An Alchemist's Path to Eternity

Everyone turned their gaze toward the scholar who wore a green gauze cap and carried a sword at his waist.

The man offered a faint smile. ”Fellow Daoist Xiahou, you flatter me.”

Someone in the hall could not resist asking, ”Family Head Zheng, will you not introduce this Fellow Daoist to us?”

As the host, Zheng Kejian was just about to speak when the middle-aged scholar snapped open his folding fan to cut him off. With a casual flick, he folded it shut again, and his gaze swept across the assembled Foundation Establishment cultivators. His brows drew together in a faint frown, though his bearing remained courteous.

”Allow me to introduce myself,” he said. ”I am Zhou Jiansong, from the Medicine King Domain. Some Fellow Daoists were kind enough to bestow upon me the Dao title of Song Fengzi[1]. Though I have lived in Tianlan Immortal City for several years, I have not yet had the chance to share wine with you[2]. Now that I finally meet everyone today, I can see your land truly brims with talent.”

The name Zhou Jiansong sounded unfamiliar to the crowd. Yet the title Song Fengzi thundered in their ears. He was the very man who had taken charge of rebuilding Iron Sword Hall and had risen to become its new sect leader. Under his guidance, the sect had aggressively recruited rogue cultivators from both within and beyond the domain. In just a few short years, the once-declining Iron Sword Hall had been restored to its former glory.

In truth, it had become several times stronger than it had ever been under Zuo Song’s leadership. With the Flame Alliance as their backer and three late-stage Initiates within their ranks, Iron Sword Hall’s momentum now rivaled that of the Luo Tian Society. Their strength commanded respect. For that reason, even though Song Fengzi was an outsider who had seized another sect’s legacy, the cultivators of Tianlan Immortal City did not dare offend him.

At once, the Initiates in the hall warmly greeted him. Though Song Fengzi inwardly disdained these low-tier cultivators, he maintained impeccable courtesy.

”With you Fellow Daoists supporting our efforts, that arrogant Luo Tian Society is nothing to fear!” he said with a smile.

”Fellow Daoist Song Fengzi speaks the truth. Those who follow the Dao gain many allies, while those who abandon it stand alone. The Luo Tian Society must be destroyed!” someone declared.

”For this battle, my Chang family will give our full strength!”

”My Xuchen Mountain as well!”

Song Fengzi listened with a genial smile as the voices of support filled the hall, though inwardly he was already calculating the true balance of power.

The Luo Tian Society could field perhaps a dozen Foundation Establishment cultivators. A few more had risen in recent years, but most were new to the realm and posed little threat. The real dangers were Tian Kuizi, the so-called Blood Devil Wang Yuan, Xu Haizhen, and Min Longyu.

The first two carried formidable battlefield records; their prowess was well-known. As for Xu Haizhen, though only at the sixth stage of Foundation Establishment, commanded Danxia Peak and could unleash over a thousand Plume-Snatching Eagles, making him a threat on par with a late-stage grand cultivator. Then there was Min Longyu, also known as Lei Zhenzi. In the end, the defenders of a mountain always held the advantage of terrain. While it was under the control of such a master, even a ninth-stage Initiate like Song Fengzi dared not recklessly test the mountain-defending formation.

On their side, the scattered minor factions, when gathered together, could barely muster a dozen Foundation Establishment Initiates. The Zheng family alone contributed seven, and it was Iron Sword Hall that stood as the strongest, boasting three late-stage Initiates and ten more in the early and middle stages.

After a quick tally, Song Fengzi’s expression darkened. He had come only to seize an opportunity, and he had no intention whatsoever to linger in Tianlan Immortal City. His sole aim was to secure the four Core Formation secret arts. From the start, he had no intention of leading the charge. Yet now it seemed that under his leadership, Iron Sword Hall had become the vanguard against the Luo Tian Society of Danxia Peak. This was far from what he had anticipated!

As displeasure flickered across his face, a sudden thought stirred in his mind. He lifted his head; his gaze seemed to pierce the walls of the hall into the depths of Rolling Dragon Ridge. There pulsed two auras equal to his own. One of them even faintly carried the might of a Perfected Mastery Initiate.

Is this a deliberate show of strength, meant to keep me in check? Song Fengzi wondered.

While he speculated, Zheng Kejian suddenly took out a command token and his face lit up with joy. ”Fellow Daoists, the Flame Alliance’s True Inheritor has arrived!”

Everyone froze for a heartbeat, then broke into delighted smiles. They all knew perfectly well what the arrival of a True Inheritor signified. Song Fengzi and Xiahou Kun exchanged a look and nodded in tacit agreement.

Led by Zheng Kejian, they went out of the hall to await their guest. Before long, three streaks of light descended upon Rolling Dragon Ridge.

The man at the front was only a mid-stage Initiate, but the two late-stage experts behind him clearly followed his lead.

Seeing them, Xiahou Kun quietly transmitted his voice. ”They are not disciples of the Flame Alliance, but experts from two vassal families of Skyfire City. It seems the Flame Alliance fears this battle may falter and has specially sought their aid.”

Song Fengzi’s lips curled into a faint smile. With their arrival, the number of late-stage cultivators on their side now reached eight. How could the Luo Tian Society possibly hope to stand against such strength?

As they whispered among themselves, Zheng Kejian stepped forward, bowed deeply, and raised his voice in greeting. ”Welcome, True Inheritor Qin!”

The young man cast them a glance before sweeping his sleeve and striding into the hall with the two grand cultivators at his side. His domineering entrance froze the Foundation Establishment cultivators who had been eager to ingratiate themselves.

Only Song Fengzi chuckled lightly and followed in with ease. He had long been accustomed to dealing with arrogant sect disciples back in the Medicine King Domain. The Medicine King Sect dominated an entire domain, and its disciples were far more haughty than this True Inheritor Qin. The others, however, were used to flaunting their power in their own territories and had never grown accustomed to being dismissed so openly.

Once everyone had entered, True Inheritor Qin suddenly turned around, and everyone could see his eyes cold with disdain. ”I set you against a mere Luo Tian Society, and years have passed without any results. Useless trash!”

Faces stiffened throughout the hall, and no one dared to speak. Zheng Kejian, whose ancestor had once been a Flame Alliance True Inheritor and a Pseudo-Adept in his own right, at least had some experience dealing with such figures. He bowed slightly and said with caution, ”The fault is ours. We have troubled True Inheritor Qin.”

After all, even the harshest person finds it hard to strike a smiling face. True Inheritor Qin snorted coldly and did not press further. Instead, he gestured toward the two beside him.

”Since you’re so incapable, I have brought two experts from the vassal families of the Flame Alliance to lend a hand. You must have heard the names Tuoba Lingfei and Xiang Zhonghe.”

The two men wore cold expressions as their gazes swept across the hall without pause. When their eyes fell upon Song Fengzi and Xiahou Kun, they lingered for a brief moment before offering a faint nod. It was an acknowledgment of strength between equals.

Xiahou Kun, already well aware of their reputations, quickly added his voice. ”I’ve long heard of your brilliance on the battlefield of Jilei Nine Mountain. It is a pleasure to finally meet you today, and I only wish we had crossed paths sooner.”

True Inheritor Qin gave him only a fleeting glance before turning his gaze toward Zheng Kejian.

”Where is Senior Brother Zheng Xian?” he asked.

Zheng Kejian answered cautiously, ”My uncle is in seclusion. He is attempting to reach Perfected Mastery of Foundation Establishment.”

Song Fengzi’s eyes narrowed in thought. So that aura I sensed earlier, the one close to Perfected Mastery, must have been Zheng Xian.

True Inheritor Qin frowned slightly, then nodded. ”The Flame Alliance cannot act openly against the Luo Tian Society. Senior Brother Zheng Xian once committed a mistake in his youth and was expelled from the sect. If he can destroy the Luo Tian Society this time and restore our reputation, my grandfather will personally see him reinstated and even help him form his Golden Core.”

At those words, Zheng Kejian’s face lit with delight. Zheng Xian was not from his direct lineage of the Rolling Dragon Ridge Zheng family, but they still shared blood through the family’s founding ancestor. Long ago, that ancestor had left the sect to set foot in Tianlan Immortal City, while Zheng Xian’s father had chosen to remain within the sect.

If Zheng Xian could use this campaign to return to the Flame Alliance, the Zheng family would once again gain a powerful patron. And if he succeeded in Core Formation, it would be a blessing beyond measure.

Still, all of this depended on the Luo Tian Society’s destruction. Zheng Kejian asked carefully, ”The Luo Tian Society is a vassal of the Ice Fortress, and their president, Dan Chenzi, is highly valued. He was even appointed as a guest elder. If we strike, will we not provoke the Ice Fortress?”

True Inheritor Qin gave a cold snort. ”That is none of your concerns.”

He clasped his fists and saluted in the direction of Tianlan Immortal City. ”My grandfather arrived in Tianlan Immortal City yesterday. If the Ice Fortress does nothing, all is well. If they intervene, it will only give my grandfather the perfect chance to act. Your only duty is to carry out your part.”

Zheng Kejian froze for a moment, then felt the heavy stone in his chest finally settle.

The rest of the hall shared his relief, their faces bright with sudden joy. With a Golden Core Adept backing them, the battle was all but assured.

”Oh, and speaking of parents and such, there is something else you may not know,” True Inheritor Qin said with a sly smile. ”Through my grandfather’s connections, he obtained the Four-Sect Alliance’s merit records. Your father, Zheng Tianfang, died at the hands of Dan Chenzi.”

In that instant, every gaze in the hall turned toward Zheng Kejian. His body trembled violently before gradually steadying. His face twisted with rage, his eyes bloodshot as he ground out his words.

”If I do not avenge him, I am unworthy to be called a son! To annihilate the Luo Tian Society, my Zheng family will march out in full force! We will leave not a single brick intact and a single blade of grass standing on Danxia Peak!”

1. The character 松 (sōng, ”pine”) is likely taken from his name, while 风 (fēng, ”wind”) literally means ”wind” but may also allude to the folding fan he carries. ☜

2. In classical Chinese culture, ”to share wine” was a symbol of friendship, hospitality, and mutual respect. Banquets and wine-drinking often marked the beginning of alliances, literary gatherings, or formal introductions among peers. ☜