Dao Path, Fate

The deal was struck.

Jiang Ran agreed to the Liu Household's terms and obtained what he wanted.

His appetite had not been that great to begin with. A complete Qi-Consumption Cultivation Method, plus a Soul-Nourishing Herb, was already enough to satisfy him.

As for that so-called "token" afterward, it was merely an extra.

Jiang Ran was not naive enough to think that some token could grant him protection and opportunities.

If such a good thing truly existed, why would the Liu father and son not use it themselves?

Besides... who knew whether the token was fake, something fabricated out of thin air?

Worried that Jiang Ran might flee at the last moment,

Old Man Liu still held something back. He gave Jiang Ran a Qi-Collection Method, but stated that the most important portion, the "Qi-Consumption Method," would only be handed over once someone from the superior sect arrived.

Jiang Ran was not in a hurry either.

His Qi-Nourishing Cultivation Method had yet to reach completion, and Qi Assimilation was still far in the distance.

It was worth mentioning that the seemingly least important "Qi-Collection Method" among the Liu Household's inherited techniques greatly broadened Jiang Ran's horizons.

[Qi is the breath of heaven and earth. To gather it is not to seize it by force, but to sense it through emptiness and stillness...]

[Autumn-Grass Frost-Condensing Qi is born atop white cogongrass by marshbanks after the autumn equinox. It is a wisp of clear essence when water qi is about to congeal but has not yet done so. Face west and clear your heart. Hold green bamboo three inches above the grass, softly recite the incantation, and inhale lightly. When a thread of coolness seeps into the center of your chest, you will obtain one wisp...]

[Xuanxiao nurtures essence; the water soul takes form. Not yet congealed, about to congeal, rise with my breath.]

A single Qi-Collection technique alone ran to a thousand words and brimmed with profound mysteries.

"The conditions for gathering qi are somewhat harsh," Jiang Ran pondered.

"The Black Dragon Mountain region is mountainous, with few lakes, rivers, or great waterways. Gathering water-attributed True Qi will not be easy."

"But... I can return to Pingjiang to gather qi."

Autumn-Grass Frost-Condensing Qi belonged to water. At its root, he needed to find a place where water qi gathered around great rivers and waterways to meet the conditions.

Pingjiang City was named Pingjiang precisely because it lay beside a great river.

That being the case, gathering qi in Pingjiang should be far easier.

"My Mystic Spirit Body has not yet been nurtured, so I cannot assimilate True Qi."

Jiang Ran suddenly thought of an excellent idea. "But True Qi is extremely valuable. Autumn-Grass Frost-Condensing Qi is ranked eighth, so it should fetch a good price!"

For someone who could freely travel between two worlds, reselling resources was absolutely the most profitable business.

But the prerequisite was capital.

He could gather True Qi in Pingjiang and take it to Black Dragon Mountain to sell for money.

Then he could buy spiritual items from Black Dragon Mountain and bring them back to Pingjiang. That way, a perfect economic cycle would take shape!

Qi-Consuming Initiation meant consuming True Qi to officially step onto the immortal path.

Generally speaking, one could only touch upon the spiritual workings of heaven and earth and gather True Qi after Qi Cultivation was complete, one's blood essence and heart soul were perfected, and one had nurtured a Mystic Spirit Body.

But Jiang Ran was different. He did not need to wait that long.

Qi Refining might not have been as powerful in combat as Qi Assimilation, but he was still a Qi Refinement Level One cultivator, a proper cultivator who had entered the gate.

Sensing the existence of heaven and earth's spiritual energy was a basic ability for Pingjiang middle school students.

Gathering qi posed no difficulty at all.

For the past two days, Xiang Family Village had been gripped by unease, with rumors flying everywhere.

News that the Hundred-Yue Immortal Sect was about to conscript miners spread from several wealthy households and caused a tremendous uproar.

Who these days would be willing to send their own child off as forced labor?

After all, although the immortal sect did not require cultivation for its miner conscription, it wanted young, strong men.

Every family's son was precious. Without a male pillar to hold up the household, even one's words in the village would lose their weight.

Moreover, everyone knew that the Hundred-Yue Immortal Sect was at war with the Mingji Immortal Sect.

The miners were far from the battlefield, but no one knew what might happen later.

What if... what if the Hundred-Yue Immortal Sect lost?

Once the immortal sect was defeated, its disciples would surely face a reckoning. Even miners might not escape unscathed.

The might of immortals could shake heaven and earth. Even ordinary people who were merely caught at the edge of it could suffer a calamity from which there was no return.

The facts proved that the Liu Household's information network was indeed well-connected.

Before long, definite news came from within Black Dragon City.

The immortal sect's conscription order was hung upon the city walls. Every village and town within ten thousand li of Black Dragon territory had to answer the call. Even those cultivation lineages fell within the scope of the conscription.

Mining was for extracting ore, and extracting ore was ultimately for refining magical artifacts.

The sect's urgency was not a good sign.

There was a strong possibility that the Hundred-Yue Immortal Sect had already fallen into a disadvantage in the war.

On the first day of the immortal sect's conscription, the entire Black Dragon region was anxious. Many commoners even wanted to use connections to shield their sons from disaster.

But the Hundred-Yue Immortal Sect's attitude was too resolute.

It ordered the conscription completed within three days and even dispatched a Dao Foundation Realm expert to oversee it personally.

Jiang Ran had only heard Iron Ox mention the words "Dao Foundation" once. It referred to terrifying experts who stood above Qi Assimilation.

Qi-Consuming Initiation allowed one to wield immortal arts, already making one an existence beyond the reach of ordinary people.

To the rural villagers of Xiang Family Village, Dao Foundation Realm cultivators were figures who existed only in legends.

With a Dao Foundation Realm cultivator stationed in Black Dragon City, no cultivator dared to obey openly while defying in secret.

Thus, on the second day of the immortal sect's conscription, matters proceeded smoothly. Tens of thousands of strong men from villages across the region streamed continuously toward Black Dragon City to register.

By the third day, things changed again.

According to the accounts of those selected on the second day, everyone learned one thing.

—The Hundred-Yue Immortal Sect offered miners extremely generous treatment!

[First: Any selected person shall receive a seventh-rank Qi Assimilation technique from the Hundred-Yue Immortal Sect, along with one strand of True Qi.]

[Second: Those who labor diligently for one hundred days may serve the immortal sect.]

In this world, cultivating immortality had never been equal. For commoners at the bottom to obtain an opportunity was harder than ascending to heaven.

After all, not every farming household was as fortunate as the Liu Household, possessing the blessings left by its ancestors.

Working as a miner could earn one a seventh-rank cultivation method, and even a strand of True Qi directly bestowed upon them?

This was simply a thunderclap on level ground.

All those young men who had originally sighed and groaned, deeply unwilling to answer the call, suddenly appeared in droves.

"I was born and raised in Black Dragon City! I want to bring glory to Black Dragon City!"

"Let me go instead! I'm strong, and I can definitely do the job well!"

"We're all children of Black Dragon City. Working for the superior sect is only natural..."

Perhaps this was precisely the effect the Hundred-Yue Immortal Sect wanted.

The number of commoners entering the city to take part in the conscription doubled.

But... the Hundred-Yue Immortal Sect refused no one. It seemed to impose no limits and could take in however many people came.

Inside the Liu Household residence.

Jiang Ran once again sat at the same table as Old Man Liu.

"Old Liu, it's still not too late to regret this." He smiled at the old man across from him. "I can return the Soul-Nourishing Herb to you."

With the Hundred-Yue Immortal Sect offering such good terms, Iron Ox could certainly go seek an immortal opportunity.

Old Man Liu remained silent for a long time before finally speaking.

"No need..."

His voice was filled with bitterness.

"Iron Ox already has somewhere to go. He has no affinity with Hundred Yue."

"Oh?" Jiang Ran was somewhat surprised.

"Little Brother Jiang... working for Hundred Yue is exceedingly arduous, and you may have to endure the strict training of the superior sect's masters." Old Man Liu's voice was steady.

"No matter what, it was my Liu Household that wronged you!"

"By the time you return after several years, Iron Ox and I should already have left Xiang Village."

"If you still... if fate allows in the future, you may come see us again at Qianyu Lake."

Jiang Ran did not say much more.

It was merely a transaction. Their fate ended here.

On the third day, Jiang Ran arrived in Black Dragon City.

Before he even had time to look around this magnificent city, he was taken away by cultivators from the Hundred-Yue Immortal Sect.

This immortal sect conscription gathered tens of thousands of strong men.

More than half of them were miners, and Jiang Ran was among them.

Soon, they reached their destination.

Beneath Zhaoyun Cliff, mineral veins stretched without end.

At first, Jiang Ran had planned to run away directly, since he did not know whether mining was dangerous.

But the conditions offered by the Hundred Yue Sect were simply too good.

Moreover, the conscription order stated very clearly that anyone selected would receive a cultivation method and True Qi.

Thus, Jiang Ran decided it was best to play it safe a little longer.

Sure enough, just after the leader finished explaining the mining arrangements, a young man in Daoist robes stepped out from behind him.

"All of you, focus your minds and calm your qi."

The young man held a five-colored disk in his hand. As he spoke, five-colored radiance rose and swept across the entire crowd in an instant.

"That will do." The young man nodded toward the leader.

The leader cupped his hands, then took out a roster and began calling names one by one from the front.

"Golden Sun Village, Zhao Xiaohui. Fate aligned with Jia Wood. Bestowed a seventh-rank mystic art and one strand of Ancient Pine Rock-Splitting Qi."

"Golden Sun Village, Li Huan. Fate aligned with Wu Earth. Bestowed a seventh-rank mystic art and one strand of Thick Mountain Dust-Earth Qi."

"..."

"So quickly?"

Jiang Ran was somewhat stunned, yet filled with delight.

"The Hundred-Yue Immortal Sect is far too generous!"

Simply by working as a miner, one could receive a cultivation method and a complete strand of True Qi. Could there truly be such a good thing?

Soon, Jiang Ran's name was called.

"Xiang Family Village, Jiang Ran. Fate aligned with..."

The leader's voice clearly hesitated for a moment, but he quickly recovered.

"Jiang Ran. Fate aligned with Ren Water. Bestowed a seventh-rank mystic art and one strand of Ice-Lake Spirit-Water Qi."