Wanfa Daojun, starting from the Little Cloud and Rain Technique

Chapter 539 Fulfilling the Promise
The second batch yielded a common-quality Nourishing Essence Pill, and the third batch yielded a premium-quality pill.

At this moment, Han Yan felt that her alchemy skills, which she had been so proud of all these years, seemed to be a joke.

But then she thought about it again and felt relieved.

The other party was a Golden Core cultivator who was over two hundred years old, and was the youngest Golden Core cultivator in the sect and in the Western Continent.

Being surpassed by such a cultivator is an acceptable thing.

"Such a high success rate in pill formation, I admire you."

Achieving such a success rate in pill formation is not particularly difficult, but to achieve such a success rate in a single day is truly terrifying.

Han Yan thoughtfully placed the pills in two jade bottles and handed them out.

Ji An put the jade bottle into the Cave Void Stone and laughed:

"The main thing is having a good teacher, which saved me a lot of time. Your experience is worth recording in detail for the core alchemists of the sect to refer to."

The other party's words greatly reduced the cost of trial and error.

Han Yan maintained a polite smile and said:

"I will think about it."

Some techniques are better known to as few people as possible, in order to protect one's own interests and value.

Ji An could roughly guess what the other person was thinking, so he didn't try to persuade him further.

These experiences were gained by the other party through trial and error. He cannot deprive the other party of their achievements for a noble reason, otherwise what is the difference between this and robbery?

It is not the act of a gentleman to be generous with other people's money.

Unless the sect introduces a reasonable set of rules and regulations that can quantify this kind of experience, allowing skilled craftsmen to gain a continuous stream of income by publishing their experience.

Only in that way can the problem of clinging to one's own possessions be solved.

The sect's previous rewards for creating pill formulas were quite reasonable, but it had not issued any policies regarding specific experiences and insights.

Should we create a "patent"? Purchasing a patent would grant us the corresponding experience and knowledge.

Ji An thought this was feasible, but very complicated to implement and required a credible standard.

Thinking of this, he decided to find an opportunity to talk to his senior brother, the sect leader, later.

He changed the subject and asked:
When do you plan to set off on your travels?

"There is still a batch of pill refining tasks to be completed. We will set off in about two months."

Have you planned the routes?

"Well, the first stop is Silvermoon City in the far north, where I will comprehend the principle of fire generating earth, and then head to Red Rock Immortal City to seek opportunities to comprehend the principle of metal generating water and earth generating metal."

The sect has already established a firm foothold in Red Rock Immortal City and can obtain support.

Ji An nodded slightly; this was the route he had taken years ago.

Speaking of Red Rock Immortal City, he thought of that deeply hidden demonic cultivator. Now that he hadn't heard any more news of the demonic cultivator's rampage, he guessed that either the cultivator had hidden even deeper or had died unexpectedly.

He had a gut feeling that his first guess was more likely to be true.

Ji An took out several purification talismans and handed them over, saying:
"A small-scale demonic disaster once broke out in the far north. These talismans can purify the pollution of demonic energy, and carrying them will give you an extra layer of safety."

In addition, this talisman has a very good effect on calming the mind and spirit.

"Thank you for the reward, ancestor."

The two chatted for a while longer, then Han Yan stood up, cupped her hands in greeting, and said:

"Ancestor, I still have alchemy tasks to complete, so please forgive me for not being able to stay any longer."

"Goodbye."

After Han Yan left, Ji An flew down to the cold pool at the foot of the mountain and found Feng Xing, saying:

"Please contact Chief Wei of Xiaozhushan as soon as possible and ask him to come over as soon as possible."

"As ordered!"

three days later.

Yin Qiuyun arrived at Chiyan Peak, her face full of fatigue.

She was wearing a light-colored Taoist robe, with a small white flower pinned to her temple, and her eyes were somewhat red and swollen.

Ji An's heart sank suddenly, and he asked:

"What's wrong, Fellow Daoist Wei?"

"His old illness relapsed, and he passed away yesterday."

Yin Qiuyun's voice trembled slightly, and tears streamed down her face.

Ji An guessed this possibility, opened his mouth as if to say something, but could not say anything, only let out a soft sigh.

A faint sadness welled up in his heart as he sighed at the endless years and how the past had all vanished in the wind.

After a moment, he gently shook his head, composed himself.

"Please accept my condolences. Let's talk in the living room."

The two entered the living room and took their seats as host and guest. Ji An began by saying:

"I've known Fellow Daoist Wei since we were both nobodys. I'm very saddened to hear this news. What is his old injury?"

"It was an injury to his dantian. He suddenly couldn't maintain the storage of spiritual energy, and he aged very quickly. Within a day, his qi and blood completely depleted, and he closed his eyes that very night."

Yin Qiuyun sobbed softly, and it took her a long time to finish her short speech.

Ji An offered a few words of comfort, then changed the subject:
"Did Fellow Daoist Wei tell you all the promises I made to him?"

“A few years ago, he felt his health was deteriorating, so he told me everything.”

"You promised the Wei family two Qi-Nourishing Pills, and that the transactions with the Wei family would proceed stably for thirty years." Yin Qiuyun recounted each promise in detail, her tears flowing like a flood.

Ji An nodded slightly; what the other person said was absolutely correct. He sighed softly:

"I sent my disciple to inform Fellow Daoist Wei because I wanted to fulfill one of my promises, but unfortunately he won't be able to see it."

He took out a jade bottle and handed it over, saying, "There is a fine Qi-cultivating pill inside. I hope the Wei family can cultivate a cultivator at the Chaoyuan stage as soon as possible, so as to comfort Fellow Daoist Wei's spirit in heaven."

Yin Qiuyun stood up, bowed deeply, and accepted the jade bottle, saying:
“The person is of noble character, and the Wei family is deeply grateful.”

"I have another request to make today. My husband has passed away, and I would like to ask Baiyang to return to Xiaozhushan so that the children can bid him farewell."

"That's only right. I'll notify Baiyang to come back now. How are you planning to get back?"

"Reporting to the Master, I have brought two extremely fast flying shuttles with me."

"I will send my disciple back to Xiaozhushan with you, so that he can offer sacrifices on my behalf to Fellow Daoist Wei."

Ji An took out two golden communication swords and ordered Han Shan and Wei Baiyang to return to Chiyan Peak immediately.

Two hours later, Wei Baiyang returned first. Upon learning of his father's passing, his cheerful expression immediately turned somber.

He clutched his chest and shook his head. "Impossible. The last time I saw my father, he was in good health. How could he have left us so suddenly!"

Mother and son faced each other with tearful eyes, and suppressed sobs rang out.

Ji An sighed inwardly, walked out of the living room, and closed the bedroom door. The crying inside immediately became much louder.

A moment later, Han Shan arrived at Crimson Flame Peak:
"Master, what are your instructions?"

“Your junior brother’s father was an old friend of mine. Now that he has passed away, I am sending you and Baiyang to Xiaozhushan to pay our respects.”

"Disciple accepts the order."

Half an hour later, Han Shan and the other two left.

Ji An felt a pang of sadness; the departure of another old friend made him nostalgic.

He muttered to himself, "How can I escape the torment of lifespan?"

He didn't know if immortality existed, but he knew that the higher one's cultivation level, the more likely they were to know the answer.

At this moment, most of the complacency that Ji An had felt after breaking through to the Golden Core stage disappeared.

The Golden Elixir stage is a transitional and transformative realm, from refining essence into qi to refining qi into spirit.

According to records, ancient immortals divided cultivation into four stages: refining essence into qi, refining qi into spirit, refining spirit into emptiness, and refining emptiness into the Dao.

If these records are true, it is very possible that cultivators could achieve immortality.

He then thought of another question: since there are so many realms on the path of cultivation, why is the ceiling of combat power in the cultivation world the Nascent Soul level?
Ji An scratched his head, and after thinking for a long time, he gave up on finding the answer to the question.

Some things are futile if you don't have the necessary understanding; it's like a primary school student holding a high school math problem—they're likely to be reading gibberish, and even if they get the answer, they won't understand it.

Two years later.

Ji An was having lunch at a stone table by the cold pool. The braised grouper tasted very good, and he was very satisfied with his meal.

Taking a sip of wine now and then brings me great joy. After so many years of hard work, consuming spiritual food is always a wonderful comfort.

While eating qi and celestial food may seem ethereal, it can also bring a unique sense of satisfaction to one's appetite.

Feng Xing strode forward, holding a fist-sized, crimson fruit in his hands.

This is the Blood Soul Profound Origin Fruit, its peel covered with white light spots, like stars scattered across the sky.

"Ancestor, during my routine patrol today, I discovered that this spiritual fruit had fallen to the ground after it ripened."

"Very good, go down and collect your reward of five spirit stones."

Ji smiled and said that the Blood Soul Profound Origin Tree has now reached the second-tier top grade. After the fruit is fully ripe, it will fall and be more than 500 years old.

The Profound Origin Creation Pill, refined from such fruit, can heal most physical injuries.

For example, if an arm is severed, as long as the arm is reattached, taking the Xuan Yuan Creation Pill for a few months will allow for a full recovery without affecting the coordination of the limbs.

"Thank you, Ancestor," Feng Xing placed the Blood Soul Profound Origin Fruit on the table and walked away happily.

Zhang Xuening, standing nearby, looked on with envy. Feng Xing was mainly responsible for inspecting the spirit fields and often received rewards for discovering that spirit fruits were ripe.

Just then, a golden sword that could transmit messages fell from the sky, hovering beside the round table, and emitted fluctuations of a special frequency.

Ji An caught the golden sword that transmitted the message, probed it with his divine sense to read the information, and a smile involuntarily appeared on his lips.

"Finally, this good news has arrived. Xue Ning, tell Feng Xing later that each of you will receive a reward of ten spirit stones."

"Yes, sir! Ancestor, what good news is it?"

"You'll know in a few days."

Ji An emptied the pearly red rice from the bowl and flew down to the stone house at the foot of the mountain.

He activated the teleportation array and arrived at Ningcui Cliff, then at the rear hall of the Si Nong Hall.

Lin Lan came out of the main hall to greet him, "Master, what brings you here?"

"I can't come?"

Lin Lan smiled and said:

“Master, you know perfectly well that’s not what I meant.”

Ji An chuckled a few times and gave the instructions:

"Go there yourself and tell Han Shan and Bai Yang that the spiritual vein where Yunhe Mountain is located is about to be upgraded, and they can go there to stay for a few days."

When the spiritual veins are enhanced, the five elements and the power of yin and yang manifest. If you can comprehend anything about this, it will be of great help to your future cultivation.

Even if you don't understand anything, you can still broaden your horizons.

(End of this chapter)