Eternal Life through Drawing Lots

Behind the Pill Hall.

Zhang Le and Zhang Ye, for their part, were quite sullen.

Although they didn’t know what treasure Sen Yue had gifted Fang Yang, the importance she placed on him was plain to see.

"Damn his hide. Calls himself a Flying Eagle, but in the end, isn’t he just going to be someone’s lapdog, or even their stud horse?" Zhang Le seethed with envy, cursing Fang Yang under his breath.

But in truth, he was impossibly envious of Fang Yang’s "plight."

Whether it was the great beauty Sen Hui’s affection or Sen Yue’s high regard, either one was something he wouldn’t dare to even dream of.

And yet, both were now falling upon Fang Yang one after another, making his chest tighten with a suffocating, sharp pain.

’A Flying Eagle... Is Sen Hui really the only reason for Fang Yang’s achievements?’ Zhang Ye fell silent at this thought.

He could already feel the pressure coming from Fang Yang.

The most obvious sign was that, in mainstream opinion, fewer and fewer people were comparing the two of them. It was as if Fang Yang had already left him far behind in the dust.

Immediately, Zhang Ye imagined what would happen if his and Fang Yang’s situations were reversed.

If he were the one with the advantage and Fang Yang were at a disadvantage, what would Fang Yang do?

The more he contemplated this, the brighter the light in his eyes became.

He found the answer. ’The only one responsible for Fang Yang’s achievements is Fang Yang himself!’

In that instant, Zhang Ye’s confidence surged. He understood how he should contend with Fang Yang.

He no longer obsessed over external things like Ancient Scriptures, but began to look inward, exploring the mysteries of his Molten Crocodile Illusion.

He firmly believed that Heaven never seals off all paths. As long as one was willing to walk, the road would appear beneath their feet!

...

"You have a Fire Eagle Spirit Body, not to mention the Flame Skill is your first Lifebound Skill. Using the Flame Skill to kill your enemies is as easy as flipping your hand over for you."

"But for that very reason, for this next attack method, I don’t want you to use the Flame Skill. Use the Thunderous Strike Skill instead."

"Your heart must be steady, your spirit must be focused."

"The thunder begins in your hand; where the hand goes, the spear follows. The spear moves with your intent, and your intent commands the flow of energy."

"It should be like a frozen lake suddenly shattering its ice, or a sudden clap of thunder in the dead of night."

「The next morning.」

On a spacious training ground.

Second Uncle Fang gripped a war spear, demonstrating the essentials of a charging attack for Fang Yang.

Fang Yang, in turn, followed his second uncle’s movements, practicing the spear forms one move at a time.

In truth, this spear art was meant for horseback, best paired with a warhorse.

However, since Fang Yang was a beginner, Second Uncle Fang didn’t force the requirement on him.

SIZZLE...

Fang Yang gripped the war spear tightly in his right hand, his mind focused on mobilizing his Void Acupoint True Essence Sea.

But because he hadn’t yet condensed the Thunderous Strike Skill into his second Lifebound Skill, he couldn’t summon lightning directly, the way he could by pouring True Essence into his Fierce Flame Pill Cauldron.

After a good while, a small spark of electricity finally emerged in his palm. It flowed along with his True Essence to coat the spear’s tip, making it shine with a dazzling light.

He then followed his uncle’s demonstration, stepping forward and swinging the war spear with the force of a pouncing tiger.

However, in less than ten minutes, seventy percent of the True Essence in his Void Acupoint True Essence Sea was already consumed, and his Fire Eagle Illusion had also become somewhat fainter.

And this was the disadvantage of having True Essence of two different attributes coexisting within him.

"Stop for now. You still haven’t grasped the key points I mentioned."

Second Uncle Fang smiled. "The Thunder Skill and the Fire Skill, while both incredibly powerful and explosive, manifest in different ways. The Thunder Skill is more about speed, about happening in an instant."

As he spoke, he slowly raised his right hand, which was gripping the war spear, and extended it forward, aiming at a dark cloud in the sky.

Suddenly, a flash of purple lightning bloomed in his palm and rapidly spread across the war spear.

At a glance, it was as if he were clutching a spear made of pure lightning.

BOOM!

A colossal thunderclap resounded in Fang Yang’s ears. The dark cloud in the sky was instantly dispersed, and the purple lightning continued to shoot forward at incredible speed.

’The Thunder Skill is more about a sudden burst of power, swift and fierce...’ Fang Yang’s eyes gradually brightened as he seemed to reach an understanding.

He thought he was beginning to understand why this kind of spear art required a warhorse.

When the two were combined, the result would be unimaginably destructive, enough to level cities and devastate the land!

「An hour later.」

On the training ground, the sound of thunder rose once more.

Spear tips gleamed and the wind howled as two figures moved in near-perfect, coordinated synchrony.

This time, Fang Yang gradually kept pace with Second Uncle Fang, wholeheartedly immersing himself in the profound mysteries of the Thunder Skill’s attacks.

In truth, this kind of training was extremely taxing on a Low Tier Cultivator’s life potential.

Even Zhang Ye, who specialized in offensive techniques, had not been so reckless as to reach this stage so quickly.

The only reason Second Uncle Fang dared to have Fang Yang accelerate his growth once more was entirely because of the Moonfire Thunder Flower, a Spiritual Object!

「At dusk.」

Fang Yang dragged his utterly exhausted body back to his residence.

Under his second uncle’s watchful gaze, he took out the Moonfire Thunder Flower and the Ten Thousand Jins Heavy Water.

The Moonfire Thunder Flower’s shape was mutable, sometimes resembling a lotus, other times a banana plant. Its body was like purple lightning and its petals were like red fire, making it quite peculiar.

The gurgling sound of flowing water could be heard; it turned out Fang Yang was watering the flower.

After he finished, a ball of extremely pure, purplish-red Primordial Qi essence slowly drifted out from the Moonfire Thunder Flower and was absorbed by Fang Yang.

At once, Fang Yang felt his body become much lighter.

What pleased him even more was that the wings of his Fire Eagle Illusion had solidified by at least another one percent.

In other words, his cultivation realm had advanced another small step, which was excellent.

At this rate, he could truly reach the Tier One Peak realm within thirty days!

"I can feel that your aura has grown stronger again. Before long, you’ll be able to fight a Fierce Beast of the same tier alone without getting injured."

Second Uncle Fang praised him, "If you can really keep growing like this, Zhang Ye will be left so far behind that he won’t even be in your sights anymore."

"I’ll keep working hard." In response to his uncle’s praise, Fang Yang offered a smile, but his heart was calm.

Whether it was magical combat or Alchemy, they were all just techniques to protect his path.

He didn’t actually enjoy fighting and conflict. He much preferred to delve into the Mystical Skills of cultivation, continuously climbing toward the peak of Changsheng.

For instance, the fact that a Cultivator could increase their lifespan by two hundred years upon entering the Tier Three realm was a matter of extreme interest to him.

’Why can you only increase your lifespan at Tier Three? Why not at Tier One or Tier Two?’

’And why is it that when you advance to the Tier Three realm, the increase in lifespan is exactly two hundred years?’

’...’

Fang Yang had many, many questions about cultivation that he wanted to know the answers to.

Compared to the complicated struggles with Sen Wei, Sen Hui, Sen Yue, and Zhang Ye, he much preferred delving into these difficult problems on the path of cultivation.

Just thinking about it was enough to invigorate his spirit and fill him with a warm, pleasant feeling!

It was just that for such thoughts to appear in a Tier One Cultivator was rather unorthodox, even a bit arrogant.

Therefore, Fang Yang wouldn’t speak of them to anyone, instead burying them deep in his heart to ponder in silence.

Not long after, his uncle gave him a few more instructions and then left.

Fang Yang sat cross-legged on his bed, silently contemplating the recent changes and how best to respond to them.

First, there was Sen Hui’s affection and Sen Yue’s high regard.

These two things were the key to ensuring his safety in the great war on the front lines, especially Sen Hui’s affection.

So, no matter what the future held, as long as he was still participating in the war, it was best to maintain a good relationship with Sen Hui.

Second was the Fortune Manifestation and the Moonfire Thunder Flower.

With these two treasures, as long as he wasn’t reckless and didn’t fall along the way, the path to Sainthood was already more than halfway open to him.

Third was his progress in cultivation.

He had only just broken through to the high stage of Tier One, but now his realm was already showing signs of loosening again, advancing toward the Tier One Peak realm.

If he was lucky, he might even leap into the Tier Two realm after completely refining the Moonfire Thunder Flower.

By that time, the Moonfire Thunder Flower would have evolved from a Tier Three Spiritual Object into a Tier Five Spiritual Object, more than enough to support his breakthrough.

’May the day it blossoms and bears fruit come quickly.’