First achieve immortality, then cultivate immortality.

As he crept into the forest, concealing his presence as he approached, he saw sword energy crisscrossing and spells flying wildly ahead, with both sides raising their defensive magical artifacts to clash.

There are seven people in total, four against three.

"You guys surnamed Cao, don't push your luck!" one of the middle-aged men shouted angrily.

"If the sect finds out, you won't have an easy time either!" another woman said, resisting fiercely while threatening him.

Finally, there was a young boy, who looked like a family of three.

The four men opposite them sneered and remained silent, relentlessly attacking, determined to kill the three of them.

The couple was powerless to fight back and could only defend themselves, continuing to hurl insults, using both harsh and gentle words in an attempt to persuade them to stop.

It sounds like both of them are related to the Qinglan Sect, probably outer disciples of the sect.

The boy clearly lacked combat experience and looked somewhat flustered, only able to try his best to defend his parents from the attacks.

"Stop talking nonsense! Hand over the elixir, or next year this day will be the anniversary of your family's death!" one of the men, named Cao Yanhua, sneered.

"You don't want to let us go, and you still want the elixir? You're dreaming!" Liu Qifeng cursed angrily.

"Let us leave, and we'll give you the elixir," Zhan Lian said hurriedly.

Cao Yanhua didn't bother to reply, coldly waved his hand, and intensified his attack.

Letting them go is out of the question. Should we give them the chance to complain to the sect? Wouldn't it be easier to just rob them?

"Tian'er, run!" Zhan Lian cried out in anguish.

"Mother!" Liu Shaotian cried out in grief and indignation, wielding his flying sword and desperately trying to help his parents.

However, his cultivation level was only at the second level of Qi Refining, and he was completely powerless against those four enemies at the high level of Qi Refining.

The cruelty of the cultivation world lies in this: no matter how old you are, there is no newbie protection period. You either grow up as quickly as possible, or be protected by others, or be careful and keep a low profile.

"Run!" Liu Qifeng roared, unleashing his full power to buy his son a chance to escape.

"Father, Mother..." the boy cried, unwilling to leave.

"Let's go!"

Finally, amidst his parents' anger, he produced a talisman, cried, and disappeared underground.

This action surprised Cao Yanhua, who hadn't expected there to be another talisman.

"Cao Yong, chase after him! Don't let him get away! The elixir might be on him."

Upon receiving the order, Cao Yong immediately followed the trail.

After thinking for a moment, Xu Mu used Earth Escape Technique to quietly chase after the guy named Cao Yong.

The mantis catches the cicada, and the oriole is behind.

The opponent was only at the seventh level of Qi Refining. It was a one-on-one fight, and with the added element of a sneak attack, it was practically a piece of cake. Saving someone and grabbing a storage bag at the same time—of course, one should do more of these kinds of good deeds.

They quickly caught up to within 500 meters. The boy hid in the woods, and Cao Yong was sneering and threatening him while hacking through the bushes to search for him. He looked every bit the villain.

Xu Mu immediately threw out six flying swords, which swiftly formed the Six Harmonies Imprisoning Dragon Sword Formation, imprisoning him.

"Who goes there!?" Cao Yong was instantly shocked and furious, but his body was unable to move, so he quickly put up a defensive shield.

Xu Mu wasn't about to waste words with him; he used his magic-grade flying sword to slash and hack away.

After breaking through the defensive magic weapon, he stabbed one sword into the abdomen and the other into the chest, piercing through both.

The victim coughed up blood, staring wide-eyed with extreme resentment, never knowing who killed him until his death.

Liu Shaotian, who was crouching behind the bushes, was so frightened by what he saw that his lips turned white.

Xu Mu quickly stepped forward to touch the corpse, saying calmly, "Aren't you going to leave? They're catching up."

Liu Shaotian instinctively crawled out of the bushes.

Xu Mu picked him up and left.

The boy realized what was happening and immediately cried out, "Please, senior, save my parents!"

"They won't last much longer; they're probably dead by now," Xu Mu said, grabbing him and fleeing the scene at full speed.

Soon, Cao Yanhua and his two companions caught up and their faces darkened when they saw Cao Yong's body.

"Chase him!" he roared.

The man beside him hesitated, "Brother Hua, this won't work. The spiritual energy is chaotic; that person has disturbed the traces..."

Cao Yanhua was so angry that she trembled.

They failed to seize the elixir and also lost one of their men.

They all share the surname Cao and belong to the Cao family, a prominent clan known for its cultivation of immortality.

In an ordinary cultivation family, just like that family of three, it's already considered good if they can give birth to a child with spiritual roots.

Only those who have developed for more than two or three hundred years and have powerful backers within the Qinglan Sect could have grown to such a scale.

Every cultivator in the Cao family represents the family's foundation; losing one diminishes the family's strength.

……

After Xu Mu led the boy away, he immediately hid in a remote mountain corner.

After being chased and surrounded twice, he is now very experienced in escaping and does not give his opponents a chance to track him.

When he put the boy down, the boy was already crying uncontrollably.

Xu Mu ignored him and, after confirming that it was safe, took out the storage bag he had snatched and tidied it up.

Personal items such as clothes were simply thrown aside and burned.

There weren't many useful items: only defensive magic items and flying sword magic items, a few talismans (the standard setup for the Qi Refining stage), some spiritual herbs, and three spirit stones.

Xu Mu added the flying sword to his Six Harmonies Imprisoning Dragon Sword Formation, thus having four magic weapon-level flying swords.

Before he knew it, he had become richer than most Qi Refining stage cultivators.

They were mostly stolen.

Robbery is indeed a faster way to make money than farming.

After Liu Shaotian finished crying, he was still quite sensible. With a choked voice, he cupped his hands to Xu Mu and said, "Thank you for saving me, senior."

Xu Mu nodded and casually asked, "What kind of spiritual herb are they trying to steal?"

Liu Shaotian's expression changed. After a moment of silence, he said in a low voice, "It's the Golden Saint Mushroom. It can be used to refine the Golden Saint Pill, which can expand the meridians throughout the body and increase cultivation speed."

Xu Mu raised an eyebrow; this was truly a fine product.

A cultivator's aptitude for cultivation is influenced by many factors, among which spiritual root aptitude is innate and basically cannot be changed.

In addition to these, there are physical constitution, comprehension, and temperament.

Although spiritual root talent is the most important factor, almost determining the height a cultivator can reach, other factors are also indispensable and may even offer opportunities to defy fate.

The Golden Saint Mushroom is only a second-grade spiritual medicine, but it is extremely precious. To this day, no one knows its growth pattern. It may grow on trees or on cliffs, so no one can cultivate it or specifically search for it.

It's a rare find, and encountering it is a real blessing.

Knowing the environment of the cultivation world, Liu Shaotian gritted his teeth, took out the item, and respectfully said, "Thank you for saving my life, senior. I am willing to offer this Golden Saint Mushroom to you."

Xu Mu took a look; it was a mushroom the size of a palm.

The mushroom cap is brown, but the spore folds beneath it are golden, as if they are hiding gold dust.

Judging from its appearance, it is indeed the Golden Saint Mushroom described in the book.

This medicine is highly poisonous when eaten raw; it must be refined into an elixir and consumed after enduring immense pain in order to have a chance to defy fate.

There was no greed in his eyes, but he also didn't want to miss out on such a good thing...

After thinking for a moment, he said, "This is something your parents risked their lives for, so it rightfully belongs to you. Since I saved you, we'll split it in half."

Liu Shaotian was very surprised to hear this. They were actually willing to leave him half?

He quickly replied, "I'll leave it entirely to you, senior!"

Xu Mu nodded and then asked, "Do your parents have the formula for the Golden Saint Pill?"

He had only heard of the Golden Saint Mushroom and the Golden Saint Pill, but did not know how to refine them, so he needed to obtain the pill formula.

Golden mushrooms are poisonous; if not processed properly, they can kill people.

As the saying goes, fortune may be a harbinger of misfortune, and misfortune may be a harbinger of fortune.

The family of three who obtained the Golden Mushroom met with a deadly end, but for him, obtaining the Golden Mushroom might not necessarily be a good thing.

"Yes, it's precisely because of this pill formula that the Cao family has their eyes on us..."

With tears in his eyes, Liu Shaotian took out the things his parents had prepared for him from his storage bag.

Xu Mu sighed softly.

Even if one receives the blessings of this world, a person without the fortune cannot bear them.