Starting My Immortal Life by Upgrading Buildings

Chapter 109: Cultivator of the Water Dragon Sect—Ji Yuan!

Lin Hu and Wu Qin remained silent until they returned home.

It wasn't until they reached the lakeside cottage that Lin Hu paused slightly, gazing at the tightly locked doors of the Ji and Wen families.

At this moment, he couldn't articulate his feelings—only that they were exceedingly complex.

"Come on, let's talk inside."

Lin Hu let out a long sigh.

However, once Wu Qin entered the house, she immediately called out, "Huzi, come in quickly!"

"What's wrong?!"

Lin Hu instinctively thought something had gone wrong at home, perhaps a thief had broken in. He immediately grasped the only two Water Arrow Talismans he possessed.

Upon entering, he saw nothing unusual and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He was about to ask Wu Qin what had happened, but before he could speak, Wu Qin had already turned around and handed him something.

"A storage pouch?! Where did this come from?" Lin Hu exclaimed in shock.

Regardless of whether there was anything inside, the storage pouch alone could fetch twenty to thirty spirit stones at Zengtou Market.

"I don't know. As soon as I entered, I saw this storage pouch on the table—"

Wu Qin's voice grew quieter as she spoke.

By the end, there was no need to say more; both of them knew who had left the storage pouch there.

Lin Hu took the storage pouch, refined it slightly to recognize ownership, and then retrieved its contents: four talismans and a bottle of pills.

With a glance, Lin Hu understood.

This was Ji Yuan's gift to help him break through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining.

At this moment, even deep breaths couldn't suppress Lin Hu's emotions.

Tears streamed down his face, and he hurriedly wiped them away, unwilling to show weakness in front of his family.

"Ji—Brother Ji gave this."

Wu Qin's voice trembled slightly.

She had been worried about what would happen to their family after Ji Yuan joined the Water Dragon Sect.

Unexpectedly, he had already made preparations.

After a while.

Lin Hu finally suppressed his emotions. "Ling'er's Heavenly Spiritual Root test must be kept secret. If word gets out, it could mean death for us."

Wu Qin understood the gravity of the situation and nodded immediately. However, she quickly added:

"Huzi, think about it. The Wen family on the far right produced a Heavenly Spiritual Root. The Ji family in the middle—you know Brother Ji's strength. What about our family—"

Both of them instinctively turned to look at the sleeping Lin Qiaoruo.

"An Anomalous Spiritual Root, also known as a Wind Spiritual Root among Heavenly Spiritual Roots, is even rarer than a Heavenly Spiritual Root."

Wen Lin listened to the Golden Core cultivator's explanation before him, still finding it hard to believe.

Or rather—he was stunned.

He was well aware of the reputation of Anomalous Spiritual Roots.

Their cultivation speed was comparable to Heavenly Spiritual Roots, but their power surpassed them.

For instance, Thunder and Ice Spiritual Roots could imbue even ordinary attacks with a hint of spell effects, making them even more precious.

It was said that the appearance of a Heavenly Spiritual Root could spark competition among two or three of the Six Immortal Sects of Shangdong.

But if an Anomalous Spiritual Root appeared, all six sects would vie for it.

Wen Lin had never imagined, not even in his dreams, that Wen Ling'er would possess an Anomalous Spiritual Root. He hadn't even considered the possibility of a Heavenly Spiritual Root.

"So, that's the situation. Bringing you here was to ask if you're willing to join our Water Dragon Sect. If not, we won't force you."

The middle-aged man in purple robes before him seemed extremely amiable, but Wen Lin didn't dare to believe it.

He had no doubt that if he refused to join the Water Dragon Sect—there would be no need to consider joining any other sect.

Since Wen Ling'er was still young, they could only inquire about Wen Lin's opinion.

This time, Wen Lin didn't even dare to hesitate.

As soon as the Golden Core cultivator finished speaking, he immediately said, "Joining the Water Dragon Sect has always been our family's lifelong wish."

Upon hearing this, the purple-robed cultivator finally smiled.

"Very well. In that case, come back to the sect with me. Rest assured, with your daughter's talent, all the Golden Core cultivators in our sect will be eager to take her as a disciple."

"By the way, I am Ye Hong, known as Realman Liexiao, adept in Thunder Techniques. In terms of cultivation, Wind and Thunder are closely related—"

"Scram!"

The Earth-Splitting Demon Wolf lunged forward.

Ji Yuan summoned the Hundred Fish Shield to protect himself.

Simultaneously, with a thought, the Qingfu Flying Sword descended from the sky, aiming straight for the demon wolf's neck.

Sensing danger, the demon wolf leaped backward.

Ji Yuan released his grip, allowing the Hundred Fish Shield to continue rotating around him. The Qingfu Flying Sword veered and attacked the demon wolf once more.

Seeing the demon wolf about to evade again.

Without hesitation, Ji Yuan's feet flashed with blue light, and he vanished, reappearing mid-air, already wielding the Water-Dividing Dragon Spear.

A sweep of the blue-glowing spear—its aura resembled a dragon.

The flying sword hovered above, ready to strike.

Sensing the violent aura, the demon wolf retreated further.

Run?!

The arena was only so large—where could it run?!

With the flying sword pressing in, Ji Yuan, holding the dragon spear, didn't hesitate. He unleashed the spell contained within the spear.

Strike, and the Water Dragon emerges!

"Roar!"

From the spearhead, a water-blue dragon shadow burst forth, charging straight at the demon wolf.

The demon wolf had no escape.

Its fur bristled, and earthy-yellow spiritual lights appeared before it.

The ground rose, forming an earthen wall.

The water-blue dragon shadow surged forward, shattering the wall instantly and entangling the demon wolf.

The dragon's head rose high, biting down on the demon wolf's head.

"Howl—"

The demon wolf roared, leaping into the air!

Opportunity!

Ji Yuan, who had remained still, activated his mind, raised his hand, and pointed.

A long-accumulated black water droplet shot forth, striking the demon wolf's abdomen.

The third layer of the Water Droplet Technique—"Accumulated Explosion"—was unleashed.

Ji Yuan didn't dare to watch. He quickly used the Hundred Fish Shield to protect himself and retreated to the stone wall.

"Boom!"

The power of Accumulated Explosion rivaled that of a Water Thunder Bomb.

Moreover, after the explosion, hundreds of water blades sliced through the air.

As Ji Yuan reached the corner, a rain of blood fell over the arena.

Under the Accumulated Explosion.

Striking the demon wolf's relatively weak abdomen—it couldn't withstand it and was torn into countless pieces.

Even the residual shockwaves caused stones to fall from the cliff.

"Stabilize!"

Yun Shangping, observing from above, immediately threw a talisman onto the mountain.

The trembling mountain finally steadied.

Ji Yuan's battlefield was already at the mountain's base.

The Accumulated Explosion had caused the mountain to shake.

Sensing the mountain's stability and no more falling stones.

Ji Yuan, huddled at the foot of the mountain, brushed off the dust and slowly stood up.

Only ten breaths had passed since the battle began.

Ji Yuan had already defeated the late-stage Tier 1 Earth-Splitting Demon Wolf.

Meanwhile, in the adjacent arena, Sang Zhongyuan, who had previously challenged Ji Yuan, was stunned—Damn it, you claimed you weren't good at combat?!

Sang Zhongyuan looked at the Earth-Splitting Demon Wolf cowering in the corner, also frightened.

He hadn’t even started fighting yet, and the opponent had already finished.

Compete—how was he supposed to compete now?

“Heh—Hehe, Brother Ji, impressive means, remarkable strength.”

Sang Zhongyuan forced a laugh.

“Demonic beasts are ferocious. Be careful, Brother Sang.”

Ji Yuan smiled but said no more.

When it came to slapping faces, strength spoke louder than words—saying more would only cheapen the moment.

With that, he leapt up and landed on the Thunder Falcon Boat.

In a blink of mist, he returned to the clouds, arrived in front of Yun Shangping, and cupped his hands. “Reporting to Senior Yun, mission accomplished.”

Yun Shangping hadn’t expected to encounter such a promising young man on this trip. He immediately chuckled through his beard. “Still calling me senior?”

A sudden intuition struck Ji Yuan.

“Greetings, Uncle-Master Yun.”

“Not bad.”

Yun Shangping tossed over a token.

Ji Yuan caught it with both hands, instantly overjoyed.

The token looked like it was made of iron, but it was dark blue.

On the front, the words “Water Dragon” were engraved in relief, and the back depicted a divine dragon emerging from water.

It felt heavy and solid in the hand.

“Many thanks, Uncle-Master Yun!”

Ji Yuan looked as if he was ecstatic, holding the Water Dragon Sect’s token and unwilling to let go.

“Go on, go on.”

Yun Shangping had seen scenes like this many times.

The most extreme ones had even fainted on the spot.

By comparison, Ji Yuan was already considered quite calm.

Ji Yuan returned to the original mountaintop.

With that, the others’ expressions toward him began to shift—instant-killing a late-stage first-tier demonic beast almost effortlessly.

That strength was probably enough to rival the peak of Qi Refinement.

Especially that final spell—it was unclear where it came from, but its power was enormous.

“Congratulations, Brother Ji.”

“Brother Ji, you’re now a disciple of the Water Dragon Sect. You must take good care of us in the future.”

The crowd congratulated him one after another.

Ji Yuan accepted them all with a smile and returned to the sides of Du Kang and Du Wanyi.

“Brother Ji’s strength is truly impressive.”

Du Kang’s tone carried some emotion.

He clearly remembered that when he first met Ji Yuan in the Yunyu Marshlands, Ji Yuan had only been at the mid-stage of Qi Refinement.

But now, Ji Yuan’s strength had already surpassed his own.

“Just lucky, just lucky.”

Ji Yuan cupped his hands with a smile.

Just then, a shrill and miserable scream rang out from the valley below.

Everyone immediately looked down.

They saw a Qi Refinement eighth-layer cultivator make a misstep, allowing the Demon Wolf to close in.

Without a talisman on his body, his head was bitten off by the wolf in an instant.

He died on the spot.

In midair, Yun Shangping casually sent out a stream of light.

Ji Yuan didn’t even get a clear look at what the magical item was before the murderous Demon Wolf on the ground was already dead.

In just a brief moment, of the six people in Group A, one succeeded, and one died.

Among the remaining four, only Sang Zhongyuan seemed at ease.

The other three were all in critical danger.

Ji Yuan glanced over, then silently retreated to the back, saying nothing more.

Everyone had their own fate.

He returned to Du Wanyi’s side, just in time to see his second sister wink at him, as if to say, “Without a word, your strength has grown this much?”

“Came out of the Yunyu Marshlands.”

Ji Yuan smiled and simply said it aloud.

There was nothing to hide.

In the past half year, he had engaged in many battles in those marshlands.

“Impressive, truly impressive.”

Though Du Wanyi spoke lightly, her eyes revealed concern.

She knew her own strength well.

Ji Yuan’s ease in killing demons came from his power, but that didn’t mean the Demon Wolf lacked strength.

Otherwise, that cultivator wouldn’t have died so quickly just now.

Before long, the valley echoed with voices surrendering one after another.

Yun Shangping dispatched the Demon Wolves for each of them.

However, with this, their chance to join the Water Dragon Sect was gone—they would have to wait another three years.

After a while, Sang Zhongyuan finally managed to slay the Demon Wolf using his flying sword technique, and received a token from Yun Shangping.

But in comparison, he was far inferior to Ji Yuan.

Covered in dust, his aura was completely disordered.

Using magical tools and spells to kill demons was no easy feat.

With Group A’s battle concluded, a voice came again from the distance—Yun Shangping’s. “Group B, proceed.”

Du Kang quickly summoned his flying boat and descended.

Watching the next six contestants enter the arena, Ji Yuan moved his thoughts and removed the bronze breastplate armor he was wearing. After erasing the imprint on it, he handed it to Du Wanyi.

In the earlier fight, Ji Yuan had defeated the beast easily.

The Demon Beast hadn’t even touched his body.

Let alone his protective armor.

“Hm?”

Du Wanyi hadn’t expected Ji Yuan to offer her protection.

“Wear it. Better to be prepared.”

Seeing her hesitate, Ji Yuan added, “Just borrowing it to you. If it gets damaged, you’ll have to compensate me.”

Only then did Du Wanyi accept it with ease. “Thanks, Fourth Brother.”

The two of them were already at the back of the group, and everyone else was focused on the beast battles below, so no one noticed.

Up in the air,

Yun Shangping and another Foundation Establishment cultivator, Gu Liben, were conversing via voice transmission.

“Brother Gu, did you see any suitable candidates from that first batch?”

Gu Liben glanced back and replied at once, “What’s there to look at? That first one is enough. With that level of strength, he’d be qualified to be a squad leader on the front lines.”

“True.”

Yun Shangping nodded slightly.

“If we’re hoping to find another one like that among the rest, we might as well forget it. Barring any surprises, let’s just settle on him.”

“Well, it doesn’t hurt to keep watching. Who knows, maybe another expert will emerge.”

Gu Liben chuckled. “Brother Yun really thinks there are too many experts in the world, huh? Just Qi Refinement stage—and with a false spiritual root, at that. At his age—nothing more to say.”

The Qi Refinement stage wasn’t worth much.

Only upon reaching Foundation Establishment could one truly be considered free in this world.

Ji Yuan sat in meditation and absorbed six spirit stones, fully restoring his depleted spiritual energy.

He got up and returned to Du Wanyi’s side, once again looking down the mountain.

In just that short moment, Du Kang was already in a perilous situation.

The Demon Wolf launched a frenzied assault, forcing him to defend with his protective magical tool, barely finding any chance to counterattack.

Clearly, the rule changes had thrown off his rhythm.

Otherwise, with his strength, even if he couldn’t kill the Demon Wolf, he wouldn’t be stuck on the defensive the entire time.

Thus, he fought while retreating, barely holding on for half a stick of incense’s time before he finally couldn’t endure any longer and admitted defeat.

Yun Shangping casually dispatched the Demon Wolf with a single sword strike.

After Du Kang surrendered, he didn’t return to the mountaintop. Instead, he directly took his flying boat and left.

He didn’t even say goodbye to Ji Yuan—probably embarrassed or feeling disheartened.

Two people made it through from Group B. One was at the ninth level of Qi Refinement.

The other, an eighth-level cultivator, also made it but looked half-dead.

Next came Group C.

That round saw two deaths and three surrenders.

In the end, only Chu Jingtong from Heishui Workshop successfully joined the Water Dragon Sect.

He seemed about on par with Sang Zhongyuan.

Neither were injured, but the fight was far from easy.

Finally, it was Group D’s turn, the group that included Du Wanyi. They didn’t even have a full team—only four people.

“Second Sister, be careful. Prioritize survival.”

“Mm, I will.”

Du Wanyi took a deep breath and piloted her flying boat down the mountain.

After three rounds of fighting, the clearing was now covered in blood—human and beast blood mixed together, reeking of a pungent metallic scent.

Fortunately, Du Wanyi was a veteran of life-and-death struggles.

As soon as the beast was released, she steadied herself instantly.

With Ji Yuan’s bronze breastplate as her last line of defense, she fought with fewer reservations.

However, her spellcasting was still lacking.

In the end, she was injured before she finally managed to slay the Demon Wolf.

Even so, she was the first in Group D to pass.

Another female cultivator passed afterward, though her injuries were worse.

Du Wanyi received her token and returned to Ji Yuan’s side, her joy barely concealed.

“Take a healing pill first. Can’t let those injuries fester.”

Ji Yuan smiled as he reminded her.

“Yes, yes!”

Du Wanyi quickly swallowed a blood and qi recovery pill, then returned the bronze breastplate to Ji Yuan.

“Fourth Brother, we finally made it!”

Du Wanyi couldn’t hide the grin on her face. After decades of crawling and scraping in the Yunyu Marshlands, it was all for this moment.

“Yeah.”

To say there wasn’t a bit of happiness would be a lie, so Ji Yuan smiled as well.

He glanced over the remaining cultivators—no, after today, they would all be fellow disciples of the Water Dragon Sect.

From Group A, it was himself and Sang Zhongyuan.

From Group B, two people joined—Fang Jie at the ninth level of Qi Refinement, and Huang Mingkai, the half-dead one at the eighth level.

He looked older and was probably joining the sect more for retirement.

From Group C, Chu Jingtong.

From Group D, Du Wanyi and a middle-aged female cultivator named Yan Qiuxia.

Only seven late-stage Qi Refinement cultivators passed the selection to join the Water Dragon Sect this year.

“Alright. First, congratulations to you all on becoming disciples of the Water Dragon Sect.”

Yun Shangping walked up to the group and congratulated them with a smile.

“Now, moving on.”

Yun Shangping clasped his sleeves and smiled broadly. “Since you’ve all come for the selection, I assume you’re ready. Let’s not waste time. We’ll depart now and return to the Water Dragon Sect.”

So they weren’t returning to Zengtou Market.

Ji Yuan remembered that three years ago, after joining the Water Dragon Sect, they had returned to their respective marketplaces and shown off a little.

Ji Yuan had no such intention.

He just wanted to go back and find out what kind of spiritual root Wen Ling’er had.

And maybe say a proper goodbye.

Now it seemed he’d have to wait until he was settled in the Water Dragon Sect before making time to visit Zengtou Market.

“Let’s go.”

With a sweep of Yun Shangping’s sleeve, a water-blue stream of light flew out, expanding in the wind into a building-sized flying boat that hovered before them.

“Board the ship, return to the sect.”

Yun Shangping and Gu Liben, the two Foundation Establishment cultivators, were the first to board, followed by the others.

“Fourth Brother, let’s go too.”

“Alright.”

With all seven aboard, the flying boat turned and rose into the clouds, heading straight north.

Ji Yuan stood at the edge of the boat, watching the Yunyu Marshlands fade behind them, feeling a mix of emotions.

The others seemed the same.

A fisherman at dawn, a disciple of Water Dragon Hall by dusk.

Who wouldn’t be filled with pride?

After flying north for half a stick of incense, Yun Shangping waved them over again.

Once the seven had gathered, he pointed forward.

A storage pouch appeared in front of each of them.

“Inside are the standard essentials for Water Dragon Sect disciples—two sets of uniform robes, a standard flying magic tool called the Crimson Sky Boat, the identity token you already received, and a jade slip that contains important information for disciples. Once refined, you’ll understand it.”

Yun Shangping continued slowly, “You have half a stick of incense to familiarize yourselves with the contents.”

“After that, each of you must come forward to register your information. Remember, this info will be recorded in the Ancestral Hall. Any falsehoods will bear serious consequences.”

Ji Yuan tensed slightly at those words, but his hands didn’t stop moving.

The storage pouch wasn’t large—about three feet square.

Its contents were exactly as Yun Shangping described.

Two sets of standard water-blue robes with a blue dragon embroidered on the chest.

The protective magical item was decent quality—not as good as the bronze armor, let alone the Hundred Fish Shield—but considering it was free, it was more than enough.

The Crimson Sky Boat was a model sold at the Hundred Treasure Pavilion in Zengtou Market.

Ji Yuan refined it, planning to use it for travel in the future—it wouldn’t attract attention.

The Thunder Assembly Boat—he’d save that one for escape scenarios.

The most important item was the jade slip. As spiritual energy was infused, a flood of information poured into Ji Yuan’s mind.

It included many Water Dragon Sect rules—such as a strict ban on harming fellow disciples.

It also contained maps of the sect’s territory, marking the locations of various islands and their departments.

The pill, formation, talisman, and weapon halls were located on Sifang Island; mission distribution was on Qianji Island; disciples resided on Hatchling Dragon Island.

There was also the main island, known as Water Dragon Island.

The amount of information was staggering—no wonder Yun Shangping gave them half a stick of incense.

To Ji Yuan’s surprise, Yunyu Marshlands was located in the southwest corner of the sect and occupied only a tiny patch of land.

The entire marshlands weren’t even as big as Hatchling Dragon Island.

And that was just the sect’s territory—Ji Yuan could hardly imagine how vast the Cangluo Continent truly was.

A grand world, indeed.

The larger it was, the more limitless the possibilities.

The time passed quickly.

The group approached Yun Shangping one by one to register their information.

As usual, Ji Yuan went last. After everyone else had finished, he stepped forward.

Registration simply meant filling in a piece of white paper with a few fields.

Yun Shangping then scanned it with his spiritual sense and imprinted it onto a jade slip.

Very efficient.

Ji Yuan glanced at the paper.

It was very basic—just name, cultivation level, and spiritual root type.

Clearly, the sect respected the disciples’ privacy.

This eased Ji Yuan’s long-standing worry.

After filling it out, Yun Shangping glanced at him and, unusually, said something.

“Ji Yuan—good name. Alright, remember to cultivate diligently. One day, glorify the Water Dragon Sect.”

“Thank you for the praise, Senior Yun.”

Ji Yuan quickly cupped his hands and stepped back.

With a sweep of Yun Shangping’s sleeve, the table was stowed away.

He swept his gaze over the group and finally said,

“Ji Yuan, come here for a moment.”

Ji Yuan: “???”