Chapter 512: Chapter 293: A Junior’s Filial Offering, Tier-Three Geng Metal (Part 2)

"If you’re fortunate enough to receive even a little guidance from Uncle Lin in the future, your accomplishments will be limitless. This is a message your grandfather insisted I pass on to you."

"Besides, the only reason Elder Mo is willing to look after you and offer you guidance in the sect is out of respect for Uncle Lin. You must never forget the kindness these two have shown you. Don’t look down on your grandfather just because he spent his whole life as a Qi Cultivation Cultivator. He rose from a farmer’s son with a mere Lower Grade Spirit Root to his current standing and even raised a group of outstanding descendants. This success has everything to do with his principle of remembering and repaying kindness."

At this, the black-robed woman’s voice grew more serious, each word spoken with deliberate weight, as if to etch them into the ears of the man in Confucian robes.

"Yongzhen understands!"

The man in Confucian robes’ expression turned solemn. He nodded earnestly, his voice resonating with conviction.

Had Lin Changheng been present, he would have immediately noticed that the black-robed woman looked familiar, her features reminiscent of an old acquaintance.

She was none other than Xu Fugui’s daughter!

His eighth daughter! Xu Bazheng! She possessed a Middle Grade Spirit Root.

With Xu Fugui’s full support, she inherited her brother’s legacy and successfully achieved Foundation Establishment.

Afterward, she didn’t stay with the Xu Family. Instead, she went to the Beast Taming Sun Family’s Immortal City to make her way as a Loose Cultivator, striving to advance on her path of cultivation.

Her reasons for doing so were twofold. On one hand, she still yearned to walk the path of cultivation and sought to fight for a greater future.

On the other hand, the Xu Family had now achieved a Triple Foundation Establishment, and its resources were at capacity.

They could hardly support any more Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

This is always a process of dynamic balance. To accommodate a fourth Foundation Establishment Cultivator, the Xu Family would need to expand further and seize more resources to support them.

In the nearly twenty years since Xu Bazheng broke through to Foundation Establishment, the Xu Family’s strategy had been one of steady development and strengthening their foundation.

But after the Song-Jin War, a storm was brewing and the greater situation threatened to change. The Xu Family urgently recalled Xu Bazheng to bolster their strength, ready to counter all changes by remaining unchanged.

Perhaps a fateful encounter or an opportunity would present itself, and it would be a new time to expand their territory!

As for the man in Confucian robes, Xu Yongzhen, he was Xu Fugui’s grandson—the son of his third son, Xu Sanyuan. Born with an Upper Grade Spirit Root, he had become a disciple of the Purple Extreme Sect.

"The last time I saw Uncle Lin, I was just a child..."

Xu Bazheng gazed at the approaching silhouette of the island, her tone tinged with emotion and nostalgia.

She was now seventy-eight years old. A full sixty-year cycle had passed since then.

Time in the Cultivation Realm was just so difficult to grasp.

...

「At noon.」

A gray Dharma Ship flew into the territory of Jade Belt Lake.

Although it was noon, the sky was not clear and bright, but a grayish-white unique to winter. Leaden clouds hung low, seemingly within arm’s reach, filtering the sunlight into a cold, pale halo.

Below the Dharma Ship, the vast surface of Jade Belt Lake was completely frozen over. The ice, of unknown thickness, was a deep, ink-green color, like a massive piece of jade set among the mountains. Along the shores, the rolling hills, withered trees, and even the distant outline of Moonrest Island were all blanketed in pristine white snow. A silver coat adorned a world of silent desolation.

It was the middle of winter.

The moment they entered, the Three Islands received an alert.

This was a monitoring system jointly funded and set up by the Three Islands. As soon as an outsider entered, an alarm would be triggered, and a projection would be recorded and transmitted, allowing them to assess the situation and respond accordingly.

The situation was special now, so a few Spirit Stones were nothing. Besides, the Three Islands had suffered losses before, so they were naturally more cautious.

Lin Changheng had just finished refining a batch of Elixirs. Feeling his Heart and Spirit relax, he had come to the lakeside to fish.

He wasn’t sitting on an ordinary wooden stool or stone platform, but was perched calmly on the back of a huge Black Armored Earth Turtle that was dozing off, its shell as black and glossy as Profound Iron. The turtle’s aura was steady and its body immense. It rested by the shore like a small hill, unmoving against the lakeside wind—as steady as a rock.

The nearby floating ice had been broken, and his fishing rod, made of ordinary green bamboo, had its line dangling in the bone-chilling lake water.

Deep in the water below, a Tier Two Deep Lake Spirit Clam the size of a stone roller, its shell shimmering with a faint blue Spiritual Light, was faithfully carrying out its task of "herding fish."

It had its shell slightly open, emitting gentle Water Element fluctuations that drove the vigilant Spirit Fish toward Lin Changheng’s hook.

There was no helping it. The fish in the Cultivation Realm, perhaps from absorbing Spiritual Qi, had exceptionally sharp Spiritual Sense and swam as fast as lightning, far beyond what the mortal fish of his past life could compare to.

Even as a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, Lin Changheng often came home empty-handed, rarely making a catch. Fortunately, with Xiaobai’s help, he could occasionally reel in a few Silver-Scaled Fish containing faint Spiritual Qi, satisfying both his palate and his love for fishing.

At this moment, his eyes were closed. He wasn’t asleep, but had emptied his Heart and Spirit, feeling the subtle vibrations from the fishing line at his fingertips and listening to the mournful cry of the frigid wind sweeping across the frozen lake and snowy pines. His entire aura seemed to merge with the icy landscape, exuding a serene tranquility that was a return to simplicity.

Just then, with a HUM, Lin Changheng’s Divine Sense swept over a Copper Mirror-shaped Magical Artifact in his Storage Bag. He saw the approaching Flying Ship and the two people standing on it.

’It’s them.’

He had known for a while that the younger generation of Xu Fugui’s family would be visiting. Now, they had finally arrived.

In fact, the correspondence between Lin Changheng and Xu Fugui had never stopped.

It was just that recently there were no major or urgent matters to discuss, nor any core information to mention, which is why it hasn’t been detailed.

Xu Fugui was now over a hundred years old and had entered his twilight years. As one of the only two survivors from their batch of immortal seedlings, Fugui’s eventual passing was only a matter of time.

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