Chapter 150: Dao Soldier, Jiang Country's Number One Rouge Cultivator

“I’ve finally gathered everything.”

Lu Changsheng let out a sigh of relief as he walked out of the sixth store.

At Myriad Treasures Pavilion, he had purchased the Earth Fire Stone.

However, after inquiring at several stores, he couldn’t find the Seven-Color Copper.

Fortunately, his luck wasn’t bad, and he spent 2,000 spirit stones at this store to obtain the last material needed to forge the Seven Stars Heart Lamp.

“Once I return to Qingzhu Mountain, I’ll condense the Seven Stars Heart Lamp and finally forge my destined spiritual weapon!”

With all the necessary materials gathered, Lu Changsheng’s mood greatly improved.

After all, if he had missed just one material, it would have been unbearable.

“Now that I’ve broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage, I should buy some pills suitable for Foundation Establishment to increase my cultivation.”

Lu Changsheng thought to himself.

To cultivate quickly, taking pills was essential.

If he relied solely on his own cultivation, it would take eight to nine years to break through from the Foundation Establishment stage to the next stage.

But with enough pills and the Seven Stars Heart Lamp’s assistance, he could refine the pill’s toxicity, purify his spiritual power, and estimate that it would take only two to three years to break through to the next stage.

Immediately, Lu Changsheng arrived at the renowned ‘Alchemy Hall’ to inquire about pills suitable for the Foundation Establishment stage.

“Senior, our store has Harmony Qi Pill and Nourishing Pill suitable for the Foundation Establishment stage.”

“However, our Nourishing Pill is currently sold out, and we only have one bottle of Harmony Qi Pill left.”

“If you need it, you can pay a deposit, and we’ll notify you when we restock.”

The store attendant respectfully replied to Lu Changsheng’s inquiry about Foundation Establishment pills.

“There’s only one bottle of Harmony Qi Pill left?”

Lu Changsheng felt a pang of disappointment upon hearing this.

But he also knew that high-grade pills and talismans were rarely sold in large quantities, unless one knew a high-grade alchemist.

Otherwise, it was impossible to purchase them in bulk.

“How many spirit stones is the Harmony Qi Pill? Do you have any pills that can increase cultivation during the late Qi Refining stage?”

Lu Changsheng continued to inquire.

“Senior, the Harmony Qi Pill costs 1,200 spirit stones.”

“We currently have Qi Refining Dispersion Pill, Nourishing Qi Pill, and Gathering Qi Pill that can increase cultivation during the late Qi Refining stage.”

The attendant quoted the price and then presented a jade booklet to Lu Changsheng, introducing various pills suitable for the late Qi Refining stage.

These pills would also be of some help to Foundation Establishment cultivators.

For example, the Qi Refining Dispersion Pill could increase the speed of refining the heavenly and earthly spiritual energy.

The Nourishing Qi Pill could nourish the heavenly and earthly spiritual energy, accelerating the circulation of spiritual energy within the body.

Although these pills had relatively ordinary effects for Foundation Establishment cultivators, Lu Changsheng still purchased the remaining three bottles of Nourishing Qi Pill and one bottle of Gathering Qi Pill, spending a total of 2,200 spirit stones.

Just as Lu Changsheng finished paying and was about to leave, he overheard a conversation.

“Xiao Yu, has that customer who pre-ordered the ‘Three Yang Pill’ not come yet?”

“The customer hasn’t shown up, and three days ago, I sent Xiao Wu to contact the customer at the provided address, but we still couldn’t get in touch,” the store attendant replied to the manager’s inquiry.

“Three Yang Pill?” Lu Changsheng’s footsteps halted as he heard the conversation.

He knew this pill, it was a second-grade spiritual pill.

It was derived from the phrase “Three Yang Opening” and had the effect of increasing cultivation, saving years of bitter practice.

Not only that, but it could also eliminate hidden diseases, internal injuries, and other issues within the cultivator’s body, making it an excellent choice for Qi Refining cultivators seeking to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage.

Some even jokingly referred to it as the “Little Foundation Establishment Pill”.

Lu Changsheng knew about this Three Yang Pill and had initially planned to buy one for himself.

However, this pill was also a relatively rare and precious second-grade pill.

He had visited many stores but couldn’t find one.

Now, hearing this conversation, Lu Changsheng couldn’t help but feel the urge to buy it.

Although he, as a Foundation Establishment cultivator, didn’t need it, he could buy it as a gift for his wife, Lu Miaoge.

Lu Miaoge was currently at the eighth stage of Qi Refining and would likely take two to three years to break through to the ninth stage.

By then, Lu Miaoge would be forty years old.

Although it was possible to cultivate to the Qi Refining perfection stage and break through to Foundation Establishment before the age of sixty, the older one got, the harder it became.

He naturally hoped his wife could cultivate to the Qi Refining perfection stage as soon as possible.

Moreover, Lu Miaoge had suffered a severe injury in the past, and although she had recovered, it was unclear if there were any hidden sequelae.

Having a Three Yang Pill would not only increase her cultivation but also eliminate any hidden diseases, giving her more hope when breaking through to Foundation Establishment.

“Manager, since the original customer hasn’t come to collect the pill, is this Three Yang Pill still for sale?”

“How much would it cost if you’re willing to sell it?”

Lu Changsheng asked, bowing his head.

The manager looked at Lu Changsheng with some surprise, but immediately heard the attendant’s report that Lu Changsheng had just spent over 2,000 spirit stones, possibly indicating that he was a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

With a smile, the manager replied, “If you’re willing to buy it, we’re naturally willing to sell it.”

“This Three Yang Pill costs 3,800 spirit stones.”

The manager quoted the price.

“Alright, I’ll take it,”

Lu Changsheng agreed directly.

The price wasn’t cheap, but it wasn’t excessively expensive either.

After all, the prices at large stores like this one were always a bit higher.

Moreover, precious pills like this one would naturally have a certain price fluctuation.

“Manager, I don’t have enough spirit stones on me. Can I use Talismans to offset the cost?” Lu Changsheng asked, taking out three low-grade Talismans.

He didn’t have an exact count of his spirit stones, but it was around 3,000 to 4,000.

In this situation, he naturally needed to keep some spirit stones for later use.

“Low-grade Talismans?”

As the manager of Alchemy Hall he naturally had exceptional eyesight.

After examining the Talismans, he politely said, “We can accept low-grade Talismans as payment, but we can only offer 60% of the market price.”

“Alright, 60% is fine,”

Lu Changsheng agreed, nodding his head.

He couldn’t possibly go to the Blue Cloud Commercial Hall to ask if they would accept Talismans at this time.

He then took out ten low-grade Talismans, offsetting 2,500 spirit stones, and paid an additional 1,300 spirit stones.

“I don’t know when I’ll be able to learn a second-grade alchemy technique,”

Lu Changsheng thought to himself as he walked out of the store.

“Otherwise, second-grade pills would not only be difficult to purchase but also expensive, and all my hard-earned money would be spent on this aspect.”

He had a 20-fold profit on his Talismans.

As one of the four main cultivation arts, pills would naturally have higher profits than Talismans.

It wasn’t just about making money; it was also about having an alchemy technique, so he wouldn’t have to worry about pill-related issues.

“Not just alchemy, formation is also necessary,” he thought.

“To establish my own family, I need someone who understands formation within the family.”

“Otherwise, if I leave formation to others, I won’t know if there are any loopholes or defects.”

Lu Changsheng thought to himself.

He felt that establishing his own family would be a long and difficult road.

“I’ll just ask a bookstore about Dao Soldier-related things, and that’s it.”

Lu Changsheng didn’t think much about it.

He was preparing to ask a bookstore about Dao Soldier-related things.

As he strolled around, Lu Changsheng saw a bookstore called “Wanfa Bookstore”.

It was a store that sold cultivation manuals.

He immediately went in and asked if they had any Dao Soldier-related manuals.

“Dao Soldier?”

“Do you want to know about Dao Soldier-related things?”

The store owner looked at Lu Changsheng with some surprise.

“I’ve only heard a bit about Dao Soldier and am interested, so I want to learn more.”

“Any manual related to Dao Soldier is fine.”

Lu Changsheng said.

“There’s not much information about Dao Soldier in the cultivation world, and there are very few related manuals.”

“I happen to know a bit about Dao Soldier, and if you’re willing to pay 100 spirit stones as a tea fee, I’ll be happy to explain and introduce you to it.”

The store owner smiled.

People who ran bookstores like this one not only sold cultivation manuals but also knew a lot about various things in the cultivation world.

“If you can explain it to me, I’m willing to pay the 100 spirit stone tea fee.”

Lu Changsheng took out 50 spirit stones and said.

He knew that high-end knowledge was heavily guarded in this world.

The lack of Dao Soldier-related manuals also indicated that it was an advanced-level topic, and few people knew about it.

So, the 100 spirit stone tea fee wasn’t too high.

Some information-selling stores might charge tens of thousands of spirit stones for a single piece of information.

“You’re very straightforward.”

The store owner smiled and asked Lu Changsheng to sit down, poured him a cup of spiritual tea, and began to explain Dao Soldier-related information.

“Actually, Dao Soldier is just a general term.”

“Like puppets, demonic beasts, ghost soldiers, and even cultivators, they can all be referred to as a type of Dao Soldier.”

“However, when we call them Dao Soldier, it usually means a certain quantity of the same type, like a battalion in the mortal world.”

The store owner lifted his teacup, took a sip, and continued, “Dao Soldier can be broadly divided into three categories: nurtured soldiers, refined soldiers, and magic soldiers.”

Lu Changsheng also lifted his teacup, took a sip, and nodded slightly, indicating for the store owner to continue.

“Firstly, the Dao Soldier is like the literal meaning, which is to cultivate a person or demonic beast into a Dao Soldier.”

“However, this cultivation is not ordinary cultivation, but rather through a certain method, secret technique, or practice, to cultivate a practitioner or demonic beast into a Dao Soldier.”

“This allows the Dao Soldier to not only possess magical powers but also be able to fight and kill enemies, and even arrange formations.”

“Many formations don’t require human control, but most powerful formations still require a large number of people to operate.”

“At this point, the role of the Dao Soldier becomes apparent.”

“I’ve heard that some high-level cultivation methods can cultivate Dao Soldiers that can not only form large arrays but also enhance their own magical powers.”

The shopkeeper took a sip of tea and slowly explained.

“Can people also be cultivated into Dao Soldiers?”

Lu Changsheng was surprised to hear this.

“Haha, all things have spirits, and we humans can be cultivated into Dao Soldiers, what’s so strange about that?”

The shopkeeper smiled and finished his tea in one gulp.

“Regardless of whether it’s in the mortal world or the cultivation realm, there are those who cultivate death soldiers. You can understand this as a type of Dao Soldier cultivation.”

“However, most Dao Soldier cultivations involve hundreds or thousands of people, and it takes tens or even hundreds of years to cultivate one batch.”

“Therefore, very few powers will cultivate people into Dao Soldiers.”

The shopkeeper poured himself another cup of tea.

“Why?”

Lu Changsheng asked.

“Because cultivating a Dao Soldier not only consumes time and energy but also exhausts resources. Only large powers have the ability to cultivate Dao Soldiers.”

“Cultivating a person into a Dao Soldier is not only against the will of heaven but also requires too many resources. In the end, the Dao Soldier is cultivated, but the person’s lifespan is too short.”

“Compared to us humans, demonic beasts not only live longer but also consume fewer resources, making them suitable for cultivation.”

“So, if you want to cultivate a Dao Soldier, most powers will definitely choose to cultivate demonic beasts into Dao Soldiers rather than humans.”

The shopkeeper spoke, pouring Lu Changsheng a full cup of tea.

“I see.”

Lu Changsheng’s eyes widened as he gained a deeper understanding of cultivating Dao Soldiers.

It’s about cultivating a person or demonic beast into a certain type of death soldier through a certain method.

But this death soldier is not only powerful in combat but can also form formations, whether it’s fighting enemies or doing other things, it’s not ordinary.

“Please tell me, what about the refined soldiers and magic soldiers?”

Lu Changsheng took a sip of tea and continued to ask.

“Refined soldiers, for example, are like certain special puppets, magical treasures, or some corpse-refining techniques, where humans create Dao Soldiers through artificial means, and they are all referred to as refined soldiers.”

“Magic soldiers, on the other hand, are mostly magical treasures that can cultivate and give birth to Dao Soldiers.”

“For example, there’s a famous magical treasure in the demonic path called the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, which can absorb the souls of people and demonic beasts after they have killed and transform them into fierce ghosts.”

“Such treasures are referred to as magic soldiers.”

“Most people, when they talk about Dao Soldiers, are referring to those cultivated through breeding, and the cultivators and powers that can cultivate Dao Soldiers are extremely rare in the cultivation realm, which is also why few people know about Dao Soldiers.”

The shopkeeper smiled and took a sip of tea.

“Nurturing soldiers, refined soldiers, and magic soldiers?”

Lu Changsheng listened to the three types of Dao Soldiers and nodded thoughtfully.

He now had a rough understanding of Dao Soldiers.

“So, which type of Dao Soldier does my Golden Armor Bean Mother belong to?”

Lu Changsheng felt that his Golden Armor Bean Mother didn’t quite fit into the three categories mentioned by the shopkeeper.

It was a bit like a nurtured soldier, but also a bit like a magic soldier.

He remembered that the system had introduced the Golden Armor Bean Mother as a spiritual plant-type Dao Soldier.

It should lean more towards the nurtured soldier category.

But he didn’t mind.

This shopkeeper was only a Qi Refining peak cultivator.

His understanding of Dao Soldiers was limited and couldn’t be comprehensive.

Moreover, the rewards drawn from the system couldn’t be measured by conventional standards.

“Please tell me, which powers in our Jiang Country’s cultivation realm possess Dao Soldiers?”

Lu Changsheng continued to ask.

“Like our Jiang Country’s four major immortal sects, the Mystic Spirit Sect is famous for taming spiritual beasts and must have breeding Dao Soldiers.”

“But whether the Heavenly Sword Sect, Blue Cloud Sect, and Falling Sunset Sect have Dao Soldiers, I’m not sure.”

“Our Jiang Country’s three immortal cities, Qingluan Immortal City’s Qingluan true persons, have cultivated a batch of Qingluan Dao Soldiers.”

“It’s said that over 200 years ago, the Qingluan true persons relied on 500 Qingluan Dao Soldiers to shock Jiang Country and establish Qingluan Immortal City, earning them the title of Jiang Country’s first Rouge Cultivator.”

The shopkeeper spoke up.

“Qingluan true persons, Qingluan Dao Soldiers.”

Lu Changsheng was surprised to hear this.

He naturally knew about Qingluan Immortal City and had heard of the Qingluan true persons’ great reputation.

But he didn’t know that this Qingluan true persons had actually risen to fame by relying on a batch of Dao Soldiers to establish Qingluan Immortal City.

“No mistake, it’s said that the Qingluan true person was only at the Core Formation initial stage, but they were able to confront Core Formation late-stage cultivators head-on with the help of 500 Qingluan Dao Soldiers.”

The shopkeeper spoke of Qingluan true persons with a reverent tone in his eyes.

Qingluan true persons, as a Rouge Cultivator, had no background, but condensed true core.

And in the border area between Jiang Country and Yue Country, they established Qingluan Immortal City, a sacred land for Rouge Cultivators, and were naturally revered by many Rouge Cultivators as a role model.

“It’s indeed true that those who can make a name for themselves in the cultivation realm, especially Rouge Cultivators, are all templates of heaven’s chosen ones.”

Lu Changsheng listened to this and felt that Qingluan true persons were extremely powerful.

He was currently at the Foundation Establishment initial stage and could barely confront Foundation Establishment late-stage cultivators.

The gap in strength between Core Formation stages would only be greater.

Yet, Qingluan true persons had been able to confront Core Formation late-stage cultivators at the Core Formation initial stage.

“However, Qingluan true persons’ Qingluan Dao Soldiers are also top-tier Dao Soldiers among many.”

“According to my knowledge, one of our Jiang Country’s three major cultivation families, the Beast Tamer Xu Family, has also cultivated a batch of water snake Dao Soldiers and fire crow Dao Soldiers, but they are far inferior to Qingluan true persons’ Qingluan Dao Soldiers.”

The shopkeeper continued to introduce Dao Soldiers.

“Beast Tamer Xu Family, water snake Dao Soldiers, fire crow Dao Soldiers.”

Lu Changsheng nodded slightly upon hearing this.

He had heard of this Beast Taming Xu Family.

One of Jiang Country’s three major cultivation families.

With a Core Formation true persons sitting in charge, it was a true cultivation family.

Completely different from small cultivation families like the Qingzhu Lu Family and Hongye Valley Chen Family.

He didn’t expect that this family not only had a Core Formation ancestor sitting in charge but also cultivated Dao Soldiers.

However, he noticed that the shopkeeper only mentioned nurturing Dao Soldiers.

There was no mention of refined soldiers or magic soldiers.

Immediately, Lu Changsheng asked about refined soldiers and magic soldiers.

“Dao Soldiers are already rare and difficult to cultivate.”

“Compared to nurtured soldiers, refined soldiers are more evil and scarce in our Jiang Country.”

“In the past, the Yue Country royal family, which borders our Jiang Country, secretly launched a series of wars to select a batch of soldiers who had experienced a hundred battles and refine them into a type of Dao Soldier.”

“This matter was discovered by several major immortal sects in Yue Country, and they directly annihilated the Yue Country royal family.”

“As for magic soldiers, they are even rarer.”

“Besides the famous Ten Thousand Souls Banner in the demonic path, I’ve heard that Jin Country’s Yin Ming Ghost Sect has a treasure called the Ten Thousand Ghost Blood Pool, which can nurture a type of Dao Soldier with the blood of countless spirits.”

The shopkeeper spoke, finishing another cup of tea.

After finishing, he also said to Lu Changsheng, “Friend, that’s all I know about Dao Soldiers.”

“Thank you, friend, for enlightening me and broadening my horizons.”

Lu Changsheng listened to the shopkeeper’s words and nodded in appreciation.

He handed over the remaining 50 spirit stones as payment for the tea and bid farewell.

“This Dao Soldier sounds pretty good.”

“If I can draw a magical treasure that can cultivate a Dao Soldier, maybe I can also cultivate a batch of Dao Soldiers.”

Lu Changsheng thought to himself.

After understanding the three types of Dao Soldiers, he felt that magic soldiers were the most promising.

Whether it was nurtured soldiers or refined soldiers, both required too much time and energy.

Only magic soldiers, with the help of magical treasures, could be cultivated and nurtured.

It was also the most likely way for him to obtain a Dao Soldier through the system’s rewards.

Without further thought, Lu Changsheng found an inn, changed into a new set of clothes, and left Blue Cloud Market Town.

“You’re quite clever, knowing how to change your appearance.”

“But if you dare to compete with me, Meng Yibai, for a woman, you’ll have to pay the price.”

Just then, at the entrance of the market, a young man in his twenties with a vigorous aura stood up on the second floor, gazing out at the crowd, with a golden hamster appearing in his hand, pointing at Lu Changsheng, who had just walked out of the market.

Lu Changsheng didn’t ride his steel-feathered eagle as he left the market.

Nor did he use flying magical weapons.

Instead, he tried to fly using his own abilities.

After all, the biggest characteristic of breaking through to Foundation Establishment was being able to fly without relying on flying magical weapons.

Now that he had broken through to Foundation Establishment, he naturally wanted to try it out.

Lu Changsheng’s spirit stirred, and his entire body naturally lifted off the ground, flying through the air.

Many cultivators entering and exiting Blue Cloud Market Town saw Lu Changsheng flying and made way for him, their faces filled with admiration and respect.

Even in a large market town like Blue Cloud Market Town, Qi Refining cultivators were numerous.

Seeing a cultivator flying, they naturally knew it was a Foundation Establishment great master, and they didn’t dare to offend him.

After all, if this Foundation Establishment great master was in a bad mood and felt they were in the way, a single slap could kill them, and there would be no place to cry.

“Qi Refining cultivators can’t fly because their spiritual energy is insufficient to support their bodies, so they can only rely on flying magical weapons.”

“But after breaking through to Foundation Establishment, the entire body undergoes a transformation, shedding its mortal shell, and the spiritual energy within the body is transformed into magical power, increasing by more than tenfold, allowing the body to rise into the air and fly.”

Lu Changsheng tried flying and also gained a rough understanding of the principle.

He then descended from the air, released his steel-feathered eagle, and flew towards Qingzhu Mountain.

Even Foundation Establishment cultivators who could fly couldn’t fly long distances.

They still have to rely on my mount to get around.

Meanwhile, Meng Yibai walked out of Blue Cloud Market Town and released a golden hamster, about the size of a palm, from his Beast pouch.

“Which direction did he go in?”

He fed it a Pill and said calmly.

“Squeak squeak squeak”

The golden hamster, holding the Pill in its mouth, immediately pointed in a direction.