Longevity starts with choosing Hextech enhancement

Chapter 468 Multiple Invitations - Visiting the Scripture Pavilion
"It's already December, the season for winter fishing."

Lord Lieque chuckled and explained, “My Divine Sword Pavilion sends disciples to participate in the winter fishing every year, and most of the fish kings in recent years have come from my sect.”

"If Fellow Daoist Xiao has some free time these days, you are welcome to visit the Sword Washing Pavilion."

"I just received news yesterday that a Dragonblood Red Cod King has been captured."

"It should be shipped back tomorrow, so I can take it and try it out."

Dragonblood Red Cod is a very famous specialty sea fish in the Eastern Region. It is small in size, with most weighing no more than ten pounds.

It is famous throughout the world for its exceptionally delicious taste.

There are also folk tales that say they contain a trace of true dragon blood, and that consuming them will bring good luck.

Ordinary dragon blood cod is therefore very expensive, with a single cod selling for thousands of spirit stones, and depending on its size, it is equivalent to a high-grade or even top-grade magic weapon.

Among a group of Dragonblood Red Cod, there is a very small chance of giving birth to a Dragonblood Red Cod King.

Basically, in the entire Eastern Region, on average, only one or two cases can be caught in a year.

Moreover, even the Dragonblood Red Cod King will not weigh more than thirty pounds.

As the saying goes, things are valued for their rarity.

Although the Dragonblood Red Cod King is a Tier 3 sea fish, its rarity makes it just as precious as some relatively common Tier 4 sea fish.

After all, a fourth-tier sea fish has tens of thousands of kilograms of meat on its body.

As long as one fish is hunted, a large amount of fish meat will be available on the market, and it will be no problem for any True Lord to eat it if they want.

However, the Dragonblood Red Cod King is only enough to make one dish.

Even Nascent Soul cultivators can only taste it once every few years.

“Fellow Daoist Lieque, you received the news yesterday but kept it to yourself. That’s not very kind of you.”

Huo Xinghuai smiled and said, "That's exactly what I was saying. I wanted to buy some good fish from you so that I could use them to entertain my fellow comrades next spring."

"Now we'll have to think of other solutions."

Lieque Zhenjun chuckled: "This was never for sale. Besides, it weighs only about twenty pounds, which isn't enough for your grand banquet."

"If you want a good fish, I'll save it for you in advance if you catch this year's king of fish."

"This one will be left for Fellow Daoist Xiao to try."

As he spoke, he looked at Xiao Chen again: "It's okay if you don't have time for the time being, I can rest inside the sect first."

"Anyway, these small fish are easy to cook, so it's convenient for Fellow Daoist Xiao to come anytime."

Xiao Chen was indeed busy these past two days.

Since he had already said that, there was no need to refuse anymore: "Fellow Daoist Lieque is so kind, then it would be impolite of me to refuse."

"However, I really haven't been able to find the time these past few days."

"How about I visit you at the Sword Washing Pavilion later this month?"

True Lord Lieque readily agreed without hesitation: "No problem, then I will wait for you inside the gate in advance."

For him, it was a good thing as long as Xiao Chen was willing to come as a guest.

Let alone waiting a few days, even waiting for several months is no big deal.

After making the invitation to the dinner party first, Lord Lieque consciously stepped back half a step, giving the other Lords space to talk.

“Fellow Daoist Xiao, there isn’t much good food in Baicao City, but there will be an exchange event next spring.”

Huo Xinghuai continued, "We have already invited quite a few like-minded people."

“Besides all the fellow Daoists present, who will be attending.”

"It also includes Fellow Daoist Jinbian of the Jinxia Sect, Fellow Daoist Xiang, the contemporary successor of the Nongyan Sect, Fellow Daoist Fubing of the Wuguang Sea, as well as the Three White-Bearded Immortals and the Twin Swords of the North and South who roam the world."

"Furthermore, Vice President Gu of the Qinglan Chamber of Commerce previously indicated that he might bring two more new comrades over."

"If Fellow Daoist Xiao has the time, would you like to join us for some fun?"

If Xiao Chen had heard these words last month, he probably would have fainted.

However, he had seen a lot of important information about the Storm Sea in the Yin Corpse Sect's library.

It was mentioned that, in addition to the major sects and hidden lineages, there were several rogue cultivators in the Inner Sea.

The Three White-Bearded Immortals refer to three Nascent Soul True Lords who are respectively skilled in alchemy, weapon crafting, and talisman making.

In fact, the three of them are not related by blood, and they are not very familiar with each other.

However, because all three were famous for their Taoist arts and were already eight or nine hundred years old, they were collectively known as the Three White-Bearded Immortals.

The North and South Twin Swords were also two solitary swordsmen.

He is also a role model in the hearts of all independent swordsmen in the entire Storm Sea.

Because apart from the three major sects of Zhanlonghai, only these two swordsmen in the entire Inner Sea have broken through to the Nascent Soul realm.

As for the Qinglan Chamber of Commerce, it is a very special chamber of commerce.

He does not open his business to outsiders, nor does he do business with independent cultivators—except for Nascent Soul True Monarchs.

Therefore, Xiao Chen had never heard of such a chamber of commerce before.

Normally, there are only a handful of Nascent Soul cultivators, so there's no room for middlemen when they trade with each other.

The reason why the Qinglan Chamber of Commerce is able to profit from this is because they are backed by a powerful and influential chairman.

They can bring spiritual objects from the Eastern Region to the Central Region, and they can also bring back many treasures from the Central Region.

Although the frequency wasn't high, each time it was very profitable.

They only do the kind of big business where they don't make a sale for three years, but when they do, they make enough to last them for three years.

Gathering so many True Lords together is no easy feat in itself.

Perhaps only Baicao City, with its long history of extensive social connections, could achieve this in the entire Inner Sea.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao, this is just a private exchange meeting."

Seeing that Xiao Chen seemed hesitant but did not show any resistance, Huo Xinghuai immediately advised, "At that time, apart from necessary attendants, there will be no outsiders."

"The entire transaction process is also very flexible."

"You can either show your spirit items to everyone in the first half and exchange them, or you can discuss them privately in the second half."

"Nothing that happened during the entire exchange meeting will be leaked to the outside world."

"Private discussions are known only to the two parties involved, so they are absolutely safe and worry-free."

"And even if you don't participate in the transaction, you can still come and get together. There are no extra conditions."

"It doesn't matter if you arrive midway or leave early."

"It was less of an exchange meeting and more of a private gathering among like-minded people."

"I believe that once Fellow Daoist Xiao attends such a gathering, he will definitely come to love it."

To put it bluntly, this is a high-end exchange event that is only open to Nascent Soul True Monarchs.

Or rather, a small circle organized around Baicao City.

It is worth mentioning that the Yin Corpse Sect was not previously among those invited, and they have never been able to integrate into these circles in the Inner Sea.

“Great! That’s exactly what I need to do to meet more like-minded people.”

Xiao Chen immediately nodded in agreement: "Since Fellow Daoist Huo has extended such a warm invitation, how could I refuse?"

In fact, he wasn't hesitating at all; he was just recalling the information he had seen in the Yin Corpse Sect's Scripture Pavilion.

Now that I've received the invitation, I certainly won't miss such an opportunity.

Moreover, such an opportunity is rare, even if it's just to get to know someone.

You might even encounter a spiritual item that could be useful to you, which would be even better.

"Great!"

Upon hearing this, Huo Xinghuai's face immediately lit up: "The time for this exchange meeting is a little later than in previous years, set for the last three days of late February."

"Fellow Daoist Xiao is welcome to come at any time during this period."

"At that time, an array will be set up to isolate the City Lord's Mansion. This is the token to open the temporary passage. Please keep it safe, fellow Daoist."

As he spoke, he took out a token with the two large characters '百草' (Bai Cao, meaning Hundred Herbs) engraved on the front.

Xiao Chen noticed that he was actually using the Ancient Spirit Script.

In addition, the deliberately retro-styled inscriptions give the token an antique feel, conveying a sense of historical weight.

Moreover, the token itself was crafted from a fourth-tier spiritual object.

If it were picked up by some unsuspecting rogue cultivator, they might mistake it for a relic from some ancient ruin.

Seeing that Xiao Chen had accepted two invitations in a row.

The other True Lords also spoke up, some wanting to treat him to a meal, others wanting to discuss Taoism over tea, and still others wanting to invite him to see the wonders of the East Sea.

It was said that in a while there would be a spectacular sight of clouds weaving the sea, which is one of the eight great sights of the Eastern Region.

I hope that if Xiao Chen has time, we can go sightseeing and have some fun together.

Cui Yunxian, who had been listening to this, was extremely frustrated.

If she were to come to all of them, wouldn't she have to wait in line until the year after next?

Fortunately, Xiao Chen did not continue to accept these strange invitations.

Instead, he declined all the other invitations, citing that he had important matters to attend to and was unsure if he would be available at the moment.

This also relieved Cui Yunxian.

In that case, we shouldn't have to wait until next year.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao, I'm so glad to finally meet you today."

Finally, it was Cui Yunxian's turn. She immediately stepped forward and introduced herself: "My name is Cui Yunxian, and I come from Baicao City."

"I haven't been given a Dharma name yet, you can just call me by my name."

"Actually, I've wanted to meet you for six years, but I haven't had the chance."

"It's a pleasure to meet you this time. I wonder if Fellow Daoist Xiao could spare a few days so we can find a place to exchange our cultivation experiences."

In order to get Xiao Chen to agree.

Cui Yunxian subtly pointed out that they were kindred spirits: "By the way, I should also say thank you to Fellow Daoist Xiao."

"I was stuck at the Great Perfection of the Golden Core stage because I chose the path of comprehension, but I didn't know if the path ahead would be successful."

"It was Fellow Daoist Xiao's appearance that gave me great encouragement."

"This makes me even more convinced that this path is also viable."

"Now I have many insights and questions about the Great Way, and I want to find someone to communicate with and ask for advice."

"After much thought, there is simply no one more suitable than Fellow Daoist Xiao."

"I happen to be free recently, so I can be a few days earlier or later, it all depends on when is convenient for Fellow Daoist Xiao."

Wow, you're a genius at comprehending the Dao?
Xiao Chen was somewhat surprised upon hearing this, as it was the first time he had ever seen a Nascent Soul cultivator pursuing the path of enlightenment.

Then I immediately realized something—why did you ask me for something?

consult?

"Oh dear, that's really unfortunate."

Xiao Chen shook his head regretfully: "I've been busy lately, so it's not convenient for us to communicate." "Fellow Daoist Cui, you should find someone else."

He refused decisively, almost without hesitation.

Upon hearing this, Cui Yunxian's beautiful eyes widened in surprise and confusion.

Why?

We're kindred spirits, don't you want to find another person to communicate and exchange ideas with on the path of cultivation and enlightenment?

She couldn't understand why Xiao Chen would refuse so decisively.

After all, she had been thinking about this for a long time.

The main problem is that some issues are difficult to explain and discuss with cultivators who do not practice and comprehend the Dao.

Now that she had finally found someone who had also cultivated and comprehended the Dao, someone who could even be called a senior, Cui Yunxian was naturally filled with anticipation.

To her utter surprise, the other party seemed completely uninterested.

Not only did they refuse, they even directly suggested that she find someone else.

What do you mean by this?
Do you really not want to communicate with me?
Various possibilities flashed through Cui Yunxian's mind.

Suddenly a thought popped into my head—you wouldn't be looking down on me because I've only just broken through to the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm, would you?

unacceptable!

Everyone is on the path of enlightenment, and they are absolutely strong in comprehending the Great Dao.

In this situation, the minor realms of the Nascent Soul stage are actually just a difference in the amount of true essence.

If she had enough true essence right now, Cui Yunxian could also break through to the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm immediately.

If that's the case, why should I look down on her?
Is Xiao Chen really that confident that he has far surpassed him in terms of understanding the Great Dao?

Is there no need to even draw inferences from similar cases or learn from each other's strengths to make up for one's own weaknesses?

Um... it can't really be like that!

Thinking of this, Cui Yunxian was greatly surprised.

Could it be that he has truly reached a level of understanding of the Great Dao that far surpasses mine?
Those who cultivate and comprehend the Way may not be considered exceptionally intelligent, but they are certainly exceptionally talented.

Cui Yunxian believed that Xiao Chen's decisive refusal must have had a deeper reason.

It's probably just as I guessed.

Upon realizing this, Cui Yunxian was both shocked and angry.

They were surprised that Xiao Chen had reached such a high level.

He was also angry that the other party had underestimated him.

Cui Yunxian silently thought to herself: It's just a temporary lead, you just wait!

I've already broken through to the Nascent Soul stage, so it's hard to say who'll be ahead in a few years!

And then she thought about it again, and realized that this was actually a good thing!

The further Xiao Chen goes on his quest for enlightenment, the more reliable that path becomes.

At the same time, the more capable he is, the more Cui Yunxian can learn from him.

It was just a failed invitation, nothing serious.

Next, I can try to invite them a few more times, so that I won't be rejected every time.

Thinking of this, Cui Yunxian's mood immediately brightened up again.

As the saying goes, nothing is impossible for a willing heart.

As long as she puts her heart into it, she's not afraid that Xiao Chen won't agree.

Cui Yunxian was the last person to step forward and talk to them.

After she finished speaking, everyone exchanged a few more polite words and then took their leave.

"Fellow Daoist Canye, please wait."

Xiao Chen raised his hand in a gesture of obstruction: "There's something else I might need your help with."

True Monarch Canye was taken aback for a moment upon hearing this, then immediately agreed: "Fellow Daoist Xiao is too kind, there is no trouble at all."

"Fellow Daoist, just tell me what it is, and I promise to do my best."

I promise to do my best, but I can't guarantee that I will succeed.

"It's not a difficult thing, I just want to find someone."

Xiao Chen took out a portrait and handed it over: "This person's former Dharma name was Bibo Sanren, and he was a Golden Core cultivator."

"He is also one of the rogue cultivators who fled from the Sea of ​​Compassion to seek refuge here."

"If he has safely crossed the Kunpeng Sea, he should have already entered the Sea of ​​No Light or even the Inner Sea by now."

"I heard that the Jade Leaf Merchant Guild has gathered many fellow cultivators from the Sea of ​​Compassion."

"So I would like to ask you to help me find out where this person is."

Many cultivators who come from the Sea of ​​Compassion feel a sense of familiarity when they see the sign of the Jade Leaf Merchant Guild.

Even if they are not members of the Chamber of Commerce or do not meet the recruitment criteria, they will often visit the shops of the Fei Ye Chamber of Commerce, because it is easier to meet other fellow villagers there.

So if you want to find cultivators from the Sea of ​​Compassion, just contact the Jade Leaf Merchant Guild first.

"I see, I'll take care of it!"

Upon hearing that it was such a trivial matter, Lord Canye immediately patted his chest and guaranteed, "As long as he reaches the Storm Sea alive, I will definitely find him."

"By the way, should we invite him to meet you, fellow Daoist, or how should we explain it?"

The word "please" is very clever and sounds very polite and civilized.

"No need for such a big fuss."

Xiao Chen waved his hand: "It's good that you can help me find the person's location. I'll handle the rest myself."

Lord Canye immediately nodded: "Oh, I understand. I'll go and tell them to find someone right now."

With that, he rolled up the portrait and put it into his sleeve, then hurriedly left.

Xiao Chen watched the other person leave, then turned and went to the Scripture Pavilion.

The scale of the Tianyin Sect's scripture library is far smaller than that of the Yinshi Sect.

However, the contents of many of the books were quite novel to Xiao Chen.

After all, you really can't see so many musical scores and movements outside, let alone so many musical techniques.

"This art of music seems to be a good thing, at least for highly comprehension-oriented rogue cultivators."

After reading more, Xiao Chen discovered that the Way of Music was actually quite unique.

It doesn't rely much on the cultivator's own spiritual root, nor does it rely much on the help of external spiritual objects; it depends almost entirely on the cultivator's own comprehension and talent in music.

This is also because there is no sound spiritual root in the cultivation world, and spiritual objects containing the Dao of sound are extremely rare.

Aside from some common spiritual items like Foundation Establishment Pills, there's no way to rely on external objects.

However, for independent cultivators, since they don't have many spiritual items anyway, it's not a bad option.

We made our way to the top floor, where all the top secrets of the Tianyin Sect were kept.

In the very center, there was a spacious desk.

There were many papers and pens scattered on the table.

Xiao Chen took a look; it was an exploration plan and preparation scheme for the Vast Sea Secret Realm.

Based on the experience gained from previous explorations, two relatively safe routes of action were identified.

At the same time, they also planned out solutions for the risks that might be encountered on the road.

To put it simply, it means finding a fourth-tier talisman master and alchemist in advance to customize the corresponding talismans and elixirs.

During their earlier pleasantries, Xiao Chen had already learned that the inner world might open within a year or two.

Since that's the case, he must be planning to go in and take a look.

So he carefully examined the contents of these plans, taking them as a reference.

However, it was discovered that most of them were used to counter unexpected situations such as strange poisons and illusions, and a few were mainly used to improve combat abilities.

For Xiao Chen, there was no need to prepare at all.

After all, he has the Divine Veil, which saves him trouble and conserves resources.

In addition, Xiao Chen also saw that True Monarch Shuyu had a letter that was only half-written.

The general idea is to commission Master Tiedan from the Three Mountains Grotto Heaven to make two spirit umbrellas personally crafted by him.

It was specifically noted that it should be able to withstand cold winds.

"Would you consider this a negative effect?"

Xiao Chen quickly recalled that the golden book mentioned that in some areas outside the outer boundary of the Vast Sea Secret Realm, a bone-chilling wind would occasionally blow.

Unlike toxins, this might not be blocked by the veil of divine protection.

"I remember seeing a Yellow-level spell related to resisting Yin winds at the Cangming Immortal Sect before."

Xiao Chen thought for a moment and quickly remembered: "Right, it's called 'Golden Light Wind-Stabilizing Technique'."

"In that case, I don't need to bother with custom-made magical artifacts. I'll just focus on learning another auxiliary spell."

Given that I have Hextech enhancements, as long as I take some time to practice and get to the basics, that should be enough.

Xiao Chen silently kept this matter in mind and decided to find some time to deal with it as soon as possible.

Then he rummaged through his desk and actually found four more letters that had already been written in the drawer.

The first two letters were for customizing talismans and elixirs from the Three Mountains Grotto Heaven, while the middle letter was an instruction to True Lord Zhiqin to curry favor with and win over the Yin Corpse Sect.

The last letter, however, was addressed to Vice President Gu of the Qinglan Chamber of Commerce.

He was entrusted to bring back a batch of blank array bases from the Central Region, and it was specified that they should be top-notch array bases created by the Golden Lock Sect.

"Well, we still have to rely on outsiders for alchemy, artifacts, and talisman arrays."

Xiao Chen was somewhat surprised: "So the Heavenly Sound Sect doesn't have anything of its own, right?"

That makes sense, as the art of music can indeed be considered a niche skill.

Under such circumstances, it is extremely difficult for all Tianyin Sect disciples to cultivate a second Daoist art, as they lack both time and resources.

From this perspective, the principles of music do indeed have their limitations, which explains why they haven't become mainstream.

Xiao Chen then looked through all the books in the surrounding library.

The complete process of making deep-sea gypsum was found in one of the ancient books.

Between the lines, one can also see the small additions made by the True Lords of the Tianyin Sect throughout the ages, recounting some experiences accumulated during the production process.

It mainly discusses how to save time and production costs.

It was through this discovery that Xiao Chen realized they had been making deep-sea gypsum for a long time.

This was intended to be sold to those few sword-wielding sects in exchange for other cultivation resources.

This is actually the main reason why Shuyu Zhenjun chose to side with the Yinshi Sect—the Tianyin Sect was simply too poor!
She couldn't wait to change things and wanted to obtain a lot of cultivation resources.

Therefore, they had the idea of ​​taking a shortcut, and even though the Yin Corpse Sect clearly had ill intentions, they still tried to snatch chestnuts from the fire.

(End of this chapter)