Chapter 125 - 105: The Age of 60

Chapter 125: Chapter 105: The Age of 60

At the East Gate of the Qinghe Marketplace, a large ship slowly sailed into the Youxian River. Standing at the bow, Yun Xiaoniu bowed respectfully before stepping into the cabin. Having seen off his junior, Chen Jianghe returned to his own courtyard.

Just as he had expected, Yu Daniu and his wife would never allow Yun Xiaoniu to stay outside for too long. Therefore, on the day following the conclusion of Gao Peiyao’s Foundation Establishment Celebration, Yun Xiaoniu bade farewell to Chen Jianghe. He also paid a visit to the Hundred Treasures Tower to say his goodbyes to Gao Peiyao.

"Alas, I had intended to operate with a low profile and develop steadily in the Qinghe Marketplace. I never expected to gain so much exposure at Gao Peiyao’s Foundation Establishment Celebration. This truly wasn’t what I wanted," Chen Jianghe sighed helplessly.

Gao Peiyao’s affectionate form of address and words had drawn the gazes of all the Cultivators present toward him and Yun Xiaoniu. Consequently, after Gao Peiyao left, quite a few Cultivators came forward to converse with them, making absolutely no effort to hide their intentions to build a good relationship. This allowed Chen Jianghe to become acquainted with many top-tier artisans in the Qinghe Marketplace, as well as members of the Immortal Race residing within it.

Chen Jianghe disliked this sort of socializing. Fortunately, he had Yun Xiaoniu by his side, who handled these people with fluent ease. After all, Yun Xiaoniu also hailed from the Immortal Race, so interacting with these individuals proved to be immensely beneficial for him. The more artisans he befriended, the less the Yun family would lack resources in the future. As for the members of the Immortal Race, it was naturally best to form ties of Good Karma with them.

Of course, Chen Jianghe was well aware that Gao Peiyao had good intentions; she was helping him build momentum in the Qinghe Marketplace. By letting the Upper-Level Cultivators in the Qinghe Marketplace know that he had a deep personal connection with her, he would face far less trouble in the area. Having the social network of a Sect Foundation Establishment Disciple backing him was something that commanded a great deal of apprehension and respect.

The next day.

Chen Jianghe arrived at the Hundred Treasures Tower. He purchased two True Spirit Pills, a bottle of Fasting Pills, four Spirit-Encompassing Flowers, and two bottles of Red Mist True Dew. Then, at the Spiritual Material Counter, he bought three Black Pig Hides and three boxes of Spiritual Ink. With only twenty-four Spirit Blood Pig Hides and a little more than half a box of Spiritual Ink left in his possession, he desperately needed to restock his materials. In total, he spent one hundred and twenty-four Spirit Stones. Factoring in the premium room he had booked at the Qinghe Inn for Yun Xiaoniu for four days, which cost one Spirit Stone and twenty grains of Spiritual Sand, he was now left with exactly eighteen Spirit Stones and fifty-five grains of Spiritual Sand.

Upon returning to his courtyard, he hung up the "In Seclusion" sign and activated the Defense Array. He then let out Little Black and Fur Ball, distributed this year’s Cultivation Resources to them, and promptly walked into his room.

He had to improve his Talisman Dao Skills as quickly as possible. Otherwise, it would impact his future Cultivation plans. After breaking through to the Eighth-Layer Qi Refining stage, he would need to purchase a Body Refining Technique, along with the Spiritual Materials and Spirit Medicine required for Body Refining. All of these required Spirit Stones, and the sum would be far from small.

Over the past few years, he had spent the majority of his time switching his Cultivation Technique, which caused his Talisman Dao Skills to fall behind. Now that his Cultivation of the Ten Thousand Waters Scripture was on the right track, he could spare more time to draw Spirit Talismans. This was an excellent period to enhance his Talisman Dao Skills, and he couldn’t afford to waste it anymore. After all, the further he progressed, the tighter his time for drawing Spirit Talismans would become. Once he began Body Refining, the time he could allocate to drawing Spirit Talismans would likely be even shorter than when he was switching Cultivation Techniques.

Taking out the Black Pig Hides, he first cut them down to the size of Spirit Talismans. The three Black Pig Hides yielded ninety Spirit Blood Pig Hides. Subsequently, he took out the Spiritual Ink, ground it, moistened his brush, set down his paperweight, and began to draw Spirit Talismans. He started by continuing to draw Middle-Grade Water Arrow Talismans. Only after fully entering the zone did he begin drawing other types of Middle-Grade Spiritual Talismans, such as Middle-Grade Ice Talismans, Flaming Talismans, and Golden Saber Talismans. By advancing both his Cultivation and his Spirit Talisman drawing simultaneously, his time was scheduled to the absolute fullest.

Three years slipped by unnoticed.

Chen Jianghe sat cross-legged on his bed. As the Magical Power in his Dantian underwent another round of purification, the mass of Magical Power shrank from the size of a goose egg down to that of a chicken egg. His Cultivation had finally advanced to the Eighth-Layer Qi Refining stage.

PHEW.

Chen Jianghe opened his eyes and exhaled a heavy breath of impure air, a look of joy washing over his face. It was just as he had calculated; after switching his Cultivation Technique, it took him only a little over four years to break through to the Eighth-Layer Qi Refining stage. Next, as long as he purified the Magical Power in his Qi Sea Dantian, liquified it, and compressed it down to the size of an eyeball, his Cultivation would reach the Ninth-Layer Qi Refining stage. Following that, he could begin planning for Foundation Establishment.

"Before I knew it, I’ve already reached my sixtieth year," Chen Jianghe sighed with emotion as he got out of bed.

With a wave of his hand, a surge of Magical Power condensed into a Water Mirror, reflecting his appearance. He still looked exactly the same, though his eyes had grown deeper, making him appear increasingly mature and grounded. Feeling the surging, vigorous vitality rolling within his body, he sensed absolutely no sign of decline. When other Cultivators reached sixty years of age, their vitality would begin to wane, and their bodily functions would start to go downhill. However, it seemed that his Physical Body had only just reached its absolute peak of vitality. His maximum lifespan was three hundred and sixty years. If his vitality were to start waning, it wouldn’t happen until he was over a hundred and eighty years old.

SQUEAK, SQUEAK.

Sensing that Chen Jianghe had finished his Cultivation session, Fur Ball entered the room and respectfully presented two letters to him.

"You may go," Chen Jianghe said, waving his hand dismissively.

After nearly eight years of nurturing, Fur Ball had grown to a height of seven feet, about as tall as a full-grown adult. Its aura had also begun to change gradually. He estimated that in just a few short years, it would break through to the Late-Stage Tier One. When that time came, Fur Ball’s size would undergo a massive growth spurt. An adult Mountain Furred Beast could reach a size of over ten feet, and its strength would take a massive leap as well. If he could manage to get it a Special Magical Artifact tailored for Spirit Beasts, its combat power wouldn’t be any lower than that of a Ninth-Layer Qi Refining Cultivator.