Eternal Life: Talent Grows with Age

Several corpses were hung on a wall at the edge of the Imperial Garden, their blood having already dried and crusted on the stone, an unsettling sight.

Lu Chang’sheng knew, and so did everyone else—this was a warning, a brutal lesson to the rest.

As for those Qi Cultivation cultivators who didn’t show up last night, there they were. From nearby whispers, Lu Chang’sheng learned it wasn’t over yet; clansmen from those families would be sent out as the vanguard.

But as for what being the vanguard meant, Lu Chang’sheng couldn’t figure it out at first.

It wasn’t until they were called up onto the city wall that the meaning became clear.

Hundreds of cultivators were herded outside the wall, over a dozen late-stage Qi Cultivation cultivators watching them like hawks.

"Those are all from those families," Fang Shan whispered as he came over.

Fang Shan felt an ever-growing respect toward Lu Chang’sheng.

Faced with a conscription from the Supreme Profound Sect, there was never really any choice. So-called discussions were only for show, a facade of consent.

That’s why conscription always hit like a storm—no warning. The only saving grace was Lu Chang’sheng managing a relationship with the Gu Family, letting their small group benefit too.

Lu Chang’sheng looked at the people below the wall, a weight and pity flickering in his eyes.

The Supreme Profound Sect hadn’t cut off their hope entirely; if they survived the first monster siege, their clans could keep on living.

"How domineering..."

Lu Chang’sheng muttered inwardly.

"In the end, there’s no real difference between the Spirit Realm and Great Yuan."

The immortal sects held the best resources; those on the bottom—Loose Cultivators—lived at the whim of those sects.

"Once my puppet’s finished, I won’t need to keep hiding my alchemy cultivation."

Lu Chang’sheng already had a plan in mind.

Originally, heading to Heaven-Burning Valley was his only real path. But after what happened with Zhou Lin, and now him becoming a Grade-Two Alchemist, he didn’t need what the Supreme Profound Sect could offer as much anymore.

After all, once you join one Immortal Sect, joining another gets a whole lot harder.

Half an hour later, faint shadows appeared in the fields beyond the walls. Misshapen monsters raced toward the city, launching the first assault.

The city walls boasted incredible defenses. Without at least mid-stage Qi Cultivation power, they were nearly impossible to break down.

Lu Chang’sheng and the other late-stage Qi Cultivation cultivators each watched their assigned stretches; as soon as a monster got close enough to threaten the wall, they struck, cutting it down instantly.

Against attacks like this, the late-stage Qi Cultivators didn’t even flinch.

Lu Chang’sheng glanced at the cultivators stationed in front of the gate. They clustered together, wielding magical artifacts and talismans against the approaching monsters, killing whatever got too close.

Now and then, a mid-stage Qi monster slipped in with the mob, causing a wave of chaos.

Thankfully, the siege had just begun, and there weren’t too many monsters yet. As long as everyone stayed careful, they could hold out.

But when Lu Chang’sheng noticed scattered black shapes rising in the air nearby, his heart instantly sank.

"Stay sharp, everyone."

He gave the warning.

By now, he understood what it meant to defend the Immortal City here in the Spirit Realm. Both monsters and cultivators—with enough power—could control the air, fly above the battle.

If not for these walls, they’d be totally overwhelmed.

The wall could hold back the overwhelming tide of low-level monsters. All these higher-level cultivators had to do was focus most of their attention on whatever came from the sky.

As the airborne monsters drew closer—barely a few dozen feet from the wall—finally, a cultivator acted. A harsh flash of sword light pierced the sky, decapitating the monster instantly.

Lu Chang’sheng leapt up as well, a magical sword in his grip. With a crack of thunder and lightning, he pierced the void, slashing down a flying monster. From its carcass, he took a hard foreign object.

No time to inspect it—he sent the sword straight toward the next creature.

As the fight wore on, more and stronger monsters appeared. But once most of them reached Qi Cultivation third layer, things leveled out a bit.

Three days later, a massive monster appeared in the sky, shaped like a giant lizard with wings stretching dozens of feet wide.

It hid among a horde of Blood Eagles, trying to sneak past the wall. But as the flying magical swords tore through the Snow Eagles, its form was exposed and it was quickly surrounded and slain by Lu Chang’sheng and the others.

Compared to cultivators, the monsters just didn’t have enough tricks up their sleeves.

Lu Chang’sheng stood with Nangua, swallowing a pill to recover magical power.

"Looks like we’re in the clear for now."

Watching the sky suddenly empty out, he called to the others.

Three straight days of combat—their magical power was depleted. Even veteran late-stage Qi Cultivators were near exhaustion.

Lu Chang’sheng saw clearly where his weakness lay: his magical power still wasn’t deep enough—he couldn’t really push each spell to its limit during these fights.

Nangua, by comparison, managed things a little better.

But really, it just came down to inexperience. As long as he kept fighting—and kept working at it—he’d catch up soon enough.

Down by the gate, carnage ruled the ground. Of the hundreds of low-tier Qi Cultivators there, not one survived. After facing desperate resistance from late-stage cultivators elsewhere, the monsters had focused on the gate and wiped them all out, exactly as expected.

"Even if they hadn’t died, the Gu Family and the Supreme Profound Sect wouldn’t have let them live, anyway."