Eternal Life: Talent Grows with Age-Chapter 339 - 209: The Lu Mansion’s Rising Fame

This item is a jade scroll, precisely the Fire Rain Technique that Lu Chang’sheng had been longing for.

"Much obliged, Fellow Daoist," Lu Chang’sheng said.

"Compared to the favor you’ve shown me, how could this possibly compare?" Qu Feng shook his head with a bitter smile.

If not for Lu Chang’sheng’s suggestion, he might have had to grind out many more years to get enough Barrier-Breaking Pills.

By then, who knows what kind of shape he’d be in.

"Fellow Daoist Qu, you have this talent by nature. Even if I hadn’t mentioned it, you would have been chosen in the end."

Qu Feng simply smiled and shook his head, saying no more; as for Qu Guang, he knew well enough in his heart.

······

In the days that followed, several families began consolidating the Zhu Family’s industries, trying to claim as much as possible before rival factions reacted.

Of course, it was inevitable they’d have dealings with the Gu Family as well.

With a family of Zhu’s standing collapsing, there was no way the Gu Family would sit it out.

That night, Lu Chang’sheng was notified by Fang Yuan and the others and set out for the Gu Family’s estate.

The group returned to Platinum Immortal City and sent a formal greeting to the Gu Family.

The Gu Family resided in a prime district of Platinum Immortal City, and the territory they held was in no way inferior to White Cloud Cave Mansion’s.

Gu Shuang led a group from the city gate, spotting Lu Chang’sheng and company lingering by the Gu estate entrance at a glance.

At first, she didn’t pay any mind, but after her aides identified them, something clicked in her memory.

"What business brings you all here?"

Lu Chang’sheng had already seen Gu Shuang from afar, but he hadn’t expected her to be from the Gu Family—and given her tone, she was certainly no ordinary member.

The group promptly stated their purpose: with the Zhu Family’s downfall, they’d come to inform the Gu Family, and to offer a portion of the spoils—only this way could they avoid interference from other factions.

"The Zhu Family is gone?"

Gu Shuang was surprised. She hadn’t expected the Zhu Family to be their target.

The old Zhu Clan Leader was no pushover, not much weaker than Fang Yuan himself, and supported by several late-stage Qi Cultivators.

Without absolute, overwhelming power, this could not have happened.

She looked on with curiosity, her gaze settling on Fang Yuan—without doubt the strongest in their group.

"From what I know, the Zhu Family was quite formidable. Fellow Daoist Fang, can you share how you managed to destroy them?"

"Pure luck, pure luck—our alliance had two newly advanced late-stage Qi Cultivators." Fang Yuan made no effort to hide it.

Among Qi Cultivator clans, the Zhu Family had been a prominent force. Their destruction would become common talk before long.

Keeing it a secret was out of the question.

For a family like the Gu’s, it would take them little effort to find out everything.

Gu Shuang fell silent, briefly glancing at the group, then said, "Follow me inside."

Once inside, they began negotiations with the Gu Family’s appointed representative for the matter.

Lu Chang’sheng sat quietly, saying little; though the Gu Family’s negotiator acted tough, it was just the typical posturing over dividing spoils.

In the end, the partition of interests wasn’t too overbearing.

Otherwise, with their clout and strength in Platinum Immortal City, the Gu Family could have swallowed up most of the Zhu Family’s enterprises with ease.

Leaving the Gu estate, everyone felt a palpable sense of relief.

"No wonder they’re a Foundation Establishment clan—they have strong cultivators at every turn."

Even inside, Fang Yuan himself had felt ill at ease the whole time.

His so-called petty ’True Man of Foundation Establishment’ title meant nothing before such powers.

"Do you know what Gu Shuang’s story is?" Lu Chang’sheng asked.

"Gu Shuang is a genius of the Gu Family—she’s been cultivating at Supreme Profound Sect for years. I didn’t expect to see her back now."

Fang Yuan sighed. "Seems she’s reached the pinnacle of Qi Cultivation too."

"What’s that got to do with it?"

"Disciples like her, once they hit late-stage Qi Cultivation, rarely leave the sect anymore. If they do, they certainly don’t throw themselves into clan affairs like she’s doing now."

"And if you noticed, just now she came straight from the city gate..."

"That only means one thing: Gu Shuang’s hit the bottleneck, stuck at the doorway to Foundation Establishment, with no way forward. If she stays at the Immortal Sect, Heart Demons will fester."

"Breaking through to Foundation Establishment... that’s the hardest thing!" Huang Feng and the others all sighed heavily.

Lu Chang’sheng nodded along, feeling the pressure weighing on him too.

The odds of spawning Heart Demons in the jump from Qi Cultivation to Foundation Establishment are far higher than any minor breakthrough in the Qi realm.

The trip to the Gu Family had doused most of the excitement in the clan elders.

But Lu Chang’sheng seemed to be holding up well enough.

"If fifty years isn’t enough, I’ll wait another fifty, then."

He was just over seventy now—another fifty years and he’d be one-twenty at best, still with a few years of lifespan added if he advanced to late Qi Cultivation.

Right now, he wasn’t taking many kinds of Longevity Pills, but later he could invest the effort, and squeeze another twenty or thirty years of life out of them without too much difficulty.

"If even with C-rank Spirit Root Talent, I still can’t break through to Foundation Establishment, then dying is just dying."

Lu Chang’sheng was able to let go quite easily.

······

After returning from the Gu Family, Lu Chang’sheng found himself with a great deal less to do.

They still needed to claim the spoils left by the Zhu Family, but as more time passed, word got out. Some Qi Cultivator clans tried to get a piece, but when faced by five families’ late-stage experts—and a few mid-stage ones dead—they went quiet.

Seven late-stage Qi Cultivators is nothing to joke about.

The five-family alliance also put a sense of danger in many other factions, who started making approaches to rival clans.

Some considered alliances of their own, but it’s not so easy—without a clear power surge among the enemies, such alliances rarely held together.