Dao Companions Help Me Live Forever

Chapter 180: Heretical Gold Core (400 Monthly Votes Plus More)

As the encirclement of the Taxation Department grew stronger, it seemed that the Wu family had already made preparations. A layer of green light rose from the ground, forming a thin film that covered the Wu family's residence like an overturned bowl.

It was the Wu family's internal formation, the second-grade high-quality Wood Thunder Formation, capable of resisting attacks from peak Foundation Building cultivators.

As the formation rose, the Taxation Department cultivators who hadn't had time to retreat were trapped inside the Wu family's mansion.

Among them was Yulan.

"Capture them!"

A middle-aged cultivator dressed in a green robe coldly looked at Yulan and her group. With a flick of his hand, thorny vines crawled out of the ground, binding and strangling four or five temporary workers from the Taxation Department who were charging forward.

Pained cries and blood flowed together.

Then, a group of Wu family cultivators rushed out from behind him.

He himself didn't stop either. A streak of light flew out from behind him, and a inkstone-like magical tool quickly enlarged in mid-air. It smashed down with the imposing might of a Foundation Building cultivator, like a small mountain.

"Come over here!"

Yulan refused to show weakness. A pink silk handkerchief flew out in mid-air, protecting the Taxation Department cultivators. Pink tassels hung down, forming a transparent shield.

As the inkstone fell, the two emitted a sound of gold and iron clashing.

Dang!

Yulan's figure swayed slightly, but quickly stabilized.

The expression of the cultivator in the green robe remained unchanged. He once again controlled his magical tool to strike from left to right, continuously forcing Yulan to deplete her spiritual energy.

After a dozen strikes, the green-robed cultivator, who had depleted nearly half of his spiritual energy, finally changed his expression.

"Such profound spiritual energy."

His attacks seemed simple, but each strike contained his Foundation Building spiritual energy, with tremendous power. Even a several-meter-high artificial mountain could be shattered.

And the woman in front of him was foolish enough to protect her subordinates, causing her spiritual energy consumption to be several times greater than his.

As long as he continued like this, the woman's spiritual energy would be exhausted, and she would be defeated without him having to attack.

However, reality turned out to be unexpected.

Although he had depleted nearly half of his spiritual energy, it seemed that the woman in front of him still had plenty to spare.

Yulan, protected by the pink silk handkerchief, remained unchanged in expression, her mind highly focused.

She knew her own weaknesses. Her combat experience was definitely inferior to the cultivator in the green robe, so she focused on defense.

She cultivated the advanced technique, the Red Peach Blossom Scripture, and her Foundation Building spiritual energy quality was naturally higher than that of the cultivator in the green robe. In addition, the peach blossom handkerchief in her hand was a low-grade spiritual tool specially crafted for her by a master craftsman in the city, which further enhanced the advantages of her Foundation Building spiritual energy.

But she also knew that if she continued to squander her spiritual energy like this, the cultivator in the green robe would eventually find a flaw.

The current turning point for victory or defeat was when the Taxation Department would break through the Wu family's formation.

As long as the Taxation Department broke through the formation and provided support before her spiritual energy was depleted, then she would be considered victorious.

Of course, if they still couldn't break through by then, she also had a trump card.

But she had just proudly declared yesterday that she would support her family, and today she would use up the life-saving trump card her husband had given her. That would be too useless of her.

So, unless it was absolutely necessary, she would not give up.

"It's actually a spiritual tool?!"

A hint of desire appeared in the eyes of the cultivator in the green robe.

He had been trying to break through for decades, but he still didn't have a single spiritual tool.

"I want to see how long you can protect them!"

The cultivator in the green robe snorted coldly, put away his magical tool, and began to restore his spiritual energy.

"Captain, please release the protection."

A middle-aged cultivator holding a knife calmly said,

"With such consumption, you won't be able to outlast him. It's better to let us go out and fight. King against king, general against general. Even if we die, we won't blame the captain."

"That's right. We cultivators fight against fate. When we joined the Taxation Department and became temporary workers, we were already mentally prepared."

"Captain, let us go out and fight to the death."

Many people volunteered to fight, while others avoided eye contact and remained silent.

But no matter what they thought, the protective gesture of this female captain, whom they had just met, had warmed their hearts.

In such a situation, an ordinary Foundation Building cultivator would save every bit of spiritual energy they could, and wouldn't squander it on temporary workers like them.

Temporary workers were not valuable, and this unspoken rule had long been deeply ingrained.

Every dangerous action is always taken by temporary workers.

But this is also their value.

After all, becoming a regular employee and reaching the Foundation Building stage are not easy tasks.

At this moment, Yulan is quite stubborn.

"There's no need for pointless sacrifices. Just wait for support."

...

Outside the grand formation.

Jiang Wang and Old Ancestor Wu face each other from a distance, their gazes icy.

"Old Ancestor Wu, surrender and give up. You can't escape."

Old Ancestor Wu lets out a bitter laugh. "Jiang Wang, I never expected it would be you who came to capture me. Our families are in-laws, after all. Lord Manager is truly heartless. Let Lord Manager come see me. I want to see Lord Manager."

"My Wu family has been diligently refining pills and accumulating wealth. Why did Lord Manager suddenly target my Wu family?"

Jiang Wang sighs and says, "Old Ancestor Wu, how much have your pill refining departments profited over the years? I don't know the exact amount, but I know it's a huge number. Especially with Master Luo's demonic beast pill formula leaking out, how many pill refining materials were left behind by the army of beasts back then? You shouldn't have reached out for it. Even if Lord Manager is unbearable, he represents Master Yu. Before the appearance of a second Gold Core cultivator, Master Yu is the ruler of Shangyang City. Don't you understand? The Zhou family offended Master Danyang's esteemed guest by accident and suffered the fate of annihilation. Now you're following in their footsteps."

Old Ancestor Wu suppresses his bitter laugh and says seriously, "I understand this principle very well. That's why I'm doing this. If I can't break through to the Gold Core stage, I'll live under Master Yu's shadow every day, letting that brat ride on my head. My Wu family works hard, and how many clan members have lost their lives gathering herbs and wasted their time refining pills, neglecting their cultivation. Why should he be able to take away most of it just by flapping his lips? If I hadn't possessed it before, maybe it wouldn't hurt so much, but I had to watch a large amount of spiritual pills and stones slip away from my hands. I refuse to accept it! Jiang Wang, haven't you noticed? As long as we have a true cultivator above us, our Foundation Building families will never be able to produce a second true cultivator."

Upon hearing this, a shadow falls over Jiang Wang's face, and he remains silent.

Seeing that Jiang Wang has been moved, Old Ancestor Wu directly transmits his voice, "Jiang Wang, for the sake of our in-law relationship, spare me this time. I have already collected the materials for the Five Elements Yuan Pill and will be able to start refining it soon. Once it is successfully refined, I can achieve an external path Gold Core. At that time, our two families will have the final say in Shangyang City."

Jiang Wang's eyes flicker, and he transmits his voice back, "You can actually refine this pill?"

The so-called Five Elements Yuan Pill is a method to achieve an external path Gold Core. It is an artificial Gold Core. By swallowing this pill, there is a 50-60% chance of directly breaking through to the Gold Core stage. However, the limitation is that one will remain at this stage and cannot make any progress or inscribe Gold Core divine abilities. However, it does not affect one's lifespan.

Many cultivators who have no hope of reaching the Gold Core stage will choose to achieve a Gold Core using this pill, also known as the False Core stage.

Old Ancestor Wu says, "I have to thank Lord Manager for giving me this opportunity, along with the accumulation of my Wu family over hundreds of years. I will succeed!"

Jiang Wang falls into silence, clearly deep in thought.

Meanwhile, below, Zhao Shiwen receives a report from her subordinates and learns that Yulan is trapped in the Wu family's grand formation. She can't help but panic.

She knows Yulan's position in Yu Xian's heart.

If Yulan makes the slightest mistake in the grand formation, it's likely that everyone here will be buried, and even she won't have a good outcome.

Zhao Shiwen flies directly into the air and stands behind Jiang Wang, shouting, "Manager Jiang, what are you waiting for? Do you also want to collude with the Wu family and defy Lord Manager's orders?"

"Youngster seeking death!"

Seeing that Jiang Wang is about to be persuaded, someone comes forward to disrupt the situation, causing Old Ancestor Wu to become angry and make a move.

A green light flies out of the grand formation, and countless vines spread out in mid-air, resembling a ferocious snake with bared fangs, about to envelop Zhao Shiwen.

(End of this chapter)