Chapter 49: The Method to Extend Life

Luo Mingxian sat cross-legged on a dedicated meditation mat, pulled open the drawer in front of him, and took out a leather-bound notebook. With a flick of his hand, he unsealed the special arcane spell on it, and the handwriting within the book instantly materialized.

Meiling Sect Medicine Sage Bai Wenzhu (×)
White Bone Grass (×)
Third-Generation Rejuvenation Capsule (×)
......

From top to bottom, the notebook listed a long table, every line of text representing the efforts once made by the Heavenly Mystery Bureau and various transcendent units to prolong the Heavenly Master's life, while the large "×" beside each entry indicated the outcome of all those efforts.

In the blink of an eye, two years had passed. Yuan Tiangang's five decays of heaven and man grew heavier by the day, yet they still could not catch even a glimmer of hope. If there were no new turning points, they would likely have to seriously consider making arrangements for the Heavenly Master's funeral.

Perhaps the Yulu Sect would refuse them, but even if that were true, faced with the reality of the Heavenly Master's impending death, he could hardly avoid making an attempt.

Luo Mingxian was silent for a moment before finally picking up the phone at his side and dialing a number.

"Little Liu, draft a reply to the Yulu Sect. Write it like this..."

......

Qingcheng Mountain, within the grotto-heaven of the Yulu Sect.

Compared to the majestic and rigorous architecture of the Jiuli Sect, the overall structures of the Yulu Sect carried a distinct Song Dynasty style, leaning more toward exquisite elegance.

At a glance, Daoist temples constructed of wood and stone were distributed one after another along the terraced mountain ranges, connecting into continuous patches. At the very top of the mountain range stood an intricate palace, where the sect's leaders gathered to discuss various vital matters.

Just like the one at hand right now.

"The envoy delivered news the day before yesterday. The various grassland tribes have already begun their actions. They hope that we and all the allied sects will work together to collect sufficient souls and incense to awaken the Superior God."

In the center of the deliberation hall, Qi Yu, the master of the Yulu Sect, put down the confidential letter in his hand. "If this endeavor succeeds, the revival of the Immortal Dao will be within reach. The Shuiyue Sect, the Cangyan Sect, and other sects have already dispatched personnel to stand by in various places. We, too, should make our stance known."

Once spoken, like a pebble dropped into a lake, the words immediately stirred up a wave of discussion.

The revival of the Immortal Dao—this slogan had been proposed for a century. It meant reshaping the current order and turning the mortal world back to the state of several centuries ago when the sects controlled all living beings. The content was cliché and simple, but every time it was raised, it never lacked supporters.

Such supporters existed within the Yulu Sect, or rather, made up the majority right here in this deliberation hall.

Yet over the past century, the revival movement had been proposed dozens of times, but most of had died in infancy. Having seen similar events too many times, the members of the Yulu Sect had no choice but to bury these thoughts deep beneath the surface, maintaining a superficial relationship with the outside world while always remaining bystanders taking no action.

But this time, the situation seemed somewhat different.

"Eight hundred years have passed, and the traces of the Superior God have actually reappeared in the mortal world... This time, indeed, the opportunity must not be lost."

The Third Elder at the side mused, "However, if we are to propagate the faith of the Superior God in the mortal world, I fear we cannot bypass the perception of the Heavenly Mystery Bureau. Especially here in Yizhou, with that monstrous villain Yuan Tiangang holding the fort... I'm afraid it will be impossible to keep this from his eyes and ears."

The mere mention of the three characters "Yuan Tiangang" instantly caused the voices in the hall to grow dim. At just a single name, everyone's expressions changed simultaneously.

"Regarding this matter, I have also received another confidential report."

Sect Master Qi Yu, seated upon the dais, remained calm. "As early as two years ago, the Huaxia Heavenly Mystery Bureau was seeking methods of prolonging life from various factions. Just the other day, the Heavenly Mystery Bureau issued another urgent decree on a massive scale."

"All signs indicate that this is highly likely sought after for the 'monstrous villain' Yuan Tiangang."

Before his voice faded, the sound of discussion rose once again. The elders looked at each other, their expressions varying.

"The Dao of longevity... Is that monster truly about to die?"

"Previously, I heard rumors that the monster violated heavenly prohibitions and damaged his lifespan. Viewed in this light, it appears to be true after all." An elder wore a thoughtful look.

"That treacherous scion should have died long ago," another person scolded. "Instead of acting as a proper master of divinatory arts, he ran off to the mortal realm to point the way for the government, turning around to plague cultivators like us. If Heaven truly has eyes, how could such an immortal traitor's lifespan not be cut short?"

These words were spoken with considerable intensity, but those within the hall all tacitly agreed; clearly, these sentiments voiced the inner thoughts of the majority present.

Just as mentioned earlier, over the past century, various sects in the cultivation world had brewed several large-scale restoration movements, all of which ultimately aborted in infancy. More than half of the reasons for this were due to the existence of Yuan Tiangang and his disciples.

As a cultivator of divinatory arts, Yuan Tiangang's own combat prowess was far inferior to Hua Shen cultivators of the same realm, and even any casual Nascent Soul cultivator could pose a threat to him. Yet with such a person standing on the side of the authorities, the suppression he exerted upon cultivators upholding the old system was equivalent to nearly ten ordinary Hua Shen experts.

Observing shifts in spiritual aura and discerning fortune and misfortune—with such a grandmaster of divinatory arts present, it was virtually equivalent to installing heavenly eyes and radar for the government. Many operations had barely shown their initial signs before an iron fist was already suspended overhead.

Although this iron fist had never directly smashed onto the faces of the Yulu Sect, as cultivators who (by their own account) adhered to orthodoxy, they naturally had to sneer at or gnash their teeth at such heterodox rebels.

Two crisp taps rang out as Qi Yu, the Sect Master at the very front, patted his desk, interrupting the elders' righteous indignation.

"Respected elders, do not jump to conclusions just yet."

Qi Yu shook his head. "Regarding the matter concerning Yuan Tiangang, it is currently merely a conjecture and has not been finalized. This matter is of great importance, so we still need to further confirm his current status before making other plans."

The surrounding elders turned toward the main seat, and the Chief Elder cupped his fists and said, "Please enlighten us, Sect Master."

"Ever since I heard of the Heavenly Mystery Bureau seeking methods to prolong life, I have been secretly dispatching specialists to spread rumors everywhere across Yizhou."

Qi Yu stroked his beard leisurely and said, "The content of those rumors is that our sect possesses a Nine-Turn Pill formula capable of prolonging life. I figured that if the news of that monster's impending death is true, the Heavenly Mystery Bureau will surely take the initiative to contact us."

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire room erupted in an uproar.

The Nine-Turn Pill was the supreme pill formula within the Yulu Sect, created five hundred years ago by a sect patriarch of alchemy. Although it possessed life-prolonging properties, its extremely high refining difficulty and material requirements were enough to inspire awe, and even within the Yulu Sect, it had not been successfully refined for hundreds of years.

And now, the Sect Master actually intended to use such a precious pill formula to help a universally recognized traitor within the cultivation world?

Those sitting here were all old foxes who had lived for hundreds of years, and they naturally sensed this glaring contradiction. The uproar in the hall lasted only a few breaths before some showed contemplative expressions.

"Does the Sect Master mean... we don't actually intend to give out the pill formula, but rather use the pretense of trading it as an excuse to negotiate with the Heavenly Mystery Bureau, thereby seizing the opportunity to probe the monster's condition?"

"The Fifth Elder is correct."

The Yulu Sect Master nodded slightly. "If our operation proceeds as scheduled, Yuan Tiangang's existence will undoubtedly be the greatest obstacle."

"There are many divinatory arts cultivators within the Heavenly Mystery Bureau, and security is tight, with Yuan Tiangang holding the fort. Under normal circumstances, it is difficult to investigate him, let alone infiltrate. Moreover, judging by this momentum, if Yuan Tiangang's life is truly near its end, they will inevitably seal off the news."

"However, during the negotiations over the pill formula, we can use this to approach members of the Heavenly Mystery Bureau and pry into the monster's recent condition from their mouths. If we can truly obtain accurate information, it will undoubtedly lay a solid foundation for our future operation to awaken the Superior God."

Another wave of murmurs arose in the pavilion, though this time the tone had changed.

"The Sect Master is wise!"

"In my opinion, it would be better to take the play-acting further and directly modify a few ingredients in that pill formula, so that the monster suffers a ruptured gut upon eating it, which can also be considered eliminating a pest for the cultivation world."

"Ha, you may view him as a traitor without fault, but don't take him for a fool. Trying to deceive a Hua Shen-level divination cultivator with such meager tricks is simply impossible."

"Just joking, just joking."

"I only wonder if they will actually come to make contact..."

Amidst the discussions, a messenger disciple ran into the sect and handed a letter to Qi Yu. The latter unfolded the letter, glanced over it, and a trace of an imperceptible smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"Word has come from the Heavenly Mystery Bureau that they have sent a request, and we may proceed to the Heavenly Mystery Bureau for negotiations the day after tomorrow."

He put down the letter and swept his gaze across the audience.

"In that case, this time I must ask the Fifth Elder to take disciples along and act as scouts," he said. "During the negotiations, be mindful to probe Yuan Tiangang's recent condition. If his lifespan is truly nearing its end, we shall quietly await the date of his death. If he still has lifespan remaining..."

"Then we shall add a handful of yellow soil to his grave."