259: Chapter 220 259: Chapter 220 This time, the effort was not in vain; he learned how to craft poisons and their antidotes, so he would know how to counter such poisons if he encountered them in the future.
He grew more confident, believing that his Vitality Pills could cure all poisons.
The poisons of the Members of the Tang Family were useless against him, and he had no interest in crafting poison pills to sell, lest they be used to harm others.
“Very well, Jiang Tang, you’ve done an excellent job.
As we discussed earlier, we will trade goods for goods.
We don’t have any other herbs to offer you, but we can pay money to buy your premium Pills.
I hope you can sell them to us at a slightly lower price than the market auction rate, and not at the full market price.”
“Mm-hmm, that’s possible.
Consider it as if I, Jiang Tang, have made a friend and offer you a discount on some medicines.”
Jiang Tang generously took out a Storage Bag from his space; these Pills were crafted by his Avatar over the last few days.
Upon seeing Jiang Tang’s forthright manner, the Tang Family Master also took out a Storage Bag, and the two exchanged goods, each inspecting the contents of the Storage Bags with their Divine Sense.
Jiang Tang saw that the Storage Bag given by the Tang Family Master contained a pile of Spirit Stones.
Although there didn’t seem to be many, they were clearly premium Spirit Stones, each of substantial value.
Having seen the Golden Crystals from the sun, Jiang Tang found these premium Spirit Stones to be rather ordinary, although they might be useful or rare to the people in the Cultivation World.
Nowadays, money was merely a number to him; he no longer agonized over financial matters.
At present, he was intent on undertaking great endeavors.
Money was one aspect, but making friends was of utmost importance.
The Tang Family Master, upon seeing the contents of the Storage Bag, showed a pleasantly surprised smile.
As the Family Head, he had seen many fine things.
And now, this old fox couldn’t help but smile joyfully, which made the Tang Family Elders also display expressions of delight.
Such a satisfied and happy smile from the Family Head surely meant great benefits.
What they lacked most were premium Pills and cultivation resources.
It seemed the senior Elders and elites among the disciples would reap dividends, and there was hope for the Tang Family’s prosperity and strength.
As long as they could stand firm among the Ten Great Clans, they even had hopes for Ascension, filling the Elders with the eager anticipation of undertaking a grand venture.
“Tang Family Master, I have disturbed you for a long time.
Jiang Tang bids you farewell.
We will meet again in the future,” Jiang Tang said.
“Jiang Tang, I hereby announce that you are now an Elder of the Medicine Refining Hall.
You don’t need to teach them medicine crafting, and it’s fine if you’re just an honorary member.
This is our family token.
If you ever need help in any of the Tang Family’s shops, just show this token.
Someone will come to your aid, or you can enjoy discounts on your purchases,” said the Tang Family Master.
The Tang Family Master took out an Elder’s Jade Token and handed it to this stranger he had just met.
The Elders and the Members of the Tang Family present in the Hall did not object; they believed Jiang Tang fully deserved to be an Elder of the Alchemy Hall and hoped he would teach the disciples, making them stronger.
Another thought crossed their minds: with Tang Yanhong, the girl here, they could perhaps bestow Jiang Tang with the title of son-in-law.
Tang Yanhong’s admiration for Jiang Tang grew tenfold after witnessing his alchemy skills.
It turned into deeper affection.
Her eyes lingered on Jiang Tang’s graceful figure, skin fairer than a girl’s, and his multifaceted talents, which were enough to win her heart.
“Alright, that’s also fine.
Whether it’s Elder or Hall Master, being nominated in each place works for me.
One can never have too many titles, heh heh,” said Jiang Tang.
Jiang Tang accepted the token without reserve.
This visit to the Tang Family had been fruitful, just like every visit to other families.
Once he took on a position, he became part of them.
In the future, anyone wishing to harm him would have to think twice.
Jiang Tang had no intention of controlling these families; he wanted his Saint Sect to be friends with other families.
He did not want to be attacked by a coalition of these families; even the most powerful individuals could be overwhelmed if surrounded by many.
They would exhaust you in a war of attrition.
Jiang Tang had his trump cards, but he also knew that these ancient families, existing for over ten thousand years, had formidable strengths of their own.
He could only make friends, not enemies.
To build his power and become stronger, he needed to Ascend.
Jiang Tang’s only desire was to quickly establish his power and ascend to the Immortal Realm with a strong presence, capable of contending with the people of The Upper Realm.
After bidding farewell to the Tang Family, Jiang Tang prepared to visit the next family.
Tang Yanhong quietly followed him, leaving with him from the Tang Family.
Jiang Tang did not refuse to have Tang Yanhong follow him; having one more person with him did not hinder him.
Once they left the magic garden with the illusion techniques again and returned to the outer garden, they no longer feared that the plants were poisonous.
After leaving the Tang Clan, Jiang Tang took out his rocket again, this time to visit the Buddhist Sect Yuan Clan.
Following the directions from Yuan Baozhu, he arrived at her family’s place and discovered that the Yuan Clan of the Buddhist Sect
also resided in the Imperial City, occupying a large mountain as their base and building a magnificent Treasure Hall there.
The surrounding mountains were used as their station, and although Yuan Clan members were Buddha Cultivators, they did not shave their heads; they held Buddha in their hearts and believed sincere cultivation did not require a shorn head.
Upon entering the Yuan Clan, he saw men and women dressed in Buddhist robes, and it was only outside that Yuan Baozhu would change her attire.
Both male and female disciples wore the same Buddhist robes, which were not kasayas but the family’s own designed attire.
Just like the Taoist Sect, Yuan Baozhu explained that they cultivated through Buddhist scriptures and that the highest achievers could ascend.
Like other cultivators, they sought to reach a certain level of cultivation and become Immortal through enlightenment.
Yuan Baozhu said that it had been ten thousand years since anyone had ascended, but the members of their family had not given up hope.
They just waited for more Shariputras to be cultivated and, after ascending, to leave them in the Mortal Realm to bless and protect more mortals to live in peace and health and to be free from sickness.
Their cultivation did not merely involve absorbing the spiritual energy of medicinal herbs or the air.
They pursued Buddha Cultivation and enhanced their cultivation level through faith, believing that more good deeds and followers offering incense in faith would make them stronger.
They once thought that this belief would make them stronger and lead to Ascension, unlike the Cultivation World that relied on pills to enhance cultivation, thinking they had a strong foundation.
But ever since they learned that Jiang Tang had created superior Pills and had helped many in the Cultivation World enhance their cultivation,
they began to lose their confidence, feeling their own progress was too slow.
Thus, they spent a considerable sum to buy superior Pills and had one person experiment to see if Pills could advance their ranks quicker than their faith-based cultivation.
The results were, of course, shocking, and they had no choice but to invite Jiang Tang, regardless of the means, whether through marriage alliance or monetary purchase, to ensure that they could host Jiang Tang in their family.
After hearing Yuan Baozhu’s introduction, Jiang Tang gained new knowledge—those who prayed to deities and Buddha for blessing
were not truly reaching out to Immortals but providing belief to those who had faith in them and allowing the people of the Buddhist Sect to use such faith for cultivation.
In his past life, Jiang Tang did not believe in deities or Buddha, but coming to the Cultivation World, he had to believe that some universal laws existed.
Here, ghosts could cultivate to become Immortal, and people who died in the Yang Realm could also re-cultivate into Immortality.
This gave ghosts more opportunities, not only through reincarnation to become human but also to become Immortal.
Yuan Baozhu led them to the foot of the mountain where the Treasure Hall was located; from the base to the top, there were countless steps.
Looking up, Jiang Tang could see that while they might not total a thousand, there were at least eight hundred steps.
The mountain was indeed tall.
“There are 1008 steps here.
For a mortal to truly reach the top of the Treasure Pagoda, it would require great perseverance, climbing persistently for three days and nights to reach the Treasure Hall at the summit,”
Yuan Baozhu explained with a proud expression.
“Yuan Baozhu, don’t tell me you’re also going to become a monk?
How come I don’t see you shaved?
Do all of you live in the Treasure Hall?
Is there no distinction between men and women?”
After hearing Yuan Baozhu’s introduction, Tang Yanhong felt that the Tang Family was better than the Yuan Clan.
“We Buddha Cultivators do not need to become monks; having Buddha in our hearts is enough without shaving, and both men and women can cultivate Buddha.
Of course, we separate men from women in our living quarters, just like in your family, each with their unique characteristics,”
Yuan Baozhu responded to Tang Yanhong’s remarks without annoyance.
To be ranked alongside the Ten Great Clans, each family had their own strengths, and she did not see herself as inferior to Tang Yanhong.