The Legend of Fangren

The back mountain path is located behind the kitchen. It leads out through a small door in the outer wooden wall and is a winding, gentle dirt and stone path. Unlike the long staircase leading to the sky, it is a mountain path that leads down into the forest.

The Canglong Peak stretches for dozens of miles, with dense forests and rivers leading down the mountain paths.

After emptying the charcoal ash, I went down the dirt path behind the mountain and unknowingly left the sect behind, feeling as if I had been separated from the world.

"This tranquil environment is exactly what I fantasize about cultivating immortality," Fang sighed.

But the weight of the trailer shattered that illusion, and a sense of annoyance inexplicably rose in my heart. To make matters worse, my stomach started rumbling.

He then realized that he hadn't had breakfast yet.

He now knew that the outer sect disciples did not receive any basic monthly allowance; they could only buy food by earning allowances through doing chores.

Not to mention the accommodations. Panyun Tower is only a place to receive new disciples and is not for long-term stays. He glanced at the place where the outer sect disciples lived when he inquired about it earlier. It was just a simple wooden house that had been vacant for many years and had become a storage room for things.

Given the vastness of the Dragon River Sect, it's unlikely that any elder would bother with such matters, and the lower-level disciples look down on the disciples of the outer sect.

If you really expect to earn credit by doing chores, don't expect to have much time left for cultivation after a whole day.

I came here to cultivate immortality, so why should I be bound by these shackles?

With this thought in mind, Fang Shi suddenly had an idea. He climbed to the top of a tree and looked out over the vast mountains and forests.

The morning sun rises above the floating clouds and mist, and the fresh air of the mountains and fields fills my heart.

Yes, that's what I want.

Suddenly realizing something, Fang Shi immediately turned around and pulled the trailer back to the kitchen.

The woodcutter at the crossroads of the back mountain saw him return with an empty cart and looked puzzled. He was about to question him, but Fang Shi didn't even glance at him. He threw the cart behind the kitchen and turned to disappear into the forest.

"Oh? You mean that kid ran away?"

Upon hearing this from the thatched tent, Zhu Dalin immediately snorted coldly and let out a loud sigh: "He's just a mortal after all! With such a lack of ambition, what good would it do to give him the aptitude for cultivation? He'd still be a piece of trash."

But no one would think that with the treatment of outer sect disciples, even if they worked themselves to death, they could not expect to cultivate through merit.

This vast world of cultivation, stripped of its cultivation veneer, is ultimately a world with low productivity. As long as there is work to do and one doesn't starve, that is a peaceful life for the mortals of this world.

Unfortunately, Fang Shi was once from another world.

"Old Zhu, you said that kid didn't take the Ascending Heaven Staircase either. Could he have taken the back mountain path? That path isn't the way down the mountain, and there's no protective formation there. That kid Fan might be in mortal danger tonight."

"That's fine. Who has time to care about an outer sect disciple? Yesterday evening on the Azure Dragon Platform of the inner sect, the Grand Elder called roll for more than a thousand new disciples and completely forgot about him. Tell me, do you think the sect cares? Which elder or prodigy above would care?"

With a wave of his hand, Zhu Dalin's words seemed to express complaints not only about Fang Shi.

Thus, the matter was dropped and never reached the ears of a third person.

Meanwhile, Fang Shi had already walked a long way through the mountains and forests.

"A hermit in the mountains and fields is not bad either."

By this time, he had passed the end of the back mountain path and ventured deep into the mountains and wilderness.

At first, I was a little apprehensive, but the more I ran through the mountains and fields, the more I felt that something I had almost lost in the past two days had returned to my heart.

This is freedom.

Cultivating immortality is a carefree path, why be bewitched by others?

Arriving at the foot of a steep mountain wall, there was a flat, open space that suddenly appeared. Using the power of dissolving, the trees in the space were cleared away in the blink of an eye.

This place is far from the mountain path and is located at a height where the clouds are floating. It is more than two thousand meters away from the sect and is rarely visited by people, making it very quiet.

Fang Shi then carved out a square space within the steep mountain wall, reinforcing it with straight wooden sticks made from the branches and leaves, as a place to rest.

Then he sat down on the ground and ate the fruit he had just obtained.

The clouds drifted away, and thousands of meters below, the vast land stretched out endlessly. Only when the bright sunlight shone on one's shoulders could one glimpse a sense of carefree ease.

He did not intend to completely leave the sect, but with his abilities at hand, he did not need to exchange them for spiritual items. Moreover, the sect was full of people with conflicting interests, which made it difficult for him to make good use of his abilities.

It would be better to settle down outside. If there is anything that needs to be done at the sect, then we can go there.

Besides, how could survival in the mountains and wilderness be difficult for a square-shaped person?

If I hadn't yet found a way to access my personal inventory, I would have built an outer sect of an outer sect right here and now.

That's right, Fang Shi believes he has a backpack; as a cube-shaped person, it's standard equipment!

Think about how many trees he felled, and how all that decomposed wood was collected into the square mark in his palm. Is it really just gone like that?

The day he received the power of liberation was when Zhang Xianchang assessed his aptitude and injected a trace of profound energy into his body. This shows that he probably needs to cultivate to become stronger in order to unlock his abilities.

He then took out the cultivation manual and studied it carefully while eating.

"Fortunately, what I obtained was the cultivation method of a Heavenly Rank disciple. In addition to the body cultivation method, it also explains other principles of cultivation."

This includes the identification of various spiritual entities.

In order to identify the attributes of rare and precious treasures, in addition to sensing the mysterious energy, there is another way: taste and smell.

Wood, fire, earth, metal, and water correspond to sour, bitter, sweet, spicy, and salty. Because there was also a concept of the five elements in my previous life, I learned about geomancy very quickly.

Furthermore, this world is based on the Five Elements, and the rules of the world are more in line with the principles of the Five Elements than in the previous world, making them easier to understand.

After reading through it all, Fang Shi patted his head proudly, praising his brain for being so well-versed in science and technology, as it was quick to grasp the concepts.

The next step is clear: he must first find various edible spiritual objects that correspond to the five elements. Only by collecting all the five elements can he embark on the path of cultivation.

Yes, that's right, he still plans to practice all five techniques at the same time.

Do you even know what the innate primordial state is? (Leans back tactically)

In short, this guy has really fooled himself. After all, a small pentagon is still a pentagon, so why isn't it a pentagon warrior?

The most important thing in life is self-confidence.

Once again, Fang Shi ventured into the mountains and forests, and his journey of tasting hundreds of herbs began.

Before we knew it, it was evening.

The inner temple pharmacy and reception room.

"What?"

Luo He suddenly stood up, looking at Liu Yiyuan in disbelief, "Fang Zi really ran away?"

"Yes, he was just a mortal after all. He realized he had no hope of cultivating immortality, so he left," Liu Yiyuan said.

If it weren't for the fact that Luo He was a Heavenly Rank disciple, how could he, a dignified Hall Elder, possibly inquire about the whereabouts of an outer sect disciple?

Unfortunately, I saw that the boy had some perseverance that night and had improved slightly, but I didn't expect that he would still be a stubborn and unruly person in the end.

"In that case, I was right to stop you from going down the mountain to find him that night."

Liu Yiyuan said this, but Luo He shook her head firmly, "He's not that kind of person. We've been together for so many years."

"Just accept it." Liu Yiyuan was also really sorry for Luo He, such a promising talent, and patiently taught her, "When you enter the world of cultivation, you will find that even if you have a friendship of a hundred years, you still know the face but not the heart of some people."

Luo He listened, but her expression remained stubborn.

Liu Yiyuan had no choice but to back down, saying, "Then let's look on the bright side. Since your childhood friend was able to climb up the mountain, coming down shouldn't be a problem either. Judging from his personality, he'll thrive in the mortal world. You should put your mind at ease, focus on your cultivation, and go find him when you've achieved initial success. Otherwise, if you're so troubled and neglect your cultivation, what will you use to protect him in the future?"

These words struck a chord with Luo He. Seeing this, Liu Yiyuan quickly added, "You'd better hurry up. He Qisheng, the young city lord of Qingye City, who is also a Heavenly Rank disciple like you, was the first to enter the Body Cultivation Realm yesterday. He has already passed the initial stage and entered the stable stage. Your previous conditions were so poor. If it weren't for your exceptional talent, you would probably have already exhausted your innate profound energy. If you don't work hard, he might reach the Perfect Body Cultivation Realm while you haven't even reached the initial stage."

"If you fall too far behind by then, the sect will demote you to a low-ranking disciple, making cultivation even more difficult. If you truly care about your childhood friend, you should seize this opportunity at the beginning and not be foolish."

Liu Yiyuan's words were earnest and persuasive, and he finally convinced Luo He.

"Elder Liu, thank you for inquiring for me. I will repay you in the future."

"You only need to focus on your cultivation. If you succeed in the future, repaying me will be a small matter. If you fail, I won't care about your repayment. You don't need to worry about it."