An Alchemist's Path to Eternity

Luo Chen’s voice was calm, but the rueful edge in his voice made the accusation clear enough.

Fu Chaosheng had once told him that the competition would last no more than a year or so, and strictly speaking, that had not been a lie. By the reckoning of the Mountains and Seas Realm, barely half a year had passed since Luo Chen entered the Mirage Dragon Pocket World. But Luo Chen himself had spent fifty full years inside, and the tax on his lifespan was perfectly real!

Fu Chaosheng wore a look of guilt as he bowed and cupped his fist toward Luo Chen. ”I’m sorry. I should’ve told you.”

Luo Chen stepped aside rather than accept the bow, then slowly paced through the residence. ”There’s no need to apologize like this. Qinglan has received permission to join Seated Oblivion Peak, and she may even become an Ascendant one day. Everything has worked out perfectly for your family, so how could I let you bow to me over this?”

Fu Chaosheng only smiled awkwardly. There was little he could say in his own defense. He had, in fact, deliberately withheld the truth beforehand, yet Luo Chen, despite being the one kept in the dark, had still honored his promise to the very end and done everything he could for Fu Qinglan. Worse still, Luo Chen was no longer a man the Fu family could afford to treat casually.

His performance inside the pocket world had far exceeded everyone’s expectations. Sure, he had certainly made enemies, but he had also drawn the attention of many powerful families within the Dao Sect. At this point, more than a few were waiting for the right chance to draw him to their side. If Luo Chen truly ended up siding with others, the Fu family would become a complete laughingstock.

Fortunately, he had one advantage none of those families possessed: He understood Luo Chen’s needs!

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Three items appeared before Luo Chen: a book, a jade scroll, and a gourd. Luo Chen stopped pacing and narrowed his eyes at them. ”What are these?”

Fu Chaosheng gestured to the first one. ”This is Immortal Workings of the Stone Chamber. It was written about 2000 years ago by a senior of our sect and contains more than a hundred formations, ranging from the first tier all the way to the fourth. It even includes part of a fifth-tier defensive formation. That senior had some ties with my family when he was younger, so before he passed away, he left us a copy.”

Then he pointed at the jade scroll. ”This is a sword scripture known as The Myriad Transformations of the Firmament. Although it was not created by an expert of our sect, it was written by an Ascendant in ancient times. You can use it with sword orbs, flying swords, or practically any other sword-type treasure. If you can practice it to the peak, very few people at the same level will be able to stand against you. Actually, Qinglan practices it too, but she doesn’t have enough killing intent, and because of that, she’s only reached minor mastery so far.

”As for this, you should already know what it is. There’s soul essence inside from tens of millions of beings. I’ve also placed the technique for refining it inside the gourd. It’s an orthodox technique from the devil sect.”

When Fu Chaosheng finished speaking, silence settled over the residence.

Luo Chen looked at him for a long moment before speaking. ”Our cooperation is already over. I did lose out this time, but what you gave me before was more than enough to make up for it. You really don’t need to give me all this.”

He had certainly been angry when he learned that Fu Chaosheng had deliberately kept the difference in the flow of time from him. But in the end, Luo Chen had left the pocket world after only fifty years, and while the loss of lifespan was genuine, it was not enough for him to hold a lasting grudge—let alone when he considered his own gains. More importantly, Fu Chaosheng had not ditched him once the competition ended. Even after they returned, he had continued speaking on Luo Chen’s behalf. By now, most of that anger had already faded.

His attitude earlier had been more of a test than anything else. If Fu Chaosheng had taken offense and walked away, he would have considered their friendship done and never dealt with him again. If the man continued apologizing sincerely, then Luo Chen was willing to let bygones be bygones. As for the case when Fu Chaosheng brought out extravagant gifts... actually, he had not expected that in the slightest.

Fu Chaosheng smiled faintly. ”These aren’t payment, and they’re not compensation either. Think of them as gifts from me. In return, I hope you’ll consider becoming a retainer of my family.”

A retainer? Luo Chen raised an eyebrow.

Fu Chaosheng continued, ”Qinglan may have comprehended a Law, but Divine Transformation is still a long way off. As for me, I don’t have many years left. Give it another hundred years at most, and I’ll probably be nothing but dust. And when that day comes, if a family as large as ours doesn’t have another Sage to rely on, things could become very difficult very quickly.” He looked at Luo Chen with clear expectation in his eyes. ”But if you’re willing to become a retainer, that would change a great deal. So I’m asking you this sincerely. I hope you’ll consider it.”

Luo Chen fell silent.

Fu Chaosheng was clearly making arrangements for what would happen after his death, which explained why he was willing to offer so much. Yet as he looked over at the gifts once more, something did not sit quite right. Aside from the soul essence, the other two gifts seemed far too well chosen to be Fu Chaosheng’s idea alone. Only someone who had fought beside him for decades would know exactly what he lacked.

The answer to this was obvious. Fu Qinglan had spent fifty years at his side inside the pocket world, so she knew exactly about his strengths and weaknesses. For one, although his accomplishments in formations were quite respectable, he lacked a truly formidable grand formation. Even the defensive formations he had prepared in the pocket world had been shattered by Qi Xiongcheng with a single palm strike.

His shortcomings in swordsmanship were even more obvious. The Primordial Slaughter Sword possessed power comparable to a spirit treasure, but Luo Chen had never even touched any orthodox sword inheritance. Most of the time, he simply relied on the sword’s raw power and used whatever techniques he had worked out for himself. If he could study a proper sword cultivation scripture, he would undoubtedly be able to bring out the sword’s power to the fullest.

Luo Chen’s eyes cleared, and he accepted all three gifts. ”You’ve both put a great deal of thought into this.”

By saying ”both,” Luo Chen made it clear that he had already guessed where the gifts had truly come from.

Fu Chaosheng laughed heartily. ”Fellow Daoist Luo, you worked hard inside the pocket world. You should get some proper rest. I won’t bother you any longer.”

”Sure, I’ll see you out, then.”

Luo Chen followed him out, and the two continued chatting pleasantly as they walked. Only after seeing Fu Chaosheng off for some distance did he turn back toward his residence.

Fu Chaosheng, meanwhile, flew away at a leisurely pace with a smile on his face. Perfect! Quite a few have seen us chatting. That should do.

That would certainly make the families hoping to recruit Luo Chen think twice. Once everyone saw how close his relationship with the Fu family continued to be, they would no longer assume Luo Chen could be easily poached away.

Still, Fu Chaosheng could not help feeling a little regretful. If Fu Qinglan had accepted his suggestion to become Luo Chen’s Dao companion, their relationship with him would have been far more secure.

She was clearly tempted when I brought it up. Why did she still say no?

He had lived far too long not to recognize affection when he saw it. Fu Qinglan’s feelings for Luo Chen were hardly difficult to discern, and the way she openly called him ”senior brother” could hardly have been faked. Yet after joining Seated Oblivion Peak, her attitude had changed dramatically. Why was that?