Cultivation: I Can Steal Lifespan from Spirit Beasts

Chapter 148: New Mission, Learning Spirit Chef

The newcomer was dashing and handsome, dressed in pristine white robes.

It was Dong Qiyu.

He descended from his flying Magical Artifact, his voice arriving before his feet touched the ground.

“Fellow Daoist Wang, busy? Hehe, I am here again.”

Wang Ba stood up slowly from the field, looking at the visitor with an expressionless face.

Dong Qiyu, accustomed to Wang Ba’s stoic demeanor, grinned and put on a deliberately pained expression. “Ah, Fellow Daoist, do not blame me. You know I need a large amount of Spirit Chow to attempt Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment. I have to shamelessly come… You… you have established your Foundation?!”

Dong Qiyu, who had been joking and smiling just moments before, froze as he sensed the pressure radiating from Wang Ba.

His gaze filled with shock and disbelief that he couldn’t conceal.

This chicken farmer actually established his Foundation?

How is that possible?!

Where did he get a Foundation Establishment Pill?

Dong Qiyu felt a tremor run through his heart.

Foundation Establishment was incredibly difficult. Not only because of the inherent challenge but also due to the scarcity of Foundation Establishment Pills.

Among the nearly 1,000 heterodox cultivators at the Eastern Sage Garrison, only Yan Chi had succeeded seven years ago. Besides him, only Meng Randao—who lucked into a pill two years ago—and a single alchemist had managed the feat.

Others either hadn’t reached the threshold or lacked the pill to assist them.

Dong Qiyu possessed a pill, but one of his Three Primes—specifically, the ‘Spirit’ aspect—had not yet reached Perfection. Even if he forced a breakthrough using the pill, his success rate would be less than 30%.

Moreover, he had publicly declared his goal of achieving Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment. Unless absolutely necessary, he refused to use a pill.

Yan Chi, Meng Randao, and the alchemist were all prominent figures among the heterodox crowd. Compared to them, Wang Ba—who only knew how to raise chickens—was unremarkable.

If Spirit Poultry weren’t vital to him, Dong Qiyu wouldn’t have bothered with such a mundane person, let alone humbled himself to visit.

Yet, he never expected the very person he looked down upon to surpass him.

Watching someone he considered inferior achieve what he could not, Dong Qiyu’s smile became forced.

“Is there something you need?” Wang Ba asked calmly, ignoring the other’s shock.

“Uh… Fellow Daoist… Senior. Congratulations, Senior.”

Despite the complex emotions swirling in his heart, Dong Qiyu had no choice but to lower his head. Wang Ba was now a Foundation Establishment cultivator. He dared not be flippant.

“This Junior wishes to purchase some Spirit Poultry from Senior. I wonder if Senior still has any available.”

After a moment of consideration, Wang Ba gave a surprising answer.

“What price?”

Dong Qiyu looked up, a flash of pleasant surprise in his eyes. He hurriedly replied, “Five! Five Spirit Stones each! The more, the better!”

Wang Ba did a quick calculation. “Wait here for a moment.”

He turned and walked into the chicken farm.

Dong Qiyu clenched his hands in delight. He hadn’t expected this visit to go so smoothly after so many rejections.

After a short wait, Wang Ba emerged from the main gate carrying a Storage Bag.

Though impatient, Dong Qiyu tried to suppress his excitement. He took the bag and scanned its contents with his Divine Sense.

“One thousand… 1,500… 2,000!”

A full 2,000!

Dong Qiyu was overjoyed. This quantity should be enough.

“By the way, I also have First-Order Low Grade Spirit Turtles here. Used as Spirit Chow, their effect is even better than Spirit Poultry. I can give you a discount. Do you want them?” Wang Ba asked suddenly, observing Dong Qiyu’s excitement.

However, Dong Qiyu refused without hesitation.

“Thank you, Senior, but this is enough!”

He immediately pulled out his own Storage Bag, counted out 100 Middle Grade Spirit Stones, and stuffed them into Wang Ba’s hand as if afraid the farmer would change his mind.

“Senior, please carry on. This Junior has matters to attend to and will take his leave.”

“Mmm.”

Cupping his fists in a respectful salute, Dong Qiyu stepped onto his flying artifact and vanished over the horizon.

Wang Ba watched him go, a thoughtful look in his eyes.

“Only wants Spirit Poultry, but not Spirit Turtles…”

…

Selling Spirit Poultry to Dong Qiyu didn’t cause Wang Ba much internal conflict.

He was simply short on Spirit Stones.

Previously, he feared getting entangled in whatever trouble lay behind Dong Qiyu. Even the slightest risk made him wary. Within the Heavenly Gate Sect, he had no allies; one mistake could be fatal.

So, he had avoided any connection, refusing even to sell poultry. If not for a desperate need for stones to buy techniques earlier, he would have ignored Dong Qiyu entirely.

But times had changed.

Now, Wang Ba was a Foundation Establishment cultivator. His expertise in breeding Spirit Poultry had caught the attention of the Sect’s upper echelons.

Although Lu Yuansheng seemed to dislike him, he grudgingly provided resources. He had even given Wang Ba a Foundation Establishment Pill to ensure those resources weren’t wasted on a short-lived Qi Refining cultivator.

As long as Wang Ba didn’t court death and continued to show progress, he was safe until the breeding goal was met.

This was why he dared to trade with Dong Qiyu now. Low risk, high reward. Why not?

The only thing that unsettled him was the frequency of Dong Qiyu’s visits.

“His last visit was only two months ago. He seems very anxious…”

Connecting this to the bulk purchase, Wang Ba recalled Bai Yu’s words: After Lu Yuansheng enters the Golden Core stage, he will use the Incense Path to establish his authority.

He sensed turbulent days ahead.

Sure enough, half a month later, a new mission notification appeared on his Heavenly Gate Token.

It summoned heterodox cultivators from all five garrisons to exterminate Incense Path cultivators. Rankings would be based on kills. The top three would receive Foundation Establishment Pills as rewards!

Additionally, Foundation Establishment cultivators—whether heterodox or inner sect—could earn numerous treasures: Blood Essence Pills (the advanced version of Blood Pills), high-quality human puppets, dual cultivation furnaces, bone sources, artifacts, and more.

Wang Ba could imagine the frenzy this would cause. Even he felt a twinge of temptation looking at the rewards list.

Fortunately, he knew his limits.

Having rushed to Foundation Establishment, his combat skills were bottom-tier. He could bully Qi Refining cultivators with his realm, but against a peer, he would have to rely on his pets, like Alpha-Fifteen.

He immediately requested an audience with Bai Yu.

“Don’t worry. I’ve already spoken with Elder Bei. You and your Dao Companion are exempt from this mission, and your opportunities won’t be deducted.”

Before Wang Ba could speak, Bai Yu had already addressed his concern.

“Thank you, Senior Bai!”

Bai Yu paused, noticing something. “You… have established your Foundation?”

“Yes. Thanks to Senior Bai’s blessing, I managed to break through after taking the pill,” Wang Ba said with a smile, bowing respectfully.

Bai Yu sidestepped the bow.

“You have entered Foundation Establishment; we are peers now. I cannot accept such a grand salute. Moreover, the pill was from Elder Lu. I was merely the messenger.”

“Also, no need to call me Senior. ‘Fellow Daoist’ will suffice.”

Bai Yu sighed with a trace of emotion. “I never expected that here at the Eastern Sage Garrison, you would be ahead of most people.”

Wang Ba shared the sentiment.

When he first joined the Sect, he was a novice at the first layer of Qi Refining. Dong Qiyu and Meng Randao were already at the tenth layer. Now, Dong Qiyu was still stuck there, while Wang Ba had advanced.

It showed that in cultivation, temporary highs and lows meant little.

Having secured his exemption, Wang Ba waited patiently. Finally, Bu Chan returned.

Sensing the unsettled Qi fluctuations radiating from her, Wang Ba smiled.

“Congratulations, Junior Sister.”

“Senior Brother…”

The joy and longing in Bu Chan’s eyes were thick enough to melt stone. Since becoming Dao Companions, they had never been apart for so long.

Naturally, the small wooden hut began to shake again.

Several days later.

The teleportation array opened. While cultivators from other garrisons poured into the Eastern Sage Garrison, Wang Ba traveled alone to the Sword Billow Garrison.

After wandering the Billow Sound Market for half a day, he found his target in a quiet alley: Bao Chao, one of the few Spirit Chefs in the Heavenly Gate Sect.

Perhaps due to the exodus of cultivators, Bao Chao’s business was dead. He was idly tossing a knife when he saw Wang Ba.

“Haha, Fellow Daoist Wang! Here to make Spirit Poultry essence again? Tsk, tsk. I don’t know where you get so many birds and turtles. Every time I help you, I’m both happy for the business and terrified of the workload!”

Wang Ba approached with a smile. “Heh, not this time. I came to learn the Spirit Chef craft from you.”

Bao Chao’s face darkened instantly.

“Get lost! How many times do I have to tell you? This is my livelihood! If I teach you, how will I eat?”

Wang Ba remained calm, staring at him silently.

Bao Chao continued cursing, but his voice gradually faded as he sensed something amiss. This Fellow Daoist Wang seemed… different.

Suddenly, realization struck. “Foundation Establishment! You’ve established your Foundation?!”

His eyes widened in shock.

Seeing Wang Ba smile silently, Bao Chao panicked. He bowed frantically.

“Senior, forgive me! Senior, forgive me! This Junior was confused and offended you. Please, for the sake of our past business, spare me!”

A Qi Refining cultivator cursing a Foundation Establishment senior to their face could be killed on the spot without consequence.

Wang Ba stopped him with a smile. “Fellow Daoist Bao, you worry too much. I truly only came to learn. Will you agree?”

“This…”

Bao Chao looked conflicted. He feared offending a Foundation Establishment cultivator, but he was loath to give up his trade secrets. The market for Spirit Chow in a demonic sect was small; competition could ruin him.

Wang Ba saw his hesitation. “How about this? I’ll give you 50 Middle Grade Spirit Stones as tuition. Furthermore, I guarantee I will absolutely not compete with you for business within the Heavenly Gate Sect.”

“Th-this…”

Bao Chao was tempted. 50 Middle Grade Spirit Stones was a massive sum, far more than his annual profit. And if Wang Ba promised not to compete, his main worry was resolved.

But he needed assurance. Gritting his teeth, he asked, “Senior… can you swear an oath by your Inner Demon?”

Wang Ba smiled. “What is difficult about that?”

He swore immediately. “…In short, if I, Wang Ba, make Spirit Chow for others within the Heavenly Gate Sect, may I suffer Inner Demon rampage, soul shattering, and death by Qi implosion!”

The severity of the oath made Bao Chao’s hair stand on end, but it put his mind at ease.

Respectfully, he stepped aside and gestured.

“Please, Senior, follow me.”