Cultivation Starts with Rejuvenation

Seeing the Jade Bottle of True Dragon Blood Fiend handed over, Blood Kite’s beautiful eyes widened in surprise.

"Thank you, Master, thank you, Master." She expressed her heartfelt gratitude.

This trip to the Dragon Burial Cave seemed to have all been taken advantage of by Li Ji’an.

And she seemed to have gained nothing.

However, with Lin Xiuzhu’s secret techniques and the temperament of that old ghost, Blood Kite knew deeply that if it hadn’t been for Li Ji’an’s existence, she would have already perished, dying at the hands of Lin Xiuzhu.

So, in this view, Li Ji’an had saved her life.

Moreover, she now received a bottle of True Dragon Blood Fiend, making the journey worthwhile.

Especially Li Ji’an’s gesture of gifting the Blood Fiend gave her more expectations for Li Ji’an.

She had climbed from a mere commoner to the position of Saintess in the Blood Spirit Sect, going through countless hardships. However, she couldn’t expect much from the Blood Spirit Saintess. Ever since she advanced to the Middle Stage of Core Formation, she had almost been cut off from cultivation resources.

Moreover, she was already wary of the Blood Spirit Saintess, someone who had lived for nearly seven hundred years and was in the Late Period of Core Formation. Despite claiming it was due to consuming sufficient Lifespan Extension Pills, taking into account the inexplicable disappearances of several Saintesses throughout history, she had to be cautious.

"Take care of yourself!" Li Ji’an glanced at her mildly and soared straight up to the Nine Heavens.

"Farewell, Master!" Watching Li Ji’an’s figure disappear into the clouds, Blood Kite then sat cross-legged on the spot, carefully opened the Jade Bottle and absorbed some of the Blood Fiend to heal.

A month later, Li Ji’an arrived at the Desert Dao Field, transformed into an ordinary cultivator, and entered the United Marketplace.

Nowadays, the United Marketplace was bustling with noise, lively and crowded with commoners.

Merely walking a few steps, he learned the reason for this scene from the conversations and remarks everywhere.

It was because ten years ago, he had eradicated the gangs entrenched here, and after clearing out the masterminds of these gangs in the Yan Family’s ancestral land, there were no more strong figures claiming kingship.

No one dared to form gangs.

Therefore, commoners from all around flocked here.

This gave each commoner a sliver of hope for the Immortal Path.

But... in a short span of ten years, the Spirit Veins here had once again dwindled, already less than Middle Grade Tier One.

In a society where resources cannot be infinitely created, the idea of utopia is an unattainable dream. Under the ultimate temptation where everyone covets the Immortal Path and longs for eternal life, with the stronger continuing to grow stronger and commoners unable to win with quantity, this world is bound to remain a situation where a few people control most resources.

Regarding the increasing exhaustion of Spirit Veins here, Li Ji’an sighed slightly, yet was powerless.

The root cause lay in the insufficiency of Spirit Veins in the world.

Without alarming anyone, Li Ji’an settled casually in a privately built inn.

Until half a month later, through the Blood Curse placed on Blood Kite, he sensed her flying over this place, finally letting go of his concerns.

Then he prepared to head to Odd Stone Forest.

Previously, after the four Saint Children left, Xiaoqiao sent him a message, informing him about affairs regarding the four Saint Children, emphasizing the concealment situation of the Spirit Field in her Dao Field.

Her Tier Three abilities as an Earth Spirit Master could temporarily sink the Spirit Field into the Earth Vein, avoiding detection by the four Saint Children.

Moreover, she mentioned several Spirit Plants, nurtured by her day in and day out with Earth Source over ten years, had matured.

"Uncle, are you leaving?" That day, just as Li Ji’an was about to leave, the young son of the innkeeper ran over from afar.

During this half-month, the innkeeper’s family of four served him well. There’s no longer any supervisor in this place; houses were occupied and built privately. The innkeeper was a cultivator in the Middle Stage of Qi Cultivation who practiced Earth Element Technique, occupying a small area, barely four rooms, squeezing the family of four into one room while renting out the other three as guest rooms, their only source of income.

"Little Fatty, we’ll meet again if fate allows." Li Ji’an smiled, patting the child’s head, making his farewell.

This child was timid when he first saw Li Ji’an, but on the third day, when someone caused trouble in the inn and Li Ji’an drove him away with a reprimand, the child secretly brought his hidden candies to Li Ji’an that night.

Then he came to chat with Li Ji’an daily, speaking as if confiding in a friend.

Li Ji’an came here originally to wait for Blood Kite to return to the Sect first, so he didn’t mind the child’s chatter and harmoniously lived with them for half a month.

"Uncle, wait for me, I want to give you a gift." The child spoke, then turned and ran towards the room.

Li Ji’an watched his retreating figure, showing a smile, then had a thought, sensing his Storage Pouch, intending to leave the child a stroke of luck.

Regrettably, after examining for a while, he found nothing suitable.

Currently, he mostly did not have resources below Tier Two in his Storage Pouch.

And Tier Two and above resources could likely bring unwarranted disaster to the innkeeper’s family.

"Uncle!" At that moment, the child returned, panting.

Then he took Li Ji’an back into the guest room.

Standing on tiptoe, he pulled Li Ji’an down to bend, lowering his voice, "Don’t tell my dad."

Li Ji’an smiled and nodded.

The child was still not at ease, peeking outside before taking out a small object from his pocket, wrapped in a handkerchief.

"This is an unrivaled treasure my dad only lets me wear at bedtime," the child said seriously, eyes wide open.

Without waiting for the child to open the handkerchief, Li Ji’an’s Divine Sense already perceived the item inside.

Following that, Li Ji’an’s gentle smile froze on his face.

The wrapped item was one he was familiar with.

It was a piece of Spiritual Jade.

Specifically, during his first lifetime in the Cultivation Realm, when he came to the Yan Family’s Pill Shop here with Yan Qingwan, Zhang Tiezhu bowed to life, married into the Yan Family, and fathered Yan Jue, Li Ji’an spent two Spirit Stones to purchase it from a shop here and gave it to Yan Jue.

This jade nourished the Spirit Vein.

Later, in a previous life, when Li Ji’an visited the Yan Family again, he saw this jade had been passed down to Yan Jue’s grandson.

At that time, Li Ji’an’s Wood Element medical skills had become proficient, so he infused it with the effect of nurturing life using Wood Magic Power and instilled a trace of Fire Element Magic Power to trigger a strike equivalent to a Foundation Establishment Wanderer’s blow in times of crisis.

Seeing it again now, this Spiritual Jade was already damaged, with the Wood Magic Power still present, but the Fire Element Magic Power had vanished, leaving only traces of its former presence.

"Zhang Zhiwei?" Li Ji’an softly recited the child’s name.

"Could it be?"

"Little Fatty, do you know where your family came from?" Li Ji’an asked, holding the Spiritual Jade with gentle warmth.

The plump boy before him was likely a descendant of Zhang Tiezhu, which made Li Ji’an feel an inexplicable closeness.

"Uncle, do you like this gift?" The child asked eagerly, ignoring Li Ji’an’s question.

"I like it, Uncle really likes it, but... forget it, let me meet your dad." With his current strength, apart from the Core Formation Ascendants of the Four Sects and the Golden Puppet Holy Monarch, Li Ji’an feared no one, and certainly not in Cangyun State.

Thus, in such matters, he could completely act according to his heart, without needing to worry excessively.

"Ah? What are you doing? You mustn’t let my dad know I gave it to you, otherwise he’ll break my legs." Little Fatty protested in panic.

Li Ji’an found it both amusing and annoying, and he gently squatted down, patting the child’s forehead: "Don’t worry, Fatty, from now on, no one in Cangyun State will dare to hit you."

Then he hesitated no longer, taking the child to the owner’s main room.

"Fellow Daoist Li, is my son bothering your peaceful cultivation?" Seeing Li Ji’an enter holding Fatty’s hand, Zhang Xiuyuan showed a trace of anxiety on his face and rushed forward to take Fatty from Li Ji’an’s hand, pretending to chastise him.

Li Ji’an chuckled and waved his hand: "Fellow Daoist Zhang, it’s a misunderstanding. I came here with a question."

Zhang Xiuyuan sighed in relief and cautiously asked, "I wonder what Fellow Daoist Li wants to ask? Whatever Zhang knows, he’ll surely divulge."

"Fellow Daoist Zhang, is your surname really Yan?" Li Ji’an asked directly.

Thump~

Zhang Xiuyuan’s Sea of Consciousness visibly contracted, his entire body stiffened, a look of panic flashing in his eyes.

However, he still forced himself to remain calm.

He chuckled lightly: "What is Fellow Daoist Li talking about? How could I not understand?"

Li Ji’an laughed heartily, yet his reaction had already provided the answer. Immediately, he lifted the Disguise Technique, revealing his true face, while slightly releasing the aura of his Core Formation...