An Alchemist's Path to Eternity

The Nascent Soul Formation Ceremony did not last long. By dusk, it had already drawn to a close, and the visiting experts began leaving Hundred-Li Green River one after another.

Before departing, Qin Baiming of the Hundred Beast Sect glanced several times at Idle Crane, who still showed no sign of leaving. He arrived early, and now he’s staying behind too. Luo Chen hasn’t even known him that long. Are they really that close?

Qin Baiming could not make sense of it, but he did not linger to find out. He soon left as well with the intention of discussing the matter with his fellow sect members to see whether they should offer up some resources and ask Luo Chen to refine a few spirit medicines beneficial for raising spirit beasts.

Meanwhile, Luo Chen and Idle Crane were strolling side by side along a mountain path on Verdant Mountain and chatting casually as they went.

”I’d heard that you defeated Skyscraper at Skypiercing Pass and even forced Divine Fire back. I wasn’t sure how much of it to believe at the time, but after watching you beat Golden Plume in a Domain clash today, I have to admit the rumors weren’t overblown.”

Luo Chen laughed. ”You flatter me. Golden Plume said it himself; a Domain clash doesn’t prove everything. If we really want to know who’s stronger, we’ll have to fight properly someday.”

Idle Crane smiled. ”You say that rather casually. Sounds like you’re pretty confident you’d win a real fight too.”

”He’s still a middle-stage Sage. How could I be completely confident?” Luo Chen grinned. ”I’m just trying not to look nervous.”

Idle Crane looked him over, but there was not the slightest trace of nervousness on Luo Chen’s face. If anything, he looked completely at ease.

Shaking his head with a smile, Idle Crane finally stopped dancing around the reason he had stayed behind. ”Can you supply my sect with Imperial Nectar in large quantities?”

Luo Chen seemed to have been expecting the question. ”I see you’ve already tested it.”

Idle Crane draped his fly-whisk over one arm and stroked his beard. ”We have. It’s extremely useful for demonic beasts trying to advance. If we could get a steady supply, it would make a huge difference to my sect.”

Luo Chen gave him a knowing look. ”And that’s all you discovered?”

Idle Crane paused, and the hand stroking his beard stiffened slightly.

Luo Chen continued on his own, ”Imperial Nectar isn’t only useful for demonic beasts. For Qi Refinement cultivators, it can also give them a twenty to thirty percent chance of breaking through to Foundation Establishment. That’s already comparable to proper breakthrough medicines in its own right. You can’t seriously expect me to sell something like that to another sect in large quantities.”

Idle Crane had no immediate response.

After all, breakthrough medicines had always occupied an entirely different place from ordinary cultivation pills. Since ancient times, any pill capable of helping a cultivator cross a major realm had commanded a far higher price than other medicines of the same tier. On the black market and among rogue cultivators, the premium could easily reach ten times the ordinary price, and in extreme cases, even a hundred times. Even through legitimate channels, such medicines remained extraordinarily valuable.

Imperial Nectar might not have been created specifically for Foundation Establishment, but with effects like these, there was no meaningful difference in practice.

That Luo Chen had exposed the issue so bluntly, Idle Crane awkwardly lowered his hand. ”It does... have somewhat similar effects.”

Then his tone turned serious. ”Fellow Daoist Luo, name your price!”

”My price?” Luo Chen laughed. ”Spirit stones aren’t particularly useful to me anymore. Hmm... If you’re truly interested, then trade me a batch of well-trained spirit cranes. Their cultivation doesn’t need to be especially high, but I want good ones.”

”Absolutely not!” Idle Crane refused without hesitation. ”Spirit cranes are the foundation of my sect. There’s no way we’d sell them to outsiders.”

Luo Chen was not surprised by the refusal. He had long coveted the White Crane Sect’s spirit cranes, and for good reason. They were far more intelligent than ordinary demonic beasts and, once properly trained, could even patrol the mountain and guard the sect on their own. Their speed was equally impressive, with few demonic beasts of the same tier capable of surpassing them aside from formidable avian species such as the Battle Gull. More importantly, spirit cranes naturally lived in large flocks, unlike the Battle Gulls, which were usually solitary. That made them especially suitable for the Luo Tian Sect.

Although Xu Haizhen was no longer around, the beast-taming techniques the sect had developed in its earlier years had all been preserved, particularly those used to train and control flying beasts. If Luo Chen could obtain a large group of well-trained spirit cranes, the disciples would immediately gain both greater mobility and a much stronger ability to protect themselves.

At the same time, the cranes could make up for Luo Tian Sect’s shortage of manpower, which mattered far more to Luo Chen now than it once had. After resuming his position as supreme elder, he could no longer live with quite the same carefree detachment as before. A position came with responsibilities, and although he did not particularly mind them, there would inevitably be matters that required his attention. Fortunately, most could be handled with a few instructions. Better still, many of those responsibilities gave him opportunities to strengthen the sect and expand the web of connections around it.

After all, being alone was certainly carefree, but when trouble came, there was no one else to share the burden. Luo Chen had already learned the value of having people willing to stand beside him when it mattered.

Still, he did not take offense at Idle Crane’s refusal. Instead, he chuckled and smoothly shifted the conversation elsewhere. ”Fellow Daoist, you’re so eager to obtain Imperial Nectar and strengthen your disciples. I bet you’re worried that the war will eventually reach us too, aren’t you?”

Without waiting for Idle Crane to answer, he continued, ”The three domains on the front line have already been holding out for years. They can’t keep this up forever. Once they fall, the demonic beast armies will turn toward Skypiercing Pass. And when that happens, none of the five domains will be able to stay out of it. It’ll be the biggest war between man and beast we’ve seen yet, and this time, there’ll be nowhere left to run away. The demonic beasts certainly won’t stop on their own, and the Nether Origin Sect behind us won’t let the Eastern Wilderness give up any more ground either. That’s why everyone’s trying to get stronger while they still can. Partly so they can survive what’s coming, and partly because if they do survive, there’ll be plenty to gain afterward. Fellow Daoist Idle Crane, am I right?”

Under Luo Chen’s gaze, Idle Crane opened his mouth, but after a moment, all that came out was a sigh. ”Fellow Daoist, you’ve only just returned to the Eastern Wilderness, yet you already understand what’s happening here better than most.”

Luo Chen smiled and shook his head. He continued along the mountain path, but before long, he fell silent, seemingly lost in thought.

Idle Crane had no idea what was going through his mind. After the silence dragged on for a while, he finally brought the subject back around. ”About the spirit cranes... my sect doesn’t have that many to begin with. We really can’t afford to trade them away. Could you perhaps ask for something else?”

Luo Chen gave no immediate answer. Only after pondering for some time did he raise his head and look directly at Idle Crane. ”When I visited, I sensed the aura of another Sage. But they never showed themselves. Could that rumor actually be true?”

Idle Crane’s expression changed drastically. ”Fellow Daoist Luo, what do you mean by that?”

That reaction alone was enough to confirm much of Luo Chen’s suspicion.

Among the five great upper forces here, Mu Manor was regarded as the weakest. Aside from it, however, the other four were actually quite evenly matched. Windflower Palace had two Sages; Thousand Sword Pavilion likewise possessed two Sages, while the Hundred Beast Sect had Qin Baiming as well as an enslaved Demon Emperor.

Supposedly, the White Crane Sect should also be no different. According to the rumors, aside from Idle Crane himself, the sect also had a spirit crane that had survived its tribulation and undergone Transformation. Yet whether according to gossip or the intelligence gathered by the Heaven Origin Trade Alliance, the same strange detail always appeared: No one had ever actually seen this transformed spirit crane. Even cultivators of the same realm had only ever sensed its aura from afar.

Because of that, another rumor had gradually begun to spread. It was said that the spirit crane had survived its tribulation, but its Transformation had ultimately failed, leaving it unable to appear freely before the world.

Surviving the tribulation yet failing Transformation sounded nonsensical. However, such an outcome was actually possible. If a demon somehow managed to rely on external aid to survive the deadly trial, it would technically be a Demon Emperor, yet it would have missed a great part of the transformative power bestowed by heaven and earth. Once that happened, the process would remain incomplete even though they had overcome the tribulation itself.

For a demonic cultivator, the consequences were more than just troublesome. Without a human form, cultivating through techniques suited to humans became far less efficient, if it could be done at all, while an enormous true body made it extremely inconvenient to travel openly through the outside world.

In truth, the rumors surrounding the White Crane Sect were not entirely without basis. Thousand Sword Pavilion had secretly supported the Jade Cauldron Sword Sect, and Lin Qingxuan had once been sent to spy on the White Crane Sect’s strength. If the White Crane Sect truly possessed two Sages, such a move would have been extraordinarily reckless. Otherwise, with barely a handful of people left in the Sword Sect, what else could have given Lin Qingxuan the confidence to act so boldly?

Now, after seeing Idle Crane’s reaction for himself, Luo Chen was almost certain he had guessed correctly. ”If you’re counting on Imperial Nectar to strengthen your people, it’ll take years before you see much of a difference. And I’m guessing you don’t have that kind of time. But if that Sage of yours could come out and move around freely, wouldn’t that strengthen your sect far more than a few extra disciples ever could?”

With a flick of his hand, a pill appeared in Luo Chen’s palm. ”This is a Transformation Pill. The name is self-explanatory. Consider it a gift from me; just a little something to help build a lasting friendship between our two sects.”