Eternal Life: Talent Grows with Age

"You—" Huo Zun was so angry he couldn’t get a word out. He had thought he and Li Changmei were like-minded, but he never expected the other to do something so disgraceful.

He stormed off, but as he turned a corner, he bumped into Lu Chang’sheng.

"Fellow Daoist Lu, why are you here too?"

Huo Zun’s heart lifted a bit, feeling as if he’d found someone to rely on.

"Fellow Daoist Lu—no, Elder Lu, you came at the perfect time. You heard what happened just now, right? That guy’s a traitor. We can’t let someone like that off easy. If he wants to leave White Cloud Pavilion, make him spit back everything he’s ever taken from us."

Even if it’s not quite an Immortal Sect, orthodox forces like this all make people sign Spirit Contracts. It’s a way to guarantee the sect some protection.

It keeps some people from feeding off the sect and then bolting the moment there’s trouble.

Sects without constraints have this sort of thing happen all the time—countless cases, really. All these sect rules were forged from bitter experience.

Elder Lu?

Li Changmei’s heart skipped a beat—leaving White Cloud Pavilion wasn’t easy. If one of the elders wanted to make things difficult, it could cause him a real headache.

With an Immortal Contract in place, White Cloud Pavilion could use magic to track his location. There’d be no guarantee of his personal safety.

Worse, if there was a problem with the contract when he tried to advance to Foundation Establishment Realm, it might become a direct obstacle.

Many cultivators made sure to clear up any problematic contracts before trying to break through, so all their Foundation Establishment prep wouldn’t go to waste.

That’s also why Li Changmei didn’t want anyone to know he’d met with the Thunder Cauldron before.

"Elder Lu, it was agreed upon from the very start that these contracts wouldn’t become restraints when we left if things didn’t work out," Li Changmei said, stifling his anxiety and anger, walking up to Lu Chang’sheng.

Even though Lu Chang’sheng had faced a lot of criticism lately, most cultivators didn’t look at him that way. The only reason he qualified for the Heaven-Burning Valley quota in the first place was because he met the standard; it was only after Zhou Lin reached Foundation Establishment Realm that Lu Chang’sheng got outclassed.

In other words, Lu Chang’sheng was stronger than Zhou Lin before Foundation Establishment, but weaker afterward.

They might gloat, but they weren’t so shameless as to ridicule him to his face.

That’s why Li Changmei wouldn’t try anything in front of Lu Chang’sheng.

"I understand. Since Fellow Daoist Li has no intention of staying, just pay the art learning fee and be on your way."

Lu Chang’sheng nodded.

If someone’s heart isn’t in it, there’s no point in forcing them to stay. Even Xiao Feng and the others never thought of using the contracts to hold people back, so he certainly wouldn’t play the villain.

"Thank you for your understanding, Elder Lu. If White Cloud Pavilion ever needs my help, just say the word—if it’s within my means, I’ll do it." Li Changmei revealed a hint of apology on his face.

It’s not that he shouldn’t leave, but as one of White Cloud Pavilion’s upper echelon, being the first to go before the whole situation went to hell would definitely be a major blow to everyone’s morale.

At this point, how could he not realize the White Cloud Mountain Range people had played him?

The other side targeted him first for this exact reason. Otherwise, with White Cloud Pavilion’s power, it’d take years—maybe even a decade or more—for the whole thing to collapse.

Li Changmei couldn’t help but regret getting involved with Thunder Cauldron so soon, but what was done was done. There’s no turning back now—all he could do was keep going.

So he went to pay the art learning fee.

For alchemists like them who’d joined midstream, the fee wasn’t much. After all, they’d learned most of their magic back at White Cloud Cave Mansion.

"Fellow Daoist Huo." After Li Changmei left, Lu Chang’sheng looked at Huo Zun and, after some thought, gave a bit of advice. "If you’re really considering leaving, you might want to wait five years before deciding."

With that, he walked back into the courtyard.

Offering advice like this was only for the sake of old friendship.

These people had already, in a sense, betrayed White Cloud Mountain Range once before; going back, they’d never be treated the same as people like Thunder Cauldron.

So, staying in White Cloud Pavilion might actually be the better choice—as long as, of course, someone could step up to hold up the sect.

"What did Elder Lu mean by that? Does White Cloud Pavilion change after five years or something?"

Outside, Huo Zun furrowed his brow in speculation, then shook his head.

"What could possibly happen in five years?"

Lu Chang’sheng might have the potential to be a second-grade alchemist, but on the path of cultivation—whether it’s cultivation level or in alchemy dao—going from first to second grade is no easy feat.

Doing it in fifty years would already be impressive, but fifty years is far too long—White Cloud Pavilion can’t last that long.

"Whatever, at worst I just have to leave Platinum Immortal City," Huo Zun sighed.

Sure enough, the next day, Li Changmei, now in late-stage Qi Cultivation, went to pay his art learning fee at the steward’s office, and word of his departure from White Cloud Pavilion spread among the sect.

There was resentment, mockery, cold stares, and plenty of others with their own intentions.

When Lu Chang’sheng heard Duan Ming’s report, he nodded to indicate he understood, then thought for a moment and had someone spread yesterday’s words to Huo Zun around.

He’d promised Xiao Feng to help look after White Cloud Pavilion, so he couldn’t just sit by and watch the place fall apart.

As for whether anyone would actually believe his words, that would be up to them.