Chapter 277 - 196: Heaven and Earth Spirit Root, Eternal Green Vine

"Can this Hermit Coffin be used a second time?"

He gazed at the coffin, pondering for a moment.

In the dream he’d had, the scene from the Memory Stone of Master Dancheng teaching his apprentice had given him a great deal of insight.

It even allowed him to faintly touch the threshold of a Tier Two Top Grade Alchemist.

This was significant because the only legacy he possessed was for Tier Two Middle Grade.

The path beyond that was severed.

But that scene had been a great help, giving him a chance to reconnect his broken path.

Li Chang’an wanted to lie in it again to try, but the memory of nearly losing himself before made him hesitate to take the risk.

’No rush. I’ll see what tonight’s divination reveals.’

He suppressed the urgency in his heart and remained calm.

「A moment later.」

Li Chang’an left Changqing Mountain and looked toward the other three peaks.

These three main peaks were all shrouded in arrays. In the past, he couldn’t see them clearly, but now he could make them all out.

The peak with the most arrays was Yu Hongmei’s, which had a full seven interlocking Tier Two Arrays.

’There are many arrays, but they aren’t working together perfectly. Some are redundant, and there are several flaws. If they were improved, only five arrays would be needed to achieve the same level of power.’

In the blink of an eye, Li Chang’an had identified the problems with her arrays.

His current attainment in arrays was approaching Tier Three, while Yu Hongmei had only just barely reached Tier Two Middle Grade.

The gap between them was immense.

Just then, Yu Hongmei suddenly left Xuemei Peak, transforming into a streak of red light to appear before Li Chang’an.

The fragrance of plum blossoms immediately filled the air.

She was dressed in a red robe, her skin fair and delicate. She smiled gently and said, "Daoist Li, why are you staring at my Xuemei Peak? Is there something amiss?"

"It’s nothing. I just felt that the arrays on Xuemei Peak seem to have some vulnerabilities. If multiple enemies were to attack at once, they might be breached."

"You worry too much, Daoist Li."

Yu Hongmei’s smile was bright and full of confidence.

"When it comes to alchemy, I cannot compare to you, Daoist Li. But the path of arrays is my specialty."

"As you say, Daoist Yu."

Li Chang’an cupped his hands in salute and said no more.

「After a brief conversation.」

He transformed into a streak of light and flew off, entering the Mortal Realm to find the chef he was looking for.

However, the chef was no longer at the tavern.

The shopkeeper informed him that the chef had left several months ago, saying she was going elsewhere to find her man.

With a flicker, Li Chang’an’s form vanished. He spread his Divine Sense, appearing all over the small Mortal Country and searching it inch by inch.

To his surprise, he couldn’t find the chef.

’How strange!’

Li Chang’an’s brow furrowed, his confusion deepening.

If she were just an ordinary mortal, it would have been impossible for her to evade his search.

「A moment later.」

He suppressed these doubts, left the Mortal Country, and went to the Marketplace at the foot of Changqing Mountain.

Over the past few years, thanks to the diligent management of the three great families, the Changqing Marketplace had begun to take shape.

「Before long.」

Li Chang’an found Luo Tong at the Luo Family’s estate.

Luo Tong was currently teasing his descendants, looking a bit more fatherly than before.

"How many children do you have now?"

"Hehe, not that many. Only thirty-eight."

Luo Tong chuckled, picked up one of them, and had the child greet Li Chang’an.

Li Chang’an was left a little speechless.

Thirty-eight children in just a few years—the rate was frankly terrifying.

Once these descendants grew up and started having children of their own, the number of Luo Clan Members would swell at an unimaginable rate.

Li Chang’an casually took out a few inexpensive Treasures and gifted them to the children.

Afterward, he explained his purpose for visiting and asked about Luo Kun’s feelings when he faced the Stone Stele back then.

"That Stone Stele?"

Luo Kun was a bit surprised; he had thought Li Chang’an was here for something else.

He thought seriously for a moment before saying, "It just looked a little familiar, as if I had seen it somewhere before, but I couldn’t remember where."

"Is that so?"

Li Chang’an pondered for a moment, his thoughts turning to the contents of his dream.

’Could that senior, Luo Kun, be this Luo Kun’s past life?’

「After a while.」

He left the Luo Family estate. Instead of returning to Changqing Mountain, he made a trip to Qinghe Marketplace.

...

「The next day.」

Li Chang’an returned with the Stone Stele.

He went back to the Luo Family’s estate and had Luo Kun take another close look.

This time, Luo Kun studied it intently for a long while.

"Strange. Not only does this Stone Stele look familiar, but it also gives me a sense of danger."

He said thoughtfully, voicing his feelings.

"You don’t remember anything else at all?"

"No."

Luo Kun shook his head.

After some more conversation, Li Chang’an left with the Stone Stele and returned to the peak of Changqing Mountain.

He had a premonition that the events in his dream had actually happened, and that this Stone Stele was some kind of supreme Treasure.

However, his current strength was too low to discern its special qualities.

’When I become stronger, perhaps I’ll be able to complete its Refinement.’

After a moment of thought, Li Chang’an tossed the Stone Stele into a corner of his Storage Pouch and decided not to worry about it for the time being.

As for the Hermit Coffin, it too was tossed into a corner.

This was because the previous night’s divination had shown that nothing would happen if Li Chang’an were to lie in it again.

It was useless now.

...

「In the days that followed.」

Li Chang’an cultivated as usual, occasionally checking on the status of the Beast Tide.

Time flew by, and a month passed in the blink of an eye.

「On this day.」

A piece of news arrived from Yellow Crane Mountain.

Xu Fugui had achieved Foundation Establishment Success!

Seeing this news, Li Chang’an sighed with emotion.

’He finally succeeded.’

In fact, Xu Fugui had already failed twice.

Fortunately, his master, Wang Fu’an, had accumulated enough resources to gather what was needed for a third attempt, finally helping him succeed in his Foundation Establishment.

’Having a good master can really save you from many years of taking the wrong path.’

Originally, with Xu Fugui’s aptitude, it should have been nearly impossible for him to reach Foundation Establishment.

But he just so happened to meet a master like Wang Fu’an.

’Fugui has a lifespan of two hundred and forty years now. That’s a good thing.’

The Immortal Path was long, and Li Chang’an hoped his friends could all live a little longer.

A smile appeared on his face as he began to rummage through his Storage Pouch.

Before long, he found a suitable Treasure, intending for it to be a gift for Xu Fugui’s Foundation Establishment Ceremony.

...

「The next day.」

Li Chang’an set out for Yellow Crane Immortal City.

When passing the Black Market, he changed into his Li Fan identity as usual and went inside to ask for news about the Withered Wood Cliff Master.

He had expected to come up empty-handed this time as well.

But, to his astonishment, the Withered Wood Cliff Master had returned—alive!