I Shall Be Everlasting In the World of Immortals 281

## Chapter 278: Wronged Good Man

Jin Yun Valley, Yun Lai Peak.

After sending Xie Wuji away, Lu Chang’an turned his attention back to the Xuan Tian Hu Teng.

After all, he had invested 144 years of his lifespan.

After two months of observation, Lu Chang’an discovered that the Xuan Tian Hu Teng’s natural restoration of its green hue was more than twice as fast as before!

Even if Lu Chang’an didn’t sacrifice his lifespan and only nurtured it with the Chang Qing Gong, it would only take a thousand years for the Xuan Tian Hu Teng to regain all its greenness.

This was measured by the standard of an early Golden Core cultivator.

In the mid to late Golden Core stages, this natural restoration rate would accelerate significantly.

If he were to reach the Nascent Soul stage, he could probably drastically shorten the time.

If he wasn’t willing to sacrifice his lifespan, and just relied on time, a few hundred years might be enough.

Furthermore, Lu Chang’an confirmed a phenomenon:

After the last sacrifice of a hundred years of lifespan, the gourd fruit seed on the Xuan Teng further rotted and turned black, and its death aura became even stronger.

Lu Chang’an recalled a vague legend recorded in the “Xuan Tian Secret Transmissions.”

Whether it was the Lesser Xuan Tian or the Greater Xuan Tian, they were both unique treasures upon their birth.

When a Xuan Tian treasure existed or was in a state of growth, even if there were other cultivating mediums elsewhere, they could not give birth to the same Xuan Tian.

Thus, Lu Chang’an called over the Xuan Shui Gui and assigned it a task.

“Tell me the moment this withered gourd fruit seed falls.”

Hearing his master’s instructions.

The Xuan Shui Gui opened its watery green eyes, its thick and clumsy expression, extended its large head, and nodded up and down in affirmation.

Lu Chang’an sighed. The Xuan Shui Gui had grown bigger and lost some of its cuteness from when it was younger.

This turtle preferred quiet and disliked movement, but it was honest and reliable.

…

With the Xuan Tian Hu Teng firmly rooted, Lu Chang’an settled into a stable cultivation life in Jin Yun Valley.

The materials for third-order talismans weren’t that abundant, so Lu Chang’an’s task of drawing talismans was relatively relaxed.

His other duties as a guest elder included managing some minor logistics and occasionally providing guidance to the talisman masters within the sect.

At the early Golden Core stage, Lu Chang’an only needed to cultivate for one or two hours a day.

Any more than that, and his cultivation wouldn’t progress.

The age limit of the Chang Qing Gong still existed after he formed his Golden Core.

However, Lu Chang’an’s cultivation speed at the early Golden Core stage wasn’t slow.

“At my current cultivation progress, it will take about sixty years to reach the peak of the early Golden Core stage.”

This was the rough estimate Lu Chang’an came up with after stabilizing his cultivation.

Among Golden Core cultivators, this was considered a normal speed, neither slow nor fast.

It was similar to his previous life.

In his past life, he had a top-grade spiritual root and formed a mid-tier Golden Core.

After experiencing the gradual pace of cultivation in the Qi Condensation and Foundation Establishment stages, Lu Chang’an readily accepted it.

He estimated that there would be some benefits after forming his Golden Core.

Moreover, it would be easier to breakthrough to the smaller realms within the Golden Core stage, and he wouldn’t stay stuck at any bottlenecks for long.

For Golden Core cultivators, the quality of their Core was the biggest factor in measuring their potential and foundation.

At this stage, Lu Chang’an no longer needed to use the Chang Qing Gong to gauge his foundation; his Golden Core was the best foundation.

Cultivators at this level mostly practiced high-level techniques and had extraordinary inheritances.

The extra advantage of the Chang Qing Gong at the moment was its superior mental state, exceeding most cultivation techniques.

The enhancement of mental state was a characteristic shared by many longevity techniques.

This came at the cost of combat ability.

Apart from the Chang Qing Gong, Lu Chang’an never slacked in his cultivation of body refinement.

This was a way for him to utilize his spare time.

In the cultivation world, there were very few who achieved significant success in both cultivation and body refinement.

Time, energy, resources, materials, and body refinement talent were all limiting factors.

Lu Chang’an had no shortage of any of these.

As a result, his progress in the “Hundred Refinement Golden Body” technique was significantly faster than the Chang Qing Gong.

He had over 400,000 spirit stones.

Over half of them came from the storage ring of the Li Huo Shang Ren.

The rest were his recent earnings, mostly congratulatory gifts from his multiple Golden Core breakthroughs, some of which he had sold for spirit stones.

With ample wealth, Lu Chang’an didn’t lack any resources for body refinement.

Other body refinement practitioners would become exhausted and experience excessive strain on their bodies if they practiced for more than two hours a day, easily causing harm.

Lu Chang’an had excellent endurance and recovery ability, so he didn’t get tired easily.

Even if he was careless and caused damage to his body during practice, he could use his Chang Qing power to heal it promptly, eliminating the risk of any aftereffects.

Lu Chang’an’s body refinement not only lasted longer but was also bolder, so his efficiency was naturally higher.

“If there wasn’t the external factor of the demon invasion, I could reach the peak of the late Golden Core stage in a couple of hundred years in Jin Yun Valley…”

Lu Chang’an hoped that the Righteous Dao Alliance could withstand the demon invasion and buy him more time to cultivate.

As an Immortal Golden Core cultivator, reaching the mid-Golden Core stage would make him a powerful figure among True Immortals, with a significant increase in strength.

If he reached the late Golden Core stage, he would have few rivals below the Nascent Soul stage.

Among the elite, they could even have a chance of survival or escape against Nascent Soul True Immortals.

…

On this day, Lu Chang’an finished his routine cultivation, including the nurturing of his treasure talismans.

After forming his Golden Core, the nurturing effect on his treasure talismans increased by severalfold.

Lu Chang’an predicted that he would have the chance to nurture a fourth-order treasure talisman in about a hundred years.

His best eight treasure talismans were made from third-order top-grade, penetrating spirit bamboo.

The two of highest grade were even based on third-order top-grade material.

The remaining six were basically the best among the third-order mid-grade talismans.

After ascending to the Golden Core stage, Lu Chang’an had seen stable results in nurturing his third-order mid and lower-grade treasure talismans.

Especially the ones with a third-order lower-grade foundation, their nurturing effect was the best, and it was estimated that they would become third-order mid-grade within thirty years.

In his past life, Lu Chang’an had spent hundreds of years studying the incomplete treasure talisman inheritance and supplementing and perfecting it.

Based on this, combined with the special nature of the Chang Qing Gong, he achieved remarkable results.

However, the treasure talisman inheritance was only limited to the third order.

Lu Chang’an could only create third-order treasure talismans. Beyond that, the techniques were lost.

Putting away the sixty-plus treasure talismans.

Lu Chang’an suddenly felt a sensation and took out the Elder Token from his storage pouch.

The token emitted a white glow.

Lu Chang’an touched it with his hand and received the transmitted message.

“Elder Lu, please come to the Sect Master’s Hall.”

It was a message from the Jin Yun Sect Master, Xuan Xiao True Immortal.

This method of transmission was primarily in the hands of high-level officials in the Liang Kingdom’s cultivation world, and its cost was very high.

There were also restrictions on the distance of transmission.

It was generally within a few hundred or a thousand miles.

Jin Yun Valley had set up hidden relay formations within its territory, which expanded the transmission range.

Therefore, as long as they were within the territory of Jin Yun Valley, high-level officials and elders could communicate and send simple messages.

Lu Chang’an didn’t hesitate and flew directly to the Sect Master’s Hall.

…

“Elder Lu, please look at this intelligence report.”

The Jin Yun Sect Master remained expressionless and flicked his finger, sending a jade slip to Lu Chang’an.

“Xie Wuji… disappeared and died!”

Upon examining the intelligence report on the jade slip, Lu Chang’an was a bit dumbfounded.

Unforeseen!

He hadn’t even made a move… Xie Wuji died mysteriously?

Lu Chang’an had secretly kept in mind the threat and coercion Xie Wuji posed.

His original plan was to wait until the demon invasion, when the Chen Kingdom’s Xie clan declined, and then find a chance to retaliate in the future.

Chen Kingdom was located at the front line of the demon invasion. The Xie clan and the Tian Luo Sect’s forces would inevitably suffer losses, and even face the danger of being wiped out.

At the very least, he would wait until he reached the mid to late Golden Core stage, nurture and refine the “Nail-Head Arrow” with true fire for decades or even centuries, and then ambush him secretly, nailing him to death with an arrow!

Plans never go as planned. He had actually died.

“The intelligence came from Chen Kingdom, and it happened about two months ago! Previously, the Xie clan had concealed Xie Wuji’s death and secretly investigated…”

The Jin Yun Sect Master said solemnly.

“Two months ago?”

Lu Chang’an’s expression changed slightly.

That was the time when Xie Wuji confronted him and they exchanged harsh words.

“What did the Chen Kingdom Xie clan say after their investigation?”

Lu Chang’an had already realized something.

“The Chen Kingdom Xie clan claims that True Immortal Lu is the key suspect, and that he conspired with the Xuan Yin Sect or the Wu Jian Sect to kill Xie Wuji.”

The Jin Yun Sect Master glanced at Lu Chang’an, his expression becoming strange.

Lu Chang’an had not left Jin Yun Valley in the past two months, and he was well aware of that.

“Nonsense! The Chen Kingdom Xie clan is blind as a bat, wrongly accusing a good man!”

Lu Chang’an couldn’t help but be enraged and retorted angrily.

He had been unjustly blamed?

Lu Chang’an was certain that he had murderous intent but had never actually taken action.

In the short term, Lu Chang’an didn’t want to provoke the Chen Kingdom Xie clan, which had Nascent Soul masters.

His verbal conflict with Xie Wuji was just an act for both sides to pretend to forget about the matter.

Xie Wuji left, only to go and kill someone. This was too ridiculous, the motive was too obvious.

Even if Lu Chang’an did have the ability to contact experts from the Demon Sect or the Wu Jian Sect, it would have been too hasty, with not enough time.

“True Immortal Lu, don’t worry. This sect believes this matter has nothing to do with you, and the Xie clan has no convincing evidence.”

The Jin Yun Sect Master reassured him.

Anyone with discerning eyes could see that Lu Chang’an was most likely falsely accused and unlikely to be the murderer.

Firstly, Lu Chang’an was a newly ascended Golden Core cultivator and couldn’t threaten an established True Immortal at the peak of the early Golden Core stage.

He would have to be much stronger than Xie Wuji to kill him without leaving any traces.

Secondly, Lu Chang’an had a good reputation and disliked fighting. He was in Jin Yun Valley at the time of the incident, with an alibi.

The Xie clan accused Lu Chang’an because they had no other clues.

All they knew was that he died on the border wasteland when returning to Chen Kingdom.

Xie Wuji had a verbal conflict with Lu Chang’an before his death, which was the only visible lead.

Even in mundane murder cases, those who had disagreements with the deceased were also suspects during the investigation.

“The Chen Kingdom Tai Hu Xie clan is tyrannical and has countless enemies. They can’t find the real culprit, so they’re making a scapegoat out of an honest man.”

Lu Chang’an’s tone carried a hint of sarcasm.

After briefly thinking, he guessed the Xie clan’s intention.

The Xie clan, in fact, suspected the Wu Jian Sect or the Xuan Yin Sect.

As the war began, the Wu Jian Sect had launched some assassination plans.

The Xuan Yin Sect’s Sect Master, Liang Shaotian, had the ability to easily kill Xie Wuji without leaving any traces.

If they were to arrest Lu Chang’an as a suspect, regardless of the outcome, it would have at least two benefits.

Firstly, it would provide an explanation internally and externally.

Secondly, it would give them a legitimate reason to act, prompting Xia Wenyue to plead for him.

“True Immortal Lu, you are an Elder of Jin Yun Valley. Without concrete evidence, even the Chen Kingdom’s Tian Luo Sect can’t touch you!”

The Jin Yun Sect Master’s casual tone contained a powerful sense of conviction.

Lu Chang’an immediately expressed his gratitude and loyalty.

As long as Jin Yun Valley protected him, the Chen Kingdom Xie clan would be powerless to threaten an Elder of a sect in another country.

Moreover, the Jin Yang Sect, which ruled Liang Kingdom, was stronger than Chen Kingdom.

Jin Yun Valley was now affiliated with the Jin Yang Sect’s camp.

To dare to act against a sect of Liang Kingdom was to show disrespect to the Jin Yang Sect.

Even if Lu Chang’an were an Elder of a weaker sect in Jing Kingdom, as long as his sect was willing to protect him and take a tough stance, the Chen Kingdom Xie clan wouldn’t necessarily be able to do anything.

A powerful cultivation kingdom wasn’t necessarily able to bully sects from weaker nations.

There was also an “international situation” in the cultivation world, especially during the invasion of the six demon sects.

…

Back in his subworld, Lu Chang’an’s expression was gloomy.

This was the first time he had been falsely accused and blamed in this life.

Who killed Xie Wuji was secondary.

Lu Chang’an was even grateful that someone had avenged him.

What was hateful was the Chen Kingdom Xie clan!

They knew he was most likely innocent, yet they still claimed he was the key suspect.

“Lu Chang’an, I won’t step outside the territory of Jin Yun Valley from now on. What can you do to me?”

Lu Chang’an sneered, making up his mind.

After forming his Golden Core, as long as the external situation didn’t affect him, he would be happy to close himself off for sixty years and try to break through to the mid-Golden Core stage.

He had a long lifespan, and he was patient.

“Strange, Xing Peng hasn’t contacted me in the past few months.”

Lu Chang’an sat down to drink tea and quickly noticed something amiss.

In the vicinity of Jin Yun Valley, he and Xing Peng had a special way of contacting each other.

Xing Peng had obtained a suitable identity as an outer disciple of Jin Yun Valley.

This outer disciple had died on a sect mission, and Xing Peng had replaced his identity with the “Green Face” from the Wu Jian Sect.

If Lu Chang’an was in Jin Yun Valley, Xing Peng might not meet him, but he would send him information every few months.

The encrypted intelligence was retrieved by the Di Yan Shu.

A few days later.

Xing Peng finally contacted Lu Chang’an.

Lu Chang’an, as a guest elder, was outside checking the logistics under his jurisdiction.

He communicated with Xing Peng’s disguised outer disciple through his divine sense.

“Mr. Lu, I received orders from above to temporarily suspend the task of tracking you.”

Xing Peng transmitted his report to Lu Chang’an’s mind through his divine sense.

“Later, I learned that a Wu Jian Sect expert assassinated Xie Wuji.”

“The assassin is probably my cousin, ‘Shadowless Leader’. Soon, he will be promoted to the Jing Kingdom’s Branch Leader.”

“Shadowless Leader?”

Lu Chang’an remembered that there was no Wu Jian Sect branch in Jing Kingdom. It was previously overseen by the Liang Kingdom Branch Leader, and there were only three leaders.

“With the rise of the Xuan Yin Sect, Liang Shaotian ascended to the late Golden Core stage faster than expected. The Holy Gate has reevaluated Jing Kingdom.”

“My cousin is at the peak of the mid-Golden Core stage. He is considered one of the top leaders, and he has received recognition from the Holy Gate’s higher-ups. This assassination was probably a test for him.”

After Xing Peng obediently finished his report.

He then apologized to Lu Chang’an:

“It was my negligence. I didn’t get a clear picture of the situation beforehand, causing Mr. Lu to be wrongly accused.”

“The previous operation was a decision made by the Wu Jian Sect’s high-level officials. It had nothing to do with your capabilities.”

Lu Chang’an didn’t hold him accountable, but he would later search Xing Peng’s soul to confirm his loyalty.

The real culprit was the Wu Jian Sect. The situation was clear.

Xie Wuji, as the direct descendant of the Xie clan, a True Immortal cultivator, an Elder of the Tian Luo Sect, and also Xia Wenyue’s father.

He was undoubtedly a key figure.

Killing him would drag the Chen Kingdom Xie clan, the Demon Sect, Jin Yun Valley, and the Ao Yue Palace into the conflict.

Xia Wenyue, who was in the Ao Yue Palace, would also be affected.

Lu Chang’an, who was wrongly accused, would surely resent the Chen Kingdom Xie clan.

In the Wu Jian Sect’s intelligence, Lu Chang’an was no ordinary True Immortal cultivator.

“To stir up the situation and cause infighting among the Righteous Dao Alliance’s major factions, this is precisely the Wu Jian Sect’s objective.”

Lu Chang’an understood.

This blame was inevitable.

It was as the saying goes:

If you spend your days chasing geese, you will eventually be pecked by a goose.

Fortunately, Lu Chang’an knew who had unjustly blamed him, and one day he would get his revenge.

…

That night.

Lu Chang’an took advantage of the Second Life’s possession not yet fading and searched Xing Peng’s soul.

He used the identity of the mysterious, peak Golden Core cultivator with a white beard.

Lu Chang’an searched the superficial memories of the past year, which wouldn’t hurt Xing Peng’s Sea of Consciousness.

Xing Peng actively cooperated, showing his loyalty and not betraying Lu Chang’an.

After the soul search, Lu Chang’an strengthened the restrictions on his Sea of Consciousness.

Through the Soul Gu’s insect restrictions from the Hundred Nights Soul Gu, Lu Chang’an continuously improved his unique restrictions.

He named them “Gu Shen Restrictions.”

Lu Chang’an had a long lifespan and plenty of free time. Even though his aptitude wasn’t top-notch, he could still constantly improve and strengthen these restrictions.

The Gu Shen Restrictions he placed this time were significantly stronger than the ones in Jing Kingdom.

After all, Lu Chang’an had ascended to the Golden Core stage, and the divine soul power he had merged with from his past life was beyond the realm of Golden Core cultivation.

After returning to Liang Kingdom and re-encountering Zhou Qingxuan’s Sea of Consciousness restrictions, he had made further improvements to the “Gu Shen Restrictions” in the past few years.

“Little one, the restrictions in your Sea of Consciousness are difficult for even an ordinary Nascent Soul True Immortal to break.”

Lu Chang’an, disguised as the peak Golden Core cultivator with a white beard, was able to portray the role naturally, thanks to the possession of his past life. His divine aura and demeanor were impeccable.

“Considering your unwavering loyalty, this old man will give you an opportunity to transform and reform your Golden Core. It will be valid for three years. Prepare the resources yourself when you return.”

Leaving these words of kindness and intimidation behind, the white-bearded elder disappeared from the outer disciple’s room where Xing Peng resided.

The Grand Elder, who had the highest cultivation, was not in the sect.

Lu Chang’an could come and go as he pleased in the outer sect area of Jin Yun Valley at night.

Most of the outer sect elders were at the False Golden Core stage.

The transformation opportunity he had mentioned was actually a plan to use Xing Peng as a guinea pig.

Xing Peng was thirty years younger than Lu Chang’an, and there was still hope for him to reform his Golden Core.

As a Wu Jian Sect Leader, he had some financial resources and connections and could prepare the resources himself.

Even if he failed and died during the transformation, Lu Chang’an wouldn’t lose anything.

…

A few months later.

The Second Life in Lu Chang’an’s mind had long since faded.

With his Golden Core-level divine soul and the nurturing of the Soul Nourishing Ring, the Second Life’s activation speed was very fast.

Lu Chang’an calculated that it would only take a year to activate the Second Life.

It would be even faster when he reached the mid-Golden Core stage.

Even though the activation time had significantly decreased, the Second Life’s soul shadow enhancement didn’t contribute as much to his overall strength as it did in the Foundation Establishment stage.

However, that powerful divine soul state was very helpful for Lu Chang’an in drawing talismans, using the Gu Shen Restrictions, and mimicking identities through the Hundred Illusions Mask.

On this day.

Lu Chang’an, who was in seclusion, sensed a powerful Golden Core aura approaching Jin Yun Valley.

“A late Golden Core cultivator.”

Lu Chang’an realized that the visitor was not a Grand Elder of Jin Yun Valley and had malicious intent.

The Jin Yun Sect Master went out to greet him and negotiate with the late Golden Core cultivator.

The visitor was a skinny, emaciated old man in coarse clothes, with sunken eye sockets and a sinister expression.

During this period, the Jin Yun Valley’s protective sect formation was activated.

Lu Chang’an observed secretly and learned the visitor’s intentions.

The visitor was a senior of Xie Wuji, putting pressure on Jin Yun Valley to hand over Lu Chang’an and send him to the Chen Kingdom Tian Luo Sect for investigation.

“Xie True Immortal, you don’t need to say more! Your sect has no concrete evidence and is wrongly accusing an Elder of this sect. How can Jin Yun Valley tolerate your nonsense!”

The Jin Yun Sect Master spoke in a harsh tone, taking a firm stance and sending him away.

Lu Chang’an silently gave him a thumbs-up.

Joining Jin Yun Valley and having a big tree to rely on was a good choice.

In Jin Yun Valley, he would uphold his duties as a guest elder.

If he were to unfortunately run away in the future, he would still be polite and help if he could.

The Xie clan and the Tian Luo Sect couldn’t do anything to Jin Yun Valley, even if they crossed cultivation kingdoms.

The emaciated old man left with a sullen expression.

Before leaving, he asked to see Lu Chang’an, but the Jin Yun Sect Master promptly refused.

The visitor was, after all, a late Golden Core cultivator, and the Jin Yun Sect Master was worried that he might have some strange means to threaten Lu Chang’an.

“Lu Chang’an, you’re guilty, and you don’t even have the courage to come out and face us?”

The emaciated old man’s voice boomed like thunder, reverberating through the sky above Jin Yun Valley.

Lu Chang’an leisurely brewed tea and ignored him.

“Uncle Lu, everyone’s come to your doorstep! You wouldn’t be the mastermind, conspiring with the Wu Jian Sect to murder Xie Wuji, would you?”

Zhao Tan’er sat beside him, eating fruits, her beautiful eyes twinkling.

“Turtle True Immortal! If you have the guts, stay in Jin Yun Valley forever!”

Unable to see Lu Chang’an, the emaciated old man left Jin Yun Valley with a sarcastic remark.

“Uncle Lu, he’s mocking you.”

Zhao Tan’er smiled subtly, her teeth like pearls, her expression mischievous.

“His suggestion is good!”

“Uncle Lu, you should stay in Jin Yun Valley from now on. Raise turtles, plant herbs, draw talismans, and sip tea. What could be more carefree?”

Lu Chang’an took a sip of his spirit tea and said leisurely.

Zhao Tan’er “puffed” out a laugh, her chest rising and falling, her eyes bright:

“Are you serious?”

In her opinion, the Xie clan was just making empty threats to save face and wouldn’t dare to make trouble in the cultivation world of Liang Kingdom.

As long as Lu Chang’an didn’t leave Liang Kingdom, he would be safe.

“What do you think?” Lu Chang’an glanced at her.

“Hee! It’s fine if you stay in Jin Yun Valley. I’ll bring Master back from the front lines in a while.”

Zhao Tan’er raised her brows and said happily.

“Your combat ability is acceptable, but on the battlefield, it’s easy to dodge an obvious attack, but difficult to avoid a hidden arrow.”

Lu Chang’an reminded her.

…

Not long after, Zhao Tan’er voluntarily went to the front lines of the war.

Perhaps she was unlucky.

At this juncture, the demon invasion war inevitably escalated into a large-scale conflict.

(End of Chapter)

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