Starting My Immortal Life by Upgrading Buildings

Chapter 107: Water Dragon Sect Selection—Begins!

Pill medicines, talismans, and water thunder beads were all unusable, yet Ji Yuan still carried them in his storage pouch.

As for formations, it was uncertain whether their use was permitted.

Even if they were allowed, Ji Yuan dared not take out the Yin Ghost Banner at this moment.

The Yin Ghost Banner, once unfurled, would unleash overwhelming yin energy, making it suitable only for life-and-death struggles, not for ordinary duels.

It seemed he could only wait until after joining the Water Dragon Sect to see if he could acquire a more conventional formation.

Regarding magical artifacts, he had more than enough.

Originally, he possessed six high-grade magical artifacts.

With the addition of the bronze armor obtained from the Yue Family Patriarch, he now had seven high-grade magical artifacts.

With these in hand, there should be no significant issues.

Ji Yuan once again sensed his dantian, ensuring that his spiritual energy reserves were at their peak, before pushing the door open and leaving.

What he didn't expect was that the Wen family trio and the Lin family trio were already waiting outside his courtyard.

"What's this? Here to see me off?" Ji Yuan asked with a smile.

"Of—of course," Lin Hu stammered, his eyes bloodshot, indicating a sleepless night.

Wen Lin's face was filled with reluctance, but he still managed a laugh. "Ling'er has to undergo a spiritual root test later, so we thought we'd come and bask in Brother Ji's good fortune."

Only then did Ji Yuan notice that Wen Ling'er had dressed specially today.

She wore a goose-yellow cloud brocade jacket, with white fox fur lining the collar and cuffs.

As she moved, the fur trembled slightly. Her lower garment was a pomegranate-red embroidered satin skirt, adorned with gold and silver threads depicting butterflies in flight.

She looked as lovely as a doll stepping out of a New Year's painting.

Noticing Ji Yuan's gaze, Wen Ling'er, holding Zhao Yuechan's hand, tilted her head and said with a grin, "Let's go! Today, Ling'er will become Brother Ji's little junior sister, hehe."

"Alright, then once we're in the Water Dragon Sect, I'll be counting on Ling'er to take care of me," Ji Yuan replied with a chuckle.

He then glanced at the Lin family trio and said thoughtfully, "You all go ahead. I have some matters to attend to at home and will join you shortly."

"Okay," Wen Lin promptly agreed.

He assumed Ji Yuan needed to prepare something privately and didn't want others to know, so he took Wen Ling'er and prepared to leave.

Lin Hu initially wanted to offer help, but seeing Wen Lin's reaction, he followed suit.

Once their figures disappeared into the Yunyu Marshlands, Ji Yuan retrieved a small storage pouch from his main storage bag.

It was the smallest kind, with a space only a foot square.

This was his final gift to Lin Hu.

The storage pouch was taken from someone—Ji Yuan couldn't even recall who anymore. Inside were four mid-grade first-tier talismans drawn by Ji Yuan himself.

Two for protection and two for offense.

Additionally, there was a bottle of pills suitable for breaking through from early-stage Qi Refining to mid-stage, all concocted by Ji Yuan himself.

He could have given more—low-grade magical artifacts, a magic boat, and such were easy for him to produce now, just a matter of drawing a few talismans, which wouldn't take much time or effort.

But being able to give and choosing to give were two different matters.

Ji Yuan understood well the principle of "a small favor breeds gratitude, a large favor breeds resentment."

What he provided now was just enough for Lin Hu to break through to the fourth layer of Qi Refining.

With those talismans in hand, even if Ji Yuan left for the Water Dragon Sect, Lin Hu would have enough to establish himself in Zengtou Market.

The rest would depend on Lin Hu himself.

However, considering Lin Hu had managed to quit gambling, his determination seemed strong.

Given that, there shouldn't be any major issues.

As for the Wen family, Ji Yuan didn't plan to give them anything.

Firstly, there wasn't much suitable to give. Wen Lin and his wife were both mid-stage Qi Refining cultivators, and Wen Lin was also a pill refiner.

They lived comfortably in the Yunyu Marshlands.

Secondly, their relationship wasn't particularly close.

Ji Yuan and Lin Hu were childhood friends, so naturally, he felt more inclined to help.

Finally, Ji Yuan went to the Lin household, placed the storage pouch on the table, and left, closing the door behind him.

He stood on the Thunder Falcon Boat, looking back at the lakeside cottage that had been his home for several years, feeling a deep sense of reluctance.

After all, this place held all his memories from the past few years.

The initial pain of transmigration, the joy of discovering his golden finger.

Then, the cautious steps forward, until he broke through to the late stage of Qi Refining and became a dominant figure in the Yunyu Marshlands.

All witnessed by this small cottage.

But once he left, who knew when he would return?

Moreover, once he was gone, new tenants would likely move into the courtyard next month.

He couldn't possibly continue paying the Immortal Residence Fee or buy the courtyard outright.

It wasn't necessary; that would be too extravagant.

After a moment of reflection, Ji Yuan took one last look at the two bare peach trees in the courtyard, wondering who would benefit from them next.

"Well, it's time to go," he murmured.

With a thought, the Thunder Falcon Boat transformed into a stream of light and vanished into the distance.

By fully activating the Thunder Falcon Boat, Ji Yuan arrived at the fish market of Zengtou City from his lakeside cottage in just a few breaths.

At that moment, the fish market was already crowded.

Even the on-duty cultivators from the Water Dragon Sect had arrived, waiting for the Foundation Establishment cultivators to commence the official selection.

Although Ji Yuan rarely appeared in Zengtou City, many people recognized him. Seeing his flying boat approach, many fishermen instinctively made way for him, greeting him as he passed.

"Brother Ji, you're finally here, haha. This year, Zengtou City is counting on you."

"Senior Ji, your elegance remains unchanged."

"Brother Ji, could you spare a few more glances at me?"

Among the many early and mid-stage Qi Refining fishermen, Ji Yuan spotted a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator and guided his flying boat to land beside him, a smile appearing on his face.

"Brother Du, you arrived early."

The person he saw was none other than Du Kang, another late-stage Qi Refining cultivator from Zengtou City.

Last year, he had been away due to some matters, thus narrowly avoiding disaster. This year, no matter what, he had to give it a try.

“Brother Ji, you're not late either.”

Du Kang greeted him with a smile.

After some brief pleasantries, Ji Yuan took out a transmission talisman.

It was a transmission talisman from Hong Xiuwen.

Ji Yuan had received it three years ago when he participated in the sect selection. Hong Xiuwen, who was the duty cultivator in the talisman division at that time, had gifted it to him, recognizing Ji Yuan's talent in talisman drawing.

He had even told Ji Yuan that he could contact him again during this year’s selection. However, after glancing at the talisman in his hand a few times, Ji Yuan eventually put it away.

This year, Ji Yuan planned to rely on his flying sword to enter, rather than using talismans.

Since that was the case, contacting Hong Xiuwen wouldn’t be very meaningful.

It would be better to wait and meet him directly in the Water Dragon Sect.

After putting away the transmission talisman, Ji Yuan sized up the duty cultivators of the Water Dragon Sect. Good—there wasn’t a single familiar face.

As for other acquaintances, he spotted Lin Hu and his family not far behind him.

He didn’t see Wen Lin and his family, likely because they had gone to the spiritual root testing area, which was quite far away and crowded, making it hard to spot them.

“Brother Ji, it seems that this year, from Zengtou Market, it's just the two of us participating,” Du Kang said in a low voice.

Ji Yuan recalled for a moment and realized it was true.

Families like the Qin and Wu had either joined already or met early ends.

Last year, there had been a fisherman at the mid-stage of Qi Refining who broke through to the late stage.

But he was only at the seventh layer of Qi Refining, so he definitely wouldn’t participate.

“Seems so. Many entered last year. This year, there probably aren’t many from the whole Yunyu Marshlands.”

Just as Ji Yuan finished speaking, a sword light descended from the sky, heading straight for Zengtou Market.

The pressure was immense, and it immediately silenced the entire fish market.

By the time Ji Yuan reacted again, he saw a young man in white robes standing atop a flying sword, hovering above the crowd.

“Those at the late stage of Qi Refining who want to participate in the Water Dragon Sect selection this year, step forward.”

The young man didn’t even look down, speaking lazily from his position above.

Ji Yuan and Du Kang exchanged a glance. The two summoned their flying boats and ascended before the Foundation Establishment cultivator, cupping their fists.

“Greetings, Senior.”

Upon hearing their voices, the young man finally glanced at them and casually said, “One at the ninth layer of Qi Refining, one at the eighth. Zengtou Market is not too bad.”

“I heard Ling Mountain Square doesn’t even have a single late-stage Qi Refining participant this year. Useless.”

“Well then, the rules for this year's selection have changed. During the beast battles, the use of talismans, pills, formations, and other external aids is prohibited. Only magical tools and spells are allowed. Violators will be disqualified.”

“What?!”

Ji Yuan was the first to exclaim.

Du Kang was equally shocked.

Upon hearing this for the first time, he even retreated slightly on his flying boat.

They weren’t the only ones.

Even the surrounding fishermen who had come to watch the spectacle were taken aback by the announcement.

Against beasts of the same cultivation level, they were already hard to kill. Now they couldn’t even use talismans or pills? Wasn’t this sending people to their deaths? Who would dare to participate?

But the Foundation Establishment cultivator appeared to be in a foul mood.

No one dared to speak, and all eyes turned to Ji Yuan and Du Kang.

Some were hoping to see them die in the beast battles, so they were eager for the two to join the selection.

Others, fearing the danger, hoped they would wait for the next opportunity instead.

Lin Hu, for instance, stared fixedly at Ji Yuan’s figure, opening his mouth several times but failing to speak.

“Well? There’s still time to withdraw. But once you reach Shanyu Island, it’ll be too late.”

The young cultivator looked at Ji Yuan and Du Kang with a half-smile.

He rather enjoyed watching others make life-changing decisions. After all, such a choice could mean stepping onto an entirely new path.

“Brother Du, what about you?”

Ji Yuan’s expression showed a trace of hesitation, as if he hadn’t yet made up his mind.

Du Kang first looked at the Foundation Establishment cultivator and cupped his hands. “May I ask, Senior, if we’re allowed to surrender should we be overpowered?”

“Of course,” the young man nodded, then added, “But the beasts are fierce. If rescue doesn’t arrive in time… well, then there’s nothing we can do.”

“Mm.”

Only then did Du Kang speak to Ji Yuan. “Brother Ji, I’m not young anymore. Waiting another three years... I’d rather give it a shot now. But you’re still young. You could wait.”

“Since Brother Du is willing to go, then I’ll try too. At worst, I’ll surrender and wait another three years. Might as well go see the world.”

Ji Yuan had been preparing for this for a long time—there was no way he would back down now.

After speaking, he cupped his fists toward the Foundation Establishment cultivator. “Junior is willing to go!”

“Good, not afraid of death.”

The young man took a more serious look at Ji Yuan—so young, with a pseudo-spiritual root, and yet able to reach the ninth layer of Qi Refining in a place like Yunyu Marshlands.

He probably did have some real strength.

“I will go as well.”

Du Kang quickly added his intent.

“Good.”

The Foundation Establishment cultivator nodded, looked down, and said, “You there, take these two to Shanyu Island and hand them over to Senior Brother Yun.”

“Yes, sir.”

The chosen Water Dragon Sect disciple immediately cupped his hands in response, summoned his flying boat, and headed into the depths of Yunyu Marshlands.

Ji Yuan and Du Kang promptly followed.

They had not gone far when the lazy voice of the young man echoed from behind them again.

“All right.”

“The Water Dragon Sect selection begins now.”