaggeration to say that setting up this Refining Formation was like burning money.

Any other Core Formation cultivator would have had to go out and find money by now, perhaps by exploring a Secret Realm with others, or by teaming up to hunt Demon Beasts—anything to earn Spirit Stones.

But Lü Zhong was different. With two major sources of income, the Bihai Sect and the Chengde Commerce Association, things were much easier for him.

’Tch... It’s this late already!’

Snapping back to his senses, Lü Zhong realized he had been so engrossed in setting up the Array that he had nearly lost track of time.