"Ah, so it's Daoist Guo, please come in—"

Li An greeted warmly, inviting Guo Xiaoxiao inside.

"I heard Daoist Wei is an Array Master?"

Guo Xiaoxiao got straight to the point: "To not hide from Daoist Wei, I came here with a request, hoping to purchase a set of advanced array formations."

Li An replied, "Of course! What kind are you looking for?"

Guo Xiaoxiao immediately described her needs. Li An thought for a moment, and although it was somewhat troublesome, he could still make it.

"Very well, but I'm not yet proficient in crafting high-level arrays, so I need some preparation time. How about in a month?"

"Alright, this is the deposit."

Guo Xiaoxiao handed over a hundred Spirit Stones to Li An!

The two discussed further, chatted for a bit, and then Guo Xiaoxiao left immediately.

After she left.

"A member of the Demon Sect?"

Li An's eyes grew cold.

Ever since the Profound Yang Sect was destroyed, the Yin Yang Demon Sect went into hiding, and no one knew their whereabouts.

To encounter them now in White Tiger City?

He couldn't help but feel a bit worried.

Moreover, based on information he gathered from others, it seemed that Guo Xiaoxiao actually had a strong backing in White Tiger City.

The backing was likely someone from White Tiger Mountain.

Could her backing also be someone from the Demon Sect?

The Profound Yang Sect fell because of an infiltrator.

Could White Tiger City be the next target of the Demon Sect?

But, this was just speculation. Although Li An was cautious, he wasn't panicking.

The Yin Yang Demon Sect had been rampant, and there was even a time the Yin Yang Demon Furnace Skill was widely spread; just one Demon Cultivator appearing didn't signify much.

If he had to flee every time a Demon Cultivator was present, he might as well give up cultivation, as no part of Great Li lacked a few Demon Cultivators.

However, he decided to keep a closer watch on Guo Xiaoxiao's movements; perhaps he could discern some clues from her.

After sending off Guo Xiaoxiao, he took out a first-grade Alchemy Furnace and some Spirit Medicine.

This Pill Furnace was obtained from the storage bag of the first Demon Cultivator he had slain.

Since he sought advice from Luo Yong, it'd still be prudent to go through the motions.

As for the Alchemy Dao? Li An held little hope.

His talent and energy were already stretched to the limit with arrays and talismans.

Further dabbling in alchemy and artifact refining would only delay himself.

A month and a half later, Li An finally delivered the advanced array to Guo Xiaoxiao.

"My abilities are limited, resulting in an overdue array laden with imperfections. Please, Daoist Guo, inspect it, and if dissatisfied, I'll refund the deposit in full."

He deliberately extended the making time, and also controlled the quality, appearing barely adequate.

Dealing with Demon Cultivators required caution, not letting them perceive one's true capabilities.

Guo Xiaoxiao just smiled, "Daoist Wei is too polite. This array is fine; I'll purchase it at the original price."

She then took out eight hundred Spirit Stones.

"Thank you, Daoist! If there's anything else you need, please don't hesitate to ask!"

Li An expressed his gratitude and departed.

After he left.

"The skill level is rather lacking; it's not quite useful..."

Guo Xiaoxiao played with the array in her hand for a moment before casually setting it aside.

It was quite crude; although it was successfully crafted, the details revealed Li An's struggle.

"Forget it, I'll look for something more suitable."

...

In the blink of an eye, four years had passed.

In four years, Li An finally reached the Peak of Qi Refining!

This year, Li An was eighty-one years old.

From breaking through to the Qi Refining Ninth Layer to the Peak of Qi Refining, it only took him five years, mainly due to the breakthrough in his Spirit Root and the changes in the surrounding Spirit Veins and Spiritual Qi.

Three years ago, Xu Qiuhui officially became the seventeenth disciple of White Tiger Master, and indeed, the Spiritual Qi in Li An's area suddenly became very dense, saving him a lot of effort.

Over these four years, Li An and Luo Yong's relationship became very close.

That day, under Luo Yong's guidance, Li An finally successfully refined a batch of first-grade Spiritual Qi Pills.

"Congratulations, Brother Wei..."

"Thank you for your guidance, Brother Luo."

Li An was very excited.

"Brother Wei, you've already achieved something in the Alchemy Dao."

"Do you have any other inheritances at hand? Bring them out and we can study them together; it might speed up your progress."

Luo Yong smiled as he spoke.

"To be honest, Brother Luo, I do have some more..."

Li An took out some additional information.

Luo Yong was pleased, taking it to have a look.

But after reading it, he felt a bit melancholic inside, thinking: this rascal Li An... he's only shown a part again!

"Brother Luo, actually, there's something I'd like your help with..."

Luo Yong immediately said, "Just say it without hesitation!"

"Refining Foundation Establishment Pill."

Li An finally spoke up.

After four years of interaction, Li An had subtly probed Luo Yong's situation, and only when he was confident did he reveal this intention.

Luo Yong's heart instantly became clear... So this is Li An's intention!

"Brother Wei, your cultivation is only at the Qi Refining Seventh Layer..." he couldn't help but say.

Li An said, "To be honest, Brother Luo, I have another friend who needs it. If I can find a suitable alchemist to refine it, I might have a chance to share one."

Luo Yong looked at Li An thoughtfully.

Whether Li An's words were true or not wasn't important.

The important thing was, this was an exchange.

He would ask Master Zhang Deyi to help, and Li An would give him the Second Grade Alchemist inheritance.

"I'll ask about this matter for you, but my master is quite busy... It may not succeed."

In reality, he was quite confident he could persuade his master.

After all, a Second Grade Alchemist inheritance would undoubtedly interest his master, and given the expensive cost of refining Foundation Establishment Pill, there was no reason for his master to refuse.

Li An said, "Then thank you very much!"

In the following period, he occasionally sent some parchment to Luo Yong and also inquired about the progress. Luo Yong told him that it would take about three months before Zhang Deyi would have time.

Li An was not in a hurry and patiently waited.

...

On this day, Li An went out again, bought some herbs, and on his way, picked up some small spiritual food to visit Manman.

Li An carefully maintained their relationship, occasionally visiting her and helping her with minor tasks, so their relationship grew closer, and Manman became increasingly trusting of Li An.

"Brother, the news you asked me to look into is here. In half a month, there will be an auction in the city that might have what you need."

Manman secretly told Li An some news.

Li An's eyes lit up.

He had casually mentioned to her before that he wanted to take advantage of his comfortable financial situation to purchase some herbs for Foundation Establishment.

This was normal, as every late-stage Qi Refining cultivator would prepare for Foundation Establishment.

"By the way,"

Manman also said, "I heard from the shopkeeper that materials, pills, and such items that can nourish the divine soul have been very popular lately, as if someone is purchasing them on a large scale... It's likely that Purple Soul Herbs might appear in the auction, but I don't recommend you buy it."

She gave a reminder.

Li An's mind was clear.

If someone powerful was seeking items to nurture the divine soul, buying the Purple Soul Herbs could mean he might not keep it.

This was the benefit of getting along well with Manman!

Sometimes, just one word can prevent trouble.

During this time, Li An gradually understood Manman's source of information—the manager of the Nourishing Body Residence, Yang Wei.

Yang Wei had connections on White Tiger Mountain, making him well-informed, and Manman was his companion.

Manman didn't elaborate, and Li An didn't ask further.

A young girl without high cultivation and no special skills, living in a place like White Tiger City wasn't easy.

If not for this, she wouldn't be able to reside in the Tier Two area and would most likely end up in the slums of the Tier One area, struggling to survive.

"Thank you, Sister Man,"

Li An took out a pill and said, "This is the first pill I refined, a First Grade Spiritual Qi Pill. It's not of great quality, but the process was rather arduous, so I'll give it to you."

"When I become an alchemist, I'll refine a Beauty Pill for you."

This pill was his only product after half a month.

It wasn't worth much.

But Manman was deeply moved, saying, "Brother, you're so good to me."

"Alright, I'll head off now, so as not to disturb your work."

Li An caught sight of a middle-aged man walking out and immediately turned around to leave.

"Manman, is this the Wei Ming you mentioned?"

The middle-aged man walked over, "What did he give you?"

Manman opened her palm and said, "Just a Spiritual Qi Pill. It seems he's learning alchemy."

Yang Wei picked up the Spiritual Qi Pill for a look and couldn't help but smile, thinking that with such an alchemy level, he might never become an alchemist in his life.

But he didn't say anything. Initially, when Manman said she recognized a brother, Yang Wei paid attention, worried Manman might be secretly seeing a man outside.

But later he discovered that the two indeed kept a respectful distance, and that Li An was very discerning, so he didn't concern himself further.

...

Back at his residence.

Li An took stock and found he still had more than twelve thousand spirit stones left, definitely enough to make purchases at the auction.

However, Manman's information slightly worried him.

If a powerful figure was collecting treasures to nourish the divine soul, and Purple Soul Herbs, a main ingredient for the Foundation Establishment Pill, was such a treasure.

Would asking Luo Yong to refine the Foundation Establishment Pill cause any disturbance?

As he pondered over this, someone was knocking urgently on his door:

"Friend Wei, quickly open the door, there's news!"

Li An went out to open the door, Luo Yong came in with joy on his face: "My master agreed to refine the Foundation Establishment Pill for you!"

...

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