In the days that followed, Lu Chang’sheng didn’t bother to cultivate on purpose; he just spent time with his family.

His little sister looked a bit older now, but when she saw Lu Chang’sheng, she was wearing a fitted outfit that made her look pretty sharp and spirited.

Lu Chang’sheng asked two Fang Family cultivators to teach his family cultivation techniques, but sadly, only his little sister showed some spirit root potential.

This lifetime, she’d probably reach mid-Qi Cultivation at best.

The odds of someone in the Mayfly World having top-tier spirit root talent were still way too low.

Half a month later, Lu Chang’sheng met with everyone at Lu Mansion, and then left with Nangua and the others.

Before leaving, he asked his little sister and the rest if they wanted to follow him to the Good Beast Immortal City, but she turned him down.

She wanted to stay, and said, "If I ever get the chance, I’ll go to Good Beast Immortal City to see you."

Looking at her, Lu Chang’sheng could still vaguely see the shadow of that little girl who used to follow him around, slowly fading away.

"The road to immortality is unendingly lonely."

Lu Chang’sheng sighed softly—not that he hadn’t expected it.

Back then, he refused to become partners with Nangua precisely because of this reason. Too bad—

He left some protective talisman papers for his family, then returned to the Good Beast Sect. The Great Yuan territory didn’t have many cultivators, just ordinary folks mostly, and Supreme Profound Sect wouldn’t trouble them just because of him.

Coming back from Great Yuan, Lu Chang’sheng felt a lot more relaxed and went right back to his alchemy work.

He’d just gotten back to the area around Platinum Immortal City when he received a message through the Sound Transmission Shell from Ning Zhao.

She asked if the reason Lu Chang’sheng hadn’t gone to Purple Ice Lake was because Huang Yun was up to something?

But Lu Chang’sheng denied it.

Staying at the sect was his own choice.

Once she heard his answer, Ning Zhao sighed and sighed again, ultimately dropping the matter with nothing she could do.

Lu Chang’sheng knew the Ning Family was trying to push him into the spotlight, which was why they’d offered him a chance to compete for a Dean position.

But after learning more about Good Beast Sect, Lu Chang’sheng didn’t really care about that slot anymore.

A few days later, word came that the entrance spirit array at Purple Ice Lake had been broken.

"That Profound Turtle Alchemist is something else—a single spirit array managed to block so many high-level cultivators."

Lu Chang’sheng thought to himself.

He didn’t feel tempted at all. That Profound Turtle alchemist, always up to something, who knew what trick he’d use next to mess with all those cultivators?

Unbothered by any of this, Lu Chang’sheng spent his days holed up in the alchemy room with Little Fire Cloud Beast. Each day, the beast did nothing but spit fire. With so much fire breathing, the fur around its mouth had turned a reddish-black.

At least it wasn’t all bad—its fire control technique had gotten far smoother.

And after swallowing a good number of Perfect Pills, its strength had leveled up pretty fast too.

"One or two Perfect Pills don’t do much for a cultivator or spirit beast. That’s why Perfect Pills can’t compare with grade-two pills."

"But once you have enough quantity, they beat ordinary grade-two pills by a long shot!"

Lu Chang’sheng mused.

He’d swallowed quite a few Perfect Pills over time.

The number of Perfect Pills Little Fire Cloud Beast had managed to earn after all this time was pathetic compared to what Lu Chang’sheng had consumed himself.

"I wonder what would happen if you just kept swallowing them indefinitely?"

Watching Little Fire Cloud Beast puff out flames, Lu Chang’sheng felt a sudden spark of inspiration, but it slipped away before he could analyze it.

"Forget it, for now I should just focus on Foundation Establishment."

Two years later, Lu Chang’sheng came out of the alchemy room burning with energy, followed close behind by Little Fire Cloud Beast.

Its eyes had lost their former lively shine; only when it looked at the Perfect Pills in its claws did a bit of comfort show on its face.

Tired?

It was hard at first, but now it was used to it.

"Gulp~"

The beast stuffed a Perfect Pill into its mouth, felt it dissolving, and just about trembled with excitement.

It thought it’d gotten stronger again. In a few decades, once this old alchemist died, it’d finally be able to protect itself and win its freedom.

"Little Fire Cloud, take two days off, then back to alchemy." 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Lu Chang’sheng turned and said.

Little Fire Cloud Beast nodded instinctively, a determined glint in its eye.

For freedom!

Lu Chang’sheng caught up with Nangua and the others, and two days later, strolled out from Nangua’s and Gu Chan’s rooms one after another.

Looking refreshed and sharp.

"Fellow Daoist Gu Yuan."

On his way to the Alchemy Institute, Lu Chang’sheng ran into Gu Yuan, covered in travel dust.

"Hey Fellow Daoist Lu, just the man—I was wondering, are this year’s pills ready yet?"

Seeing Lu Chang’sheng, Gu Yuan took a deep breath, and some of the tiredness melted off his face.

"Of course," answered Lu Chang’sheng—he was on his way to bring the pills to the Alchemy Institute anyway.

Sitting as an alchemist at the institute meant refining a set quota of pills each year.

Otherwise the immortal sect’s disciples at the lower ranks wouldn’t get their pills.

But Lu Chang’sheng couldn’t hand them over to Gu Yuan directly, so they both went to the manager’s office at the institute, recorded the submission, and then Gu Yuan picked up the pills from the staff there.

For large transfers of pills, the sect leader’s written order was required, of course.

Luckily, the manager handled those, contacting a Foundation Establishment cultivator stationed in the sect to verify everything.

Lu Chang’sheng didn’t have to bother about any of that.

Soon after, a figure arrived—returning alongside Gu Yuan was Zhong Mountain, a Foundation Establishment cultivator tasked with escorting the pill shipment.

Seeing Lu Chang’sheng, Zhong Mountain immediately pulled an awkward face, looking constipated.

"Where’s Little Fire Cloud Beast?"

He sneaked a glance around Lu Chang’sheng, but not spotting the beast, couldn’t hide his disappointment.

"At home resting."

"Good, good! That’s a precious breed—you should really take care of it, don’t overwork it, and feed it only the best!"

Lu Chang’sheng almost felt bad for keeping the truth from Zhong Mountain, watching him mope like that.

"Would it be convenient for me to see it?"

"Better not. Little Fire Cloud Beast hasn’t been up for visitors lately." Lu Chang’sheng thought of its lifeless eyes and decided it’d be better not to disturb its rest.

After all, those two days off were very rare.

"Alright then, here’s a little gift from me. Give it to the beast for me."

Zhong Mountain looked disappointed. He was hoping to make a solid connection now, so that when Lu Chang’sheng finally kicked the bucket, he could—well, not take over, exactly—at least win Little Fire Cloud Beast’s favor.

"Fellow Daoist Lu is already over a hundred and, for a Qi Cultivation practitioner, he’s probably got sixty or seventy years left, max."

Zhong Mountain was in Foundation Establishment himself, only thirty years older than Lu Chang’sheng, but with a hundred more years of lifespan ahead of him. If he broke through again, he could tack on decades more.

"Eh—that’s fine, never mind," Lu Chang’sheng felt awkward accepting the gift.

"You don’t consider me a friend or something?"

Zhong Mountain looked annoyed, so Lu Chang’sheng didn’t refuse, taking the item—a jade bottle—and was about to put it into the treasure vault immortal insect.

"Aren’t you going to check it first? It’s good stuff. Don’t forget to mention me to Little Fire Cloud Beast later."

Zhong Mountain gave him a little nudge.

Lu Chang’sheng didn’t have the heart to reject the gesture, opened it up for a look, and was instantly caught off guard.

"Surprised, right? More Perfect Pills—got lucky with the auction this time and snatched a few up."

Lu Chang’sheng wasn’t sure what to say; after all, he recognized these Perfect Pills. They were probably the very ones he’d circulated over the past two years.

Perfect Pills were still pretty rare, so Lu Chang’sheng would occasionally send small batches out to other immortal cities to sell, stashing up spirit stones.

The ones in this jade bottle were his own handiwork.

"Well, thanks, Daoist!"

"Don’t forget—tell Little Fire Cloud Beast for me."

Zhong Mountain reminded him.

No time to waste in making connections; otherwise, when it came time to take over, it’d be tough with no emotional foundation.

Before he left the Good Beast Sect, Zhong Mountain felt pure relief. Thank goodness Little Fire Cloud Beast hadn’t signed a spirit contract with He Feng—otherwise, with the relationship between him and He Qing, he wouldn’t even get a whiff of connection to that beast!

The thought made him chuckle out loud, leaving Gu Yuan utterly confused at the scene.