Back then, Weiwei, the young woman with the Immortal Spirit Eye, had led Ye Fan and the others out of the primeval forest. Discovering that they were all mortals who had survived the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Land greatly delighted the elders of the Yan Kingdom's six grotto-heavens and blessed lands, who considered them promising prospects for cultivation.
Though the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Land was terrifying beyond compare and had stripped away decades of their lives, it had also opened their bitter seas ahead of time. Compared with ordinary people, they had taken a shortcut along the path of cultivation.
Thus, Ye Fan and the twelve others had been accepted into the six grotto-heavens and blessed lands. Liu Yiyi and Zhang Wenchang had joined the Jade Cauldron Grotto-Heaven.
Before long, the two led Lu Chen into the grotto-heaven. Beautiful peaks shimmered with flecks of light, wreathed in white clouds. Rivers wound between them, stretching into the distance, the mountains and waters nestled together like a poem or a painting.
Atop the mist-shrouded mountains, clusters of palaces and towers could faintly be seen in the distance, ethereal and imbued with the charm of an immortal realm.
Most striking of all, at the center of the encircling mountains stood a peak cast from white jade. It gleamed with a crystalline luster, resembling a precious white jade cauldron.
Because of Lu Chen, Liu Yiyi possessed exceptional talent despite never having eaten a Sacred Fruit. The Jade Cauldron Grotto-Heaven had deemed her an "Immortal Seedling" and treated her very well, granting her a mountain peak of her own to live on-a privilege ordinary disciples did not enjoy.
Several wooden cottages stood at the summit. A lush grove of jade bamboo grew before them, beside a stone table.
Liu Yiyi brewed several cups of clear tea, and the three sat around the table.
"Brother Lu, why did you suddenly disappear after we came out of the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Land?" Zhang Wenchang, whose hair was streaked with gray, took a sip of tea and was the first to voice his doubts.
Though none of them had known Lu Chen well back then, they still remembered him.
"Yes! Back then, Ye Fan and Pang Bo regained their youth, while everyone else grew old, but you disappeared. Some people even thought you were behind it!" Though Liu Yiyi had embarked on the immortal path, her temperament had changed little. She still seemed somewhat gentle and fragile.
"When that strange curse in the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Land took hold, I had no idea where I tumbled off to. When I woke up, my body had undergone some changes. Later, I met a cultivator in the wilderness, and he took me as his disciple. More than two years have passed since then. Once I learned you were here, I came to visit. We're from the same hometown, after all." Lu Chen casually invented a few experiences. Whether anyone believed him was of no concern to him.
"It seems we were all fortunate. We crossed to the other shore of the starry sky and all embarked on the immortal path."
Neither Liu Yiyi nor Zhang Wenchang was particularly calculating, and they did not dwell on whether his story was true.
"Has your journey along the immortal path been going smoothly?" Lu Chen raised his jade cup, took a small sip of tea, and asked with a faint smile.
"Ah..." Zhang Wenchang sighed softly, his eyes somewhat lost. Dejected, he said, "Yiyi has extraordinary talent and tremendous potential. She's a true disciple whom the elders favor. She'll probably enter the Life Spring Realm within half a year."
Though the power of the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Land had also opened his bitter sea ahead of time, a gap had quickly emerged between them after they began cultivating in the Jade Cauldron Grotto-Heaven.
Liu Yiyi was already receiving special training, while Zhang Wenchang had almost been forgotten by the elders of the Jade Cauldron Grotto-Heaven, reduced to the most ordinary of disciples.
If Liu Yiyi had not looked after him and pleaded with the elders to help, Zhang Wenchang might still have looked like an old man.
"You're doing well too. I'm sure you'll enter the Life Spring Realm soon," Liu Yiyi gently reassured him.
"Yes. With effort, the day will come when you achieve something." Lu Chen knew that Zhang Wenchang could climb to the world's highest peaks once he followed the Way of Nature, but his cultivation would progress at an unimaginably slow pace. Each time, he would only break through to the next realm and extend his life when his lifespan was nearly exhausted.
The three drank tea, reminisced, and spoke of things back on Earth. Before they knew it, an afternoon had passed.
Though Liu Yiyi, Zhang Wenchang, and Lu Chen had not known one another well before, all three had come from Earth. Compared with the natives here, this truly was a meeting of people from the same hometown.
The sun sank in the west, and evening approached.
Lu Chen rose, produced a wooden box with a wave of his hand, and pushed it toward Liu Yiyi. Smiling, he said, "Miss Yiyi, as a fellow townsman far away on the other shore of the starry sky, I have a gift for you."
"What gift?" Liu Yiyi did not think much of it and casually opened the wooden box. Inside lay more than a dozen amber-like crystals containing fiery-red mist of incomparable purity.
"What is this?"
Neither she nor Zhang Wenchang had ever seen source, much less variant source. Even the entire Jade Cauldron Grotto-Heaven could not produce more than a few pieces of pure source.
The sect leaders of the Yan Kingdom's six grotto-heavens and blessed lands were only at the first or second level of the Dao Palace. With enough source, they could at least cultivate to the peak of the Dao Palace.
"This is variant fire crystal source. It contains vast amounts of the essence of heaven and earth and is a very important resource for lower-level cultivators."
Lu Chen spoke with ease. He had already obtained over a thousand pieces of source from the divine fire earth vein at Fire Demon Ridge, and now he had acquired the Source Heaven Secret Art as well. Obtaining ordinary source would truly be as easy as lifting a finger for him in the future.
"What? Variant source!"
When they first saw the crystals, Liu Yiyi and Zhang Wenchang had barely reacted because they did not recognize source. Now that they heard those crystals were variant source, they were instantly stunned.
Though they had never seen source before, their sect's basic teachings had placed special emphasis on this precious resource.
"An elder once said that one jin of pure source is enough for a Life Spring cultivator to break through a realm. With so much here, then...!"
As the two looked at the crystals inside the wooden box, their breathing grew somewhat hurried. Liu Yiyi was kind and gentle, and Zhang Wenchang was reserved and honest, but that did not mean they were foolish.
More than a dozen pieces of the legendary variant source would be a priceless treasure even to the entire Jade Cauldron Grotto-Heaven.
Even the lofty holy lands and great clans often offered several times as much pure source to purchase variant source, which showed just how precious it was.
"I see you've already reached the late stage of the Bitter Sea, Miss Yiyi. Tonight, I'll help you refine a piece of fire crystal source and break through to the Life Spring Realm!" Lu Chen spoke as lightly as a breeze beneath drifting clouds.
Yet at that moment, he seemed unfathomably mysterious in Liu Yiyi and Zhang Wenchang's eyes. Only now did they realize that this so-called "fellow townsman" was far beyond anything they had imagined.
That night, Lu Chen used a Profound Art to seal off the summit and prevent any aura from leaking out. Then, inside the wooden cottage, he helped Liu Yiyi refine the fire crystal source.
Early the next morning, Zhang Wenchang, who was outside, suddenly sensed a powerful surge of divine power erupt from the wooden cottage.
He knew that his old classmate, who had entered the Immortal Gate alongside him, had broken through to the Life Spring Realm. From now on, she could soar through the heavens and travel beneath the earth, becoming a true immortal in the eyes of mortals.
Yet the bitter sea he had opened was still tiny, and his cultivation progressed with agonizing slowness. Perhaps he would remain stuck here his entire life.
The Jade Cauldron Grotto-Heaven had many disciples like that, who frittered away their years without achieving anything in their lives.
Soon, hope kindled in the dejected Zhang Wenchang's heart, and a fervent light appeared in his eyes. It lay with the fellow townsman who had come to find them. If Lu Chen could help Yiyi, surely he would help him too.
Though he was honest and reserved, that did not mean he was willing to remain ordinary for his entire life. Among those who embarked on the path of cultivation, who did not long to truly attain the Dao and glimpse immortality?
"Miss Yiyi, now that you've entered the Life Spring Realm, you have an unending supply of divine power and can refine fire crystal source to cultivate. But you'd best not let anyone else know, or it will bring you trouble." After they came out, Lu Chen carefully warned her.
"You helped me break through and gave me such precious treasures. I really don't know how to thank you." Liu Yiyi's face was rosy, and in the light of the rising sun, she carried something of a gentle immortal maiden's grace. She felt rather embarrassed.
"We'll meet again if fate allows!" Lu Chen's hair stirred lightly in the wind. He turned with easy grace, waved, and left her residence with Zhang Wenchang.
Why did he help me? Standing at the summit, Liu Yiyi watched his departing figure. In her tender heart were questions, gratitude, and a few feelings she could not name...
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