Forging Immortality through the Dao Seed

"Thank you, Senior cultivator, for your kindness!"

Receiving Zhang Jing's assurance, Pei Xiaoshuang immediately seemed to be on the verge of tears, her voice trembling as she spoke.

Meanwhile, she took out the prepared address and handed it over to Zhang Jing: "This is the precise location, Senior cultivator can go and verify it. Just be wary of that Wicked Deer."

"From this moment on, I will completely forget about this."

Uh-huh~

Zhang Jing nodded satisfactorily, then instructed, "I'll go and check it out first. You should come back here to look for me in three days."

"Thank you, Senior cultivator, I'll take my leave now."

He watched as Pei Xiaoshuang's figure disappeared into the crowd.

A contemplative look appeared on Zhang Jing's face.

Next moment, he tidied up the shop and headed straight to the storage place of the Spirit Crane in Langya Prefecture.

After a short while.

A Spirit Crane carrying Zhang Jing soared into the sky, disappearing into the vast expanse.

According to the address given by Pei Xiaoshuang, the place where the spiritual medicine grows was surprisingly nestled deep within the mountains, three hundred li southeast of Langya City.

This direction was distinctly opposite to the current battlefield against the devils in Langya Prefecture.

It was no wonder that so many cultivators from Langya had not discovered it until now.

A little more than two hours later.

The Spirit Crane let out a long cry, its figure beginning to lower gradually.

Between the valleys below was a winding great river that locals call the 'Black River'.

The Black River was shaped like a ribbon of ink, linking the mountains with turbulent waters.

"Follow the Black River upstream until you reach a cliff with three Beech trees below it, where the water flows rapidly!"

Zhang Jing stood on the back of the Spirit Crane, his body rippling with the spiritual power intrinsic to the mid-Qi Refinement stage. His gaze was as sharp as an eagle's, scrutinizing inch by inch below, checking whether there was a place that corresponded with the address.

Not too long after.

He found it! His eyes lit up.

Under Zhang Jing's control, the Spirit Crane darted down like an arrow.

Next to the Beech trees.

Zhang Jing dismounted from the Spirit Crane, gave it orders to wait for him here, and then jumped straight down the cliff.

A protective spiritual light was suddenly opened around his body. At the same time, ripples of water began to form under his feet, subtly influencing the rapid flow of water underneath.

The water surface immediately produced layered waves, crashing heavily against the cliff.

With a splash!

Zhang Jing was seen plunging straight into the water.

The icy blue protective spiritual light around him became even brighter. It was visually stunning, yet the terrifying wave of spiritual power it emitted had frightened off all the various sized fish and crustaceans at the bottom of the river.

As Zhang Jing continued to descend.

A narrow crack that could only accommodate one person suddenly appeared before his eyes.

"It looks like this is it."

Once Zhang Jing confirmed, a Concealment Charm appeared in his hand, and he activated it right away.

Following the crack, he kept moving forward.

The water became less and less until it completely disappeared.

At this moment.

The distant scenery gradually came into Zhang Jing's sight.

It was a very spacious cavern, the scant crack above being tightly shielded by the jungle. Luminous spiritual grass grew on all sides, preventing the cavern from being too gloomy.

A babbling stream crossed the cavern.

Around this stream, as the woman had said, grew an abundance of various precious spiritual medicines.

Just around the outskirts and shrouded in mist grew over a dozen Mist-root Water Spirit Ginseng.

His sight unconsciously moved toward the center.

Quiet Water Lily, Hundred-Leaf Spirit Root, Armor Wood Dragon Beard Grass... Various high-level spiritual medicines congregated and grew, the rich medicinal fragrance they released could still be faintly detected by Zhang Jing, even standing several miles away.

But he didn't make any rash moves, only keeping a peripheral eye on the giant White Deer sleeping amidst those many spiritual medicines.

Zhang Jing sensed an extremely dangerous aura from it.

"The aura is far beyond Qi Refinement sixth level, but it seems... it's still a bit short of the seventh level."

He attempted to compare the aura of the White Deer with those of the Senior Brothers he had met.

Shortly afterwards, he quickly drew a conclusion.

This white deer should be advancing towards the late Qi Refinement stage!

Zhang Jing quietly retreated, daring not to make a sound nor expose a hint of aura.

If this White Deer were to be frightened, it would be difficult for him to leave unscathed.

"It seems I will have to come up with a different plan."

Zhang Jing thought disappointedly.

Killing this White Deer wouldn't be too difficult, he just needed to purchase a few high-grade attack talismans, activate them, then throw them over. This would guarantee the opponent wouldn't be able to resist in the slightest.

However—

The consequences of doing so would not only kill the White Deer, but also the Spiritual Medicines. They would be reduced to nothing under the great power of the high-grade talismans.

This thought followed him all the way back to his shop in the market.

Zhang Jing's brows remained furrowed.

If he wanted to protect the Spiritual Medicines while killing or frightening away the White Deer, his only solution would be to enlist the help of a Qi Refinement stage cultivator.

The problem then would be, how should the Spiritual Medicines be distributed?

It would be unrealistic to give the other party only ten or twenty percent. The best outcome would likely be a fifty-fifty split.

And after personally inspecting them...

The Spiritual Medicines had already transformed themselves in Zhang Jing's eyes. They were no longer Spiritual Medicines, they were... equivalent to at least half a high-grade legacy!

While he was deep in thought...

Knock knock—

The shop's front door was lightly tapped, and in no time, a figure dressed in green robes appeared outside.

Zhang Jing looked up towards the sound.

"So, it's Senior Brother He. Please come inside," Zhang Jing stood up and walked towards the door, unconsciously flashing a smile.

"Haha, Junior Brother, I'm here to bother you again."

Senior Brother He walked inside the shop with a broad smile on his face.

"Senior Brother, you're too modest. It's an honor for me that you could make the time to visit," Zhang Jing greeted him warmly.

Amidst their conversation, both of them took a seat.

"Junior Brother, your reputation has been skyrocketing these past days in the market. Do you know what those lower grade Talisman Masters are calling you?"

Senior Brother He asked jokingly.

Before Zhang Jing could respond, he continued:

"Plague God! Hahaha~"

His loud laughter reverberated within Zhang Jing's shop.

Sitting just across from Senior Brother He...

Zhang Jing could only muster an embarrassed grin, unsure of what to say next.

"By the way, Junior Brother, when I just walked in, I noticed your wooden plaque was still hanging. Hasn't the time passed already? Could it be that you got lost crafting talismans and forgot to take it down?"

Senior Brother He asked concernedly.

At that, an enigmatic smile appeared on Zhang Jing's face, "Senior Brother He, not at all. The three days on my wooden plaque refers to yesterday, today, and tomorrow. How can you say it has passed?"

Upon hearing Zhang Jing's explanation, Senior Brother He's face froze momentarily.

There was silence for a moment.

"Junior Brother... your interpretation is quite good! I have learned something new," he said, forcing out a laugh. Suddenly, a copper talisman the size of his palm appeared in his hand.

Zhang Jing eyed the copper talisman; it was inscribed with some kind of dense rune array emitting an ancient aura.

"Senior Brother, what is this?" pointing at the copper talisman, he asked curiously.

"Haha, I've been given a task to specifically bring this to you, Junior Brother. It's actually an invitation to an internal trade meeting. It doesn't have any other use."

"Internal trade meeting?"

"Yes, the participants are mainly the Pill Masters, Artifact Refiners, and Talisman Masters from the Dao Institute currently in Langya County, as well as some High-level Cultivators. Every once in a while, we organize an internal trade meeting to exchange goods."

"You made quite a commotion a few days ago, Junior Brother, so the brother who organizes the trade meetings specifically asked me to bring this invitation to you."

Senior Brother He patiently explained.

"I see," Zhang Jing responded in realization.

"There are always good items at the meetings – superior magic artifacts, pills, talismans, and all different kinds of precious materials and such. It would be good for you to go take a look."

"The meeting should be in a couple of days. The details are explained in the invitation. When you examine it with your Spiritual Sense, you'll understand everything."

"Alright, now that I've delivered the invitation, I'll be taking my leave."

"Safe travels, Senior Brother."

Zhang Jing escorted him to the door before turning back.

Using his Spiritual Sense, he examined the copper talisman, and a piece of information immediately surfaced.

"Tomorrow, 9-11pm, at the Hidden Fragrance Pavilion in the southern city!"