Chapter 356: The Two Elders

Chapter 356: Chapter 356: The Two Elders

After two small side dishes and a bowl of white rice, the white-haired old man stretched and rubbed his belly, thoroughly satisfied.

"Brother Bai, why not join me for a walk outside?"

He stood up, picked up his cane from beside the table, and asked Bai Mo.

Bai Mo saw no reason to refuse and walked out to the street with him.

It was noon.

The street was bustling with people from all walks of life.

Two Cultivators holding scrolls walked past, talking excitedly in low voices.

"With a book like this... I’ll definitely succeed this time..."

"...it was quite expensive..."

The Pill Qi on these two was not very strong.

Bai Mo’s gaze swept over them. He saw that the contents of their scrolls were not profound principles of the Alchemy Dao, but merely tricks for passing examinations.

The old man had obviously noticed as well.

The two of them simply shared a smile and continued walking.

’Whoever wrote such a scroll must be a Pill Master; otherwise, no one would find it credible.’

’Someone with a bit of success in the Alchemy Dao doesn’t necessarily have to make a living by refining Pills.’

’But these two Cultivators have their priorities backward. Instead of seeking true mastery in the Alchemy Dao, they’re pinning their hopes on shortcuts. They’ll likely never become Pill Masters.’

The white-haired old man pointed to the street with his cane and said softly,

"Look at this long street. The Pill Qi is chaotic, the shops compete endlessly, and a single type of Pill is presented in a dozen different ways, yet there’s no true sublimation."

"What are your thoughts, Brother Bai?"

Bai Mo thought for a moment.

"Senior, are you asking about advancing on the path of alchemy?"

The white-haired old man nodded.

Bai Mo said, "The Alchemy Dao is difficult. Every one of our peers knows the suffering of racking your brain without any breakthrough, watching the years slip by in vain."

"If one cannot focus wholeheartedly on it, there’s no need to beat one’s head against a wall. Diverting that energy to other pursuits might even lead to a better life."

Even if they have no hope in the Alchemy Dao in this life, they can use their resources to cultivate the next generation.

This is the path many Alchemy Cultivators take.

The white-haired old man fell silent.

"There’s some truth to that. Success in the Alchemy Dao is almost fated; who can succeed seems to be predetermined."

"Do you often encounter bottlenecks, Brother Bai?"

Bai Mo said in a low voice, "Rarely..."

"That makes sense," the white-haired old man agreed.

"If you did, you wouldn’t have reached this point."

The two looked at each other and couldn’t help but chuckle.

Shouts from Cultivators who practiced different schools of the Alchemy Dao reached their ears, and before long, the sounds of arguing broke out.

The street instantly became livelier.

Some shopkeepers egged them on from the middle of the crowd. Soon, the arguments grew fiercer, and it seemed they were about to come to blows.

Bai Mo and the white-haired old man sidestepped the commotion and headed toward a quieter area.

The saying "different paths, same destination" also applies to the Alchemy Dao.

To the two of them, the arguments of those disciples were now meaningless, even sounding a bit like splitting hairs.

"However, I have indeed seen a few promising seeds in this city. With a little guidance, I imagine they’ll be able to achieve something in the future,"

the old man said.

"The land breeds talent. This Celestial Mountain City is worthy of its fame, known for a thousand miles around."

"Brother Bai, are you also from here?"

Bai Mo shook his head.

"I’m from a city some distance away, called Immortal Arrival City."

"That senior you were unable to meet once visited my shop. He gave my assistant quite a scare."

"Where does Senior cultivate in seclusion?" Bai Mo asked in return.

"It’s hardly seclusion. I have close dealings with several factions in Shaoyang City..."

Shaoyang City. It was a place Bai Mo had never heard of. ’It must be a completely different world,’ he thought.

"Brother Bai, which aspect of the Alchemy Dao do you focus on?"

the old man suddenly asked.

Bai Mo paused, slightly stunned, and fell into thought.

His Alchemy Dao involved both plants and minerals; he wasn’t limited to any particular school. Currently, he was even researching the method of refining Qi into a Pill.

This was what it was like to have no famous master to guide you on the Alchemy Dao; there was no one to tell you which path to take.

Seeing him ponder, the old man already understood.

"This old man is more proficient in the way of plants and herbs..."

The two of them walked halfway down the street, talking softly.

Suddenly, they heard a clamor and realized a wedding sedan was not far behind them.

The road was narrow, and the two of them were standing right in the middle.

Realizing this, Bai Mo quickly stepped to the side, and the old man also took a few quick steps to stand by the edge of the road.

The wedding sedan passed, followed by a group of laughing and joking young people.

A thin, elderly man in a steward’s uniform struggled to catch up from behind.

Without a word, the steward pulled out a handful of wedding candies and stuffed them into Bai Mo’s and the old man’s hands.

"You two are very thoughtful. Here, these are wedding candies, please take them."

It was a generous handful of candy. Bai Mo and the old man fumbled for a moment to keep it all from falling to the ground.

The steward wiped the sweat from his brow.

"With all this auspicious energy today, it’ll give him the boost he needs! My young master will surely become a Pill Master this time!"

After saying this, he hitched up his robes and hurried after the procession.

Bai Mo and the white-haired old man looked at each other, speechless.

After walking around a bit, the old man’s assessment of Celestial Mountain City was quite good.

"The Xuandao Sect manages this city quite well. Shaoyang City is far worse. I’ve even been the target of two assassination attempts there..."

Bai Mo returned with him to the Jinghong Inn and went up to his room.

It was rare to meet a fellow practitioner, and their conversation was in full swing, so Bai Mo had no intention of leaving.

It wasn’t appropriate to have a deep discussion on the street, but they could in the inn.

Bai Mo poured two cups of strong tea and said casually,

"Before I came, I received a commission. I’d like to hear your opinion, Senior."

"Oh? Does it have something to do with me?"

"Yes. Someone wants to hire me, along with a few other seniors, to capture a Pill Ghost. The offer is decent."

The white-haired old man was visibly intrigued.

"A Pill Ghost? You don’t see those much anymore."

"Forget the reward. If it doesn’t cause any trouble, it might be worth going to have a look."

Bai Mo then told him the details.

The old man listened attentively, nodding from time to time.

"Regardless of what the other daoists do, I can go with you to check it out later."

After they finished with miscellaneous matters, the conversation turned back to the subject of the Alchemy Dao.

"This junior has recently been studying the method of refining Qi into a Pill, but I have many unresolved questions..."

...

The lamps burned bright until the third watch of the night.

Bai Mo began to take out a Pill Book, debating its principles with the white-haired old man.

They started to show their differences, and their debate grew heated.

This was a good thing. Only through such mutual validation could they both improve.

"Well, now! You two have started without me!"

A voice, tinged with indignation, suddenly came from outside the window.

Bai Mo quickly pushed open the window shutters. The person he saw was another old man with salt-and-pepper hair and a ruddy complexion.

From his appearance, this man seemed to be in even better spirits than the white-haired old man.

The white-haired old man laughed. "When I came to this city, I wanted to find a fellow daoist to exchange ideas with, but alas, my search was fruitless."

Without waiting for an invitation, the old man outside ducked and leaped nimbly through the window.

This one wore a gray robe and looked unremarkable, but the embroidered donkey on his sleeve always drew people’s attention.

"Hehe, it’s true this younger brother is a bit restless, but this just shows that you, my older brother, weren’t trying very hard."

"The city is only so big. If you had really looked, how could you not have found me?"

The white-haired old man maintained his usual demeanor, chuckling as he said,

"Look at that donkey of yours, little brother. Not even someone with ordinary footwork could catch up to it, let alone an old bag of bones like me."

"How should I address you, Daoist?"

The three of them exchanged names, and only then did Bai Mo learn that the newcomer’s surname was Gai.

The donkey on Old Man Gai’s sleeve was very ordinary—gray fur, short legs—but its bared-teeth expression looked strikingly vivid.

Bai Mo couldn’t see anything unusual about it.

But the white-haired old man had exposed it with a single remark, which made Bai Mo re-evaluate the cultivation realms of the two men before him.

’They are probably both at the Core Formation realm or above.’

This wasn’t surprising, given their level of attainment in the Alchemy Dao.

At their age, and with the aid of cultivation resources, reaching the Core Formation realm wouldn’t be difficult.

Old Man Gai sat down without prompting and took out two Pills, placing them on the table.

"Brother Bai, these two Pills of yours are quite interesting..."