I Shall Be Everlasting In the World of Immortals

Li Erqing enjoyed the benefits of having many children, so it was only natural that he would face some backlash as well. The man had bred too quickly, leaving his offspring essentially fending for themselves.

Due to his background, Li Erqing was not adept at disciplining his offspring. In his previous life, Lan Chang\'an had numerous wives and children, and even though he was proficient at such family management, it was not always orderly. Those wives and children were not just cold statistics in a strategy game. Each had their own emotions, experienced birth, aging, illness, and death, and shared in blessings and misfortunes.

If one was lucky, their children would grow up to be competent individuals, bringing fortune to their parents. If one was unlucky, they might offend powerful figures, bringing disaster upon their fathers.

...

Upon arriving at Moonheart Island, Lan Chang\'an proposed to first pay respects at Mu Maode\'s grave.

Mu Maode, the former head of the Mu Family, had fifty years ago visited the Jin Yun Valley\'s mountain gate and brought back Lan Chang\'an, Li Erqing, and other talented seedlings to the family.

Six years ago, Lan Chang\'an had seen the elderly Mu Maode for the last time. Later, during an attack by the Maple Leaf Huang Family, Mu Maode died in battle and did not live to old age.

After Mu Maode\'s death, the Mu Family held a grand funeral. At that time, Lan Chang\'an was plotting to build his foundation in the Huanglong Immortal City, only hearing the news from afar.

At Mu Maode\'s tombstone, Lan Chang\'an lit an incense stick and bowed respectfully with his hands cupped before him.

Accompanied by Mu Renlong and Li Erqing, both ancestors of the Foundation Establishment stage, they stood in silence.

Seeing Lan Chang\'an\'s actions, Mu Renlong\'s eyes revealed a trace of relief.

Lan Chang\'an had decisively severed ties with the family back then, unmoved by the treatment and emotional ties offered by the Mu Family. In the eyes of many in the Mu Family, he was seen as unfeeling and ungrateful.

Yet Mu Maode, before his death, had returned from the Huanglong Immortal City and spoke well of Lan Chang\'an.

"This child remembers old ties; he is not heartless, merely resolute in his pursuit of immortality. Only leaving the Mu Family could offer him a ray of hope for establishing his foundation..." This was the last time Mu Maode mentioned Lan Chang\'an before he died in battle not long after.

A few years later, news came from the Huanglong Immortal City about an ancient man successfully establishing his foundation, inspiring many. Mu Maode\'s words had come true.

Both Mu Renlong and Mu Maode understood one thing: if Lan Chang\'an had chosen to stay in Feiyue Lake back then, he would have had no hope of establishing his foundation in this life. The family would never have given a Foundation Establishment Pill to an outsider.

Back then, Lan Chang\'an couldn\'t even get his hands on a breakthrough pill for the late Qi-Refining stage, let alone a Foundation Establishment Pill.

...

After paying respects to the deceased, they left the cemetery area.

At this moment, Lan Chang\'an caught a glimpse of a familiar young girl carrying a flower basket, heading towards Mu Maode\'s grave.

"Young Miss?"

It was a young girl in a green dress, with delicate eyebrows and a snowy complexion like a blooming lotus.

Her long dress reached her shoes, her starry eyes and pearly teeth exuding a cold elegance.

At that moment, it was as if time had reversed. The young seedlings who first arrived at Feiyue Manor had caught a glimpse of this beauty once again.

At first glance, Lan Chang\'an almost mistook her for Mu Xiuyun. The girl\'s appearance and demeanor were very similar to Mu Xiuyun. Her temperament was slightly different, a bit colder.

When Lan Chang\'an left the Mu Family, Mu Xiuyun was no longer a young girl but a mature and charming woman.

Even if Mu Xiuyun had always had access to beauty-preserving pills, she could only maintain her appearance and not reverse her age.

"She is Mu Xiuyun\'s adopted grand-niece, Mu Bingyun, an orphan whose parents died in battle many years ago."

Noticing Lan Chang\'an\'s gaze, Mu Renlong introduced the girl\'s identity.

"Mu Bingyun has decent qualifications, with a genuine mid-grade spiritual root. Xiuyun nominally took her in as a disciple, but treats her as a daughter."

"Mu Bingyun?" Lan Chang\'an softly repeated the name, saying nothing more.

At the grave, Mu Bingyun placed the flower basket down, her clear eyes seemingly unintentionally glancing at the white-robed guest.

From a distance, she could only see a vague figure.

"Young."

Mu Bingyun\'s red lips moved slightly, her voice youthful. After busying herself at the grave for a moment, she hurried away.

...

In the main hall of Moonheart Island, the Mu Family elders hosted a banquet to entertain Lan Chang\'an, with those accompanying them at least at the ninth layer of Qi-Refining.

"This is my little nephew, Mu Chengji, the current head of the Mu Family." Mu Renlong introduced a middle-aged man in a blue robe, who was handsome and courteous.

"Junior Mu Chengji greets Senior Lan." The blue-robed man said respectfully.

Lan Chang\'an nodded, his gaze falling on a silent, one-armed old man at the table.

"Ah, Brother Yunfei?"

"Brother Chang\'an, to think that you still remember me." The one-armed old man\'s breath tightened, his murky eyes revealing restrained excitement.

The one-armed old man was none other than Mu Yunfei. Back then, he had accompanied and protected the immortal seedlings, and had once guarded the herb garden with Lan Chang\'an, advancing to the seventh layer of Qi-Refining through trials on the frontlines.

In terms of age, he was a few years older than Lan Chang\'an.

One could say that Mu Yunfei was an elder who had witnessed Lan Chang\'an\'s growth within the Mu Family.

At the banquet, Lan Chang\'an chatted with Mu Yunfei for a while.

The head of the family, Mu Chengji, felt somewhat awkward, as he was not familiar with Lan Chang\'an within the family and had hardly interacted with him in the past. Now trying to build a relationship was not even as effective as an old, weak cultivator of the family.

...

At the banquet, the Mu Family\'s top management expressed their current predicament, being threatened by the Maple Leaf Huang Family, with their family business suppressed and family members unsafe when venturing outside.

Family head Mu Chengji tactfully expressed hope that Lan Chang\'an could offer assistance. Li Erqing and Mu Yunfei also spoke in favor.

Lan Chang\'an made no promises.

After the banquet ended, only Lan Chang\'an, Mu Renlong, and Li Erqing, the three Foundation Establishment cultivators, remained.

"Fellow Daoist Lan, do you truly not wish to return to the family as an honored elder?" Mu Renlong asked, his eyes sparkling.

"We don\'t expect Fellow Daoist Lan to return to the family and fight on the frontlines. If you could stay at Feiyue Lake and bolster our prestige, our Mu Family would be immensely grateful and would offer generous gifts."

"Big brother."

Li Erqing looked at Lan Chang\'an with hope in his eyes.

Lan Chang\'an had spent thirty years at Feiyue Lake and was not a heartless person.

The Mu Family was willing to offer rewards and did not expect him to fight on the frontlines, so there was some hope in this request.

"Fellow Daoist Mu, Erqing, I won\'t directly participate in the conflict between the two families." Lan Chang\'an refused.

Mu Renlong felt disappointed and sighed, but was not surprised.

Back in the Mu Family, Lan Chang\'an had avoided the battlefield and later earned the nickname "Turtle Talisman Master" at Bamboo Leaf Mountain.

"Lan has made this trip to Feiyue Lake for an important business deal with the Mu Family." Lan Chang\'an switched to transmitting his voice.

"A business deal?"

Mu Renlong and Li Erqing exchanged glances, unable to guess what Lan Chang\'an was planning.

"This matter must be kept confidential. Fellow Daoist Mu, please prepare a private room." Lan Chang\'an instructed.

"Very well." Mu Renlong nodded.

...

Shortly after, in a secret room on Moonheart Island.

Under the curious gazes of the two Foundation Establishment cultivators, Lan Chang\'an took out a white jade porcelain bottle.

Opening the lid, a peculiar medicinal fragrance wafted out, revealing the crystalline pill inside.

"This is..."

Mu Renlong and Li Erqing stared at the pill, their expressions shocked.

"There\'s no need to be surprised. The business I wish to discuss with the Mu Family is this Foundation Establishment Pill!" Lan Chang\'an smiled.

"Big brother! You have another Foundation Establishment Pill?" Li Erqing was shocked, completely unprepared for this.

Just now, Lan Chang\'an had been unwilling to help the Mu Family, causing him some disappointment. Unexpectedly, Lan Chang\'an had prepared a major surprise.

"The success rate of refining the Foundation Establishment Pill was good, so there was an extra one." Lan Chang\'an explained.

"Fellow Daoist Lan, you intend to sell this Foundation Establishment Pill to our Mu Family?" Mu Renlong confirmed excitedly. Even with his composure, he found it somewhat surreal.

"One price: five thousand spirit stones." Lan Chang\'an stated directly.

At the Bamboo Leaf Mountain auction, a flawed Foundation Establishment Pill that increased the Foundation Establishment probability by only fifteen percent sold for four thousand spirit stones. A genuine Foundation Establishment Pill would be worth even more.

"Five thousand spirit stones? No problem, we will gather them as soon as possible." Mu Renlong agreed outright, without a second thought.

The price was undoubtedly fair, and cheaper than it would be at an auction. The key lay in the private transaction, which eliminated the risk of losing such a valuable item to greedy cultivators.

Lan Chang\'an might not have been able to maximize his profit, but he could quietly grow rich. If he sold the pill through an auction, he would also have to pay a hefty fee.

"I wonder how the Mu Clan intends to allocate the Foundation Establishment Pill. However, I hope you will give Miss Mu Xiuyun a chance to compete for it." Lan Chang\'an made a small request.

Mu Renlong looked troubled. After some thought, he said, "The final allocation of the Foundation Establishment Pill will be decided by several senior members of the family in secret. I can promise you only that I will give her a chance."

Mu Xiuyun was close in age to Lan Chang\'an, and her chances of achieving Foundation Establishment were slim unless she possessed an superior-quality pill. Should her attempt fail, she would suffer grave damage to her vital energy, affecting her lifespan thereafter.

Thus, Lan Chang\'an did not force the matter, merely giving her a chance to compete.

...

Lan Chang\'an did not linger on Moonheart Island, instead heading to the courtyard he had once lived in at Feiyue Manor.

Li Erqing had always kept the small courtyard by the lake for Lan Chang\'an, preserving it exactly as it was. Upon his return, Lan Chang\'an found himself in familiar surroundings, and his mood lifted despite the fact that the spiritual environment there wasn\'t suitable for Foundation Establishment cultivators.

He had no plans to stay long and temporarily used some pills and spirit stones to make up for the deficiencies in the spiritual environment.

While the ancestors gathered the necessary spirit stones, Lan Chang\'an studied the inheritance from Puppeteer Sang. To his delight, he discovered that he had a talent for puppetry, one that far surpassed his aptitude for alchemy.

Within half a month, he mastered the fundamentals. Using some common materials, he pieced together several unranked puppet claw components.

Lan Chang\'an was in a wonderful mood. With the longevity of this life, he now had not only the dao of talismans but also the puppetry dao with which he could protect his path.

(End of chapter)