Immortality and Cultivation: This old man seeks enlightenment through mere survival.

Time flies, and another year has passed in the blink of an eye.

Inside the desolate city.

For cultivators without any special skills, every day is filled with fear and torment.

They arrived here full of passion, hoping to find their own opportunity, break through their cultivation level, and become revered Foundation Establishment cultivators...

However, it won't be long before...

They will then discover that ideals are lofty, but reality is harsh.

The opportunities surrounding the desolate marshland have been largely exploited over the years.

They had to fight over the remaining soup and broth before they could get any.

Or they could venture deep into desolate marshes and explore uncharted virgin territory...

However, the poisonous insects and monsters lurking deep in the water are not to be trifled with.

For these venomous insects and demonic beasts, the delicious flesh of human cultivators is also an opportunity for them.

But not going is not an option.

In the desolate city, everything from food and clothing to shelter and transportation depends on spirit stones...

For cultivators who are not good at making money, buying a single pill or repairing a magical artifact requires careful consideration and is a matter of squeezing money out of their teeth.

I worry about tomorrow's rent every day...

But if you ask them to leave, they will be extremely reluctant.

There is abundant spiritual energy here from a third-tier spiritual vein; feel free to absorb it.

Fighting is forbidden within the city, which, compared to the dog-eat-dog world of cultivation, provides them with a rare and safe environment for cultivation.

And from time to time, there are stories of lucky individuals who find high-grade spiritual herbs and soar to great heights...

Those stories may be true or false, or they may be embellished.

But for these struggling cultivators, it was a source of motivation to grit their teeth and persevere...

Compared to those cultivators who possess a special skill.

This place, however, is a rare and blessed land.

They don't need to risk going out to gather and hunt; they can just focus on cultivating their own small plot of land.

Where there is production, there will be harvest...

Lu Zai'an got up very early this morning to go to the market.

A few days ago, he refined another batch of Qi-restoring pills and Rejuvenation pills.

When the cultivators leave the marshland early in the morning, they usually stroll through the market to see if there are any new goods.

Lu Zaian was also able to take advantage of the early morning market to sell out quickly.

The Qi-Returning Pill can slowly restore mana during battle.

Rejuvenating Pills can treat some internal injuries.

Although both are still classified as low-grade first-tier pills, they remain highly sought-after items among cultivators.

The desolate marshes are extremely dangerous; these two kinds of elixirs can be life-saving in critical moments...

"It's Master Lu! Master Lu is here again!"

"What is Master Lu selling this time? I'll pre-order ten!"

"Everyone line up, don't fucking scramble! I was here first..."

The market street became lively with Lu Zaian's arrival, and many cultivators crowded around Lu Zaian's stall.

Alchemists are welcome wherever they go.

This year,

Lu Zai'an continuously produces pills and sells them here.

The cultivators in this market were already very familiar with him and respectfully called him "Master Lu".

Lu Zaian's retail pills are cheaper than those in large stores, which is why they are so popular among cultivators in this area.

"Everyone line up properly! Anyone who cuts in line will be blacklisted forever and will never be able to buy medicine from me again!"

Lu Zaian remained calm and composed, his hands tucked into his sleeves, while an aura of the eighth level of Qi Refining spread out.

That year, Lu Zaian earned more than 6,000 spirit stones through alchemy, and his Qi Refining cultivation naturally broke through to the eighth level.

At the same time, he also purchased some demon beast essence blood and used the Blood Spirit Pearl to further solidify his ninth level of body refinement cultivation!

At this moment, as soon as Lu Zaian spoke, the previously somewhat chaotic group of cultivators immediately became obedient and lined up neatly.

Nobody wants to offend an alchemist.

In particular, Lu Zaian's pills were cheaper than those in other shops.

"This time, we're still selling Qi-restoring pills and Rejuvenation pills, four spirit stones per pill, forty of each..."

As soon as Lu Zaian finished speaking, a burly man at the very front of the line, who was at the eighth level of Qi Refining, couldn't wait to stuff the spirit stone into his hand.

"Master Lu, give me three Qi-Returning Pills and three Rejuvenating Pills!"

Last time I encountered a wood-horned crocodile in the swamp and suffered a great loss; this time I'm determined to skin that beast alive!

The burly man's loud, boisterous voice echoed throughout the arena, as if he were determined to take revenge.

The Wood Crocodile is a special kind of monster found in marshes, and its lair is usually inhabited by companion spiritual plants.

Upon hearing this, some of the other cultivators in the arena had a strange glint in their eyes, and their gazes secretly locked onto the burly man.

However, Lu Zaian, having reached the ninth level of Body Refinement and possessing the Blood Spirit Pearl, had long sensed the thick aura of bloodlust emanating from the burly man.

This aura didn't come from killing demons, but from killing people!

Whether this wood-horned crocodile really exists is still uncertain...

Entrapment? Double-crossing?

A thought flashed through Lu Zaian's mind. He smiled and weighed the spirit stone in his hand, saying with interest:

"Here, take your pills. If you catch that beast, you can sell me some of its essence blood. I won't treat you badly..."

Whether it's true or false, it has nothing to do with me.

Anyway, I'm not going out of the city for the time being.

As long as someone spends spirit stones to buy his pills, they are a customer. Lu Zaian doesn't care whether the other party is a cultivator undergoing tribulation or something else...

'Damn it, that old bastard has been selling pills for a year, he must be rolling in spirit stones, how rich must he be? If only I could lure that old bastard out and kill him…'

A fleeting glint of greed crossed the burly man's eyes, before he laughed and accepted the pills from Lu Zaian.

After the burly man left, Lu Zaian noticed that several other people had also followed him discreetly...

"next."

"Master, I need a Rejuvenation Pill..."

"I want……"

As the pills gradually ran out, at the very back of the group was an acquaintance of Lu Zaian.

The one who spoke was an old man with a weathered face and thinning hair.

"Master Lu..."

This person was Lao Mo, whom Lu Zaian had known before entering the city.

“…I told you, you can just call me Lao Lu,” Lu Zaian said with a smile.

Old Mo was still accompanied by Aunt Hong, Mo Haoxuan, and Yan'er.

A year later, Lao Mo's aura became even stronger, approaching the perfection of the ninth level of Qi Refining.

The others also made progress at different levels.

The two young people lacked a vibrant energy; instead, they seemed rather dull...

It's as if life has worn down their edges.

"Old Lu, this time we also want to buy a few Qi-restoring pills and Rejuvenation pills."

Old Mo looked somewhat reserved, as if there was an invisible chasm between them and Lu Zaian.

This was not the first time they had come to Lu Zaian to buy elixirs.

Actually, more than six months ago.

When they heard that there was a rising alchemist named Lu Zaian in the Eastern Third District, they thought it was just a coincidence of names.

However, when they actually met Lu Zaian, they were absolutely certain.

The old man surrounded by a group of cultivators scrambling to buy his pills was indeed the same person who had come to Huangze City with them.