Seeking Immortality in a Bizarre World-Chapter 566 - 561 Extinguishing Longevity Torrent? Watcher_1
"Director Shen, please honor us with your presence; don’t keep Marquis Yun waiting!"
When Jia Ren didn’t respond, the Steward hurriedly called out a second time, his tone filled with urgency.
Jia Ren didn’t know who Marquis Yun was and didn’t want to recklessly step into the unknown.
What if it’s a trap?
He just accepted their favors; to turn them down right away would indeed be quite rude.
Seeing Jia Ren still hesitating, the Steward transmitted a message secretly, "Isn’t Director Shen looking for Tongtian-level warding materials? Marquis Yun happens to have a few in his collection. Not just anyone is qualified to trade with Marquis Yun. If Director Shen wishes to obtain Tongtian-level warding materials, you must offer treasures of matching stature."
So, he came for the Heavenly Spirit Material, Jia Ren realized.
Smiling, Jia Ren declined, "I have nothing of value, nothing that would interest the Marquis. Let’s discuss this another day."
He could easily produce various treasures to exchange for Tongtian-level warding materials, but Director Shen could not. The Deputy Director hadn’t been in his position for long. Although he was in the Late Stage of Void Refinement, he hadn’t accumulated much wealth, and his personal fortune wasn’t substantial.
Going would be pointless. Faced with the Zhenjie Xuanstone, he wouldn’t have the collateral to trade—surely he couldn’t just take it by force?
Now that I know of this avenue through Marquis Yun, it might prove useful one day, he mused.
"I will relay your response to Marquis Yun truthfully."
The richly dressed Steward didn’t linger, driving the Dragon-Horse Beast away.
Jia Ren then visited several other shops. He found that, much like at the Noble Pavilion, the highest quality items were Spiritual Treasures and Spiritual Materials, but purchasing them was restricted by official rank and Daoist Tablets.
Without an identity, it’s difficult to buy treasures, even with money.
This is one of the biggest differences between this realm and the Mysterious Realm.
The greatest gain from this trip, apart from the Mixed Evil Jade, has to be... the Longevity Fruit Trees.
Several shops had Longevity Fruit Trees for sale. He spent Shen Siyuan’s offerings from three years to purchase a total of eleven Longevity Fruit Trees.
Unable to buy Sky-Reaching Level resources, he didn’t waste any more time in the shops.
On his way back, Jia Ren casually passed by the Zhenyuan Office and the Bureau of Heavenly Artifacts. They were similar to the Imperial Demon Management Bureau; from the outside, they looked no larger than a private courtyard, but inside, they were entirely different worlds. The guardianship here was much stricter than at the Imperial Demon Management Bureau. Even just passing by, he was scanned by powerful divine senses. Both offices had Body Integration Realm cultivators stationed there, along with more restrictions and Formations, making intrusion more difficult. The Zhenyuan Office housed powerful Bizarre Demons; if they were to break free from their seals, the consequences would be endless. The Bureau of Heavenly Artifacts was dedicated to Refining Treasures, responsible for all such work in the Daqian Kingdom. Both were critical locations. Although the Imperial Demon Management Bureau’s Seventh-order Li Bird was highly valued by Emperor Gan, it was ultimately a far cry from its Phoenix ancestors. There had been no progress for three hundred years. Emperor Gan, disappointed, had paid less attention after the previous director died.
Jia Ren abandoned the idea of breaking into the Zhenyuan Office and the Bureau of Heavenly Artifacts and safely returned to the Imperial Demon Management Bureau.
The Imperial Demon Management Bureau was much busier than before. New eunuchs from the Imperial Palace had arrived, apparently to confirm the condition of the Seventh-order Li Bird. Confirming pregnancy wasn’t a quick matter; it would take at least a month.
Unwilling to waste time, Jia Ren used seclusion as an excuse and his true body entered the Heaven and Earth Mountain and Sea Pearl. The Longevity Trickster Fruits he had planted previously had now matured and were properly preserved. He needed to plant the new Longevity Fruit Trees and refine the Longevity Trickster Fruits into either the Lifespan Hex Wheel or Longevity Gui Talismans.
"I’ll refine the Longevity Gui Talismans then!" he decided.
The higher a Cultivator’s Realm, the stronger their abilities. The Lifespan Hex Wheel had little effect on Cultivators in the Body Integration Realm and the Mahayana Realm; its cumulative result was unsatisfactory. In contrast, the instant effect of the Longevity Gui Talisman was quite satisfying. A single Longevity Gui Talisman had stripped 1,200 years of lifespan from Qingxuan Zhenjun, a Mahayana Realm expert. Having used up all his remaining Longevity Gui Talismans, Jia Ren now needed to replenish his stock.
He began refining Longevity Gui Talismans early as a precaution against a potential confrontation with Emperor Gan. He had previously received information that Emperor Gan had lived for at least 15,000 years, meaning his remaining lifespan couldn’t be much. Thus, the power of the Longevity Gui Talisman against Emperor Gan could be maximized.
The five Longevity Trickster Fruit Trees yielded a total of fifteen Longevity Trickster Fruits. This was enough to refine fifteen Longevity Gui Talismans, each capable of stripping 3,000 years of lifespan from all targets within its area of effect. Those in the Lianxu Stage possessed at most 4,000 years of lifespan. Advancing to this stage took a considerable amount of time, so few cultivators reached it with 3,000 years of lifespan still intact. Cultivators at or below the Lianxu Stage, without an Evil-Averting Spiritual Treasure to resist it, would die upon contact.
"The downside is that the yield of Longevity Trickster Fruits is too low!" he lamented.
Longevity Fruit Trees were scarce and could not reproduce on their own. After bearing fruit, the trees would wilt. Unlike Spiritual Medicines, they couldn’t leave seeds for sustainable production. Their production cycle far exceeded that of other Bizarre Objects, and their limited quantity meant they couldn’t be mass-produced or used in a Fu Wan form like other Bizarre Talismans.
How I wish I could throw out 1,296 Longevity Gui Talismans at once! he thought. Even if the lifespan of Mahayana Stage Cultivators increased tenfold, they couldn’t withstand such a deluge of lifespan reduction.
"If I face Emperor Gan, stripping away 3,000 years of his lifespan will be enough to cause him significant trouble," Jia Ren mused.
He buried himself in refining Longevity Gui Talismans, intentionally leaving an avatar behind to alert him if anyone came looking for him.
「One month later.」
No one had disturbed him. The Seventh-order Li Bird was confirmed pregnant. Emperor Gan withdrew his edict, saving Shen Siyuan’s life. Jia Ren was happy to have the peace and continued refining the Longevity Gui Talismans.
Refining Longevity Gui Talismans wasn’t easy. Drawing a single Talisman required great caution and comprehensive protective measures. The process was lengthy, necessitating prolonged contact with Longevity Trickster Fruits. A slight mistake, and one’s own lifespan would be exhausted before the Talisman was complete. Refining a single Longevity Gui Talisman took at least half a month, so fifteen of them would require nearly eight months of work.
I thought I wouldn’t be able to remain undisturbed for eight months, but it turned out to be unexpectedly smooth, he reflected.
Eight months passed without any trouble. It was as if Director Shen had been forgotten by everyone, completely ignored.
Indeed, I’m just a tool, only remembered when useful, he thought wryly. Otherwise, I’m treated like trash.
This was actually a good thing. He was glad to use this time to develop steadily.
After Jia Ren finished refining the Longevity Gui Talismans, he studied the powerful Bizarre Demons he had subsequently obtained. The Slow Bizarre, Lazy Bizarre, Sleeping Bizarre, Mold Cloud Bizarre, Resentful Hateful Demonic Wolf, and Wish Bizarre were all decent Bizarre Demons. The Mold Cloud Bizarre was the weakest in terms of raw power, but its ability to bring misfortune was still quite effective. The Slow Bizarre could slow down targets, making it ideal for either dispatching them or simply slowing them for an escape. The Lazy Bizarre could make a target too lazy to attack or move, essentially turning them into a sitting duck; its effect was even better than the Slow Bizarre’s. The Sleeping Bizarre worked on a similar principle to the Lazy Bizarre, putting the target to sleep to achieve its goal. The power of the Resentful Hateful Demonic Wolf could influence and corrupt a target’s mind, preventing them from maintaining a normal mental state and filling them with a hatred for everything, driving them to slaughter indiscriminately. Without sufficient strength, using this was no different from suicide.
The Wish Bizarre offered auxiliary effects for Jia Ren. He could have his avatars or others make wishes to obtain desired items, thereby enhancing his Proficiency Levels in Alchemy, Artifact Refining, and Talisman Crafting. High-grade resources were scarce, making it difficult to increase Proficiency Levels in these arts.
The Wish Bizarre is my key to breaking through this limitation, he realized.
There’s so much to refine!
All these Mysterious Instruments and Bizarre Talismans need to be created from scratch. Without the corresponding Bizarre Objects, it will take a significant amount of time.
This task was delegated to the Xuan Beast Avatar, who would experiment to see if any Spiritual Medicines could be mutated into the required Bizarre Objects.
"The treasures displayed by the Noble Pavilion and several other stores have proven one thing to me," Jia Ren considered, "this world has far more evil-warding materials than I imagined."
"Several of my Bizarre Objects haven’t performed satisfactorily."
"I must find a way to create an artifact or Talisman that can break through Evil-Averting Spiritual Treasures or cause an enemy’s Evil-Averting Spiritual Treasures to malfunction."
"Only then can the true power of items like the Longevity Gui Talismans be maximized."
When the Longevity Gui Talisman was used to ambush Qingxuan Zhenjun, its Lifespan Trickery Power had been resisted by an Evil-Averting Spiritual Treasure. It was only by using the Wuding Stormwave to breach the treasure’s protection that the Lifespan Trickery Power could take effect. Previously, a sneak attack had only succeeded due to the use of a Virtual Spirit Pill. Without Virtual Spirit Pills, Body Integration Realm and Mahayana Stage Cultivators who were on guard wouldn’t be so easily tainted by the powers of Bizarre Demons. The number of Evil-Averting Spiritual Treasures in this realm would only be higher. It wouldn’t be surprising for high-level experts to possess two such treasures, or even Evil-Warding Treasures of Sky-reaching Spirit Treasure grade.
By then, the problem will be serious, he thought. I must make thorough preparations.
"It’s time for Alchemy!"
The priority with the newly obtained Xuling Flower was to refine it into Virtual Spirit Pills.
Virtual Spirit Pills turn the user intangible. Without special methods, it’s impossible to make them visible – truly a life-saving tool.
The urgent matter is to refine them.
Jia Ren focused all his attention on refining Virtual Spirit Pills. Thanks to his increased strength, his Alchemy efficiency had improved.
「Two years and three months later.」
Within the Alchemy Room in the Heaven and Earth Mountain and Sea Pearl, the Pill Furnace opened, revealing nothing inside. The Soul-Exploring Gloves, prepared in advance, activated, and a bright, ghostly light filled the Alchemy Room. Within this light, three pills emerged. They possessed considerable Spiritual Nature and attempted to flee.
"Capture!" Jia Ren commanded.
Under his mental command, the ghostly light gradually transformed, becoming a large net of light that captured all three Virtual Spirit Pills at once.
Three pills were produced from this one refinement, their quality a clear step above previous attempts. Each pill was marked with five delicate black lines.
Five-lined Virtual Spirit Pills – a satisfactory result, Jia Ren thought.
The three Virtual Spirit Pills were placed into three separate Jade Vases. As the restrictive seals on the vases activated, the aura of the pills vanished.
Success!
With three Virtual Spirit Pills in hand, if used wisely, they can save my life three times.
With these, I can visit the Zhenyuan Office and the Bureau of Heavenly Artifacts.
Without powerful life-saving measures, entering those places is too risky; the slightest misstep could be fatal.
Now that the Virtual Spirit Pills ensure my safety, I should find a way to obtain the Zhenjie Xuanstone.
Seek an exchange with Marquis Yun?
A private deal is likely to leave traces, making it difficult to cover up.
Who knows... could it be a trap?
Compared to that, I prefer to firmly hold the initiative, rather than enter someone else’s territory and deal with unknown troubles.
Jia Ren left the Heaven and Earth Mountain and Sea Pearl, returning to the Cultivation Room where he had been in seclusion. The Insect External Incarnation that had been standing guard returned to the Heaven and Earth Mountain and Sea Pearl, the switch completed silently.
He used his Heart-Mind Sensing Technique to scan the surroundings. Just as he was about to leave, he involuntarily froze.
There’s someone outside the door!
The Insect External Incarnation hadn’t detected their presence at all.
If my Heart-Mind Sensing Technique hadn’t reached the Technique-Nearing-Dao Level, I would never have noticed this person.
I don’t know when they arrived or how long they’ve been here.
"Who is spying on me?!" Jia Ren called out sharply.
