First achieve immortality, then cultivate immortality.

"The Qinglan Sect is really determined not to give Foundation Establishment Pills to its outer disciples. If you want to become an inner disciple, you can only wait for a Core Formation elder to take a liking to you. Your so-called contributions are worthless."

"Hmph, just wait and see. If this situation doesn't change, there will definitely be a good show to watch in the end."

The most discussed topics in the teahouse were still matters concerning the sects.

The Qinglan Sect is particularly controversial.

"When there are problems with the allocation of resources within a sect, that sect is going to be in trouble."

Many people spoke eloquently, and most believed that the Qinglan Sect was doomed to fail.

No one knew that this was caused by infighting among the elders of the sect. They thought it was because the outer disciples were too incompetent and the sect didn't want to waste any more Foundation Establishment Pills, so they resorted to this drastic measure.

Regardless of the reason, this measure will greatly dampen the enthusiasm of outer disciples.

Nowadays, there are fewer and fewer outer disciples in the Qinglan Sect, and many tasks are not being done by anyone.

Even if a high-level cultivator forces them to do a mission, they might run away after leaving the sect or slack off, and the sect can't do anything about it.

Even if a Core Formation stage elder is very powerful and can easily crush a Qi Refining stage disciple, they cannot make a Qi Refining stage disciple willingly submit.

Some high-level cultivators believe that their strength allows them to command obedience and disregard the interests of others. This arrogance often becomes the root of their failure.

Although the cultivation world is clearly divided into classes and the strong are respected, not everyone is willing to be a dog.

On the contrary, Guihe Sect seemed to be thriving and was highly regarded by the public, with many cultivators flocking to join it.

In addition, the Tianjian Sect and Luoxia Sect in the surrounding area are Nascent Soul level sects, while others, including Nanlian Valley and Lingshou Mountain, are Core Formation level sects.

There are also small sects with a maximum level of Foundation Establishment, but they are no different from rogue cultivators. At this level, they mostly exist in the form of aristocratic families and clans.

"I heard that Asuras have been discovered at the Heavenly Sword Sect." Suddenly someone said.

Xu Mu, who was drinking tea, paused and turned to look.

Others were also drawn to the attention.

The Asuras, or more precisely, the Asura race of monsters, are an evil race born from miasma.

Miasma is the opposite of spiritual energy. When cultivators are exposed to it, their temperament often changes drastically, and inner demons arise.

Demonic cultivators who cultivate by drawing miasma are already deserving of death by everyone. So the Asura race, which is born directly from miasma, is to be killed by humans, demons, immortals, and demons alike.

Even Xu Mu, a man who is oblivious to the world around him and only cares about cultivating his three acres of land, knows about the evil of the Asura race.

They are truly alien races, evil beings, born only for killing and destruction.

If the cultivation world has any mission, it must be one: to eliminate the Asura race and maintain world peace.

"Is the news true? Instead of staying in their own Asura Realm, they've come to invade the human world again?"

A new topic of conversation quickly arose in the teahouse.

"If they show up, I'd really like to see what the legendary Asuras look like."

"Come on, what's so interesting about that kind of thing?"

"If it weren't for the miasma that fills the Asura Realm, forming a natural barrier, the major sects would have eradicated this beastly race a thousand years ago."

"After a thousand years of peace, are they making a comeback now?"

"It's likely that another Nascent Soul Demon Lord has emerged within the Asura clan, which is why they dare to invade the human realm."

The crowd was discussing it, but no one had actually seen the Asura race; they had only heard about them by word of mouth or read about them in books.

When Xu Mu was in the Qinglan Sect, he read many books and came across relevant records.

The human race and the Asura race wage war almost every thousand years.

Whenever a powerful member emerges from the Asura race, their ambition swells, leading them to invade the human world, only to be driven back.

If the Asura Realm weren't shrouded in miasma, making it difficult for cultivators to set foot there, human cultivators would definitely have wanted to exterminate them, instead of giving them chance after chance to make a comeback, as they are now.

"If war really breaks out, it won't concern us; those sects will definitely be the first to step in."

"That's right. We're rogue cultivators, penniless and destitute, we have nothing but our lives. Those sects own mines and spiritual fields, but they've never shared with us. Now that the Asura Clan has arrived, let them guard them themselves."

"It would be better if war really broke out, so those sects could bleed a little dry."

The crowd's attitude quickly turned into schadenfreude.

They don't care about war; they just want resources.

Moreover, they don't have any hatred or disgust towards the Asuras. They only know that the Asuras are brutal and evil, but they have never actually seen them with their own eyes, so it is difficult for them to have "anti-Asura sentiments".

So if a war really breaks out, they will definitely be the first to take advantage of the chaos and make some money off the war.

Xu Mu thought so too, but he disliked war and preferred peaceful development.

"No matter what, if the sky falls, the tall ones will be the first to hold it up."

After finishing two pots of tea, he stopped listening to people talk about the Asuras, got up and left the teahouse, heading towards a treasure pavilion that collected secondhand magical artifacts.

It was already noon, but he didn't go to eat lunch because he had no money in his pocket and could only eat the dry food in his storage bag.

After buying the Youth Preservation Pill and spirit stones last time, I only had 21 talisman coins left. This time, I paid 15 talisman coins for the entrance fee and drank 2 talisman coins worth of tea. Now I only have 4 talisman coins left.

I couldn't afford the stall fee to set up a stall, so I could only go to the Treasure Pavilion to buy things. Luckily, I managed to snatch a few second-hand magic treasures from those four Qi Refining stage cultivators.

……

"Buy or sell?"

The shops run by sects have never had much of a service mentality; the shopkeeper's expression was indifferent, as if he didn't care whether you bought anything or not.

"Sell."

As Xu Mu spoke, he took out three defensive magic items and three storage bags.

At this moment, he had five defensive magic items and five storage bags. He sold three of them and kept the remaining two for himself.

The other party didn't care about the origin of these magical treasures. After nodding, they picked up the treasures and began to appraise them.

This treasure pavilion was established by a Core Formation level sect called the Weapon Forging Sect.

The Forging Sect is famous for its weapon-forging techniques, but they don't sell new magical artifacts, only second-hand ones, and they also offer maintenance and repair services for magical artifacts.

Xu Mu felt that the market share was taken up by a few Nascent Soul level sects. They only had Core Formation stage cultivators, so they couldn't sell new magic weapons and could only sell second-hand ones.

The reason why Nascent Soul level sects don't participate in the second-hand market might simply be because they feel it's beneath their dignity and lacks class, rather than because they can't make money from it.

However, there are often Nascent Soul level sects behind Core Formation level sects, and they have to pay tribute to them in the end, so in the end, it is the Nascent Soul level sects that make the profit.

The entire cultivation world is clearly divided into classes, both for individuals and sects.

The good news is that there is still upward mobility; as long as one's personal abilities improve, one can transcend social classes.

After the appraisal was completed, the shopkeeper said indifferently, "Three low-level defensive magic items and three storage bags. To round it up, it's 400 talismans in total."

"400!? That's so few? These are six magic treasures and three storage bags, and they're practically brand new." Xu Mu was immediately dissatisfied.

"If you're not going to sell it, then forget it." The shopkeeper put the magic item down and didn't bother with it anymore.

"...Okay, 400 it is."

"Damn it, those damn secondhand platforms, they deliberately buy at low prices and sell at high prices," Xu Mu thought angrily.

It's understandable that independent cultivators hate sects. The major sects have monopolized all the resources and are constantly finding ways to exploit these lower-level cultivators.

He still had to sell.

It's difficult to sell secondhand magic items if you set up a stall yourself. They will also deteriorate over time, and most secondhand magic items have dubious origins, making them hard to resell.

Ultimately, they can only sell at the purchase price.