An Alchemist's Path to Eternity

Chapter 664: Let’s Get Married (I)

Luo Chen had returned home. Not Cave Residence Bing Seventeen, but Danxia Peak, the headquarters of the Luo Tian Society.

Well, calling it the Luo Tian Society no longer seemed fitting. It was more apt to call it the Luo Tian Sect now. Under Sima Huiniang’s leadership over the years, the members of the Luo Tian Society had gradually come to regard themselves as disciples of the Luo Tian Sect. The only reason the name had not been formally changed was that no grand occasion had yet arisen to mark such a grand transition. But if all went as expected, once Luo Chen’s Core Formation Ceremony concluded, the name ”Luo Tian Sect” would be firmly established in the hearts of all.

When Luo Chen stepped onto Danxia Peak, he made no effort to conceal his presence. He appeared openly before the sect disciples. The moment they saw him, the low-tier disciples froze in astonishment, then their faces lit with joy and reverence. Cries of ”President!” and ”Supreme Elder!” rose from their lips.

Perhaps many years later, he would acquire yet another title, that of Grand Elder. But since the sect had only recently been restructured, its system of succession and inheritance was still incomplete, and many of these concepts had yet to take deep root in every disciple’s heart.

As Luo Chen walked, his expression remained calm. He took in the shifts of emotion on every face and accepted their reverence with quiet composure. This time, he did not greet them with his usual warm smile and gentle demeanor. It was not that he had changed, but rather that the gulf in cultivation had grown too vast. What once felt like kindness and approachability would now only make them feel pressure.

Maintaining a measured detachment and a sense of distance was a more suitable way to interact with the sect’s low-tier cultivators. They did not need to please him or worry about how to speak to him. Respect and admiration alone were enough!

As he walked along Danxia Peak, Luo Chen’s divine consciousness slowly spread outward. Once a cultivator reached the Foundation Establishment Realm, their divine soul could extend beyond the body, in a manifestation commonly called spirit consciousness. An ordinary early-stage Initiate could project their spirit consciousness only a li or two. It was not much farther than the naked eye could see. Its advantage lay not in distance but in precision; it allowed an Initiate to perceive fine details and even discover those who had concealed their presence. But even the range of a Perfected Mastery Initiate extended no more than twenty li.

Luo Chen was different. When he had first stepped into Foundation Establishment, his spirit consciousness could already reach five li. By the time he reached Perfected Mastery, even after repeatedly slicing off bits of his divine soul, he could still faintly sense events occurring fifty li away. Moreover, he had the mutated Spirit Eyes, capable of seeing across a thousand li when the view was unobstructed. Thus, he did not often rely on his spirit consciousness.

However, things changed upon advancing to the Golden Core Realm. At that realm, the divine soul had fully taken shape, and what extended outward was no longer mere spirit consciousness. It was divine consciousness!

Ordinarily, the difference between spirit consciousness and divine consciousness was a five to ten times increase. A detection range of twenty li would thus expand to a hundred or even two hundred li! That distance also marked the effective range within which an Adept could strike accurately in battle. For instance, in the battle between Pang Renxiong and Lu Jiushi over the Lancang River, a single clash between them had blasted out a crater spanning a hundred li, vaporizing the surging waters and laying bare the riverbed beneath.

Luo Chen’s divine consciousness followed the same pattern. From fifty li, it had expanded to five hundred li. This seemed perfectly logical, but from his interactions after Core Formation with Qu Xibai and Hao Ranzi, he could tell that even the divine souls of mid-stage Adepts were only that strong at best.

He could tell that Qu Xibai, who was at the second stage, could project his divine consciousness about three hundred li. He didn’t know Hao Ranzi’s exact level, but he could tell that the man was a late-stage Adept, and it appeared that he could project his divine consciousness roughly eight hundred li.

Luo Chen took an average between the two, but he also had to take into account the fact that Qu Xibai was a disciple of the Falling Cloud Sect, and his divine soul was likely stronger than most Adepts of the same level. In any case, he was certain that his divine soul was more or less comparable to that of a mid-stage Adept. The passage of long years would naturally temper and fortify the divine soul, but a leap across a major realm amplified that growth even further.

The deeper one’s foundation, the greater the benefits gained from such a breakthrough, and Luo Chen had certainly enjoyed those benefits. As his divine consciousness projected outward, the scenes across Danxia Peak flowed steadily into his mind. By the time he reached the white jade path before the Grand Hall, he could not help but feel a trace of admiration. Under Sima Huiniang’s leadership, the Luo Tian Sect had truly flourished over the years.

Danxia Peak now housed a bit over two thousand cultivators. That did not seem like a large number, especially knowing that the Luo Tian Society used to have three thousand, but Danxia Peak was no longer the sect’s only base. The former Geng family estate had become the main base of the Beast Palace. In the Thousand Li Bamboo Sea, a group of cultivators had been stationed to tend to the spirit bamboo groves. Several Danxia branch halls were scattered across the land, each with no fewer than ten resident cultivators.

The Luo Tian Society’s caravan division was another major division, jointly run by the Battle Palace, the Gold Palace, and the Outer Hall disciples. Each caravan had more than a hundred people, and the sect had three such caravans. One operated the route to the Ice Fortress, another the route to Dahe Market, and the third crossed the entire Jade Cauldron Domain.

Altogether, the Luo Tian Sect now boasted more than five thousand cultivators, almost double what it had in its early days. This was naturally a great advantage, but it also created new challenges—most importantly, that a force of this scale held together by mere profit would fracture sooner or later. To build a true sect, one required unity of purpose, the bonds of master and disciple, the inheritance of a proper lineage, and a shared foundation of both interest and faith. Only by weaving these together could the Luo Tian Sect endure and thrive.

As these thoughts passed through his mind, Luo Chen slowly retracted his divine consciousness.

At the end of the white jade path, a group of Initiates stood in two neat rows awaiting respectfully for his arrival. At their head stood Sima Huiniang, now Sect Leader rather than Director. Among the gathered cultivators were many familiar faces, and with a sweep of his divine consciousness, Luo Chen could tell that each of them had advanced somewhat in cultivation over the years. At the end of the two rows stood many new faces he had not seen before.

When Luo Chen appeared, Sima Huiniang led everyone in greeting him with a unified cry, ”Welcome back, Supreme Elder!”

Luo Chen smiled faintly and said, ”No need to stand here. Let’s go inside and talk.”

Before Qi Refinement cultivators, Luo Chen always maintained a calm and distant expression, exuding a quiet sense of detachment. Yet before the sect’s core Initiates, he was as warm and approachable as ever.

This was fairly different from the management philosophy of the modern companies he had known before his transmigration. In those companies, the big bosses always smiled at the low-level employees, yet rarely showed warmth to the middle or upper management. Meanwhile, the cultivation world was completely different. It was a world where all power rested within oneself. High-tier cultivators naturally carried a pressure that weighed upon those of lower rank, and there was no need for deliberate displays of superiority.

Yet Initiates were a different matter. They had to be treated with care. Without a proper sense of belonging, they would easily grow detached. At best, they would put in little effort; at worst, they might defect, or even turn traitor and harm him from the shadows. As an Adept, he depended heavily on these key members for resources and support. He could not afford to neglect them.

Seeing Luo Chen as calm and kind as ever, those closest to him let out a quiet breath of relief. When he moved toward the front, everyone followed him into the Luo Tian Sect’s Grand Hall.

***

Sitting in the main seat of the Grand Hall, Luo Chen held a list in his hands and examined it carefully. It recorded the number of Initiates the Luo Tian Sect sported, along with those expected to break through within the next ten years. There were... twenty-five of them! The new sect’s foundation far surpassed any second-rate force and now rivaled the average first-rate force with a single Adept.

The number exceeded Luo Chen’s expectations. After all, there were only thirteen people present in the hall at that moment. In the sect’s early years, it had suffered repeated losses in war, many among its Foundation Establishment ranks. Su Xiaolin and Bian Zhen had fallen in battle, Master Healer Sun Sifang had passed away at the end of her lifespan, and Murong Qinglian had left to join her son at the Falling Cloud Sect.

He had not expected that after so many years in seclusion, his organization would actually have more Initiates than before. But many of the names on the list were familiar to him. Luo Chen continued reading in silence while those below waited quietly.

Suddenly, he asked, ”Qi Yi, where is your junior brother?”

The middle-aged man immediately stood up. Luo Chen waved his hand and said, ”We’re only chatting today. There’s no need to be so formal.”

Qi Yi gave an awkward smile and sat back down in relief. He replied, ”Xu Jie passed away fifteen years ago when his lifespan came to an end. He was stuck at the ninth stage of Qi Refinement and lived to 108.”

A look of regret crossed Luo Chen’s face. Qi Yi and Xu Jie had once been the two ”spoils of war” brought back by Wang Yuan from the Danyuan Sect. Both were somewhat skilled first-tier alchemists. Luo Chen had not treated them harshly; on the contrary, he had immediately arranged good positions for them in the Alchemy Palace. Over the years, the two had gradually integrated into the sect and gained a bit of a reputation as alchemists.

He had not expected that Xu Jie would just pass away like this. Seeing the trace of sorrow on Luo Chen’s face, Qi Yi quickly said, ”President, please don’t blame yourself. Though my junior brother passed away, his life before that was quite good.”

Luo Chen paused in surprise. Beside him, Sima Huiniang sent a voice transmission to briefly explain Xu Jie’s circumstances.

After joining the sect, Xu Jie had lived a rather comfortable life. As an alchemist and the sect’s generous support, his cultivation had advanced to the ninth stage of Qi Refinement, and he had grown quite well-off. However, he had given up on Foundation Establishment as he found cultivation too difficult and his aptitude lacking. Hence, he had spent his later years idly enjoying himself... amid the scenic places of Peach Mountain.

Scenic places of Peach Mountain? More like scenes of pleasure....

Luo Chen shook his head. The man had indeed lived well. According to Sima Huiniang, he had once spent a great sum to enjoy the ”company” of a female Initiate from Peach Mountain!

He didn’t reach Foundation Establishment himself, but he dared to sleep with someone who did? One hundred eight years old? Please. At his level, he should’ve easily reached 120. To fall short by more than a decade can only mean he really slacked and got worn down by overindulgence.