First achieve immortality, then cultivate immortality.

Knock knock knock...

A dull sound echoed through the empty valley.

Xu Mu regained his youthful appearance, holding a hammer and hammering nails.

One person can do a better job than several people can do, whether it's turning over soil to lay foundations, using flying swords to chop wood, or shaving planks.

He built this house according to the style of the wooden houses in Kita-ki Village, and reinforced it with mortise and tenon joints and nails.

Having lived to this age, I still have some building skills.

With the last nail driven into the plank, the entire log cabin was completed, complete with beams and pillars, strong enough to shelter from the wind and rain and stand firm.

A large tree of an unknown species was providing shade for the house.

This tree is the largest in the entire valley, with a canopy that blocks out the sky. It's like a guardian deity of the valley, quite impressive.

Xu Mu built his house next to the valley. Standing at the door, he could see almost the entire valley in one view, with an excellent view.

"Truly a paradise on earth."

Xu Mu clapped his hands in great satisfaction.

After more than a month of construction, it is finally finished.

As the sun rose high in the sky, he went to the stream to wash his hands, then left Whale Pass, followed the river down to the village for a meal.

These days, he's been going to Zhang Xiucai's house in Bishi Village for meals.

There was nothing here; we set up the iron pot, only to find we had no oil, salt, soy sauce, or vinegar.

The tiger demon brought him back a pheasant, intending to make chicken soup, but without ginger and scallions, the soup tasted bland.

So he simply gave up cooking for himself and decided it was more comfortable to eat at the village restaurants.

Scholar Zhang treated him with utmost respect, and the villagers almost regarded him as an old sage. So now, entering that village again is like returning home.

Upon learning that Xu Mu had completed the construction of his dwelling, Zhang Xiucai was overjoyed.

The villagers felt at ease knowing that a sage or immortal lived on the mountain.

"Master, I have prepared some furniture for you, and the excrement you requested is also ready. Shall I have someone take it upstairs with you?" Zhang Xiucai said.

"No need, my residence is too deep to be easily accessible by ordinary people. I can take it back myself."

"Where does the Taoist priest reside? Deep within this place lies Bloodmouth Valley, where a tiger demon dwells. Though it has never descended the mountain to harm people, if you encounter it while climbing the mountain, you will inevitably end up in its jaws."

"I live in that valley," Xu Mu said with a smile, stroking his beard.

"Ah? That tiger demon..." Zhang Xiucai was shocked again.

He knew Xu Mu was a master with extraordinary abilities, but he still underestimated him.

"It's alright, I've already subdued it. But you will remain the same as before, so don't go up the mountain lightly," Xu Mu said calmly.

Scholar Zhang nodded repeatedly: "Rest assured, Daoist Master, I will not disturb your peaceful cultivation."

Xu Mu nodded in satisfaction; this old scholar was indeed sensible.

Soon, Zhang Xiucai had someone bring over what he wanted and place it in the courtyard.

A bed, a set of bedding, a table and chairs, an iron boiler and a kettle, all piled together, were too much for seven or eight people to carry.

There were also two covered buckets of excrement nearby.

"Master, can you really carry all of this by yourself? Let me have these young and strong villagers help you carry it up the mountain. They are all happy to serve you," said Zhang Xiucai.

"Yes, Master, let us help you carry it up the mountain. If you need more manpower, we'll call more for you."

The young men were very enthusiastic.

The villagers had all heard about how Xu Mu had easily cured Zhang Xiucai's second son. Seeing that the boy had become handsome, how could they not know Xu Mu's abilities?

For the past month or so, Xu Mu has been eating here for free, only occasionally helping people with medical treatment.

The villagers weren't encountering anything serious; if they were sick, they could just go to a doctor, so why bother with him?

He had no interest in saving lives; he couldn't possibly save them all. So his answer was: "It all depends on fate."

It really depends on his mood. He'll treat her when he's in the mood, and he'll refuse when he's not. Anyway, he just eats at Zhang Xiucai's house and doesn't charge any money.

Now, Zhang Xiucai doesn't even need to call on people; everyone is eager to help him and make good connections.

Xu Mu, however, remained unmoved, shaking his head and saying, "No need, I can manage on my own."

With a flick of his wide sleeve, all the furniture flew up and disappeared into his sleeve.

This move shocked everyone.

"An old immortal! Truly an old immortal!"

Someone exclaimed in surprise, and then they all knelt down and kowtowed.

Xu Mu smiled faintly and said, "Just a little trick. Goodbye."

As he spoke, he picked up a carrying pole with manure buckets hanging on both sides and strode out of Zhang Xiucai's house.

The villagers followed, but Xu Mu, despite his old age, moved with incredible speed and quickly left the village and went up the mountain.

The villagers looked on with awe and dared not follow any further, dispersing among themselves in discussion.

Xu Mu walked to a secluded spot, then summoned his flying sword, carrying the excrement as he soared into the sky.

He didn't mind showing off his supernatural abilities in front of the villagers; there was no need to hide them. He could do whatever was convenient for him, but he couldn't show them off too much.

Creating an air of mystery and authority makes it easier to interact with these villagers.

……

After all the furniture was put in place, the newly built wooden house began to look like a home.

When I have time, I'll build a stove outside so I can cook for myself.

Scholar Zhang gave him a stove, which he placed in the house to boil water and make tea.

All the freshly collected manure was buried in the ground to compost.

Then they built houses, cultivated medicinal herb fields, and completed all the necessary construction.

Because the terrain in the valley is uneven, trees need to be pulled up, weeds removed, and soil and rocks cleared before the medicinal herb fields can be cultivated.

So when he was building the wooden house, he cut down the trees first.

The pulled-out grass was buried in the manure pit to compost.

The cleared soil and stones were mixed with mud, and the stones were used to build a stove. A large iron pot was placed on top, making it easy to stew chicken, or even stew goose.

The vegetable garden was first cleared out, and ginger, scallions, and garlic were planted.

Working tirelessly from sunrise to sunset, they finally managed to build the valley into a respectable structure.

Six months later, the first batch of fertilizer was ready for use.

He immediately planted a first-grade spiritual herb and observed it for two months. After confirming that it could grow, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The spiritual energy here is definitely not enough for the growth of first-grade spiritual herbs, but fertilizer can make up for this deficiency.

If nothing unexpected happens, then there shouldn't be any problem with the second-grade Spirit Nourishing Fruit.

In this way, I can go to the capital and start farming again when I get back.

"Stay put and guard this place well. Don't let anything damage my herb garden, understand?"

Xu Mu solemnly addressed the Tiger King and the Monkey King before him.

These two are the most intelligent animals in the valley.

Needless to say, the Tiger King was subdued by him. The monkey was even more cunning, bringing him fruit to please him, and had already reached the first level of Qi Refining.

Other animals weren't smart enough and might covet his elixir, stealing it when he wasn't around. That's why he appointed these two monsters as supervisors.

After the tiger and monkey nodded seriously, Xu Mu warned the other small animals that anyone who dared to disobey would be banned from staying in the valley and would be thrown into the pot.

After explaining all this, he set off on his journey.

We followed the river down the mountain and then headed towards the capital.

Two and a half years had passed since Yan Qing sent him away from the sect and gave him the jade pendant.

It actually only takes two months to travel from Bishi Village to the capital.

Xu Mu didn't think this was a delay. What was two and a half years? It wasn't like the Yan Dynasty was about to perish. Ten more years wouldn't be too late.

So he bought a horse in Taoshan County and traveled at a leisurely pace.

If he could, he really didn't want to go to the capital, because he could foresee that he would encounter trouble.

According to Yan Qing, incense offerings are one of the important resources of a sect, and there is a struggle within the sect over the allocation of these resources. The imperial court can greatly influence folk beliefs, so it is conceivable that the imperial court and the capital city must be very lively at this time.

Yan Qing wanted to use his royal status to get involved in this process, and even revealed that his family possessed a spiritual spring, clearly intending to lure him there to complete this task.

Xu Mu was indeed somewhat interested in the spiritual spring, but he didn't want to get involved in any trouble. So, if all went smoothly, he just wanted to deliver the jade pendant and the message, then return to farming. The rest was none of his business.

He also wanted to come back and study the new fertilizer to see if it could shorten the development time of the medicinal herb.

Most medicinal herbs mature once a year, but many precious ones take ten or even a hundred years to mature, which is indeed too time-consuming.

Once he has the elixir, he can make a living from it, find a market in the cultivation world to sell it, and then buy back the materials he needs.

Spiritual practice is not something you can do behind closed doors, because there are many resources available from all over the world that you cannot obtain on your own.

For example, the spirit stone powder needed to refine the Spirit Gathering Pill cannot be grown; it can only be mined from mineral veins.

Spirit stones are not only materials for many cultivation pills, but they can also serve as the energy core of formations, making them an essential material for setting up formations.

Therefore, every spirit stone vein is the most important strategic resource for the sect.

Before leaving the sect, Xu Mu chose to exchange for the sword formation technique instead of buying spirit stones. So now he only has one spirit stone left. After being ground into powder, it is only enough to refine ten Spirit Gathering Pills. If he wants to continue refining pills, he will have to find someone to buy more.

The so-called Dharma companions, wealth, and land are all indispensable. Only by exchanging and trading with fellow cultivators in the cultivation world can one go further on the path of seeking immortality.

So he planned to turn that valley into his own safe haven, and then interact with people to obtain cultivation resources.