Eternal Life: Talent Grows with Age-Chapter 325 - 202: United Against the Enemy

Liu Yun was a bit surprised—he felt that the offer he’d made was already quite sincere, yet it was still rejected.

If it were anyone else, he’d probably have thrown out a snide remark.

As the steward of the Glazed Glass Trading House, he still had his pride to maintain.

But now, his relationship with Lu Chang’sheng would inevitably cool off, wasting all his previous efforts.

"Of course, of course. No matter what, I’ll reserve this item for Alchemist Lu for a full year."

Liu Yun said with a smile.

After Lu Chang’sheng left, the attendant beside him couldn’t help but ask, "Steward Liu, don’t you think you’re being a little too courteous toward Alchemist Lu?"

A Beta-grade alchemist was definitely worth befriending, but to dismiss the steward’s gesture like that—knowing Steward Liu, that shouldn’t have sat well with him at all.

"You don’t understand. This Alchemist Lu isn’t as simple as he appears."

The attendant mused to himself: Could it be that Steward Liu has sensed something unusual about Alchemist Lu?

Inside the Glazed Glass Trading House, some people were well aware of Steward Liu’s ability—his sense of smell was extraordinary, able to distinguish pills by scent alone.

"That’s right." Steward Liu’s face took on a hint of amazement.

He hadn’t intended to talk to his attendant, but the urge was just too much. After hesitating a moment, he said, "There’s a new pill scent on Alchemist Lu—an upper-grade Barrier-Breaking Pill."

The attendant was instantly startled, a look of shock on his face.

Among Qi Cultivation level pills, upper-grade Barrier-Breaking Pills were among the most valuable.

An alchemist capable of refining upper-grade Barrier-Breaking Pills would be a distinguished guest anywhere.

Suddenly, a thought crossed the attendant’s mind.

"Steward Liu, isn’t Alchemist Lu only at mid-stage Qi Cultivation...?"

He didn’t finish his sentence, then glanced at Steward Liu, a little uneasy.

Liu Yun’s face showed a strange expression as he gently covered the cup on the table.

"Go on and get back to work."

The attendant left, disappointed.

A trading house isn’t exactly a benevolent place; in fact, they can be even more ruthless than the average loose cultivator. Most strong trading houses keep a handful of skilled cultivators on hand.

And when faced with particularly lucrative opportunities, they’ll use underhanded means without a second thought.

The attendant’s implication was clear: that the Lu Mansion lacked the strength to match its fortune.

If played right, it might just be possible to grab a share of the pie.

However, Liu Yun knew this wasn’t a good plan.

First, this wasn’t business—it was about capability. Even if he used the Trading House’s connections to control Lu Chang’sheng, he’d have to worry about backlash every step of the way.

This was a cardinal sin in business.

Besides, Lu Chang’sheng wasn’t acting alone—as far as he knew, the Fang Family Ancestor, Fang Yuan, had always had close ties with Lu Chang’sheng.

It’s possible that Fang Yuan played a part in Lu Chang’sheng’s ability to refine Barrier-Breaking Pills. Ruining relations with Lu Chang’sheng over something so small just wasn’t worth it.

······

Back home, he took a trip over to the cultivation chamber.

Li Nangua’s cultivation chamber doors were tightly shut, with not a single sound coming from inside.

Only the faintest, most steady breathing could be heard.

Looks like Nangua was still stabilizing her condition.

Breaking through the late Qi Cultivation stage is a time-consuming process.

It can take days—or even dozens of days.

It all comes down to personal comprehension. Returning to his own chamber, Lu Chang’sheng picked up a Jade Scroll on the Alchemy Dao and began to study.

Recently, he’d bought nearly all the Alchemy Dao Jade Scrolls from the neighboring Immortal Cities—most of them, at least. And many were duplicates.

Because his subordinates helped with the purchases, they couldn’t always tell which ones Lu Chang’sheng had already read—so a lot ended up bought again, driving up costs.

The good thing was, from now on, he didn’t need to buy any more Jade Scrolls from around here. Lu Chang’sheng had found that most of the scrolls barely advanced his alchemy at all.

"This is proof that my foundation in alchemy is solid as a rock."

Up next, he needed to focus on improving his cultivation, and then push his alchemy up to the second grade.

"With second-grade alchemy, I could secure the seat of Foundation Establishment—while still at the Qi Cultivation stage."

Lu Chang’sheng thought to himself.

"Father!" Just then, Lu Ziyou’s voice sounded from outside the door.

If Lu Chang’sheng wasn’t in seclusion, he usually left the chamber door ajar.

Lu Ziyou had noticed the half-open door and called out.

"What is it?"

"The patriarch of the Fang Family has an urgent matter—he’s asking for you."

This took Lu Chang’sheng by surprise—he had no idea what Fang Shan wanted with him.

He stepped outside and, not long after, saw a visibly anxious Fang Shan waiting for him in the living room.

As soon as he saw Lu Chang’sheng, Fang Shan said, "Alchemist Lu, would you please come to the mansion with me?"

Fang Shan got right to the point, and at the same moment, Lu Chang’sheng heard his voice ring in his ear. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

At this, Lu Chang’sheng frowned, told Lu Ziyou a few words, and then left with Fang Shan for the Fang Mansion.

······

"Fellow Daoist Fang, what happened to you?"

Right now, Fang Yuan looked extremely drained—he couldn’t even get up, lying in bed and barely able to catch his breath.

Yet, even like this, he’d called for Lu Chang’sheng himself—clearly, he really trusted Lu Chang’sheng.

Of course, Lu Chang’sheng preferred to assume that Fang Yuan must have other defensive measures. If he really made a move, Fang Yuan would very likely see it coming.

You can’t underestimate the vigilance of old cultivators like this.

"It’s a long story. This time I went to Black Stone Immortal City, planning to buy a batch of Barrier-Breaking Pill materials, but every single shop I asked was sold out. That’s when someone came to me and asked if I wanted to check out the black market."

"And that’s where the problem started."

"This black market really was every bit as shady as you’d expect. I’d only just stepped inside when someone started targeting me—tried to kill me on the spot, but thankfully I fought my way out."