Old Long's Story

Wait, what does Old Long mean by saying that?

Long Ziyan's lifespan was short; could it be that he's planning to take advantage of that Living Wood?

Is this the main reason he came here today? He really shouldn't do anything reckless.

Long Xuan was startled and hurriedly asked, "You don't actually have designs on that Living Wood, do you?"

"You absolutely must know your place! Even many Gu King find this extremely difficult to obtain; a Spiritual Sea Stage Gu cultivator like you shouldn't get involved."

Listen to my advice! Turn back before it's too late!

Long Xuan was startled and quickly tried to calm him down.

Old Long glared at him and said disdainfully, "Do you really think I'm a stupid pig? How could a mere Spiritual Sea Stage Gu cultivator like me even think about such a heaven-defying item?"

"I don't need you to remind me. I know what I should do. Do you think I, Long Ao, am so tactless?"

"The purpose of what I just said was not to try and harm the Living Wood, but to tell you that Ziyan's lifespan is very short, and you should be prepared for her to age quickly."

"If one day you find her growing old, will you change your mind? Look me in the eyes!"

Old Long stared intently into Long Xuan's eyes and questioned him in a deep voice.

"How could that be? I'll love her no matter how old she gets, I love older women!" Long Xuan replied without hesitation.

"Are you kidding? Long Ziyan will never age while I'm in her hands. I have too many ways to prolong her life. Isn't extending lifespan something anyone can do?"

Seeing that Long Xuan spoke those words without hesitation or pause, Old Long nodded and said, "Then remember what you said today, and never let her down, or I will not let you off easily."

"I have a good understanding of your character, so I'm fairly at ease entrusting Ziyan to you. From now on, I'm entrusting her to you, so please don't let me down."

After saying that, Old Long rummaged through his Storage Bag. Just as Long Xuan thought he was looking through his Storage Bag, he pulled out a few pieces of paper and solemnly handed them to Long Xuan.

Old Long seemed to be recalling something, a pained expression on his face. He sighed, "This is the Longevity Gu Recipe I created myself, but I've only figured out half of it. This can only be considered an incomplete formula for the Longevity Gu."

"It's not that I don't want to complete the Longevity Gu Recipe, it's just that my strength doesn't allow it. I overestimated my abilities; with my current capabilities, I simply can't deduce the subsequent materials."

"Your ability to create your own Gu Recipe is unparalleled in the world. I believe no one in the world can surpass your talent in creating Gu Recipe formulas."

"I am powerless to complete this Longevity Gu Recipe. Since Long Ziyan is now with you, I can only entrust this Gu Recipe to you, the genius who created this Gu Recipe, to complete it."

"I believe in your abilities. You will definitely be able to complete the Gu Recipe for the Longevity Gu, and then Ziyan will no longer have to worry about her lifespan."

Old Long seemed dazed, lost in thought, and gave a doting smile.

Seeing his expression, Long Xuan knew he had a story. After taking the incomplete formula with both hands, Long Xuan asked curiously, "Did you create this Gu Recipe specifically for Ziyan?"

Long Xuan glanced at the incomplete recipe for the Longevity Gu in his hand and discovered that he could actually see the progress. This meant that all the materials on the Gu Recipe were correct. Once the remaining materials were completed, this Gu Recipe could indeed be used to refine a Gu.

He was shocked. The ingredients in this Gu Recipe numbered in the thousands, and although he had only figured out half of it, he was no longer able to complete the rest.

But this doesn't mean he's useless. Gu Recipe that can increase lifespan must be a heaven-defying Gu Recipe, otherwise why would it require so many materials? The fact that he was able to research half of it already shows that he is a genius. Others wouldn't even be able to research one-tenth of it.

Long Xuan glanced at him in surprise. He actually had this talent? He hadn't realized it.

Old Long's eyes were fixed on the starry sky, oblivious to his gaze. He said in a melancholy tone, "You're wrong! This Gu Recipe wasn't created for Ziyan, but for her mother, Red Jade."

"It's just that I'm incompetent; even after Red Jade passed away, I still couldn't create the Longevity Gu Recipe."

Upon hearing this, Long Xuan was startled and subconsciously asked, "Could it be that Master's wife was also born with a short lifespan and needs a treasure to replenish her lifespan?"

Old Long nodded, a look of reminiscence on his face, and sighed, "Red Jade possesses the exact same Nine-Yin Severing Physique as Ziyan, but she is born with a short lifespan. I have gone to great lengths to find a way to extend her lifespan."

Do you know why I owe so much debt and still can't pay it off?

Old Long suddenly looked at Long Xuan and gave a bitter smile, "In order to find a way to increase lifespan, I squandered my family fortune and wasted my cultivation time studying Alchemy, naively hoping to create my own elixir to extend lifespan."

"It was just wishful thinking on my part back then. While elixirs that could extend lifespan theoretically exist, they would require extraordinary materials, which were simply beyond my reach at the time, when I was only at the Marrow Cleansing Stage."

"I failed on this path. It not only wasted a lot of my cultivation time, but also exhausted all my Cultivation Resources, causing my progress to be slow. Otherwise, with my talent, I would already be Gu King."

"Alas! The path of elixirs is not working, so I've decided to create my own Gu Recipe, hoping to create a Gu Insect that can extend lifespan."

"However, I seriously underestimated my own abilities. I was too arrogant and had no self-awareness whatsoever. How could I, an ordinary person, easily create such a heaven-defying Gu Recipe that can extend lifespan?"

"My thinking at the time was simply wishful thinking; it seems ridiculous now."

Old Long chuckled self-deprecatingly, then suddenly tilted his head back and took a big gulp of wine.

"So I failed again this time, wasting more of my cultivation time, squandering all the family fortune my parents had saved, and accumulating a mountain of debt that I could never repay."

"Heh, do you know how much resource it takes to research a Gu Recipe? I was really dumbfounded back then."

Old Long gave a bitter laugh, took a big gulp of wine, and continued, "You know, everything I did all those years was in vain."

"Not only did I fail to research anything, but I also wasted cultivation time and exhausted my resources, causing my cultivation speed to slow down and depleting my potential, making it difficult for me to reach the path of a powerful being."

"What pains me even more is that Red Jade doesn't understand what I'm doing at all. I'm so focused on researching something to extend her lifespan that I don't have time to spend with her at all, so she thinks it's because she's getting old that I don't want to touch her anymore."

"She's paranoid all the time, we argue all the time, and she'll assume I'm a third party if she sees me being affectionate with any other man."

"I was frustrated because of a series of failed experiments, so I had a big fight with her. I then said in a huff that I had someone else, and went outside to find some peace and quiet. I never imagined that my departure would be our final farewell. I didn't even get to see her one last time. I regret it so much..."

Old Long looked pained, his eyes reddening, and quickly looked away.

Long Xuan looked at him with complicated emotions, wanting to comfort him but not knowing how. In the end, he could only sigh softly and look towards a certain part of the starry sky.

He never expected that Old Long had such a story, or that Long Ziyan had such a past. No wonder her relationship with Old Long was not harmonious.

This is truly a tragic story, so melodramatic.

Old Long squandered his wealth in an attempt to research a way to extend lifespan, incurring endless debts in the process. This approach seemed ridiculous, yet he couldn't laugh at this moment. Perhaps this was a manifestation of love at its most extreme. After all, what love story's protagonists are truly rational?

At this moment, he had made up his mind to complete the incomplete formula of the Longevity Gu as quickly as possible to fulfill Old Long's dream. If he saw that the Longevity Gu Recipe he had studied all his life, was truly complete, he would surely be moved to tears, and his life would be free of regrets.

Meanwhile, in a secret room inside Qian Clan Auction House.

"Young Miss, filming for 'Living Wood' is about to start, are we really not going to do anything?"

"How about I disguise myself as a buyer and bid on the Living Wood? With the wealth of my Qian Clan Merchant Association, I have the ability to acquire Living Wood."

Qian Duoduo looked respectfully at the beautiful woman sitting in a red chair and said.

Qian Jinjin glanced at him and said helplessly, "Are you addicted to pretending to be a buyer? I already saw what happened today when you pretended to be a buyer to bid on the Spirit Wine."

"Even though this is a way to exploit loopholes, you're not allowed to do it again, understand?"

"Once someone discovers our flaws and catches us red-handed, the reputation of my Qian Clan Merchant Association will ultimately be affected."

Upon hearing this, Qian Duoduo looked embarrassed. She hadn't expected that her perfect disguise would be seen through by the young lady so easily. She really had a keen eye.

If Qian Jinjin knew what he was really thinking, she would definitely complain. How could someone with his round figure possibly disguise it perfectly? It's just too obvious!

"Are we really going to give up on such a heaven-defying treasure as the Living Wood? We could at least pretend to have accidentally chipped off a piece of bark."

Qian Duoduo said, unwilling to give up, with a very resentful expression.

Qian Jinjin immediately looked at him sharply and said sternly, "Don't do anything unnecessary, understand?"

"Doing nothing is not my decision, it's the Lineage's decision."

"The Lineage has already held a meeting of elders, and they unanimously voted to give up the right to claim the Living Wood."

"All the senior members of the Lineage unanimously believe that the disadvantages outweigh the advantages in vying for the Living Wood."

"Lineage's reputation is the foundation of its existence. With a good reputation comes a continuous stream of wealth, an inexhaustible source of benefit. For our family, the value of reputation far exceeds that of ten Living Wood."

"So many Gu King in the Lineage, nearing the end of their lifespans, have painfully given up their covetousness for the Living Wood Living Wood. How dare you, a mere steward, set your sights on it?"

"Stop using your clever tricks. No matter how reasonable our explanations are, the moment you touch the Living Wood, others will become suspicious. Don't treat everyone like fools! Understand?"

Qian Jinjin spoke sternly, looking at Qian Duoduo with a stern gaze.