Cultivating Immortality Begins with Rejuvenation.

Chapter 121: Immortal City
He stood alone in front of the mountain gate, waiting for the gatekeeper disciple to come and report.

This is in stark contrast to the disciples who come in and out of the sect from time to time.

Nowadays, most of the disciples entering and leaving the sect are in a hurry, while Li Ji'an seems leisurely and calm.

Not long after, a young man dressed in outer sect clothes came out from afar, riding a magic weapon.

"But Fellow Daoist Li from the Immortal City?"

"My name is Li Fan, and I have been invited to attend Senior Xiao's foundation-building celebration." Li Ji'an responded with a bow.

"Welcome, Fellow Daoist Li. I am Senior Brother Xiao's steward disciple. Senior Brother Xiao is unable to spare time at the moment, so I have come here on his behalf to greet you. Please come in." The young man seemed particularly enthusiastic.

Outer disciples usually serve as the guardians of the various peaks of the sect, and are mostly responsible for some miscellaneous matters of the sect.

Once the inner disciples have established their foundation, they will be assigned an independent cave and a cave deacon.

It is a very good job for an outer disciple to become the cave steward of a foundation-building senior brother. Not only can his status and position be comparable to that of the senior brother, but he can also have the possibility of receiving individual guidance and additional rewards from the senior brother.

"Thank you, fellow Taoist."

Then he followed the young man and drove the magic weapon deep into the sect.

When he participated in the trial twenty-one years ago, he could only enter the outer sect's Dharma Hall at most. This time, he went straight through the sect's heartland and reached the inner sect's cave area.

The scenery along the way was surrounded by fairy mountains with overwhelming spiritual energy. Without the many vulgar things of the fairy city, it really satisfied Li Ji'an's dream of being a fairy hero before he traveled through time.

The only difference was that the monks he met during this period lacked the ethereal air of immortals, and most of them had stern expressions.

Until they landed halfway up a mountain, they finally arrived at Xiao Changfeng's private cave.

The red silk carvings outside the cave further destroy the fairy-like atmosphere.

It also brought Li Ji'an back to his senses from his fairyland fantasy.

"After all, it's not the fairyland of my dreams!" He has been in this world for sixty-six years. If there is anything that still gives him room for imagination, it is only the ancient cultivation world six thousand years ago.

The unity of man and nature, the contention of all things, does not rely on external things, but is more about self-cultivation, mind and spirit.

This is the golden age of spiritual practice that Li Ji'an longs for!
Coming back to his senses, Li Ji'an took out the gift and handed it to the young man on duty.

"Fellow Daoist Li from the Immortal City, here is a fine magic weapon for Senior Brother Xiao as a congratulations." The guard immediately shouted.

As soon as he finished speaking, a figure hurried out of the cave.

"Brother Li!"

The word "Brother Li" really surprised Li Ji'an.

In Cangyun Province, no matter whether it is a sect or a cultivation family, the status of foundation-building cultivators is very high. No matter what their previous relationship was, once they are promoted to foundation-building, there will be a difference between seniors and juniors.

He had long understood that Xiao Changfeng was unruly and free-spirited by nature.

Even when he received the invitation to the Foundation Establishment Celebration last month, he addressed him as "Brother Li".

However, that was a private communication, or perhaps he had just established his foundation and had not yet made the transition.

But at this moment, in public, and in the heart of the sect, he could still call him "big brother" with such a sincere heart!

"No, you have already successfully established your foundation, and you are a senior master..." Li Ji'an pretended to be flattered and declined.

Xiao Changfeng waved his hand and said, "Brother Li, how can you be so worldly? If you really call me senior, our friendship will be severed."

Xiao Changfeng then smiled bitterly and shook his head, saying in a voice transmission, "Last year ago, I was oppressed by the secular world and my heart was blocked by many things, which made my mind chaotic and my cultivation powerless. It was you who made me suddenly enlightened and my mind clear.

After returning that day, I asked myself, if everyone else is like this, do I have to be like this too?

The world has always been like this, right?"

"Finally, the knot in my heart was untied, and I had an epiphany, and finally found my true self."

Hearing this, Li Ji'an nodded secretly.

Any society has its own rules, customs, and social practices. Most people are young and frivolous, ignorant of the immensity of the world, and delusionally believe that they are independent and free from the world. However, when they enter society and experience hardships, their original intentions will be tempered, and they will begin to conform and eventually become part of the society that follows its path.

He is like this, Zhao Shuyao is like this, and other ordinary people are like this.

Even when Zhang Tiezhu had just been promoted to the middle stage of Qi training and felt that he was a little extraordinary, he couldn't wait to greet Fellow Daoist Li Ji'an according to the customs and habits of this world.

However, in this world, there will always be true genius protagonists in every era. They are the ones who can truly stick to their original intentions and not be buried by the world.

Otherwise, the world would be all one color, and it would lack a lot of excitement.

Twenty-one years ago, Xiao Changfeng showed a style different from his peers. However, when they first met before going to Huoyan Mountain last time, Li Ji'an clearly felt that he had been beaten by society and had become much calmer. Unexpectedly, last year's visit to Chunfeng Tower unexpectedly helped him find his true heart.

Of course, that night was just a prelude at most. The key reason should be the accumulation of contradictions that have been suppressed in the heart for a long time.

However, it is still too early to say whether he is the protagonist here and whether he can ultimately remain true to himself.

There are still too many beatings waiting for him on the road of life.

"Okay, congratulations, brother, on your successful foundation building and further advancement in the path to immortality." Li Ji'an followed the local customs and abided by the rules. This was also because he had been beaten and knew that he was not the protagonist here, so he had to do so. Therefore, he could understand Xiao Changfeng very well and stopped being shy.

"Hahaha, okay, Brother Li, please come in!" Xiao Changfeng smiled and led Li Ji'an into the cave.

As soon as he stepped into the cave, Li Ji'an felt the fullness of spiritual energy that was close to the middle grade of the second level, and praised it secretly. This was richer and purer than the spiritual energy in the core spiritual vein of the Yan family, and it happened to be mostly earth spiritual energy.

After walking a few more feet, a huge cave covering several acres with a hollowed-out top came into view.

There were many people sitting in the hall discussing the Dao, and maids were serving them spiritual tea and wine.

Seeing Xiao Changfeng personally greet them and call them "big brother", everyone's eyes fell on Li Ji'an.

"It's him!"

"Daoist Li Fan, long time no see."

"Friend Li, it's been twenty years since we last met. I hope you are doing well."

……

Most of them were inner disciples who entered the sect at the same time as Xiao Changfeng, and they recognized Li Ji'an at a glance.

However, no matter what they talked about behind each other's backs, they were quite friendly when they met at this moment. After all, they should give face to the Buddha. As Xiao Changfeng was the first inner disciple to establish his foundation, except for the three true disciples, they naturally had to give him face.

Not to mention that Xiao Changfeng's attitude towards Li Ji'an was obviously unusual.

"Greetings, fellow Daoists," Li Ji'an replied with a smile. With Xiao Changfeng by his side, Li Ji'an felt welcomed and never looked down upon because of his status as a casual cultivator.

The young man who had greeted the guests before now remembered Li Ji'an's appearance deeply in his mind, and secretly reminded himself that he must be more respectful when he meets this wandering cultivator in the future.

After arranging Li Ji'an to sit down, Xiao Changfeng left for something.

After a brief greeting, everyone returned to the previous topic and Li Ji'an gradually became an outsider again.

This cannot be blamed on others. After all, they are all disciples of the sect and have common topics. Moreover, at Xiao Changfeng's foundation-building celebration, the most talked about topic was naturally about foundation-building.

Moreover, because of their status as disciples of the sect, a lot of their conversations were about what tasks to do, how to distribute the contribution points they earned, and which quality of foundation-building pill was the most cost-effective to exchange.

As the only independent cultivator present, Li Ji'an could not get a word in, nor did he want to, and for a moment he seemed a little out of place.

This is the circle of sect disciples, not him.

During this time, a disciple who was awakened by Li Ji'an in the past tried to bring Li Ji'an into the conversation, but just as he opened his mouth, he realized how difficult it was for a casual cultivator to obtain the Foundation Establishment Pill. He was worried that this topic would make Li Ji'an think too much, so he finally stopped and offered a glass of spiritual wine.

Afterwards, more and more disciples from the sect came to congratulate him, including a few senior brothers from the older generation who were in the Foundation Establishment stage, as well as three true disciples from the same class as Xiao Changfeng.

Compared with the initial disciples who had not yet established their foundation, a few of them, after learning of Li Ji'an's identity as a casual cultivator, inadvertently revealed their contempt and disdain. Faced with Li Ji'an's greeting that followed the crowd, several of the foundation-building brothers turned a blind eye.

Li Ji'an didn't care about it and was just waiting for Xiao Changfeng to share his insights.

An hour later, Xiao Changfeng finally returned to the cave and began to share his insights and experiences from this foundation-building experience.

This is a tradition in Biyun Sect.

It also reflects the advantage of the sect's monks in terms of "companion".

Whenever someone in the sect breaks through to a new realm, they will share their insights and answer questions from fellow disciples.

This is also what Li Ji'an valued when he came here this time.

In addition to Xiao Changfeng’s sharing, there were also questions from other disciples.

After a long time, Li Ji'an raised his eyebrows slightly, and then he realized that Xiao Changfeng did not use the foundation-building pill to build his foundation this time.

He said frankly that the top-grade earth spirit root has a 20% success rate in building the foundation. His physical body has been tempered since childhood and has never been neglected over the years. He is almost at the late stage of first-level physical cultivation, and he has added another 15% chance. His magic power has been honed a lot in the past few years when he was chasing and robbing cultivators. Although his magic power is not too strong because his skills are not top-notch, it is pure. Add another 15%. His soul is not special, but it is not bad either. Add another 10%, and the starting success rate is 60%, and the chance of winning is very high.

On this basis, he borrowed the quasi-third-level cave in the sect with the contribution that was originally intended to be exchanged for the foundation-building pill, and arranged a second-level spirit gathering array to ensure that the spiritual energy was sufficient and stable during the foundation-building process.

I also rented a fine Dharma crown that has the function of clearing the mind and purifying the heart, so that I can keep my mind empty and move forward.

Finally, he prepared a fine protective pill to ensure that even if the foundation-building attempt failed, the dantian would be protected from damage and the body would be indestructible to the greatest extent.

After talking about the materials prepared for foundation building, he then carefully explained each step of the foundation building, from the physical body level, the magic power level to the soul level, and shared the details and insights of each level.

Finally, he admitted that the success of this foundation-building mainly depended on his state of mind and the courage to move forward in condensing the magic liquid.

Encourage everyone not to be influenced by outside rumors. Building a foundation is not difficult. You can try it if the success rate is above 50%. You don't necessarily need a foundation-building pill.

However, when he said this, a fake Dan elder who had been hiding somewhere jumped out and sternly warned the other disciples not to listen to this.

The first stage of foundation building involves the foundation of Taoism, which is very risky and has serious consequences. It is not recommended to force it unless you are more than 70% sure.

He even pointed out in public that Xiao Changfeng was able to successfully establish his foundation with a 60% chance this time, and his foundation was solid and pure, which was absolutely unreasonable and mostly due to luck, and other people should not imitate him.

This little episode brought great laughter and joy to the originally serious discussion meeting, and the atmosphere was pushed to the highest point.

Li Ji'an was fully focused throughout the whole process. In addition to Xiao Changfeng's self-narration, he also tried to figure out the origins of other disciples' questions and benefited a lot from it.

He had a better idea of his upcoming foundation-building stage.

The sect is not allowed to accommodate outside cultivators, except for the core descendants of major forces like Liu Jiuchan. Li Ji'an said goodbye and left after the discussion meeting ended.

When they parted, Xiao Changfeng encouraged Li Ji'an a lot, and expressed his hope that Li Ji'an could build his foundation as soon as possible. He also promised that if he found any trace of the Heaven and Earth Spirit Flame in the future, he would help Li Ji'an capture one.

During this meeting, Xiao Changfeng gave Li Ji'an the feeling that he had returned to the high-spirited youth he was in, and his words and actions were a little more unrestrained, without some of his previous reservations.

Li Ji'an felt that this was not good for his future development. He was in a sect and his talent was not particularly outstanding. He was like this when he first started to build his foundation. It was inevitable that he would be labeled as arrogant because of his success.

However, things are unpredictable, and Li Ji'an understood that this was a return to his nature, so he didn't say much.
-
Half a year later, the handover of the Immortal City was completed.

The Wanjian Qi family took over the fairy city, and all the monks of the Biyun Sect evacuated.

On this day, the first grand market after the change of ownership of the Immortal City arrived as Li Ji'an had expected.

The Qi family announced to the world that they would hold a grand auction in the name of Xiancheng in half a year.

It was even revealed in advance that this auction would include a top-grade foundation-building pill refined by a senior second-level alchemist from Daoyuan Prefecture.

Once this news was released, it immediately shocked all the cultivators in Cangyun Province.

The Biyun Sect has been in charge of the Immortal City for hundreds of years, and the highest price they have ever auctioned is a mid-grade Foundation Establishment Pill. The rest are mostly low-grade or even inferior.

Low-grade foundation-building pills can increase the success rate by 20%.

For medium quality products, the price increases by 30%.

Top-grade foundation-building pills increase the success rate by 40%.

Even if it is a cultivator with low-grade spiritual roots, he only needs to pass the test of physical body, magic power and soul, and add a high-grade foundation-building pill, and he will have a 70% success rate. He only needs to find a foundation-building field with abundant spiritual energy, and he will succeed without almost any other help.

However, after being excited, everyone also understood that this foundation-building pill would probably be auctioned for a sky-high price.

In the past few years, a low-grade foundation-building pill was sold at a high price of six thousand spirit stones. This high-grade one would definitely be sold at over ten thousand, and might even reach twenty thousand.

This price calmed many people down.

Similarly, it has also mobilized the enthusiasm of more people.

Li Ji'an was one of them. He now had savings of more than 5,000, which could not be doubled even with another half a year. However, he was not auctioning this foundation-building pill, but he had a feeling that there might be many good things at this auction, and it would not be a bad idea to prepare some more spirit stones.

In the next six months, he devoted himself almost entirely to alchemy, even throwing aside talismans and the formations he had originally started to study, and worked on alchemy day and night.

The good thing is that the Immortal City has just changed hands, and the prices of first-level medicinal materials have dropped to a certain extent, but the prices of finished pills are temporarily stable, and the profits are relatively higher.

Half a year has passed by in a flash.

On this day, the fairy city finally welcomed its first grand market after hundreds of years.

(End of this chapter)