I Can Fix My Talent in Hundred Lives

Yellow Dragon Returns to Dust

One hundred and twenty years have passed.

The sea breeze carries a salty and damp scent, slapping against the stone steps of the Yellow Dragon Island pier, splashing fine droplets of water.

A small black-tarp boat slowly docked.

At the bow, an aging cultivator leaned on a cane, slowly standing up—it was Li Yan.

His hunched back, gray hair and beard, deeply etched wrinkles on his face, and in his murky eyes, concealed a century of vicissitudes.

A hundred years of arduous cultivation, he successfully achieved Core Formation but halted at the Golden Core Early-stage.

Not long ago, he fought to the death with a late-stage Golden Core Great True Master from the Demon Dao.

To preserve his life, he was forced to use a forbidden technique just to barely escape alive from his opponent.

But the Demon Dao True Master’s Corruption Curse had already invaded his Golden Core, and the aftereffects of the forbidden technique gnawed at his vital essence day and night.

His condition had reached its limit!

The Golden Core was on the brink of shattering, mana scattered like leaking sand, unable to maintain even the appearance he had at his peak.

His path on the Great Dao had completely ended.

His lifespan had only a few years left.

"Fallen leaves return to their roots..."

Li Yan coughed lightly twice, tapping the cane on the bluestone slab, stepping onto the land he hadn’t seen in a hundred years.

He was born a beggar, alone and destitute since childhood, accustomed to solitude.

On the cultivation path, he remained focused, throwing himself single-mindedly into the Great Dao, but now looking back, he found he had nothing.

No cultivation companion, no friends or family, soon even his cultivation would become nothing.

"Old man, where have you come from?"

A child with pigtail braids tilted his small face, curiously circling around him.

Li Yan looked down, smiling gently at the child’s clear eyes:

"Me? I am from here."

"Liar!" The child pouted, shaking his head vigorously, "I’ve lived on the island for ten years, never seen you!"

Li Yan laughed heartily but didn’t argue, just leaned on his cane, continuing to walk toward the depths of his memory.

...

In a hundred years’ time, Yellow Dragon Island was no longer the way it used to be.

The bluestone roads were paved smooth and wide, lined with shops, the sounds of hawking and haggling rising and falling, bustling voices multiplied in prosperity compared to his memory.

Yet the familiar mud-brick houses, the old locust tree, the imprints of his childhood were nowhere to be found.

"Things have changed beyond recognition..."

Li Yan halted, gazing at the lively scenes, his tone filled with wistful longing.

In a daze, a sweet-smiling maiden suddenly emerged in his mind.

"A Rou!"

It was his one and only heart’s stir on the hundred-year cultivation path.

But back then, his mind was filled with cultivation and longevity, unable to tolerate anything else.

"It’s been so many years, A Rou has likely passed away..." Li Yan sighed gently, "I don’t know, did she leave any descendants behind."

With that thought, his heart stirred:

"My entire inheritance of the Nether Spring Sword Dao, along with a few protective magical artifacts, rather than being buried in the ground someday, would be better passed on to descendants of old friends."

While pondering, he suddenly noticed many townspeople ahead on the street carrying incense and offerings, heading toward a certain direction continuously.

Li Yan thought to himself:

"It seems, the islanders are living well."

"Only when physically content do they think of seeking immortality, pursuing spiritual solace."

Looking up, he saw at the mountain’s foot stood a temple of green bricks, incense smoke curling above, he could vaguely hear the sound of scripture being recited inside.

"Just right, the temple’s incense is flourishing, the temple attendants must be well-informed, maybe I can inquire about A Rou’s descendants."

Determined, Li Yan leaned on his cane, intending to walk towards the temple.

"Boom——!"

A sudden loud noise caused the ground to tremble slightly.

The once-clear sky was instantly shrouded by dark clouds, a fierce wind howled sands and stones, causing the townspeople to shout in alarm and flee holding their heads.

A wild and piercing laugh pierced the wind, echoing through the heavens:

"Brother Li! I’ve been searching so hard for you!"

"Hahaha! Took me so much effort to find out this is Brother’s hometown."

"Indeed, Brother ultimately returned!"

"Tch tch tch... Who would have thought, the dignified Nether Spring Sword Immortal originated from such a remote worldly small island?"

Li Yan froze, slowly raised his head, looking into the black clouds.

A figure in black robes stepped on the clouds, a dark red gourd hanging from the waist, with a slick face and a smile at the corner of the mouth.

It was his fellow junior brother Jin Taiyin, a Fake Pill Cultivator, always addressing him as brother and greeting with a smiling face.

Li Yan never expected that after hiding his identity and returning to his hometown to retire, the first person to jump out and make trouble would be this one.

Suppressing the waves in his heart, he spoke coldly:

"So it’s Junior Brother Jin. Judging by your stance, I suppose you’re not here to reminisce with me?"

Jin Taiyin waved his hand, the smile on his face growing wider, but a greedy gleam hidden in his eyes: "Why pretend to be ignorant, Brother?"

"Brother, now that your oil has run dry and your path broken, even the thought of retiring has crossed your mind,"

He licked his lips, his gaze sweeping over Li Yan’s body as if evaluating a rare treasure.

"Your entire inheritance of the Youquan Sword Dao and that Youquan Flying Sword that has accompanied you for years—surely you wouldn’t waste them underground?"

"Why not gift them to me, Junior Brother? It would help carry on your legacy. Wouldn’t you agree?"

Upon hearing this, Li Yan suddenly chuckled, the sound full of mockery:

"Hehe... Turns out it’s true that a fallen tiger gets bullied by dogs."

"A mere Fake Pill Cultivator dares to act so imprudently in front of me?"

His aura suddenly heightened, carrying the pressure of a Golden Core Cultivator.

"Junior Brother, do you think you’ve got me figured out?"

Jin Taiyin’s body suddenly stiffened, the smile on his face instantly retracting; he subconsciously stepped back half a step, a flicker of fear passing through his eyes.

But in just a moment, he returned to a relaxed demeanor, snorted with disdain:

"Brother, why continue the charade?"

"With your temper, if you still had the ability to kill me, you’d have drawn your sword long ago without saying so much."

"Since Brother is unwilling to hand over the items, don’t blame me for being ruthless!"

Before the words fell, the dark red gourd at Jin Taiyin’s waist suddenly began spinning, emitting a light buzzing sound.

He abruptly pulled out the gourd’s stopper, shouted:

"Release!"

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Countless dark red granules spewed out from the mouth of the gourd, instantly transforming into a sky full of sandy mist, blocking out the sun, sweeping towards Li Yan ubiquitously with an ear-piercing sound.

Those granules were not ordinary sand; each contained a sharp Evil Qi that, once touching the ground, corroded the bluestone slabs into small pits—its power was astounding.

"Bring it on!"

Li Yan let out a low shout. Although his figure was hunched, his gaze suddenly became sharp, and the remaining mana in his body rushed to his fingertips with all its strength.

"Clang—!"

A clear sword cry resounded through the world.

A flying sword, entirely gleaming white with a faint watery light, shot out from his sleeve, its body displaying a clear radiance like a spring, precisely his Lifebound Flying Sword—Youquan.

"Buzz—!"

The flying sword floated, emitting a low hum.

Li Yan’s fingertip pointed:

"Flowing Cloud Style!"

The sword light flashed, dynamically like flowing water, turning into a translucent white arc, slicing towards the endless red sand!

"Ripping—!"

The sword light collided with the red sand, creating a piercing tearing sound; countless grains were shattered by the sword light, turning into powder that scattered in the air.

Yet the red sand was endless, wave after wave came crashing down towards Li Yan.

Jin Taiyin stood within the black cloud, forming hand seals to control the red sand, with a smug smile at the corner of his mouth:

"Brother Li, you are no longer my opponent!"

At first, seeing Li Yan’s flying sword commanding the battlefield, he indeed felt very apprehensive in his heart.

After all, Li Yan, even in the Golden Core Early-stage, could rely on the Youquan Swordsmanship to battle mid-stage Demon Cultivators equally.

At Li Yan’s peak, killing a Fake Pill Cultivator like him would have taken just a few moves.

But soon, Jin Taiyin felt reassured.

Li Yan’s sword techniques remained sharp, his moves still exquisite, but the sword’s power was far below its former level.

The sword light dimmed, mana fluctuations weakened, barely able to fully unleash Golden Core-level power.

"The Youquan Swordsmanship, still so wondrous!"

"What a pity, your mana is now insufficient. Let’s see how long you can last!"

"Hahaha! Brother, you truly have declined!"

Jin Taiyin laughed heartily, manipulating the red sand with increasing ferocity, secretly thinking to himself:

"Li Yan’s mana is insufficient, barely maintaining the flying sword. Dragging this out, he will undoubtedly die!"

Blood seeped from the corner of Li Yan’s mouth, his heart full of helplessness.

He had deliberately feigned weakness earlier, aiming to lure Jin Taiyin into carelessness, then unexpectedly attack and kill him with one strike.

Although such an act would deplete his remaining Primordial Qi, it would at least allow him a few more years to fulfill his wish to find the descendants of A Rou.

However, he did not anticipate that Jin Taiyin was also a cunning fellow, striking with a deadly move and showing no sign of carelessness.

Now he had even identified Li Yan’s weakness, proceeding steadily, exploiting the sheer quantity of red sand to gradually sap his mana.