Longevity starts with choosing Hextech enhancement

Chapter 482 Return to Hundred Herbs City - Gathering Together

Xiao Chen had heard about the Golden Stone Pill before.

They also knew that the situation in the Holy City was special, as it was a gathering place for almost all the elites of the new cultivation world.

However, he previously believed that it was merely a larger gathering place with more high-level cultivators.

It was only this time that he realized that such a gathering seemed to have brought about a fundamental difference.

When a place gathers a sufficient number of high-level cultivators for a sufficiently long period of time.

That place will then take on a completely different appearance, and at the same time generate many new demands and conditions.

As the saying goes, quantitative change leads to qualitative change!
That's why the Yan family worked so hard to create the Blazing Flame Warship, a weapon of war designed to fight against multiple Nascent Soul cultivators at the Great Perfection stage.

That's why the He family was able to afford the enormous losses caused by repeated failures in improving the formula, and finally found a feasible prescription for the Golden Elixir.

This is definitely not just because they are one of the seven great clans and possess abundant resources.

More importantly, the existence of the Holy City provided a reason for doing so.

If it were any sect in the Eastern Region, they would absolutely not do such a thing.

Of course, they might try it, but if they fail once or twice, they will immediately give up the idea and cut their losses.

For example, Baicao City wouldn't think about improving a similar ancient elixir formula.

Even if they work hard to create it, it's difficult for them to recoup the time and effort they've invested and the loss of spiritual objects.

However, the He family need not worry about not having a market in the future.

As long as they can master this new pill formula, they will have no shortage of Nascent Soul True Monarchs bringing their life savings to trade.

From the perspective of the family as a whole, it is worthwhile to do so.

If we look at it over a longer period, they can not only recoup their losses, but they should also be able to make a large extra profit.

This difference in mindset, stemming from the different overall environments, is the fundamental reason for the different situations in the two worlds!

Of course there is a more important point.

That is, this new type of Three Talents Strengthening Divine Pill is a very useful thing for all cultivators who aspire to break through to the Nascent Soul stage, including Xiao Chen!
No wonder the Broken Gold True Lord said that there was now something to look forward to.

If a relatively stable supply can be formed using spirit ore as raw material, then that would indeed be a good thing.

In particular, Xiao Chen is not afraid of competing with other True Monarchs at all; he is only afraid of not having the opportunity to compete.

This is obviously good news for him; it remains to be seen when the Ho family will publicly sell the property.

However, since they have already announced this news openly, they may have already made the necessary preparations.

I believe that day is not far off, it might even be within ten days or so.

The only problem is that such a novel product is unlikely to circulate outside in the short term.

If Xiao Chen wants to get his hands on it, he might have to make a trip to the Holy City in person.

Especially considering the new Three Talents Strengthening Divine Pill, it will almost certainly attract competition from other Nascent Soul Great Perfection cultivators.

It's really not easy to ask someone else to do this for you.

Firstly, if one's cultivation and strength are insufficient, one simply has no ability to compete.

For example, even if Chen Fan were to break through to the Nascent Soul stage now, as a newly promoted Nascent Soul cultivator, he still wouldn't be able to possess strength far exceeding his current level like Xiao Chen himself.

Secondly, if you ask someone else for help, they may not necessarily do their best.

After all, fighting for something like that is a risky business that can offend people.

Even if you seek help from the Reverse Immortal Alliance, they will likely prioritize meeting the needs of their own people and are unlikely to resell the product to outsiders.

Therefore, after careful consideration, it really seems that Xiao Chen has to handle this matter personally to make things more reliable.

At the same time, it concerns the path of life and is therefore entirely worthy of his attention.

Of course, this matter is important, but there's no need to rush it.

First of all, the Ho family has not announced their intention to sell the company, nor have they discussed the terms of the transaction.

Secondly, although the new Three Talents Strengthening Pill is good, the cultivation world is vast, and there are more than just this one kind of breakthrough pill.

Xiao Chen might be able to obtain other similar elixirs from other places, such as the Three Mountains Grotto Heaven.

Although there are no relevant clues at the moment, there is still some hope.

However, whether in the Holy City or the Three Mountains Grotto Heaven, there is a possibility of encountering a Nascent Soul Venerable.

Thinking of this, Xiao Chen felt it was necessary for him to create a fake identity in the new cultivation world in advance, just in case.

Although he didn't really want to go to the Holy City, and he might not even need to use this fake identity in the future.

But no one can predict the future.

We should adopt the mindset of being prepared for any eventuality to avoid the awkward situation of not being ready when we might need to go to the holy city in the future.

Judging from this, I should go back and visit Grandpa Cai again later.

Since you're going to use a fake identity, you should start planning as early as possible. The earlier you start, the more prepared you will be, and the less likely you are to be discovered.

With things on his mind, Xiao Chen didn't feel like staying any longer.

After chatting with the Broken Gold True Lord for a few more minutes, he took the initiative to get up and say goodbye.

They left with a list of auxiliary materials and returned to Pingyi City.

As long as the Cai family cooperates, it is not difficult to carry out the forgery of identities.

Not only did Grandpa Cai not object, but he also actively offered advice and suggestions.

If they can achieve in-depth cooperation in this way, it would be quite beneficial for them.

At least until the fake identity causes problems, there's basically no need to worry about being abandoned after using someone else's services.

The entire disguise plan was quickly devised, with all the details handled by Mr. Cai himself to ensure it could withstand investigation in the future.

The most difficult part was actually helping Xiao Chen come up with a fake name.

Old Master Cai has no say in this matter.

It's up to Xiao Chen to decide.

The problem is, he's not very good at naming things.

The previous Chen Xiao was clearly not up to par; as a member of the Cai family, he definitely needs to have the surname Cai.

Xiao Chen pondered for a long time but still couldn't come up with a good name.

Finally, we decided to follow the generational naming conventions of the Cai family: "Among the current generation of the Cai family, those around thirty years old, what generational naming convention do they belong to?"

Grandpa Cai immediately replied, "Most of them are from the 'You' generation."

His reminder reminded Xiao Chen that the woman he had encountered at the Cai family's gate last time was Cai Youzhu's wife and daughter from the seventh branch.

If that's the case, then things are much easier to discuss.

"I've always preferred to win people over with virtue, so let's just call myself 'Virtuous'."

Xiao Chen immediately thought of a nice-sounding and easy-to-remember fake name: "Full name: Cai Youde, what do you think?"

Actually, he originally wanted to call Cai Youqian (meaning "Cai Has Money").

Firstly, because I do have a lot of spirit stones on hand, and secondly, because I can raise the price more reasonably during the bidding process in the future.

Since I'm already rich, it's normal for me to raise prices significantly, right?

Unfortunately, after careful consideration, Xiao Chen realized that the name seemed somewhat inappropriate, mainly because it did not conform to the naming conventions of a large family like the Cai family.

The most important thing about a fake identity is that it's safe, unremarkable, and doesn't attract attention.

So he settled for the less common pseudonym Youde.

After all, martial virtue is also a virtue.

Although Xiao Chen is young, he does have a strong sense of martial ethics.

They rarely resort to sneak attacks; they always crush their enemies through sheer strength and honesty.

"This is a good name; it won't attract attention if you say it out loud."

Grandpa Cai also felt good about it.

For large families, names like "virtuous," "talented," and "polite" are so common they're practically everywhere.

But it is precisely because it is common that it appears so stable and predictable.

And so the matter was settled.

Next, Xiao Chen took a rather ordinary bamboo hat from the Cai family's warehouse.

Then, he specially wore a straw hat and followed an elder of the Cai clan to take a tour of Pingyi City.

Pretend to be a young disciple who has come out with a family elder to observe the family business.

During this time, he deliberately chose to walk in places with more people, trying to make sure that most of the independent cultivators in the city could see his figure.

Meanwhile, within the Cai family, Old Master Cai also orchestrated a series of disguises.

For example, in the warehouse accounts, some low-level spiritual items with unknown whereabouts are falsely increased in terms of losses, including Foundation Establishment Pills and other breakthrough spiritual items.

For example, adding names to the spare family genealogy in the study and aging it.

This is to ensure that even if an insider comes to spy on the storeroom or study in the future, they will not notice the problem, or even be misled.

Xiao Chen stayed at the Cai family's house for about ten days to simulate real-life experiences and fill in any gaps in his knowledge.

Along the way, he also followed Master Cai to secretly visit a family friend, pretending to seek guidance on cultivation.

After completing the initial camouflage, they found a safe place to return to the Storm Sea.

It was only the end of mid-February.

Since the exchange meeting was scheduled for the end of the month, Xiao Chen simply focused on cultivating for a few more days.

It wasn't until February 26th that they set off for Baicao City.

We traveled at a leisurely pace and arrived just in time for the morning of the 27th.

Six years have passed, and Baicao City still looks exactly the same as it did back then, almost unchanged.

Xiao Chen's gaze swept over the string of somewhat familiar shops, and for a moment, he was also filled with a surge of emotions.

Looking back, when he first came to the Eastern Region, he was unfamiliar with the place and the people, and this was the first place he stayed.

In order to participate in the Hundred Herbs Secret Realm, I stayed there for quite a while.

Therefore, looking at the entire Storm Sea, the place Xiao Chen is most familiar with should be Hundred Herbs City.

At that time, he was only at the early stage of the Golden Core realm and was still envious of fourth-tier spiritual objects.

In the blink of an eye, he had reached the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm, a leap of more than one major realm.

He has already collected hundreds of different fourth-tier spiritual items in his personal storage ring.

A flood of thoughts rushed through my mind, and I truly felt a sense of things being different now.

"Senior, would you like to catch some of the finest white jade baby dragons to eat?"

The patron at the shop entrance, seeing Xiao Chen standing and looking around, immediately greeted him, "This is one of the most famous spirit wines in our Hundred Herbs City."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Chen also became somewhat interested.

He bought eight large jars of liquor back then, and for a period of time he would drink several cups almost every day. Of course, it wasn't for the sake of indulging in alcohol, but to assist in his spiritual practice.

It wasn't until later, when the wondrous uses of the demon core were discovered, that it was able to replace it.

Now that we're standing here again, it feels like fate: "Okay, then give me a jar."

Upon hearing this, the guest master beamed with joy: "Thank you for your graciousness, senior. I will gladly accept two thousand spirit stones for a whole jar of White Jade Little Azure Dragon."

After receiving the spirit stones, the clerk immediately ran all the way to carry out a large jar of spirit wine from the shop.

Xiao Chen immediately opened the jar and took a small sip from the whole thing.

Yes, it still tastes the same as before.

His act of drinking from a jar in the street naturally attracted the attention of some independent cultivators.

However, Xiao Chen ignored them, put away the spirit wine, and went directly to the city lord's mansion.

After he left, a rogue cultivator asked curiously, "Fellow Daoist Zhang, didn't you think that senior's appearance was exactly the same as the portrait of True Monarch Burning Demon?"

However, Fellow Daoist Zhang, who was standing next to him, did not have time to answer the question.

Instead, he immediately took two steps at a time and rushed to the shop entrance with two other cultivators who also reacted quickly.

Then he shouted directly at the clerk, "Give me ten thousand... no, twenty thousand spirit stones worth of spirit wine."

"It must be from the same batch as the previous jar; earlier or later won't do. It has to be from the same batch!"

Normally, the older the wine, the more valuable it is.

However, for them, the same spirit wine purchased by the Demon-Burning True Monarch was clearly the most precious.

The clerk hadn't yet realized what was happening.

In a daze, three Golden Core cultivators dragged him away and swept up all the remaining thirty-odd jars of spirit wine from the same batch.

Before he could figure out why business was suddenly so good today...

Looking up, I saw that the three seniors from before had actually set up a stall right in front of the store.

The spirit wine, originally priced at two thousand per jar, was immediately relisted at a high price of six thousand spirit stones.

He was completely dumbfounded and speechless.

Does this work too?
However, these were just minor incidents for Xiao Chen.

He had already arrived inside the city lord's mansion.

The guards at the entrance had already seen his portrait, and immediately bowed and greeted him respectfully before leading him into the tea room.

Then another elderly man, who seemed to be a butler, took over the guidance and led him to the small garden in the backyard.

The design here is truly unique.

Before passing through the moon gate at the entrance to the garden, one can only smell the fragrance of flowers, but cannot see the flowers themselves.

However, upon entering, a vast expanse of vibrant and colorful spiritual flowers immediately came into view.

For a moment, one is overwhelmed by the variety and doesn't know which flower to admire first.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao has arrived! Please invite him in!"

Lord Canye was one of the first to arrive here, and he was sitting in the pavilion in the middle of the garden chatting with the other lords.

Upon seeing this, he was the first to stand up and greet them warmly.

The others followed suit and greeted them.

Xiao Chen noticed that although the exchange meeting would last for three days, there were no restrictions on whether one arrived early or late.

However, all the True Lords of the Inner Sea, including True Lord Canye and True Lord Fubing who were in the Sea of ​​No Light, had already arrived early on the first morning.

It seems they also attach great importance to this exchange meeting.

Among the Nascent Soul True Monarchs that Xiao Chen could recognize, Xiang Yiyang had also arrived at the scene.

Only Lord Huo's good friend, Lord Ti Deng, and Luo Qi Hui of Qinghe Temple have not yet arrived.

Besides them, there were two other True Lords present, one old and one young, who looked somewhat unfamiliar.

At this moment, they all stood up with the others, smiling and nodding slightly at Xiao Chen.

"Let me introduce it to you."

Huo Xinghuai spoke up in time: "This is the famous Burning Demon True Monarch who has become famous all over the world in recent months. Everyone should already know him, so I won't go into details."

He first walked to the old man's side: "This is the former sect master of the Demon-Slaying Sword Sect."

"He has almost mastered the Demon-Slaying Sword Manual to its fullest extent, especially his Thousand Edge Sword Qi, which is unparalleled in sharpness. Therefore, everyone calls him the Thousand Edge True Lord."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Chen immediately cupped his hands in greeting: "So it's Fellow Daoist Qianfeng, I've long admired your name!"

"I had long heard of the Demon-Slaying Sword Sect's reputation, and seeing it today, I can confirm that it is indeed full of righteousness. It truly deserves to be called a prestigious sect."

The two exchanged a few more polite words.

Huo Xinghuai then came to the young man's side at the right time: "This fellow Daoist is also a sword cultivator, and is none other than the Southern Swordsman, one of the two swordsmen of the North and South."

"His uniquely cultivated Free and Unrestrained Sword Intent is unparalleled in the world."

"Therefore, he also acquired another elegant title—Master of the Azure Lotus Sword."

Xiao Chen clasped his hands in a fist salute again, still saying that he had long admired his name.

Although he had never actually heard of the nickname "Master of Qingping Sword," he still had to say the polite words.

A sedan chair is carried by many people; may you be happy, I be happy, and everyone be happy.

In particular, this Qingping Sword Master doesn't look very old, and his life force is quite active. He seems to be less than a hundred years old, and he may have the potential to break through to the Nascent Soul stage in the future.

Of course, that's not the point.

The key point is that he is a rogue cultivator, yet he has reached his current level at such a young age, which must have been due to some kind of opportunity or adventure.

Since that's the case, maybe we can get some good stuff in return.

Xiao Chen planned to keep an eye on what items he would bring to the exchange event later.

If they're just ordinary spirit items to make up the numbers, then we can discuss private transactions during the later free trading session; we might get some unexpected gains.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao, come over here. We've specially saved a good seat for you."

After Huo Xinghuai finished his introduction, he went to the middle of the pavilion and gestured for Xiao Chen to sit in the middle seat on the right.

To facilitate the display of the spiritual items at the exchange event, a long and low mahogany table and many chairs were added inside the pavilion.

Xiao Chen noticed that most of the True Monarchs who had arrived earlier were sitting on the left side.

Only reclusive lineage inheritors and independent cultivators such as Xiang Yiyang, Mo Mei Zhenjun, Qingping Sword Master, and Canye Zhenjun sat on the right side.

He also noticed that the number of seats on the left was just right, while there were currently nine empty chairs on the right.

Judging from this situation, there may be nine more Nascent Soul True Monarchs coming next.

Goodness, can this really be full?
It should be noted that the number of True Monarchs in the Eastern Region is already small, not as abundant as in the New Cultivation Realm.

Xiao Chen guessed that Huo Xinghuai had probably prepared all the people who might come.

If everyone could come, the total number of people would probably be close to thirty.

With so many True Lords gathered together, it can truly be called a grand event.

Not long after Xiao Chen arrived, several more True Monarchs arrived outside.

Luo Qihui arrived first, his aura fluctuating, clearly indicating that he had just been traveling at full speed.

Accompanying him was a True Lord dressed in a bright yellow robe, whose appearance was quite different from everyone else's.

Even Huo Xinghuai, the host, couldn't recognize him.

Fortunately, Luo Qihui took the initiative to act as a middleman and introduced everyone's companions.

The visitor turned out to be the current abbot of Qinghe Temple, whose full name was Luo Jingxing.

If we're going by seniority, he should be Luo Qihui's second uncle.

While warmly welcoming the guests, Huo Xinghuai secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, he had the foresight to prepare extra chairs in advance.

However, soon after, the Northern Swordsman, the True Lord of Biyi, and the Three White-Bearded Immortals, along with other guests who had been arranged in advance, also arrived one after another.

They greeted each other and had just sat down.

Vice President Gu of the Qinglan Chamber of Commerce arrived with two friends.

I don't know if they calculated it perfectly, but they arrived almost exactly at the beginning of the 9:00 AM start time of the exchange meeting.

"President Gu's presence is an honor to my humble abode!"

Huo Xinghuai immediately went to greet them, offering compliments while glancing sideways at the two unfamiliar True Lords.

They all looked quite young, but they had lost the youthful vigor that was unique to teenagers.

I estimate he should be between two hundred and four hundred years old.

The man on the left wears a star-studded crown, a cloud-patterned crane cloak, and holds a paper fan in his hand; he looks quite elegant.

His body shimmered with spiritual light, while simultaneously emanating several faint auras of pressure.

That's because he didn't deliberately hide his cultivation level and spiritual weapon, so his late-stage Nascent Soul cultivation level and the powerful aura unique to fourth-tier spiritual weapons were naturally revealed.

The one on the right is just as impressive.

Leaving aside the fact that they are both late-stage Nascent Soul cultivators...

He wore a lotus crown, a seven-colored flowing robe, a moon-white cloak, and a nine-linked jade belt around his waist.

Just by looking at him, you can tell he's incredibly wealthy.

Of all the cultivators Xiao Chen had ever seen, only Seven Crane True Monarch could outshine him.

Besides that, I can't find a second one.

Even the Yin Corpse Sect's Yangjiu True Monarch was only ahead in cultivation level; his aura was far inferior.

Good heavens, where did all these people come from?
Xiao Chen was genuinely surprised—this shouldn't be a rogue cultivator, right?

But there's still such a powerful force in the Eastern Region?
Could it be that it came from the Three Mountains Grotto Heaven?
"These two fellow Daoists are clearly extraordinary. Could they be from the Three Mountains Grotto Heaven?"

Huo Xinghuai was even more curious, so he simply asked directly.

However, Vice President Gu shook his head: "My two friends heard that our Baicao City was going to hold an exchange meeting, so they came with me to join in the fun."

"It is not convenient to disclose his specific identity at this time."

"How about this, I'll only tell Lord Huo today, and then introduce him to everyone when the time is right."

As he spoke, he waved his hand and created a spiritual energy barrier, then gave a separate introduction within the barrier.

Huo Xinghuai's eyes widened immediately, as if he had heard some unbelievable news.

Then the smile on his face grew even wider.

After removing the spiritual energy barrier, I immediately helped coordinate the positions.

They arranged three consecutive chairs for the three of them on the right side, and deliberately placed them in the front row closest to the head seat.

(End of this chapter)