Cultivating Immortality Begins with Rejuvenation.

Chapter 334 Soaring to Great Heights
The top thirty in each Flying Goose Dao Discussion represent the most outstanding talents of the entire Wanshang Domain, and even the eastern part of the Great Swamp Cultivation World.

It's almost certain that he will condense the true elixir in the future.

Even more than 60% are expected to reach the middle to upper level of the True Elixir realm.

However, 80% of them eventually go to the central region in pursuit of a better environment for spiritual practice and a superior lineage of spiritual transmission.

There is even a possibility that the top three among them will produce a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

Similarly, almost all of these people carried the spiritual covenants of various chambers of commerce.

In addition to their own natural talent, a wealth of spiritual resources is also indispensable to getting to this point. Only by signing a cultivation contract will the Chamber of Commerce do its best to cultivate them.

Even Yao Rui signed a cultivation contract back then, which is why she received the support of the Sishui Chamber of Commerce in terms of superior magic and abundant spiritual resources in the following four years.

Li Ji'an is an exception among them.

He was only discovered by the Jinhua Chamber of Commerce after he had already acquired such strength, so he only signed a spirit contract to enter the semi-finals and received the corresponding rewards, but not a cultivation spirit contract from the Jinhua Chamber of Commerce.

It's more like a transaction.

However, compared to other promising young immortals who signed spirit contracts, his reward for entering the semi-finals was significantly less.

Those who made it to the semifinals, like Yao Rui and Wang Hu, only received 10,000 spirit stones as a reward, but they also received a Core Formation spirit treasure that was among the top 100.

This value naturally far exceeds the 100,000 spirit stones reward that Li Ji'an received.

"Qingyun, we've known each other for a short but not long time, and you know my character. This time, I won't play games with you. Your value is obvious to all, and my Jinhua Chamber of Commerce intends to invest heavily in you. This is the spirit contract agreed upon by the Chamber of Commerce. You may take a look." On the night the list was announced, Wu Yishan arrived with the spirit contract, showing his sincerity.

"Thank you for your kind offer, President." Li Ji'an bowed and accepted the spirit contract to examine it.

Although he never intended to sign a spiritual contract with the Jinhua Chamber of Commerce again, which would only add to his burdens, he couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed when he saw the contract.

The spirit contract given to him was actually a superior one, just like the one given to Wang Hu.

The spiritual contract was signed, and Li Ji'an would henceforth reside permanently at the Jinhua Chamber of Commerce, focusing primarily on cultivation. Apart from the normal trial arrangements, he would not be responsible for any tasks assigned to the Chamber of Commerce.

The Chamber of Commerce will do its best to provide them with spiritual treasures for Core Formation and spiritual resources for cultivation after Core Formation.

It is expected to include at least one Core Formation Spiritual Treasure from the top 50 of the Core Formation Spiritual Treasure Ranking, and one Purification Spiritual Treasure to improve the quality of Core Formation.

If one stops at the early stage of True Core a hundred years later, one will need to serve the Chamber of Commerce wholeheartedly for thirty years.

If one stops at the mid-stage of True Core a hundred years later, one will need to serve the Chamber of Commerce wholeheartedly for twenty years.

If one can advance to the late-stage Core Formation realm, then three things need to be done for the Chamber of Commerce.

……

Admittedly, for an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator, such an investment, especially the Core Formation treasures ranked in the top fifty, is already extremely generous.

Moreover, compared to the sects in the Heavenly Azure Domain that cultivate true disciples, there are fewer restrictions.

However, for Li Ji'an, who already possessed three Core Formation materials, one of which was the Seven-Colored Jade Tree, a top-tier Core Formation treasure, it was not worth it.

Moreover, he still has the top-grade Crystal Condensation Pill that he refined for this life in his previous life. In total, he has four Core Formation Spiritual Treasures, so there is absolutely no need to sign a long-term Spiritual Contract for this one extra ordinary Spiritual Treasure.

Only rare and precious purifying pills like Autumn Departure Water or Heavenly Purification Water are worth considering.

"Thank you for your kind offer, Chairman Wu. I appreciate your sincerity. However, I am burdened with a deep-seated hatred and am destined not to be able to cultivate peacefully within the Chamber of Commerce. Therefore, I will not disappoint you, Chairman Wu," Li Ji'an said politely, his expression calm.

Wu Yishan narrowed his eyes slightly, somewhat surprised by the result.

Based on his understanding of the Tiancang Domain and the surrounding regions, even a sect's true disciple might not be guaranteed a top-100 Core Formation Spiritual Treasure.

Moreover, Liu Qingyun is most likely from the Tiancang Domain. News has already come from there that Huangtian Domain and Wuya Domain have won a complete victory, and the sects within the domains have been defeated. Even if the sects eventually submit, they certainly won't be able to provide these escaped disciples with any decent Core Formation treasures.

He has now completed the Foundation Establishment stage and is about to face the crucial hurdle of Core Formation.

He thought this spiritual pact would be enough to move her heart.

"Is Qingyun dissatisfied with this spirit contract? If so, we can discuss it. In our Myriad Merchant Domain, nothing is off-limits for discussion," Wu Yishan probed again.

However, the Jinhua Chamber of Commerce already had an assessment of Li Ji'an. The investment plan for a superior spiritual contract was already the highest possible, since the Chamber's mid-stage Core Formation cultivator had carefully sensed Li Ji'an's magical power and determined that his innate spiritual root should not have reached the Earth level.

Although he has shown remarkable combat power this time, with his magic power being both profound and pure, the Core Formation stage is not only related to magic power, temperament, and the spiritual treasures used for Core Formation, but also closely related to his spiritual root.

The higher one's innate spiritual root, the less extra help is needed.

To achieve a top-grade spiritual root, one needs at least one of the top 100 Core Formation spiritual roots to have any hope of achieving a True Core. If one wants to aspire to a mid-grade or top-grade True Core, one would probably need a top 30 Core Formation spiritual treasure or even at least two portions of spiritual resources.

In that case, it would be easier to succeed by investing in two celestial seedlings with heavenly spiritual roots.

"President, you misunderstand. I greatly appreciate your association's sincerity," Li Ji'an affirmed.

Wu Yishan nodded secretly, glancing at Li Ji'an with some regret: "A promising talent, it's a pity he's been confined by the sect."

"Now I understand. But Qingyun, remember this: the doors of the Jinhua Chamber of Commerce are always open for you."

"Thank you!"
-
One month later, the qualifying rounds for the top thirty talents in this year's Flying Goose Forum will begin.

At this stage, it is no longer a matter of elimination in pairs.

To avoid the unlucky draw of the strongest opponent, this qualifying round is divided into two groups, with a round-robin points system within each group.

The top five from each group will advance to the next round, determining the top ten for this year's competition.

Before the semifinals, you might be lucky enough to encounter a weak opponent and advance, but once you reach the knockout stage, that's basically no longer the case.

Each group's seedlings must fight against at least three opponents within the group to determine the winner.

At this time, the atmosphere of the entire venue reaches its peak, second only to the finals held in other immortal cities six months later.

In an instant, the entire Flying Phoenix Immortal City was packed with people, and every betting platform saw stakes exceeding one million spirit stones per game.

Li Ji'an's odds went from 1 to 100 before the semi-finals, to 20 after he revealed his second-tier body cultivation, but have now risen to 30.

It's clear that the audience doesn't have a good outlook on his chances in the qualifying rounds.

Yao Rui, who barely made it through the first three semifinal matches, had odds of 200 to 1, and was basically considered to have no chance of winning in the qualifying rounds.

Of the top 30 Immortal Seeds, 90% come from the top 10 chambers of commerce in the Business Alliance, with only five, including Li Ji'an, Wang Hu, and Yao Rui, coming from subsequent chambers of commerce.

There are objective differences in both spiritual roots and natural talents, as well as in cultivation techniques and spiritual aptitude.

On the first day of the qualifying rounds, Li Ji'an watched two battles simultaneously, both of which were contests between the top ten merchant guilds of the Merchant Alliance.

Its brilliance is breathtaking.

In one of the matches, Xianmiao from the Jiuding Chamber of Commerce, who had been grouped with Li Ji'an before the semi-finals, shone brightly.

His magical power was profound and solid, no wonder he was regarded by the Merchant Alliance as a worthy candidate for the top ten.

Li Ji'an knew that without using his divine soul technique, he would have absolutely no chance of winning against him.

However, on the third day alone, this promising young immortal was defeated by a promising young immortal from the Five Blessings Chamber of Commerce.

The immortal seedling from the Five Blessings Chamber of Commerce possessed fire-elemental magical power that seemed innate, combining offense and defense to make him virtually invincible. With explanations from the onlookers, Li Ji'an finally understood that this person was actually born with the Southern Netherworld Fire Spirit Body, possessing a natural affinity for fire elemental energy compared to those with a fire-elemental heavenly spiritual root, making his cultivation twice as efficient.

Moreover, the fire-type magic power he initially refined was extremely pure and solid, far surpassing the purity of Li Ji'an's, who only honed and refined it before forming his core.

This was also the first time Li Ji'an had personally witnessed the power of a spirit.

He secretly calculated the result and was slightly disappointed with the final outcome, because even if he used the Soul-Shocking Strike to attack unexpectedly and in close physical combat, he could not break through the self-protecting Southern Netherworld Fire.

To break through its Southern Netherworld Fire, one must rely on more profound and refined magical power.

Of course, a third-tier offensive spirit talisman will also suffice.

Then, when Yao Rui's first battle to advance came, unfortunately, her profound and pure magical power was limited by the cultivation technique she practiced, and her low-grade earth-level magical power was really a bit of a stretch.

Even though the eighth-grade Flaming Longsword magic weapon was a perfect match for her, and even though she tried her best, she still couldn't turn the tide of defeat.

They were defeated in their first battle.

In his first battle the next day, Li Ji'an's Earth-grade superior cultivation technique, though inferior to the Heaven-grade techniques of these merchant guilds, was not inferior thanks to the years of refinement by the little fire spirit and the enduring power of the wood element.

Furthermore, with the second-tier body refinement physique already revealed, they barely managed to win the first battle.

Two weeks later, the first round of qualifying matches ended.

The results of the first battle among the thirty prodigies have been announced. Apart from Li Ji'an, all the winners are from the top ten merchant guilds in the Merchant Alliance.

Yao Rui, Wang Hu, and several other members of the Chamber of Commerce who ranked lower all lost.

On the day Li Ji'an won his first battle, Wu Yishan found Li Ji'an again and brought him a new spiritual contract, in which the Core Formation Spiritual Treasure was upgraded to the top forty.

Li Ji'an still refused, citing his longing for his homeland.

Then, perhaps Wu Yishan gave up completely, and the news that Li Ji'an had completed the spiritual contract with the Jinhua Chamber of Commerce was leaked.

That evening, representatives from the other seventeen chambers of commerce all came to recruit.

The investment contracts offered also vary.

However, overall, the top giants in the business alliance offered higher prices.

Among them, Jiuding Chamber of Commerce and Liehu Chamber of Commerce are the most prominent.

The Fierce Tiger Chamber of Commerce had previously made an offer, but it was mainly in the form of Guagua. This time, however, they have increased their investment in Li Ji'an, but the amount of the Core Formation Spiritual Essence offered is comparable to that offered by the Jinhua Chamber of Commerce.

The Nine Cauldrons Chamber of Commerce was quite generous, promising the top thirty Core Formation Spiritual Treasures, but the condition was not service after Core Formation, but permanent service to the Chamber of Commerce.

In addition, there is Jade Flute Master from the Sishui Chamber of Commerce.

During this private conversation, she directly brought up the matter of that "gentleman," attempting to appeal to his emotions.

Li Ji'an refused them all.

It is unclear which chamber of commerce lacked martial ethics and leaked the information, causing a stir.

It is said that although Li Ji'an is quite strong, his innate spiritual root is limited, and he also relied on second-level body cultivation for this Dao discussion. He should be content with obtaining the superior spiritual contracts from various merchants.

Meanwhile, Li Ji'an's odds decreased from 1 to 30 to 1 to 10.

A few days later, Li Ji'an's second battle began.

This time, Li Ji'an was matched with the group leader before the semi-finals, who was the same Xianmiao from the Jiuding Chamber of Commerce who was initially ranked in the top ten by the Chamber of Commerce.

He was defeated in the second battle by the immortal seedling with the spirit body of the Southern Netherworld Fire. This is his third battle. If he wins, he will advance with a result of two wins and one loss. If he loses, he will need to fight another battle.

Unfortunately, Li Ji'an caught the opponent off guard with his Soul-Shocking Strike. While the opponent's soul was reeling, Li Ji'an used the Vine Silk Hand to bind him and then used his second-tier physique to break through his protective magic shield, ultimately achieving a great victory.

Before this match, after the opponent was determined, the odds for the single game were almost one-sided.

The maximum odds for this type of single-game betting line are 1 to 10, so Li Ji'an naturally pulled it to the maximum.

Clearly, no one believed he could defeat that prodigy from the Nine Cauldrons Chamber of Commerce.

He decisively bought his own 100,000 spirit stones worth of betting.

It wasn't that he didn't want to bet more, but the limit for betting on a single match was 100,000 per person. Otherwise, he would have bet all 250,000 spirit stones in his storage bag.

As a result, this match turned out to be a major upset.

Li Ji'an also achieved temporary financial freedom through his own abilities.

Of course, this is in comparison to the Core Formation Real Person level in the Tiancang Domain.

If this were placed in the Wanshang Domain, a million spirit stones wouldn't be much.

One million spirit stones is only comparable to three of the top 100 Core Formation Spirit Treasures. Moreover, Core Formation Spirit Treasures are generally not traded for spirit stones; they are mostly bartered with high-level spiritual resources.

However, Li Ji'an doesn't need any other Core Formation treasures right now. He'll be satisfied as long as this million spirit stones are enough for him to hone his puppetry skills to the third level.

This also gives them the confidence to bid on several high-level talisman materials at the upcoming traveling auction.

After this battle, the secret of Li Ji'an's mastery of a certain soul-binding technique naturally became known to everyone.

For a time, the level of discussion surrounding him surpassed that of the prodigy with the Southern Netherworld Fire Spirit Body.

The combination of Dharma cultivation and physical cultivation has already impressed many people.

The emergence of another divine soul technique has led many to speculate whether the person in question is still a soul cultivator.

However, it cannot be arbitrarily concluded that a single soul cultivation technique is solely for cultivating the soul.

After all, those whose spiritual power surpasses that of others of the same level can either cultivate spiritual power techniques, nourish it with spiritual pills, or be born with a strong spiritual power.

On the same day, several more chambers of commerce arrived.

All of these further raise the requirements for a spiritual contract.

The Nine Cauldrons Chamber of Commerce directly promised a top twenty Core Formation Spiritual Treasure, but the requirement remained unchanged: Li Ji'an must be able to guard the Chamber of Commerce for life.

He frankly stated that he was not optimistic about Li Ji'an's future cultivation level, but he was very optimistic about his combat strength.

They also used an ancient soul cultivation visualization diagram as bait.

What surprised Li Ji'an the most this time was the Five Blessings Chamber of Commerce.

He promised to provide a top ten Core Formation Spiritual Treasure, without any requirements, but hoped that the recipient could inform their master.

During this time, they also subtly inquired about information regarding "Huang Jie" and Guo Wanzhi.

This reminded Li Ji'an of the change in attitude towards him from Master Meng of the Five Blessings Chamber of Commerce on the spirit ship he visited in the Myriad Business Domain six years ago.

He paid special attention to the "master" he mentioned.

Moreover, after arriving at Wanshangyu, he even offered a large sum of money to recruit him under the identity of "Huang Jie".

(End of this chapter)