Longevity, starting from being a chicken raising servant

“Foundation Establishment, late-stage Foundation Establishment.”

“Are you adept in the Hundred Arts?”

“…Does this need to be registered?”

“Certainly, we suspect there may be Incense-burning Dao Cultivators lurking around. This is for your own safety, so you must register truthfully.”

“Well… okay, I have some knowledge in artifact refining.”

“What is your name?”

“Surname Li, single name Ji.”

“What brings you to the city?”

“Do I need to say that as well?…Fine, I came here to meet Master Shen Fu.”

“Master Shen, ah, there’s a long line of people hoping to see him every day, but the number of those who truly get to meet him could be counted on one hand.”

“Have any of you ever met him?”

“Ha, we are not of that stature. Alright, you can go in.”

“Thank you.”

Li Ji entered the city through the city gate.

Li Ji looked around.

Yong’an City, originally small, remained cramped despite multiple expansions.

Li Ji had heard about this.

The city gathered many master artisans who were experts in the Hundred Arts, some of whom had huge renown and were dubbed with the title of ‘Master’.

Among them, the most prominent was Master Shen Fu, who had introduced the Class II Spirit Chicken Essence.

It was their presence that attracted many Rogue Cultivators in Yan State.

The change in attitude from the Three Great Sects towards Rogue Cultivators resulted in these individuals settling here, even if it meant spending a considerable amount of Spirit Stones.

This naturally resulted in an increase in Yong’an City’s population.

But evidently, it also brought prosperity to industries associated with Cultivators.

What puzzled Li Ji was that although Yong’an City remained prosperous, it was noticeably quieter when compared to his last visit.

There seemed to be more patrolling cultivators from the Three Great Sects on the streets.

“Could it be due to what the cultivators at the city gate mentioned about the Incense-burning Dao?”

Upon giving it some thought, Li Ji’s expression turned grave.

He had visited the Wei State’s frontlines before and had faced Incense-burning Dao Cultivators.

He knew the tenacity of the Incense-burning Dao Cultivators all too well.

If there really were Incense-burning Dao Cultivators in Yan State, it would explain why Yong’an City was so tense.

Just as he was pondering, he suddenly heard a frantic and grief-stricken voice:

“I am innocent! Fellow Daoist! I am innocent! I am not a member of the Incense-burning Dao! You’ve got the wrong person!”

“Humph! Whether you’re wrong or not, you’ll come to our Sect. The Elder will examine you personally to find out! Take him away!”

Li Ji hurriedly followed the voice.

He saw a middle-aged Rogue Cultivator, radiating an aura of Foundation Establishment middle-stage, being tied up by a group of cultivators from the Three Great Sects with a rope specially designed to restrain a cultivator’s mana, and then pasted with talismans.

Many spectators were surrounding them, some sneered, others doubted, some looked on empathetically, and some were smug…

His gaze swept over the middle-aged Rogue Cultivator, causing Li Ji to feel puzzled.

The conflict between the Chu Dynasty and the Incense-burning Dao Cultivators had lasted for ten years. There were simple talismans to detect the Incense-burning Dao cultivators. They were not very effective for high-level cultivators like those of the Golden Core or Nascent Soul stage, but they were accurate for cultivators of the Qi Refining or Foundation Establishment stage.

There was no need to bring them to a Golden Core Cultivator for examination. If that were the case, those Golden Core Cultivators on the frontlines would do nothing except examining cultivators all day, every day.

Many of the members from the Three Great Sects of Yan had been to the frontlines, so making these talismans shouldn’t be difficult. So why were they still using such inefficient methods?

Li Ji was puzzled.

Of course, it’s also possible that the person was merely being bribed by the Incense-burning Dao, and they hadn’t chosen to possess him.

That indeed might be possible.

Thinking about this, he squeezed his way into the crowd.

Out of curiosity, he asked an onlooking Earth Cultivator, who seemed to be an elderly man with a jovial face:

“Fellow Daoist, has this person already been identified as one of the Incense-burning Dao Cultivators?”

The Earth Cultivator glanced at him. Although he initially did not want to engage in the conversation, the late-stage Foundation Establishment aura radiating from the other party made him squeeze a smile onto his face. His voice was somewhat shrill:

“No, not yet. But in my opinion, he very likely is.”

“Oh? Why is that so?”

Li Ji was somewhat curious.

“On normal days, this man is always fierce and menacing, and even dares to challenge members of the Three Great Sects. Tell me, if it weren’t for having someone from the Incense-burning Dao supporting him, where would he get such courage?”

“Also, I’ve often seen him looking at female cultivators with an improper gaze. I reckon he’s not a good person…”

The Earth Cultivator was like a chatterbox, rambling on and on.

Li Ji was speechless.

He looked around at the other cultivators again, and noticed that their faces were marked with indifference and apathy as they watched the man being taken away.

Seeing this sight, Li Ji was no longer that interested in whether the Rogue Cultivator being taken away was truly a member of the Incense-burning Dao or not.

Shaking his head slightly, Li Ji immediately left the crowd and headed towards Master Shen’s mansion.

On the way, he was surprised to find that such incidents were quite frequent.

“…Once you discover any suspected Incense-burning Dao Cultivators, immediately report to us! Once confirmed, we will reward at least ten middle-grade Spirit stones, not capped!”

One of the cultivators from the Three Great Sects was loudly advocating this at the entrance of an alley.

The eyes of many Rogue Cultivators underneath lit up as they flexed their fists and beat their chests in excitement.

Seeing this scene, Li Ji couldn’t help but shake his head again.

Are they thinking of finding the Incense-burning Dao Cultivators with their abilities?

He considered this utterly delusional.

Ignoring them, he strode past and soon arrived on the bustling main street of the city. There, he saw the city’s only mansion with a large courtyard.