A Mortal's Journey to Immortality: Starting as a Rogue Cultivator

Something bad was bound to happen sooner or later.

For example, if he's unlucky enough to run into a slightly more powerful demonic beast blocking his path, he'll inevitably be attacked from both sides, putting him in an even more passive position. And within the Crimson Forbidden Land, the number of spiritual herbs, even including seedlings, is probably less than the number of demonic beasts.

"It's a pity I didn't run into one or two of his acquaintances..."

Honestly, it's better if everyone becomes prey together and shares the pressure. Those who survive life and death together, and endure hardships together, are enough to cultivate a sincere friendship and create a beautiful story that future generations will envy.

Unfortunately, he couldn't see even a ghost in his divine sense, which was truly disappointing.

The plan to divert the blame eastward has failed.

Therefore, we have no choice but to use some of our trump cards.

"Om..."

Wang Li, who had been clutching a mid-grade spirit stone in his left hand, acted decisively. With a pat of his storage pouch with his right hand, three mid-level, low-grade talismans appeared instantly. In addition, he swallowed a pill that had been tucked into his cheek. As the pill's medicinal power was rapidly refined, it gradually restored the spiritual energy he had depleted.

Without hesitation, he poured his magic power into three mid-level talismans that would be treasured as family heirlooms by Qi Refining cultivators, successfully unleashing their power.

The bullfrog, unable to stop in time, did not expect its fleeing prey to suddenly turn back and bite it, and crashed headfirst into the prison constructed of two talismans.

"Crack."

He only managed to let out a roar before he was completely immobilized.

It turns out that of the three talismans, two are control-type and one is defense-type.

These are the Wood-type Thorn Talisman, the Earth-type Mountain Talisman, and the Metal-type Golden Shield Talisman.

The Thorn Talisman can cause countless thick thorn vines to grow wildly within a range of tens of feet, with considerable binding power. It can restrain an ordinary level two demon beast for tens of breaths, and it is more than enough to restrict a level one top-tier demon beast.

However, to be on the safe side, in case the giant toad, like a black dragon, possessed any special talents or abilities, Wang Li added an additional Mountain Earth Talisman that could be paired with the Thorn Talisman. The Earth-type Mountain Earth Talisman could form two small, incredibly heavy hills that attracted each other, one on the left and one on the right, subjecting the trapped creature to immense pressure and the torment of being crushed by Mount Tai.

The bullfrog, which was almost wrapped up like a giant rice dumpling, was now being crushed by a small mountain; no wonder it couldn't move.

As for the Golden Shield Talisman, it's a protective measure of "better safe than sorry".

It makes me feel more at ease to have it on my body.

Although the basic and advanced defensive talismans were still quite effective, after he had openly and honestly used the Golden Light Brick Talisman to knock down the two Taoists from the Qingxu Sect, he became more vigilant and cautious.

In critical moments, one should not be stingy.

Basic high-level talismans cannot defend against offensive talisman treasures. Only intermediate-level low-level defensive talismans can effectively protect against ordinary talisman treasures activated by Qi Refining stage cultivators.

As for why we don't use top-tier magical artifacts for defense?

Compared to using magical artifacts, using talismans consumes far less spiritual energy, even negligible in the short term. To fully activate the flying sword talisman, Wang Li, sitting cross-legged in a shallow pit, even retrieved the meteorite shield and the Wind Chaser Sword he had summoned during his escape. After stuffing a handful of pills into his mouth, ready to be swallowed at any moment, he then poured his full magical power into the flying sword talisman.

Instantly, a sense of familiarity arose again, and the magical power around him burst forth like a breached dam, flooding out uncontrollably.

For a fleeting moment, the three intermediate-level talismans even loosened slightly: it could be said that this was Wang Li's most dangerous moment!

Unfortunately, no accidents occurred.

The Heavenly Bullfrog failed to seize the fleeting opportunity to break free from the double shackles that had loosened for a moment, which was within Wang Li's expectations. However, no spectators outside the battlefield launched an attack on him, which... both relieved him and made him feel sorry for him.

Why did he choose to sit cross-legged in the shallow pit?

It's all just to hide that top-tier level 1 puppet that the sect obtained during the treasure draw!

This thing, if placed in the Crimson Trial, could definitely be used as a trump card.

The reason he took back the two top-tier magic weapons, the Wind Chaser Sword and the Meteorite Iron Shield, was to give those who might be lurking in the shadows the illusion that he had no defenses except for defensive talismans.

If anyone dares to make a move and expose their location, Wang Li, who has spared even a sliver of attention for this puppet, will retaliate with a thunderous strike.

The flying sword talisman obtained from the Golden Light Master quickly changed from a dull gray color to a dazzling, crystalline light; and directly grew from the size of a palm to nearly five zhang (sixteen meters long)! Strands of gray light flowed around the giant sword like trickles, and the astonishing aura caused the Heavenly Bull Frog's eyes to widen, and the next moment it struggled desperately.

Clearly, it was also aware of the danger.

Even monsters don't complain about having too long a life.

Object manipulation spells, flying sword talismans—kill!

When Wang Li first obtained this talisman at the sixth level of Qi Refining, his magical power at that time was only enough to make the flying sword talisman reveal a six-foot-long edge. Before venturing out to sweep through the markets of Yellow Maple Valley, with his eleventh level of Qi Refining cultivation, he estimated that he could unleash the talisman's power of two or three zhang (approximately 6.6-9 meters). Now, at the advanced thirteenth level of Qi Refining, with his more skillful manipulation techniques, he can now fully activate it to reach a distance of forty-nine feet.

Such power, even against ordinary top-tier demonic beasts, or fish on a chopping board that are restrained and unable to move, a single sword strike... well, failed to decapitate them.

He obtained two swords.

In terms of mana loss, it is about 15%.

Not too many, but definitely not few.

Compared to the mana consumption brought by the Golden Brick Talisman, it is much less.

"Whoosh..."

With the giant toad eliminated, Wang Li was unwilling to needlessly expend the power of his flying sword talisman and the three talismans. First, he used a move to retrieve the talisman, then tapped his storage bag to summon the meteorite iron shield to protect himself. Only then did he remove the shield and retrieve the three intermediate-level talismans, which had consumed varying amounts of power.

Although there was a sequence, it only took a second or two.

"I wonder how many more times this flying sword talisman can be used?!"

Every time he was urged to do something, Wang Li felt a pang of heartache.

To be honest, if he hadn't acted against Jin Guang Shangren more than ten years earlier than Han Laomo and known that this item could be used several more times than in the original story, he probably wouldn't have been willing to use this treasure at all.

Next, they collected all the valuable materials from the Heavenly Bullfrog.

The most precious thing about the giant toad is undoubtedly its demon soul!

Unfortunately, he possessed a special magical artifact for collecting the souls of demons, but lacked the corresponding soul-binding technique!

The Soul-Trapping Technique, or similar spells, can draw out the souls of demonic beasts and cultivators killed on the spot; if combined with the Soul-Gathering Technique and the Soul-Refining Technique, it becomes the complete process for refining spiritual puppets recorded in the Thousand Bamboo Sect's Puppet Manual.

However, although the Soul-Tethering Technique is a prerequisite for the three major techniques and is the most rudimentary, it carries the risk of injury if one does not possess a sufficiently strong spiritual sense. When Old Demon Han was in the early stages of Foundation Establishment and had not yet mastered the first level of the Great Evolution Technique, he found himself quite fatigued when using this technique.

Therefore, Wang Li could only watch helplessly as the giant toad's demonic soul dissipated into the world.

"If I have the chance, I'll definitely come back again."

There are quite a few high-level and even top-level demonic beasts in the Crimson Forbidden Land. These demonic souls are excellent materials for crafting level two and level three puppets. If you want to mass-produce high-quality puppets in the future, this place is a treasure trove.

Combined with another key material for level two and three puppets—ironwood that's hundreds of years old—it's conceivable that, by combining these two elements, we could produce at least a hundred or two level two and three puppets.

If it were entrusted to someone like Qi Yunxiao, who was skilled in weapon crafting, to help him refine it, Wang Li estimated that it could buy him several years to rise to prominence.

"If I remember correctly, Qi Yunxiao's grandfather was still alive at this time, right?"

That's a weapon-refining elder from the Divine Weapon Sect, at the very least a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator.

If he can befriend this person after reaching Foundation Establishment, and then use this person as a bridge to introduce him to other weapon-refining elders of the Divine Weapon Sect, he can place an order and, while he can't guarantee many, he can certainly forge a dozen or twenty level two or three beast-shaped puppets. If he's lucky, he might even create a level four tiger-beast puppet like the one belonging to the burly man surnamed Huang from the Thousand Bamboo Sect. At that point, he'll have a little bit of leverage to survive during a demonic invasion.

If we get two of them, we can wipe out the Yue Emperor's stronghold.

Okay, just think about it.

The prerequisite is that he must complete the Foundation Establishment within ten years, obtain the golden page of the Azure Origin Sword Manual, then disperse his power through the Three Revolutions of the Rejuvenation Technique to reach the thirteenth level of Qi Refining before entering this place to harvest enough materials, and befriend Qi Yunxiao and his grandfather.

Can it be done within ten years?

But I digress. Let's get back to the main topic and talk about the materials on the bullfrog.

"It is said that top-tier demonic beasts are treasures from head to toe, and the ancients were right."

Dissection is too troublesome and too bloody. Besides, this beast is only the size of a millstone; and the three storage bags he prepared are all spacious, the smallest of which can hold two big guys, each one a new nest tailor-made for this guy.

Taking one out and using it right now is just right.

Would Wang Li dare to use the storage bags of disciples from other sects?

Aside from a few exceptionally rich ones, the other low-level storage bags are fine for temporary use. Since the Yellow Maple Valley team will likely be the first to return to the mountain gate, it's not too late to dispose of these storage bags then.

But Wang Li didn't want to take the risk.

Because he didn't know if these storage bags had been tampered with by Core Formation cultivators from various sects. (It's highly likely there's nothing fishy going on; for example, Old Ancestor Chen didn't leave any divine sense imprint on Wang Li's storage bag.)

Wang Li was unwilling to gamble on a guess.

Moreover, the risks and rewards are completely disproportionate.

In order to avoid attracting the attention of certain shrewd individuals from various factions and to conceal himself as much as possible, he would even selectively give up some of the benefits he had gained when leaving the forbidden area!

Of course, Wang Li didn't need to worry so much about the storage bags on Huangfeng Valley's side.

For example, he didn't hold back on the storage bag and everything on the body of the unlucky guy from Huangfeng Valley who died at the hands of the Heavenly Bullfrog in the cave.

After dealing with the bullfrog, they immediately headed back.

He had gathered the three main ingredients for the Foundation Establishment Pill: the Jade Marrow Ganoderma from the cave, the Heavenly Spirit Fruit, and the Purple Monkey Flower he had acquired at some point.

The other 31 auxiliary materials, and more than 10 of those obtained from outside sources, have already been cultivated.

It's just that due to time constraints and the limited amount of green liquid produced in small vials, it hasn't been fully cultivated yet.

Originally, Wang Li was in a good mood after killing the Heavenly Bullfrog, even though he paid a price he didn't really want to pay. But when he returned to the cave and bumped into two familiar figures, a sudden surge of anger rose in his heart!

"Gentlemen, we are both disciples of Huangfeng Valley, and we were both entrusted by Grandmaster Chen and Uncle Chen. It's fine if you just stand by and watch the show, but why come here without a word to take my spoils? Isn't that a bit inappropriate?"

No wonder he always had the feeling of being watched, but no matter how he searched with his divine sense, he could not find the person secretly watching him.

Even with the perception techniques given to him by Old Ancestor Chen, he still couldn't get the desired result.

But little did I know, this was what was waiting for me!

"Hey, you actually shook off that bullfrog? That's impressive!"

One of them exclaimed in surprise.

Shake off? Not kill?

In other words, did those two just slip away?

understood.

"Hmph, I was just lucky to run into one of his disciples, and he lured that beast away. It's no big deal."

"A clever plan."

The other person chuckled.

"Gentlemen, let's talk about the Jade Marrow Fungus and the junior brother who perished in Yellow Maple Valley! I risked my life with him to lure away the Heavenly Bull Frog, and he even died because of it. I was about to harvest these two spiritual herbs."

There was an inexplicable trace of sorrow in his voice.

"You're with Xiao Zhang? That can't be right. An hour ago, we were on the same team as him."