Gateway of Immortality

In the capital of Jiuyao Kingdom.

The divide between the rich and the poor on Tianxing Street was obvious. On the western side, the people who came and went were either high-ranking officials or wealthy aristocrats. The grand mansions had towering walls, red gates, and shiny glazed tiles, all exuding luxury and opulence.

The deeper one went, the more extravagant it became. Closer to the imperial palace, there were even estates covering dozens of acres, residences of nobility.

In comparison, the residence of the Assistant Minister of Revenue, with only three courtyards, appeared quite humble among these grand mansions.

After his retirement, the assistant minister’s residence had been sold to a certain family, with a plaque now reading "Song Residence."

However, this family was rather mysterious. They lived a very low-key life, rarely seen, and even had very few servants. The few household necessities were purchased by the servants when they went out.

Still, anyone living in such a prestigious area was not to be underestimated, so no one dared to provoke them unnecessarily.

Qin Sang hadn’t expected Song Ying to be so unconcerned with luxury. Even the house they were living in had been hastily acquired at the time, with only minor renovations made. The gold and silver Qin Sang had left for Song Ying was an astonishing amount, enough to ensure generations of prosperity, even without any investments.

Perhaps, after seeing the grandeur of the immortal world at Wenyue Market, her ambitions had grown beyond worldly luxuries.

With a creak, the door was pulled open from the inside, and a young servant peeked out. Upon seeing Qin Sang, whom he didn’t recognize, he asked cautiously, "May I ask who you are looking for, sir?"n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Qin Sang smiled and said, "I’m a friend of your master, my surname is Qin. Please inform her that an old friend has come down from the mountain to visit."

The young servant gave Qin Sang a suspicious look before replying, "Please wait here, sir."

Soon, hurried footsteps could be heard from inside. Song Ying rushed out, her face lighting up with joy when she saw that it was indeed Qin Sang. She quickly opened the main gate.

"Greetings, Mr. Qin..."

Qin Sang glanced at Song Ying, noticing that she looked much healthier and more radiant than when he had first met her at Wenyue Market. Her figure had filled out, and her demeanor was more poised—it was evident that she had given birth.

As they chatted while walking towards the guest hall, a sudden sound of babbling came from the inner courtyard. A little boy, no more than two or three years old, dressed in a small sleeveless top, came stumbling out, followed closely by a frantic wet nurse.

"Mother! Mother!"

The little boy rushed into Song Ying’s arms, his voice soft and childlike, looking curiously at the unfamiliar Qin Sang.

The wet nurse looked terrified. "Please forgive me, Madam. The young master, he..."

Song Ying shook her head, signaling for the servants to withdraw. She affectionately picked up the little boy, then turned to Qin Sang with a hopeful look in her eyes. "Mr. Qin, this is my son. My husband and I named him Song Chengxian. Chengxian, greet the gentleman."

The more Song Ying urged him, the more the boy pursed his lips and remained silent.

Qin Sang chuckled, unfazed. He understood what Song Ying was hoping for, and he had come here to fulfill his promise.

In Shaohua Mountain, disciples in the Foundation Building Realm had three opportunities to recommend new disciples for entry, though the candidates still needed to meet the sect's requirements.

Qin Sang had come this time to assess the boy's talent. If the boy’s potential was good, he would use one of his recommendations. After all, without the sword will decree from the Song Family, Qin Sang wouldn’t be where he was today. Moreover, he had already made a pact with Song Ying.

Under her expectant gaze, Qin Sang stepped forward and placed his fingers on the boy’s arm.

After carefully examining him, Qin Sang glanced at Song Ying and asked her to summon the wet nurse to take the child away. He then spoke in a serious tone, "His spiritual roots are of the metal, wood, water, and earth elements."

Upon hearing this, Song Ying's expression was a mix of joy and sorrow, and her gaze dimmed slightly.

Having spent time at Wenyue Market, Song Ying had learned that having four-element spiritual roots meant that even if her son pursued immortal cultivation, he would likely never achieve significant success. Without the sword will decree, there was no way Shaohua Mountain would accept a disciple with such limited potential.

"Immortal Qin..."

Song Ying hesitated, as if she wanted to say something more.

Qin Sang sighed inwardly, knowing that Song Ying wanted to ask him to take her son as a disciple. However, with his own future so uncertain, he had no energy to take on a student.

But they had made an agreement earlier, so after a moment of thought, Qin Sang took out a jade bottle from his Mustard Seed Pouch, along with Gu Yuan’s short sword and a meditation mat made from Waterheart Bamboo, and handed them to Song Ying. He said, "It’s impossible to bring him into Shaohua Mountain, but we made a prior agreement, and I won’t go back on my word. When Song Chengxian comes of age, he can choose one of your family's five arts to cultivate, except for the Blazing Sun Art. This meditation mat will help him calm his mind and enter deep focus. If he has enough good fortune, he may still achieve something in the future. This spiritual pill is a Foundation Building Pill—consider it my gift to him. I’ve placed a barrier on the jade bottle, so as long as you don’t open it prematurely, you won’t need to worry about the pill losing its potency."

After breaking through to the Foundation Building Realm, the usefulness of the Waterheart Bamboo cushion would greatly diminish, making it only slightly better than nothing. However, the short sword was a top-tier artifact among middle-grade ones, more than enough for a low-level cultivator to defend themselves with.

"A Foundation Building Pill!"

Song Ying’s eyes widened in shock as she exclaimed in disbelief, staring at the jade bottle in her hand. She suddenly remembered hearing her parents and elder brother talk about the Foundation Building Pill before, describing it in exactly this manner.

Back then, her parents and brother had been full of envy.

Having grown up around immortal cultivators, Song Ying naturally knew what a rare and precious treasure the Foundation Building Pill was. Even the powerful families at Wenyue Market couldn’t secure one for their younger generations.

If news of a Foundation Building Pill were to spread, the entire market would be thrown into chaos.

The value of a Foundation Building Pill was comparable to that of the sword will decree.

Clutching the jade bottle tightly with both hands, Song Ying said excitedly, "Thank you so much, Immortal Qin, for the gift of the pill. I am deeply grateful. I will immediately have Chengxian come and bow to you."

"Perhaps we’ll meet again someday."

Qin Sang replied with a wave of his hand. His figure flickered and vanished on the spot.

After severing the karma between himself and the Song family, Qin Sang mounted his Sky Shuttle and headed straight for the depths of the Yuncang Marshlands. For ten days, he roamed the marshlands, letting the Xianling Bird and the Golden-Eyed Snake search freely. He did indeed find two spirit veins, but none had a spiritual eye suitable for building a cave dwelling, let alone a spiritual spring.

Reluctantly, Qin Sang let the two spirit beasts return to Shaohua Mountain on their own, while he flew towards the Guyuan Kingdom.

After setting up at Huilong Temple, Qin Sang returned to the deserted island. Sweeping the area with his spiritual consciousness, he confirmed that no immortal cultivators had intruded upon his cave dwelling. Satisfied, he activated the array and entered.

Removing the array left behind by the bamboo demon, Qin Sang set up the Xuanming Tortoise Shell Array with the array flags, then walked over to the pool inside the cave dwelling. He took out a jade box that held the Nine-Illusion Heavenly Orchid.

Back when Zhao Yan uprooted the orchid, its roots had been pristine white. Now, they were faintly tinged with yellow, and its leaves and petals had started to curl.

Qin Sang reached out and carefully removed the orchid from the jade box, gently dipping its roots into the spiritual spring. As soon as he did, he felt a sudden heaviness in his palm as the orchid naturally sank into the water.

The spiritual spring had only a thin layer of liquid, but the orchid spread its roots wide, covering much of the pool.

Immediately, the leaves of the orchid unfurled, and its petals regained a bit of their luster. Qin Sang set up a barrier to prevent any leakage of the medicinal energy. Squatting beside the pool, he observed it closely, a smile of hopeful anticipation appearing on his face.