NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 207: Invitation for Offerings
"Doctor Chen, it has been over 40 years, and yet your aura remains youthful as ever. I truly envy you."
Clad in a purple ceremonial robe, Yang Dan came to visit Little Cold Peak with a middle-aged man.
In the face of True Person, Chen Yi paid due respect:
"You flatter me, senior. I'm just a coward, distancing myself from the storms of the Immortal Cultivation World, seeking solitude here. As a True Pill Cultivating Monk, you are the one I truly admire.
With my rate of Cultivation, I'm afraid I won't be able to achieve Core Formation in this life."
Chen was not exaggerating. He was now 103 years old. At 60, he had successfully established his foundation, but still remained in the middle stage of Foundation Establishment. His Martial Method and Spiritual Roots Talent were mediocre.
Unless something unusual happened, he was unlikely to reach the peak of Foundation Establishment before the age of 180.
Regular cultivators at the Foundation Establishment stage lived just past 200 years of age. But after 150, their condition started to deterioritate, and after 180, they generally entered the twilight of their lives. By that point, there was generally no hope of Core Formation.
"Doctor Chen, you are too modest. Forty years ago, when no one thought you could establish your foundation, you succeeded. Today, you are known far and wide for your mastery in medicine, alchemy, and talismans, and you have the favor of the Ling family elder. If you seize the opportunity, I believe you stand a decent chance of achieving Pseudo-core."
As Yang Dan chatted with Chen Yi, she thought that, under normal circumstances, he would indeed reach the middle or late stage of Foundation Establishment and then stop progressing.
Whether it was Ling Jingjing or herself giving Chen Yi a glimpse of a Pseudo-core future was already a way of elevating him.
Chen Yi just smiled noncommittally. He wasn't concerned with the opinions of others.
"Doctor Chen, I've come here to apologise."
After they all settled down, Liu Emei poured tea for the three of them.
"Oh?" Doctor Chen pretended not to know.
"Forty years ago, for the sake of my useless brother, I forced a trade for a top quality Foundation Establishment Pill from you. That was essentially like robbing you of an opportunity. Today, I've brought this useless brother of mine to apologise to you. I hope you won't hold a grudge."
With that, Yang Dan had her brother, Yang Hui, bow down to Chen Yi and hand over a Storage Bag.
After acquiring that top-quality Foundation Establishment Pill, Yang Hui indeed successfully established his foundation. But he was ultimately pushed up forcefully by his sister and his foundation was thus relatively weak.
Now, more than 40 years later, he still had not progressed to the middle stage of Foundation Establishment. There was virtually no hope for him, unless he was exceptionally fortunate or encountered a great opportunity.
As Yang Hui paid his respects to Chen Yi, Chen hastily dissipated his bow with a little Mana,
"Daoist Yang, what are you doing? That's not necessary.
Senior Yang, that event was just a fair trade. I have long forgotten about it. You didn't have to go through the trouble of visiting."
Chen blocked Yang Hui's salute, but was unable to refuse the Storage Bag he handed over, thus reluctantly accepting it.
Yang Hui was touched by Chen Yi's warmth, feeling that his sister's apology was a bit superfluous; Doctor Chen didn't seem to bear a grudge about what happened all those years ago.
Yang Dan originally thought the same way. Over the years, she hadn't heard a single complaint from this Turtle doctor about being robbed of the top-quality Foundation Establishment Pill,
Moreover, Chen Yi was amiable to everyone — for 40 years, he had stayed mostly within Little Cold Peak.
It was not until Ling Jingjing suddenly extended an olive branch to Chen Yi that Yang Dan wondered if she could compete for the services of this man of many talents. After careful consideration of her past experience with Chen Yi,
She was stunned to realize that everyone from the past who had ganged up to bully Chen Yi, had met with unfortunate incidents!
Alchemist Liu Yonggang and City Lord Yue Xiu both died, while Tan Feng also mysteriously died. Moreover, her Genuine Crystallisation Pill was replaced with a substandard one...
The cause of Liu Yonggang's death remained unknown. Although it was rumored that he was killed by Zhao Jingwu,
The wealth Zhao Jingwu displayed in preventing her from forming her Core,
Did not match the wealth amassed by alchemist Liu Yonggang over so many years. Zhao Jingwu, as a Pseudo-core cultivator, seemed somewhat poor.
The circumstances of Tan Feng's death were also very strange. During the battle where he protected her as she formed her core, his combat abilities and experience were commendable.
He was able to injure Zhao Jingwu just by using the puppets and talisman treasures she provided. As a core disciple of Qinglong Island, the head of the Tan Family, and the beloved disciple of True Person Chengji, he should have countless protective treasures.
But without even using those, he was suddenly killed by Zhao Jingwu?
Something was amiss.
Recently, Zhao Jingwu emerged and the Heart Demon Oath he spread through a small Immortal Cultivation family did not seem to be false.
Although all the evidence pointed to Zhao Jingwu,
As one of the people involved, Yang Dan felt that things might not be that simple; Zhao Jingwu did not seem like someone who would kill Tan Feng.
So, how did Tan Feng die?
All her Genuine Crystallisation Pills and valuable third-tier magic weapons, talisman treasures, and puppets were with Tan Feng.
Where did those items end up?
A series of doubts surfaced, leading Yang Dan to consider a horrifying possibility.
If Chen Yi was the culprit behind all these, it would be truly terrifying.
While there was no evidence, many matters in the Immortal Cultivation World did not require proof. As long as she suspected it could be true, that was enough for her to be cautious.
She remembered that many years ago, Bandit Cultivator Jiang Hao had revealed a secret: there was a low-profile expert named Green Lotus Hermit living in this Spirit Mist Marsh.