The Path to Immortality Begins with the Life-Extending Lamp

Chapter 218 The Bone Nue's Tale of Immortality

"Oh? Lord Qi wishes to ask this old man for help?"

The ancestral owl named Bone Nue raised its hand and hung the jade bottle containing thousands of scaled fish on its waist. Upon hearing Li Qing's words, it crossed its arms and paced back and forth in front of the giant tree of white bones.

Since Li Qing made such a straightforward request, the old monster didn't make things difficult for her. After scrutinizing Li Qing and the few little creatures behind her with his sharp eyes, he finally shook his head.

"My soul blood is already insufficient. If Lord Qi wants to conquer the four wildernesses and wipe out all the evil forces, I'm afraid my old bones no longer have the strength to fight!"

"Having guarded the north gate of Qishan for so long, this old man doesn't have much time left..."

The entire Qishan Domain is now like a real underworld prison. The ox-headed and horse-faced demons, transformed from the remains of the fallen Heavenly Ghost Ancestor, are the absolute underworld prison guards. Everything in the eight hundred miles of underworld land is a prisoner in this underworld prison.

A great calamity has befallen the Demon-Suppressing Tower, demons and dragons wreak havoc in the Black Water Abyss, black crows lie in wait on the White Bone Tree, and countless ghosts roam throughout the underworld. Who knows what other great terrors await?

It is true that it is barely surviving because the human-faced owl and black water dragon have no blood to offer as food. However, after hundreds of years of being devoured by ghosts like poisonous insects, has not a single evil spirit been born in response to its fate?
The Bone Netherworld knew that even it, without the giant white bone tree it relied on, might not be able to roam freely in this Qishan Netherworld!
After shaking his head and sighing for a long time, just as he was getting Li Qing and the owls into paying attention, the old monster suddenly changed the subject again!
"This old man is already halfway to his grave, barely clinging to life. He doesn't have much time left, unless..."

"Unless Lord Qi can open the Qishan Stream and dig out the elixir of immortality in that secret place, perhaps my old bones can restart their soul blood and burn the blood flames for Qishan again. But that is impossible."

The old monster feigned disappointment on the surface, but its shifting gaze betrayed it.

Such an ancient owl, who served as the underworld messenger of Qishan eight hundred years ago, must know many secrets of Qishan. He has probably searched for many valuable things left behind after the destruction of Youtian.

Li Qing wasn't afraid of this old monster playing tricks, but she was afraid of this guy being secretive!

"Oh? An elixir of immortality? What is that?"

Following the blank space left by the old monster Bone Necklace, Li Qing appropriately expressed his doubts. At the same time, he was also very curious about what kind of great medicine could be named after immortality.

"The elixir of immortality..."

When the old monster Bone Nue spoke of that era, a hint of nostalgia inevitably crept into his eyes.

“In the past, they transformed into the wind, which refers to those eccentric alchemists who lived on the wind and breath. They sought the ultimate immortality and the immortality of their spirit and body, and thus they comprehended the art of medicine from the herbs of nature.”

"When this technique is combined with the art of alchemy, it is called the elixir!"

"This alchemy classifies all the world's spiritual substances, such as herbs, trees, metals, and stones, into major medicines, old medicines, precious medicines, and spiritual medicines... up to the elixir of immortality that can prolong the life of a person's spirit and body; the elixir of immortality that can manipulate creation and bring the dead back to life; and even the immortal medicine that those madmen are chasing in their imaginations..."

"These seven kinds of medicines are indeed real. Some are made through alchemy, while others are found by alchemists in blessed lands during their travels around the world. Each famous divine medicine is a creation of heaven and earth."

"Under the secret grounds of Qishan lies a 'longevity elixir,' named the Phoenix Blood Bodhi Branch. It grows within the spiritual veins of Qishan, with nine Bodhi fruits forming one fruit, and only once every sixty years can a single fruit-bearing plant grow..."

Sure enough, when it came to the hidden secrets of Qishan, even the seemingly guardian owl could no longer contain itself, and its tone became increasingly urgent.

The immortality elixir system devised by alchemists in ancient times, before the establishment of a formal Taoist tradition, still categorized various medicines, such as great medicines, old medicines, precious medicines, and spiritual medicines, based on their age, medicinal properties, and the spiritual essence they contained.

But when it comes to longevity elixirs, they are divine objects that embody the creation of heaven and earth, no longer bound by the constraints of monarchs, ministers, kings, advisors, or various medicinal properties. Each medicinal fruit is an unparalleled natural elixir!

The legendary elixir of immortality possesses true immortality; emperors and aging masters alike have all sought this elixir of life.

The old owl couldn't hide his excitement when he mentioned this, but Li Qing and the other owls looked around indifferently.

The owls paid no attention to this so-called secret. They looked around and scoffed at it. Even if Qishan did have such a divine object, they knew very well that it was not their place to enjoy it.

Li Qing was no better off than the others. Not to mention whether the last ghosts and gods of Qishan had used the elixir of immortality, even if the elixir still existed, its current state was still unknown.

"Isn't that just a legend from folk tales? Does the Ancestor know where that secret place is? If there really is a key to that portal, why don't we set off now to retrieve it for the Ancestor?"

"If our ancestor can come out of the mountains to help us, our sect will surely be able to restore the glory of Qishan."

"Looking around Qishan, the restrictions imposed by the Hundred Ghosts and Pagodas are truly unbearable. Many villages may still have provisions and precious materials, but they are all out of reach and unattainable!"

Li Qing shook his head speechlessly, then asked the old monster Bone Nue again.

When it comes to such secrets, he doesn't think this old monster is a loyal guard dog; perhaps he's a wolfhound.

Partly dismissing it, and partly changing the subject, Li Qing actually threw the question back at the old monster.

Seeing that Li Qing was unhurried, and even somewhat suspicious, the old monster's face hardened, and he was almost about to teach this troublesome young man a lesson. But then, realizing that he had acted too hastily, the Bone Nether Old Monster sighed and said helplessly:
"This old man can guarantee that such a divine object absolutely exists, but the location of the secret place has always been controlled only by the direct descendants of the Cui clan. The key to activating the secret place is probably also in their hands, isn't it?" After all, it was just a messenger bird, how could it possibly have access to the profound secrets of the Qishan Cui clan? It only vaguely knew that there was such an elixir of immortality in the mountains...

"Alas, with neither the exact location of the secret place nor the connecting key, why should the Ancestor place his hopes on such an ethereal rumor?"

"Even if such a miraculous medicine truly existed, I'm afraid the descendants of the Cui family back then would have retrieved it long ago."

Li Qing shook her head in comfort, her words constantly punctuating her words to criticize the old monster, but in reality, she was putting on a more vigilant front.

Qishan Secret Land, the Elixir of Immortality - Phoenix Blood Bodhi?

Judging from the old monster's expression, he does seem to have some greed for the secret treasure left behind in Qishan.

Having experienced a series of changes, Li Qing became more wary of this so-called guardian owl, and even her idea of ​​asking it to come out of the mountains to help was less certain than before.

Originally, Li Qing had intended to tell the old owl about the fact that someone wanted to restore Youyoutian, one of the six heavens, and ask for its opinion, but at this moment, Li Qing felt that it might be better to remain silent for now!

Let's first calm down this old owl, and then check back to see if there are any relevant memories in Cui Ying's reunited soul.
Perhaps it was this remark that dispelled the old monster's idea, for his imposing figure stood silently in place, no longer arguing with Li Qing.

"The elixir of immortality is elusive, and no one in the Heavenly Capital has ever been heard of obtaining it for countless years. Yet our Ancestor has guarded the north of Qishan for hundreds of years, protecting it with unwavering virtue!"

"Our sect has only recently entered Qishan and has little foundation, so we can only offer three thousand scaled fish as a token of our respect..."

Since that was the case, Li Qing stopped pleading and bowed slightly with a hint of regret, thus briefly omitting the matter.

Despite the old owl's repeated attempts to mention the elixir of immortality, Li Qing remained as still as a block of wood, completely oblivious to its meaning. All his interest was focused on Mount Qi, and he paid no attention to what the elixir of immortality was.

After all, Li Qing had brought a generous gift of a soul fish. As the saying goes, "He who eats another's food is bound to do his bidding," so even if the Bone Ye wanted to get angry, it couldn't...

One of them pretended not to know and asked a sincere question, while the other suppressed his anxiety and discussed the taboos in the Qishan region. The two were cunning and shrewd, and after probing for a long time, Li Qing finally had no choice but to sigh and say goodbye.

Although this trip failed to persuade the Ancestral Owl to come out of seclusion, he obtained more useful information!
If the old monster hadn't been hiding anything, then the general layout of Qishan was already in Li Qing's mind, as for the longevity elixir mentioned in it - Phoenix Blood Bodhi.

Li Qing did not believe that it was something that the old monster could get his hands on. He also knew that the old monster deliberately released this news just to lure him into exploring the Qishan secret place.
None of the old monsters who have survived to this day in this Yin Si Domain are easy to deal with.

Although he wouldn't actually kill the old monster because of such a selfish thought, Li Qing did become more wary of him.
On this one matter alone, that old monster is bound to cause countless troubles. He's really not easy to deal with. Since he's been stationed at the northern gate of Qishan for so long, let's just let him maintain the status quo!
With the bull-headed corpse and the horse-faced spirit overseeing the general order of the entire underworld, they couldn't cause any major trouble.

Having received a neither good nor bad outcome beneath the white-boned paulownia tree, Li Qing bowed and took his leave, then turned and left...

The three-headed, bone-faced owls, having traveled only a few hundred miles amidst billowing black clouds, spoke in a hoarse, eerie voice:

"The Ancestral Owl is a fierce owl from various regions that feeds the corpse ghosts and spirits. Its spirit body is strong enough to devour the sky, and it shows no signs of aging!"

"Perhaps it's just that her appetite is a bit too big..."

In the end, the Bone Phoenix Descendant - the Human-Faced Owl - was merely a vassal of the Cui Clan of Qishan. It was really inappropriate to involve the internal affairs of Lord Qishan. Moreover, the Ancestral Owl - the Bone Nue - was the most likely to become a Bone Phoenix. Even if ordinary owls knew this, they would not dare to offend this fiend.

The fact that the great owl dared to remind Li Qing in this way shows that it has already shown its utmost care and concern as a "swallow under the eaves"!
"It's alright, I know about it."

Li Qing stood with his hands behind his back on the cloud, turned his head and nodded slightly in acknowledgment.

An old monster who was stuck before reaching the Yin God Realm due to the deficiency of Qishan was not enough to pose any threat to him. However, the Phoenix Blood Bodhi Fruit that had made the Ancestral Owl-Bone Nue blinded by greed was probably real.

'Looks like I'll have to put some effort into this so-called elixir of immortality!'

In terms of the time Li Qing has spent cultivating the Dao, it is really not long. His use of various spells is also just so-so. Only his prophetic spells, ghost incantations, and soul-path supernatural powers are activated by Li Qing with the vast Xuan Yin Qi of the Zhou Tian, ​​which can be described as terrifying.

He decided to simply follow this path, not seeking any profound Taoist techniques. He had little time to study other methods anyway. He would gather all the precious medicines, refine them with the hundred ghosts, and cultivate a vast and boundless Xuan Yin Qi. With this, he could generate one technique and break through all other techniques.

If one could obtain this wondrous elixir of immortality, one could truly forge a perfect and unparalleled foundation for one's cultivation!
After much deliberation, Li Qing decided not to persist. He met the three bone owls face to face, rode the evil clouds southward, and rose directly into the dark sky, three to five thousand feet high, avoiding the ghosts and monsters there, and returned to the top of Qishan Mountain.

After returning to the Netherworld, Li Qing did not go back to Dongli Garden. Instead, he first toured the eight hundred acres of Qishan Netherworld three times to thoroughly understand his origins and to scout out the layout of the entire Netherworld.

For a disciple of the Xuanmen sect, this is just a basic course. Within the Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams, he might be able to find the Taiyi Sect of the Qishan Underworld and deduce the important life gates.

These kinds of vital points are either stored away or hidden in secret places; perhaps that's where the miraculous elixir of immortality might be located...

(End of this chapter)