Longevity starts with choosing Hextech enhancement

Chapter 427 Fake Identity, Transaction Delayed

Zhang Cunfu has been rambling on for so long.

What I really wanted was a spiritual object that would be enough to bribe the Elder of Internal Affairs, so that he would handle it gently and show leniency.

It was clear that he was indeed a little flustered.

However, this is inevitable. After all, in such a great upheaval, it's perfectly normal to have a few unlucky people and scapegoats.

Zhang Cunfu himself lacked the ability to protect himself, and had almost no hope of making a breakthrough in the future.

They could only pin their hopes on seeking help from powerful figures or on a sliver of luck.

"If you do a good job for me, I will certainly not treat you unfairly."

Xiao Chen still wanted to use Zhang Cunfu to continue trading with the Reverse Immortal Alliance, so he planned to ask him for a favor: "Can you get rid of me with a fourth-tier water-type spirit fruit?"

Ordinary fourth-tier water-type spirit items are not actually that expensive in terms of price alone.

For example, this fourth-tier spirit fruit is only worth about 300,000 spirit stones, which is less than the travel expenses given to Chen Fan.

The key point is that they have a high barrier to entry, and ordinary cultivators have little access to them and are not qualified to purchase them.

Especially in the new cultivation world, the control over various spiritual objects is even stricter.

Even the internal affairs elders of the Guiyun Sect have the same problem: they have spirit stones but nowhere to buy fourth-tier spirit items.

"That's enough, it can be handled!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Cunfu was overjoyed: "Thank you for your care, senior. I will always remember your great kindness and virtue."

Excellent! With this fourth-tier spiritual fruit to smooth things over, he's confident he can escape this internal investigation.

Damn it, don't let him find out which bastard stabbed you in the back.

Otherwise, we'll have to pay it back tenfold.

With the life-saving item in hand, Zhang Cunfu felt much more at ease and even began to think about revenge.

However, he naturally knew how to prioritize.

The most urgent task is to quickly take the supplies from the storage ring and run errands for Senior Xiao.

When I have some free time, I'll slowly sort out the problems I have.

"Alright, stop flattering me. If nothing unexpected happens, let's meet here again tomorrow night."

Xiao Chen estimated that the Reverse Immortal Alliance should still have some savings and could conduct several more transactions in the future, so he arranged a time for their next meeting before parting ways.

He then strolled around the market for a while.

Then, after successfully navigating through the checkpoints, head directly to the Cai family's ancestral home.

This time, we didn't encounter any unexpected situations.

But he did not receive the letter that Xiao Chen was expecting.

Judging from the current situation, it seems that the time it took for him to complete the full fusion of spiritual artifacts is approaching a year, or even longer.

Is this thing really that difficult?
Xiao Chen couldn't help but start to wonder if the Broken Gold True Monarch was really up to the task.
However, since more than half a year has already passed, the materials should be almost used up by now, so we might as well wait a little longer.

Firstly, this kind of work is a craft, so even if you rush over to urge them, it won't help.

Secondly, apart from the Broken Gold True Monarch, he did not know any other weapon refiners.

To put it bluntly, without going to the Holy City, there are very few people outside who can forge fully fused spiritual artifacts, so there's no question about it.

With things having come to this point, Xiao Chen had no choice but to continue to believe in the Broken Gold True Lord.

It doesn't matter if it's a little slower; as long as we can eventually succeed, everything will be fine.

"Things are chaotic outside lately, how's the situation here?"

Since he was already there, Xiao Chen also inquired about the Cai family's current situation: "You look worried, as if something sad has happened to you."

"But what difficulties have you encountered?"

"Since you've chosen to cooperate with me, I won't treat you unfairly. No matter what happens, you can talk to me without worry."

Whether or not it should be dealt with, and how it should be dealt with, depends on the specific circumstances.

"But I certainly won't blame you for that."

The reason Xiao Chen took the initiative to show concern was because the Cai family might be very useful to him.

The reason for adding the word "possibly" before "very useful" is...

It's because he hasn't decided yet whether or not to spend some time and effort to create a relatively reliable false identity for himself through the Cai family.

It's the kind of thing that can withstand a secret investigation by the Holy City.

In theory, if this were to actually be accomplished, it would be extremely useful.

The problem is that, at present, Xiao Chen only has a rather rough idea in mind, rather than a mature and reliable plan.

Here's roughly what he envisioned.

First, he disguised himself as a prodigy secretly being groomed by the Cai family.

Then, in the following years, he successively broke through the Golden Core and Nascent Soul stages, becoming a Nascent Soul True Lord with a clean background and clear origins, who could withstand the investigation of the Holy City.

For example, Xiao Chen had previously attended the auction as a member of the Cai family and also visited Master Zhao in the Zejing Blessed Land.

If anyone investigates his background in the future, these will all serve as witnesses.

Of course, the current preparations are still insufficient and cannot withstand careful investigation.

However, if Xiao Chen is willing to invest some time and energy, he can take Grandpa Cai out more often and deliberately make more public appearances.

Next, a Golden Elixir Ceremony will be held in the blessed land of Zejing, and a few years later, the Cai family and their relatives and friends will be invited to hold the Nascent Soul Ceremony.

That would allow one to create a false identity that is almost impossible for outsiders to detect.

If Xiao Chen goes to the Holy City to 'train and explore' with this identity, he won't have to worry about his origins.

At that time, they will not only be able to publicly reveal their Nascent Soul stage cultivation level.

You can even confidently and boldly try to make contact with the venerable ones in this world.

However, this process also has many flaws, the most serious of which is that it takes a very long time.

Even if Xiao Chen pretends to have formed his core this year, it will still take several years before he can announce that he has successfully formed his nascent soul.

Before he obtained the "Spirit Devouring Technique", he probably wouldn't have paid much attention to this.

But now it seems that this timeframe is clearly too long.

Therefore, Xiao Chen was somewhat conflicted, wondering whether it was worth the time to create a false identity for himself that could prove his innocence.

Don't end up working for nothing.

Of course, before officially announcing his 'Core Formation', this plan can be postponed indefinitely, or even abandoned without any loss.

Therefore, Xiao Chen could hold off on making a decision and observe and learn more about the situation in the new cultivation world before making a decision.

However, it is still necessary to check on their situation before he decides to abandon the plan.

After all, the Cai family has many advantages that others do not.

Firstly, the Cai family doesn't have any Nascent Soul cultivators, making it easier for Xiao Chen to control them.

Secondly, the Cai family had ancestors who were Nascent Soul True Monarchs, so even if they were to rise again, outsiders would not be particularly surprised.

Moreover, as one of the four great families, it is quite normal for them to secretly cultivate several promising talents who are unknown to outsiders before they reach the Golden Core stage.

Especially since two hundred years ago, a number of outstanding descendants of the Cai family have died unexpectedly.

The Cai family had both the ability and the right to move back to their ancestral home to secretly raise the next generation.

In fact, they did just that.

There are still more than a hundred promising young talents from various branches of the family in the ancestral home. They were all sent here for secret training from a young age.

Don't think it's too much.

The fact that only about a hundred people attempted to break through to the Nascent Soul stage was already a result of the Cai family's decline and inability to afford more resources, forcing them to compromise.

Otherwise, for a normal Nascent Soul clan, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that their numbers could increase tenfold.

The time spent on Foundation Establishment and Core Formation alone is enough to eliminate 99% of them.

Among more than a hundred people, even if there is an extra Xiao Chen, outsiders would have no way of knowing.

"Thank you for your concern, True Lord. However, the family is doing well recently and there have been no problems."

Upon hearing this, Old Master Cai was taken aback, then replied with a bitter expression, "This old man was just worried about his poor daughter and lost his composure for a moment. Please forgive me."

It turns out that the Cai family had just received an obituary today.

The fourth young master of the Qian family in the Northern Territory, who had previously arranged a marriage with them, tragically died two months ago while exploring a dangerous place.

As a result, the youngest daughter of Mr. Cai, who had married into the family, became a widow at a young age, which made him, as a father, somewhat sad.

"It's only human nature, what crime is there in that?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Chen offered a words of comfort: "Please accept my condolences."

However, in theory, even if the Cai family has declined, the families they would consider for marriage alliances would at least be major clans with more than one or two Golden Core cultivators.

It shouldn't be considered weak in the local area either.

However, they ended up losing a direct descendant on their own turf.

This immediately reminded Xiao Chen of the information he had previously received from Hua Jian Zhenjun.

He couldn't help but wonder—could something really have happened in the North?

Unfortunately, Guiyun Market is a million miles away from that place, so any news or rumors that might have surfaced earlier couldn't reach them immediately.

Well, it's just a matter of dealing with whatever comes our way.

After a moment's thought, Xiao Chen abandoned this useless and meaningless worry.

Not to mention that nothing has happened over there yet, it's possible that it's just a false alarm in the end.

Even if a cataclysmic event were to occur in the Northern Territory, it would have nothing to do with him, not even a single spirit stone.

Xiao Chen is neither from the Northern Border nor has any ties there, so it's none of Xiao Chen's business to worry about him.

At most, it might affect Guiyunfang City in the future. We'll have to wait and see how things develop then.

Since the Cai family has been doing well recently and hasn't encountered any problems.

Xiao Chen did not linger and returned to the market.

Just as he had expected, the Reverse Immortal Alliance once again provided a purchase list worth tens of millions of spirit stones.

However, this time they not only did not urge the transaction to be completed as soon as possible, but also expressed their hope to postpone the delivery time to the second half of the year.

The reason given is that some time is needed for cash flow.

"Reporting to Senior, Fellow Daoist Bai means that they will not be able to raise the remaining payment until the end of November at the earliest."

Zhang Cunfu relayed the facts: "If it had been any earlier, they simply wouldn't have had time to make the necessary arrangements."

He also said that if we were willing to keep the goods for a while longer and trade them next spring.

"An extra one million spirit stones can be considered as interest and storage fees."

“I don’t dare to make such a decision, so I said I would come back and think about it carefully before giving him an answer.”

what?
Did they run out of money so quickly?

Xiao Chen felt something was amiss.

No matter how you look at it, the Rebellious Immortal Alliance should be a huge fat sheep.

There's absolutely no reason why they only have this much savings. Could it be that the recent tight security has forced them to postpone the transaction?
You know what, it's actually possible!
Don't forget, a small portion of what they traded were contraband items that the Holy City explicitly forbids from being bought and sold privately.

Originally, before the Immortal Selection Festival, True Lord Su Bai would have had time to complete this transaction with Xiao Chen and secretly deliver the supplies to those in need.

As a result, many special envoys have now arrived in the Holy City, and it seems they will not be leaving anytime soon.

Furthermore, with the large-scale sweep just around the corner, the situation will only become more severe than it is now.

This means that even if True Lord Su Bai manages to acquire the goods, there will be absolutely no time to distribute and transport them.

Therefore, they naturally hoped to delay until the large-scale crackdown ended and the situation stabilized before resuming trading.

Xiao Chen quickly figured out the key to the matter by considering the current situation.

Damn you, Hua Jian Zhenjun! Look at the mess you've made!
But it's no use blaming him now.

Given that the end of November is only a few days away from the beginning of spring next year.

After a moment's thought, Xiao Chen made a decision: "Then tell Fellow Daoist Bai that we agree to hold onto the goods until next spring before making the transaction."

"But the time can be postponed, and the deposit must not be reduced by a single penny."

Fortunately, it's not that True Lord Su Bai is truly broke.

The remaining six million from the previous order and the five million deposit for this order have already been prepared in advance.

They put it into three small storage rings and had Zhang Cunfu bring it over.

With that in mind, Xiao Chen felt much more at ease.

They happily accepted the huge sum of eleven million.

Then, just like last time, they first went to a remote wilderness tens of thousands of miles away from Guiyunfang City, and then specifically found a secluded corner to sneak into.

Then the shuttle was activated and the ship returned to the Ocean of Compassion.

Since the transaction was postponed until the following spring, Xiao Chen no longer needed to rush to purchase supplies.

Therefore, they returned directly to Silent Island.

Furthermore, considering that martial law will remain in place in Guiyunfang for the foreseeable future, and will likely continue until the major sweep, this situation will be further complicated.

Xiao Chen didn't even really want to go over there anymore.

So he simply put his mind to it and stayed on the island of Ji'e, no longer going out.

Every morning he cultivates, every afternoon he refines pills, and every evening he shares food and chats with Su Li.

If you encounter a full moon on the 15th of the lunar month, you can also spend time together during a lunar eclipse and watch the inheritance ceremony of the Moon Witch Clan.

They were living a fairly leisurely life.

But good times are always short-lived, and three months have passed in the blink of an eye, spring has turned to summer.

Including the spare time during the Chinese New Year, Xiao Chen has refined a full one hundred batches of Clear Dew Foundation Building Pills.

Because he made no mistakes, he was able to produce three finished products per batch.

With the added bonus from the "buy one get one free" offer, I accumulated a full six hundred Clear Dew Foundation Building Pills.

It's about time to put it out for the first transaction.

The reason they didn't stay on the island was to quietly save up more money and then sell it.

This is because scarcity increases value.

If Xiao Chen were to take several thousand Qinglu Foundation Establishment Pills directly to various sects to sell, he would inevitably earn far less spirit stones.

Firstly, the ocean of compassion may not have such a large demand.

Especially after the invasion of the sea creatures, many independent cultivators were lost.

More importantly, even if the major sects could consume thousands of Clear Dew Foundation Establishment Pills, the price per pill couldn't be negotiated very high due to the abundant supply.

It would be better to let them divide up these six hundred.

That means each family can only get a few dozen pieces.

For any sect, a few dozen would definitely not be enough.

Since it's not enough, there's room for a premium.

At that time, Xiao Chen might not even need to bring it up; they could raise the price themselves.

This way, I can earn more spirit stones, recoup my investment sooner, and start accelerating my cultivation sooner.

So on the morning of April 16th, after another lunar eclipse ended.

Xiao Chen greeted Su Li and then returned to Cangming Market.

It's quite a coincidence that in the past, if one were to sell spiritual items to various sects separately, it would definitely require running around and going door-to-door to promote them.

However, following the peace conference, the trade proposal was established.

All the major powers in the Compassionate Sea have found ways to communicate with each other.

So Xiao Chen used the Cangming Immortal Sect to make contact and explain the situation.

Just six days later, True Lords or Zen Masters from various forces arrived one after another.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao, all of you fellow Daoists arrived last night."

On the morning of the seventh day, Iron Fan Zhenjun knocked on Xiao Chen's door: "Besides Master Tinghai of Juehai Temple being in seclusion, only the presiding monk has come."

"The others are all old acquaintances."

"Everyone is now very eager to know whether the special elixir you mentioned is really that powerful?"

Although the details of the Qinglu Foundation Building Pill were clearly stated in the message.

However, everyone had some doubts about this unprecedented and special elixir.

After all, a 90% success rate in Foundation Establishment is simply too terrifying.

In other words, Xiao Chen's background was mysterious, and his previous performances were truly amazing, so his words naturally gained everyone's trust.

Otherwise, they could say they possess a new type of Foundation Building Pill with such powerful effects.

The great sages and Zen masters would only think they had encountered a madman or a fool.

It should be noted that this may seem to only concern the number of Foundation Establishment cultivators, and may not seem like a big deal.

However, upon closer examination, one can realize the significance of its implications.

If the Foundation Establishment stage is no longer an obstacle to cultivation in the future, then a massive number of Foundation Establishment cultivators will inevitably emerge.

A larger base number will inevitably mean the emergence of more Golden Core cultivators.

Even if these Golden Cores may not have much potential to form a Nascent Soul in the future.

However, they can play an important role whether they are tasked with maintaining various resource outposts or exploring new secret realms and ruins.

In fact, the Nascent Soul True Monarchs often go into seclusion and do not concern themselves with affairs.

Golden Core cultivators are the backbone of the Compassionate Sea and key members of various sects.

This is why the sale of a mere batch of Foundation Establishment Pills attracted almost all the fourth-tier cultivators from all the major powers to personally attend.

Because this is so significant, everyone wants to come and confirm it for themselves.

Even Zen Master Tinghai, who didn't come, had just reached a crucial juncture in his cultivation.

After all, he wasn't like Xiao Chen, who could complete a full cycle of the Great Heavenly Cycle in less than an hour.

Therefore, it's not that they didn't want to come, but rather that they couldn't leave.

"This is too simple. Foundation Building isn't complicated anyway, so let's just look at the facts."

Xiao Chen had already thought of a way to verify the medicine's efficacy: "I hope Fellow Daoist Iron Fan can do me a favor."

“Select ten middle-aged disciples from your sect who are over fifty years old but not yet sixty years old to be tested.”

"First, fellow Daoists and masters should check everyone to make sure there are no problems."

"Then I will give each of them a Qinglu Foundation Building Pill to take and use them to test their Foundation Building ability on the spot."

"Of course, please rest assured, Fellow Daoist Iron Fan, these ten Foundation Establishment Pills will not require any spirit stones."

In the end, Xiao Chen also cracked a small joke.

"Haha, how can you be so shameless?"

Iron Fan True Monarch wasn't actually short of money, but he still responded cooperatively: "Then I must thank Fellow Daoist Xiao for his generosity on behalf of these disciples."

"Please wait a moment, fellow Daoist. I will go and select a few suitable candidates."

Normally, such a matter could be easily handled by simply instructing a disciple to do it.

However, it is unclear whether Iron Fan True Monarch did so out of respect for Xiao Chen or because he wanted to personally inspect the candidates participating in the test.

In short, he took a tour of the sect.

Finally, they brought back ten carefully selected disciples who had reached the Great Perfection of Qi Refining.

Among them were outer disciples with poor aptitude who, even at the age of fifty-eight, were still unable to break through.

There were also lay disciples who were temporarily called back from the market and had long since given up their cultivation.

There are also some unfortunate souls who, for various reasons, have decent talent but wasted their early years and are still unable to attempt the Foundation Establishment stage by the age of fifty.

In short, it perfectly caters to all kinds of different situations and all ages within the permissible range.

This is enough to pose a very difficult test for the Qinglu Foundation Building Pill.

At least in the eyes of the other True Lords and Zen Masters in charge of the inspection, this group of people was just right and almost impeccable.

Therefore, they all eagerly awaited the final test results.

Theoretically speaking, if more than three of these people can successfully establish their foundation...

That means that although the effect of the Clear Dew Foundation Building Pill is not that powerful, it is still no less than, or even slightly stronger than, the existing Foundation Building Pills.

If more than six of these people can successfully establish their foundation.

That would be enough to prove that what Xiao Chen said was true.

All we need to do is give the Clear Dew Foundation Building Pill to those promising talents who have already reached the Great Perfection of Qi Refining by the age of twenty or thirty.

It can achieve 90% of the miraculous effects.

As for whether it's possible, nine of these people will successfully establish their foundation.

Apart from Xiao Chen, none of the True Lords and Zen Masters present dared to think in that direction.

The reason is that when Iron Fan Zhenjun was choosing people, he showed no mercy at all, for example, he deliberately selected more cultivators who were fifty years old.

Instead, they simply chose someone who was fifty years old; the others were all older than him and had even less hope of making a breakthrough.

"We are very grateful to True Lord Xiao for bestowing the pills!"

As the crowd below bowed in gratitude, they nervously began preparing for their breakthrough under the watchful eyes of everyone.

Originally, Iron Fan Zhenjun had also said that he could prepare a separate side hall for them.

To avoid letting nervousness affect your performance.

However, Xiao Chen confidently stated that there was no need for trouble and that they should just proceed directly.

He deliberately increased the difficulty.

This is because it allows the domineering power of the Clear Dew Foundation Building Pill to be better demonstrated.

After all, this is already a very mature technology in the new cultivation world, and it can definitely withstand the test.

(End of this chapter)