Eternal Life: Talent Grows with Age-Chapter 302 - 190: The Thirty-Thousand Spirit Stone Humiliation!
"By the way, Fairy, after what we did to those two, are we really not losing more than we gain? After all, Li Nangua’s dao partner is also an alchemist."
Ziyun said.
She was definitely not as simple as she seemed. Hearing that Tong Huan had come knocking for Li Nangua’s sake after so many years, she was taken aback. If Tong Huan really cared, she’d have come over a decade ago; why wait until now?
So she sent someone to inquire a bit, and only then did she realize—it was all because of Li Nangua’s dao partner.
"Guess she got lucky, landing an alchemist as a dao partner."
Ziyun felt a stab of bitterness at the time.
If only she’d found herself an alchemist dao partner in the past, then maybe, just maybe, Foundation Establishment might have been within reach too?
"Just an ordinary alchemist—what’s there to worry about! If you’ve got time to spare, you might as well start preparing for the Peach Blossom Banquet."
Fairy Yunxia waved her hand dismissively as she spoke.
Ziyun opened her mouth, a sour taste rising in her chest.
She knew Fairy Yunxia’s old habits were acting up again.
The Peach Blossom Banquet was still a good few decades away—who’d actually start planning this early?
But she knew Fairy Yunxia had kept it on her mind forever, and it was almost turning into a heart demon, so she of course dared not object.
"Yes, Fairy!"
······
Lu Chang’sheng and Li Nangua strolled down the busy market street, warm sunshine kissing their faces, filling them with comfort.
"If I’d known back then you’d make it up to the Spirit Realm this way, I never would have left with Tong Huan," Li Nangua said, a faint smile on her lips lighting up her whole face, drawing the eyes of several cultivators as they passed.
Plenty of cultivators kept her in their sights, and not only for her spiritual body or Spirit Root talent—her looks were definitely part of the package.
She clasped her hands behind her, walking with a spring in her step—but always just a pace behind Lu Chang’sheng, like a little tail hanging off the end.
"If you hadn’t told me about the Spirit Realm, I probably never would’ve made it this far."
"One slow step, every step after is slow; one mistake, every step after is a mistake. Even the tiniest change can spin out a whole different ending."
Lu Chang’sheng didn’t dare gamble with fate, so if he could go back, he’d still do his damnedest to send Nangua to the Spirit Realm first.
"Whatever you say."
Li Nangua tilted her head, letting herself relax completely beside Lu Chang’sheng.
Maybe it was the long-awaited reunion; all the composure she’d built over the years faded away, as if she was right back in Black Mountain Prefecture.
Lu Chang’sheng felt it too.
But soon enough, his good mood slipped away.
"Total payment—"
The steward peered at the jade scroll in his hand, mind instantly recalling the hefty sum of thirty thousand.
As a regional steward, sure, plenty of cultivators passed through his hands, but almost none ever racked up an ’art learning fee’ to the tune of thirty thousand.
Even if you cultivated on Fuyun Mountain till your dying day, it was rare to reach that number. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮
And honestly, if you’re nearing the end of your years, nobody’s dumb enough to suddenly leave Fuyun Mountain anyway.
Fuyun Mountain never forced anyone who was basically knocking on death’s door.
If you really wanted to go, you’d leave early. In that case, ten thousand lower-grade spirit stones was about the upper limit.
So even after decades, he still remembered this particular fee crystal clear.
Even his memory of Li Nangua herself had gotten a little fuzzy.
But when he finally looked at the info on the jade scroll, he froze for a moment.
"What’s wrong? Is something up with the art learning fee?" Lu Chang’sheng felt a chill—assuming something had changed and the fee had gone up again.
To his surprise, the steward just shook his head, glancing at Lu Chang’sheng with a complicated look.
"I’m not sure if this is good news or bad news; maybe it’s good news."
He turned and walked off, returning shortly with another jade scroll for Li Nangua to release.
"Done. You can go. From now on, Fuyun Mountain has nothing to do with you."
Moments later, the scroll in front of Li Nangua faded to darkness. A powerful surge of energy swirled into the shape of a phantom eye, glanced over everyone, then vanished.
It was a protective measure used by Fuyun Mountain’s experts to guard Immortal Contracts. If the rules were breached and forced activation occurred, a powerful expert would notice right away.
"What’s that supposed to mean?" Lu Chang’sheng was stumped. He already had the spirit stones ready—even thirty thousand, if that’s what it took.
As long as Fairy Yunxia didn’t intervene, the spirit stones were set for the fee.
Who could’ve guessed—not even a single spirit stone was required.
Could it be—Fairy Yunxia had come to her senses?
After decades of keeping Nangua locked down, maybe her anger finally faded and she just scrapped the fee?
While he was lost in thought, the steward shook his head. "There are only two kinds of people allowed to dissolve their Immortal Contract with Fuyun Mountain for free."
"One is the dying. The other is considered utterly worthless."
Lu Chang’sheng fell silent.
Li Nangua tightened her grip on his hand, her face gripped with worry.
No wonder the steward couldn’t say if it was good or bad.
The steward expected the two in front of him to be furious, maybe scared. But Lu Chang’sheng just let out a long breath and smiled: "At least I saved thirty thousand spirit stones, right?"
The steward looked at him, a pity in his eyes. Still, he kept silent—he’d said too much already, and if he kept going, he’d risk getting the attention of people from Cloud Mist Cave Mansion.
Petty women—best not to cross them.
······
On the way home, things were a little tense.
Li Nangua hesitated, then said, "Chang’sheng, you should head back with Chang’an. I’ll come later."
Lu Chang’sheng glanced back at her, replying, "No need. Fairy Yunxia’s move isn’t necessarily an attack on us."
"If she wanted to hurt us, she wouldn’t bother doing all this. Fuyun Mountain’s an Immortal Sect; if they start killing just because you were expelled, what will people think? Any promising talent would never consider Cloud Mist Cave Mansion again."
"In fact, even Fuyun Mountain itself might be off the table."
"So really, it’s just for show—a humiliation tactic." Lu Chang’ssheng took a deep breath and smiled.
Listening to his analysis, Li Nangua finally felt some relief.
"Fairy Yunxia may not think it through that much," Li Nangua replied.
"That’s true. People are unpredictable. So, best to cover all our bases."
Lu Chang’sheng said.
Li Nangua couldn’t help but roll her eyes at him. "Still got energy to joke, huh?"
Even if the chance of Fairy Yunxia actually making a move was slim, it was still there.
"Just thinking—if one day I’m in that spot, would I pay the thirty thousand spirit stones, or let someone humiliate me instead?"
"What would you choose?" Li Nangua asked curiously.
"What do you think?"
Li Nangua thought for a moment. "You’d take the thirty thousand, then pay the humiliation right back."
Lu Chang’ssheng let out a sigh.
After decades together, she really knew him inside out.
"Fairy Yunxia’s a Foundation Establishment cultivator and even a Fuyun Mountain elder. Rumor is, she’s connected to a bunch of other Foundation folks. If she gets pissed, we—" Li Nangua’s worries weren’t unfounded.
Lu Chang’sheng laughed. "Relax, I’m not about to do anything stupid."
······
Back at their place, Lu Chang’sheng told Fang Yuan and the rest about it. They were silent for a bit, saying they’d need to think it over.
The situation was different from before; it was much more likely they’d run into Foundation Establishment cultivators.
With their abilities, facing those cultivators would be completely one-sided.
Lu Chang’sheng wasn’t about to force anyone. If he was in their shoes, he’d probably bow out too, hearing all this.
"You folks have helped me plenty. Even if you sit this one out, I’d never blame you," Lu Chang’sheng said.
Those words moved Fang Yuan and the others emotionally.
The next morning, the group arrived together and shared their decision.
Before entering Guangnan Domain, they wouldn’t travel with Lu Chang’sheng—but could still help out with other matters.
Lu Chang’sheng, of course, had no complaint. He asked them to help collect Jade Scrolls related to Alchemy Dao.
He also started reaching out to some big merchant guilds, hoping to leave together.
Unfortunately, none dared to let him join them.
The big guilds already had connections with Fuyun Mountain, and, through some channels, clearly knew what was going on.
They were surprised by Fairy Yunxia’s pettiness, but this wasn’t their concern. Unlike Lu Chang’sheng, they had networks and backgrounds strong enough that Fuyun Mountain would never dare lay a finger on them.
