Rebuilding the Immortal Cultivator Clan

"Sheng?"

Li Chengsheng's return momentarily made Jiang Fengwu forget her anger, and she spoke with concern and surprise, "You aren't injured, are you?"

Even Li Chengshuo, who always liked to compete with Li Chengsheng, showed him a flattering smile this time, because she knew if he hadn't returned just then, she would undoubtedly have faced a scolding, and might have even been beaten, after all, Jiang Fengwu was not a tender mother.

"Mother, rest assured, I'm fine." Li Chengsheng shook his head, his youthful and aloof face carried an indelible joy and excitement.

The dangers of returning didn't need to be voiced, needlessly worrying others, after all, wasn't he safely back now.

"Looks like, you really encountered some good fortune on this trip, didn't you?!" Jiang Fengwu asked, slightly agitated, recalling what the young man had said a few years ago.

Putting aside how precious that opportunity was, just Li Chengshuo's ability alone was enough to prove how immensely talented she was in the art of divination!

"Yes!" Li Chengshuo carefully took out a giant egg, and said with delight, "This giant egg is the good fortune I received this time!"

"A rank-four Spirit Beast Egg?!" Li Chengshuo exclaimed from the side, originally thinking his obtaining five Howling Moon Silver Wolves was very impressive, yet Li Chengsheng actually brought out a fourth-stage Spirit Beast!

In an instant, the look in his eyes toward him became gloomy and envious, no longer as friendly as before.

Jiang Fengwu was at a loss for words for a moment—him, a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator, actually obtained a rank-four Spirit Beast! Coupled with his own aptitude, his growth rate would probably accelerate once again, perhaps the family would see the birth of another Hundred-Year Golden Core!

"I haven't had the chance to congratulate Shuo on breaking through to Foundation Establishment yet, I don't have anything good on hand right now, I will give you a congratulatory gift later." Li Chengsheng said with a smile.

"Hmph!" Li Chengshuo decided to ignore her irritating brother and turned to walk towards her own small courtyard.

"Mother, Shuo is..." Li Chengsheng was not dim-witted, but perhaps it was his slowness in interpersonal relationships and emotions that kept him aloof, rarely associating with outsiders?

"That girl is envious of you," Jiang Fengwu chuckled and shook her head. Working so hard to calculate, only to obtain five third-rank Silver Wolves, but Li Chengsheng only had to step outside once to gain a fourth-rank Spirit Beast Egg, how could Li Chengshuo, who longed to surpass him, accept that?

"You too are tired, go back and rest, take good care of this Spirit Beast Egg, seeing this vibrant vitality, it might not take long for it to hatch."

Meanwhile, back in her room, a frustrated Li Chengshuo sat on the Green Jade Stone Stool. She wanted to find a rank-four Spirit Beast that resonated with her, maybe not surpassing Li Chengsheng, but at least not inferior to him!

But she knew in her heart that descendants of rank-four Spirit Beasts were not so easily acquired, just look at Li Zhirui; if he hadn't visited The Secret Realm of Wanxian, he might not have been able to obtain a higher-grade Spirit Beast.

Tormented with indecision for a long time, Li Chengshuo finally decided to continue and establish a contract with the Silver Wolves, begrudgingly saying, "Then I'll use the Silver Wolves to defeat you, let's see what you have to show off then!"

In the days that followed, Li Chengshuo shut herself in her room, not because of a bad mood, but because she was observing these juvenile wolves, to select the most outstanding one to contract with, which would make upbringing much easier.

In a quiet room not far from her, the corners of Li Zhirui's mouth suddenly revealed a hint of excited pleasure, as if he had gained some sort of treasure.

In fact, that was exactly the case!

In the years of secluded meditation, Li Zhirui integrated four different Nascent Soul skill methods from within his family and finally created a rudimentary Nascent Soul Skill.

In the following time, all he needed was to continuously deduce and refine it, ultimately using it as a guide to transform his Golden Core into a Nascent Soul and become a great cultivator who would enjoy a lifespan of a thousand years, a Nascent Soul True Lord revered, honored, and feared by the world!

This process might take one or two years, or perhaps ten years, or even several decades.

But Li Zhirui was in no hurry, for he was young enough, with plenty of time to accomplish this task; all he needed to do was to maintain a cautious, down-to-earth approach and continuously verify his progress.

——

Time flew swiftly, and one day a massive blizzard covered the entire world, turning it into a pure white realm.

However, Wanxian Island did not become desolate due to the cold; instead, it was bustling with activity. Spirit Boats were speeding across the vast sky above the island, bringing vibrant colors to the world.

The annual Spirit-Testing Ceremony was the most lively time for the Li family!

Moreover, with the expansion of their territory and the increase in the number of secular clansmen, bringing all the eligible children back to the family estate every year would be a very arduous migration, even for cultivators.

Therefore, the family spent a large sum of Spirit Stones to purchase a batch of portable and easy-to-activate magic artifacts, the Spirit Detecting Beads!

In fact, the function of the Spirit Detecting Bead was very simple; it could only test whether children had a Spiritual Root or not. As for the type of Spiritual Root and its purity, it couldn't determine that. Nevertheless, due to the monopoly on the production methods, the price of Spirit Detecting Beads remained high.

As for the Spirit Measuring Ruler, which could determine the type of Spiritual Root and its purity, calling it prohibitively expensive would not be an exaggeration. Even the present Li family could not afford too many; they could only purchase the relatively cheaper Spirit Detecting Beads.

However, this approach had one advantage, which was that it helped to keep secrets better. Because not many clansmen would participate in the Spirit Measuring Ruler test, and those who did were subject to strict selection.

"Have all the children to be tested been brought here today?" the leading Elder asked.

The Executor tasked with tallying the numbers nodded and said, "This year we have identified one thousand three hundred and seventy-eight children with Spiritual Roots, and all have arrived."

After centuries of development, through advocating childbirth, rewarding those with more children, and promoting the acceptance of concubinage, the Li family now had more than a million secular clansmen!

The odds of a mortal child possessing a Spiritual Root were actually not as high as one in a thousand, especially considering many of these children had cultivators as parents.

"Then let's begin!"

The first batch of five children were brought in, and they reached out to touch the Spirit Measuring Ruler simultaneously. In an instant, Spirit Light of various colors burst forth brilliantly, casting a dazzling array upon the faces of the onlookers, looking spectacular and magnificent.

However, neither the Elders, Executors, nor the children showed any joy, because their Spiritual Roots were too numerous and too muddled, signifying that their aptitude was not good.

To this scene, the Elders and Executors had grown accustomed; after all, such was the aptitude of the majority of cultivators in the world. These children were like this, they were like this, and so were the vast majority of people waiting outside.

After recording the Spiritual Roots and their purities of the five children, the Executors led them out.