Start with acting, and you'll achieve immortality!

As Li Ping stepped out of the back hall of the county government office, Qian Duo was squatting behind a pillar in the corridor, his hands tucked into his sleeves, shivering from the cold.

Upon seeing Li Ping emerge, Qian Duo scrambled to his feet, leaned forward, and whispered...

"Sir, has the county magistrate given you any trouble?"

Li Ping dusted off his sleeves and glanced at him sideways.

"Why did he make things difficult for me? He was just busy pruning the flowers and plants, and his hands were shaking so badly that he couldn't even hold the scissors properly. He almost cut off his own finger."

With so much money, he shrank back.

"I heard some noise inside just now, and I thought you and the magistrate were fighting."

"Why resort to violence? I have always governed with virtue."

Li Ping strode towards the document room.

"Go and lock the newly registered household registers of Qingxi Township in the cabinet."

"Remember, only I have the key. If you lose it, I'll send you to Qingxi Township to become Liu Dabazi's live-in son-in-law."

Qian Duo shuddered, readily agreed, and dashed off to take care of the matter.

Li Ping returned to the small courtyard he had rented on the back street of the county government office.

The elder brother, Li Da, had already gone to sleep, and only a dim oil lamp remained in the room.

His sister-in-law, Zhang, was keeping a bowl of hot soup warm in the kitchen. When she saw him come back, she brought the soup over to him.

"Zizhi, you must be exhausted from today's trip to the countryside. Quickly drink some water to warm yourself up."

Li Ping took the soup bowl, drank it all in a few gulps, wiped his mouth, and smiled.

"Sister-in-law, please rest early. I'm going back to my room to read for a while."

Zhang sighed, looking at him with some worry.

"Zizhi, now that you're an official, I still feel uneasy about your job in the county government. Is it really secure?"

"Very safe."

Li Ping patted his chest, "These days, even the county magistrate treats me with utmost respect. Who would dare cause me trouble?"

"Sister-in-law, don't worry, go to sleep."

Back in his small house, Li Ping closed the doors and windows tightly and bolted the door.

He pulled a cloth bag from a hidden compartment under the bed.

Inside the cloth bag were a few grains of spirit sand that emitted a faint glow, and a tattered piece of paper with charred edges.

The fragment of the elixir recipe records a rudimentary method for absorbing qi, which, when used with spirit mortar, can accelerate the process of drawing qi.

Li Ping sat cross-legged on the bed, looking at the spirit sand in his hand, and sighed.

"In this world, it's really not easy for ordinary people to survive."

He closed his eyes and began circulating the "Small Heavenly Circuit Qi Guiding Technique".

The spiritual energy within the body was originally only a thin wisp, flowing through the meridians like a strand of hair.

Li Ping picked up a grain of spirit sand and popped it directly into his mouth.

The spirit sand melted instantly upon entering the mouth, transforming into a scalding torrent that rushed down the throat.

If an ordinary mortal were to ingest spiritual sand so roughly, their meridians would have already been burst by the violent spiritual energy.

But Li Ping's soul came from another world, and was incredibly resilient, stubbornly guarding his mind.

Guiding that torrent to circulate throughout the body

My meridians ache slightly, as if they are being pierced by countless fine needles.

Li Ping gritted his teeth and didn't utter a single groan.

His mind was even wandering: This spirit sand tastes like sand; it would be better if I could add some powdered sugar next time.

As the spiritual energy washed over him again and again, the meridians in his body gradually widened.

A fist-sized vortex of energy gradually gathered in the previously parched dantian.

The cyclone rotated slowly, emitting warm fluctuations.

Li Ping opened his eyes and exhaled a breath of stale air.

He raised his right hand, and with a thought, a wisp of pale blue spiritual energy coiled around his fingertip, as agile as a snake.

Qi-inducing minor success

Now, he can clearly sense every rustle of wind and grass within a radius of ten feet.

"At least we have some means to protect ourselves."

Li Ping muttered to himself as he collected the remaining spirit sand.

next morning

Li Ping had barely settled into the document room when Qian Duo rushed in, looking flustered.

"My lord, something terrible has happened! A strange man has arrived outside, demanding to see you by name!"

Li Ping held his teacup and slowly took a sip.

"What's the panic? Even if the sky falls, the county magistrate will hold it up. Who is this guy?"

He said his name was Bai Lang and that he was from the Bai family.

Qian Duo's face was a little pale.

"He looked quite menacing, and he was even carrying a sword."

The Bai family?

Li Ping put down his teacup and narrowed his eyes slightly.

The biggest local tyrant in Xiyun County finally couldn't hold back any longer.

"Please invite him in."

A moment later, a young man dressed in white stepped into the document room.

The man was in his early twenties and quite good-looking.

He simply held his chin high, glancing at the room's furnishings out of the corner of his eye, his face filled with disdain.

"So you are Li Ping?"

Bai Lang sat down opposite Li Ping and slammed his longsword heavily onto the table.

Li Ping smiled and cupped his hands in greeting.

"I am Li Ping. I was unaware of Young Master Bai's presence. What brings you here?"

Bai Lang sneered.

"I heard that Lord Li went to Qingxi Township yesterday, and not only did he collect the autumn tax, but he also subdued Liu the Scarface?"

"Young Master Bai is certainly well-informed."

Li Ping poured himself a cup of tea, but didn't pour one for Bai Lang.

"It's just serving the imperial court, nothing more than my duty."

"Serving the imperial court?"

Bai Lang leaned forward, his gaze fixed on Li Ping.

"Lord Li, you seem to have misunderstood the rules of Xiyun County."

"Some things are beyond your control."

Li Ping feigned surprise.

"Oh? I only know the laws of the Great Qian Dynasty, but I don't know what rules you're referring to, Young Master Bai?"

Bai Lang's expression turned cold, and he snorted coldly.

"Playing dumb"

"The medicinal herbs that Liu Dabazi sends to the Bai family every year account for 30% of the Bai family's pharmacy business."

"You've taken away the household registration records of Qingxi Township; are you trying to cut off the Bai family's source of income?"

Li Ping sighed.

"Young Master Bai, you are mistaken. I am merely re-registering the household registers. As for Liu the Scarface's business with the Bai family, that is none of my business."

"If Young Master Bai has any objections, he is free to go and discuss them with the county magistrate."

"Trying to use Chen Rang to block me?"

A hint of disdain flashed in Bai Lang's eyes.

"He's just a Qi Refining stage cultivator nearing the end of his life, what right does he have to interfere in the affairs of the Bai family?"

Before he could finish speaking, Bai Lang suddenly made his move.

He extended his right hand like a claw and reached straight for Li Ping's shoulder.

Between his five fingers, a faint white spiritual energy flowed, accompanied by a piercing whistling sound.

If that claw had landed firmly, the shoulder bone of an ordinary mortal would have been shattered into powder.

Li Ping remained seated, his body motionless, but the instant his opponent attacked, his internal energy vortex surged.

He raised his left hand, his fingers forming a knife-like shape, and slashed at Bai Lang's wrist.

"Bang!"

The two streams of spiritual energy collided in mid-air, producing a low, muffled thud.

A strong wind blew, sending the papers on the table flying everywhere.

The chair beneath Li Ping emitted a sharp, aching sound as he clenched his teeth.

It slid back three steps, leaving a deep scratch on the ground.

He felt a tingling sensation in his arm, and his blood and qi seemed to surge within him.

However, he managed to neutralize the force by relying on his newly achieved Qi Refining Minor Completion cultivation.

Bai Lang swayed slightly, a look of surprise appearing in his eyes.

"You're a cultivator too?"

Bai Lang withdrew his hand and re-examined Li Ping.

He had initially thought Li Ping was just a mediocre official with some cleverness.

Unexpectedly, the opponent was able to withstand his attack.

Although he had only used thirty percent of his strength, the fact that his opponent had caught him so easily clearly indicated that he was not a novice rogue cultivator.

Li Ping rubbed his slightly sore wrists, a gentle smile still on his face.

"Young Master Bai, your skills are truly impressive. I merely possess a rudimentary understanding of some Qi-gathering techniques for strengthening the body. I am truly sorry for your poor skills."

Bai Lang stared at Li Ping for a long time, then suddenly laughed, but there was no warmth in that laugh.

"What a clever trick Lord Li has been up to in promoting his health!"

Bai Lang stood up, picked up the longsword on the table, and looked down at Li Ping.

"Today's matter is merely a favor to the Bai family; it's difficult to obtain."

"Lord Li, you must be careful when you go out in the future, lest you end up like the former county magistrate, who died a gruesome death."

Li Ping also stood up and clasped his hands in greeting.

"Thank you for reminding me, Young Master Bai. I've always been lucky. Please take care, Young Master Bai. I won't see you off any further."

Bai Lang snorted coldly and turned to leave.

Watching Bai Lang's departing figure, the smile on Li Ping's face gradually faded.

He glanced at his trembling left hand and silently plotted in his mind.

The strength of a Qi Refining stage cultivator is indeed considerably greater than that of a Qi Induction stage cultivator.

If it weren't for the breakthrough last night, I would have suffered a great loss from that claw attack just now.

However, the fact that the Bai family has already sent someone to probe indicates that Qingxi Township, this lucrative prize, has indeed struck a nerve with them.

"Sir, are you alright?"

Qian Duo peeked out from outside the door, looked at the mess of papers on the floor, and swallowed hard.

Li Ping bent down and picked up an official document that had fallen to his feet, then dusted it off.

"Go and summon Shi Gan."

Qian Duo responded and hurriedly ran out.

Before long, Shi Gan strode in and glanced at the scratches on the ground.

He then glanced at Li Ping's wrist and asked in a muffled voice...

"Sir, someone came to cause trouble just now? Should I take the brothers and corner him in the alley, then riddle him with crossbow bolts?"

Li Ping rolled his eyes.

"All you do all day is fight and kill. We're government officials, not bandits."

"That was Bai Lang from the Bai family. Go and investigate his background, and while you're at it, keep an eye on the Bai family's recent movements."

Shi Gan scratched his head.

"The Bai family is powerful. If they really want to make a move, our short crossbows might not be enough."

"If you don't like it enough, buy more."

Li Ping sneered.

"No matter how powerful the Bai family is, is it more powerful than the Prefect? ​​Go and do it, but don't alert them."

Shi Gan accepted the order and left.

Li Ping walked to the window, looked at the gloomy sky outside, and muttered to himself.

"Since the Bai family wants to play, then let's play along."