Chapter 3: The Girl
Chapter 3: Chapter 3: The Girl
Inside the steward’s hall.
Li Ping sat at a table, holding a cup of Spirit Tea and taking small sips.
Meanwhile, Steward He stood cautiously behind him, answering his questions respectfully, not daring to sit down.
Li Ping didn’t mind. After twenty-seven years in the Cultivation Realm since his transmigration, he was long used to the rules of this world.
A junior Qi Refining Cultivator was lucky not to be kneeling before a great Foundation Establishment Cultivator. Being denied a seat was a matter of course.
...
Before long, a clear hum sounded from outside the hall, accompanied by a wave of Spiritual Pressure even stronger than Li Ping’s.
’Oh? A Foundation Establishment Cultivator. Could that be Meng Qingyi from Cyan Dragon Mountain?’
Li Ping’s expression shifted as he stood and looked outside, just in time to see a figure dressed in a green dress walk in, a pair of moon-white, cloud-patterned slippers peeking out from beneath its hem.
It was a sweet and lovely young woman.
The young woman’s hair was styled in a simple coiling snake bun, perched high on her head, which made her elegant, jade-like neck appear long and graceful.
A single Jade Hairpin was tucked nonchalantly into one side of the bun, adding a touch of lively charm.
She was sweet and lovely, appearing quite young, but Li Ping didn’t dare to underestimate her.
A brief sweep of his Divine Sense was enough to tell him that this young woman was actually stronger than he was, having already reached the Mid-stage of Foundation Establishment.
...
"Martial Uncle Meng."
Steward He had already hurried before the young woman, addressing her respectfully.
Only then did Li Ping realize that this lovely young woman was the one who had invited him. He had originally expected someone with the surname ’Meng’ to be a burly man.
The young woman waved her hand, bidding Steward He to rise. Her gaze then fell upon Li Ping, a smile in her eyes. Her voice, like the gurgling of a clear spring, reached his ears. "Qingyi greets you, Fellow Daoist. Congratulations on successfully reaching Foundation Establishment."
"Thank you, Fellow Daoist Meng. It was a stroke of luck that I was able to reach Foundation Establishment."
"There’s no such thing as luck in Foundation Establishment, hehe..."
...
Steward He served the Spirit Tea and then respectfully withdrew, leaving only Li Ping and Meng Qingyi to exchange pleasantries in the hall.
During their conversation, Li Ping would occasionally raise his cup for a small sip, but this Meng Qingyi seemed to find the Spirit Tea served by Steward He rather distasteful, not even deigning to glance at it.
After a few sentences, Li Ping learned that this woman, Meng Qingyi, was the twenty-sixth disciple of the Fenglan Master.
As they continued to chat, Li Ping discovered something rather surprising and delightful.
Not only had Meng Qingyi’s cultivation reached Mid-stage Foundation Establishment, but she was also a Tier Two Middle Grade Talisman Maker, capable of creating Tier Two Middle Grade Talismans.
If they weren’t still strangers, and if it wouldn’t have been too presumptuous, Li Ping would have asked her right then and there if she was willing to sell her ’Original Flavor Talisman Brush’.
Asking to buy the ’Original Flavor Talisman Brush’ was a difficult request to make, but asking for advice on the art of talisman making was perfectly fine.
In the presence of a Tier Two Middle Grade Talisman Maker, Li Ping immediately began to ask her about some of the difficulties he had encountered in his own talisman making.
Meng Qingyi was surprised to learn that Li Ping was a Tier One Middle Grade Talisman Maker. Hearing his humble request for guidance, she smiled and answered several of his difficult questions.
Her guidance was immensely beneficial to Li Ping. He felt he might soon be able to advance to a Tier One Upper Grade Talisman Maker.
...
"By the way, Fellow Daoist Li, Qingyi has a question. I was wondering if you might be able to answer it for me." As she spoke, Meng Qingyi’s beautiful eyes gazed at Li Ping, causing him to be momentarily lost in them.
But as a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, his control over his body far surpassed that of a mortal. Li Ping quickly recovered and said with a smile, "Please ask, Fairy. If it’s something I know, I will certainly not hide it."
Hearing this, Meng Qingyi broke into a smile and asked with a hint of curiosity, "Then Qingyi won’t be polite. As far as I know, the Immortal City hasn’t held any auctions recently, nor have any Foundation Establishment Pills been for sale. Could it be that you attempted to break through to Foundation Establishment on your own?"
According to the common knowledge of the Cultivation Realm, with the exception of the extremely rare Cultivators with a Celestial Spiritual Root, even a Cultivator with an Abnormal Spiritual Root would have a success rate of no more than fifty percent. Furthermore, a failed attempt would result in a great loss of Primordial Energy, or even direct death.
Therefore, Cultivators without a Celestial Spiritual Root all require a Foundation Establishment Pill to increase their chances of success. Moreover, with the protection of the pill’s medicinal power, one’s Primordial Energy would not be damaged even if the breakthrough failed.
Because the Foundation Establishment Pill has such a miraculous effect, it is considered a strategic resource among Cultivators. From the moment they are refined, they are watched with extreme vigilance; the destination of every single pill is crystal clear.
According to the Immortal City’s intelligence, Li Ping had never obtained a Foundation Establishment Pill, which is why Meng Qingyi asked this question.
She had mistaken Li Ping for one of those ruthless individuals dedicated to the Great Dao, who would attempt to break through to Foundation Establishment on their own despite the low odds of success.
Li Ping shook his head. He was not the type to disregard his own life; he cherished it very much. "You jest, Fairy. How could I dare attempt Foundation Establishment without a Foundation Establishment Pill? However, I didn’t purchase mine from an auction, but from the black market."
The Immortal City’s black market mainly dealt in shady transactions, but its actual controllers were also part of the Cyan Dragon Mountain lineage. So even if Li Ping didn’t say anything, Meng Qingyi could find out with a little investigation.
Therefore, Li Ping had no intention of hiding it.
In any case, he had spent his own Spirit Stones to buy the Foundation Establishment Pill. Besides, he had already used the pill and successfully reached Foundation Establishment; no one could take it from him now.
"A Foundation Establishment Pill from the black market? Fellow Daoist Li, your fortune is truly not shallow." Meng Qingyi nodded thoughtfully, not pressing for more details. Instead, she continued, "Now that you have reached Foundation Establishment in the Immortal City, I wonder what your plans are for the future? As far as I know, you come from a Loose Cultivator background and haven’t joined any faction, is that correct?"
’Here it comes,’ Li Ping thought.
Any faction would be tempted to recruit a Foundation Establishment Loose Cultivator with a clean background like him, and the Cyan Dragon Mountain lineage was naturally no exception.
He had suspected from the beginning that Meng Qingyi wanted to recruit him, and it seemed he was right.
In truth, Li Ping was quite willing to join the Cyan Dragon Mountain lineage.
After all, the Cyan Dragon Mountain lineage was backed by a Core Formation Master and was the City Lord of the Immortal City. Although he would lose some freedom by joining, he would absolutely not be getting a bad deal, considering the access to Spiritual Land for cultivation and the backing of a Core Formation Master.
Moreover, he wanted to master high-end skills through the ’Tree of Inheritance’, which required collecting legacies or artifacts used by Grandmaster Level artisans.
Joining the Cyan Dragon Mountain lineage would certainly make it more convenient to collect these legacies.
At the very least, he would have a good chance of getting his hands on the ’Original Flavor Talisman Brush’ from this Fairy Meng before him.
For him, joining the Cyan Dragon Mountain lineage was the best choice for getting by in the Fenglan Immortal City area.
His thoughts raced. Li Ping gave a wry smile and said, "You are correct, Fairy. I am indeed a Loose Cultivator. In fact, I’m still practicing the basic skill, the Golden Sword Skill. I don’t even have a Foundation Establishment-level Cultivation Technique yet."