Xianxia: I Live Forever In The World of Cultivation

Morning.

Bamboo Mountain Immortal Market.

Threads of sunlight filtered down from the sky, faintly illuminating the entire Bamboo Mountain Immortal Market.

As the sun rose, the market gradually "came to life."

Silhouettes crisscrossed.

On the somewhat narrow streets, shouts of vendors could be heard from all directions.

"Low-grade Thick Earth Talisman! A must-have for protection! Five spirit stones apiece!"

"Spirit Rice! Homegrown Spirit Rice! One spirit stone for ten pounds!"

"Low-grade beast meat! Two pounds for one spirit stone!"

"…"

The spring breeze carried a slight chill as pedestrians hurried along the streets.

Only the vendors eagerly watched the passing crowds, hoping for business to come their way.

He Song tightened his sleeves, his gaze scanning the surrounding crowd. He lingered briefly at a stall selling spirit rice before reluctantly shifting his eyes to the stall offering ordinary rice.

Spirit rice was undoubtedly delicious and even helped increase cultivation.

However, with his current financial situation, filling his stomach was the priority.

"Senior, please weigh twenty pounds of ordinary rice for me," He Song said, stopping at the rice stall.

"Sure, that'll be two grains of spirit sand."

Spirit sand was a smaller denomination of currency than spirit stones, with one spirit stone being worth a hundred grains of spirit sand.

As for mundane silver or gold, they were worthless in the world of cultivators.

Here, only items imbued with spiritual energy held value, with spirit sand being the smallest currency unit.

The seller was an elderly man who looked frail, but the spiritual pressure he exuded made He Song uneasy.

The old man didn't comment on He Song's modest purchase of twenty pounds of rice. He simply placed the rice in a bundle and handed it to him.

He Song retrieved the two grains of spirit sand he had prepared in advance from his sleeve. One hand gave the payment, and the other took the rice.

Carrying the twenty pounds of rice, He Song felt a weight lift off his shoulders.

Without glancing at the other stalls, he turned and headed for the exit of the marketplace.

'For a first outing, things went smoothly.'

With the rice in hand, He Song walked along, inwardly letting out a sigh of relief.

Although his predecessor's memories informed him that killing was forbidden within Bamboo Mountain Immortal Market, knowing it and experiencing it firsthand were two different things. Being new to this world left him uneasy.

He Song was a transmigrator.

Three days ago, he had crossed into this world, taking over the body of a first-level Qi Refinement cultivator.

Fortunately, this body's previous owner was also named He Song. After acquiring the predecessor's memories, He Song spent three full days at home, perfecting his imitation of the previous owner's habits and mannerisms.

This was a world of cultivation.

Body possession was not uncommon.

And since his survival depended on it, He Song wasn't going to risk being discovered without preparation. If anyone realized he had taken over this body, he'd likely be labeled a demonic cultivator and hacked to death on the spot.

After three days of practice and consolidating the predecessor's memories, He Song felt confident he could avoid raising suspicion. Only then did he venture out, seeing this familiar yet alien world of cultivation through his own eyes for the first time.

He Song's home wasn't far from the market.

After walking for a while and ensuring he wasn't being followed, He Song returned to his residence.

Closing the door.

Locking it.

Leaning against the door, He Song exhaled slowly.

"A law-governed society really is better. At least you don't have to constantly worry about losing your life for no reason."

"But... if I hadn't transmigrated, I'd probably be figuring out how to turn myself in by now to secure the best protection."

"Immortality isn't easy to keep under wraps in the modern world."

Placing the rice bag aside, a black screen with white text suddenly appeared before He Song. It was visible only to him.

Name: He Song.

Lifespan: Infinite.

Transmigrators often came with a cheat ability.

This wasn't surprising to He Song, who had read many novels. He didn't find the concept of a cheat particularly unfamiliar.

However, the black-and-white panel before him didn't seem to grant an ability to dominate heaven, earth, or anything else. In fact, to He Song, it felt a little underwhelming.

Unlimited lifespan.

Immortality.

It sounded wonderful.

Throughout history, countless kings and nobles had sought eternal life in their twilight years.

But… for someone like He Song, who was at the very bottom of the cultivation world with just a first-level Qi Refinement cultivation base, this ability felt somewhat lackluster.

What kind of people had pursued immortality throughout history?

Human emperors.

Prominent nobles.

Wealthy merchants.

Ancient families.

They all shared certain traits…

High status, the ability to savor all the beauty in the world, and dominion over all power.

To live forever meant being able to endlessly enjoy a life of privilege.

But has there ever been an ordinary person at the bottom of society who aspired to immortality?

An old beggar seeking immortality to beg for a million years?

A brothel worker wishing for eternal life to keep serving clients for millennia?

A farmer yearning for longevity to toil in the fields for endless centuries?

A corporate drone striving to live forever to grind away at their job for ten thousand years?

Who could endure such misery?

Immortality and an unlimited lifespan still require one to live.

You can still die from injuries, poisoning, starvation, or disease.

And on top of that, food costs money, medical care costs money, rent costs money—everything costs money.

Under these conditions, an immortal person at the bottom of society would not enjoy the life they might have imagined.

Of course, this doesn't apply to nobles or royalty, who naturally pursue immortality. After all, most seekers of eternal life were aristocrats to begin with.

In this way, He Song couldn't help but see his cheat ability as somewhat disappointing.

However, he wasn't discouraged.

This world had something his previous life didn't: cultivation!

Cultivation is different from anything else.

As long as you have time and can continuously absorb spiritual energy into your body, your cultivation will steadily grow.

Once your cultivation grows, your status, social class, and strength will rise accordingly.

Right now, He Song's cultivation was at the first level of the Qi Refinement realm, placing him at the very bottom of the cultivation hierarchy.

But if he could break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm, his status would change drastically.

And as he climbed further, his identity and social position would naturally follow suit.

This was the true way to defy destiny!

As long as you live long enough, your status will keep rising. No one would question it, and no one would dare suppress you.

Strength is the foundation of all status and power!

"Ah, for now, the most pressing matter is earning more spirit stones."

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, He Song sighed softly. Then, he picked up the rice bag and stood.

He emptied the rice into the nearly empty rice jar, glancing around at the familiar room that had become his home.

The house was rented.

It cost ten spirit stones per month, not exactly cheap.

For He Song, it was very expensive.

The Immortal Market didn't care whether a wandering cultivator could afford housing.

The high rent was part of the Immortal Market's way of "filtering" for suitable cultivators.

If you couldn't even pay rent, you were better off leaving the market and becoming a wandering cultivator.

Sure, the spiritual energy outside was thinner.

Sure, the outside world was more dangerous.

Sure, the mortality rate out there was higher.

But at least it wouldn't cost you so much in rent.

After rummaging through his belongings and the house, He Song finally stared at the thirty or so spirit stones on the table, lost in thought.

If he only paid rent, this amount would last him three months.

But if he factored in food, drinks, and the cost of learning a skill, He Song felt that he might soon be kicked out into the streets.