Immortality and Cultivation: I Have Three Times the Lifespan

Chapter 55 The Method to Dissolve the Spirit Pact

This is also a shackle hanging over Wang Ergou's head.

Like Yang Changsheng, he was introduced to the path of immortality by the Lu family when he was young, where he was taught basic cultivation techniques and given some cultivation resources.

After a brief training session, they were also assigned jobs as fishermen and farmers, for which they signed a spiritual pact that would last for twenty years.

Although this contract was not as harsh as a servitude contract, it clearly restricted their main scope of activities.

You must serve within the Lu family system and are not allowed to work for other hostile or competitive forces for an extended period; otherwise, you will be punished by the Lu family's Enforcement Hall.

Of course, this contract also comes with relatively stable accommodations and basic cultivation resources.

For those rootless, drifting cultivators at the bottom of society, this was a stable way out, so most of them signed the agreement willingly at the time.

"I've already asked."

Wang Ergou quickly replied, a glint in his eyes, and said in a deep voice:

"The manager of the External Affairs Hall said that for people like us who only want to change jobs within the Lu family, such as transferring from aquatic fishermen to other estates as spirit plant growers, as long as the manager of the receiving estate agrees, the External Affairs Hall just needs to file a record. The contract is still the same, and its validity remains unchanged. There will be no punishment, but..."

His tone lowered again, "The steward also said that if I want to completely break away from the Lu family and regain my freedom, and terminate this contract midway, I need to... I need to pay ninety low-grade spirit stones!"

"What... ninety yuan?!" Li Qingshan couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

As a member of a small cultivation family, one's annual salary is about nine spirit stones, which is comparable to that of an ordinary mid-level fisherman.

Even so, the lack of cultivation resources and the absence of parental support make it difficult to quickly break through in cultivation levels.

Such a large number of spirit stones would be enough to support a low-grade spiritual root cultivator to the fourth level of Qi Refining, yet this is just a fine, which is simply suffocating.

Yang Changsheng's brows furrowed instantly; this number was far higher than he had expected!

He quickly calculated in his mind that when the Lu family was introduced to the path of immortality, all they paid was a Xuan Yuan Manual from the mainland, worth at most a dozen spirit stones.

Adding in about a month of basic cultivation knowledge and animal husbandry training, plus the cost of venue and personnel, it would cost at most ten or twenty spirit stones.

All things considered, the initial investment the Lu family made in each of them would not exceed thirty spirit stones.

This twenty-year spiritual contract is equivalent to them using twenty years of labor and meager output to repay the cost and interest of this immortal bond.

Based on the income of a novice fisherman, if he worked without eating or drinking for twenty years, he could theoretically accumulate this many spirit stones.

But in reality, it's simply impossible to cover living expenses and the costs of spiritual practice.

The penalty of ninety spirit stones means that a novice fisherman would have to work for more than ninety years without eating or drinking.

That's an astronomical figure!

"This price... the Lu family is really ruthless." Yang Changsheng's face darkened.

This goes far beyond compensating for costs; it's more like a severe punishment for betrayal.

Or rather, it's about exploiting the potential value of these people who have received divine favor.

"Yeah, it's too high... there's no way we can save up that much, that's why the manager said internal transfer is the only way out." Wang Ergou looked desperate.

Yang Changsheng remained silent, his fingers tapping lightly on the table.

He understood the logic behind the Lu family's actions: to give you a place to settle down and a chance to embark on the path of immortality, this kindness should naturally be repaid with long-term loyalty and hard work.

Want to leave halfway? Sure, but you must pay a price that makes the Lu family feel they've made a profit, or even lost out.

Ninety spirit stones are enough to deter the vast majority of lower-level fishermen and farmers, keeping them firmly tied to the Lu family's boat.

This is cruel, but in the dog-eat-dog world of cultivation, it seems to make sense.

However, this reasoning became a threshold that Yang Changsheng needed to carefully weigh.

He carefully reviewed his current savings:

Not long ago, I sold three Xuan Tie woodcutters to Steward Qian of Wanbao Pavilion and received sixty spirit stones in return.

After deducting the costs of purchasing materials, pills, talismans, and daily cultivation expenses, I should still have about eighty spirit stones on hand.

Total: Approximately 140 low-grade spirit stones.

He could afford ninety spirit stones, but that would almost empty most of his savings.

Even more critically, leaving the waters for the market is not as simple as just terminating the contract.

Living in a neighborhood is no easy feat!

He had done his homework on the rental market in the port area.

A small courtyard in a market town where cultivation is possible, with only enough spiritual energy for one person to cultivate and live in. The monthly rent is three spirit stones.

A small courtyard with two rooms can be set up as a simple workspace. The monthly rent is six spirit stones.

The three courtyards are quite spacious and can be used to set up independent professional studios. The monthly rent is twelve spirit stones.

Four large courtyards... monthly rent, twenty-four spirit stones.

Moreover, these courtyards all require a minimum lease term of three years, with a one-time payment and a one-year security deposit.

His true target, however, was Bi Chao Lane, located southeast of the market. Its spiritual energy was comparable to that of the core area, and it was home to many artisans. The rent there was astonishing.

It's at least twice as much as in ordinary areas, and housing there is scarce, with extremely high rental thresholds, often requiring lease terms of ten years or even longer!

The required deposit and initial investment are far beyond what ordinary independent cultivators can afford.

One hundred and twenty spirit stones, after paying ninety for breach of contract, only thirty were left.

With that amount of money, you could only rent the smallest single room in a regular area for ten months!

Not to mention the unrealistic dream of moving into Bichao Lane.

Puppet making requires at least two rooms, a continuous purchase of materials, and practice...

This amount of money is simply a drop in the ocean.

It's unclear how much wealth Su Wanqing possesses to be able to rent a place in Bichao Lane all by herself.

Looking back now, alchemists really do make a lot of money, far more than ordinary cultivators and craftsmen.

"The difficulty... is much greater than I imagined," Yang Changsheng thought to himself.

Originally, I thought I had saved enough money to buy my freedom, but I found that the cost of settling down was even higher.

Every step of this immortal path is paved with spirit stones.

He fell into deep thought, weighing the pros and cons, whether to remain in the increasingly risky waters, enduring the trivialities and potential threats of not daring to accelerate the pace of crayfish farming, and slowly accumulating wealth and strength.

Or should they decisively pay the high price to gain freedom and enter the marketplace to seek broader, but also more expensive, development opportunities?

The former is stable but has limited prospects and is dangerous, while the latter offers great opportunities but faces enormous pressure in the early stages.

His fingers tapped the table unconsciously, making a soft tapping sound that was particularly clear in the quiet private room.

A faint gloom hung between his brows, a solemn expression born from the pressure of reality's hardships.

Wang Ergou looked at Yang Changsheng's furrowed brows and knew that he was also worried about the spirit contract and spirit stones.

Feeling the same way, I felt even more sorrowful and silently lowered my head to drink the tea that had long since gone cold.

Su Wanqing looked at Yang Changsheng thoughtfully. She had also given up fishing and farming to focus on studying alchemy, so she naturally guessed Yang Changsheng's plan.

Moving into the market, especially Bi Chao Lane, would indeed be the best solution for a promising puppeteer, but the cost would be too high.

If she hadn't had a special opportunity before coming to Biyue Lake, she wouldn't have been able to have such a smooth journey every step of the way.