The entry for cultivating immortality states that after dying a hundred times, I attained immortalit

Jiang Bai's wound on his left arm wasn't deep, and it scabbed over in just two days.

Jiang Bai sat in the quiet room, looking at the dozen or so poisonous herbs spread out in front of him, and sighed softly.

"It's ridiculously expensive."

After mastering the first level of the "Hundred Poisons Tempering Technique," the threshold of the second level, "Thirty Poisons Tempering Technique," loomed before him.

This step requires thirty different types of low- to high-level toxins with varying properties.

But the stock he had on hand was only enough to collect fifteen kinds at most.

The rest are either incredibly expensive or extremely rare; it's unlikely that even the entire Tianhen Mountain could find a second batch.

"Cultivation is indeed a matter of the poor pursuing literature and the rich pursuing martial arts, and poison cultivation is an even more bottomless pit of money."

Jiang Bai made a list in his notebook, carefully calculated the total price, and found that it would cost at least three hundred spirit stones.

This doesn't even include the cost of auxiliary drugs, or the potential losses from failure.

He touched the storage pouch at his waist. He had already spent most of the spirit stones bestowed by the clan, the Condensation Pill could not be sold, and the Shadow Cloak was crucial for his survival, so he absolutely could not touch it.

We need to think of a way to make money quickly.

Just as I was pondering this, there was a knock on the door from outside the courtyard.

Jiang Bai put away the list, pushed open the door, and walked out.

Six people arrived in the courtyard.

Jiang Shan stood in the center, the bandage on his left arm already removed.

Standing behind him was Jiang Yurou, dressed in a light blue dress and carrying a medicine box.

Jiang Bai recognized the other four people.

Jiang Wu, the burly man who injured his arm at Tianhen Mountain, has an even more fierce look in his eyes than before he was injured.

Jiang Lin was a tall, thin man who always kept his head down and habitually held a blank talisman in his hand. He was the best talisman maker among the younger generation in the clan.

There are also two collateral descendants: Jiang Hu, at the third level of Qi Refining, is best at tracking; and Jiang Ming, at the peak of the second level of Qi Refining, has excellent hearing and is said to be able to hear whispers ten feet away through walls.

"Everyone's here." Jiang Shan grinned, pointed to the quiet room, and said, "Let's go inside and talk."

Seven people squeezed into the quiet room, and the doors and windows were immediately closed.

Jiang Bai lit an oil lamp, and the dim light illuminated the young faces.

"This is the first gathering of the Zhejing Society," Jiang Shan said in a low voice. "The rules are simple: whatever you say here today must be completely forgotten once you leave this room. Anyone who leaks information will be executed by the rest of the group."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

"Let me explain the situation first."

Jiang Bai said, "Two days ago, I was ambushed by four mid-stage Qi Refining cultivators at my deserted house in the western suburbs. They were also carrying the Pure Heart Jade Pendant, which is specifically designed to counter poison techniques."

He briefly recounted the attack and his deduction that the attackers were likely employees of the Li family.

"Four mid-stage Qi Refining cultivators, and they're even carrying the Tranquil Heart Jade Pendant?" Jiang Wu sneered. "The Li family really knows how to spend money."

"That's not all."

Jiang Yurou picked up the conversation, "This morning when I went to the market, I overheard some servants from the Chen family chatting, saying that there has been a lot of internal strife within the Chen family recently."

She paused, then continued, "Chen Yuwei's faction advocates easing tensions with the Jiang family, saying that continuing this conflict will only allow the Li family to reap the benefits. But the radical faction, led by Chen Lei, insists on suppressing the Jiang family, especially... Brother Jiang Bai."

Chen Lei...

This person is at the sixth level of Qi Refining. He is Chen Feng's elder brother and has recently returned from his travels.

"Regarding the Li family," Jiang Hu said in a deep voice, "I've been keeping an eye on things in the market these past few days and I've discovered at least three groups of cultivators from other places entering the Li family's residence. I can't see through their cultivation levels, and they have a very strong aura of malevolence on them, so they are definitely not legitimate independent cultivators."

"The clan leader is also making moves."

Jiang Shan added, "My father works in the Law Enforcement Hall. He said that the clan chief secretly transferred twenty elite members of the Law Enforcement Hall to strengthen the guard of key places such as the ancestral hall, the storeroom, and the training hall, and even the shifts were made more intensive."

After the intelligence was gathered, the quiet room fell silent for a moment.

The wick of the oil lamp suddenly crackled.

"The situation is already very clear."

Jiang Bai slowly said, "The Li family is the mastermind, and the radical faction of the Chen family is an accomplice. Their goal is to take advantage of the downfall of the Grand Elder and the instability within the Jiang family to crush us in one fell swoop and seize all the resources of Ping'an County."

He paused, then continued, "And because of the cave incident, I became their primary target."

"So what should we do?"

Jiang Ming asked somewhat nervously, "We can't just stay cooped up in the tribe forever, can we?"

"Of course not."

Jiang Bai tapped the table. "Our Zhejing Society members should reduce going out alone recently. If you must go out, go in pairs to look after each other. Then, each of you should use your channels to collect information on any unusual movements of the Li and Chen families, especially which external forces they have come into contact with. Finally, secretly stockpile life-saving supplies such as healing pills, antidotes, and protective talismans. If you don't have enough money, I can lend you some."

The group exchanged glances and nodded in agreement.

"Also," Jiang Bai looked at Jiang Lin, "Brother Lin, could you make some simple warning talismans? The kind that can be stuck around the house so that someone can be sensed when they get close."

Jiang Lin thought for a moment: "Okay, but the cost of materials..."

"Take it from me," Jiang Bai said decisively.

After discussing some details, the crowd gradually dispersed half an hour later.

Just as Jiang Bai was about to go back inside, someone else suddenly came from outside the courtyard.

He was a disciple of Jiang Yuanshan, and he was sent to the Gongfa Hall.

"This isn't over yet," Jiang Bai muttered, changed into clean clothes, and went out.

In a side hall of the training center, Jiang Yuanshan sat behind a tea table, his expression much more solemn than when they last met.

"Master." Jiang Baixing bowed.

"sit."

Jiang Yuanshan pointed to the opposite side. After Jiang Bai sat down, he spoke directly: "I just received news that Li Zhen, the former patriarch of the Li family, emerged from seclusion three days ago."

Jiang Bai was taken aback.

Li Zhen is a Golden Core cultivator and the true pillar of the Li family.

Five years ago, he went into seclusion to try and break through to the late stage of the Golden Core realm. Now that he has emerged from seclusion, regardless of whether he succeeds or fails, it is a major development for Ping'an County.

"This person has a violent temper and is vengeful."

Jiang Yuanshan said in a deep voice, "His granddaughter Li Yueyao has suffered repeated setbacks under your command, and Li Zhen will certainly not let this go."

Jiang Bai fell silent.

If a Golden Core cultivator were to truly attack him, even ten lives wouldn't be enough to cover it up.

"There's one more thing."

Jiang Yuanshan took out a jade slip from his sleeve. "One month from now, the annual 'Mineral Share Competition' of the three clans will be held. In previous years, each clan sent three young disciples to compete in the arena to determine the mining allocation of spirit stone veins for the coming year."

He paused, his eyes sharp: "But this year, Li Zhen has emerged from seclusion, and I suspect the Li family will use this as an excuse to cause trouble, perhaps even proposing to change the rules—such as a life-or-death duel."

A fight to the death?!

Jiang Bai pondered these three words, the meaning of which was clear: once on the stage, life or death is irrelevant.

"You are the most prominent among the younger generation of the Jiang family, and also the person the Li family most wants to get rid of." Jiang Yuanshan stared at him. "If it really becomes a life-or-death duel, they will definitely challenge you by name."

"This disciple will prepare for battle with all my might," Jiang Bai said in a deep voice.

Jiang Yuanshan stared at him for a moment, then suddenly sighed softly, took out a jade bottle and a black token from his bosom, and pushed them in front of him.

"Keep this bottle of 'Detoxifying Elixir' safe."

"This token is my personal identification. If you are ever in a desperate situation and have nowhere else to go, you can take this token to the back mountain of the family for temporary refuge. The poisonous miasma there is so thick that it is impossible for outsiders to break in, which may buy you some more time."

Jiang Bai solemnly accepted it: "Thank you, Master."

When we left the Gongfa Hall, it was already completely dark.

Jiang Bai returned to his small courtyard, closed the door, lit the oil lamp, and began to carefully take stock of his assets.

Entry fields: [Toxicity Immunity (White)], [Killing Intent Perception (Green)], [Swift Shadow Step (Green)].

Cultivation level: Peak of the third level of Qi Refining, only one step away from the fourth level.

The technique: The Poisonous Mist Technique has been mastered to the third level. The accompanying Poisonous Mist Palm is quite powerful, but unfortunately the attack range is too short.

The first level of the "Hundred Poisons Tempering Technique" is perfected, making the physical body's strength comparable to a low-level magic weapon.

Equipment: Poisoned dagger (coated with mixed toxins), poison sac (50% of the poison mist remains), stealth cloak (can maintain invisibility for ten breaths), various poison powders and talismans.

Hidden trump card: It is suspected that he has obtained the inheritance of an ancient cultivator, but it is unknown how to trigger it. The jade pattern on his palm has remained silent since it appeared.

He brought up the system interface.

[Number of deaths: 3]

[Current entry quality probability: White 85%, Green 12%, Blue 3%]

[Next entry quality improvement threshold: 10 deaths]

"He's already died three times."

Jiang Bai smiled wryly and muttered to himself, "The probability of getting high-quality keywords is indeed higher, but blue keywords are only 3%... I'd have to die ten times before the probability increases again."

He shook his head: "Too many deaths are not a good thing. It's painful, not to mention that if you really encounter a situation where you can't die, once you've used up all your lives, it's all over. You have to save your life for the crucial moment."

Just as he was pondering this, his [Killing Intent Perception] suddenly began to throb violently without warning!

This murderous intent did not come from outside, but from within the family!

The direction is the Discipline Hall!

That malice was chilling and piercing, carrying a deep-seated hatred.

Jiang Bai suddenly opened his eyes and looked out the window at the Discipline Hall in the night.

"Could there be some that slipped through the net?"

He jumped out of bed and took out the Shadow Cloak from his storage bag and put it on.

He pushed open the back window and jumped out.

He was going to see who was lurking in the shadows, watching him intently.