Eternal Life: Talent Grows with Age

After a short while, Cheng Wu turned around in a daze and left, his mind thrown into confusion by being addressed as "Steward Lu."

"Steward Lu? Discussing sect affairs? Alchemist Lu has become the Steward of the Good Beast Sect?"

Cheng Wu felt disoriented, fiddling with the Sound Transmission Shell, and gave a bitter laugh: "Let’s just hope the folks in our sect don’t get too riled up."

He actually thought pretty highly of Lu Chang’sheng; otherwise, he wouldn’t have mentioned him to Zhang Qing back then. It was a shame things didn’t work out, but every now and then, on a whim, he’d check up on Lu Chang’sheng’s situation.

He later learned that Lu Chang’sheng had come to the Supreme Profound Sect’s Mountain Gate again, wishing to join.

Unfortunately, he was rejected yet again.

"Lately, that Wang Futian kid has been running around everywhere trying to get Alchemist Lu admitted, but—"

Cheng Wu sighed to himself: Third time’s the charm, but clearly, Alchemist Lu chose the Good Beast Sect.

Once the news was sent out, whether the sect got heated or not, it was out of his hands.

Soon, Du Xuan over at the Gu Family Courtyard received Cheng Wu’s information. His face darkened instantly as he shot to his feet.

Zhang Qing noticed and asked, puzzled, "Did something happen over at Purple Ice Lake?"

In Zhang Qing’s mind, with Du Xuan’s excellent Qi Cultivation Skills, only something like the Profound Turtle Alchemist’s Cave Mansion could get him so worked up.

But instead, he met with Du Xuan’s sharp gaze.

"There’s no real heavyweights at Purple Ice Lake. With Fellow Daoist Gu Wei and the others there, they can handle the scene just fine. Why would I get upset over that?"

So what was it for?

Zhang Qing didn’t dare ask further—the look Du Xuan gave earlier was just a little too intimidating. He wondered, Could this have something to do with me?

His heart skipped a beat, but then Du Xuan let out a cold laugh and said, "That Lu Chang’sheng you called Immortal Dao Spirit Root trash? He’s now Steward of the Good Beast Sect."

Du Xuan stated the reason in an icy tone, making Zhang Qing somewhat incredulous, but Du Xuan didn’t give him a chance to explain. Instead, he said, "Come with me. If they think they can poach people from my Supreme Profound Sect territory, they’ve got another thing coming!"

The two left immediately, rushing toward the Imperial Garden.

"If I know anything about Du Xuan, once he finds out you’ve joined Good Beast Sect, you’ll end up at a loss," Ning Zhao explained to Lu Chang’sheng.

Gu Yuan had already stepped outside. As a member of the Gu Family, she couldn’t linger here, so as not to stir up certain people.

"Still, our Good Beast Sect isn’t easily pushed around. Don’t worry, Alchemist Lu, rest easy."

Ning Zhao said with a smile.

No sooner had he finished speaking than two figures dropped from the skies—Zhang Qing and Du Xuan, rushing over in haste.

The moment they landed, Du Xuan revealed his domineering and shrewd nature, ignoring Ning Zhao completely and looking straight at Lu Chang’sheng.

"You must be Alchemist Lu?"

Lu Chang’sheng nodded in acknowledgment.

Du Xuan continued, "Didn’t expect, during my closed-door cultivation, that Platinum Immortal City would turn up a talent like you, Alchemist Lu. You arrived here days ago, but were caught up with the Demon Calamity and I couldn’t meet you right away. That’s my fault."

"Yesterday, the Demon Calamity was wiped out. I heard someone from South Gate turned the tables, and I wanted to meet you then. But things got busy, gave people an opening. Truly, it’s shameful."

"Master Du, don’t twist things. Alchemist Lu tried to join Supreme Profound Sect three times and was refused every time!" Ning Zhao spoke up.

Lu Chang’sheng could feel Ning Zhao’s nerves.

Earlier, when Ning Zhao didn’t have Lu Chang’sheng follow Cheng Wu to see Du Xuan, this was exactly what he was worried about.

With Ning Zhao’s strength, he’d have a hard time protecting Lu Chang’sheng in front of Du Xuan. Still, judging from Ning Zhao’s expression, he wasn’t completely out of options. That alone gave Lu Chang’sheng some reassurance.

Zhang Qing’s face grew a bit awkward—one of those "three failed entries" Ning Zhao mentioned was his doing.

And he just might have played a key role in the other two as well.

No wonder Du Xuan wasn’t too happy with him.

"That’s the fault of some in the Mountain Gate, not the Supreme Profound Sect as a whole," Du Xuan stated. "I promise here: if Alchemist Lu wants to join, no one will have any objections."

"How does Alchemist Lu feel about that?"

The moment these words dropped, no one made a sound—not even Ning Zhao.

Lu Chang’sheng knew this was a test Du Xuan was throwing out—for both the Good Beast Sect and the Supreme Profound Sect. He took a deep breath and said, "Many thanks for your high regard, Master Du, but as they say, three times and still not meant to be. It seems fate just isn’t with me and Supreme Profound Sect."

Even as he finished speaking, he felt a chill—if he slipped up answering Master Du’s question, he’d really be in trouble.

Having a Foundation Establishment bigshot recruiting you in person—someone even stronger than Ning Zhao—showed just how valuable you were. Maybe Du Xuan really didn’t know what had happened before, so his sincerity was clear.

But if Lu Chang’sheng actually wavered, what would Ning Zhao think?

As Lu Chang’sheng finished, everyone’s eyes flashed. With Du Xuan’s overbearing temperament, being refused to his face like that—he likely wouldn’t let it slide.

Good thing that, just then, hearty laughter came from the distance, along with the cry of a crane—a figure appeared in the far-off sky.

"Fellow Daoist speaks well. A sect whose Mountain Gate he’s failed to enter three times—how respectful could they possibly be?"

A white-haired elder standing atop a celestial crane, with an immortal air about him. The crane’s wings sliced through the air like blades, and in an instant, the old man landed above them. He hopped down smoothly, shot Lu Chang’sheng an approving look, then glanced at Du Xuan and said discontentedly, "Fellow Daoist Lu has already signed an Immortal Contract with our Good Beast Sect. Are you, Master Du, planning to ignore that and poach someone from under us?"

For the first time, Du Xuan lost that "in control of everything" posture. He gave a cold snort—Ning He of Good Beast Sect was roughly his equal. No point tangling here, so he turned and strode out. Just as he reached the door, he flung his sleeve and spat, "Ruined my plans!"

Zhang Qing lingered awkwardly behind, unsure if that comment was aimed at Ning He or himself.

After all, if he hadn’t advised Du Xuan last night, Du Xuan had already planned to summon Lu Chang’sheng.

At that point, before Lu Chang’sheng signed the Immortal Contract, even with Ning He present, Du Xuan would’ve gone all in to snatch him up.

"Well, good thing this Alchemist Lu isn’t another Zhou Lin. Otherwise, this wouldn’t have ended so easily."

Zhang Qing thought to himself.

He figured it out—Master Du’s clean retreat likely had something to do with Lu Chang’sheng’s Spirit Root Talent.

With such cultivation limitations, this Alchemist Lu probably couldn’t achieve Foundation Establishment, and without that, advancing in the Alchemy Dao would be tough, too.

The hundred arts of Immortal Cultivation all depend heavily on strength, after all.

······

As Du Xuan turned around, Lu Chang’sheng knew this crisis had passed. Ning He True Man’s reputation in the Guangnan Domain was only a notch below Du Xuan’s, but that didn’t mean Ning He’s strength was lacking.

The reason is, on one hand, Ning He is simply older, with less potential ahead than Du Xuan; on the other, Ning He keeps a lower profile, not as flashy as Du Xuan.

After meeting Ning He, the latter expressed a lot of appreciation, pulling Lu Chang’sheng inside for a chat.

He’d thought it would be about cultivation techniques, but it turned out to be all Alchemy Dao from start to finish.

"Ancestor Ning He has a lot of talent in cultivation, but when it comes to the four arts of Immortal Cultivation, especially his beloved Alchemy Dao, well... it’s complicated." Ning He didn’t linger for long. That same night, he set out again, with Lu Chang’sheng, Li Nangua, and Ning Zhao seeing him off. Ning Zhao shook his head with a wry smile.

Lu Chang’sheng knew a bit about why Ning Zhao called Ning He "Ancestor." Like many Immortal Sects, the Good Beast Sect rose to power through family influence, eventually replacing the original sect structure.

The Good Beast Sect was founded as a joint effort by several families, and together, they’ve formed its main lineage ever since.

The Ning Family is one of them—so, Ning He is both an elder of the Good Beast Sect and an ancestor of the Ning Family.

"Is Elder Ning He leaving already?" Gu Yuan asked worriedly.

With Lu Chang’sheng still here, if Elder Ning He’s not holding things down, the Supreme Profound Sect could cause trouble with no one to stop them.

"Don’t worry. Ancestor Ning He is just going to see Du Xuan and the others about the Profound Turtle Alchemist’s Cave Mansion. Until that’s settled, he’s not leaving Platinum Immortal City."

Ning Zhao said with a smile.