Longevity Chronicles

Tao Qian had wanted to stay away from Shan Jiu, but his puppet body's cultivation was still weaker than that of a wild leek demon from Wild Man Mountain.

He was promptly pulled into that hidden Zen Room amidst the bamboo forest by Shan Jiu.

Inside, there was already an occupant: a Pig Demon with four large heads, big ears, gleaming mane, and covered in the stench of excrement, huddled together for warmth, trembling with indescribable fear of the terrifying slaughter and chaos of the outside world.

Such lowly demons had nothing but their fatty flesh and brutal strength smeared with filth and mud; they possessed neither Divine Power Skills nor magic artifacts.

If they had a master to rely on, it would be somewhat better, but without one, they were the bottom of the food chain in the Demon Realm. Unless they could cultivate some spectacular Innate Divine Ability, they were doomed to eventually become meat on someone's roasting spit.

However, although these Pig Demons had not much cultivation, their tempers were quite sizeable.

Perhaps out of excessive terror, or fearing that other little demons would fight for this concealed Zen Room, the four dirty, yellow-maned, fat pigs charged at Tao Qian and Shan Jiu without even seeing who the newcomers were.

Tao Qian had wanted to take action, but Shan Jiu beat him to it.

This diminutive youth had somehow drawn a green, oily vine whip from somewhere and, with loud cries, went to meet the four Pig Demons. A whip for each one, flaying the skin off their backs and eliciting pitiful howls of agony.

Tao Qian keenly perceived that the vine whip was a magic artifact that affected not only the body but the soul as well, which was why the four Pig Demons were howling so miserably that they almost passed out. And then, they defecated and urinated uncontrollably, turning a once-clean Zen Room into a pigsty that seemed never to have been cleaned.

After driving the Pig Demons away, Shan Jiu didn't even mind the mess. He dragged Tao Qian to the one corner that remained uncontaminated.

One human and one wild leek demon squat down in a very unbecoming manner, staring at the center of the Zen Room.

It was strange, at first, that what filled Tao Qian's nose was the stench of pig excrement, which was several times more foul than that of wild or domestic pigs, almost making one want to vomit.

But as time passed, that stench gradually faded until it completely disappeared, replaced by a peculiar smell that was both fragrant and foul, like that of green grass.

Tao Qian blinked in surprise, then glanced thoughtfully at the squatting Shan Jiu beside him.

Seeing Tao Qian looking over, the youth might have thought his new friend was getting impatient. He scratched his messy green hair and hurriedly explained, "Daoist, don't rush. You have to believe me, just wait a little longer, just a little while longer, and I'll let you choose first."

Almost at that moment, as Shan Jiu's panicky words fell...

A violent gust of wind came from above, followed by a "thud" as the tile roof was pierced by a fist-sized hole. Something that glowed with a thick blood light fell through the roof, smashed into the ground, creating a pit and became embedded in it.

The visible radiance and the distinct sense of an abnormal aura.

All indicated that this item was indeed an alien.

"Could it really be?"

At that moment, Tao Qian felt a profound shock.

Even though he had already known that this "wild leek demon" had some inexplicable fortune and always managed to pick up treasures, he thought it was a passive effect, unbelievable but still acceptable.

"But now, this Wild Leek Demon told Tao Qian that his fortune in finding treasures could be activated proactively."

In Tao Qian's mind, terms exclusively used in web novels he had been addicted to in his previous life suddenly emerged.

"Could it be that this Wild Leek is what legends describe as a 'Heir of Heavenly Destiny?' A protagonist's life chart?"

"If one could casually find Basic Methods, Great Books, Mystical Artifacts, True Devices, and so forth... who would still bother to cultivate? If you become friends with this Wild Leek and follow behind it to pick up treasures, wouldn't that be enough?"

Fortunately, Tao Qian's will was still relatively firm, and his own fortune was not too shabby either, which is why he could hold on.

If it had been someone else who had sought the Dao and cultivated for many years without gaining anything, witnessing this scene might have caused their Dao Heart to collapse.

Meanwhile, as Tao Qian was pondering, Shan Jiu had already dug out the alien object that had fallen into the pit.

Cradling it in both hands, he presented it as if offering a treasure.

The object was a bloody large tooth, likely belonging to some monster of the Foundation Establishment Realm.

It was probably knocked out by one of the four Daoists, still wrapped in blood and flesh, quite disgusting.

Tao Qian glanced at it but showed no interest.

Many demon creatures' "flesh" and "organs" possessed abnormal powers, including this tooth. If it were the Tao Qian who had just started on the path of cultivation, he might have thought of forging it into a weapon or simply selling it. However, he was now entirely unimpressed by it.

So, Tao Qian shook his head, indicating that Shan Jiu should just keep it for himself, then couldn't help asking, "Mr. Shan, does your fortune to actively find treasures trigger often? Other than these flesh and organs, have you found any other books or scrips among the treasures you've picked up, like the 'Fire Plate' you gave me earlier?"

Seeing that Tao Qian was not interested in the meat tooth, Shan Jiu didn't stand on ceremony and took out a small, flat, emerald wallet from his bosom and stuffed the meat tooth inside.

This scene made Tao Qian feel somewhat frustrated, as the palpitations from the wallet were very strong, indicating it was a pretty good Storage Treasure Bag.

It was apparent that Shan Jiu had a bit of a "hoarding habit." Although the meat tooth was disgusting and seemed to have no use, he still carefully tucked it away.

Afterward, he seriously answered Tao Qian's questions.

The green head shook, saying,

"It doesn't trigger very often, sometimes it's once every few days, or sometimes once every few months. But I've found that the more people or demons there are, the more treasures I find."

"Most of the time, it's these kinds of demon flesh and organs. Occasionally, I also find some fun treasures, but they aren't very powerful. If I brought them all out, they should be able to hold their own against cultivators from your human race at the Foundation Establishment Realm."

"As for stronger cultivators from the Transcend Mortality Realm and demons, I can't beat them. I've been killed by them several times, but fortunately, I can resurrect, so dying doesn't matter."

"But I rarely find books or scrips. After coming out from Wild Man Mountain, I've only found that Fire Plate and another thin book. However, I later made a new friend, and he took it from me. He was so excited at the time, kept shouting 'Blood God Scripture Fragment,' 'I've found the Blood God Scripture Fragment,' then he stopped paying attention to me and ran off on his own."

"A few days later, I saw him again, but he seemed to have gone mad, skinned himself completely, and when he saw me, he even blamed me, saying I had deceived him, claiming that the book was fake."

"But, you know, I can't read. I even said that I just picked up the book."

"This has happened so many times before, and it's clearly not my fault."

As he spoke, Shan Jiu seemed to withdraw into himself.

Clutching the emerald wallet, he squatted back in the corner with a face full of grievance.

Seeing this, Tao Qian felt slightly relieved, yet his mind couldn't help but recall the incident that had occurred during the banquet in the side hall.

That female fairy named "Mei Xian'er" also said she wanted to be friends with Shan Jiu, but in reality, she was coveting the treasures carried by the Wild Leek Demon.

As a result, she was tricked.

"Which means, if you don't sincerely befriend this Wild Leek Demon but do so out of greed, there is a high probability you'll be duped."

"Just like that Mei Xian'er, that Evil Cultivator who cultivated the fake 'Blood God Scripture Fragment.'"

"Furthermore, the alien treasures that Shan Jiu has picked up clearly have some sort of limit."

"And, can Shan Jiu be revived?"

After silently analyzing, Tao Qian also felt a bit withdrawn.

Because he realized that although this Wild Leek Demon could not be considered the Heir of Heavenly Destiny, with the attributes of "Blessing" and "Undying," his path in the Dao was inherently much easier than other Cultivators.

Although Tao Qian could also be undying to some extent, the two were actually entirely different.

With a sorrowful sigh of envy, Tao Qian also squatted back in the corner.

A man and a Wild Leek Demon, staring intently at each other, waiting for treasures to smash through the roof like sitting ducks.

It seemed that to compensate for the withdrawn Shan Jiu, the whooshing sound of the wind came again after not too long.

This time, there were three of them.

Thump, thump, thump!

Three dull thuds later, the tile roof had three more holes of varying sizes.

And on the ground, there were also three more pits.

Tao Qian quickly looked up and saw that this time, what had fallen were all chunks of flesh and blood.

Moreover, each piece emitted an extremely intense peculiar aura, obviously all of significant origin.

With his wealth of experience, Shan Jiu seemed excited about these three chunks of flesh and didn't wait for Tao Qian to make a move before his figure flashed a few times.

The next moment, there were three strange pieces of flesh and blood in front of Tao Qian.

They were a segment of a cow's thigh, half a skull containing brain matter, and a lump of blood about the size of an infant's head, irregular in shape and dark.

The cow's thigh must have come from some powerful Cow Demon, and it was unclear what kind of Magic Skill it had practiced; even though the thigh was chopped off, the flesh and sinews inside were still actively wriggling, as if trying to return to its owner. Alas, Shan Jiu was kneeling on it, pressing it firmly in place.

As for the brain, it was half a skull filled with brain matter, but the brain matter appeared to be composed of hundreds of disgustingly gray-white parasites, congealing and dispersing, emitting a dizzying hiss, yet unable to escape the confines of the skull.

Lastly, the lump of blood, seemingly quiet, but when Tao Qian looked closely, he suddenly felt giddy, as if his blood was about to freeze solid in an instant, almost killing him on the spot.

If it weren't for his quick recovery, he might have really died.

Tao Qian clicked his tongue in amazement, thinking, "These three chunks of flesh must come from three extraordinarily powerful Demons. I have no idea what sort of background and origins they have, to be so bizarre."

As Tao Qian pondered, he suddenly saw Shan Jiu's face wrinkled in conflict.

In those narrow eyes, there was a look of hesitation.

At the same time, his gaze darted back and forth between the three pieces of flesh.

As he looked, he swallowed saliva voraciously.

Tao Qian heard it loud and clear, and immediately began to speculate.

It was at this moment that Shan Jiu timidly spoke up, "Daoist friend, it seems that you're not fond of Demon flesh. How about I take all three pieces?"

After speaking, he appeared worried that Tao Qian, his new friend, would have a lower opinion of him. After all, it was he who had first promised to let Tao Qian choose first, one turn each.

With his body still pressing down on the cow's thigh that wanted to escape, he hurriedly gestured at the many treasures on his body and said to Tao Qian, "Daoist friend, please don't be upset. Including that meat tooth from earlier, we split everything evenly. I've taken it all, so how about I compensate you with two treasures?"

"Just tell me which two on my body you like, and I'll take them off for you."

Tao Qian saw the green-haired youth panicking, and yet, his saliva wouldn't stop flowing.

It was just like a gourmet who sees delicious food in front of him but can't immediately pick up his chopsticks, making him sweat profusely in impatience.

Curious, Tao Qian gestured with his hand, "Let's not rush this. I have no interest in Demon flesh. They are all yours."

"Really?"

"That's great!"

With this burst of joy, Tao Qian suddenly saw a chilling green light flare up in the narrow eyes of the green-haired youth before him.

Then, the next moment, Tao Qian caught a glimpse of this self-proclaimed youth "who attained the Dao among the Wild Leek on Wild Man Mountain," revealing a somewhat terrifying other side.