"I never even saw the man."
"I couldn't move, either."
Meng Nan opened his eyes, reliving the moment of his death—
A flying sword struck without warning, its aura locking onto him.
The Giant Spirit Mysterious Technique.
The Blood Arrow Secret Technique.
The Soul Banner.
None of them had worked.
He couldn't use a single one. He couldn't move, either. All he could do was wait to be slaughtered.
Meng Nan hadn't even gotten a glimpse of Master Cao before he lost a life.
At least his life was cheap.
"I'll try again next time."
"But I'll need a different target. That one's too powerful."
Meng Nan thought it over, then opened the activation progress panel—
[Activation Progress—] [Basic Progress: 0/200][Required] [Spirit Sand: 0/1][Choose One of Two] [Sacrifice: 0/2][Choose One of Two] ...
In reality, Meng Nan was still at the Inner Qi Stage.
Compared to the first time he'd activated a future timeline, back when he'd been at the Inner Qi Stage, the requirements had risen again—
200 units of inner qi.
Two units of true qi.
Both the "Basic Progress" and "Sacrifice" requirements had doubled.
The requirement for "Spirit Sand," however, hadn't changed.
"Just as I expected."
"So the 'Basic Progress' requirement can't be avoided. But if the sacrifices I need later are too numerous or too powerful, I can switch to 'Spirit Sand' instead."
"Sacrifices."
"Spirit Sand."
"Alternating between the two should make things a little easier."
The Inner Qi and True Qi Stages were manageable.
But once Meng Nan reached the True Essence Stage and the Qi Refining Stage, he'd likely have to rely on Spirit Sand to activate the next timeline.
He'd have to step up the pace of earning it by several notches.
"In the early stages, I'll rely on picking up bargains."
"In the middle stages, I'll rely on mines."
Before reaching the Qi Refining Stage, Meng Nan's strength and foundations were limited. He could only rely on his foreknowledge to find bargains in various places, getting his hands on magical artifacts, precious materials, and spirit medicines ahead of time.
That was just a way to get through the early stages, a supplemental source of wealth.
Like water without a source, it couldn't last.
Beyond that,
controlling mineral veins was the real money-maker.
"Ghost Mother Mountain, Xuanwu Mountain, and Blood Lotus Mountain will have mineral deposits of various sizes that remain undiscovered for the next hundred years. Once I reach the Qi Refining Stage, I'll be qualified to claim them."
There were two of the most profitable businesses in the cultivation world—
One was providing a platform, like running a market.
The other was mining. Anyone could see how profitable it was to own a mine and pay no taxes.
Only after those came skills like alchemy, artifact refining, and talisman-making.
"Beyond scavenging and claiming land to mine, those skills could serve as additional sources of income."
"The more ways I have to make money, the better."
"By the time I reach the Qi Refining Stage, I'm afraid it'll be hard to complete a 'Sacrifice.' The more Spirit Sand, the better."
Meng Nan sorted out his plans for the future.
Then he looked back on the fifth life.
He'd gained two major things in that life. First, his cultivation had finally broken through to the True Essence Stage, the last stop before the Qi Refining Stage.
Only two mountains remained—
Sense Imprint.
The Three Cavities.
"Sense Imprint won't be easy."
"The Three Cavities are even more perilous."
Meng Nan had died in his fourth life trying to steal the Three Cavities. That hurdle was especially dangerous.
Hardship at the start, a fight for life and death at the end.
The Three Cavities were a genuine life-or-death trial—
Success meant life!
Failure meant death!
"At least I can die as many times as I need."
Meng Nan felt fairly confident about facing that trial.
Beyond his cultivation,
the other major gain in this life was information about the Three Qi Condensation Methods and the great medicines.
Four mountains.
A hundred years.
Four great medicines.
"I'll get it right eventually!"
Meng Nan was already looking forward to the coming sixth life.
200 units of inner qi.
At his current level—
The peak of the Inner Qi Stage.
His Greater Celestial Circuit was complete.
He'd need no more than half a month to build up enough.
"Half a month."
"The sixth life."
Meng Nan settled on the thought.
Turning his head, he saw Zhao Xiaoshuang still sleeping soundly beside him. She hadn't aged, and she hadn't passed away.
His heart grew calm. He closed his eyes and fell asleep, too.
Half a month later,
the sixth life began as promised.
In this life, Meng Nan died in Cultivation Calendar Year 59. His life ended in Year 70.
The information he'd received about the four great medicines in his fifth life—
The first would appear on Xuanwu Mountain in Year 47.
The second would appear on Ghost Mother Mountain in Year 59.
The third would appear on Blood Lotus Mountain in Year 70.
The fourth would also appear on Blood Lotus Mountain. It was the one Meng Nan and Zhao Xiaoshuang had found in their fifth life, and it would appear in Year 120.
In this life,
his sixth,
Meng Nan gave the first great medicine, the one on Xuanwu Mountain in Year 47, to Qian Yu.
Someone had tried to refine this medicine in the fifth life but failed. Meng Nan didn't want to use it himself, and Zhao Xiaoshuang's cultivation and experience weren't enough, so he didn't want her to use it, either. That was why he gave it to Qian Yu.
Unfortunately, Qian Yu didn't succeed. She died that year.
Next came
Year 59.
Meng Nan got to the great medicine on Ghost Mother Mountain first. It was the one that had successfully helped someone break through among the three great medicines he'd heard about in his fifth life.
Only this time, the one who used the great medicine wasn't Kong Dian, the rogue cultivator from Ghost Mother Mountain. It was Meng Nan, master of Qingtian Market—and the outcome was different—
Meng Nan refined the great medicine but failed to break through as smoothly as Kong Dian had. Instead, he died that year.
Then the Meng Nan from reality arrived.
As luck would have it, he could turn back time. He returned to five months before the great medicine appeared.
This time, Meng Nan didn't use the medicine himself. He gave it to Zhao Xiaoshuang instead.
But she failed, too. She died.
Meng Nan was left to cultivate alone once more.
Eleven years later,
before he'd reached the peak of the True Essence Stage, he gave the great medicine on Blood Lotus Mountain in Year 70 to Meng Santan.
Unfortunately, Meng Santan, too, had no fate with the Qi Refining Stage.
Meng Nan died that same year, ending his sixth life at the second level of Sense Imprint.
The most noteworthy gain of this life was learning the exact details of another great medicine. From then on, Meng Nan knew of five great medicines in total.
Then came the seventh life.
In this life,
Meng Nan also died after failing to break through to the Qi Refining Stage with the help of a great medicine.
And he wasn't the only one.
Qian Yu.
Zhao Xiaoshuang.
Meng Santan.
Meng Jian.
One after another, every one of them failed. They all died before Meng Nan did.
The Three Cavities were like a heavenly gate, barring Meng Nan and the others from stepping through and glimpsing the Qi Refining Stage.
Partings and death.
No hope of reaching the Qi Refining Stage.
After seeing so much of it, Meng Nan worked harder than ever, making progress in every life.
In the fifth life, he'd just reached the True Essence Stage.
In the sixth, he'd reached the second level of Sense Imprint.
In the seventh, he'd reached the third level of Sense Imprint.
Contrary to what Meng Nan had expected, cultivating Sense Imprint with true qi was exceptionally difficult.
Every step brought a hurdle.
One level per life.
Time seemed to hit fast-forward. Life after life, Meng Nan steadily built his foundations and pushed forward, one step at a time, toward the Qi Refining Stage.
In the blink of an eye,
the tenth life had ended.
May 1, Cultivation Calendar Year 20.
Angming Mountain.
Wuyun Peak.
Inside his cave abode, Meng Nan opened his eyes and checked the panel—
Name: Meng Nan Lifespan: 20/80 Faction: Cha Mountain Cave Cultivation: Inner Qi Greater Celestial Circuit Inner Qi: 495 Root Bone: 1 Talent: [Deprivation] Cultivation Method: Lesser Thousand Sword Scripture Techniques: Gale Thunder Sword Technique (Perfected), Hundred Transformations Cloud-Mist Movement Technique (Perfected), Blood Arrow Secret Technique (Minor Accomplishment), Giant Spirit Mysterious Technique (Proficient), Small Thousand Sword Array (Proficient), Five Thunder Technique (Proficient), Heavenly Eye Technique (Proficient), Wind Gathering Technique (Proficient); Crafts: Alchemy (Qi Circulation Powder, Yellow Spirit Pill, Golden Marrow Pill, Spring Renewal Pill, Essence Nurturing Pill, Vital Essence Pill, Mad Demon Pill); Artifact Refining (Small Flying Scissors, Water-Exiting Sword, Thunder Shaking Sword, Talisman General Black Armor, Soul Banner) Activation Progress: Viewable
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