Chapter 106
Chapter 106
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 106
Chapter Title: Sixty Years of Age
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At the east gate of Qinghe Market City, a large ship slowly sailed into the Wandering Immortal River. Yun Xiaoniu, standing at the bow, bowed deeply before entering the cabin.
After seeing off the junior, Yun Xiaoniu, Chen Jianghe returned to his small courtyard.
Just as he had expected, Yu Daniu and his wife would never let Yun Xiaoniu stay away for long.
Thus, the day after Gao Peiyao's small Foundation Establishment celebration ended, Yun Xiaoniu bid farewell to Chen Jianghe.
He also went to the Hundred Treasures Pavilion to say goodbye to Gao Peiyao.
"Sigh, I had intended to operate low-key in Qinghe Market City and develop steadily, but I never expected to draw so much attention at Gao Peiyao's celebration. It was truly not my wish."
Chen Jianghe sighed helplessly.
Gao Peiyao's affectionate address and words had drawn the gazes of all the cultivators present to him and Yun Xiaoniu.
So much so that after Gao Peiyao left, many cultivators came to converse with them, their intentions to build a good relationship completely undisguised.
This allowed Chen Jianghe to meet many high-class artisans in Qinghe Market City.
As well as members of the immortal clans within the city.
Chen Jianghe disliked such socializing. Fortunately, with Yun Xiaoniu by his side, he handled these people with ease.
After all, Yun Xiaoniu was also from an immortal clan, and interacting with these people was very beneficial for him.
The more artisans he befriended, the fewer resources the Yun Clan would lack in the future.
As for those from immortal clans, it was naturally better to form good connections with all of them.
Of course, Chen Jianghe also knew that Gao Peiyao had good intentions, aiming to build up his reputation in Qinghe Market City.
To let the upper echelons of cultivators in Qinghe Market City know that his private relationship with Gao Peiyao was far from shallow.
This way, he would avoid many troubles in the city.
Having the connections of a Foundation Establishment disciple from a sect was quite intimidating.
The next day.
Chen Jianghe went to the Hundred Treasures Pavilion and purchased two True Spirit Pills, a gourd of Fasting Pills, four Spirit Nurturing Flowers, and two bottles of Crimson Cloud True Dew.
Then, at the spiritual materials counter, he bought three sheets of Black Porpoise Hide and three boxes of spiritual ink.
He now only had twenty-four sheets of Spirit Blood Boar Hide and a little over half a box of spiritual ink left; he had to restock his materials.
In total, he spent one hundred and twenty-four spirit stones.
Adding the cost of the superior room at the Qinghe Inn for Yun Xiaoniu, which was one spirit stone and twenty spirit sand for four days.
Now he was left with only eighteen spirit stones and fifty-five spirit sand.
Returning to his courtyard, he hung up the 'In Seclusion' sign and activated the defensive formation.
Then he let out Xiao Hei and Maoqiu and distributed this year's cultivation resources to them.
He then walked into his room.
He had to improve his talisman crafting skills as quickly as possible.
Otherwise, it would affect his future cultivation plans. After breaking through to the eighth level of Qi Refining, he needed to purchase a body tempering art.
And the spiritual materials and herbs required for body tempering.
All of these required spirit stones.
And not a small amount, either.
In the past few years, he had spent most of his time switching cultivation techniques, which had delayed his talisman crafting skills. Now that his cultivation of the Myriad Waters True Scripture was on the right track, he could spend more time drawing talismans.
This was a good period to improve his talisman skills, and he couldn't waste it.
Because the further he progressed, the less time he would have for drawing talismans. Especially after he started body tempering, the time he could dedicate to it would likely be even shorter than when he was switching techniques.
He took out the Black Porpoise Hide and first cut it into talisman-sized pieces.
The three sheets of Black Porpoise Hide were cut into ninety pieces of Spirit Blood Boar Hide.
Afterwards, he took out the spiritual ink, ground it, moistened his brush, set out the paperweight, and began to draw talismans.
He first continued to draw mid-grade Water Arrow Talismans. Once he got into the zone, he began drawing other types of mid-grade talismans like the Frost Talisman, Flame Talisman, and Golden Blade Talisman.
Cultivation and talisman drawing progressed side by side, and his schedule was packed.
Unconsciously, three years passed.
Chen Jianghe sat cross-legged on his bed. As the spiritual power in his dantian was further purified, the mass of power shrank from the size of a goose egg to that of a chicken egg.
His cultivation had finally advanced to the eighth level of Qi Refining.
"Huuu~"
Chen Jianghe opened his eyes, let out a long, turbid breath, and a look of joy appeared on his face.
It was about what he had expected. After switching cultivation techniques, it had taken him just over four years to break through to the eighth level of Qi Refining.
Next, as long as he purified, liquefied, and compressed the spiritual power in his dantian's sea of qi to the size of an eyeball, his cultivation would reach the ninth level of Qi Refining.
After that, he could begin planning for Foundation Establishment.
"Without realizing it, I've already reached sixty years of age."
Chen Jianghe got out of bed and remarked with emotion.
With a wave of his hand, he condensed his spiritual power into a water mirror, reflecting his appearance. He looked the same as before, only his eyes were deeper, and he appeared more mature and steady.
He could feel the vigorous qi and blood surging within him, showing no signs of decline.
Other cultivators, upon reaching the age of sixty, would experience a decline in their qi and blood, and their bodily functions would begin to deteriorate.
He, however, seemed to have just reached the peak of his physical vitality.
His lifespan limit was three hundred and sixty years.
Any decline in his qi and blood would be a matter for after he turned one hundred and eighty.
"Chirp chirp~"
Maoqiu sensed that Chen Jianghe had stopped cultivating, entered the room, and respectfully presented two letters to him.
"You may go."
Chen Jianghe waved his hand.
After nearly eight years of nurturing, Maoqiu had grown to a height of seven feet, as tall as an adult man. Its aura had also gradually changed. It would probably break through to the late stage of the first tier in a few years.
By then, Maoqiu's size would increase significantly.
An adult Mountain Velvet Beast could grow to over ten feet tall, and its strength would take a great leap forward.
If he could also get it a special magical artifact for spirit beasts, its combat power would be no less than that of a ninth-level Qi Refining cultivator.
And this was just a Mountain Velvet Beast that had just broken through to the late first tier.
If it reached the peak of the late first tier, even several great cultivators at the ninth level of Qi Refining would be unable to defeat it without high-grade magical artifacts.
The divine ability 'Illusory Spirit' seemed useless.
But in reality, it was incredibly useful.
It could adjust its cultivation aura at will, not only allowing it to feign weakness to catch an enemy off guard, but also to overwhelm others with its presence.
For example, when a late first-tier Mountain Velvet Beast fought a ninth-level Qi Refining cultivator, it could use the 'Illusory Spirit' ability to enhance its own aura.
This would directly instill fear in the opponent, preventing them from using their full strength.
It could also lower its aura to the mid-first tier and launch a sudden sneak attack when the opponent let their guard down, which would be almost impossible to defend against.
To Chen Jianghe, Maoqiu was a combat-type spirit beast.
While Xiao Hei was a "defensive-type" spirit beast.
Therefore, once Maoqiu advanced to the late first tier, his own safety would be greatly enhanced.
The next moment, Chen Jianghe took the two letters in his hand and glanced at the signatures.
"Zhou Miaoyun?"
Chen Jianghe was a little surprised.
In these three years, he had corresponded frequently with Yu Daniu, but he hadn't received a single letter from Zhou Miaoyun.
As for Gao Peiyao, there was no need for letters since they were both in Qinghe Market City.
But they didn't see each other often either.
Over these three years, Chen Jianghe had only seen Gao Peiyao once, on New Year's Eve of the previous year.
Times had changed.
Gao Peiyao was, after all, a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Even if she didn't act distant, being around her felt somewhat awkward.
Moreover, the people around Gao Peiyao were all upper-echelon cultivators of Qinghe Market City.
They were either Foundation Establishment cultivators, heads of immortal clans, or high-grade alchemists, artifact refiners, and formation masters.
From this, it was clear.
Among the four great arts of cultivation, talisman crafting still lagged somewhat behind the other three.
He first opened Zhou Miaoyun's letter.
After reading it, his face showed surprise.
"Zhou Miaoyun actually wants to sell me the first-tier talisman crafting inheritance!"
The letter stated that if Chen Jianghe needed it, she could sell him the complete first-tier talisman crafting inheritance.
The price was also very favorable.
Only one thousand two hundred spirit stones.
One had to know that in the immortal sect's market city, a first-tier talisman crafting inheritance was worth one thousand six hundred spirit stones, and that was just the price for swearing an oath.
Not for the ownership of the inheritance.
But the one thousand two hundred spirit stones Zhou Miaoyun was asking for was to directly trade the entire inheritance to him.
In other words, Chen Jianghe could sell the first-tier talisman crafting inheritance in the future.
He could pass it on to others.
Therefore, the price of one thousand two hundred spirit stones was too good to be true.
Of course, Zhou Miaoyun had a condition. She still wanted Chen Jianghe to act as a matchmaker, hoping to marry her niece to Yun Xiaoniu.
If that wasn't possible, marrying any of Yu Daniu's other children would also be acceptable.
"This... hehe~"
Chen Jianghe was speechless and set Zhou Miaoyun's letter aside.
Then, he opened Yu Daniu's letter. The content was as brief as ever, but the information was astonishing.
Yun Xiaoniu had broken through!
In just over three years, he had broken through the bottleneck to the late stage of Qi Refining and become a seventh-level Qi Refining cultivator.
"Breaking through to the seventh level of Qi Refining at thirty-six, and without using a Calamity Dispelling Pill... Daniu's efforts were not in vain!"
Chen Jianghe was very happy.
He was also very fond of this junior, Yun Xiaoniu.
Now, seeing that Yun Xiaoniu had broken through to the seventh level at thirty-six, with the Yun Clan's resources pouring in, his hopes of reaching Foundation Establishment in the future were very high.
He guessed that if everything went smoothly, Yun Xiaoniu's success rate for reaching Foundation Establishment could be at least fifty percent.
If he also had an authentic Foundation Establishment Pill.
Then Yun Xiaoniu's chances of successfully reaching Foundation Establishment would definitely reach seventy percent.
At this moment, Chen Jianghe understood why Zhou Miaoyun was willing to sell the first-tier talisman crafting inheritance to him at a bargain price just to become in-laws with Yu Daniu.
Yun Xiaoniu had a promising future.
If a daughter of the Zhou Clan married Yun Xiaoniu, they would likely have a Foundation Establishment son-in-law in the future.
Even if she didn't marry Yun Xiaoniu, marrying one of his other brothers would still be of great benefit to the Zhou Clan.
"Xiaoniu has a great future ahead of him. How can he be burdened by trivial matters? It seems Zhou Miaoyun's first-tier talisman crafting inheritance is not fated to be mine."
He already owed Yu Daniu a huge favor; he couldn't use Yun Xiaoniu for his own gain.
It was against his character.
And not how a decent person should act.
Afterwards, Chen Jianghe wrote a letter politely refusing Zhou Miaoyun, and told her that if she truly wanted her niece to marry into the Yun Clan, she should take her niece to visit Yu Daniu in Mirror Moon Market City a few more times.
As for his reply to Yu Daniu.
He first offered his congratulations, then explained Zhou Miaoyun's request for him to be a matchmaker, and finally asked if Yu Daniu was planning to attempt Foundation Establishment.
In their previous correspondences.
Yu Daniu's cultivation had already reached the peak of the ninth level of Qi Refining, but his body tempering cultivation was still in the late stage.
It seemed he had hit a bottleneck and couldn't reach the peak.
Therefore, Yu Daniu's success rate for reaching Foundation Establishment was barely twenty percent. If he tried, it was highly likely he would perish.
Unless he had a Foundation Establishment Pill, which would prevent death even in failure.
After finishing the reply, he walked out of the room.
Xiao Hei was at the other end of the pool. Seeing Chen Jianghe come out, he glided over to him.
"Master's cultivation has improved? Congratulations, congratulations."
"Haha~"
Hearing Xiao Hei's telepathic message, Chen Jianghe laughed loudly. The little fellow had even learned words of congratulation.
"The joy is mutual," Chen Jianghe sent back telepathically.
And the joy was indeed mutual.
Only when Chen Jianghe's cultivation broke through would Xiao Hei's lifespan increase. Once his cultivation reached the Foundation Establishment stage.
...Xiao Hei would break the fate of his 'innate deficiency'.
"Master, Maoqiu is about to break through. After it does, can we go home?"
Xiao Hei was still thinking about returning to Mirror Moon Lake. He was not used to this place.
It wasn't a matter of freedom.
At Mirror Moon Lake, he often hid in the gravel at the bottom. His personality was similar to Chen Jianghe's—both were steady and patient.
But being idle every day in Qinghe Market City made him feel quite uncomfortable.
He always felt indebted to Chen Jianghe.
Before, he worked for his resources and thought it was only right.
Now, he did nothing and still received resources, which was a bit embarrassing.
"It's still too dangerous. We'll go back after you break through to the second tier," Chen Jianghe comforted him.
If Xiao Hei broke through to the second tier, he himself should have succeeded in Foundation Establishment by then.
At that time, a Foundation Establishment cultivator, a second-tier spirit beast, and a late first-tier spirit beast.
...traveling between Qinghe Market City and Mirror Moon Lake should be very safe!
"Then can you give me three bottles of Crimson Cloud True Dew? I want to work hard to cultivate to the second tier, then go home to raise fish and support you."
Xiao Hei said in all seriousness.
"Er..."
Chen Jianghe thought for a moment, then nodded. "Alright."
In these three years, his talisman crafting skills had improved a lot, and his annual income from spirit stones had reached a new high.
In the first year, he used ninety-two sheets of Spirit Blood Boar Hide and successfully created thirty-two mid-grade offensive talismans.
The success rate reached nearly forty percent.
In the second year, his success rate for mid-grade offensive talismans reached forty percent. He used one hundred and three sheets of Spirit Blood Boar Hide and created forty-two mid-grade offensive talismans.
In the third year, he began drawing mid-grade protective talismans. He used one hundred and eight sheets of Spirit Blood Boar Hide and successfully created thirty-two mid-grade protective talismans.
The success rate was only thirty percent.
However, the price of a mid-grade protective talisman was two spirit stones higher than that of a mid-grade offensive talisman.
Overall, the profit from drawing mid-grade protective talismans was higher.
In the first year, his income from talismans was one hundred and thirty-six spirit stones. In the second year, it reached one hundred and seventy-eight spirit stones plus fifty spirit sand.
The thirty-two mid-grade protective talismans from the third year had not yet been sold.
However, subtracting the two hundred and forty-eight spirit stones spent on cultivation resources and talisman materials in the first two years.
...he now had eighty-five spirit stones and five spirit sand on hand.
As he began drawing mid-grade protective talismans, his future income from spirit stones would be even higher, so he could afford to give Xiao Hei an extra bottle of Crimson Cloud True Dew.
However, he would have to wait a few more years before he could increase Maoqiu's resources.
He had reached the eighth level of Qi Refining, and it was time to plan for a body tempering art.
"Xiao Hei, Maoqiu, into the spirit beast space."
"We're going out."