A Loose Cultivator's Path to Longevity-Chapter 72 - 71: Spirit-Seeking Rat

Autumn passed and spring arrived. In the blink of an eye, four months had gone by.

Lü Zhong’s life remained peaceful. Every day, besides cultivating and Talisman Making, he was concocting medicine to raise the Yellow Jade Rat.

After being fed dozens, even hundreds, of Mouse-Breeding Pills, its Metamorphosis accelerated dramatically. Not only was its body growing at a rate visible to the naked eye, but it had even begun to condense Demon Qi within.

Unlike cultivators, who could only condense a Golden Core after reaching the Core Formation Stage, Demon Beasts possessed an Inner Core from birth.

At first, a Demon Beast’s Inner Core looked more like a flesh-and-blood organ.

Relying on this unique Blood and Flesh Inner Core, Demon Beasts could absorb and release Spiritual Qi at will. They could also devour various Spiritual Qi-infused Spiritual Objects to advance.

Based on Lü Zhong’s observations, the Inner Core inside the Yellow Jade Rat was about to finish forming.

This meant the day it would fully metamorphose into a Demon Beast was not far off.

’Since it’s already in the final stages of its Metamorphosis, I should increase the dosage of Mouse-Breeding Pills...’

Just then, a Token at his waist vibrated slightly.

’A visitor?’

Lü Zhong had the Yellow Jade Rat return to its little nest before heading toward the courtyard gate.

He casually cast a Control Mantra, dispersing some of the cloud and mist near the gate and revealing the figure of the visitor. It was Lin Yunhua of the Law Enforcement Team.

’Lin Yunhua is here. The bounty for Thousand-Faced Lang must have come through.’

Lü Zhong couldn’t help but feel a little pleased. He controlled the White Cloud Shield to open a hole large enough for one person to enter and welcomed Lin Yunhua into the main hall.

"Fellow Daoist Lü, it’s good to see you well!" Lin Yunhua clasped his hands and smiled, looking at the White Cloud Array outside in amazement. "It seems you’ve been doing well for yourself lately. You even managed to purchase an Array."

"Not at all, not at all. I’m just barely scraping by drawing Talismans."

Lü Zhong put on a wry smile, then sighed and said, "Once bitten, twice shy. Without this White Cloud Array here, how could I possibly sleep soundly at night?"

"That’s true." Lin Yunhua didn’t continue the topic. He took out a small, jingling pouch from his robes, his face full of apology. "The bounty for Thousand-Faced Lang finally came through today. However, the amount is a bit on the low side. I hope you understand, Fellow Daoist."

Eighty-seven Spirit Stones.

’That really is a pitiful sum.’

Lü Zhong gave them a quick glance, his expression not changing in the slightest, and accepted the Spirit Stones with a smile.

Inwardly, however, he was sighing. A bounty of nearly a thousand Spirit Stones had been skimmed layer by layer until only eighty-seven remained in his hands. He had no idea how many fat rats this had fed.

’Don’t be fooled by Lin Yunhua’s friendly smile; he’s probably skimmed quite a few Spirit Stones for himself on the sly.’

’What can I do? I’m just a Loose Cultivator.’

After some idle chat, Lü Zhong saw Lin Yunhua off and closed the door.

He didn’t dwell on the matter of the skimmed bounty. Doing so would only be looking for trouble and was utterly meaningless. Until his own strength was great enough to command respect, he could expect such things to happen again in the future.

Rather than dwelling on it, it was better to focus more of his energy on cultivation and Talisman Making.

Cultivation was the foundation of a cultivator’s existence, and Talisman Making was the necessary means to achieve that goal.

...

「Half a month later.」

The Yellow Jade Rat finally completed its Metamorphosis.

After metamorphosing into a Spirit-Seeking Rat, its body was as large as a domestic pig.

Its entire body was covered in long, platinum-white fur as sharp as needles, and its two front teeth glinted with a metallic luster, looking as if they could bite through Gold Stone.

Because it had just advanced, the Spirit-Seeking Rat was wreathed in a circle of Demon Qi, making it look particularly frightening.

The very first thing it did was immediately turn on Lü Zhong.

He wasn’t the least bit surprised by this, as if it were only to be expected.

The nature of beasts is inherently difficult to tame, and powerful Demon Beasts are even more unruly. This is why raising Spiritual Beasts generally requires signing a contract.

After a session of "gentle education," the Spirit-Seeking Rat proactively signed a slave contract.

A slave contract was an extremely unequal agreement, essentially a product combining Talismans and Magic Skills. Only the distant Central Earth had the ability to create such a thing. It was divided into two parts: the slave pact and the master’s bond.

After signing the slave pact, the Spirit-Seeking Rat’s life and death depended entirely on Lü Zhong’s whim.

...

「The next day, in the wilderness outside Yanling Mountain Market.」

A figure flashed past, sprinting at high speed.

This person was Lü Zhong. Empowered by the Light Body Skill and his Magic Robe’s Wind-Avoiding Divine Technique, his running speed was astonishing. When sprinting, he could even reach three hundred li per ancient hour.

In the blink of an eye, a hundred meters passed in a flash.

A patch of low-lying shrubs appeared ahead, but Lü Zhong didn’t slow down in the slightest.

As if "flying over the grass," he passed through the area with ease.

After running for more than ten li, Lü Zhong deactivated the effects of the Wind-Avoiding Divine Technique and the Light Body Skill, instead casting the Breath Concealing Skill and the Stealth Technique.

In the wilderness, one must always remain vigilant.

He had come out this time not only to test his Magic Robe’s Wind-Avoiding Divine Technique, but also to try out the Spirit-Seeking Rat’s Spirit-Seeking Talent.

Considering that it was nearly impossible for any Spiritual Objects to be left in the areas near the Workshop Market, Lü Zhong planned to search for them on the outskirts of Yanling Mountain.

Along the way, he made sure to stay far away from any mortal villages.

After walking for another thirty-odd li, until the hilly terrain began to give way to steep mountain slopes, he finally released the Spirit-Seeking Rat from his Spirit Beast Bag.

"Start looking for places with dense Spiritual Qi."

The Spirit-Seeking Rat let out a SQUEAK, looked left and right as if confirming its target, and then ran off to the northwest.

Lü Zhong followed close behind, his Qi Observation Skill active the entire time.

Right now, all he could see in his vision was a field of faint, flickering light, which indicated that the Spiritual Qi here was extremely thin.

After walking for over a hundred zhang, a point of light suddenly appeared in his vision, several times brighter than the surrounding nature’s spiritual energy.

"Huh, someone dropped a Spirit Stone here."

Lü Zhong picked up a Spirit Stone and confirmed that this was what the Spirit-Seeking Rat had found.

"Are there any other places with dense Spiritual Qi?"

The Spirit-Seeking Rat shook its head and kept spinning in place, letting out squeaking sounds.

"None? Then let’s keep heading toward Yanling Mountain."

After Lü Zhong led it for several more li, the Spirit-Seeking Rat reacted again.

Following it, he found a red-flowered Spirit Medicine by a stream.

"Looks like a Blood Sunflower. I’m taking it!"

Lü Zhong carefully dug the flower out whole and placed it in a jade box that could slow the loss of the Spirit Medicine’s Spiritual Qi. This would allow him to sell the Spirit Medicine for a higher price.

Continuing the search for Spiritual Objects, the Spirit-Seeking Rat made several more discoveries.

A rusty piece of iron.

A pitch-black, unidentified stone.

A Golden Light Talisman, stuffed into a rock crevice by some unknown person.

Long-term exposure to wind and rain had greatly diminished this Golden Light Talisman’s power, making its effect even weaker than that of a Seven Profound Arrow Avoidance Talisman.

"Am I out here searching for Spiritual Objects, or am I just picking up trash?" Lü Zhong didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

Through this experiment, he had gained a general understanding of the Spirit-Seeking Rat’s Spirit-Seeking Talent.

What was certain was that the Spirit-Seeking Talent was an enhanced version of the Qi Observation Skill.

With its Spirit-Seeking Talent, the Spirit-Seeking Rat could sense even subtler flows of Spiritual Qi, allowing it to discover locations with abnormal concentrations of Spiritual Qi. These places were usually where Spirit Medicines and other Spiritual Objects could be found.

The reason why a perfectly good search for Spiritual Objects had turned into a trash-collecting trip was because the Spirit-Seeking Rat had not yet undergone specialized training. It was unable to distinguish between different types of Spiritual Objects and would simply run toward any place with dense Spiritual Qi.

This was something Lü Zhong would need to address through future training, to teach it how to differentiate.