Immortality begins with inheriting the myriad arts of cultivation.

Chapter 117 Hatred

Li Ping couldn't help but smile at his reaction.

What was that saying again?

Zhang Tie has progressed too quickly, causing his demeanor to not keep up.

In a few more years, he will be able to face everything calmly, just like other Foundation Establishment cultivators.

……

After congratulating Zhang Tie on his foundation building, the next step was to collect this year's foundation building fund.

Li Ping received 300 spirit stones, Zhang Tie and Gu Musheng each received 100 spirit stones, Cheng Yao received 30 spirit stones, and Qi Hanmo and Bai Qing each received 20 spirit stones.

The total amount is 570 spirit stones, bringing the total amount of the Foundation Establishment Fund to 990 spirit stones.

After storing all the spirit stones in a special storage bag, everyone began to recount their gains and losses this year, and asked the others to point out any shortcomings on their behalf.

Zhang Tie was the first to speak. Through Li Ping's matchmaking, he and a woman from the Meng family who had reached the Qi Refining stage fell in love and planned to get married after the New Year.

He invited his five siblings from the Fellowship of the Sea to his wedding, and all five naturally accepted.

Gu Musheng, in particular, called him "Second Brother" very affectionately.

Before this, he had never really thought much of Zhang Tie, who was honest and straightforward. He not only wanted to establish his foundation before Zhang Tie, but also rarely called him "Second Brother".

However, now that Zhang Tie has successfully established his foundation and his status has been significantly elevated, his attitude towards Zhang Tie has also changed.

After Zhang Tie finished speaking, it was Gu Musheng's turn.

Gu Musheng was responsible for using the spirit stones of his sixth brother, Teng Feng, who had died in an accident, to purchase supplies and return them to the village where Teng Feng was born on an annual basis.

That was his main point, after discussing the supplies.

Gu Musheng also said that when he went to deliver supplies this time, he accidentally discovered that there was a child in Tengfeng's village who possessed spiritual roots.

Taking into account Teng Feng's last wish, he guided the child onto the path of immortality and brought him back to the Immortal City, where he used his connections to arrange for him to work as a waiter in a restaurant.

Finally, Gu Musheng suggested that they simply give all the spirit stones left behind by Teng Feng to the child.

This way, when the child grows up, they can better protect and give back to the village.

Li Ping, Zhang Tie, and others all agreed with his proposal, and that was the end of it.

When it was Cheng Yao's turn to speak, Li Ping specifically asked her if she had encountered any difficulties.

Faced with Li Ping's question, Cheng Yao hesitated for a moment, but ultimately shook her head.

That year, Wang Xingwei still hadn't woken up. To maintain his vital signs while he was in a coma, at least a bottle of twelve fasting pills would be needed.

Although the Bigu Pill is only a low-grade first-level pill, a bottle still costs about thirteen or fourteen spirit stones.

In fact, cultivators in the Qi Refining stage usually eat foods like spirit rice and demon beast meat, and they would never be willing to eat fasting pills.

Cheng Yao was already struggling financially, and with these ten spirit stones, her cash flow was completely cut off.

In order to pay her share of the Foundation Building Fund this year, she had to sell her robes and exchange them for spirit stones.

Although she knew that her older brother would definitely help her if she asked, she also had her pride and didn't want her brother or anyone else to know about her predicament.

"I shouldn't have swindled those idiots out of their spirit stones. What a terrible mistake I've made!" Cheng Yao thought miserably.

Seeing that Cheng Yao refused to speak, Li Ping did not continue to ask, but instead turned his gaze to Qi Hanmo.

But when Qi Hanmo spoke, all five people present were stunned.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Qi Hanmo took a deep breath and told them that Mr. Yan wanted to take him as his apprentice.

After recounting this, Qi Hanmo explained, "Eldest brother, second brother... originally Master wanted me to go to Jixia with him immediately, but I considered that I still needed to treat Miss Lin Yue and needed to obtain your consent, so I stayed in the Immortal City for the time being."

"But I expect that by the middle of next year, Miss Lin Yue should be able to recover her health, and then I will have to go to Jixia."

After a moment of surprise, Li Ping quickly recovered and said with a smile, "This is a good thing. Hanmo, don't feel guilty. Being accepted as a disciple by a Core Formation cultivator is a great opportunity for you. I'm overjoyed for you!"

Upon hearing Li Ping speak, the others also offered their congratulations.

Especially after Li Ping explained the status of Jixia Immortal City in the Western Wilderness cultivation world, the others were envious and genuinely happy for Qi Hanmo.

To be able to become a disciple of a True Person from Jixia Immortal City is the ultimate opportunity in the cultivation world of the Western Wilderness.

Qi Hanmo smiled bitterly and said, "Brother, once I go to Jixia, the mountains are high and the roads are far, and I'm afraid it will be difficult for me to come back. Therefore, I will not be able to continue to fulfill the oath of 'building the foundation together'. I hope you will not blame me."

Li Ping smiled and reached out to comfort him: "Of course we won't blame you for going to pursue your immortal destiny. However, you'll definitely lack spirit stones in a prosperous place like Jixia, where you'll be unfamiliar with the area. So... just like Teng Feng, all the spirit stones you paid will be returned to you, and your oath of membership will be lifted."

The others nodded in agreement after hearing Li Ping's words.

Having spent so much time together, they had developed a deep bond and naturally couldn't bear to see Qi Hanmo miss such a great opportunity.

Furthermore, with Li Ping and Zhang Tie having successively reached the Foundation Establishment stage, Qi Hanmo's withdrawal is actually more advantageous for Bai Qing, who will follow him.

As for Gu Musheng and Cheng Yao, they believed that the majority of the Foundation Building Fund was now contributed by Li Ping, Zhang Tie, and Gu Musheng, and that the loss of Qi Hanmo's twenty spirit stones would not have a significant impact.

Moreover, Qi Hanmo's apprenticeship to the immortal master of Jixia Immortal City is not only an opportunity for Qi Hanmo, but also a connection between them, who knows, they might need it in the future.

Hearing everyone's words, Qi Hanmo stood up and bowed to them, saying, "Thank you so much, eldest brother, second brother, third brother, fourth sister, and seventh brother. I am deeply grateful!"

"As for my contributions, I've already stated them before," Qi Hanmo said firmly. "If something happens to me, my contributions will be divided equally among all the brothers and sisters in the association. I cannot accept my elder brother's offer to return them to me."

Despite everyone's attempts to dissuade him, Qi Hanmo still refused to take back the spirit stones he had contributed, so Li Ping had no choice but to let him go.

Finally, it was Bai Qing's turn. He didn't have much to say, but he simply described his daily life.

This concludes the proceedings of one meeting.

As is customary, it was Li Ping's turn to preach and answer everyone's questions.

However, this year, Zhang Tie also broke through to become a Foundation Establishment cultivator, so Li Ping asked him to share his insights on breaking through to Foundation Establishment with the others.

At first, Zhang Tie was a little unsure of himself and his speech was somewhat disorganized. But as time went on, he got into the flow and became increasingly excited, continuing until the end of the next day, still feeling like he hadn't had enough.

Finally, as usual, Li Ping took out the pills and distributed them to the four people.

As for Zhang Tie, he did not give him any pills, even though he had already refined several batches of second-grade low-level Qi-cultivating pills during this period.

Firstly, second-tier pills are quite precious and rare, and their origins are difficult to explain.

Secondly, Zhang Tie was already a Foundation Establishment cultivator, and Li Ping believed that his help should come to an end and that he should not continue to manage him indefinitely.

……

Just as the annual gathering of the Tongzhou Society came to an end.

Great Zhou, Luoyang!

A robust young man dressed in animal skin clothing mingled in the bustling crowd, following the instructions of the voice in his mind, and headed towards a certain place in the city.

This robust young man was none other than Teng Feng, who had arrived in the Great Zhou Dynasty via a teleportation array.

While learning the local language, he also cultivated his skills. His current cultivation level has reached the seventh level of Qi Refining, surpassing Qi Hanmo and comparable to Cheng Yao.

"Senior, this Luoyang is too big. I don't know how long it will take to walk there." Teng Feng sighed in his mind as he weaved through the crowd.

The next moment, the voice of the Nether Bone echoed in his mind: "Hehe... Who told you to have such a low cultivation level? If you were a Foundation Establishment cultivator, you would naturally be qualified to fly through the air. You're almost thirty and only at the seventh level of Qi Refining. At your age, I'm not far from the late stage of Foundation Establishment."

Upon hearing this, Teng Feng couldn't help but roll his eyes, thinking to himself, "How dare you compare yourself to me?"

After years of observation and experience on his journey through the Great Zhou, he finally understood what a true holy land for cultivation was, with its resources and spirit stones being so abundant that it was simply outrageous.

He knew that his elder brother had reached the Foundation Establishment stage at forty, but in the Great Zhou Dynasty, cultivators from prestigious families could achieve Foundation Establishment in their early twenties as long as they had slightly better aptitude.

A cultivator with such a prestigious background as Ming Gu can cultivate quickly; what is there to be proud of?

"You brat, are you teasing me again?" A voice from the Nether Bone echoed in my mind. "Hurry up, hurry up. Once you go to the Immortal Offering Hall and retrieve the spirit stones and resources I stored there back then, I'm confident I can help you establish your foundation within two years."

Teng Feng quickly replied, "Yes, senior."

Suddenly, during their secret conversation—

Suddenly, beautiful, celestial music filled the sky above Luoyang.

The sound of the zither resonated through the clouds. At this moment, everyone in Luoyang, whether cultivator or mortal, unconsciously stopped what they were doing and listened quietly.

Accompanied by the sound of the zither, a five-colored, elegant and noble spirit bird flew out from the imperial palace in the center of Luoyang. On its back, a woman wearing a veil and a long red robe sat cross-legged, gently touching the long zither in front of her.

It turned out that the beautiful, celestial music was coming from her fingers.

After a long while, the spirit bird circled the city once and landed back in the palace. The music faded away, but the people on the street remained standing still, savoring the moment in their hearts.

……

As Teng Feng walked, he listened to the discussions of the surrounding cultivators and learned that the woman who had just played the zither was the Holy Empress of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and the spirit bird she rode on was a kind of celestial spirit bird called the "Five-Colored Sparrow".

It possesses a trace of the bloodline of the legendary spirit 'Peacock'.

What surprised Teng Feng the most was that the Great Zhou Holy Empress was actually a Nascent Soul cultivator, and the Five-Colored Sparrow under her was a late-stage third-order spirit bird.

"The Holy Empress is actually this powerful!" Teng Feng wondered, and asked, "Senior, do you know who the strongest cultivator in the Great Zhou Dynasty is?"

To his surprise, he didn't receive a response for a long time after asking the question.

"Oh no, what if the Empress mistook me for a ghost and banished me?!" Teng Feng panicked at the thought.

You should know that Ming Gu had been alone deep in the Cloud Mist Mountains for an unknown amount of time, and after possessing him, he had become quite talkative.

Fortunately, at this moment, Minggu finally responded to him: "Hehe... Holy Empress, with a Holy Empress, there is naturally a Holy Emperor. However, in the Great Zhou, they must also obediently follow the orders of the Immortal Alliance."

Teng Feng detected a hint of hatred in his voice.