The Undying Immortal System

Secluded alone in Rudy's workshop, I didn't rush to improve my cultivation. There would be plenty of time for that in the future. First, I needed to work on my foundations.

Before anything else, I focused on improving my qi skills, including my qi vision. Without access to teachers or training aids, my progress was slow. Even after an entire year, I felt like I had barely improved at all, but that was fine. My days were rote. I didn't need to make any big choices. I didn't have to think. I could just exist.

After leaving Rudy's house the first time, my life had become far too complicated, and it was good to be able to sit down and zone out while I worked.

Improving my qi skills was a way to improve both my alchemy and cultivation at the same time. This felt satisfying in a way that was hard to describe. Like I was fulfilling my true purpose in this world.

It was funny, in a way. I was doing nearly the exact same thing I had done the last time I lived in this building. The only difference was that last time it was forced on me. This time I chose this kind of life for myself.

My rate of improvement would make anyone else blush in shame, but I didn't care. The constant daily exercise was strengthening me in a way that would be impossible for anyone without limitless time to do as they pleased.

When I was tending to the herbs one day, I couldn't help but think about how wasteful the clan was with their resources. They were stockpiling so many useless herbs. Why bother? What was the point of storing so many herbs for Rank 1 pills when nearly all Rank 1 pills were completely useless?

Finally. Finally, I heard my own thoughts. I had that same thought several times in the past, but I had never been able to focus on it before.

"Rank 1 pills are useless…" I muttered in confusion as I tried to keep my thoughts from slipping away once more. "That doesn't sound right… That can't be right."

Why did I think they were useless? Because I had been told that so many times in the sect. Everyone laughed at the idea of learning to make anything other than Qi Gathering Pills. But… why did I accept that so easily?

I thought back to the pill I had made during the preliminaries to join the outer sect. A Purifying Pill for water qi. The name didn't tell me much, but I could guess the pill's purpose easily enough. It was likely something that purified the qi of people who cultivated water qi. There was no way in hell that kind of thing would be considered useless. Why was I so convinced that it was?

I sat down in my room. I had to think. What was going on?

Then, I remembered. The effect of the sect's cultivation technique. It made the user more susceptible to believing anything they heard.

I was stunned.

"That thing is insidious." My voice was weak and trembling.

The mental control exerted by the Su Clan's slavery technique was harsh and easy to notice. The moment I died and reset, I had been keenly aware that my actions in the previous life were unnatural and forced.

This was different. Even after knowing that I had been controlled by a technique, even after my rebirth, my memories and beliefs didn't change. Even though I could think clearly now, if I didn't consciously think about the situation, I still considered any Rank 1 pills other than Qi Gathering Pills useless, and only overwhelming evidence was able to shift these preconceived notions. What else did I believe just because someone said it while I was under the influence of that technique?

I began thinking back.

Was this why I had rushed so hard to become a Martial Master? Cao had told me that a cultivator's qi stagnated as soon as they turned thirty and that I needed to ascend before then if I wanted any hope of being successful. I hadn't once questioned her advice. But was it true?

Was absorbing that fire seed into my soul my choice? I needed it to become a Master Alchemist… right? It was something everyone would want. But… it was rash…

Near the end of that life, Bao kept talking about just living a peaceful life in the sect, and I felt a strong urge to join him. Was that from the technique?

Then, I remembered that the technique also enhanced one's 'sense of camaraderie.' Was I even friends with Bao? I felt that I was, but where did that feeling come from? Was it real or was it just an illusion? How was I supposed to feel?

What kind of place was that? Everyone in the sect had been placed under such a powerful mental influence that significantly altered their behavior. How many of them even knew about it?

I felt a natural urge to completely abhor mental control of any kind, but I also had feelings of deep gratitude towards the sect, real or not.

"Okay, calm down. Let's try to be objective. Feelings won't help me here. I cannot trust my feelings."

I had to talk through the situation and try to be objective.

"First, my actions are my own. I was made more suggestible, but I was still the one who chose to do what I did. I choose not to live a slow life. I chose to advance quickly. I might have been more prone to suggestions, but my personal desires were still a factor."

I thought about everything I had seen while in the sect. Everyone was happy. Everyone had shelter, food, entertainment, and a job. There was no crime, no poverty, and no sickness. How many people in this world, even knowing the cost, would want to live there? Even back on my home world, there were countless people who would dream of living in such a place.

"Reframe the situation. I had been living in a city. Everything we bought was from the sect. Everything we made was sold to the sect. The sect provided all our housing, food, and luxuries. There was no contact with the outside world. We were encouraged not to even think about the outside. We were taught to love the sect and do our best for it."

Looked at that way, it had been some weird hybrid of a company town and a cult.

Did that make it evil? Was it a place I should vilify? If I had the opportunity, would I tear it all down?

I could only sigh with indecision. The morality of the situation was too complicated.

I still believed the people I met there were good, but every cult would have some good people in it. Was the leadership good? Should they be lauded for providing a safe, prosperous place to live? Was deliberately using mental influences as a form of control enough to condemn them without another thought?

I didn't know.

Until I could permanently change things with this world, it didn't matter. I could put off making a final judgment on the morality of the sect and its leadership. I just needed to protect myself from their schemes.

For the time being, I just needed to double-check any assumptions I had made based on information I had learned in the sect. Not everything I had learned there would be wrong, but all of it was suspect.

An interesting place to start investigating these assumptions was with all the medicinal herbs that were currently available to me. In the sect, we had been encouraged not to learn about them. Doing so was possibly the best way to improve my alchemy skills.

With my new resolve to learn as much as I could about the various medicinal herbs in Rudy's workshop, I entered the main hall and slowly examined each of them in qi vision. Something strange was immediately apparent. The medicinal energy of most plants was the familiar green, but in a few plants, the medicinal energy was blue, red, brown, or yellow. Why was that?

I picked up a crimson tiger lily. Its medicinal energy was a bright red color. An idea popped into my head, but it couldn't be that simple, right?

I tried manipulating the energy in the herb like I would with fire qi.

I felt something. It wasn't quite like qi, but I could move it, though just barely. I tried to separate the energy from the toxins, but the chaotic, toxic energy felt like tar that had been adhered to the medicinal power.

I replaced the lily and walked away. I wasn't sure how much I might be able to directly manipulate that energy, but attempting to do so could destroy the herb. With so many lilies in that box, I doubted anyone would notice if one went missing, but it would be better to play it safe for the moment.

Using my fire affinity, I had been able to move the red-colored energy. It wasn't fire qi, but it was some type of fire energy. It was fire medicinal energy?

I looked at one of the peonies used for making Qi Gathering Pills. The energy inside it was green. Was it wood medicinal energy?

I had spent the last year improving my soul, but I hadn't made any progress in finding any more toxins in the flower's energy. Why? Why couldn't I see even a hint of discoloration in the green energy?

There was a possibility I had considered, but there was no way for me to act on it. The toxins were trapped inside the medicinal energy. I had destroyed all the toxins on the surface of the medicinal energy, but I had no way to access anything that might be stuck within the energy itself. Trying to do so would have just destroyed the herb's efficacy.

I needed to be able to move the flower's energy freely so that I could expose the last bits of toxin held within. That just wasn't possible. Until now.

After giving the situation some serious thought, I made my decision.

"System, purchase a permanent low nine-star wood affinity."

Purchase confirmed. Cost 100 credits. 935 credits remaining.

New strength blossomed in my body. I felt more energetic, more alive.

I picked up a peony. Before, with the lily's fire energy, I had been careful. I didn't want to destroy it. I had no such compunctions about accidentally damaging a few peonies.

I tried to rip the energy apart with all the mental strength I could muster. Before, when I tried to move the fire energy, it felt like it had the viscosity of pitch. It stuck together and barely wanted to move. This wood energy felt closer to nearly set cement. I could shift it, but it resisted even the slightest movement.

I wanted to improve my wood affinity further but held off. Better to know the final results first.

I spent hours arduously combing through the medicinal energy. Every so often, I would find a tiny spot of toxin which I would ruthlessly destroy. Once I felt confident that I had found all the impurities I would, I spent another hour checking and double-checking my work.

Finally satisfied, I exerted my will and condensed the medicinal energy into a pill. It was the most exhausting Basic pill I had made since first starting to learn alchemy, but it was worth the result.

Perfect Basic Qi Gathering Pill, 59% medicinal efficacy. Value: 38 silver 50 copper.

"So, if I want to be the best alchemist possible, I need to have high affinities in all five elements. I might even need affinities with even more types of energy if they're out there."

I knew what I had to do.

"System, how much to permanently upgrade my water affinity to nine-star peak."

1600 credits.

"Any discount for upgrading all five basic affinities to that level?"

No discounts available. Cost 6,300 credits.

"Is there some type of five-element qi affinity I can buy? One that will let me control all five elements."

Information on Affinities. Cost 5 credits.

"You're charging me? Fine, purchase it."

Purchase confirmed. 930 credits remaining.

Five-element qi and its associated affinity exist, but it is a combination of every element. It is a unique qi type. Five-element affinity will not allow control of water qi.

This world does not possess any affinity that would assist in the control of all five independent basic elemental energies. Such an affinity cannot be purchased with credits. It would, at minimum, require currency earned from a death as an immortal who has transcended the Earthly Dao.

Credits expended, transaction complete.

That didn't lead to anything for now, unfortunately.

So, 6,300 credits for peak nine-star affinities in all the elements. I might also need to add in another 5,000 to get everything to low eight-star. I was looking at needing a whopping 11,300 credits for affinities if I went down that path. I wasn't sure how much a Martial Master Peak cultivation would net me, but I was guessing 11,000 since Martial Master had a total of eleven stages.

I needed credits for more than just affinities, though.

I began thinking through everything I needed to buy.

"System, how much for a mental library that can hold any books up to Rank 2?"

10,000 credits.

I might be able to get a discount on that by limiting what kind of information it could store, such as only Yellow-Rank, but the full cost wasn't completely unbearable. It would be better to pay the full price upfront so that I could store a Peak-Heaven technique if I somehow managed to find one.

"How much for information on how to expand my storage space?"

3,750 credits.

"How much to learn the mental effects of the Rank 2 cultivation technique I learned in the sect?"

The effects are the same as those of the Rank 1 technique.

"No cost?"

This answer does not affect the flow of karma beyond what has already been paid for. There is no additional cost.

"Okay. Then, how much to change my Rank 2 cultivation technique to match the properties of the Rank 1 technique I purchased? Also, how much for a Peak-Yellow version of the Rank 2 technique with the same changes."

Modified Mid-Yellow technique. Cost 10,000 credits.

Modified Peak-Yellow technique. Cost 120,000 credits.

The Peak-Yellow technique was not something I could easily afford before advancing to Martial Grandmaster, but if I were able to find and study a similar technique, I might be able to lower that price a bit.

Altering the Mid-Yellow Rank 2 technique might be worthwhile, but it might also be unnecessary. If my Rank 1 technique lacked the mental compulsions present in the Rank 2 version, I might not need to worry about them. It was worth checking before committing so much money.

Expanding my storage space, upgrading affinities, a mental technique library.

Those were my priorities. The total cost was 25,050 credits. Three lifetimes as a Martial Master Peak. That… It wasn't too terrible a price to pay.

Returning to Rudy's workshop, even with the horrible memories of how that life ended… It… It almost felt like a home, like a place I was meant to be. I had lived there for nearly eight decades. Spending a few more to learn and experiment with alchemy wouldn't be so bad.

A long time ago, the System had given me the price I would need to pay to learn all the knowledge of a Disciple Alchemist. It was ten million credits, a truly mind-boggling amount. There was no world in which what I knew would cost even a fraction of that price. Even if I combined the potential knowledge of everything I had speculated about alchemy, I doubted it could rise to that kind of price.

There were more secrets to being a true, complete Disciple Alchemist than I knew. I made it my mission to see if I could uncover at least a few of them without the System's assistance.

I had a room stocked full of medicinal ingredients that I had never even considered trying to work with before. If I began experimenting with them, would anyone notice? People rarely came here, and Rudy would be gone for decades. As long as I made decent pills for them on a consistent basis, would anyone question me?

It would be simpler to find a teacher and learn recipes and techniques from them, but I had a real desire to experiment, to see what was possible without someone, or the System, guiding my hand.

I originally came here to isolate myself for only a relatively short period of time. This would be committing myself to something greater. I would seclude myself for decades to see what limits I could push.

My only focus would be on improving my skills in alchemy and cultivation. That was all that would matter.

"System, permanently upgrade my wood affinity to high nine-star."

Purchase confirmed. 180 credits remaining.

Qi skills, qi vision, and soul strength. Through them, cultivation and alchemy. All would be upgraded.

I would plan for three lives in seclusion, but I would not leave until I hit the limit of what I could achieve on my own.