Longevity starts from having a daughter in old age

This servant is incompetent! I only managed to gather two hundred bottles of Grass Renewal Pills!”

With her slender hand, Chi Feiyan took out the pills one by one with some embarrassment and placed them on the sandalwood table in front of Xu Mu.

Didn’t you try to find a tier-five Alchemist?

Looking at the two hundred bottles of Grass Renewal Pills in front of him, Xu Mu asked with a furrowed brow.

Tier-five Alchemists are generally associated with a sect, and even among those in the Foundation Establishment Stage, they hold a unique position. Given my status, they refuse to meet with me, let alone accept my commission to concoct pills!”

Chi Feiyan spoke with a hint of grievance.

After all, she was merely the head of a small family, and her cultivation was only at the Qi Cultivation Late Stage. Even compared to ordinary Foundation Establishes, her status was far inferior – not to mention the esteemed tier- five Alchemists.

Alchemists above tier five are even given due respect when faced with Golden Core Stage cultivators.

Of course, if Chi Feiyan wished to mobilize the connections she’d established through the Foundation Establishment Pills, it wouldn’t be impossible to ask a tier-five Alchemist for help.

However, that would essentially be seeking her own death!

If that’s the case, then leave it be! Buy in the future when you can, but don’t force yourself if it’s not possible!”

Xu Mu stored away the pills, and couldn’t help but sigh.

He had originally thought that she would give him a surprise, but it seemed that he had gotten his hopes up.

The matter of upgrading his Heavenly Extreme Purple Thunder Body would have to be postponed.

Just then, Chi Feiyan took out a token from her storage bag and placed it in front of him.

This is an auction token that this servant managed to gather; perhaps Master can purchase something desired from there!”

The auction in Liyang City?

Xu Mu asked as he picked up the token.

With his current status and position, even if he didn’t have a token, it would be exceedingly easy for him to participate.

No, not Liyang City! This one is for an auction held in Tianhe City. It took a lot of networking for me to get this!”

Chi Feiyan smiled, hoping for some words of praise from Xu Mu. However, he pretended not to notice and simply nodded his head, storing the token away.

The Foundation Establishment Pills couldn’t possibly be sold out in a day; he might need to stay here for a month or two. This just happened to present an opportunity to visit the Tianhe Sect and witness the grandeur of a major Nascent Soul Sect, which also fulfilled a wish he had in the past.

Tell me about the situation with the fight between the Tongyou Sect and Tianhe Sect!”

After finishing the topic on pills, Xu Mu asked about the war he was most concerned about.

Yes!

Chi Feiyan, who hadn’t been praised, responded somewhat dismally. She then began to recount the news she was aware of.

From her, Xu Mu learned that the Old Ancestor of Tianhe had recently faked his death. After sacrificing a portion of his disciples, he lured the Ghost Cultivators of the Tongyou Sect into a trap, eliminating more than half of them all at once. Even the Old Ancestor of Tongyou had been heavily injured, with only a few rifts of his soul surviving and escaping.

Now, only a few scattered Foundation Establishment Ghost Cultivators remained in the Tianhe Sect’s jurisdiction. They were hiding here and there, but they no longer posed a significant threat. It was estimated that it wouldn’t take long for them to be completely cleaned up.

This was also why an auction that had been suspended for quite some time had finally resumed and was flourishing more than ever.

This Old Ancestor of Tianhe is truly a formidable figure!

Xu Mu couldn’t help exclaiming after hearing Chi Feiyan’s narrative.

He had initially thought that the situation in the Tianhe Sect would continue to deteriorate until either the Old Ancestor of Tongyou or Tianhe died. It was completely unexpected that not only was the Old Ancestor of Tianhe immensely powerful, but his strategies were also executed brilliantly.

However, although the Tianhe Sect ultimately emerged victorious, it could only be described as a pyrrhic victory.

The Old Ancestor of Tianhe was already on the brink of death; combined with the toll this whole ordeal took, his end was probably not far off.

Although there was one other Nascent Soul Elder in the Tianhe Sect, he had just advanced to the early stage of Nascent Soul. With the burden of managing the entire Tianhe Sect, his task was arduous.

Furthermore, there were rumors that this newly-minted Nascent Soul Elder had taken some shortcuts, advancing to his current stage by fluke, and thus his future potential was limited.

Due to these reasons, the Old Ancestor of Tianhe insisted on fighting to the death with the Tongyou Sect.

Otherwise, once he passed, the present state of the Tongyou Sect would be the future of the Tianhe Sect.

Even though the Tianhe Sect was gradually stabilizing, Xu Mu had no intention of returning.

Even if the Tianhe Sect were stable, it still fell far behind the prosperity of the Cangming Ocean Territory.

Master, the elimination of the Ghost Cultivators might be great news to others, but it’s not necessarily a good thing for us!” Chi Feiyan said with a worried expression.

I’m well aware of that!

Xu Mu’s expression turned serious as well.

After the eradication of the Ghost Cultivators, the Liyang Sect could free up a lot of manpower to investigate the matter of the Foundation Establishment Pills.

It would be impossible to continue selling pills as leisurely as before.

Be careful when you sell the pills in the future. There’s no need to rush. Also, take these talismans with you!”

Xu Mu handed all his tier-five and six talismans to Chi Feiyan.

With these high-tier talismans, even if Chi Feiyan encountered a Foundation Establishment cultivator, she would be able to handle herself with ease.

Xu Lang, you do care for me after all!

Seeing these high-tier talismans, Chi Feiyan was moved to tears.

Xu Mu was speechless and didn’t offer further explanation. After she stored the talismans, he took out the Foundation Establishment Pills and handed them to her.

These are all the Foundation Establishment Pills for this time – one hundred and twenty in total!”

Are you giving them all to me at once?”

Chi Feiyan asked in astonishment.

In the past, Xu Mu used to give her the pills in several batches. Now that he was giving them all to her at once, wasn’t he afraid she’d run away with the pills?

They’re all yours!

Xu Mu said indifferently.

This time, it might take quite a while to sell all the pills. He didn’t intend to stay here for long and would return directly to the Cangming Ocean Territory after participating in the Tianhe Sect auction.

Of course, it wasn’t that he fully trusted her; it was because he had a way to keep her well-behaved.

Xu Lang! I knew it, you do see me in your heart!

In Chi Feiyan’s eyes, reminiscent of autumn water, there was a sea of deep affection.

Don’t flatter yourself!

Xu Mu said coldly, as he took out a jade box. Upon opening it, there was a pill inside, as clear as a crystal.

Could this be…?

Chi Feiyan’s eyes widened, her breath becoming ragged.

A top-tier Foundation Establishment Pill! Once this batch of pills is sold out, it’s yours!”

Xu Mu’s voice was calm, but it made Chi Feiyan’s heart almost jump out.

If a lower-grade Foundation Establishment Pill has a one percent success rate, then a middle-grade one probably has a two percent success rate, a high-grade one probably five percent, but a top-tier Foundation Establishment Pill jumps to twenty percent.

Such a pill is not found in the market, not even within the Tianhe Sect.

For those at the Qi Cultivation Stage, this pill holds an irresistible temptation.

Xu Lang!”

Chi Feiyan looked at Xu Mu, the affection in her eyes could seemingly melt a thousand-year-old glacier.

However, Xu Mu ignored her, and put the top-tier Foundation Establishment Pill back into the box.

Watching Xu Mu put away the pill, the affection in Chi Feiyan’s eyes turned into resentment.

She thought, ‘The whole of me is now yours, and yet you’re still so cold- hearted. Couldn’t you just give me the pill in advance?’

At this moment, Chi Feiyan felt as if her heart was being clawed at.

The temptation of the top-tier Foundation Establishment Pill was simply too strong!

Xu Mu sent off a reluctant Chi Feiyan, leaving his house and riding a flying sword towards the Liyang Sect.

Friend Xu, long time no see! What brings you here?

Hou Quan, who was taking a nap in the bamboo forest, got up to welcome Xu Mu when he heard the report from his disciple.

I drank a cup of bamboo green tea here last time and found it quite memorable, hence I came here to ask for another cup!” Xu Mu said with a smile.

Haha! Friend Xu has learnt to joke too!” Hou Quan laughed heartily while stroking his beard, “If you like it, I can give you a couple of kilograms later!

Thank you very much!

Xu Mu bowed his hands and took out a spirit bird egg adorned with green patterns from his storage bag and handed it over to Hou Quan.

I heard that Friend Hou likes to raise spirit beasts. I happened to obtain this egg of a green-plumed eagle when I was hunting monster beasts in the Cloud Peak Mountain Range. I hope you won’t find it too small a gift!”

Before Xu Mu left, he had asked Hou Quan to look after Chi Feiyan, so this was also a sort of thank-you gift.

The egg was something he had unintentionally come across after emerging from a spatial rift. The monster beast had chased after him and he had killed it in self-defense.

Friend Xu, you’re too kind! Green-plumed eagles may only be tier three monster beasts, but their flying speed is even faster than some tier four beasts! Their greatest advantage is their incredible stamina. They are top-tier flying mounts that many at the Foundation Establishment Stage covet but couldn’t get one!”

Desire shined in Hou Quan’s eyes, but he still waved his hands.

It’s too valuable. You should keep it.

There’s no precedent for me to take back a gift I’ve given. If you don’t accept it, I’ll have no choice but to leave.”

Xu Mu showed a hint of displeasure.

Friend Xu, you’re really…well, I’ll accept it! I’ll accept it!

With a bitter smile, Hou Quan shook his head and accepted the beast egg. He then called a disciple to take it away and look after it well.

Only then did Xu Mu break into a smile and sit down on the chair beside Hou Quan.

Hou Quan ordered his disciple to serve two cups of spiritual tea and some snacks. After some small talk with Xu Mu, he finally asked about the main topic.

Friend Hou, now that the menace of the ghost cultivators has been cleared, what does the sect plan to do next?”

Naturally, we will expand our territory!”

Hou Quan sipped his spiritual tea, his words full of excitement.

The Tongyou Sect currently has a large area of unclaimed land. The Tianhe Sect issued an expansion notice last month. Our Liyang Sect is well poised to reap the benefits, and the Sect Master had already secured numerous resource-rich regions on his visit to the Tianhe Sect!”

After the extermination of the Clear River Sword Sect, the Liyang Sect was at the frontline. At that time, the whole sect was in apprehension.

But now, this crisis had become an advantage. Everyone was itching to make a fortune.

I didn’t expect such good fortune to come our way!”

This was indeed something Xu Mu hadn’t expected.

War is a great wealth destroyer, but also a wealth creator. It depends on whether you’re the victor or the vanquished.

Friend Xu, you rejected my offer to become an inner elder before, now you’ve missed a great opportunity!” Hou Quan lamented.

What opportunity?

Of course, it’s the opportunity to pick a location. The regions secured by the sect will definitely be picked first by the high-ranking elders. For a guest elder like you, I’m afraid there will be nothing left by the end!”

Talking about this, Hou Quan couldn’t help but express his regret for Xu Mu.

Such locations were previously hard to come by, but with careful management, they are sure to bring enormous wealth for hundreds of years, enough to keep a Foundation Establishment Family prosperous.

Take the Luo Family for instance. Without currying favor with the Nascent Soul elder of the Liyang Sect, they would never have earned the right to manage a marketplace.

“I’ve always been a carefree person and don’t have any immediate plans to build a family. Friend Hou, there’s no need for you to regret on my behalf!” Xu Mu said with a laugh.

You might not need it now, but you’ll always use it in the future. If you don’t seize the opportunity now, there may never be another chance!” Hou Quan sighed.

Once the territories are divided, it’s difficult to snatch from the mouth of a tiger.

People rarely spit out meat that’s already in their mouth.

Speaking of which, there is something I don’t understand!

What is it?

During the sect’s earlier collaboration with the Tianhe and Tongyou sects in the battle, and the recent extermination of the ghost cultivators, a lot of manpower must have been lost. Where did the sect find the manpower to expand into new territories?”

“This…”

Hou Quan hesitated for a moment, dismissed the serving disciple, and then began to speak, “This is indeed odd. Recently, a group of people appeared out of nowhere, selling Foundation Establishment Pills within the sect’s territory. This allowed many Loose Cultivators to advance to the Foundation Establishment Stage. In fact, not only did the number of Foundation Establishment Elders in the sect not decrease, it even increased substantially!

Oh? Something like this happened?” Xu Mu feigned surprise and asked, “Do you know who they are and how the sect plans to deal with it?”

We haven’t found out yet. As for how to deal with them” Hou Quan’s face showed a rare cold and vicious expression, and he said harshly, “Of course we’ll capture them, extract their souls for interrogation to uncover the source of the Foundation Establishment Pills!”