Eternal Life: Talent Grows with Age-Chapter 377 - 233: Innate Spiritual Seed, the Hardship of Foundation Establishment!
Previously, he hadn’t thought this matter particularly troublesome, but with the unexpected variable of Lu Chang’sheng—who seemed to have some connection with Liu Yun—it was enough to give him a real headache.
He had never liked the person set to replace Liu Yun; now he was even more displeased.
"As long as Alchemist Lu understands, that’s all that matters. I wonder if you’re free tonight? I’ve reserved a private room at Bright Moon Building," Su Mu said politely.
With nothing else on his agenda, Lu Chang’sheng didn’t want to reject Su Mu’s goodwill—after all, regarding Liu Yun’s situation, the other party had already shown him plenty of respect.
"While I can’t make decisions on Steward Liu’s side, I can still make some minor adjustments."
Lu Chang’sheng agreed, and Su Mu spoke up as well.
Not long after Lu Chang’sheng left, Liu Yun received the news.
He would be transferred to a market outside Black Rock Immortal City to continue as a steward.
Black Rock Immortal City was far more prosperous than Platinum Immortal City, but Liu Yun was only heading to a tradesmen’s market outside the city, nothing compared to his current post—even so, for him, that was already a good outcome.
"Luckily, I met Alchemist Lu."
Liu Yun secretly gave thanks in his heart. Without Lu Chang’sheng’s support, his best outcome might have been assignment to some turbulent region like Black Water Domain.
Perhaps one day he would simply vanish from the world amid the rampages of monsters.
That night, as Lu Chang’sheng prepared to leave for Bright Moon Building, Liu Yun and Fu Chen came by to thank him in person.
Hearing that Liu Yun would be heading to Black Rock Immortal City, Lu Chang’sheng felt deeply moved, holding a measure of gratitude for the man before him.
Without Liu Yun’s help, he might never have been able to gather all the materials to refine the Black Water Profound Snake.
What surprised Lu Chang’sheng most was that, before leaving, Liu Yun took out an item to gift him.
This object was no stranger to Lu Chang’sheng—it was, in fact, an essential primary ingredient for the Foundation Establishment Pill: the Innate Spiritual Seed.
"This—" Staring at it, Lu Chang’sheng didn’t dare accept it at once.
It was just too valuable.
The worth of a single Innate Spiritual Seed exceeded that of a Foundation Establishment Pill, because you could almost never refine just a single pill per batch.
"Fellow Daoist Liu, what’s your intention with this?" Lu Chang’sheng asked in a low voice.
Liu Yun said, "I heard that when Alchemist Lu first arrived in the Spirit Realm, you sought investment from the Qu, Fang, and other families, securing mutual benefit. Now, I’d like to do the same, if you’ll grant me the honor?"
The expression on Fu Chen’s face behind him changed to one of shock. He had followed Liu Yun for many years, and naturally knew how hard it had been for Liu Yun to obtain this Innate Spiritual Seed.
It was fair to say this seed had become the vessel for all his hopes of reaching Foundation Establishment.
Even if he himself couldn’t achieve Foundation Establishment, he’d have given the item to someone of weight, to win a promising future for his clan’s rising talent.
"This Alchemist Lu...is he really worth that much?"
Fu Chen was stunned in his heart.
Lu Chang’sheng looked deeply at Liu Yun, unable to guess the man’s thoughts; his own talent at alchemy wasn’t bad, but to reach Grade Two mastery—no one could say for sure.
Apart from his own relatives, maybe only those elders from White Cloud Pavilion had some confidence in him.
"What virtue or ability do I possess to deserve this?"
Lu Chang’sheng shook his head, refusing to accept the item. This time was different from before; if he took it, it would be an immense favor owed.
Fu Chen’s eyes flashed with a hint of discontent—by his view, Liu Yun had already humbled himself so much, yet Lu Chang’sheng was still putting on airs.
If not for Uncle Liu Yun having just stepped down from his position in Platinum Immortal City, he would’ve surely spoken out by now.
But unexpectedly, Liu Yun just gave a bitter smile and said, "It’s my mistake for overstepping. If so, how about I propose a trade with Alchemist Lu using this item?"
"This Innate Spiritual Seed, in exchange for one Foundation Establishment Pill refined by Fellow Daoist Lu."
Lu Chang’sheng raised his eyebrow. "You must be joking, Daoist Friend. Never mind that it’s hard to advance to Grade Two alchemist—even after advancing, refining a Foundation Establishment Pill is another matter entirely."
This wasn’t an exaggeration; the Foundation Establishment Pill was unusually special among Grade Two pills, its complexity enough to deter most ordinary Grade Two alchemists. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be so precious.
Besides—
"With Fellow Daoist Liu’s wealth, I imagine acquiring a Foundation Establishment Pill shouldn’t be all that difficult?" Lu Chang’sheng asked.
He felt puzzled. If it were any other request, Liu Yun’s move would make more sense. But—for a Foundation Establishment Pill?
They were rare on the market, but one or two did appear from time to time.
Liu Yun was a steward of Glazed Glass Trading House; by rights he should have far better sources than most late-stage Qi Cultivators.
In terms of resources, with an Innate Spiritual Seed, he could pretty reliably exchange for a Foundation Establishment Pill.
"I’d have thought you knew the secret behind this, Daoist Friend."
Liu Yun shot Lu Chang’sheng a surprised glance, then spelled it out: Foundation Establishment Pills came in different grades, and those of higher grade massively increased the success rate of advancement.
Most of the Foundation Establishment Pills on the market were of the lowest grade, with extremely low chances of success.
"So that’s how it is!"
Lu Chang’sheng was still a ways from Foundation Establishment, so he hadn’t cared much, but hearing Liu Yun’s explanation, he understood.
"So those Foundation Establishment Pills released by Supreme Profound Sect earlier were all lower grade?"
"Precisely."
Liu Yun sighed. Ideally, it wouldn’t have come to this—Glazed Glass Trading House spanned entire domains and could have obtained Foundation Establishment Pills of at least mid-grade quality. Unfortunately, before he could gather enough resources, this disaster struck.
Working as a steward in a loose cultivator market—barring a miracle—he’d never get the chance to exchange for a higher-grade Foundation Establishment Pill in his life.
That was why he had no choice but to pin his hopes on Lu Chang’sheng instead.
Lu Chang’sheng pondered for a moment, then said, "And what if I fail to refine one?"
"If it comes to that, then it’s just ill fate for me, and I’d only ask that you look after the future generations of the Liu Family, Fellow Daoist."
"Why don’t you ask those other alchemists to refine it for you, Daoist Liu?"
Lu Chang’sheng asked.
"Impossible. Those capable of refining Foundation Establishment Pills all belong to major factions. There may be the odd loose cultivator alchemist, but their terms are sky-high. Never mind that I’m no longer a steward of Platinum Immortal City—even if I were, this road would be next to impossible."
Lu Chang’sheng didn’t refuse again.
Through this conversation with Liu Yun, he’d come to realize just how hard Foundation Establishment was.
Realm breakthroughs aside—even just the preparations for advancement were enough to stump most cultivators for life.
So, many had no choice but to settle for lower-grade Foundation Establishment Pills, hoping for that minuscule chance of success.
Even someone as strong as Fang Yuan, a late-stage Qi Cultivator, had to keep working and scheming for every step up.
"I never imagined a mid-grade Foundation Establishment Pill was worth several times more than the lowest grade, and if it’s top grade, the price is dozens of times higher—sometimes you can’t even find one on the market at all!"
Of course, it was possible to succeed without a Foundation Establishment Pill, but such people were rare prodigies—according to Liu Yun, he’d only heard of a couple such cases, and even those were uncertain.
No matter the story, though, the main character in question always had at least Grade A talent.
If you lacked Grade A talent, you had no choice but to break through using Foundation Establishment Pills.
