Cultivation Starting from Full Talent

Chapter 139: Chapter 137: Return to Dragon Flying Village

In the Spirit Garden Cave Heaven,

Ning Daoran was turning the soil, and after preparing a small patch of the spirit field, he planted the seeds of the Nirvana Grass.

The cultivation of the First-tier Life Extension Pill required that the Nirvana Grass be at least a thousand years old.

However, if planted using the Plant Holy Spirit Seed, it would only take ten years before it could be used as an ingredient for concocting elixir pills.

As for the other main ingredient, the Golden Yang Ginseng, its seeds had been purchased and planted in the Spirit Garden Cave Heaven decades ago, and now they were vibrantly red throughout the area.

‘Something’s not right…’

Several days later, Ning Daoran, with his hands clasped behind his back like an old farmer, paced back and forth next to the fields of the Spirit Garden Cave Heaven.

Recently, the growth of various spirit trees, spiritual medicines, and Third-tier Spirit Rice had been significantly worse than before, and the spiritual energy within the Spirit Garden Cave Heaven had begun to thin.

After much thought, he finally understood a bit.

After decades of cultivation, the spirit vein originally beneath the Spirit Garden Cave Heaven was nearly depleted.

If it were not replenished, the land in the Spirit Garden Cave Heaven would no longer be a spirit field.

“Old Lu!”

Ning Daoran immediately shouted and gently slapped his storage bag, causing a dense flurry of spirit stones to float out.

The man and deer began working diligently; they buried a large number of spirit stones underground, using the spiritual energy from these stones to nourish the entire Spirit Garden Cave Heaven.

After consuming more than five thousand spirit stones, the Spirit Garden Cave Heaven once again became rich with spiritual energy.

Ning Daoran frowned, not sure how long these five thousand spirit stones would last.

He thought that the cycle of spiritual energy in the Spirit Garden Cave Heaven was not baseless nor arbitrary—it still had to obey the law of conservation of matter.

“Old Lu, we not only need to cultivate, we must also believe in science,” he gently persuaded.

“Roawr~~~”

Big Stupid Deer looked as if it had an epiphany, only then realizing the existence of something called science in the world.

…

Several months later.

The news of Lin Yun’s successful Foundation Establishment spread.

It was said that Lin Yun’s Foundation Establishment process was very smooth, and he was promoted to Foundation Establishment without any issues, becoming one of the young Foundation Establishment members of the Chaotic Sect.

That afternoon, Lin Yun visited Qiongbi Peak.

“Uncle Ning…”

Although he was now wearing the garments of a Foundation Establishment Elder, he still expressed his respect: “Lin Yun could achieve Foundation Establishment thanks to that Foundation Establishment Pill from Uncle Ning; here are some modest gifts, I hope Uncle Ning will accept them.”

He presented some spirit fruits and meats.

Ning Daoran waved his hand and Chen Weimo accepted them.

“Lin Yun, you just succeeded in Foundation Establishment and your foundation is still thin, you should not spend too much time on social interactions during this period,”

Ning Daoran advised, “Cultivation and consolidating your Foundation Establishment Stage cultivation base is the most important.”

“Yes, Uncle Ning!”

Lin Yun nodded, at this moment he was utterly respectful towards Uncle Ning.

“What are your plans for the future?” asked Ning Daoran.

“I…”

Lin Yun hesitated for a moment and then said, “The sect has promoted me to an Outer Elder and wants me to take charge of a hall; so… Lin Yun plans to first accumulate some spirit stones, then look for opportunities to handle the affairs of the ancestral land’s spirit vein.”

“Yes, these matters should not be rushed. It’s best not to startle the grass and scare the snake before you advance to the Mid-stage Foundation Establishment,” Ning Daoran advised.

“Yes, Uncle Ning!”

After visiting, Lin Yun then left.

Chen Weimo stood in front of the bamboo building, watching Lin Yun’s departing figure, her eyes filled with complexity.

Both were elder Foundation Establishment cultivators; Lin Yun succeeded at once while she failed and even wasted one of Ning Daoran’s top-grade Foundation Establishment Pills.

Chen Weimo was acutely aware of the high value of a top-grade Foundation Establishment Pill.

“Uncle…”

She turned around: “I’m going upstairs to cultivate…”

“Go ahead.”

Ning Daoran watched her, unsure of what comfort to offer.

…

Afterwards, Ning Daoran once again immersed himself in cultivation.

He greatly focused on thoroughly mastering the White Feather Flowing Sound Array and the Fiery Fire Fish Dragon Formation.

Furthermore, he spent a lot of effort on Artifact Refining and Alchemy, both essential courses for future cultivation.

Big Stupid Deer was also focused on cultivation, perfecting several forms of the Shape-shifting Technique.

In this way, cultivation knew no years.

In the blink of an eye, ten years passed swiftly.

Over these ten years, many people left, and many ascended the mountain.

Only Ning Daoran remained ever youthful, wearing a simple blue robe, his whole person exuding an aura of a calm and detached ancient well.

This year, Ning Daoran was ninety-two years old, already of advanced age!

Among his generation of Foundation Establishers like Lin Sheng and Zhao Lichen, everyone else looked middle-aged, only Ning Daoran still looked like a youngster.

Many within the sect noticed something was different and knew that Ning Daoran must have reached a profound level of cultivation with the Evergreen Technique.

But since he was a Foundation Establishment cultivator and the Qiongbi Peak Master, no one asked much about it.

After all, Ning Daoran had been Foundation Establishing for over fifty years. According to information disclosed by Gongyang Yan, Lin Xingyuan and others, everyone knew that although this Foundation Establishment Elder who loved farming had a lower spirit root, his talent in cultivation techniques was quite extraordinary.

Therefore, it was completely reasonable that Ning Daoran spent over fifty years cultivating the Evergreen Technique, bringing it to the Fourth Layer and beyond.

The ten years were up; the Nirvana Grass had reached a thousand years, suitable for use in a First-tier Lifespan Extension Pill.

Ning Daoran was not in a rush to concoct pills; instead, he sat cross-legged in the Spirit Garden Cave Heaven, infusing the Refining Time into the Evergreen Technique, deciding to first cultivate the Evergreen Technique to the Seventeenth Layer.

For a time, his Divine Soul fluttered down, plunging into this somewhat vague era of intense cultivation.

[in the forty-first thousand year, you arrived in a dry salt lake, where all life ceased, and even birds in the sky refused to land here. You quietly sat in the deep waters at the bottom of the lake, like an old tree that was submerged]

[unfortunately, the Evergreen Technique remained immovable, facing the Sixteenth Layer Evergreen Technique, it was like staring at a seamless stone wall, completely without a trace]

[in seventy-nine thousand six hundred years, as time changed, countless torrential rains fell upon the earth, refilling the water of the salt lake]

“At this time, a Mid-stage Golden Core Fairy happened to pass by and expressed a wish to become your Daoist couple, provided you teach her the Evergreen Technique,” you readily agreed, built a cottage beside the lake, and settled down with the fairy, who let you experience all the joy in the world.

Centuries later, as the fairy’s lifespan was nearing its end, her eyes filled with tears, she cursed loudly, ‘You deceiver, I’ve served you for centuries, yet why has the Evergreen Technique only reached the Seventh Layer? You must be hiding something!’

You couldn’t defend yourself, watched the fairy leave, and decided to focus solely on cultivation from then on.

In your two hundred and twenty-four thousandth year, the Salt Lake where you resided had transformed into a vibrant green lake teeming with numerous creatures. When you opened your eyes at the bottom of the lake, your body rose like a towering tree, and all things revived and renewed with each of your breaths.

Evergreen Technique, Earth Rank top-grade (Seventeenth Layer)

Remaining Refining Time: Twenty-four thousand four hundred years.

…

“Hu~~~”

Ning Daoran took a deep breath as he awoke from his Refining Time.

He felt as if he had truly gone through a hundred and twenty thousand years of age, surrounded by an extremely ancient and vigorous atmosphere.

Within this ancient atmosphere, there was also an unstoppable sense of vitality, which was awe-inspiring.

At this moment, with the Evergreen Technique at the Seventeenth Layer, the wood attribute magic power within his body was even more refined, and the mana intensity was about three layers stronger than at the Sixteenth Layer!

Although it was absolutely outrageous to spend one hundred and twenty thousand years to advance just one layer, the improvement from the Evergreen Technique had exaggeratedly great benefits for himself.

With the bolstering of the Evergreen Technique at the Seventeenth Layer, Ning Daoran’s mana intensity was far beyond that of a typical mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, roughly comparable to an early-stage Golden Core, and on the stronger end at that.

He inwardly inspected with his Divine Sense to measure his lifespan.

As a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, he now had six hundred and eighty years of lifespan, far surpassing the lifespan of a Golden Core Stage.

‘Very well.’

He slightly smiled, abundance in lifespan meant he had no worries on his cultivation journey!

“Old Lu, protect me, I want to practice alchemy.”

“Ow ow~~~”

The Big Stupid Deer settled right outside the alchemy room.

Ning Daoran entered the Pill Furnace and began his all-day and all-night alchemy.

The recipe for the Lifespan Extension Pill was quite simple, and the alchemy process was not too difficult.

As a genuine Second-order Alchemist, Ning Daoran naturally had a very high success rate in making pills, almost close to one hundred percent.

Two days later.

“Out of seclusion!”

Ning Daoran, tired and dusty, walked out of the alchemy room, with a sizable amount of First-tier Lifespan Extension Pills in the jade bottles in his Storage Bag.

Inside the Spirit Garden Cave Heaven.

Ning Daoran began to try taking the Lifespan Extension Pills.

A First-tier Lifespan Extension Pill could only be taken three times in a cultivator’s life, any more and the body wouldn’t absorb the medicinal power.

After taking the first pill, Ning Daoran quietly sat for an afternoon.

Thereafter, his lifespan increased by ten years.

According to rumors in the Cultivation World, a First-tier Lifespan Extension Pill could extend life by five to ten years, so Ning Daoran’s effect was already at its limit.

He then took the second Lifespan Extension Pill.

Half a day later, lifespan extended by nine years.

This time the effect was slightly less, probably due to what’s called tolerance.

Following that, he took the third Lifespan Extension Pill.

One day later, lifespan extended by eight years.

The three Lifespan Extension Pills together extended life by twenty-seven years.

Now, Ning Daoran’s total lifespan was seven hundred and seven years, a step closer to being a thousand-year-old turtle!

…

“Chen Weimo.”

Ning Daoran entered the bamboo building. “Come down, I have some elixir pills for you.”

“Uncle.”

Chen Weimo slowly walked down the stairs.

Her complexion wasn’t good. At seventy-two years old, coupled with the negative effects of failing to establish her foundation, her blood, mana, and divine soul were all in decline.

If not for having taken a Solid Color Pill before, Chen Weimo would probably look like an old woman by now.

“Here are three First-tier Lifespan Extension Pills.”

Ning Daoran handed her a jade bottle, “Take one every three days. It should help extend your lifespan somewhat.”

“Uncle, I…”

Chen Weimo pursed her red lips. “Don’t waste your effort on me anymore, Uncle. I know you care about me, but…”

“Enough said.”

Ning Daoran said. “Go back upstairs and continue your cultivation.”

“Yes…”

Chen Weimo took the Lifespan Extension Pills and went upstairs.

“Old Lu.”

Ning Daoran frowned slightly. “How long has it been since we’ve seen Zhou Tiezhu and Little Hehua? Let’s take a trip back home and bring them some Lifespan Extension Pills?”

“Yo yo yo~~”

The Big Stupid Deer let out an enthusiastic deer call, excited.

It too missed Zhou Tiezhu and Little Hehua, and it had been fifty-two years since their last visit to the village.

…

Ning Daoran summoned a Mid-grade Bamboo Leaf Flying Artifact and returned home with the Big Stupid Deer.

Early morning.

Mists hovered over Dragon Flying Village, and a fine rain was falling.

Outside the village, an old farmer in a straw coat led an old ox, while the village was filled with the sound of chickens crowing and dogs barking.

Suddenly, Ning Daoran felt somewhat reluctant to enter the village.

He was afraid that not everything over the years had turned out as hoped.