My Life Doesn't Actually Have That Many Spectators

Li Xiuchang found himself in a bit of a dilemma.

He could postpone the summons from the General Affairs Hall for a few months, but delaying Zhao Yuansi was another matter entirely.

This was Zhao Yuansi's first summons since Li Xiuchang became his disciple, and missing it would be highly inappropriate.

Besides, he had always wanted to attend Zhao Yuansi's lectures and see how much his cultivation would improve under the tutelage of an Alchemy master.

However, even counting from his enrollment, the time until Zhao Yuansi's lecture would be less than five months.

In just over four months, he had gone from a mortal to the Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation...

If this were an Inner Sect prodigy, it would be understandable, if not commonplace.

But for an Outer Sect disciple like him, it was rather astonishing.

"If I attend the lecture as scheduled in half a month, besides my master, no one else should recognize me. Perhaps it won't attract attention."

"If anyone asks, I'll just say it's thanks to pay-to-win and breakthrough pills."

Li Xiuchang had indeed relied on pay-to-win to reach the Third Layer of Qi Condensation in two months. With the addition of a breakthrough pill, reaching the Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation in just over four months was plausible.

However, pills like breakthrough pills often had side effects and couldn't be taken frequently, potentially affecting one's potential.

Normally, no one would take a breakthrough pill in the Early Qi Condensation stage.

This explanation was a bit far-fetched, but Li Xiuchang didn't want to miss the lecture, nor did he want to displease Zhao Yuansi.

He remained undecided for the moment.

"If only I had a spell to conceal my cultivation... No, that wouldn't be useful either."

His own cultivation was too low. Even the most powerful concealment spell, capable of fooling Foundation Establishment or Golden Core cultivators, couldn't fool Nascent Soul or even higher-level cultivators.

The Immortal Dust Sect was full of powerful individuals, and such high-level cultivators were not uncommon. If he were discovered deliberately hiding his cultivation, it would only arouse suspicion.

Furthermore, even if he could hide it for a while, he couldn't hide it forever. It might be manageable now, but if his cultivation grew rapidly in the future, it would inevitably attract attention.

When that time came and he could no longer hide it, he would have to consider leaving the Immortal Dust Sect and cultivating as a rogue cultivator.

Just then, his expression shifted slightly. He took out his Identity Token and sensed that someone had left him a message.

"It's Senior Brother Wang Long! He's successfully advanced to a Tier 2 Talisman Master!"

The message was just left. Wang Long must have come to congratulate him but found him in seclusion, so he left a message and departed.

He probably hadn't gone far.

A myriad of thoughts flashed through Li Xiuchang's mind.

He could use Senior Brother Wang Long as a test subject to gauge his reaction.

Wang Long knew that Li Xiuchang had been cultivating through pay-to-win and was aware of his previous cultivation speed. If anyone could accept Li Xiuchang being at the Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation, it would be Wang Long.

Moreover, after their long-term cooperation, Li Xiuchang understood Wang Long's character well. Wang Long was one of the people he trusted most in the sect.

"If even Senior Brother Wang Long finds my breakthrough to the Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation unbelievable, then I'll have to miss the lecture in half a month."

With that thought, Li Xiuchang activated the Courtyard Protection Array and pushed open the door, stepping outside.

He saw Wang Long's retreating figure and quickly called out, "Senior Brother Wang Long!"

Eastern Geng District, Number One.

As soon as Wang Long entered the Eastern Geng District, Zhang Wanzhi and Mo Tu noticed.

They were also aware of the messengers from the General Affairs Hall and Zhao Yuansi.

Therefore, they had witnessed Li Xiuchang's current predicament and had already discussed it.

"He needs a secret technique to conceal his cultivation. Otherwise, even if he gets away with it this time, he won't be able to hide it later. However, being outstanding in the Immortal Dust Sect isn't necessarily a bad thing; it's not a major issue." This was Zhang Wanzhi's initial thought.

The Immortal Dust Sect was filled with countless geniuses, and opportunities abounded. A slightly faster cultivation speed was not a significant matter.

There were even several individuals who had risen from Registered Disciples to the core circles of the Inner Sect, all of whom were known to have encountered great fortunes.

However, the "great fortunes" in the eyes of ordinary cultivators were not even worth a glance from the top old monsters of the Immortal Dust Sect.

After all, those old monsters had all glimpsed the world beyond the heavens...

But Mo Tu disagreed:

"With the current speed of his cultivation advancement and his talent in Spirit Plant techniques, if he doesn't conceal it, he will soon enter the Inner Sect, and even the higher echelons of the Immortal Dust Sect in the future. At that point, everything will be beyond our control."

"Besides, you don't want him to attract the attention of those old monsters in the Immortal Dust Sect too early."

Zhang Wanzhi pondered. Li Xiuchang was their hope for breaking the stalemate, but they didn't need him to stay in the Eastern Geng District forever.

What they needed was Li Xiuchang's growth.

But if Li Xiuchang entered the core of the Immortal Dust Sect, into that high city and deep moat, what would happen would be beyond their prediction and intervention.

Mo Tu continued, "What I mean is, let's find a secret technique for him to conceal his cultivation, and let him choose.

"As for what happens next, we'll wait until Old Gui returns."

Zhang Wanzhi understood Mo Tu's intention. They didn't want Li Xiuchang to enter the core level of the Immortal Dust Sect, but they also wouldn't stoop to forcefully interfering with Li Xiuchang's choices.

Fate is unpredictable and beyond human control; without Gui Wuyan's help, they couldn't see the path of destiny.

In such a situation, if they were to forcefully intervene, it might backfire.

If Li Xiuchang could enter the Inner Sect, it wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing for him personally, as he would receive abundant resources and cultivation from the Immortal Dust Sect.

However, being unable to hide something and not wanting to hide it are two different matters. Currently, Li Xiuchang couldn't hide it even if he wanted to, leaving him with no other choice.

If Li Xiuchang had a secret art for concealing his cultivation, then whether he hid it or not would be entirely up to him.

Zhang Wanzhi pondered for a moment and said, "When it comes to concealing cultivation, that's Chen the Turtle's specialty. If you want a Qi Condensation cultivator like Li Xiuchang to fool those old guys in the Immortal Dust Sect, only Chen the Turtle's unique secret art can do it. It seems I'll have to go find Chen the Turtle.

"However, this secret art can't be given to him directly. If too much is revealed, it will only make him suspicious of our identities."

"Preaching Ranking," Mo Tu uttered three words without preamble, but they made Zhang Wanzhi's eyes light up.

"Senior Brother Wang Long!" Li Xiuchang called out to Wang Long.

Wang Long stopped in his tracks and turned around, his face lighting up with joy. "Junior Brother Li, you're out of seclusion?"

Li Xiuchang didn't answer, cupping his hands with a smile. "Congratulations, Senior Brother, on becoming a Tier 2 Talisman Master!"

Wang Long couldn't help but laugh heartily, feeling incredibly elated. He had finally broken free from the mire of being a Tier 1 Talisman Master, so how could he not be happy?

However, he still spoke with feigned humility, "It was just luck, pure luck. My Tier 2 Talisman Master status isn't as sought after as your Spirit Chef Apprentice position."

His words weren't entirely baseless.

Compared to Tier 1 Talisman Masters, Tier 2 Talisman Masters were indeed in a much better position. At the very least, Tier 2 Talismans had higher profit margins and were easier to sell than Tier 1 Talismans. Tier 2 Talisman Masters wouldn't find themselves losing money by crafting and selling talismans.

But due to the sheer number of Tier 1 Talisman Masters, it still affected the market for Tier 2 Talismans, causing the income of Tier 2 Talisman Masters to remain at the bottom among all Tier 2 artisans.

Therefore, in terms of earning Spirit Stones, Li Xiuchang's Smoked Spirit Meat business indeed generated more profit than that of ordinary Tier 2 Talisman Masters.

Wang Long then asked, "Junior Brother, did your skills break through during this seclusion?"

Li Xiuchang was taken aback. Didn't Senior Brother Wang Long notice that he had broken through to the Mid Qi Condensation stage?

Otherwise, why would he ask about his progress in skills?

Anyone who noticed he was already at the Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation wouldn't assume he was in seclusion practicing his skills, right?

Li Xiuchang couldn't help but wonder if his cultivation breakthrough was truly that insignificant.

But then again, it didn't seem strange.

The Immortal Dust Sect had Foundation Establishment cultivators everywhere and Golden Core cultivators aplenty. Who would care about a mere Qi Condensation cultivator like him making a slight fluctuation in his cultivation?

Even Senior Brother Wang Long, who interacted with him the most, hadn't noticed immediately.

Indeed, my life doesn't have that many spectators. I was worrying for nothing, Li Xiuchang thought to himself.

What he didn't know was that at that moment, two "spectators" not far away were keenly observing the situation around him.