Immortality and cultivation begin with drawing talismans.

Chapter 304 Ten Years in the Blink of an Eye [Requesting Monthly Tickets]

Lihuo Island.

More than half a month later, the group from Li Huo Palace finally returned, consisting of four Core Formation cultivators and over a hundred Foundation Establishment elites. What they saw was a desolate, silent island.

A gust of wind blew by, and only a few carrion-eating birds and beasts scattered in fright.

"Gone!"

"The island's protective formation has been dismantled, and there are no signs of a forced attack; the formation was broken from within."

"Not a single person survived on the entire island."

Among the four Core Formation cultivators, Huang Tianxiao, the youngest and most dazzling, now had a gloomy face and a ferocious laugh:

"Excellent! Excellent! Someone actually dares to challenge the might of our Li Huo Palace, that's truly wonderful!"

The eldest elder, and the strongest late-stage Core Formation elder of the Li Huo Palace, roared angrily:
"Investigate! The other side plundered so many resources from the island, there's no way they wouldn't have left no clues. Investigate for me!"

They suffered a huge loss this time.

……

While the cultivators who returned from Li Huo Palace were furiously investigating, the instigators of all this—Lin Chang'an, Yun Yao, and the sword attendant—had already returned to Wulong Island.

Yun Yao's defection plan was temporarily shelved. Instead, she prepared to continue vying for the position of Holy Maiden within the Demonic Sect and use the sect's resources to strengthen her cultivation.

Lin Chang'an continued to maintain his status as a third-tier array master at Tianquan Peak, with people visiting him from time to time to ask him to repair the arrays.

The two maintained secret contact and exchanged intelligence.

It was as if nothing had happened.

After all, no one would have thought that a third-tier array master who was not good at killing and was only in the early stage of Core Formation would not even bother to send someone to explore the secret realm he was guarding.

How could he possibly have committed such a heinous crime in the Tongtian Wuhai?

On this day, inside the pavilion on Tianquan Peak.

"Master, the secret realm has been in turmoil recently. According to observations by many array masters, the restrictions are weakest during the third, sixth, and ninth months of each year. Many forces have already sent Foundation Establishment teams to investigate..."

Hearing the sword attendant's report, Lin Chang'an nodded slightly, but what he said next made him show a strange expression.

"About half a year ago, the four Core Formation cultivators of the Tongtian Wuhai Lihuo Palace fought several times with the male and female demons of the demonic path. Later, for some unknown reason, they resolved their grudges."

"It seems that the two sides have now joined forces and are secretly searching for the remnants of the Divine Sword Sect..."

However, even though he knew it was his doing, the sword servant remained indifferent and unmoved, as if it had nothing to do with him.

Seeing this expression, Lin Chang'an couldn't help but nod in approval. This girl remained calm even when Mount Tai collapsed before her; her composure was truly remarkable.

I don’t know if it’s because the three great sword cultivators have spiritual bodies, but they are naturally more advantageous in terms of mental state.

"Search? Then let them search freely."

Upon hearing this, Lin Chang'an smiled calmly. He and Yun Yao hadn't left a trace at all back then.

Even if they wanted to investigate, they wouldn't be able to find him.

The trail went cold right there on Bibo Island.

Of course, the premise is that he doesn't reveal what he got, such as the magical treasure Fire Dragon Pearl he was given.

"Once my weapon-refining skills reach the third rank, I will re-refine the two magic weapons of the Divine Sword Sect, as well as this Fire Dragon Pearl."

Lin Chang'an's eyes flickered. He decided to settle down and cultivate on Five Dragons Island.

Resources are not lacking for the time being, and cultivation has not encountered any bottlenecks. It is still a long way off for me to achieve the Nascent Soul stage. Right now, the most important thing is to improve my strength.

"At the early stage of Core Formation, in this turbulent situation, it is still too weak."

【Lifespan: 175/606】

[Realm Level: Early Golden Core Stage (43/100)]

"I am 175 years old. I must cultivate to the mid-stage of Core Formation before I turn 200."

As his cultivation level increased, Lin Chang'an became more aware of the gap between them.

For example, his magical power is significantly stronger now compared to when he first formed his core.

Despite the current turmoil on Five Dragons Island, this turmoil primarily affects lower-level cultivators and has little impact on Golden Core cultivators like themselves.

But the real turmoil will only begin when the Yin Soul Sect's restrictions weaken to the point that Core Formation cultivators can enter.

"The allure of a Nascent Soul sect would tempt even a Nascent Soul expert. In that case, one would need to possess the cultivation of the mid-stage Core Formation realm to have any chance of self-preservation."

Lin Chang'an couldn't help but sigh softly. At this moment, he felt even more that the methods of the Azure Sea Palace were truly remarkable.

He has only been at Tianquan Peak on Five Dragon Island for less than fifty years since he reached the Core Formation stage. He has established trade relations with the Lu family's merchant guild, shops in the market, and connections and businesses with Xuan Yin Pavilion and others.

There are too many benefits to be had here. Let alone ordinary Core Formation cultivators, even he finds it hard to give them up now.

"But saying anything is useless; cultivation is the key."

Thinking of this, Lin Chang'an couldn't help but raise his head and look at the sword attendant beside him, instructing him:
"The situation outside is becoming increasingly turbulent; don't let it interfere with your cultivation."

"Yes, Master!"

Seeing that his master cared about his cultivation, the sword servant's usually cold face showed a hint of emotion, while his hands clenched into fists.

I will definitely work hard to cultivate, and only by becoming a Core Formation cultivator like my master can I help him.

At this moment, Lin Chang'an was unaware of the sword attendant's thoughts; he had already headed towards the cave.

……

Six months later, the materials for the Youth-Preserving Pill were finally collected.

The materials for refining the Youth Preservation Pill are not particularly precious, but several key ingredients are quite rare, generally growing in dangerous offshore areas.

Xuan Yin Pavilion, the House of Earthly Fire.

"Even refining pills requires transferring them from one hand to the other; the skill level is still not high enough."

Lin Chang'an shook his head and, with a hand seal, absorbed his clone into his body.

At this moment, three Xuan Tian leaves bloomed within the body. The second leaf had turned from green to a slightly withered yellow, while the third leaf was beginning to turn green as well.

Although he obtained the third Xuan Tian Immortal Leaf, it was clearly not enough for him to unleash the supernatural power of his external avatar.

In other words, he still only has two clones.

"But it won't be long."

Lin Chang'an smiled, knowing that he would have three external avatars, which would not only be his trump card in battle.

Furthermore, it can assist in cultivating skills in daily life, and with an additional clone, he would have even more time to cultivate.

"The Youth Preservation Pill? The materials used this time are plentiful, but the price is also much higher."

As each medicinal herb fell into the third-tier mid-grade furnace of Xuan Yin Pavilion, Lin Chang'an took a deep breath and revealed a solemn expression.

He hasn't purchased a third-tier alchemy furnace over the years, mainly because the Xuan Yin Pavilion already has one, and he naturally doesn't want to waste spirit stones.

If he were to buy a pill-making furnace, he would naturally choose a high-grade, third-tier one.

However, if he wanted to buy these high-end items, he would definitely go to Haiyuan City.

Five Dragons Island is indeed rich in resources due to its secret realm, but most of them are related to cultivation.

Half a month later, the Youth Preservation Pill was successfully refined.

Under his third-tier mid-grade alchemist skills, it went extremely smoothly.

"Five premium anti-aging pills!"

Because the main ingredients used this time were relatively old, two more pills were made.

Afterwards, Lin Chang'an and his clone, Wen Danshi, walked out of the alchemy room of Xuan Yin Pavilion, and many disciples saw the two elders.

Outsiders would only remark that the two elders were somewhat acquainted, and no one would ever make the connection. Afterwards, Lin Chang'an and the sword attendant each took one of the five youth-preserving pills to conceal the abnormality in their appearances.

Furthermore, Lin Chang'an openly collected materials for the Youth Preservation Pill and asked his friend, Alchemist Wen, to refine it, without any attempt to conceal it.

In this way, as long as someone investigates, they will naturally not suspect anything else.

Moreover, some powerful cultivators or spirit beasts with keen senses of smell can also detect the special scent of those who have taken the Youth Preservation Pill.

As for the other three, Lin Chang'an gave one to Yun Yao during a secret meeting.

After all, Yun Yao had helped him a lot over the years.

The last two were sold to the Xuan Yin Pavilion in exchange for cultivation resources.

……

Years are like a shuttle.

Ten years have passed in the blink of an eye.

The green hills and clear waters remain unchanged, but for ordinary people, ten years is enough time to grow from a child into a teenager.

【Lifespan: 185/609】

[Realm Level: Early Golden Core Stage (60/100)]

Inside the fiery cave, the intense heat emanated from the surrounding area, creating a dazzling golden glow.

At this moment, Lin Chang'an sat cross-legged in front of the Fusang tree, his body exhaling wisps of black energy, the pure demonic energy constantly cleansing his body.

"My body refinement has broken through to the late stage of the second level, and even my cultivation speed has increased significantly!"

As Lin Chang'an slowly opened his eyes, he felt the powerful energy surging within his body, which brought a satisfied smile to his face.

The reason he cultivated his body so quickly was not only due to the assistance of pure demonic energy, but more importantly, it was due to the strength of his self-healing body.

It can be said that the most suitable practice for a self-healing body is body refinement.

"And the cultivation speed!"

As if he had thought of something, Lin Chang'an raised his hand and a spiritual root testing disc that had been gathering dust in the corner of the cave slowly flew into his palm.

As he poured his magic power into it, the spiritual light slowly rose, progressing from low-grade spiritual root to middle-grade, then high-grade, and finally slowly reaching the earth-grade.

"really!"

At this moment, Lin Chang'an smiled. No wonder his cultivation speed was faster; it turned out that he had been cleansing his body with pure demonic energy all these years.

This allowed him to cultivate at a speed that had reached the level of a low-grade spiritual root.

Once one's cultivation reaches the Golden Core Realm, seeking secret methods or spiritual objects to enhance one's spiritual roots is no longer a luxury.

However, the price paid and the time wasted are unacceptable to many cultivators, not to mention some of the drawbacks.

"If others knew that I had upgraded my low-grade spiritual root to the earth-grade in less than a hundred years, without even any side effects, I wonder how many people would be tempted to do so."

The cultivation speed of an Earth-grade spiritual root is not much slower than that of a Heaven-grade spiritual root.

The biggest difference between the two is that the Heavenly Spiritual Root has no bottlenecks before Core Formation and can cultivate all the way to Core Formation.

Now he is already a Core Formation cultivator.

"Owner!"

Just as Lin Chang'an stood up, the phoenix on the Fusang tree behind him transformed into a golden light and landed directly on his shoulder.

Then came the familiar attempt to ingratiate himself, to which Lin Chang'an rolled his eyes at the bird.

This phoenix bird's mind is nothing like the simple and honest green-horned ox.

Behind him stood a massive Fusang tree, one-tenth of its trunk a pale gold color, radiating a fiery red heat.

Strands of demonic energy were forced out from the tree trunk, then bound by the array and slowly sealed within the jade bottles at the array's core.

Over the past ten years, three of his thirty-six Sun-Piercing Divine Swords have been completely purified.

As the Fusang Divine Tree's own spirituality recovered, its powerful ability to suppress demonic energy accelerated this process.

"With my mid-stage Core Formation spiritual sense, late-stage second-tier body refinement, and early-stage Core Formation cultivation, my strength is now comparable to that of an ordinary mid-stage Core Formation cultivator."

Feeling the power within his body, Lin Chang'an calmly raised his hand.

In an instant, three golden, sun-piercing divine swords appeared before him, causing the phoenix to stare wide-eyed in anxiety.

Its nest, the Fusang Divine Tree, had become completely black again, with only a faint golden light shining through.

The Phoenix Bird's greed for the Fusang Divine Tree was not only because it liked its sparkling appearance, but more importantly, because it could accelerate its cultivation speed.

Even after spending every day on the Fusang Divine Tree over the years, under the influence of its supreme yang energy, its golden divine flames have grown considerably stronger.

"As expected of the Golden Flame Divine Phoenix, its aura has already reached the peak of the early stage of the third rank. It will probably break through soon."

It would be a lie to say that Lin Chang'an wasn't envious of the Phoenix's innate bloodline.

If he had had a superior spiritual root, he wouldn't have had to go through so much hardship.

Three golden sun-piercing divine swords spun around him, forming a sword shield. With his current mid-stage Core Formation divine sense, he could manipulate up to six natal magic weapons at a time.

"Master, this sword..."

Seeing the fawning and obsequious manner of the phoenix, Lin Chang'an rolled his eyes at the greedy bird.

"I would like to, but there is no suitable container to seal the demonic energy right now."

Lin Chang'an sighed helplessly. At this moment, the jade bottle sealing the demonic energy at the array eye of the array around the Fusang Divine Tree was almost saturated.

This is all thanks to the years of cultivation he, Green Horned Ox, and Sword Servant have spent constantly absorbing and consuming energy.

However, the demonic energy was too large and pure, and it was difficult to seal. Only a jade bottle made of third-order Yin attribute spirit jade could seal it.

Moreover, demonic energy is inherently corrosive and destructive.

"Once the demonic energy leaks out, we'll be in big trouble."

Lin Chang'an had previously conducted an experiment where a second-tier demonic beast, after absorbing a wisp of demonic energy, instantly turned bloodshot and lost its mind, entering a berserk state.

Finally, unable to withstand it any longer, it burst into a shower of blood, resembling a demonic creature.

Moreover, the effects of purifying demonic energy cleanse the body and spiritual roots, strengthen the physical body, and its value is immeasurable if sold.

He was reluctant to waste it, so he had to pay a price to seal it away first.

"Once I break through to the third level of body refinement, my speed of absorbing demonic energy will increase significantly."

Lin Chang'an nodded secretly, and with a wave of his hand, he absorbed the three Sun-Piercing Divine Swords into his body under the reluctant gaze of the Phoenix.

If the purification of demonic energy by the Fusang Divine Tree continues to accelerate, then his Earth Fire Cave will be transformed into a cave of demonic energy.

"Alright, this time the Azure Sea Palace invited me to research a formation, and the reward is a piece of third-grade high-quality Yin Spirit Jade."

Lin Chang'an reassured the Phoenix Bird, after all, the bird was about to break through to the mid-stage of the third rank, at which time he would have another powerful trump card.

In the face of an impending more chaotic situation, they will have more resources to protect themselves.

"Over the past decade, the restrictions on the Yin Soul Sect's secret realm have become increasingly weak, mainly due to the large number of outside cultivators who have continuously damaged it."

This made Lin Chang'an sigh inwardly. He had heard that several near-third-tier and third-tier array masters had appeared from outside.

With so many competitors, his business has become somewhat difficult.

It seems it's time to find an opportunity to reveal my identity as a mid-grade third-tier array mage.

Otherwise, wouldn't he be mixing up with these foreign array masters?

　Thank you to: fellow Daoist 'Book Friend 20230524063641175' for the 1500 spirit stones reward and fellow Daoist 'Summer Cool ii' for the 333 spirit stones reward.

　　Thank you to all the fellow cultivators who have supported me. By the way, I'd like to ask for your monthly votes.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)