Chapter 140: Huangquan Sect Expands into Ten Thousand Mountains

In the blink of an eye, two years passed.

One day, Ji Chang opened his eyes and woke up from his cultivation.

The magic power in his body surged like a surging river. Ji Chang knew in his heart that his magic power had increased a lot.

According to this speed, it will only take about five or six years for him to try to break through to the middle stage of foundation building.

Thinking of this, ripples appeared in his heart.

You know, Ji Chang is only 58 years old now, which is considered young and promising among the foundation-building cultivators, and his cultivation speed is even more remarkable.

Many foundation-building cultivators from different families were still lingering in the late stage of Qi Refining at his age, but he was already expected to reach the middle stage of foundation-building.

It can be said that for Ji Chang, it is basically not too difficult to cultivate to the false elixir realm before the end of his life.

Once you break through the false elixir realm, your lifespan will be extended by another sixty years.

You can consider changing your practice method and condensing the golden elixir at that time.

Don't worry about running out of time.

Therefore, Ji Chang was not in a hurry to practice the inherited martial arts he had obtained.

He knew very well that the way to practice cultivation was to proceed step by step and steadily.

Just imagine, if he changed his practice of the "Bi Tao Sutra" he had obtained today, and he encountered a more advanced practice in the future, wouldn't he have to start all over again and practice again?

Even if there is no conflict between these techniques, if they are changed frequently, the progress of cultivation will inevitably be hindered, which is a big taboo in cultivation.

As for the Hu family, which also inherited the third-level "Bi Tao Sutra", in the past two years, no foundation-building cultivators have changed their ways and turned to practicing this method.

Only some direct descendants of the Hu family chose the "Bi Tao Sutra" as their method of practice at the beginning of their cultivation, and they have been practicing since then without changing their method.

Of course, the reason why the Hu family's foundation-building cultivator did not switch to practicing the "Bi Tao Sutra" was not exactly the same as Ji Chang's.

The Hu family's second-level fire-related skills specialize in the way of Bing Fire, while this book "Bi Tao Jing" focuses on the way of Kui Water.

The two schools are very different and have contradictory properties, one is fire and the other is water, one is yang and the other is yin. If one rashly switches between them, a regression in cultivation is a minor matter, but worse still, one may even lose his life.

Because of this, although the Hu family has the third-level inheritance in hand, it is difficult to quickly transform it into an increase in strength.

However, family cultivators are very different from individual cultivators like Ji Chang. What they seek is not personal cultivation, but family inheritance.

As long as the "Bi Tao Sutra" can be mastered by the Hu family, it will become one of their foundations.

In the future, the younger generation of the Hu family who practice this sutra will rise up, and the prosperity of the family will be just around the corner.

With this inheritance as a foundation, and with time to develop, if the Hu family encounters a great opportunity, they may be able to soar to the sky and become a fake pill family, or even join the ranks of the Jindan family.

……

On this day, Ji Chang was sitting in the cave with his eyes closed, concentrating and practicing magic.

Suddenly, a maid came to report that a foundation-building monk came to visit.

He opened his eyes, smiled, and told the maid to welcome the distinguished guest into the depths of the cave.

In a moment, a middle-aged monk in a brown robe and with a shrewd face stepped into the cave with steady steps.

This man was called Hua Yuanan, a casual cultivator who had established his foundation in the city of Baishuixian. Ji Chang had met him several times.

Hua Yuanan looked around and saw that the cave was filled with spiritual energy and the fragrance of elixirs wafted into the air. He couldn't help but admire it inwardly.

He took a step forward, bowed deeply, and said respectfully: "I have long heard of Master Han Dan's great name, and I have come to visit you today."

Ji Chang returned the greeting and said, "Fellow Daoist Hua, you are too kind. I wonder what you can do for me during your visit to my humble abode?"

Hua Yuanan looked solemn and said in a deep voice: "To be honest, I came here this time to ask Master Han to refine a special elixir."

Ji Chang raised his eyebrows slightly and asked curiously, "Oh? I wonder what kind of elixir Fellow Daoist Hua wants to refine?"

Hua Yuanan said word by word: "This pill is called Demon-Attracting Liquid, and it can attract many second-level demon beasts."

When Ji Chang heard this, his heart moved slightly.

He had heard of the name of this elixir in many alchemy traditions, but had never had the opportunity to refine it himself, and had never even seen the recipe.

Hearing Hua Yuanan mention it at this moment, I couldn't help but become interested.

However, he remained calm, and after a moment's hesitation, he said, "This pill is very important, and it is quite difficult to refine. I wonder if Fellow Daoist Hua has the recipe?"

Upon seeing this, Hua Yuanan quickly took out a crystal clear jade slip from his bosom, presented it with both hands and said, "Master Han, please take a look. This is the recipe for the demon-attracting liquid."

Ji Chang took the jade slip and scanned it with his spiritual sense.

I saw that the jade slip was densely engraved with the names of medicinal herbs and refining methods.

After studying it carefully for a moment, he nodded secretly in his heart.

Although the recipe is quite complicated, considering his attainments as a second-level lower-grade alchemist, it is not a difficult task.

As long as you are careful and follow the steps, you can successfully refine the demon-luring liquid.

So, he looked up at Hua Yuanan and said, "Since Fellow Daoist Hua trusts me so much, I will try my best."

Hua Yuanan was overjoyed when he heard this, and immediately bowed and said, "Thank you, Master Han Dan, for your help! I am very grateful!"

Ji Chang smiled and waved his hand, saying, "You are too polite, Fellow Daoist Hua."

As he said this, he put away the jade slip and began to discuss the specific matters of alchemy with Hua Yuanan.

Not long after, Hua Yuanan paid the deposit, left the elixir for refining the demon-attracting liquid, and left Ji Chang's cave.

Half a month later, in Ji Chang's cave, the flames in the alchemy furnace were burning fiercely, and the medicine liquid in the furnace was boiling, making a "gurgling" sound.

Ji Chang sat cross-legged in front of the alchemy furnace with his eyes closed, his hands clasped together, concentrating on controlling the temperature of the furnace and the changes in the medicinal liquid.

As time passed, the medicine gradually became viscous and emitted bursts of rich fragrance.

Ji Chang nodded secretly in his heart, knowing that the demon-attracting liquid was about to be refined.

He did not dare to be careless at all and continued to carefully control the temperature in the furnace until the last moment.

Finally, at a certain moment, the color of the medicine turned into light purple, just like the dawn breaking on the horizon. Ji Chang breathed a sigh of relief and a satisfied smile appeared on his face.

He reached out and gently opened the lid of the furnace. In an instant, an extremely rich medicinal fragrance filled the entire cave.

Attracted by the medicinal fragrance, the spirit snakes that Ji Chang kept in the snake cave became restless.

Ji Chang used his ability to control objects, carefully took out the refined demon-attracting liquid, and put it into an exquisite jade bottle.

He secretly sighed in his heart that this demon-luring liquid was indeed extraordinary and quite difficult to refine, but fortunately he had made great achievements in alchemy and finally succeeded in refining it.

Not long after, Hua Yuanan received a message from Ji Chang, and learned that the demon-luring liquid had been refined.

He immediately put down everything he was doing and hurried to Ji Chang's cave.

When Hua Yuanan saw the jade bottle filled with lavender liquid in Ji Chang's hand, he was so excited that he couldn't express it in words and he quickly thanked Ji Chang.

Ji Chang smiled and waved his hand, saying, "You are too polite, Fellow Daoist Hua."

Then he handed the jade bottle to Hua Yuanan and said, "This is the demon-attracting liquid. Please keep it, Fellow Daoist Hua."

After delivering the spirit stone and completing the transaction, Ji Chang watched Hua Yuanan leave, but his heart was filled with waves.

Just before the Monster-Attracting Liquid was to be refined, another Foundation-Building Monk, who was on good terms with him, stepped into his cave, also bringing a pill recipe and medicinal materials, and begged him to refine the Monster-Attracting Liquid.

Ji Chang keenly noticed something strange.

In the world of immortal cultivation in Zheng State, after countless explorations and developments by cultivators, the number of monsters and beasts in the territory has become increasingly rare.

Zheng's northern and western neighbors were both the Zhao State, where the Huangquan Sect had a powerful influence.

The prosperity of Zhao State's immortal cultivation world was higher than that of Zheng State, both in terms of the number of cultivators and their cultivation level.

The number of monsters is even rarer, but because the Huangquan Sect is here, there are many corpse monks, and there are rumors from time to time that monks slaughtered the mortals in the city to refine corpses. Therefore, if the monks of Zheng State want to hunt monsters, they either go south to the wild land deep in the Ten Thousand Mountains, or cross the vast ocean to explore the sea.

The reason why the demon-luring liquid is rare in Zheng State is that it has little use here.

However, within such a short period of time, two foundation-building monks came one after another and asked for the refinement of demon-attracting liquid.

How could this not make Ji Chang suspicious?
Thinking of this, he turned around and returned to the depths of the cave, deciding to activate the Peeping Tao Seed to find out what was going on.

But Ji Chang was seen sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, his mind sunk into the sea of ​​consciousness.

There, a Tao seed that was shining with mysterious light was quietly suspended, emitting a mysterious aura.

He took a deep breath, clasped his hands together, and began to activate the Peeping Dao Seed.

In an instant, the light of the Tao seed shone brightly, like a bright moon shining on the sea of ​​consciousness.

The next moment, the scene around Hua Yuanan appeared in front of Ji Chang.

A few days later, Ji Chang discovered the reason and a look of surprise and confusion appeared on his face.

It turns out that Hua Yuanan is just a casual cultivator in Baishuixian City on the surface, but secretly he is from the Hua family in the northwest of Zheng State.

The reason why they came to find Ji Chang to refine the demon-attracting liquid was because there was a piece of news coming from the State of Zhao in the west.

Half a year ago, under the instruction of the Huangquan Sect's Grand Elder, the Huangquan Sect's top leaders set a century-long plan.

Prepare to expand the territory to the south through the Ten Thousand Mountains.

This action not only involved the part of Zhao State bordering the Shiwan Mountains, but also extended its tentacles into the territory of Zheng State.

The Huangquan Sect has sent a Jindan elder to Zheng State to be in charge of the southern expedition.

Today, this news is no longer a secret in the northwest of Zheng State, and most of the foundation-building families have learned about it.

This is a rare opportunity for both the immortal cultivation family and the individual cultivators.

As long as you can make meritorious contributions in the process of expanding territory, you will have the opportunity to exchange for precious inheritances and rare spiritual objects from the Huangquan Sect, and even have the opportunity to join the Huangquan Sect and become an enviable disciple of the sect.

And those families that have made great military achievements for the Huangquan Sect are more likely to rise to the top overnight and become the overlords who control the fate of the Zheng State.

You know, more than a thousand years ago, Zheng Guoguang had three people in the Jindan family.

However, nowadays, only the Zhou family, which had joined the Huangquan Sect early on, is still standing strong and prosperous.

During these few days, Ji Chang also spied on Si Shengcai and Si Baichuan, two Si family cultivators, several times to confirm the authenticity of the news.

After some twists and turns, he finally confirmed that the news was true and not groundless.

Moreover, not only the Si family, Hua family and other northwestern families adjacent to Zhao State learned of the news.

Even some foundation-building families in other parts of Zheng State received corresponding information.

“It’s really a troubled time.”

Ji Chang couldn't help but sigh repeatedly.

However, if you think about it carefully, this may not be a bad thing for him.

If one could seize this opportunity to join the Huangquan Sect and rely on the might of the Yuanying Sect, the hope of breaking through to the Jindan stage in the future would surely increase greatly.

Even if one fails to join the sect as desired, one can still take this opportunity to search for the precious spiritual objects needed to form an elixir and contribute to one's own path of cultivation.

What's more, once such territorial expansion is carried out, the price of Zheng State's elixirs will inevitably rise.

As an alchemist, his income will naturally increase a lot. This is undoubtedly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

……

Not long after, the Hu family also learned the news that the Huangquan Sect had expanded its territory to the Ten Thousand Mountains.

A few days later, Fairy Hong Ling came to visit Ji Chang.

On that day, outside Ji Chang's cave, the red silk fairy came lightly, her red skirt as red as fire.

"Friend Han, how are you?" Fairy Hong Ling smiled sweetly, as if a spring breeze was blowing on your face, making you feel very kind.

"So it's Daoist Fellow Hong Ling. I'm sorry for not welcoming you in person. I hope you'll forgive me."

Ji Chang politely bowed and invited Fairy Hong Ling into the cave.

After sitting down, Fairy Hong Ling did not beat around the bush and directly stated her purpose: "Fellow Daoist Han, Hong Ling came here to ask for a favor."

"I would like to ask you to help me refine a batch of demon-attracting liquid for the Hu family."

When Ji Chang heard this, although he understood it in his heart, he still pretended to be puzzled and frowned and asked, "Demon-attracting liquid?"

"In recent days, many cultivators have indeed come to ask Han to refine this item. I just don't know what happened that caused the Hu family to also need a large amount of demon-attracting liquid?"

When Fairy Hong Ling heard this, a hint of hesitation appeared on her face.

She knew very well that this matter was of great importance and should not be disclosed easily.

But considering that Ji Chang was not an ordinary cultivator and had a long-standing friendship with the Hu family.

Before coming to Baishuixian City to manage the business, her great uncle had asked her to be more friendly to Ji Chang.

In addition, this matter is no longer a secret among the various foundation-building families in Zheng State.

So she gritted her teeth and decided to tell the whole story.

"Friend Han, to be honest, we asked you to refine the demon-attracting liquid this time because we got some information."

Fairy Hong Ling paused, then continued, "The Huangquan Sect has decided to expand its territory to the south, and our Hu family would like to take this opportunity to get a piece of the pie."

"Therefore, we urgently need a large amount of demon-attracting liquid to help us hunt demon beasts and gain merit."

"Don't worry, Fellow Daoist Han. Our Hu family will definitely not treat you unfairly in terms of the materials and compensation you need."

Before Ji Chang could react, Fairy Hong Ling spoke hurriedly, fearing that Ji Chang would refuse this request.

When Ji Chang heard what Fairy Hong Ling said, he already had a plan in mind.

He knew that this was an excellent opportunity, not only to deepen his relationship with the Hu family, but also to obtain the resources and information he needed.

So, he smiled slightly, nodded and agreed: "Since the Hu family needs this, Han is naturally willing to serve."

Fairy Hong Ling was overjoyed when she heard this, and thanked him repeatedly: "Thank you, Brother Han, for your help. The Hu family will definitely remember it in their hearts."

Ji Chang waved his hand to indicate that there was no need for courtesy, and then said, "It's just that refining the demon-attracting liquid requires some time and materials. I wonder if the Hu family can provide enough support?"

Fairy Hong Ling quickly responded, "Don't worry, Fellow Daoist Han, our Hu family has already prepared the necessary materials and rewards, and will never embarrass you."

As she spoke, she took out a jade slip and a storage bag from her storage bag and handed them to Ji Chang.

Ji Chang took the jade slip and storage bag, glanced at the contents on the jade slip list, and nodded with satisfaction.

He put away the jade slip and storage bag, and said to Fairy Hong Ling: "That's great. Fellow Daoist Hong Ling, please tell fellow Daoists of the Hu family that I will do my best to refine the demon-attracting liquid and live up to your trust."

Upon hearing this, Fairy Hong Ling thanked him again, exchanged a few more words with Ji Chang, and then stood up to say goodbye.

Ji Chang sent Fairy Hong Ling out of the cave and watched her figure disappear into the distant sky.

He was secretly thinking about his next plan.

The Huangquan Sect intends to conquer the Shiwan Mountains in the south. Although it is the general trend, it is not something that can be accomplished overnight.

The preparation alone would probably take several years.

Therefore, Ji Chang made up his mind to take advantage of this opportunity to concentrate on practicing and first improve his own cultivation to the middle stage of foundation building.

No matter how the world changes, improving your own strength is the key.

(End of this chapter)