Cultivating Immortality Begins with Rejuvenation.

Chapter 408 The calm before the storm

"Congratulations, my husband, on taking another step forward!"

Just as her magic power stabilized, Ning Sujin walked in.

"Haha, it's a joyous occasion that my husband and I have made this trip together." Li Ji'an embraced her, his face full of satisfaction.

In the past sixteen years, not only has he made further progress, but Ning Sujin has also made rapid progress, having advanced to the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment five years ago.

If things continue like this, Ning Sujin should be able to break through to the Core Formation stage within thirty years.

The efficiency of cultivating the Chaos Law is becoming increasingly apparent.

However, given the current situation, it's highly unlikely that it will work.

"Has the Venerable Funiu not emerged from seclusion yet?" Li Ji'an asked.

Ning Sujin shook her head: "I haven't left the seclusion yet."

"Has the situation here worsened?" Li Ji'an asked again.

Master Fu Niu has been in seclusion for over twenty years and there has been no news of him since.

In addition, he did not emerge from seclusion during the major incident involving Qu Tianyang, which led to unfavorable rumors circulating in the Funiu Mountains several years ago.

Master Funiu, whose lifespan was already less than a hundred years, is now suspected of having serious problems.

This has led to undercurrents of activity among various forces within the Funiu Mountains in recent years.

"It's strange, but since the rumors started flying three years ago, things have suddenly quieted down, and everything seems to have returned to calm. I wonder if it's the calm before the storm." Ning Sujin shook her head.

"What a pity," Li Ji'an sighed softly.

He was very satisfied with the spiritual energy and cultivation environment of this place. Based on his understanding of the lifespan of Master Funiu, he believed that he could stay for another 60 years under normal circumstances.

In that case, he would be close to the late stage of the Golden Core realm.

Things are unpredictable, and the current situation of Master Funiu is not as good as he had expected.

But this is understandable. After all, Master Funiu is not alone. He needs to plan for what will happen after his death, unlike ordinary rogue cultivators who can simply perish without any ties.

He also needed to consider the future of the Funiu Mountain region, which had finally achieved a unified state, and the well-being of his disciples.

"How about that old thief Chun Yuan?" Li Ji'an asked again.

When Qingniu left the pass, that old thief left for some unknown reason and did not return until two years later.

Over the next decade or so, he tried several times to lure Li Ji'an out, but all attempts failed.

Two years ago, he even visited Li Ji'an in person, but Li Ji'an avoided him and used all his resources to prevent him from having a chance.

"He has approached me several times late at night recently, but has never forced himself on me."

"It seems that the blue ox frightened him quite a bit!" Li Ji'an chuckled.

Ning Sujin smiled in agreement, then remembered something else: "Old man, also, that girl Xiao Jiu has already reached the peak of Foundation Establishment and is planning to form her Core."

Li Ji'an nodded. Xiao Jiu is exceptionally talented, a beloved member of the group, has a solid foundation, and a clear mind. He will surely have a smooth journey before reaching the Core Formation stage.

"Is Xiao Jiu about to form his core?" However, the next moment, Li Ji'an suddenly raised an eyebrow.

"Is there a problem?" Ning Sujin looked at Li Ji'an with a puzzled expression.

Li Ji'an slowly closed his eyes, pondered quietly for a moment, and his expression gradually became serious: "I'm afraid that Xiao Jiu's Core Formation is the key point here!"

Ning Sujin frowned slightly, puzzled.

Li Ji'an didn't keep them in suspense and patiently explained: "The unification of Mount Funiu was due to Master Funiu's skillful maneuvering among the various forces. Only after secretly advancing to the late stage of Core Formation and gaining the strength to face the peak of several major forces did he make a name for himself and catch them off guard."

The major powers don't have their main bases here; they only covet the resources and geographical location of this place. Their method is to cultivate proxies to divide this land, so it's impossible for them to have a showdown at their peak. Therefore, as long as Master Funiu has been here for the past two hundred years, no major problems have occurred here.

However, more than two hundred years have passed, and Funiu Mountain has still not produced a second person who has reached the Core Formation stage.

Once Master Funiu passes away, the Funiu Mountain lineage will be nothing more than a clay chicken or a dog in the eyes of the major powers without a Core Formation Master to oversee it.

These forces have deep foundations, unlike the weak Funiu Mountain faction, so they can completely disregard these two hundred years. They have enough time to wait for Master Funiu to perish.

At that time, this place will once again become the spoils of victory for several major forces.

In fact, the better things developed during Master Funiu's tenure, the happier the major powers were.

Looking at it now, of Master Funiu's nine outstanding disciples, apart from Qu Tianyang who fled to escape punishment, only Xiao Jiu, who has not yet formed his core, has this hope. Among the other seven disciples, the eldest disciple, True Man Fengyin, initially enjoyed Master Funiu's exclusive favor and spent a lot of spiritual treasures for forming his core, but in the end, he only barely formed a mid-level True Core. After advancing to the mid-stage of Core Formation a hundred years ago, his potential was exhausted, and he had no further hope of progressing.

Of the remaining six disciples, four were at the lower level of true elixir cultivation, and two were at the lower level of false elixir cultivation, so there was no hope for them.

Therefore, whether Mount Funiu can maintain its unified state after the death of Master Funiu depends on whether Xiao Jiu can form the Upper True Core.

If it were during the prime of Master Funiu's life, other forces might not have taken the risk, since even if they succeeded, there would be another one.

Now, with Venerable Funiu's lifespan less than a hundred years, he no longer has time to cultivate another prodigy. Xiao Jiu has become the most crucial link, and they will definitely try every means to influence or even sabotage Xiao Jiu's Core Formation..."

“Xiao Jiu… so it seems that Qu Tianyang’s escape… wasn’t that also one of these people’s methods?” Ning Sujin suddenly realized.

Li Ji'an shook his head: "The situation has been set. Whether it was true or not before is no longer important. Now, the focus is on Xiao Jiu."

"However, this shows that the Funiu Mountains have already been heavily infiltrated."

As he spoke, Li Ji'an reached out and summoned all the items in the secret room into his Qiankun Ring.

"Old man..." Upon seeing this, Ning Sujin hesitated for a moment.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to run away right now. It's just that I don't need to cultivate in the secret chamber for the time being. Besides, judging from the current situation, no matter how the major forces plot against Xiao Jiu, they won't cause any trouble or provoke the worshippers who only have a transactional relationship with Funiu Mountain. They will only offer more favorable conditions." Li Ji'an smiled and comforted him.

"What about Xiao Jiu..."

Li Ji'an naturally understood Ning Sujin's thoughts: "Don't worry, since we have already done good deeds, there is a chance to reap good results. However, we can only wait and see the specific outcome. Unless it is an ominous sign of death, I will do my best to help."

"Thank you, my husband!" Ning Sujin breathed a sigh of relief, feeling much more at ease.

Although she understood Li Ji'an's code of conduct and knew that it might be correct in the cultivation world, she still couldn't completely change her nature.

If she knew Xiao Jiu was in trouble and didn't do her best, she would find it hard to get over her conscience.

"Huh, that old thief is here again!" Just as Ning Sujin relaxed, she sensed a familiar aura again through her primordial spirit.

Previously, whenever the old thief Chun Yuan approached late at night, he always stayed outside the range of a Core Formation cultivator's divine sense, ensuring that Li Ji'an could not detect him.

However, this time, in Ning Sujin's primordial spirit's perception, after hesitating for a moment at the edge of the Core Formation cultivator's divine sense range, it actually advanced further.

The next moment, Li Ji'an also sensed the old thief's aura.

"Can't wait?" A smile appeared on Li Ji'an's lips.

Now that he has advanced to the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm, he is more confident and not so afraid of him.

Sensing the old thief getting closer, Li Ji'an immediately summoned Guagua and burrowed into its mouth to enter the universe.

His magical power after advancing to the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm exceeded his expectations, and he couldn't wait to try out whether he could activate a top-grade magic weapon.

Within the universe contained within the croaking frog's mouth were a Green Wood Magic Sword that Xiao Changfeng had brought from the Boundless Domain, a Black Water Magic Sword obtained from the Black Water Swamp Underground Palace, the Floating Light Fan of the Myriad Laws True Lord, and the Dragon Suppressing Cauldron that suppressed the true dragon's essence blood in the Dragon Burial Cave deep within the Fallen Dragon Ridge—all items he longed for but could not activate.

The other items are of uncertain grade, but the Floating Light Fan is definitely a grade three magic weapon.

(End of this chapter)