An Alchemist's Path to Eternity

After this great battle, the Luo Tian Society, which had once boasted over three hundred cultivators, had seen its numbers drop back to just over a hundred. For the Skyhawk Flying Boat, which could accommodate over a thousand passengers, that was nothing.

Yet even though the Li Family’s mortals were allowed to board it, most of them still had to cram onto the deck and inside a few large cabins. As a result, the Skyhawk Flying Boat still felt somewhat empty. Many of its smaller rooms remained unoccupied.

Toward the stern of the ship, one small room had been isolated from the rest. The rooms around it were deliberately left vacant. This arrangement puzzled and even drew quiet complaints from the Li Family mortals—why weren’t those rooms being used to give them more space?

Even the mid- and late-stage Qi-Refining cultivators of the Luo Tian Society found it odd.

But for the core members like Sima Huiniang, Duan Feng, and the others, it was perfectly clear. In fact, this arrangement had been personally ordered by Sima Huiniang.

The reason was simple. That room housed one person: Min Longyu. He was a sensitive and complicated figure, to the point that even Sima Huiniang had to tread carefully around him. Dealing with him was up to Luo Chen and nobody else.

Inside the cabin, Min Longyu sat cross-legged on the bed, meditating to stabilize his cultivation.

He had been stuck at the ninth stage of Qi-Refining for many years. Since arriving at Dahe Market, he had rarely taken action and focused almost entirely on cultivation.

Three years ago, he had gained new insights from one of Luo Chen’s Foundation Establishment speeches. With persistent effort, he had finally reached Perfected Mastery a year later.

Since then, another two years had passed. His cultivation was fully stabilized, and his spirit power condensed like dense clouds, seemingly ready to liquefy at any moment. He was fully ready to break through into Foundation Establishment.

But he had yet to take that final step. Or rather, he dared not attempt it.

In the cultivation world, there were indeed people who broke through to Foundation Establishment without relying on pills. Such cases were rare, however, and almost always involved individuals blessed with heavenly spirit roots or exceptional physiques.

For someone like him, opportunities to attempt Foundation Establishment were limited and precious. He couldn’t afford to squander them.

Age was a looming pressure. If he failed and spent years recovering, he might miss the optimal window before age sixty to make the breakthrough. So even though he felt more prepared than most, he still did not dare.

His cultivation now was more out of habit than hope.

After a round of cultivation, he felt no significant progress. He opened his eyes and sighed in frustration, once again reminded of all the dismal events of his past.

By now, those chapters of his life were mostly severed. But what lay ahead...

Sigh... The past is hard to face, and the future full of uncertainty.

”Well, things are the way they are. I can only hope I haven’t placed my trust in the wrong person!”

He pulled out a book on array formations and immersed himself in its study. In this chaotic cultivation world, only the profound intricacies of formation arts could bring him peace of mind.

The Fivefold Revolving Stone Grand Formation may be a second-tier formation, and though I’ve deployed it successfully... I still cannot call myself a true second-tier formation master. Relying on the countless stone pillars of Gaoling Plains to set up the formation was ultimately a shortcut. Still, I gained new insights. This array is based on the Dao of Earth. If back then I had only...

Just as he was immersed in thought, a voice transmission suddenly echoed in his ears.

Startled, he jolted upright, shut the book, and stood without hesitation. He straightened his enchanted robes and crown, then cast a Cleanse over himself.

After taking a deep breath, he stepped out of his room. He walked neither fast nor slow, occasionally passing members of the Luo Tian Society.

Facing the strange glances mixed with contempt and disdain, he acted as if he saw nothing.

All of this was merely for the sake of the Great Dao!

At last, under the gaze of dozens of odd stares, he arrived at the room in the center of the flying boat. Placing his hands together, he bowed deeply.

”Greetings, Senior Dan Chenzi!”

His words were filled with utmost reverence. It was only after hearing a voice from within saying ”Enter” that he dared push open the door.

The moment he stepped inside, a chill spread through his entire body. A pair of deep, penetrating eyes seemed to look down from the heavens, seeing straight through him, inside and out. Even his divine soul trembled uncontrollably, and he nearly fell to his knees in worship before the man seated above.

Gritting his teeth, he forced himself to raise his head and squeezed out a smile.

Hm? Luo Chen let out a barely audible sound of surprise.

He had made a few preparations for this meeting. Even without exerting full force, with his Perfected Mastery Spirit Eyes and Proficient Soul-Intimidation, he could easily suppress any Qi-Refining cultivator into trembling silence. If their will was slightly weaker, they might even collapse onto the floor on the spot.

But unexpectedly, this Min Longyu had managed to endure the pressure of his divine soul. Barely, but he was doing it.

This guy’s divine soul foundation is impressively deep. He’s not much inferior to how I was at his level.

With a soft sigh of admiration, Luo Chen reduced the suppressive force.

It felt as if a raging storm had abruptly calmed, and the skies were clear once more.

Min Longyu felt the suffocating pressure vanish completely. He could finally breathe again.

Whew...

This man’s aura was far stronger than that of Wang Haichao or Zhou Qing. He had to approach this with utmost caution; there could be no room for careless words or actions!

Gulping hard, he respectfully closed the door behind him and took his place in front of Luo Chen.

Then... silence.

The one seated above said nothing, and the one standing below dared not speak.

At last, a leisurely voice drifted down.

”Where do you come from, and where are you going?”

Min Longyu took a deep breath and answered, ”Coming from Tianlan, heading toward the Great Dao.”

Luo Chen savored the words, and the corner of his lips rose involuntarily. Min Longyu’s true intent lay in the second half of the statement.

Now that the conversation had begun, things would flow more easily.

Luo Chen directly asked the question he most wanted to know. ”Why did you betray the Dajiang Gang and instead aid my Luo Tian Society?”

Min Longyu replied, ”I was never an actual member of the Dajiang Gang, so there was no betrayal. And I did not aid the Luo Tian Society, for that matter. I aided you, Senior!”

He stopped, but then, thinking that Luo Chen might accuse him of sophistry, he quickly continued, ”I am not without roots. I hail from the fallen Min family of Tianlan Immortal City. By my generation, aside from a handful of mortals, only I remained as a Qi-Refining cultivator. I had no power to revive my family, but I was also unwilling to abandon the pursuit of immortality, so I leveraged some old ties and followed Elder Zhou Qing of the Lianyun Trade Alliance. Due to business matters, Elder Zhou brought me to Dahe Market, and in gratitude, I once fought on the Debate Platform.”

Luo Chen nodded slightly.

Min Longyu’s first appearance had indeed been his battle against Devouring Heart Tiger Han Dang of the Poshan Gang on the Debate Platform. At that time, Han Dang had been the highest-ranked among the Poshan Gang’s low-tier cultivators.

Han Dang had already reached Perfected Mastery in the Qi-Refining Realm. Yet he was ruthlessly slain by Min Longyu using a strange array formation.

Even now, after several years had passed, Luo Chen still remembered the scene vividly.

”Later, when the two Nascent Soul sects turned against each other, the Lianyun Trade Alliance was dragged into the conflict. Elder Zhou urgently returned to Tianlan Immortal City and asked me what my intentions were. I chose to stay behind in Dahe Market.”

That made sense. For a mere Qi-Refining rogue cultivator, it was better to seek fortune in Dahe Market than struggle in the fiercely competitive Tianlan Immortal City. Resources were abundant, and there was a real chance to carve out a future.

Luo Chen asked curiously, ”So then why did you pledge yourself to Wang Haichao?”

”Because he promised to find me a Foundation Establishment pill!” As he thought about this, Min Longyu still bristled with anger. ”And I didn’t serve him; I was just collaborating with him. I aided him with arrays, and he was to secure a Foundation Establishment pill for me. But really, all he did was make empty promises. Even when chances arose, he never truly fought for me.”

Luo Chen frowned slightly. ”But I remember that during the battle at Gaoling Plains, he publicly declared that if you helped slaughter our cultivators, Huo Hu would reward you with a Foundation Establishment pill?”

Min Longyu gave a bitter, mocking laugh. ”Who would believe something like that? It’s true that Huo Hu had ways to obtain a Foundation Establishment pill from the Flame Alliance. But he holds no status and no merit there, does he? To redeem a Foundation Establishment pill, it would take him at least ten years. I am already fifty-six years old. I fear I won’t live to see that promised reward.”

Luo Chen nodded thoughtfully. The best age to establish the foundation was before sixty. After sixty, one’s blood qi would begin to wane, and the divine soul would gradually lose its vibrant upward momentum. At that point, the chances of successfully breaking through became extremely slim. Even if one succeeded by sheer luck, there would be too little time left to push toward higher realms.

Min Longyu’s face was now filled with sorrow. He continued through gritted teeth, ”Besides, the Huo family isn’t even a top-tier cultivation family. There are plenty of cultivators within it also in need of Foundation Establishment pills. Huo Hu is a petty man, so where would he find the generosity to reward me? Even if he got his hands on a pill, it certainly wouldn’t be my turn to receive it!”

Indeed, the promise had been made by Wang Haichao. What did it have to do with Huo Hu? Min Longyu had once been naive; his old self would have trusted that promise. But he was no longer the same. Once bitten, twice shy.

”So that’s why you chose to side with me instead.” Luo Chen looked at him with a pleasant smile. ”But then how can you be sure that once things are done, I won’t turn on you to vent my anger?”