Immortality Starts With Investment

”Gift successful…”

”500x feedback in progress!”

”Reward: 500 pieces of Star River Purple Sand!”

”Delivered to host’s storage space!”

Five hundred pieces of Star River Purple Sand?

Ye Chen frowned at the reward. In terms of profit, it was an absolute windfall. One piece was worth 20,000 high-grade spirit stones, so 500 pieces equated to 10 million—a sum that would make even a Unity Stage powerhouse call him master and beg to learn his ways. A few more years of this, and he’d collapse the cultivation world’s economy.

But the problem was… this wasn’t what he wanted. He’d gone to great lengths, orchestrating a whole act with Sun Ye’s cunning cooperation. If he only wanted a 500x feedback, why bother with the theatrics? He could’ve just handed over the gift directly.

I practically bankrupted myself to give you this gift, and you’re not even touched?

Looking at Li Feihuang, radiant and brimming with vitality, Ye Chen had a suspicion. Had she gotten cocky?

Back when she was a fugitive, filled with uncertainty, the phoenix blood was her only lifeline. She’d clung to his help, valuing it immensely, which led to multiple critical hits.

But now, having broken through to the Golden Core stage, with her Fire Phoenix Spirit Body upgraded to a Moon Phoenix Body and even awakening a True Phoenix Treasure Technique, she likely believed the imperial throne was already hers. His help? Just icing on the cake, not enough to stir her emotions. Or maybe the Star River Purple Sand simply wasn’t that important to her, so it didn’t trigger a critical hit.

Ye Chen wasn’t sure if his guess was right. Regardless, with a 500x multiplier, he was still making a fortune. Star River Purple Sand had plenty of uses for him too.

As for Li Feihuang’s mindset, he’d test it a few more times. If there was no critical hit this time, it’d confirm she’d indeed gotten cocky.

”Many thanks for your help, Fellow Daoist Ye!” Li Feihuang said with a gentle smile, expressing her gratitude. ”I’ll remember this kindness and repay you in the future.”

With that, she prepared to leave. Her focus now was on cultivating diligently, aiming to reach mid-Golden Core before the imperial throne contest. That way, she’d have a chance to defeat the late-stage Golden Core Champion King.

Ye Chen escorted her out of the courtyard, watching her exaggerated silhouette in the golden dress fade into the distance. His suspicions grew stronger. Li Feihuang had definitely gotten cocky. With her newfound strength, she seemed convinced the throne was hers for the taking.

But solving this wasn’t straightforward. Beat her in a fight to bring her back to reality? That wouldn’t work. Even if she realized she couldn’t beat him, he wasn’t her rival for the throne. It wouldn’t spark any sense of urgency in her.

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The only way was to instill some competitive spirit in her, like with Lu Jing and Lin Ke’er back in the day. With that in mind, Ye Chen decided to gradually distance himself from Li Feihuang and act closer to An Miaoli and the others. Perhaps that would rekindle her appreciation.

After all, a 500x base multiplier with critical hits was incredibly enticing. But if that didn’t work, he wasn’t too attached.

The base multiplier was important, but critical hits were the real prize—especially with top-tier treasures. A critical hit could yield rewards thousands or even tens of thousands of times greater than the original item. That far outstripped a mere 500x multiplier.

The choice was obvious.

After seeing Li Feihuang off, Ye Chen returned to the courtyard and began sorting through his outdated equipment, handing it all to Sun Ye to deal with. He also carefully sifted through the treasures Sun Ye had collected over the years, selecting those useful to him and suitable for gifting.

The Phoenix Stone he’d reclaimed from Senior Sister Yao Xi was among them. He planned to gift it again to see if it could still trigger a reward.

As for the third-grade alchemy and artifact refining insights he possessed, he needed to find suitable cultivators to gift them to. He hadn’t given them to Yao Xi because her second-grade alchemy wasn’t even perfected yet, and third-grade insights were still far beyond her reach.

Learn them himself? With his Heavenly Spiritual Root and top-tier comprehension, it wouldn’t be hard. A few years of study, and he could likely master them fully. But why work hard when he could gain effortlessly? Why make things difficult for himself? Gifting a few more treasures would yield far greater returns.

So, in the days that followed, Ye Chen cultivated diligently while wandering Divine Will City, making several trips to Heavenly Evolution Pavilion to look for gifts suitable for An Miaoli.

...

At the peak of Quiet Wonder Peak, An Miaoli stood, her flawless beauty almost otherworldly, gazing at the rolling clouds. She seemed like an immortal ready to ascend, as if she might ride the wind and pass through the Heavenly Gate into the Nine Heavens Palace.

A trace of hesitation flickered across her dreamlike, exquisite face. A few days ago, she’d heard Ye Chen had arrived in Divine Will City. By all accounts, she should visit to thank him. The remnant immortal scripture he’d gifted her had provided profound insights, revealing flaws in her cultivation and boosting her combat strength significantly.

More importantly, the scripture’s philosophy had clarified her path to immortality. She’d gained so much, yet her only repayment had been a third-grade artifact refining insight—far from enough. Not to mention, Ye Chen had also given An Yuyi a Thunderbane Bamboo Core, helping her balance her dual spiritual roots and form a ninth-grade Golden Core.

So, some time ago, An Miaoli had made a special trip to visit a third-grade spiritual plant master from an affiliated sect, who was also its sect master. At great cost, she’d acquired a third-grade spiritual plant insight, which she intended to gift to Ye Chen.

But An Yuyi was in seclusion, cultivating a spell. Would it be inappropriate for An Miaoli to visit Ye Chen alone?

The last time she’d gone to Green Cloud Sect by herself, she’d later felt it was a misstep. In hindsight, she was almost glad Ye Chen had been in seclusion and they hadn’t met. After all, he was the man her niece admired. What would it look like for her to visit him alone?

An Miaoli stood atop the peak for a long while, her white robes and dark hair fluttering in the mountain breeze, her figure wreathed in misty water vapor. Soon, she made her decision. She would see Ye Chen.

He had helped her niece immensely, even saving her life. As her aunt, she had to express her gratitude. The third-grade spiritual plant insight would be gifted in An Yuyi’s name, fostering their bond.

It was all for her niece’s sake. As for herself? A clear conscience was enough.

With that thought, An Miaoli stepped forward, her graceful, misty silhouette crossing the boundless sea of clouds, drifting toward Divine Will City.