Cultivating Immortality Begins with Rejuvenation

After a decade of separation, Li Ji'an still felt the grandeur of the towering immortal city was awe-inspiring.

He had just finished registering at the city gate when Zhao Shuyao approached.

Now eighty-four years old, Zhao Shuyao looked like a kind old grandmother, with a full head of silver hair and a warm smile.

"Xiao Fan, it's good that you arrived safely, really good."

"Aunt Yao."

During these ten years, they had kept in touch, mostly with Zhao Shuyao expressing her concern.

In a sense, among the five people who came here from the Immortal Bestowal Dynasty, only Li Ji'an's descendants were regarded as their true hope and continuation.

Zhao Shuyao had remained unmarried and childless her entire life. Zhang Tiezhu's child bore the surname Yan, and Dong Jiangling had a daughter, and neither of them had revealed the matters of the Immortal Bestowal Dynasty. Only Li Ji'an carried on their past.

A person dies twice, first physically, and second when they are forgotten by everyone.

This forgetting not only includes forgetting the person, but also their past, their experiences, and the traces of their existence.

If Li Ji'an didn't exist in this world, after a few decades, when the three of them died, there would be no one left who knew their past.

This point is also why Tong Yaoyao, and even the natives of this cultivation world, don't understand her.

"Come, Aunt Yao will take you to see our owner. She should give me some face." Zhao Shuyao pulled Li Ji'an towards the Nine Cauldrons Merchant Association in the immortal city.

Plan before you move.

Ten years ago, Li Ji'an had already understood the state of survival within the immortal city.

The residences, dojos, and even specialized caves for breaking through realms in the inner city, located at the core of quasi-third-order spiritual veins, were all very expensive.

Apart from renting caves temporarily to break through realms, those who rented inner-city residences for long periods were mostly strong forces' outposts or offices in the city; there were almost no individuals.

It was simply too expensive and not cost-effective.

The gatehouses and small courtyards on the edges of the inner and outer cities were the real residences for individuals, with spiritual veins ranging from first-order middle-grade to second-order low-grade, and the prices were also not cheap.

The lowest-grade rental housing cost at least fifty spirit stones per year, and it wasn't even as big as the tenement buildings in the joint market.

The cost of living was also relatively high, with spiritual rice and noodles being more expensive.

The prices of cultivation necessities such as pills, tools, talismans, and formations were also inflated, but the income of artisans was not high.

This was because individuals were not allowed to set up stalls in the immortal city, and most people had to buy and sell through shops.

The shops' purchase prices were very low due to the large number of artisans, leading to intense competition.

All in all, it was not easy for ordinary people to live in the immortal city.

However, countless people were trying to squeeze into the immortal city, for no other reason than safety, stability, and abundant opportunities.

Li Ji'an valued the first two points.

Of course, it was also because the upper limit of spiritual veins in small markets was too low, and the spiritual energy was not sufficient.

His confidence lay in his hard strength as a high-quality alchemist and the soft strength of Zhao Shuyao's connections with the owner.

There was no shortage of first-order alchemists here, and even no shortage of experienced first-order alchemists; supply exceeded demand, so there was intense competition and low prices.

However, second-order alchemists and high-quality alchemists with high success rates were relatively scarce.

In particular, second-order pills were in high demand, leading to high prices, and some particularly crucial pills were priceless, such as Foundation Establishment Pills and Face-Preserving Pills.

As a high-quality alchemist who could consistently produce high-quality pills, Li Ji'an had the confidence to establish himself here.

However, becoming a guest elder of various shops was the first choice for all kinds of artisans in the immortal city, and Li Ji'an also planned to prioritize this.

Because once he became a guest elder, he would not only not have to worry about selling his pills, but also receive a 10% higher price than ordinary alchemists selling in stores, and the price of purchasing medicinal materials would also be discounted, resulting in 30% higher income than ordinary alchemists.

It was just that the competition was also fierce.

It so happened that Zhao Shuyao's owner, the Nine Cauldrons Merchant Association, was in the pill business and employed guest elders.

After Zhao Shuyao learned of his idea, she took the initiative to provide him with this network resource, and he gratefully accepted.

Before long, Zhao Shuyao brought Li Ji'an to the Pill Cauldron Pavilion of the Nine Cauldrons Merchant Association.

"Manager Wu, is the owner upstairs?" Zhao Shuyao brought Li Ji'an into the back hall with ease.

"Sister Zhao, the owner is here, but... the owner is a bit unhappy right now," Manager Wu reminded in a low voice.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Shuyao pondered for a moment and said to Li Ji'an, "Xiao Fan, please wait a moment. I'll go check the situation."

"Okay, Aunt Yao."

"Manager Wu, this is my nephew, Li Fan. Please take care of him." Zhao Shuyao introduced him to Manager Wu.

"Oh, haha, so it's Sister Zhao's nephew, one of us, one of us. Li Fan, right? Then come with me to the elegant hall and wait," Manager Wu said with a smile, looking at Li Fan.

"Thank you, Manager Wu."

After watching Zhao Shuyao go upstairs, Li Ji'an followed Manager Wu through the hall to the elegant hall.

"Manager Wu, there's another alchemist outside who wants to apply for a guest elder position. What do you think?" At this moment, an attendant came to report.

"What grade? What cultivation level?" Manager Wu smiled apologetically at Li Ji'an, then asked the attendant.

"Qi Training seventh level, an experienced first-order alchemist. He said he has successfully refined high-quality pills." The attendant's words were somewhat lacking in confidence.

Manager Wu immediately turned to her and said, "Did you accept someone's benefits again? Hmph, how many times have I told you what you can accept and what you can't? Don't you know yet? A mere experienced alchemist at the Qi Training seventh level is qualified to apply for a guest elder position in my Pill Cauldron Pavilion?"

"Manager Wu, I was wrong. I won't dare to do it again. It was a friend's request, and it was really hard to refuse. Please forgive me," the attendant hurriedly bowed and apologized.

Manager Wu waved his hand and said, "Remember, we work for the owner, and we must be worthy of the owner's cultivation! Go, if there's a next time, I won't let you off lightly."

Li Ji'an saw clearly from the side and felt a little pressure in his heart.

He knew that the Nine Cauldrons Merchant Association was outstanding, but he didn't expect them to look down on experienced alchemists so much.

If it weren't for Zhao Shuyao's relationship, he probably wouldn't even be able to enter this threshold.

After bringing Li Ji'an to the entrance of the elegant hall, Manager Wu left first to attend to other matters.

The other two people in the elegant hall saw Li Ji'an enter, sized him up for a moment, and asked, "Fellow Daoist is also an alchemist?"

"Indeed."

"Here to apply for a guest elder position too?"

Li Ji'an nodded again.

"Hiss~ Little friend dares to come and apply for a guest alchemist position at Pill Cauldron Pavilion with Qi Training sixth level cultivation?" An older alchemist said in surprise.

"Could it be that you have refined top-grade pills?" The younger one asked.

Li Ji'an slowly shook his head. After studying talisman drawing in this life, his understanding of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was deeper, but he had not yet succeeded in drawing it in when refining pills.

The two alchemists looked at each other, then breathed a sigh of relief.

There was only one guest alchemist spot left this month, and they were already a little uneasy. Seeing another person, they became even more nervous. Now that they knew Li Ji'an's level of alchemy, they were relieved.

Li Ji'an scanned with his divine sense. The two people in front of him were both at the ninth level of Qi Training, and judging from the smell of medicine on their bodies, it was clear that they had probably been refining pills for most of their lives.

Truly competitive!

Before long, footsteps came from outside the elegant hall.

Hearing the sound, the two alchemists quickly stood up, staring eagerly at the door.

"Little Li, hurry, hurry, the owner wants to see you." Manager Wu came to announce the good news with great joy.

Under the surprised and jealous gazes of the two alchemists, Li Ji'an followed Manager Wu to the owner's quiet room on the fifth floor.

Manager Wu helped to open the door, and Li Ji'an stepped inside.

As soon as he entered, he saw a slightly plump mature female cultivator sitting on a grand master chair by the window in the quiet room, dozing with her eyes closed.

Zhao Shuyao stood beside her, smiling at him.

"Xiao Yao asked for a favor for you, and I granted it. No matter how your alchemy skills are now, I hope you will work harder in the future and not disappoint your Aunt Yao's expectations."

Li Ji'an raised his eyebrows slightly, "Thank you, Senior, thank you, Aunt Yao."

Connections and background are also part of strength.

If he could develop all the big shots in this world into his own connections, what worries would he have?