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"Fellow Daoist Lin, I don't quite understand what you mean," Lan Chang'an said, furrowing his brows.
"Alchemist Hua concocted pills for me. Two pills were made, including one of superior quality, which is considered an extraordinary performance."
"Perhaps he leaked the information, but I also benefited from the disaster. The deal with Miss Fu only brought me profit, and I gained a valuable favor."
Lan Chang'an did not easily believe Lin Ye's words.
This person and Alchemist Hua were senior and junior brothers. Who knew if he was here to test him?
"Fellow Daoist Lan, whether you are pretending not to know or are genuinely in the dark, I will tell you the truth: In the alchemy lineage of Hua Heng and this humble Lin, there is a secret refining method that is not known to outsiders. By sacrificing the number of finished pills produced, we can increase the chances of creating a superior product."
Hearing this, Lan Chang'an showed a suitably surprised expression.
"Back then, Alchemist Hua used dirty tricks to deceive my childhood sweetheart and beloved junior sister, gaining the trust of our master and receiving the core secret techniques."
"I, Lin, haven't had any contact with him for decades. You can ask those who know the situation, and you will see that what I say is true."
Lin Ye's old face turned red with indignation, and under the influence of alcohol, he recounted his past grievances.
Lan Chang'an was about seventy to eighty percent convinced.
Lin Ye was in the mid Foundation Establishment and a second-rank superior alchemist. He wouldn't lie about something like this.
Previously, he had never heard Du Wei mention Lin Ye, indicating that there was indeed no contact between them.
Lin Ye said his childhood sweetheart was deceived by dirty means, but Lan Chang'an remained skeptical.
It was true that Alchemist Hua was his enemy.
But to be fair, Alchemist Hua's image and demeanor were far superior to Lin Ye's.
Perhaps Lin Ye failed in his pursuit, or maybe the junior sister simply fell in love with someone else.
"I will verify this slowly in the future." Lan Chang'an made no solid statement.
Alchemist Hua was well-established in Huanglong Immortal City, with far more connections than Lin Ye.
Lin Ye bore a grudge against Alchemist Hua but couldn't deal with him alone, likely wanting to drag Lan Chang'an into the fray or use him as a tool for revenge.
"I am just informing you of the truth. You can pretend you never heard what I just said." Lin Ye took a sip of wine and moved past the topic.
These words were at least enough to plant a seed of doubt in Lan Chang'an's mind.
In fact, Lan Chang'an had considered seeking revenge on Alchemist Hua. Dealing with him was easier and less risky than dealing with Fu Xuemei. Ultimately, Alchemist Hua was just a rootless wandering cultivator with no background to speak of.
The reason he hadn't acted yet was twofold.
One, he didn't want to alert the snake and raise Fu Xuemei's suspicion.
Two, the timing wasn't right yet.
Alchemist Hua was in the mid Foundation Establishment, wealthy, and his protective measures far surpassed those of Young Master Huang.
Lan Chang'an had a long lifespan and was not in a hurry.
He planned to wait for Huanglong Immortal City to decline and for Alchemist Hua's power to diminish.
By then his cultivation and protective measures would be stronger, when he would able able to call upon the second life's soul imprint—that would be when he'd strike, with victory assured and freedom to act as he pleased.
...
In the evening, Lan Chang'an saw Lin Ye off from his cave mansion.
"Master Lin, Talisman Master Lan."
Outside Little Turtle Peak, a slender, graceful female cultivator flew over.
Her name was Lan Lin, and she was the steward of Wuqi Mountain.
Lan Lin was responsible for handling external affairs with cultivator clients and managing mundane matters for the three peak masters.
"Senior Lan."
Lan Lin greeted gracefully, specifically seeking him out.
"I noticed that Little Turtle Peak is quite deserted. Would you like to recruit a few maids or servants?"
Wuqi Mountain, besides the three main peaks, enjoyed the environment of a mid-grade second-rank spiritual vein. The surrounding area also had a considerable region with the environment of a first-rank spiritual vein.
According to the agreement among the three peak masters, each main peak could only accommodate one Foundation Establishment cultivator at a time and allowed to take in twenty Qi-Refining juniors or servants.
This rule was in place to prevent overuse of the spiritual energy supply. After all, the scale of the spiritual vein in Wuqi Mountain was not large.
Those Qi-Refining servants were mostly loose cultivators without their own spiritual veins, and were dependent on the three peak masters.
"I don't need them for now." Lan Chang'an didn't want too many people meddling on Little Turtle Peak.
Guan Qiaozhi was diligent and skillful, with the help of the Earth Burrowing Rat and the Profound Water Turtle, she could manage most tasks. Once Little Turtle Peak was on track, he would add some puppets.
Then, Lan Chang'an discussed the details of selling talismans with Lan Lin.
Currently, Lan Chang'an was still fairly well-off and planned to follow the high-quality route, selling only second-rank talismans in the future.
This would reduce total profits but make things easier.
Initially focusing on low-grade second-rank talismans, he would later add mid-grade second-rank ones.
As the steward of Wuqi Mountain, Lan Lin also provided courier and errand services, free of charge for the three peak masters.
Lan Chang'an entrusted her with three letters, that he applied restrictions to, and sent them to Feiyue Lake, Jin Yun Valley, and the Beast Taming Zhou Family.
...
"Finally, things have settled down."
Lan Chang'an returned to his cave mansion on Little Turtle Peak and checked the formation core.
The core of the mountain's protective formation, designed in his previous life, was located within this cave, where the isolation from spiritual sense was the highest.
In the quiet room.
Lan Chang'an took out the second-rank Life Extension Pill he had bought at the auction.
The second-rank Life Extension Pill had remarkable effects, so Lan Chang'an waited until he was certain he had arranged everything properly before consuming it.
The Evergreen mana in his body immediately came to life, surging so vigorously it nearly burst from his palms to devour the Life Extension Pill.
Lan Chang'an swallowed the pill, and the mysterious Qi of the ages enveloped him more strongly than ever before.
His spirit felt as if it had been tempered by over twenty years of time.
"Extended lifespan by twenty-three years!"
Lan Chang'an was full of vitality and energy, as if he had truly returned to his eighteen-year-old self.
"With these twenty-three years, my maximum lifespan in the Foundation Establishment stage is now four hundred and eighteen years!"
His current lifespan far exceeded that of a Fake-Dan cultivator. It was nearly double that of a regular Foundation Establishment cultivator.
Moreover, the Evergreen mana clearly strengthened after absorbing the second-rank Life Extension Pill.
"Previously, my Evergreen mana was on par with the outer sect techniques of the sect, at most slightly superior. Now it has a clear advantage." Lan Chang'an used Jin Yun Valley as a reference.
This meant that the Evergreen Technique, with its various additional effects, now had power slightly exceeding that of outer sect disciples of a Core Formation sect.
It should be noted that the Evergreen Technique was originally only equivalent to loose cultivator-level techniques.
...
After taking the Life Extension Pill.
Lan Chang'an took out the top superior-grade second-rank Golden Nan Spirit Bamboo and had Guan Qiaozhi help cut and prepare the talisman embryos of the treasure talismans.
The talisman embryos for treasure talismans required spiritual materials. The Golden Nan Spirit Bamboo's skin, with its hidden golden patterns, contained spiritual vitality.
Ultimately, this segment of Golden Nan Spirit Bamboo was used to make four talisman embryos.
The paper that carries treasure talismans not only had quality requirements but also needed a larger quantity.
Next was the drawing of the treasure talisman.
The refining method for treasure talismans was somewhat different from ordinary talismans.
It required more advanced techniques, and key nodes needed to be reinforced to sustain the long-term nurturing process.
As for the technique, he had figured out most of it in his previous life and had been deducing it over the past two years as well.
To increase the success rate, Lan Chang'an called upon the first life's soul imprint from the Nine Seal Stele.
With the addition of his first life's soul, Lan Chang'an not only experienced a slight increase in his spiritual sense but also an improvement in his talisman-drawing state.
In one smooth motion, he drew a superior-grade second-rank Thunderbolt Talisman, or rather, the prototype of a Thunderbolt Treasure Talisman.
Phew!
Lan Chang'an expended a large amount of mana, and the added soul projection of the first life was quickly depleted.
After advancing to the Foundation Establishment Realm, the first life's soul imprint needed only two months of nurturing to fully illuminate.
For the next few talismans, Lan Chang'an planned to use the same method.
"The first treasure talisman prototype. Let's see how the nurturing goes."
After restoring his mana, Lan Chang'an clasped his hands together, placing the Thunderbolt Treasure Talisman prototype in his palm.
Carefully guiding his Evergreen mana, he subtly enveloped the treasure talisman prototype.
After half a month of testing, Lan Chang'an was overjoyed.
"The spiritual quality of the talisman material is being nurtured. The treasure talisman's absorption efficiency of Evergreen mana far surpasses that of my previous life."
He stood on the shoulders of his previous life. He had the Evergreen Technique in this life, and with a little fumbling and deduction, his achievements in the field of treasure talismans broke through the shackles of his previous life.
This was the second time Lan Chang'an had surpassed his past life.
The first was when he saw Daoist Tianxu, achieving a breakthrough in his understanding of the world.
This time it was an achievement in skill.
...
After completing the first treasure talisman, Lan Chang'an nurtured it during his daily cultivation.
He would wait two months until the first life's imprint lit up again to refine the second treasure talisman.
A few days later, Shi Manrong visited, bringing a set of second-rank mountain-protecting formations.
"The Illusory Moon Water Killing Formation, a second-rank mid-grade illusion and killing formation. During moonlit nights, the power of the illusion formation increases by forty to fifty percent, with hidden offensive means like 'thousand water arrows' and 'water killing waves and other offensive killing methods.'"
Shi Manrong wore a simple and elegant moon-colored dress, her tall and curvaceous figure subtly revealed.
"According to Fellow Daoist Lan's requirements, this formation mainly covers the mountaintop area, making it much cheaper than a general mountain-protecting formation." Her voice was gentle and serene, like a female teacher, explaining carefully.
"This one, please help set it up, Fairy Shi."
Lan Chang'an, who had some formation skills himself, had to admit that her formation techniques surpassed his own by far.
Over the next few days, a graceful and beautiful figure was busy around Little Turtle Peak.
Lan Chang'an and the Earth Burrowing Rat assisted her.
Shi Manrong was not a peerless beauty but her serene and elegant demeanor, combined with the charm of a mature woman, was very popular among Foundation Establishment cultivators.
It was said that her suitors outnumbered those of some more beautiful young female cultivators.
"All done."
One day, Shi Manrong lightly wiped the fine sweat from her forehead. Rolling up her sleeves revealed a section of her jade-like arm.
Lan Chang'an opened his storage pouch, ready to pay with spirit stones.
Shi Manrong smoothed down her sleeves, her hair gently swaying, and looked at Lan Chang'an with clear eyes, smiling softly:
"Could you not pay me with spirit stones?"
(End of chapter)