Family Cultivation: Rise of the Wilderness

Chapter 26 Old Friend
Li Xiangming waited until evening, but no one returned. He couldn't help but wonder, "Is the owner of this Taoist temple really that bold?"
Are we going to have to spend the night in the mountains?
This is Puyin Mountain, not Danggui Mountain!

Just then, a black dot appeared in the distant wilderness, and Li Xiangming quickly stood up and stared intently at it.

It wouldn't have mattered if I hadn't looked, but once I did, I was completely stunned.

"Young Master Li?"

The man clearly saw Li Xiangming, exclaimed in surprise, and leaped over.

"Taoist Priest!"

When the two met, Li Xiangming was surprised but also relieved, realizing that there was no such coincidence in the world.

"How did you find your way here? By the way, your surname is Li, could it be..."

“It is indeed Angelica sinensis plum, I blame myself for not explaining it clearly back then.”

Li Xiangming apologized repeatedly. He said that when they introduced themselves, they both thought it would be the last time they would see each other, so they didn't think too much about it.

Upon seeing his old friend, Qingyang Daoist was overjoyed and paid no attention to such trivial matters. He held Li Xiangming's arm tightly and said, "Haha, what a coincidence! Come, let's go inside and have some wine. I'll make sure you drink to your heart's content."

The two entered the Taoist temple together and set out tables, chairs, bowls, and plates.

After drinking two large bowls, Qingyang Daoist remembered the wild rabbit in his hand: "I happen to have brought some game with me, I can have a good meal."

After saying that, he went about his own business.

As a guest, Li Xiangming stayed where he was and looked around at the layout of Qingyang Temple.

Upon entering Qingyang Temple, there is a courtyard with two rows of side rooms on the left and right sides, as well as a separate woodshed and outhouse.

Ahead was a hall used for prayer, with a side hall on each side. Li Xiangming did not inspect it without permission.

However, he guessed that the room on the right should be an alchemy room, because he could smell a faint fragrance of elixirs.

The alchemist at Qingyang Temple turned out to be an old friend of his!

No wonder they gave elixirs as gifts back then.

Li Xiangming was pleasantly surprised.

Alchemists are a good profession, and the Li family has some, but unfortunately most of them are mediocre and have not been able to help the Li family open up a way to make money.

Take Huangyadan as an example. The alchemists of the Li family had a success rate of less than 30% when refining Huangyadan.

This means that out of ten sets of materials, seven are wasted. If it only happens once or twice, it might be acceptable, but over the years, the waste is too great and the Li family can hardly afford it.

For this reason, the Li family mainly purchased their Huangyadan (a type of medicinal herb) from the market.

Unless a permit is issued, the alchemy room is not allowed to refine Yellow Sprout Pills.

This created a vicious cycle. The Li family, fearing losses, admitted that their alchemists were mediocre and only allowed them to refine entry-level pills with a high success rate.

In this way, whether it's a loss or not, the upper limit of alchemists' abilities is also fixed.

Ultimately, the Li family was not a family of alchemists, and the elders were unwilling to devote most of their wealth to alchemists.

Without strong support from above and with a lack of ambition from below, this is the reason why Li Jia failed in both alchemy and weaponry.

Therefore, Li Qianxiong was tempted when he heard Li Xiangming propose developing beast taming.

Whether it's refining weapons or making pills, a lot of resources are needed to feed them. And while the art of beast taming also requires countless trials, Pu County has no shortage of demonic beasts.

Thinking a bit too far ahead, Li Xiangming brought his thoughts back, just in time to see Qingyang Daoist carrying a plate of roasted rabbit meat over.

"Come on, let's drink until we're drunk!"

The Taoist Qingyang was in high spirits and kept raising his cup. Although the wine in the cup was not very strong, both of them became dizzy after drinking too much.

"The Daoist priest is indeed a great drinker; I am ashamed to admit my inferiority."

Li Xiangming was the first to fall, and was helped to the side by Qingyang Daoist.

Fortunately, he kept the purpose of his trip in mind and was soon awakened. At this point, he could no longer pretend to be drunk and used his magic to dispel the drunkenness.

Upon closer inspection, it was discovered that the Taoist Qingyang had also collapsed. It was said that he never used magic to drink alcohol, and today's observation confirmed this.

However, I myself have fallen into a inferior position.

Li Xiangming sighed; he wasn't as carefree as the Green Sheep Taoist.

On the contrary, he was very ambitious.

Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Deity Transformation. He wanted to climb step by step until he reached the pinnacle of immortality.

But how can we achieve this?

Li Xiangming was confused. He wasn't even confident in reaching the Foundation Establishment stage. Looking back on his path over the past ten years, it had been unremarkable. All he could do was try his best.

He tried his best to refine his magical power, practice his spells, and complete the tasks assigned by the patriarch, all in order to make his path on the path of cultivation more "fulfilling".

Li Xiangming shook his head, realizing that thinking about it was pointless, stood up, and tidied the table.

He didn't touch Qingyang Daoist. Cultivators don't like being approached. Even if they're sound asleep now, they might wake up in an instant, especially rogue cultivators.

According to Qingyang Daoist, he used to be a rogue cultivator, but he didn't know why he built a Taoist temple.

It's still a lonely Taoist temple.
-
The next morning.

When Qingyang Daoist woke up, he ripped off the unfamiliar clothes that were draped over his body.

"Could it be from Layman Li?"

He rubbed his temples, as if that would relieve his headache. After a while, Qingyang Daoist walked out of the kitchen and saw Li Xiangming sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed by the courtyard.

"Very diligent!"

The Taoist Qingyang praised him, and he did not neglect his duty. He went into the main hall to pray and did not come out until much later.

At this moment, Qingyang Daoist had fully regained consciousness, and his expression had returned to one of composure and equanimity.

Li Xiangming was waiting outside the hall. When he saw him come out, he felt it was the right time, so he presented his visiting card and bowed, saying, "Li Xiangming from Dangui Mountain, entrusted by the head of the family, has come to pay respects to the abbot of Qingyang Temple."

Qingyang Daoist was taken aback for a moment, then quickly returned the greeting: "Thank you, Your Excellency. Please come into the hall for a chat."

The Qingyang Taoist used the term "superior envoy" here, indicating that the Qingyang Temple acknowledges that Danggui Mountain's status is higher than its own.

There's nothing we can do even if we don't acknowledge it. Within hundreds of miles, Danggui Mountain is the only dominant force. Anyone who wants to establish themselves in this area has to get Danggui Mountain's approval.

This is an unspoken rule in the cultivation world, and Qingyang Daoist, being so old, naturally understands these things.

The two entered the hall, where the three great deities of Taoism were enshrined: Puji Tianzun, Qiren Tianzun, and Yuming Tianzun.

However, they were all made of clay, and it's unclear whether it was thanks to the talisman or that the Taoist Qingyang shaped them by hand.

"How is Patriarch Li's health?"

Since he was an envoy, the Taoist Qingyang did not mention personal relationships and spoke only polite words.

After exchanging pleasantries, Li Xiangming handed over the jade slip.

"This is a letter written by my master. I hope you will accept it, Daoist."

"Thank you."

The Taoist Qingyang took the jade slip, quickly stood up, and looked pleasantly surprised.

The Li family actually agreed to lend him the earth fire.

Earth fire is a naturally formed flame underground, often born alongside spiritual veins. Different geographical environments may give rise to different types of earth fire.

For alchemists or weapon refiners, earth fire is a priceless treasure.

Taking alchemy as an example, it is well known that talent determines the future of an alchemist. If one is not exceptionally talented, even a lifetime of studying will be in vain.

Like the Li family, even Li Chengweng, whose best skills were honed in alchemy for fifty or sixty years, was only a mid-grade first-level alchemist.

Refining Huangya Dan is a difficult task.

However, looking at the cultivation world as a whole from a broader perspective, what restricts the development of alchemy is not talent, but magical power.

That's right, alchemy also requires a lot of mana.

The raging flames beneath the alchemy furnace are manifestations of magical power; the flames cannot be extinguished, which also means that the magical power cannot be stopped.

This is a huge burden for alchemists who specialize in alchemy and do not frequently refine their magical power.

Some alchemists with lower cultivation levels may need three to five people to work together to refine a batch of pills.

However, this problem does not exist when using earth fire. Alchemists only need to use a small amount of magic power to activate the earth fire and keep its temperature even under the furnace. Most of their attention can be focused on alchemy skills to try to refine more and better pills.

Moreover, the temperature of earth fire is often higher than that of magical flames, and the time required for alchemy can be halved.

It can be said that with earth fire, even alchemists who do not have fire spirit roots can refine good pills, and some powerful ones can even refine pills continuously or at the same time.

The role of earth fire is so important that every alchemist wants to possess it. However, earth fire is born from the earth's veins and cannot be moved. It is often occupied by powerful forces, and independent alchemists have no chance to get their hands on it.

This is also why Qingyang Daoist was so excited when he heard that the Li family was willing to borrow the earth fire.

(End of this chapter)