Immortality begins with meditation puppets

Chapter 258 Foundation Building
"Su's Shop has new items this month! Fellow Daoists, don't miss out!"

"Exorcising puppets, guardians of cultivators, and great nemesis of evil spirits!"

"To thank our new and old customers, our shop has partnered with Baibaoge to launch a Tier 1 superior puppet, the Soul Burial Shovel. Limited quantities available, first come, first served. Don't miss out, or you'll have to wait another year!"

Early in the morning, outside Su's shop, Ge Ling and Xiong Er were busy preparing for the shop's business.

One was using Taoist magic to hawk their wares, while the other was handing out flyers.

Some rogue cultivators became interested when they saw the dwarf-like puppet carrying a thunder shovel on the flyer.

"Exorcism puppets! Fellow Daoist Su is quite the businessman. Knowing that there are evil spirits in the city, he has crafted exorcism puppets. He's about to make a fortune!"

Ge Ling, who had been working as a shop assistant at the Su family's shop for over a month, changed her expression drastically upon hearing this. Her face darkened, and she waved her hands repeatedly, saying:
"I wouldn't dare say that. If the high-ranking cultivators of the Yunshan Sect say that the Immortal City is not haunted, then the Immortal City is not haunted. My shopkeeper crafted this puppet simply so that you fellow Daoists would be prepared. There may be no evil spirits in Baiyun Immortal City, but there are plenty of evil spirits outside!"

"Is it really necessary to be so cautious? The Gao family's butcher shop is only a few dozen miles away from here. Are you trying to mislead us?"

The rogue cultivator sneered in the direction of the Gao family's butcher shop, but his voice was lowered as he spoke.

"Fellow Daoist, please be careful with your words. We cultivate under the protection of the Yunshan Sect, so whatever the Yunshan Sect says goes. Even if a high-ranking cultivator from Yunshan says there are no evil spirits, we cannot say there are evil spirits even if Gao Erqiang is right in front of us!"

Ge Ling, who had been trained and educated by Su Qing and Qing He in the store, spoke cautiously.

Upon hearing this, the rogue cultivator simply shook his head and remained silent, then stepped into the small shop with the flyer in his hand.

Upon entering the small shop, one is immediately drawn to the dozens of burial shovels displayed inside.

The exorcism puppet, possessing the highest quality of Tier 1, can unleash the effect of an exorcism talisman with each shovel strike. With a series of powerful shovel strikes, it is even more effective than an exorcism talisman in dealing with evil spirits.

In the current White Cloud Immortal City, such puppets are even more sought after than second-tier magic weapons.

But the price is really expensive.

"Eight hundred thousand spirit crystals for one puppet? Su Qing is too greedy and ruthless. He's almost selling a first-tier puppet for the price of a second-tier one!"

"Fellow Daoist, if you think the price is too high, then quickly move aside, this humble Daoist is willing to buy one!"

"What do you mean 'let me have my way'? I said Su Qing is ruthless, but I didn't say I wouldn't buy. It's better to be ripped off by him than by some evil spirit!"

"Who doesn't? I had saved up these spirit crystals and was planning to buy two ground squirrels from the Pang family's shop!"

"Isn't that perfect? ​​The mole digs the hole, the gravedigger fills it with soil, and you can lie in it, fellow Daoist, and all your worries will disappear!"

The rogue cultivators, while complaining that the puppets were too expensive and Su Qing was too greedy, rushed to pay their bills.

In no time, the ten newly stocked burial shovels in the store were sold out.

The spirit crystals she had just received hadn't even warmed up yet when Qinghe, following Su Qing's instructions, handed them over to Li Hailang, asking him to make a trip to the Hundred Treasures Pavilion and Yuanlai Tower to purchase all the materials Su Qing needed.

"One hundred feathers of the Wind Sword Falcon King, one thousand Xuan Essence Stone Cores, thirty-six Flame Crystal Cores, a certain amount of third-tier talisman water materials, second-tier blasting stones (buy all if available, order if not), second-tier demon cores, and second-tier essence cores are all the same!"
"I will remember this, Fellow Daoist Qinghe, please rest assured, I will handle things properly."

Riding high on the spring breeze, the horse gallops swiftly; on the second-tiered sea waves, none can rival it.

After advancing to the second-tier body cultivator, Li Hailang believed that he was qualified to wield a flower stick among Su Qing's group of henchmen.

Holding two red flower sticks, he led his 17th and 260th brothers, along with twenty or thirty underlings selected from the Ge family villagers, straight to the Hundred Treasures Pavilion.

You can't do it without bringing your underlings.

Although the Immortal City appears calm on the surface under the strong pressure of the Cloud Mountain Sect, in reality, there are already many troubles within the independent cultivators. The bigger the troubles, the more petty thieves there will be. Having a group of followers can intimidate those thieves and avoid trouble.

You can't not wear Su Ji's Taoist robe.

Without this tiger skin, the inner disciples of the Yunshan Sect would always try to exploit them and take some benefits. Su's Shop is on the Yunshan Sect's whitelist, so it can avoid this exploitation.

Li Hailang had his underlings wait at the entrance of the Hundred Treasures Pavilion before stepping inside.

However, the once bustling Baibaoge is now becoming increasingly deserted.

The only thing that attracted some customers today was the newly launched burial shovel, but its price was 30% higher than that of Su Ji's shop. If the independent cultivators wanted to be ripped off, they would go to Su Ji's shop instead, so they just looked and didn't buy.

Tong Xin had no time to serve these poor bastards, so when he saw Li Hailang arrive, he hurriedly went to greet him.

Although this person is nothing special, he has Su Qing's backing and spends money like water every time he comes to Baibaoge. Now he is Su Qing's only big customer, so he has to be careful to serve him.

"I heard that the third-tier great demon has arrived in the Hundred Beasts Mountain Range, gathering 100,000 demon beasts, intending to counterattack White Cloud Immortal City. War is about to break out. Your business should be booming. Why is it so quiet?"

Knowing who Tong Xin's smile was for, Li Hailang asked in confusion before Tong Xin could even offer a compliment.

"In the past, when independent cultivators killed monsters and brought them to themselves, they were also motivated by the merits of the Yunshan Sect. Everyone would prepare their own food and supplies, so they would naturally be more enthusiastic."

But now, the Yunshan Sect is forcibly conscripting rogue cultivators to fight desperately, only giving them a fraction of the spoils, not to mention no rewards for their merits. The rogue cultivators are resentful; why would they be willing to risk their lives for the Yunshan Sect, let alone spend their own money to buy magical artifacts and weapons!

Tong Xin complained bitterly that these days, it wasn't just the warriors who were having a hard time doing business; professionals were also having a tough time.

These professionals originally worked for themselves and earned money, so they were naturally willing to come to Baibaoge to buy materials.

However, the tasks assigned to them by the Yunshan Sect were so demanding that they barely had time to deal with the sect, let alone do other business.

Only a handful of second-tier professionals, such as Su Qing and Helian Xian, could take on orders from independent cultivators after completing the Yunshan Sect's missions, opening their shops to do business and occasionally buying materials from the Hundred Treasures Pavilion.

"So that's how it is. The Yunshan Sect's way of asking for favors is not very ethical, far inferior to my shopkeeper, who treats people with kindness and makes us willing to die for him!"

Li Hailang belittled the Yunshan Sect, but didn't forget to flatter Su Qingdao.

"Fellow Daoist Su is indeed a man of impeccable character. Fellow Daoist Li, don't rush to praise him. Give me the list first, and I'll gather the materials for you!"

As Tong Xin spoke, he took the list and saw that the materials listed, such as the Flame Crystal and the Exploding Stone, were strictly prohibited from circulation by the Yunshan Sect. However, he remained calm and did not let the shop assistants interfere. He went to the warehouse to prepare them himself.

He dared not sell these materials to Su Qing casually, lest he incur the wrath of the Yunshan Sect.

But after Su Qing went up to the third floor and talked with the Pavilion Master a few months ago.

The Pavilion Master then granted him sufficient authority.

Inside the Treasure Pavilion, any material available, as long as it is in the pavilion and Su Qing has the money to buy it, they dare to sell it to him!
What's there to fear about offending the Yunshan Sect!

Their leader is backed by a Nascent Soul family, and the Hundred Treasures Pavilion itself is no weaker than the Cloud Mountain Sect!
While Yu Tongxin was sorting through the materials, he suddenly realized that he hadn't seen Su Qing for almost two or three months!

"The mission from Yunshan Sect and the business at Su's Little Shop must have kept Fellow Daoist Su extremely busy!"

······
"Master has been very busy lately. Why don't you take a rest today?"

On the second floor of the small shop, Su Qing, who had abstained from alcohol for several months, climbed off Princess Leopard and, with the help of Hong Shang, put on his monastic robes.

Outside, snow was falling heavily and the wind was howling, but inside the small building, the boudoir was warm and cozy, with a beautiful woman by his side.

Su Qing now understood Yuan Tianye somewhat. Cultivators are highly skilled and live long lives, so they have many tricks up their sleeves. With such great temptations, it's normal for them to lose their ambition once they've tasted the sweetness of meat.

Su Qing could not become like his former senior brother, who indulged in pleasure and neglected his cultivation!

Today is his big day!
Thanks to his persistent efforts and the full cooperation of the Black children.

He's about to establish his foundation!
It has been more than three months since I returned to Baiyun Immortal City from the Hundred Beasts Mountain Range.

For the past three months, he has been making puppets day and night, creating many puppets for the Yunshan Sect and for himself.

They even dug out all the treasures from the treasure girl Yao Fei, and to repay the group of curse spirit masters who died for him last time, the curse spirit clan can send a hundred clansmen every month to have high-ranking Buddhist cultivators cure their illnesses.

The evil runes on ordinary cursed spirits are of low quality, yielding very little, but even a small amount is better than nothing.

After three months of intensive Buddhist practice, the evil markings that had been removed from Yao Fei and her clansmen have increased the completeness of the Jiuli Dao Mark to 0.36%.

In addition to imprinting the Nine Li Dao patterns, he would also imprint the Transformation Hand every half month.

Now, not only has the Transformation Hand advanced to the third rank, but he also possesses the ability to transform into a single Earth-level Dao technique every thirty years.

After repeatedly refining himself into a puppet, his physical constitution and spiritual root aptitude have greatly improved.

With his innate talent reaching the upper-middle grade, throughout the entire White Cloud Immortal City, including the disciples of the Cloud Mountain Sect, there was not a single person whose innate talent could compare to his.

His spiritual root also showed signs of breaking through to the middle-grade level, surpassing even the Yunshan True Disciples like Lin Shuangmu.

With his improved aptitude, he certainly wouldn't waste it.

In terms of physical cultivation, he has mastered the two profound-level combat techniques, Immovable King Technique and Dragon Roar Overlord Spear, by utilizing his proficiency in combat.

Even at the cost of using demon cores for energy, the body-nourishing effects are at full power.

His physical cultivation realm had already reached the peak of the second stage, and he was always very angry. However, despite searching through various avenues, he had not been able to obtain the earth-level cultivation technique of the Vajra lineage of Buddhism, and thus could not condense his inner strength and cultivate his inner power.

Without a furnace lid to block the essence of the furnace fire within his body, the essence that overflows from him every day makes the entire second floor warm and sunny, like a different world from the outside.

This energy was meant to nourish him, but now he can't use it and can only use it as heating. It's a real waste, and he feels helpless.

He has reached the limit of advancement in physical cultivation and is temporarily stuck in a bottleneck.

However, in the path of cultivation, he has made rapid progress in the past three months.

The power of generating myriad phenomena through talismans is extraordinary.

His qualifications are no longer a hindrance.

There are enough black kids, and they're very motivated.

After a month of hard work, last night we finally reached the point of condensing gas into liquid.

That's why he indulged himself a little last night, telling stories to Hongshang and Princess Leopard all night long.

While he was busy telling stories, the black children were not idle either.

After a night, he examined his inner sea of ​​consciousness again.

Within the sea of ​​consciousness, the original pool of spiritual energy had vanished.

Only one drop of liquid, interwoven with five colors and gathering the spiritual power of the five elements, floated in the sea of ​​consciousness.

Above the spiritual liquid, the phantom of the fire phoenix soared as before, its form appearing even more intense than before.

Condensing gas into liquid, achieving the foundation of success, one can live for over five hundred years!

"It is said that if one enters the Foundation Establishment stage before the age of fifty, one has a chance to achieve the Golden Core and the Great Dao. I am only twenty-five years old, and I have already reached the Foundation Establishment stage at such a young age. My chances of advancing to the Golden Core stage are much higher than those of ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators!"

Even though he had lived two lives and was known for his composure, he was still somewhat pleased with himself at this moment.

That's true. He has achieved what he has today through hard work, step by step. It's normal for his mindset to fluctuate when he reaps the rewards of success.

But the joy was fleeting.

He immediately turned his attention to the black children.

Although he often told the Black Boys that they would only have to work hard for a short period of time during the Qi Refining stage, he would let them rest after he established his foundation.

But in reality, the black children absolutely cannot rest!
They're resting, so what will Su Qing do?
Are you suggesting that he, like other cultivators, should spend three to five hours each day meditating and cultivating?
He could endure this hardship, but he was too busy to do so. He was already preoccupied with refining puppets and cultivating his health, so he didn't have the time for this!
Good luck!

The Black Babies, who could only exert their maximum effect during the Qi Refining stage, had a reduced work efficiency after he reached the Foundation Establishment stage.

During cultivation, he was extremely busy, truly so busy that after witnessing a black child being destroyed while emitting blue smoke, Su Qing painstakingly collected the remains.

Heiwa, who didn't lose his job but persevered through intense competition, is truly touching.

But to prevent these black children from being reduced in number too quickly, he had no choice but to voluntarily shorten their working hours.

They work in three shifts every day. When one shift can't hold on, the next shift takes their place. Although there are still some who can't hold on, he needs to refine new Black Babies in time to make up for it.

However, the mortality rate has decreased significantly. According to his estimate, the meditation dolls that work eight hours a day survive for about ten more days than those that work twenty-four hours a day.

The Black Boys kept up with the times, adapted to the new work tasks, and worked tirelessly to cultivate. As a result, his cultivation speed in the Foundation Establishment stage was more than twice that of an ordinary person.

It was a bit slow, but there was nothing he could do for the time being. He could only hope that after maxing out the meditation doll's proficiency, the panel would be able to unlock a second-tier meditation doll suitable for his Foundation Establishment stage cultivation.

And the problem of spiritual practice has been temporarily resolved.

He then focused his attention on crafting puppets.

The reason he has been so busy these past few months is that there are just too many puppets that need to be made.

Yunshan Sect is required to refine one second-tier puppet and three hundred lizard knights every month.

The Su family shop needs to restock its lizard series puppets, passion series puppets, and the recently added exorcism series puppets every day.

He himself had undergone several transformations of Daoist arts, resulting in a surge in his spiritual consciousness. The excess spiritual consciousness needed to be replenished by puppets.

In addition to his plans with his fellow Daoists, he also needed to refine many special types of puppets.

If it weren't for the increasing number of cultivators and puppets under his command, even if he used all six of his hands at once, he still wouldn't be able to keep up.

Six hands! He has crafted another set of external dual-arms for himself. Four hands are not enough to handle the workload, so he has to use six. You can imagine how busy he has been lately!
"Having established my foundation today, my divine sense has surged to a level comparable to that of a Golden Core cultivator. I also have twelve second-tier puppets available. With so many puppets, it would be a real disservice to these puppets if I didn't use the Wisdom Wood Spirit!"

(End of this chapter)