Longevity: Starting From Getting Down The Mountain And Marrying A Wife

The Lantern Festival gathering at Qinghu Villa proceeded as scheduled.

Zhong Yan counted and found that there were 139 people in attendance.

There were quite a few unfamiliar faces, but also some new ones.

This was the norm for cultivators in the mortal city, as there was a relatively high level of mobility.

Some moved to other places, while others perished outside.

For those like Li Henian who had been living here for over ten years, they accounted for less than a third.

To be considered a long-term resident, one had to have lived here for three years, and usually, the population would stabilize at around seventy to eighty people.

Zhong Yan did not hide anything and took out three hundred talismans to trade at a price lower than the market rate by twenty percent.

Moreover, the quality of the talismans was quite good, and anyone with a little knowledge could tell that they were not far from being Rank One High Grade talismans.

The cultivators approached him to strike up a conversation, showing their friendliness.

Last year, there was a High Grade talisman master in the city who had accumulated enough wealth and moved to Sun Spring Market.

Independent cultivators had limited resources and conditions for cultivation, so there were very few cultivators who had achieved great accomplishments in various arts. It was already considered good if they could sustain themselves.

If it weren't for the help of the system panel, Zhong Yan estimated that he would never reach the High Grade level in his lifetime.

Yang Yanqing and his wife also came forward to toast and extended an olive branch.

"Fellow Daoist Talisman Dao's attainments are extraordinary. It won't be long before you become a High Grade talisman master! I wonder if you're interested in partnering to open a talisman shop in the city. I can handle the negotiations with the market."

Zhong Yan smiled and said, "Fellow Daoist Yang is too kind. I will consider this matter."

He did have this plan, but not now.

There were only a few cultivators in the city, and if they needed talismans, they could easily come to him.

Opening a separate shop would have a significant impact and would require negotiations with the market.

As for cooperating with Yang Yanqing, it was unnecessary unless the Yang family quickly established their own clan.

After more than a year of operation, Zhong Yan had already established connections with the market. In a few more years, he could directly rely on the powerful Lin Zhengping.

Yang Yanqing didn't mind. He was determined to befriend the cultivators in the city, as it seemed necessary to establish a cultivation family.

Early in the morning, Zhong Yan and Li Henian returned to the city.

After exchanging some information, Li Henian sighed and said, "The Fang family in Wangyi City is recruiting a demon-hunting team to explore the Mangdang Mountain Range. I'm planning to participate."

Zhong Yan was surprised and asked, "Why would you take such a risk, brother?"

The Mangdang Mountain Range was an extremely dangerous place, with Demonic Beasts roaming and poisonous swamps everywhere. Even if it was just the outskirts, many Qi Refining Late Stage cultivators had gone and never returned.

But Li Henian followed Yang Yanqing to help manage a Spirit Field for the Zhou family, and the income was not bad. Coupled with occasional side businesses, it was more than enough to support his daily cultivation.

Li Henian fell silent for a moment and said, "She has reached the third level of Qi Refining!"

Zhong Yan was taken aback, then quickly understood that he was referring to the Heavenly Spirit Root girl and exclaimed, "So fast?!"

How long had it been?

Less than a year!

And this was achieved in a city with scarce spiritual energy and limited resources.

Thinking back to his own past, it took him eight years to reach the third level of Qi Refining, and he stayed at that stage for eighteen years.

Truly, some people were just luckier than others.

"She truly deserves the Heavenly Spirit Root. She's a monster!" Zhong Yan sighed in admiration and envy.

Li Henian was both happy and worried, and he smiled bitterly, "Yes! She's only fourteen now, and in less than three years, she will surpass me. I'm anxious about it. Besides creating conditions for her, I can't fall too far behind myself. I have to reach the Late Stage at least!"

Zhong Yan understood very well and asked, "When will you leave, brother?"

"At the latest, in two months. It will take at least a year to come back. So, I'm entrusting my little brother to take care of the family. I've also told her to come to your place if anything happens."

Zhong Yan nodded and promised, "You can rest assured about the family. The city is relatively safe compared to the outside. But as for the dangers of the Mangdang Mountain Range, I don't need to say much. Brother knows it well. Please take extra care."

After thinking for a moment, Zhong Yan asked, "Brother, have you been to the brothels in the market?"

Li Henian blinked, knowing that Zhong Yan had accumulated quite a bit of wealth, and he smiled helplessly, "Why? Brother wants to go?"

Zhong Yan spoke frankly, "I've thought about it and want to learn more."

Li Henian said seriously, "I advise you to be cautious. Sun Spring Market has two brothels. One is a bit lower-end, mostly with mortal women, many of whom are not as beautiful as your current concubine.

Another one is called 'Flying Immortal Pavilion'. Most of the people who go in are disciples of sects and direct descendants of families. Ordinary independent cultivators wouldn't dare to wade into this muddy water. But once you go in, I guarantee you'll want to go again!"

"Let me tell you this, at Flying Immortal Pavilion, a pot of ordinary spirit tea costs three low-grade spirit stones, and a pot of spirit wine costs five! If you want female companionship, it'll cost you a few dozen spirit stones! Heh~ Once you find one, you'll most likely want to stay overnight, and you won't be able to pull up your pants without a hundred spirit stones!"

As he spoke, Li Henian clicked his tongue twice and had a nostalgic look on his face. "But I have to say, the female cultivators there are all incredibly powerful. If we're talking about looks, some of them surpass even the concubines in my family. But their skills are amazing, every frown and smile can touch a person's heart..."

Li Henian looked at Zhong Yan and smirked. "And, being intimate with them is truly different from being with mortal women. It's irresistible. They must have practiced special techniques."

Zhong Yan rolled his eyes. "My brother advises caution, but you're tempting me like this. Aren't you leading me astray?"

Li Henian laughed heartily. "It's best not to go. Yang Yanqing invited me once, and within a few days, I went back and spent over a hundred and thirty spirit stones. Luckily, I ran out of money at that time, otherwise I would have had to go again! In my opinion, it's better to seize a female cultivator when the opportunity arises!"

"You're right."

After a long conversation, before Li Henian left, Zhong Yan borrowed a hundred spirit stones from him, obviously for the cultivation of the Heavenly Spirit Root.

The spiritual energy in the city was thin, and there were no dedicated cultivation rooms in the southern district, so it was difficult to continue cultivating without relying on spirit stones and pills.

Half a month later, Li Henian suddenly took in two more concubines and received a temporary message, prompting him to leave early and head to Wangyi City for a meeting.

On the same day, Zhong Yan invited another Qi Refining sixth-level cultivator in the city to go to Sun Spring Market.

After purchasing the materials, there were still over two hundred spirit stones left in Zhong Yan's storage bag.

Zhong Yan strolled along West Street and noticed a stall with more than ten books on display. One of them was a martial arts technique that was priced at sixty spirit stones, equivalent to nearly fifty thousand taels of silver.

"Why is this technique so expensive?"

The stall owner was a middle-aged man with a beard. He only opened the cover, revealing the five large characters on the first page - "Infinite Sacred Heart Technique".

He smiled and said, "This is a technique that the Martial Saint learned in the early stages. It cultivates the Infinite True Qi and nourishes the vitality and blood, with unparalleled power and longevity. It's the most suitable as an inheritance technique. Fellow Daoist, consider it?"

"A complete technique?"

Zhong Yan asked in response. Naturally, he had heard of the Martial Saint's reputation. He was the only existence in the Immortal Martial Continent whose martial dao cultivation surpassed the Great Grandmaster realm. Legend has it that even after more than two thousand years, he might still be alive.

After the Martial Saint, the martial dao declined, and only those without spiritual roots would reluctantly choose the martial dao. Therefore, various martial arts techniques were not uncommon, but profound heart techniques were generally only found in martial dao families and the royal family.

The big man smiled, "Naturally, it's an incomplete version. How could a complete technique be priced so low? But it can be cultivated to the Innate Late Stage."

Zhong Yan shook his head. "Too expensive, I'll buy it for twenty spirit stones."

"Fellow Daoist bargains more fiercely than robbing money! I'll give you a discount, fifty-eight!"

Zhong Yan continued to shake his head. "You can copy and sell it repeatedly, twenty-two!"

After a round of bargaining, they finally settled on thirty-three spirit stones.

Zhong Yan handed over the spirit stones and checked them on the spot.

In his early years, he had also learned a bit of martial dao, reaching the Fourth Layer of Body Tempering. Moreover, as a cultivator, he had a deep understanding of the body's acupoints and meridians. Just by looking at the cultivation route, he could roughly determine its feasibility.

"Fellow Daoist, rest assured. If I sell fake goods, how can I continue to survive in the market?"

Zhong Yan neither confirmed nor denied it. There were indeed sellers of fake goods in the market.

After some verification, he didn't find any problems. However, it could only be cultivated to the Innate Eighth Layer, which was still acceptable.

Afterwards, Zhong Yan went to purchase other supplies and unknowingly wandered to the front of the brothel 'Flying Immortal Pavilion', his steps becoming somewhat hesitant.

It wasn't because of the temptation of beauty.

It was because he couldn't resist further exploring the system.

"Young master! Come up and have some fun~"

On the railing of the third floor, a beautiful woman waved her handkerchief and let out a silver bell-like laughter.

Just hearing it made his heart flutter.

Seeing him standing and looking inside, two women at the entrance also walked towards him, touching and teasing him. "Come on, young master!"

He didn't know if everyone inside was of this caliber, but just having two of them come up, their figures and appearances were no less than Yan Sandao's.

There was a struggle in his heart.

Zhong Yan used the excuse of 'half a point of vermilion lips tasted by ten thousand people' to retreat, and smiled bitterly, "I'm just short on money."

"Come on, a glass of spirit wine won't cost much spirit stones!"

"If you really don't have any, sister will treat you for free!"

That was even scarier!

Zhong Yan pulled his hand away and apologized as he left.

...