Eternal Life: Talent Grows with Age-Chapter 244 - 163: Zhu Family’s Dissatisfaction

When the time comes, no matter if Lin Yan refuses or not, it’ll make it easier for a rift to form between the two.

"We’ll have to see if the Zhu Family, the Qu Family, and the others are willing to lend a hand."

He’d just gotten a pouch of Spirit Stones from his master—a full thousand of them.

This made Lu Chang’sheng feel a thread of gratitude inside.

"Even though I have an Upper Grade C evaluation, that doesn’t guarantee I can reach the corresponding Grade Two Alchemist rank. Given my bone age and cultivation, it’s a real question if I’ll ever achieve peak Grade One Alchemist at all."

No one knows their own situation better than themselves.

If not for the Golden Finger, even Lu Chang’sheng would have to admit, those people’s guesses were pretty much spot on.

Alchemy is never something you accomplish in one leap. For an alchemist to gain true success on the Alchemy Dao, it always takes years—nothing less.

Now, his bone age was nearing sixty, and his cultivation remained at the first level of Qi Cultivation. In other words, even in the best outcome, he would only have about sixty more years to live.

In the Qi Cultivation realm, only breaking from early to mid, and from mid to late—these two points—will give you a little more lifespan, and not very much at that.

Only a breakthrough to a Great Realm results in a huge increase in lifespan.

So, with his current performance, just making it into mid Qi Cultivation in this life would already be a big question mark.

"Now that my alchemy has started to head down the right path, as long as I make steady progress, for a good while in the future, there’ll be no shortage of resources for the Qi Cultivation stage."

"For now, all I can do is cultivate as much as possible—and live as long as I can."

"The early stages will definitely be hard, but if I can hang on for a few hundred years, then—within the Spirit Realm, there will surely be a place for me, Lu Chang’sheng."

Lu Chang’sheng stood at the courtyard gate, eyes burning with resolve.

······

Qingfeng Building was a rather famous tavern in the Southeast Market of Platinum Immortal City.

At the moment, Niu Xi was waiting outside its door, craning his neck expectantly.

Suddenly, he saw a figure in a mask walking toward him.

Niu Xi glanced over nonchalantly and was about to look away.

There were plenty of loose cultivators living under assumed identities in Platinum Immortal City—people in masks and bamboo hats were nothing new.

He figured it was just some loose cultivator and felt a bit annoyed inside.

After all, he’d been waiting a long time and didn’t want to deal with loose cultivators, but then a cool, calm voice caught his ear and made his pores bristle, eyes lighting up in surprise.

"Lu—Fellow Daoist Lu?"

The newcomer nodded slightly. Only once Niu Xi ushered him into a private room inside Qingfeng Building did he remove his mask, revealing that utterly unremarkable face of Lu Chang’sheng.

"I hope you’ll forgive me, Fellow Daoist." Lu Chang’sheng offered little by way of explanation.

With his cultivation so low, any loose cultivator he encountered might spell his doom. That’s why he preferred not to show his face unless he had to.

If only he was mid Qi Cultivation, he wouldn’t have to worry about this sort of thing.

After all, those with nothing to lose aren’t afraid—right now, he was the one who had something to lose and a bright future, but he also feared the reckless nobody trying to take him down with them because he’s an alchemist.

"No problem at all, no problem at all," Niu Xi said quickly.

Lu Chang’sheng figured Niu Xi probably couldn’t guess his real concerns, but it really didn’t matter much for what came next, so he let it go.

The two settled into a long conversation.

From Niu Xi’s words, it was clear he admired and respected Lu Chang’sheng—without a hint of envy or hidden malice. This left Lu Chang’sheng quite satisfied.

He’d trusted his judgment of people, and it had paid off.

Soon enough, Niu Xi began to rant about his own situation in the Zhu Family, sounding completely miserable.

Compared to Lu Chang’sheng, Niu Xi felt his own life over the years had gone completely to waste.

As he spoke, he even wiped at his eyes, sniffling.

Lu Chang’sheng could tell he wasn’t pushing for pity—he simply saw Lu Chang’sheng as someone he could confide in. That brought a trace of emotion to Lu Chang’sheng’s heart.

"Meeting the wrong people—is a disaster in itself."

If he’d joined the Zhu Family as well, maybe he too would have ended up in this predicament. But unlike Niu Xi, Lu Chang’sheng would never have cowered like this, not in a million years.

"Pity always has its reasons."

Lu Chang’sheng shook his head silently.

Niu Xi’s character—generously described as kind, honestly tilted toward weak.

Having a shrew for a wife was hardly his fault, but over all these years, if he’d really worked at it, his life wouldn’t have ended up this pathetic.

But Lu Chang’sheng didn’t hold it against Niu Xi.

In some ways, this kind of person was far more suited to be a friend than those ambitious types. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Of course, that’s assuming the other party didn’t bring too much trouble his way—otherwise, he’d draw a clear line without hesitation.

After a long while, Niu Xi snapped out of his venting and spoke about the reason why the Zhu Family sent him over this time.

They hoped to maintain a partnership with him—if they ever needed anything, he could help them with alchemy and such.

And at the end, Niu Xi handed over a Treasure Vault Immortal Insect.

Lu Chang’sheng opened it, finding a small pile of Spirit Stones inside, and, in addition, a pill furnace glowing with faint spiritual light.

"The Zhu Family asked me to bring this for you, Fellow Daoist Lu. If you’re not interested, I’ll just take it back to them."

Niu Xi’s attitude showed no special tilt toward the Zhu Family.

It really felt more like a thankless errand he’d been forced into.

Lu Chang’sheng smiled and said, "This is quite a display of sincerity from the Zhu Family. Honestly, I don’t really have any deep-seated grudge with them. Since they’re reaching out, how could I refuse their goodwill?"

Niu Xi’s eyes immediately filled with gratitude when he heard this.

He knew Lu Chang’sheng only agreed to accept the gifts because of their friendship, to some degree.

But in reality, he didn’t know—the truth was, while Niu Xi played a part, he wasn’t the main reason.

Lu Chang’sheng genuinely needed some helpers to lay the groundwork for his growth, just like back in Great Yuan territory.

"If you want to live long, minimizing conflict is always an enormous factor."

Lu Chang’sheng thought to himself.

"However—" He looked at Niu Xi, and added, "Before accepting these gifts, let me be clear: if something comes up, I may have to delay any alchemy, and there are pills I simply can’t make—those requests I won’t be taking."

The point was, he didn’t want the Zhu Family using him as a stepping stone to achieve their own ulterior motives.

"Of course, I’ll report this back to the Zhu Family."

Niu Xi spoke up immediately.

To him, Lu Chang’sheng’s willingness to forgive and work with the Zhu Family already exceeded all reasonable hopes—he knew better than to expect anything further.

But clearly, he was still a bit too naïve.

Back in the Zhu residence, after Niu Xi reported to Clan Leader Zhu Zhen and the other high-ups what had transpired at Qingfeng Building—

At first, Zhu Zhen and the others were quite satisfied, thinking Lu Chang’sheng was a reasonable person. But when they heard his final condition, everyone’s faces stiffened a bit.

"That bastard Lu really thinks a lot of himself,"

Zhu Ding spat sourly.

Niu Xi didn’t know it, but the main reason Zhu Zhen went to so much trouble to connect with Lu Chang’sheng was actually about this crucial point.

An Upper Grade C rookie alchemist was important—but using Lu Chang’sheng as a gateway to White Cloud Pharmacy and even White Cloud Cave Mansion, that was the core motivation.

But now, Lu Chang’sheng had cut off that possibility completely.

Zhu Zhen’s face grew so dark it nearly dripped water.

He’d never expected a cultivator straight out of the Mayfly World would have this kind of mindset.

"He’s quite something, isn’t he!" He gave a cold snort, venting his discontent.

Failing time and again with Lu Chang’sheng had left his patience hanging by a thread.

Niu Xi stood below, listening to the Zhu Family higher-ups’ talk, feeling a growing sense of suffocation inside.

Unable to help himself, he said, "I actually think Fellow Daoist Lu’s terms are completely reasonable. He’s got an Upper Grade C alchemist rating—his future’s bound to—"

Niu Xi believed this partnership was mutually beneficial, and besides, he wanted to look out for Lu Chang’sheng as well, and didn’t want the Zhu Family as another of his enemies. That’s why he tried to persuade them.

But the entire group of higher-ups looked over at him at once, their gazes sharp and pressing.

"See? This is what I mean about not knowing what’s important. Here we are discussing serious matters, and he still dares to interrupt," Zhu Fang said icily.

Niu Xi had gotten his darling daughter grounded—granted, that punishment didn’t actually mean much, but it was still a stain on family reputation, wasn’t it?

He could never like Niu Xi after that.

Zhu Zhen waved his hand irritably. "Enough, Niu Xi, you can go now."

Once Niu Xi had retreated, a thoughtful look crossed Zhu Zhen’s eyes.

He was considering how best to handle things with Lu Chang’sheng.