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In the alchemy room of the Treasure Pavilion, Granny Yun arrived upon hearing the news to assess the three Foundation Establishnt Pills that Lan Chang'an had refined.
"These are all genuine Foundation Establishnt Pills with very few impurities. Alchemist Xu's skill in pill refinent is extraordinary. I am impressed," Granny Yun praised with great approval.
The Yun siblings were overjoyed, their faces brimming with smiles.
Through a single alchemy session, both siblings had obtained Foundation Establishnt Pills. This not only saved financial resources and ti but also reduced significant risks.
"Alchemist Xu, this is your reward," Granny Yun said as she kept two of the pills and handed the remaining one to Lan Chang'an.
This was in accordance with their prior agreent.
If three Foundation Establishnt Pills were successfully refined, Lan Chang'an would keep one as his compensation.
This session of pill refinent fostered mutual understanding between the two sides, laying the groundwork for trust.
Granny Yun had acknowledged Lan Chang'an's alchemy skills.
All three pills were of great quality, and his alchemy process was both fast and steady.
With such proficiency, he was at least a quasi-third rank alchemist.
Moreover, Alchemist Xu had claid publicly that he could refine certain third-rank pills, although his success rate for such pills was not high.
In the first-floor reception hall of the Treasure Pavilion, Granny Yun personally prepared tea for Lan Chang'an, engaging in casual conversation for a while.
During this ti, Granny Yun discreetly observed this “Mister Xu,” noting his appearance and deanor. She confird that he bore no resemblance to anyone from her mories.
"Could it be so kind of elusive karmic tie from a past life?"
Granny Yun was uncertain, speculating quietly in her heart.
However, the notion of reincarnation or past lives was ultimately irrelevant. A new life was akin to a fresh start, even for close relatives. They could end up as strangers or even mortal enemies.
Thus, delving into one’s past life held little aning.
Unless one could break through the mystery of the womb and awaken mories of the past life, such musings were futile.
Only those of great power, or cultivators who practiced techniques aligned with reincarnation, could achieve this.
Alchemist Xu, as a Fake Dan Immortal and a quasi-third rank alchemist, was at least 100-200 years old.
Granny Yun dismissed any connection to Master Lihuo, whose soul lamp had extinguished decades ago, indicating his fall. Their ages did not align in the slightest.
"This person is refined, gentle, and easy-going—indeed a pleasant individual who is naturally likable to most people," Granny Yun thought as she assessed him further.
As their conversation continued, Granny Yun found herself more and more at ease. Whether it was due to a karmic bond or simply natural affinity, she decided this was soone worth befriending.
Lan Chang'an, on the other hand, wasn’t inclined to delve into prolonged discussions with Granny Yun. However, her enthusiasm made it challenging for him to steer the conversation.
After much effort, he finally directed the discussion toward the main topic:
"Shopkeeper Yun, I heard from Yun Ling that if this pill refinent was successful, you would introduce to a peaceful and independent third-rank spiritual vein site. Is that correct?"
Granny Yun was inexplicably a bit annoyed inwardly, seeing that Lan Chang'an didn't want to chat much with an old woman like herself.
She murmured, "Indeed, I will help introduce it. However, whether it works out depends on both your skills and character, Alchemist Xu."
"Your alchemy skills, I can vouch for. But ultimately, it will depend on the opinion of my old friend, who has full control over that spiritual vein site."
"Is the site located in the River Source Oasis? Which faction owns it?" Lan Chang'an asked.
"It is indeed in the River Source Oasis. That particular site does not belong to any faction, so you won't be required to pledge allegiance or face excessive restrictions. All that’s needed is for you to consistently fulfill so alchemy requests, train a few young assistants in herb processing, and help manage the dicinal herb garden..."
The conditions Granny Yun laid out intrigued Lan Chang'an.
He speculated that it must be a privately owned, small-scale third rank spiritual vein site.
Spiritual veins were categorized not only by rank but also by scale.
The higher the rank of a spiritual vein, the larger its scale typically was.
Even among third-rank spiritual veins, smaller ones existed, most of which were cultivated later in life, not innately ford.
For instance, the dium-to-large third-rank spiritual vein of Jin Yun Valley could simultaneously support the cultivation of seven or eight True Dan cultivators without issue.
"How long will it take to receive confirmation?" Lan Chang'an inquired.
His other two alternatives were not as favorable as this one.
"My old friend is expected to return to the River Source Oasis in about six months. If Immortal Xu doesn’t have a better option, you might as well wait," Granny Yun replied.
"Alright, I’ll wait six months," Lan Chang'an agreed.
He surmised that the six-month tifra was rely a pretext.
During this period, Granny Yun and her old friend would likely investigate the background of “Alchemist Xu” and evaluate his character.
...
The next day.
Lan Chang'an rented a secluded courtyard in the market district for six months. It was more cost-effective than staying at an inn, and it offered greater privacy.
For the next six months, although there was no access to a third-rank spiritual vein, the second-rank spiritual vein provided basic support. To supplent it, Lan Chang'an could use spirit stones and dicinal pills.
However, relying too much on spirit stones and pills wasn’t a sustainable practice. Over ti, it would reduce a cultivator’s ability to attune to the natural flow of the heavens and earth, limiting their potential.
Moreover, using pills and stones as a substitute was ten tis more expensive than renting access to a proper spiritual vein.
During this half-year, Lan Chang'an focused on studying the "Record of Transformative Spirit Puppets" and Ada Wan’s insights on puppet craftsmanship, which greatly inspired his own techniques and creativity.
The human-faced serpent woman puppet he acquired was the culmination of Ada Wan’s lifelong research.
Even though this exotic spirit puppet was a half-finished product, about seventy percent complete, it provided Lan Chang'an with valuable insights. Its flaws, such as a lack of combat endurance and occasional malfunctions, limited its practical use.
Additionally, the independent consciousness infused into the puppet’s spirit resisted Lan Chang'an’s control, creating certain obstacles.
After all, the spirit within the puppet was once Ada Wan’s younger sister, whom he had loved deeply.
Fortunately, Lan Chang'an had no intention of using "her" in combat. She served purely as a research specin.
By analyzing this exotic puppet, Lan Chang'an quickly gained an understanding of the spirit infusion techniques described in the "Record of Transformative Spirit Puppets."
In less than a month, he successfully learned the thod.
This was due to his Nascent Soul Realm insights and powerful spiritual sense which allowed him to approach the level of a mid-grade third-rank puppet master.
Learning the spirit infusion technique, Lan Chang'an now needed experintal subjects.
The process required refining living souls, with intelligent human souls yielding the best results—though the thod was undeniably cruel.
While Lan Chang'an was no saint, he wasn’t the type to senselessly kill innocent people without personal grievances or profit.
Instead, he sent his Earth Burrowing Rat into the desert to capture intelligent sand beasts. Using his Soul-Nurturing Bracelet, he extracted the souls of these beasts for experintation.
He refined the sand beast souls, infusing them into discarded second-rank puppets.
During the refinent process, he erased unfavorable resisting consciousness and mories, leaving behind only clean, instinctual fragnts of awareness.
After multiple attempts, he achieved one or two successful cases.
However, Lan Chang'an quickly realized the limitations and flaws of this thod:
For one, the refining process could sotis destroy the soul entirely, as the tornt was too overwhelming to endure. The stronger the soul’s intelligence, the greater its resistance to refinent.
And secondly, even after successful spirit infusion, the puppet required extensive training and adjustnt.
With enough training ti, a puppet infused with a highly intelligent consciousness could exhibit superior rationality and combat effectiveness, even surpassing cultivators of the sa rank.
However, the two puppets Lan Chang'an successfully infused had rudintary awareness at best, rendering them clumsy and nearly useless in independent combat.
"Ada Wan's success involved an elent of clever exploitation. His love-struck blood sister, willingly cooperated..."
Lan Chang'an discerned the secret behind Ada Wan’s achievent.
While Ada Wan had his unique thods, Lan Chang'an had his own advantage.
The first, second, and fourth lives in the Nine Seal Stele were all ready-made soul forms. These souls, having undergone the purification of the stele’s reincarnation power, were far purer than anything refined artificially.
In contrast, souls obtained through external refinent thods, no matter how ticulously handled, always retained traces of lingering obsessions from their past lives.
In the following days, Lan Chang'an began experinting with the soul shadow of his first life, attempting to infuse it into a puppet.
The soul shadow of his first life lit up extrely fast, nourished by the divine soul of his current Core Formation Realm, it could be illuminated in a day at most.
However, his initial attempts all ended in failure.
Whenever the soul shadow left Lan Chang'an’s body, its rate of decay accelerated. The integration process with the puppet lacked harmony, and the soul shadow would soon dissipate entirely.
Lan Chang'an realized that the perfect compatibility between his current body and the soul of his first life could not be replicated with an external puppet vessel.
To address this, he refined the soul shadow directly within his own body. Compressing and purifying it, he treated it as though crafting a magical treasure, engraving it with his spiritual sense imprint.
Simultaneously, he refined the puppet’s control core, marking it with his spiritual sense as well.
Ultimately, the compressed and purified soul shadow was condensed into a glowing bead no larger than a mung bean, which he then rged into the second-rank puppet’s core.
This ti, it worked!
The soul shadow of his first life was successfully infused into the puppet.
“Hmm?”
Lan Chang'an was astonished to discover that the second-rank turtle puppet infused with the soul shadow now felt like an extension of his own body.
With a single thought, the turtle puppet perford precise and agile movents: backward flips, spinning attacks, and even comical wrestling maneuvers.
Not only did it respond seamlessly to his commands, but it also consud an almost negligible amount of his spiritual sense.
Over the next two months, Lan Chang'an’s excitent grew.
The compressed and refined soul shadow, supported by the puppet’s spiritual crystal core, could remain active for extended periods as long as it wasn’t engaged in intense combat.
One night, Lan Chang'an tested the puppet in the wilderness, sending it far away.
Remarkably, even at a distance of hundreds of li, he could control the puppet as easily as moving his own limbs. It felt like a remote clone.
Even more incredible, he could share the puppet’s senses.
“A puppet clone!”
Excitent surged in Lan Chang'an’s mind.
Ada Wan’s exotic puppets lacked this kind of intimate control or long-distance maneuverability.
Lan Chang'an deduced that the key lay in the soul shadow he had infused—it was a fragnt of his own past life’s soul, essentially another version of himself!
Therefore, after the spirit is infused into the puppet, it could achieve a level of synergy resembling the Avatar Technique of the Deity Transformation Realm.
However, there were differences.
Lan Chang'an’s puppet clone lacked independent consciousness and required constant remote control.
In contrast, a true Avatar Technique could only be cultivated at the Deity Transformation Realm, also known as the Spirit Splitting stage. At this level, a cultivator could separate a portion of their soul into a fully autonomous entity without harming their soul’s origin.
An avatar created this way could act independently, capable of exploring, fighting, and completing complex tasks without affecting the main body.
At realms below the Nascent Soul Realm, achieving such a feat was nearly impossible.
Even using external tools to create a second Nascent Soul ca with imnse risks, such as damaging the original soul and permanently reducing one’s potential.
This was why so few Nascent Soul cultivators managed to create avatars and those who did typically produced crippled versions with nurous limitations.
Lan Chang'an recalled records he had read in the fourth life.
Even at the Deity Transformation Realm, avatars carried risks. If the main body was injured or the avatar acquired great opportunities that allowed it to surpass the main body, it could result in the avatar rebelling.
Such incidents had occurred more than once in the ancient history of the Heaven Honoured Continent.
"Although my puppet clone is far inferior to the avatars of Deity Transformation cultivators, it’s only infused with the soul shadow of my first life."
“If I were to use the soul shadow of my second life at the peak Core Formation stage or my fourth life at the Nascent Soul Realm, the puppet’s range and strength would be even greater.”
A vision began to form in Lan Chang'an’s mind:
He could remain safely hidden in the Fengyuan Kingdom while remotely controlling a powerful puppet infused with the soul shadow of his fourth life. This puppet could travel back to the Righteous Dao Alliance or the Liang Kingdom’s cultivation world to procure resources, gather intelligence, or even assassinate enemies.
Of course, this was purely theoretical for now, as there were many challenges to overco.
For instance, the puppet would need to appear indistinguishable from a human in both appearance and behavior.
Unfortunately, the puppet-making techniques from his fourth life were ordinary and lacked the specialized refinents needed for such feats.
Ada Wan’s techniques were sowhat advanced in this regard, but his puppets were still easy to expose upon close inspection, only capable of deceiving low-level cultivators.
“To create a flawless puppet clone capable of acting as my proxy, I have to obtain the core puppet-crafting techniques of the Thousand chanisms Sect.”
Lan Chang'an resolved to settle down in the Fengyuan Kingdom and advance to Core Formation mid-stage before considering this matter.
...
Over the agreed six months.
The half-year passed productively for Lan Chang'an.
His current puppet clone, however, was still nothing more than a remote-controlled "large toy." Its practicality was inferior even to the Earth Burrowing Rat, which could act autonomously.
One day, Yun Ling paid him a visit, interrupting his studies.
This ti, Yun Ling ca alone, as her elder brother Yun Hao was in seclusion, preparing to break through to the Foundation Establishnt Realm.
"Alchemist Xu, Granny asked to co," Yun Ling said softly.
Dressed in a pink and white long dress, Yun Ling perford a formal bow. Her voice was as sweet as tinkling bells.
Lan Chang'an looked at the seventeen- or eighteen-year-old girl in front of him. Her bright star-like eyes, snow-white skin, slender waist, and tender, rosy lips all exuded a pure and vibrant beauty.
While her appearance was quite different from Guan Qiaozhi’s, she possessed a youthful charm that was reminiscent of her. In fact, her looks and deanor surpassed the latter’s in many ways.
"No need for formalities. What instructions does Shopkeeper Yun have for ?" Lan Chang'an said, waving his hand casually. His tone was gentle and composed.
Yun Ling appeared slightly nervous in front of the Fake Dan Immortal.
She glanced at the refined and elegant man but quickly lowered her head, avoiding direct eye contact.
"This is a token Granny Yun asked to deliver to you," she said seriously, holding out a purple jade pendant with her delicate, jade-like fingers.
As he looked at her fair and slender hand up close, Lan Chang'an’s gaze turned thoughtful. With a slight surge of his Core energy, he drew the jade pendant into his hand.
The mont his spiritual sense made contact with it, a simple map erged within the jade pendant, marking a location in the River Source Oasis.
While Lan Chang'an studied the jade pendant, Yun Ling’s cheeks flushed slightly.
Her nervousness stemd from her hidden agenda—this visit carried a subtle test, one she suspected the elder before her might have already seen through.
In their previous three encounters, the sense of kinship and familiarity she felt with him had stirred her curiosity.
The first ti they t during a trade in the market, Lan Chang'an had deliberately let her gain the upper hand, a gesture that felt unusual.
Her Granny had always warned her that there were no free benefits in this world, especially from n.
Granny Yun had once outlined a universal truth: regardless of whether they were young n, middle-aged, or elderly, all n shared an immutable fondness for young and beautiful won.
Lan Chang'an’s earlier actions inevitably led Yun Ling to wonder: Could this elder actually harbor so thoughts about her?
To test this, she decided that if Alchemist Xu took the opportunity to touch her hand while receiving the token, it would confirm her suspicions of his ill intentions—what her brother Yun Hao called "an old cow eating young grass."
Interestingly, Granny Yun had expressed so interest in Alchemist Xu and didn’t oppose Yun Ling’s willingness to explore such matters.
If Alchemist Xu turned out to be indecent, then even with the token in hand, his prospects of securing the spiritual vein site would be slim.
Of course, Yun Ling was willing to "sacrifice" a bit of her charm, especially since she found the refined and handso elder rather appealing.
If he had been in his seventies or eighties with a decrepit appearance, she wouldn’t have entertained the idea.
Yun Ling was first nervously surprised, and then there was a faint hint of inexplicable loss.
"Alright, I understand now," Lan Chang'an said with a nod as he put away the purple jade pendant.
"If there’s nothing else, you can return," he added, dismissing her.
Yun Ling hesitated briefly but ultimately left.
As her figure was about to disappear through the courtyard gate, muffled sounds ca from Lan Chang'an’s spirit beast pouch.
The Profound Water Turtle inside was protesting, eager to co out and play with Yun Ling.
"You lazy bastard, you want to rebel?" Lan Chang'an chided.
"You haven’t even learned a basic transformation technique, and you dare think about rekindling old ties?"
The turtle could only puff out bubbles, its eyes filled with pitiful grievance.
Unlike the diligent Earth Burrowing Rat, which had studied beast techniques and transformations during its ti with the Beast Taming Zhou Family, the Profound Water Turtle was inherently lazy and lacked drive.
The Earth Burrowing Rat had long since mastered the transformation technique and several combat skills, even training itself in the beast-taming inheritance from Huang Lan Immortal’s spoils of war without urging from Lan Chang'an.
...
Lan Chang'an left the market district and followed the map within the jade pendant, heading to a forested area on the northwestern edge of the River Source Oasis.
As he neared the location, the jade pendant glowed with a purple crystalline light.
Buzz!
In the air around the forest, a faint white radiance flickered briefly, as if an invisible barrier had been triggered.
In an instant, a vast and ancient manor spanning dozens of acres appeared before Lan Chang'an’s eyes.
The manor had been concealed by a third-rank illusion array that distorted spiritual sense perception.
Additionally, a spatial compression technique made the expansive manor appear as though it occupied only a few acres within the oasis.
"A small, tucked-away haven," Lan Chang'an remarked as he observed the manor.
The outer gardens were filled with vibrant dicinal herbs and spiritual trees. Within, there were serene mountains, flowing waters, pavilions, and winding paths that exuded tranquility.
The small spiritual vein here emitted a pressure that barely reached the third rank, suggesting it had been artificially cultivated rather than naturally ford.
A voice called out from the manor.
"Alchemist Xu, I’ve been awaiting your arrival here at the Mountain-Water Manor."
Sitting cross-legged in front of a pavilion overlooking the water was a slightly overweight, middle-aged man in loose robes. He appeared to be in his fifties.
The man smiled warmly and waved his wide sleeve, deactivating the manor’s protective array and opening an invisible gate to invite Lan Chang'an inside.
Judging by the faint fluctuations of Core energy emanating from him, this mysterious man with the surna Duan was at least a True Dan cultivator—even more than just the early stage.
If it was an ordinary Fake Dan cultivator, they might not dare to rush in.
If he didn't dare to enter and squird, he would be looked down upon by the other party, and the introduction matter might end there.
"Eh? So it's this grandson," Lan Chang'an muttered under his breath, his eyes narrowing slightly.
Though the elder’s appearance had changed, his aura could not be disguised.
This "Duan elder" was none other than his fourth life’s grandson.
"Apologies for the wait, Elder Duan," Lan Chang'an said after a brief pause, scanning the area to ensure it wasn’t completely isolated.
Taking a deep breath, he flew into the Mountain-Water Manor.
Elder Duan, stroking his beard with a smile, noticed Lan Chang'an’s cautious deanor and nodded approvingly.
Over the past six months, he had investigated Alchemist Xu’s background. Rumor had it that the man had once been attacked and robbed near the Scorpion Desolate City, only to reappear in the River Source Oasis, seemingly destitute.
"Alchemist Xu, please sit. If you have any concerns, feel free to ask," Duan said as he gestured with his sleeve, conjuring a cushion for Lan Chang'an.
The two sat across from each other in the pavilion.
Lan Chang'an got straight to the point: "This third-rank spiritual vein seems newly cultivated. How many Immortals can it support?"
Elder Duan patiently explained, "This small spiritual vein is suitable for one True Dan cultivator, along with so Foundation Establishnt and Qi-Refining juniors, without any strain."
"If two True Dan cultivators were to use it simultaneously, it would be a bit taxing. However, the manor also has a third-rank spirit gathering array. With enough spirit stone investnt, it could support two to three True Dan cultivators for extended periods."
Lan Chang'an nodded. Small third-rank spiritual veins were typically personal cultivation sites, capable of supporting only one or two cultivators of similar rank.
Elder Duan continued, "Most of the ti, I’m away traveling for business or other ventures. If you’re willing, Alchemist Xu, I’d like you to guard this place, tend to the spiritual trees and dicinal herbs, and occasionally refine so pills or train alchemy apprentices as compensation."
"Is Elder Duan really comfortable entrusting alone with such a site?" Lan Chang'an asked curiously.
Small third-rank spiritual veins were rare and strategic resources in the River Source Oasis. Other factions might attempt to seize it to attract Core Formation experts, or If there was a highly skilled vein formation master, they could even rge it with their own third-rank spirit vein to strengthen its power.
A Fake Dan Immortal, guarding a newly cultivated small third-rank cultivation site, and tending to spiritual trees and herbs, sounded unreliable.
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