# Chapter 181: A Lavish Gift
The morning after agreeing to become Chongxuan Sheng's retainer.
Jiang Wang had already finished his morning practice and was now channeling his Dao essence, carefully washing the Gate of Heaven and Earth to make its manifestation clearer, preparing for his next advancement.
Cultivation was a matter of daily accumulation. One could not afford to slack.
Now, with his nine star-river vortexes spinning ceaselessly and his star-binding spirit serpent twisting nimbly, he didn't need to worry about Dao essence reserves.
At this moment, a knock came at the door.
"Come in."
Before Jiang Wang's words had fully left his lips, while he was still sitting cross-legged on his bed, Chongxuan Sheng's mass of flesh had already rolled before him.
The fat man wore a beaming smile and, like a magic trick, produced three jade slips from his hand. "The wood-attribute offensive Dao arts you wanted. All are upper-grade Class B—the limit for the Heaven-Opening Realm. Premium among premiums!"
Having decided to serve as Chongxuan Sheng's retainer for a time, Jiang Wang naturally wouldn't stand on ceremony with him. The night before, he had requested an upper-grade Class B wood-attribute Dao art for imprinting in his Heaven-Opening Palace.
This was the disadvantage of being alone.
For other disciples of prestigious families, the arts to be imprinted would have been selected well before advancement. Unlike him—he had been in the Heaven-Opening Realm for so long, yet the slot for his second instantaneous Dao art remained empty, unable to enhance his combat power in time. He had been relying on a single flame blossom.
And after becoming Chongxuan Sheng's retainer, it had taken barely half a night. Chongxuan Sheng had not only obtained arts that met his requirements but had brought three at once.
The fat man's eyes were practically begging for praise, yet his tone was breezy and casual: "The Chongxuan clan doesn't have deep expertise in wood-attribute Dao arts. Among upper-grade Class B, only two are what I consider decent. The third I got from a friend. Take your pick—if none suit your fancy, I'll go find more."
Jiang Wang accepted the jade slips to examine them while saying casually, "Your friend seems quite capable."
Chongxuan Sheng squeezed himself next to Jiang Wang, regardless of whether there was room, and said meaningfully, "It was only after emerging from the Heavenly Treasury Secret Realm that I discovered I had so many friends."
This was to reassure Jiang Wang, telling him that they were the true comrades who had shared hardship together.
Jiang Wang didn't particularly care about such things. His attention had already been captured by the three jade slips.
It wasn't that he was unsatisfied—he was too satisfied!
So satisfied that he momentarily didn't know how to choose.
The three jade slips recorded the following Dao arts: Sea of Blossoms, Crown of Thorns, and Binding Tiger.
Sea of Blossoms leaned toward poison and carried hallucinogenic effects, making it highly suitable for group battles. If he could imprint Sea of Blossoms, it would be equivalent to being able to deploy a favorable battlefield at all times. With this single technique alone, he would no longer fear being surrounded.
Crown of Thorns appeared to be a defensive Dao art, but it was actually an enhancement technique. Its effect was to stimulate potential—after using this art, the user's next Dao art would increase in power by twenty to thirty percent!
One shouldn't underestimate this thirty percent. For an upper-grade Class B Dao art, it could directly elevate its power to near that of a Class A art.
And for a mid-grade Class C art like Flame Blossom, it could directly elevate it to the power of a mid-grade Class B art.
Binding Tiger was a control-type Dao art.
The world contained five elements, and the human body harbored five qi. Wood-attribute essence filled not only the heavens and earth but also lurked within the human body. The principle of Binding Tiger was to draw out the wood qi within an opponent's body and use it to restrain that very opponent.
Of course, the specific effect varied depending on the opponent's degree of body control.
For example, using this art against Jiang Wang before he had mastered the Four Spirits Body-Refining Art versus after would produce completely different results.
But regardless, as a control-type Dao art with virtually no room for evasion, Binding Tiger's excellence was beyond question.
Every single one of the three Dao arts Chongxuan Sheng had produced was a masterpiece. Among upper-grade Class B arts, they were comparable to Flame Blossom among Class C arts.
A "masterpiece" referred to those arts whose value already exceeded their grade. They were exceptionally rare—many cultivators might never encounter one in their entire lifetime.
These were more precious than arts of a higher grade, because they represented combat power that could be realized at one's current realm.
Even the Qinghe Commandery Dao Academy would struggle to produce such precious arts, let alone three at once.
So much for "not having deep expertise in wood-attribute Dao arts"?
This was a brazen display of wealth!
Jiang Wang nearly wanted to punch the fat off Chongxuan Sheng, but then he remembered these arts were all being offered for his choosing, and he suddenly felt refreshed.
After careful deliberation, Jiang Wang accepted the jade slip recording Binding Tiger.
For him, this was the Dao art that best fit his current combat system, able to complement his offensive methods perfectly and maximize his combat power.
Chongxuan Sheng smiled and塞回 the remaining two jade slips. "After you've learned them, just remember to return the jade slips. These are originals, not copies."
All three Dao arts were being given to Jiang Wang!
Whether it was for a friend or as an emotional investment in a so-called retainer, Chongxuan Sheng's generosity was truly remarkable.
These were masterpiece-grade Class B arts—not common fare. Their value even exceeded that of ordinary Class A arts.
And he was giving away three at once.
Jiang Wang said nothing more and simply accepted all three jade slips.
His word was his promise. As long as it was his promise, he would do everything in his power to fulfill it.
Setting aside the bond of friendship—from a purely investment perspective, no matter what Chongxuan Sheng invested in him, he would demonstrate his worth and provide returns of sufficient weight.
"Oh, I have one more gift for you." Once Jiang Wang had stored the jade slips, Chongxuan Sheng leaned his head toward the door and beckoned.
Shisi, who had been standing outside the door, walked in, his armored hands holding a jade box.
Having seen him many times already, Jiang Wang smiled in greeting.
To his surprise, Shisi also nodded at him.
He had thought this iron-clad person would never respond to anyone besides Chongxuan Sheng. It seemed Shisi also acknowledged his importance to Chongxuan Sheng.
"What is this?" Jiang Wang asked.
Chongxuan Sheng thrust the jade box into Jiang Wang's hands, his eyes squinted so much they had practically disappeared. "Open it and see."
Jiang Wang silently scooted to the side to create some distance, then opened the jade box.
Before his eyes lay a fruit so green it seemed to drip.
Shaped like an apricot, marked with jade-green veins.
Just looking at it made one feel refreshed and full of vitality. Its fragrance filled the room, delighting the heart and soothing the spirit.
"Snap!"
Chongxuan Sheng slammed the jade box shut and explained, "This fruit is already fully ripe. It must be consumed immediately, or its medicinal properties will dissipate."
Jiang Wang's heart stirred. He looked at Chongxuan Sheng and, for a moment, said nothing.
"Don't look at me so emotionally. Ha ha ha." Chongxuan Sheng laughed awkwardly. "I had someone go find this Life Fruit a long time ago. Since I wasn't sure whether they could actually obtain it, I didn't mention it to you beforehand."
"Go ahead and eat it. It should extend your lifespan by at least ten years."
This time, Jiang Wang was truly moved.
The reason he worked so desperately hard, never relaxing, never sparing a single moment of rest—there was a very important reason:
Time was what he lacked most.
He knew his lifespan was damaged.
Yet anything that could replenish lifespan was extraordinarily precious.
He had previously obtained a Year-Nurturing Pill in the Kingdom of You, which extended his lifespan by a single year—and even that had been a drop in the bucket. Moreover, if not for Yin Guan, he might not have been able to keep that pill at all.
This Life Fruit extended life tenfold, but its value was far more than ten times greater.
Such a rare thing couldn't have been obtained by Chongxuan Sheng overnight. The operation required time.
This meant that Chongxuan Sheng had very likely noticed his damaged lifespan the moment they met, and immediately mobilized contacts to seek life-extending treasures.
This preparation had been made before they entered the Heavenly Treasury Secret Realm—before he had even agreed to help Chongxuan Sheng compete for the position of clan head.
This sentiment was more precious than the Life Fruit itself.
"Brother Chongxuan, this..." Jiang Wang momentarily didn't know what to say.
Chongxuan Sheng cut him off. "Say nothing. You are worth it."
The fat man looked at him and repeated with firm conviction: "You, Jiang Wang, are absolutely worth it."
He was about to deploy his eloquence to deepen his bond with Jiang Wang further.
But he suddenly sensed something and whipped his head around.
"Who's there?"