A Loose Cultivator's Path to Longevity

The next day, Lü Zhong paid a visit to a Geomancer.

The sound of steady footsteps echoed from the other end of the garden-like estate. An old man slowly approached. His loose Daoist Robe was clearly a Dharma Robe. Though his hair and beard were white, his face was that of a young man.

This was Gao Lian, a famous Geomancer in Yongling City.

Finding a Spiritual Land was a task that the average Geomancer couldn’t handle.

Lü Zhong had almost no other choice.

"You must be Fellow Daoist Lü. Please, come this way!"

"Fellow Daoist, your garden is truly magnificent. You must have put a great deal of thought into its design." Lü Zhong could tell that every flower and plant had been meticulously positioned and pruned; nothing was placed at random.

From one angle, you saw only leaves, no flowers; from the next, you saw only flowers, no leaves.

And so, every step revealed a new, beautiful vista.

"Hahaha, you have a keen eye, Fellow Daoist!" Gao Lian boomed with laughter.

He didn’t have many hobbies, preferring to spend his time tending to his plants and flowers alone. Hearing his work praised brought him great joy. He had to resist the urge to show off his expertise as he led Lü Zhong through the garden and into an elegantly furnished room.

The faint, calming scent of incense drifted through the air.

They sat down at the guest table, and their conversation turned to business. Gao Lian poured Lü Zhong a cup of clear tea and asked, "Fellow Daoist, what kind of Spiritual Land do you seek from this old one?"

Lü Zhong tapped his knuckles on the table in thanks before replying, "A Soul Nourishing Land. I wish to know where I might find one!"

"Oh?" Gao Lian froze, setting down the teapot. "That’s hardly a desirable place..."

A Soul Nourishing Land, as the name implied, was a place that nurtured souls.

Such places were often haunted by sinister things—ghosts, zombies, or even Souls of the Dead—and were typically occupied by Demon Cultivators.

However, he didn’t press for details. A man had to have professional discretion, after all.

In the Geomancy profession, the rule was to ask few questions and get the job done.

"Hmm, let me think... A Soul Nourishing Land is not easy to find..." Slowly settling into a mahogany armchair, Gao Lian pressed his temples and began to carefully search his memory.

The emergence of a Spiritual Land was not random; it followed certain patterns.

The same was true for a Soul Nourishing Land.

Its formation required three conditions:

First, it must be a place of perpetual shadow, where sunlight never reaches throughout the year.

Second, it must be a site where a great number of living beings have died.

And third, it must be located on a Spirit Vein.

Normally, the first condition was the easiest to meet. However, satisfying the second and third conditions simultaneously increased the difficulty exponentially, which was why Soul Nourishing Lands were so rare.

Even when all three conditions were met, there was no guarantee that a Soul Nourishing Land would actually form.

A Geomancer’s most valuable asset was not his Geomancy Skill, but the mountains and rivers he had traveled. What Gao Lian was doing now was listing potential locations from memory to give to Lü Zhong.

Only a novice Geomancer would personally accompany a client on a survey.

"Ah, I have it," Gao Lian said, clapping his hands lightly.

He then picked up the jade brush from the table and began to write furiously on a sheet of paper.

In a short while, the paper was covered in writing.

He handed the paper to Lü Zhong and said, "These are all potential locations I noted while traveling the Lingyue Domain with my master years ago. If you investigate these places, Fellow Daoist, you may find your Soul Nourishing Land."

Lü Zhong took the paper. It was covered in place names. The mention of the Lingyue Domain gave him pause.

The Lingyue Domain was a vast territory encompassing the Yongling, Luoyun, and Yanling Mountain regions, among others. It belonged to the Nascent Soul Sect, the Lingyue Sect, and was said to be a hundred thousand li wide even at its narrowest point.

He was only a mere Qi Refining Cultivator. ’How could I dare venture into the outside world?’

A wry smile appeared on his face.

"I am the one who needs this Soul Nourishing Land. Would you please circle some locations that are closer?"

"My apologies, I was being inconsiderate," Gao Lian said, cupping his hands.

To be honest, he had assumed someone else was the one looking for a Soul Nourishing Land.

He picked up the jade brush and made a few marks on the paper.

Most of the place names on the paper were crossed out, leaving only thirty-two.

Lü Zhong looked at the list. Seven locations were in the Yongling Region, five were in the Yanling Mountain area to the south, another five were in the Luoyun Region to the northwest, and the remaining fifteen were all in the Lanyue Area to the southeast.

The Lanyue Area was home to the Five Spirits Sect. It was a region as vast as Yongling, dotted with more than ten Foundation Establishment Sects. After the collapse of the former Golden Core Sect, the Lanyue Sect, the area had never been reunified.

’Lanyue... General’s Tomb...’

Seeing the name, he couldn’t help but think, ’Isn’t that the one next to the Qingliu Ruins?’

’I can’t believe it’s also a potential Soul Nourishing Land.’

’No, it probably really is one!’

Despite this realization, Lü Zhong had no intention of investigating it. After all, a Tier Two Refining Corpse had been nurtured there. With his current strength, he couldn’t possibly afford to provoke such a threat.

He put the list of locations into his Storage Bag and took out a Spirit Stone Bag.

Inside the bag were one hundred Spirit Stones. This was Gao Lian’s standard fee—not particularly expensive, but not cheap either.

...

After leaving Gao Lian’s home, Lü Zhong didn’t stop, but headed straight for the central district.

Considering the dangers of exploring a Soul Nourishing Land, he immediately spent nearly a thousand Spirit Stones on preparations. He bought twenty dozen Evil Exorcism Talismans, three hundred Spirit Stones’ worth of Fiery Sun Stones, and five Evil-breaking Talismans.

The Evil-breaking Talisman was a Tier Two Lower Grade Spirit Talisman, an upgraded version of the Evil Exorcism Talisman. Its effect was comparable to the Tier Two Spell, the Sun-Rising Spear.

With this talisman, Lü Zhong would have a chance to escape even if he accidentally encountered a Tier Two evil creature.

When it came to his own safety, the extra Spirit Stones were well worth the cost.

Besides, if he didn’t end up using them, he could always resell the talismans. The financial loss wouldn’t be significant.