Starting My Immortal Life by Upgrading Buildings

Chapter 116: Farewell of Past Lu Wan

“Jiuyou Cave Heaven?”

It was Ji Yuan’s first time attending this Upper Meeting gathering, and he felt like a complete bumpkin—he hadn’t heard of anything and knew nothing.

“An ancient secret realm, one that can produce Millennium Illusory Spirit Grass.”

Having already obtained the Foundation Establishment Pill formula, Dong Qian quietly reminded him.

That explained it. Ji Yuan had already learned quite a bit about Foundation Establishment Pills.

A secret realm capable of producing Millennium Illusory Spirit Grass was as important as life itself to Qi Refining cultivators who had yet to establish their foundation.

Upon hearing about a secret realm, Ji Yuan’s first reaction was that it was a place he neither could nor needed to go.

Secret realms had another name—Forbidden Lands. And not just any forbidden lands, but deadly ones. Every time a secret realm opened, countless people would die.

The vast majority who ventured into secret realms were mere cannon fodder.

They were stepping stones on the path to power for the truly strong.

In short, for Ji Yuan, secret realms were like the front lines—he wouldn’t go even if he were beaten to death.

Not to mention, he had his own channels to obtain Millennium Illusory Spirit Grass, so there was even less need to go.

His second reaction was that, although he wouldn’t go, he could still gather some information.

“Who wouldn’t be curious about a place like this? Brother Ge, go ahead and tell us.”

“Mm, if it’s convenient to share, go ahead. If not, we can talk privately later—it’ll count as me owing you a favor,” said Liu Cangke, the host of the Upper Meeting.

He hadn’t been moved even when Foundation Establishment Pills were discussed earlier—perhaps because he already knew about them and had made his decision in advance.

But this news about Jiuyou Cave Heaven truly stirred him.

Though his strength was formidable, he was still only at the Qi Refining stage.

“There’s no need to be secretive. It’s just a bit of gossip I happened to hear along the way. I can’t vouch for its authenticity, so just take it as hearsay,” said Ge Yangshou with a smile. “Jiuyou Cave Heaven will open three years from now, so those interested can start preparing early. For this place, no amount of preparation is too much.”

“Three years from now…”

“Thanks, Brother Ge.”

Ji Yuan echoed the others’ thanks.

But once the news of Jiuyou Cave Heaven was revealed, even the previously alluring information about Foundation Establishment Pills lost its charm. The cultivators present swiftly moved on to discuss other topics.

Things like a certain Daoist friend successfully establishing their foundation and preparing to open an island, or news of a treasure unearthed somewhere that sparked fierce competition among cultivators.

But none of it attracted much attention.

As the short gathering came to an end, cultivators began inviting familiar friends for further discussions. Even Han Feiyu invited Ji Yuan to talk elsewhere.

Given that they were both from Zengtou Market, Ji Yuan couldn’t possibly be too busy to spare some time.

He soon joined Han Feiyu, Dong Qian, and Du Wanyi as they prepared to leave—only to see a female cultivator, steering a Misty Boat, arriving late.

She appeared youthful and beautiful, wearing a standard light blue robe. However, embroidered on each side of her chest were two talismans.

These were the distinct robes of disciples from the Talisman Hall of the Sifang Island under the Water Dragon Sect.

Though Ji Yuan had only joined the Water Dragon Sect a few days ago, he recognized both the robe and the person.

As soon as the female cultivator arrived, many others greeted her warmly.

“Junior Sister Lu, you’re late today.”

“Long time no see, Junior Sister Lu. How have you been?”

“Junior Sister Lu, you’re even more beautiful than before.”

She returned their greetings one by one before walking up to Ji Yuan. She smiled and softly said, “Brother Ji, long time no see.”

Her tone with others had been indifferent, but when addressing Ji Yuan, her eyes carried complicated emotions, and even her voice trembled slightly.

The three accompanying Han Feiyu were no fools—realizing something was off, they quickly made excuses to leave.

They said they’d wait for Ji Yuan somewhere ahead.

The rest also dispersed.

Soon, only Ji Yuan and Lu Wan remained in the scenic pavilion.

“Lu—Senior Sister, long time no see.”

Ji Yuan had intended to call her “Sister Lu,” but the words turned into “Senior Sister Lu” at the last moment.

Now that they were both disciples of the Water Dragon Sect and Lu Wan had joined earlier, calling her “senior sister” wasn’t wrong.

Besides, Lu Wan had also called him “Brother Ji.”

“Mm, a few days ago, I heard from Mei Chen about your accomplishments. I almost couldn’t believe it,”

Lu Wan stood beside Ji Yuan, the two of them gazing at the cascading waterfall in the distance from the pavilion.

“Just lucky,” Ji Yuan replied with his usual humility, regardless of whom he faced.

“Mm.”

Lu Wan seemed at a loss for words as well. They stood quietly, watching the distant scenery in silence.

“I remember the last time I visited your home, I told you we’d meet again at the Water Dragon Sect. I didn’t expect it to actually happen.”

Ji Yuan was about to speak, but Lu Wan cut him off.

“Actually, I wasn’t confident I’d be accepted into the Water Dragon Sect at the time. I only said that because you said ‘I believed you could get in’, Ji Yuan. Saying it gave me a goal to aim for.”

“You hadn’t yet developed that talisman-drawing method then?” Ji Yuan asked.

“Almost. I wasn’t sure if the method would hold value for the Water Dragon Sect, so I couldn’t make any promises. But thankfully, it worked.”

Even now, recalling it, Lu Wan couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride.

“Senior Sister Lu, you’re impressive,” Ji Yuan praised sincerely.

Lu Wan laughed at herself.

“If I were truly impressive, my parents wouldn’t have died—Ji Yuan, to be honest, I’ve always felt I was foolish back then in Zengtou Market. Or maybe even outright stupid. My parents died because of me.”

“I knew all along what the Wu family had in mind for me, but I couldn’t bring myself to give myself away. Yet at the same time, I needed their resources to improve my cultivation—”

“Sister Lu, you—”

“Please, don’t interrupt. Let me finish. Here in the Water Dragon Sect, I really haven’t found anyone I can speak freely with about these things.”

Lu Wan took a deep breath.

For her, opening up her heart like this was no easy task.

“Back then, I had also thought that once I successfully joined the Water Dragon Sect, I would repay the Wu family somehow. But asking me to serve someone like Wu Yan with my body—I really couldn’t do it. If the Wu family had just changed the terms a little, I would’ve agreed. But they insisted I become Dao companions with Wu Yan. I didn’t want to. I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life in regret.”

“But in this life, how many things can we avoid just because we don’t want to do them?”

“I didn’t want to marry Wu Yan, so I didn’t. The price I paid in the end was the lives of my parents… They were killed because of my moment of defiance,” Lu Wan said with a bitter smile, shaking her head.

Ji Yuan originally wanted to offer her a few words of comfort, but since Lu Wan had already said all this, there was nothing more to console.

Besides, from her words, Ji Yuan could tell that Lu Wan had indeed matured greatly since losing her parents—though the cost had been steep.

“Qin Long and He Laosan have been dealt with. You don’t need to worry about the Qin family anymore,” Lu Wan said again.

“Oh? Alright, thank you,” Ji Yuan replied. He didn’t ask how she handled it. Since she said it was done, then there was nothing to worry about.

“Mm.”

Lu Wan took another deep breath, suppressing all her emotions.

Her face once again returned to that light and relaxed smile from earlier. “I’m at the Talisman Hall on Sifang Island, and I’ve taken a Foundation Establishment cultivator as my teacher. If there’s anything you think I can help with, Brother Ji, don’t hesitate to come to me.”

“Alright, I will.”

Ji Yuan gave a slight nod.

“Mm, Senior Brother Han and the others are waiting for you. You’d best hurry over. I won’t go with you—I still have to meet with my master.”

“Okay. Take care, Senior Sister Lu.”

Ji Yuan clasped his fists in farewell, then summoned the Chixiao Boat.

In one leap, he mounted it, and in the blink of an eye, he turned into a fiery red streak of light, vanishing in the direction Han Feiyu and the others had gone.

Lu Wan stood still, watching Ji Yuan’s figure disappear into the distance.

Now that no one else was around, the smile on her face gradually faded.

What she had just said was a farewell.

More than a farewell to Ji Yuan—

—it was a farewell to her past.

After all, the next time they met, it would be as Senior Sister Lu of the Water Dragon Sect and Junior Brother Ji of the same sect.

When Ji Yuan found Du Wanyi and the others at a riverside on Shanshui Island, they were already sitting together and chatting.

Ji Yuan put away his flying boat and landed. They didn’t press him with questions.

They simply asked if he needed help. When Ji Yuan said no, they didn’t ask further.

The four sat together.

Du Wanyi took a table and chairs from her storage pouch, and Dong Qian brought out some fruits and snacks.

They enjoyed a rare moment of peace.

Compared to earlier, their chat now was more casual. All four of them came from the Yunyu Marshlands, and the marketplaces they lived in were relatively close—especially Ji Yuan, Han Feiyu, and Dong Qian, who all hailed from Zengtou Market.

That meant there was no shortage of conversation topics.

During their chat, Ji Yuan learned quite a few things.

For instance, the reason the Jiuyou Cave Heaven stirred such excitement was due to one particular trait.

It was said to be the former cultivation ground—now ruin—of the strongest cultivator on the Cangluo Continent in ancient times. Though countless years had passed, its divine might still linger.

Its most unique characteristic: cultivators at Foundation Establishment level or higher could not enter.

Only Qi Refining cultivators could go in and fight over the various heavenly materials and earthly treasures inside.

It was even said that someone once picked up a magic treasure within.

This naturally made Jiuyou Cave Heaven incredibly attractive to Qi Refining cultivators.

Thus, whenever the Jiuyou Cave Heaven opened, the six great immortal sects of Eastern Shang would coordinate and organize disciples at the Qi Refining stage to enter. Upon exiting, the sects would be waiting to support them outside.

There was no need to worry about getting robbed after acquiring a treasure.

As for what happened inside the cave heaven—it all came down to personal skill.

“If I can successfully form my Golden Core, I definitely want to forge my life-bound magic treasure into a cave-heaven form. That way, the magic treasure could be upgraded directly through the panel, and its power would surely be astonishing,” Ji Yuan mused internally.

Seeing Ji Yuan go silent, Han Feiyu teased with a grin, “What’s this? Has the Jiuyou Cave Heaven finally tempted Brother Ji?”

Snapping back, Ji Yuan smiled and replied, “From what that Brother Ge said, it won’t open for another three years at the earliest. We still have plenty of time to prepare—no need to rush.”

With three more years, even without triggering the [Spiritual Field]’s effects, Ji Yuan could still obtain three stalks of Millennium Illusory Spirit Grass.

Could the Jiuyou Cave Heaven really yield that much?

If so, it would take exceptional luck.

After chatting a bit more, Han Feiyu proposed that they should share news in the future if any of them heard something useful.

Naturally, Ji Yuan agreed.

Du Wanyi, meanwhile, inquired about joining one of the Water Dragon Sect’s inner divisions.

On that topic, both Han Feiyu and Dong Qian said that without either powerful connections or strong cultivation, there was little point in hoping.

With their brief gathering done, Ji Yuan prepared to head back.

But Dong Qian suggested, “It’s still early. How about we go check out Thousand Mechanisms Island together—maybe we can pick up a good mission?”

“Sure. It’s a good chance to explain the ins and outs of Thousand Mechanisms Island to Junior Brother Ji and Junior Sister Du,” said Han Feiyu, always eager to help.

“Then I’ll leave it to you two.”

For something this useful, Ji Yuan was more than happy to join.

Roughly an hour later, the four of them arrived at Thousand Mechanisms Island.