After confirming he had inherited a genuine immortality cultivation method, Li Qingqiu's first instinct was to think of his master, Lin Xunfeng.
But then he reconsidered. It was a bad idea.
Not only was it already a full day since Lin Xunfeng left—who knew which direction he'd gone—but if news of an immortality technique got out, it would surely invite disaster.
How many sects and noble clans in the martial world had been wiped out simply for possessing a legendary divine technique?
He couldn't reveal the existence of the Daoist Legacy panel. It was the very foundation of his existence here. No one could know, not even his junior brothers and sisters.
People's hearts were unknowable. Loyalty wasn't something that only ever went up.
Li Qingqiu stood up, ready to find a place to cultivate.
According to the Supreme Purity Chaos Genesis Scripture, early morning was the best time for cultivation. The purple mist of dawn, the convergence of solar and lunar essence—it was the golden hour for daily practice.
Bang!
The door swung open. Jiang Zhaoxia, who had been practicing his fist forms, turned his head. Seeing Li Qingqiu emerge, he couldn't help but feel relieved.
Li Qingqiu's gaze was bright and focused. He clearly wasn't weighed down by their master's departure.
"What are you doing practicing fists? You like swords, don't you? Go to my room and take the Skyrainbow Sword to practice. It's just a loan, though. Don't get any ideas about keeping it."
After tossing this remark at Jiang Zhaoxia, Li Qingqiu headed toward the back mountain.
Jiang Zhaoxia was stunned. In the past, Li Qingqiu had never let him so much as touch a sword. What was with this sudden change of heart?
He could sense a shift in Li Qingqiu—a change in mindset. Their master's departure had forced their senior brother to grow up.
If Jiang Zhaoxia had been offered a sword before, he would have been overjoyed. But now, there was no joy, only a pang of sympathy for his senior brother.
Maybe it was time for him to take martial arts seriously too.
The Azure Firmament Sect was located halfway up the mountain. Behind it stretched a dense forest, surrounded on all sides by steep, perilous peaks. The fastest route down to the nearest village took at least an hour on foot. While there were wild beasts in the forest, there were no wolves or tigers; the main things to watch out for were snakes, insects, and spiders.
Li Qingqiu followed a familiar path to the summit. He sat cross-legged at the edge of a cliff, facing the rising sun, his hands resting on his knees, and began the breathing exercises according to the mental method.
Sensing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was a process that required practice. Only after repeated attempts could one reach the point of inhaling spiritual energy with each breath.
Back in the courtyard, Jiang Zhaoxia, still practicing his fists, turned and happened to catch sight of Li Qingqiu's figure seated on the cliff's edge. He was puzzled.
When Wu Man'er, Li Sifeng, and Li Sijin woke up, they also saw this scene. They were astonished and chattered endlessly about it. Li Sijin even tried to wave and call out to Li Qingqiu, but he had already entered a meditative state and didn't respond.
Unfortunately, after an entire morning, Li Qingqiu still hadn't managed to condense a single strand of spiritual energy. But he wasn't disappointed; if anything, he was more determined.
When he came down the mountain and faced his junior siblings' questions, he said mysteriously, "Actually, I have an internal energy technique I had before I even came up the mountain. Since Master's gone, I have no choice but to start training. Once I've mastered it, I'll teach you."
"You have a family inheritance too?" Jiang Zhaoxia couldn't help but ask.
Li Qingqiu shot him a look. "What do you mean, 'too'? You have one?"
Jiang Zhaoxia just snorted and didn't answer.
Li Qingqiu didn't think much of it. Could your martial arts inheritance possibly compare to my immortality cultivation method?
Over the next few days, Zhang Yuchun led the disciples in their tasks—expanding the vegetable garden, chopping firewood. Even the youngest, Li Sijin, found it all great fun. Laughter and cheerful voices constantly filled the Azure Firmament Sect.
Li Qingqiu, meanwhile, devoted himself entirely to cultivation, striving to form his first strand of spiritual energy as soon as possible.
It took a full seven days.
Finally, Li Qingqiu succeeded in forming a single thread of spiritual energy. In that moment, he felt, on some profound level, that he had stepped into an entirely new realm.
The first layer of the Nourishing Origin stage!
He was ecstatic. Hiding in the forest, he found a tree. Focusing his mind, he expelled the spiritual energy from his core.
Whoosh!
The thread of energy shot forth like an arrow, piercing straight through the tree trunk with incredible sharpness. After expelling it, Li Qingqiu walked over to inspect the damage. The trunk, which would have taken two people to wrap their arms around, now had a hole as thick as a finger bored clean through it. He could see the forest on the other side.
Such overbearing spiritual energy!
This was far more powerful than that wandering hero's energy blast from years ago!
Li Qingqiu clenched his fists, overwhelmed with excitement. His only regret was that once that thread of spiritual energy was used, it was gone. He'd have to refine more.
He decided that starting tomorrow, he would lead his junior brothers and sisters in training.
Getting everyone stronger, and fast, was the priority. What if Lin Xunfeng had some enemy who came looking for trouble? Or what if bandits came up the mountain? Relying on him alone wouldn't be enough.
Besides, he'd been studying the attribute panel lately. The Destiny Selections and Inheritance Rewards were tied to the Daoist Legacy's evaluation. The stronger the legacy, the more Destinies he could select and the more inheritances he could obtain.
He planned to gather his junior siblings today and tell them.
He sat back down in the forest and resumed cultivation, aiming to refine another thread of spiritual energy.
By late afternoon, Zhang Yuchun, Wu Man'er, and Li Sifeng returned, their bamboo baskets on their backs, sweat pouring down their faces.
Li Qingqiu, Jiang Zhaoxia, Li Dongyue, and Li Sijin hurried over to take their baskets.
Zhang Yuchun looked at Li Qingqiu excitedly. "Senior Brother, I told the villagers about our situation. I helped them with some farm work, and in exchange, they gave us three hens, one rooster, and a bunch of vegetables and fruit!"
The burliest of them all, Wu Man'er, rumbled, "And two pounds of meat!"
Li Sifeng, usually so talkative, collapsed onto the ground, panting heavily, his tongue hanging out like a dog's.
"The villagers are good to us. We'll have to help them out more in the future," Li Qingqiu said with a smile.
He decided he would eventually recruit disciples from the village at the foot of the mountain, as a way of repaying their kindness.
Chatting and laughing, the disciples carried their goods back to the courtyard and tidied up.
About half an hour later, they gathered around the long table in the yard. Li Dongyue poured water for each of them.
Li Qingqiu looked around at everyone. "Tomorrow morning at dawn, I will teach you the cultivation method. You will all train with me."
This announcement sent a ripple of excitement through the disciples, who immediately began pestering him about what technique it was.
"The art is called the Chaos Genesis Scripture. From now on, it will be the signature ultimate technique of the Azure Firmament Sect. Without my permission, none of you are to pass it on to anyone." Li Qingqiu's tone was serious. He planned to teach the Supreme Purity Chaos Genesis Scripture layer by layer.
In fact, he hadn't even fully received the entire inheritance himself. Parts of it were still hazy in his memory, only becoming clear once he reached a certain realm.
"Chaos Genesis Scripture... can it really cultivate internal energy?" Jiang Zhaoxia asked skeptically.
Li Qingqiu replied casually, "You'll know once you train in it."
His dismissive attitude left Jiang Zhaoxia feeling rather frustrated. He almost missed the old days when they used to bicker.
"Senior Brother, actually, we need more martial arts than just an internal energy technique. And we don't all have to train in the same thing," Jiang Zhaoxia couldn't help but say.
Zhang Yuchun sighed helplessly. "But we don't have any other martial arts."
Jiang Zhaoxia pressed on. "I won't comment on the others, but let the fifth junior brother train with me. I'll teach him an external technique. Combined with his natural strength, he could become a pillar of the Azure Firmament Sect in the future."
Li Qingqiu felt a warm sense of pride. He said emotionally, "Third junior brother, you're finally contributing something valuable. This senior brother is so happy. You're growing up, starting to make contributions to the sect."
"Contributing something valuable? I don't have anything valuable," Jiang Zhaoxia asked, confused.
"Never mind. From now on, Man'er is your responsibility. I'll be checking his progress. If you teach him well, I'll gift you a treasured sword in the future."
Li Qingqiu waved his hand. Among the disciples, besides Jiang Zhaoxia having the best aptitude and Destiny, the simple-minded Wu Man'er seemed the most likely to become a high-level combatant.
In the martial world, strength was everything. The Azure Firmament Sect needed powerful fighters.
Jiang Zhaoxia huffed. "I'll definitely teach him well. Just wait and see!"
Wu Man'er just grinned foolishly, not understanding a thing.
Li Sifeng and Li Sijin started clamoring for the third senior brother to teach them too, but Jiang Zhaoxia couldn't be bothered to entertain them.
...
At dawn, Li Qingqiu led his junior brothers and sisters to the front of the sect gates to sit in meditation. With so many, he didn't dare take them to the cliff's edge.
The seven of them sitting in a row was quite a sight. Li Qingqiu sat in the center and began to explain the Supreme Purity Chaos Genesis Scripture.
At first, Jiang Zhaoxia paid little attention. But after following along once, his expression changed dramatically, and he became completely serious.
Teaching Wu Man'er, Li Sifeng, and Li Sijin was a challenge. The first wasn't very bright, and the latter two were too young and didn't grasp much. It took Li Qingqiu an entire day just for them to master the method of breathing and absorbing energy.
By evening, Zhang Yuchun and Li Dongyue were preparing dinner. Li Qingqiu sat under the old tree, flipping through the three martial arts manuals Lin Xunfeng had left behind.
Suddenly, Jiang Zhaoxia appeared before him, his eyes blazing with intensity. "Senior Brother, I've cultivated internal energy!"
Li Qingqiu looked up, frowning. "Are you kidding me?"
It had taken him seven full days. Jiang Zhaoxia only needed half a day?
He didn't believe it!
Without another word, Jiang Zhaoxia raised his right hand and pointed at the roof of a nearby building. A thread of spiritual energy shot from his fingertip, streaked through the air, and neatly severed a small branch.
Li Qingqiu's eyes went wide. Not far away, Li Sifeng, who was gnawing on a baked sweet potato, stared with his mouth agape.
Jiang Zhaoxia hadn't even looked in the direction he was pointing. When he saw Li Qingqiu's expression, he lifted his chin, adopting a haughty pose.
After a brief moment of shock, Li Qingqiu's gaze refocused on Jiang Zhaoxia, and it turned fervent, making Jiang Zhaoxia feel a bit uncomfortable.
He put down the manuals, stood up, and placed his hands on Jiang Zhaoxia's shoulders, staring intently at him. "Third junior brother, with a genius like you here, this senior brother has even more confidence in the future of the Azure Firmament Sect. It's good to have you."
Jiang Zhaoxia's cheeks reddened slightly. After all, he was only a fourteen-year-old boy. This was the first time Li Qingqiu had praised him so sincerely, and he couldn't help but feel a little shy.
He turned his head away, the corner of his mouth twitching. "Of course I'm confident in myself..."
In high spirits, Li Qingqiu pulled Jiang Zhaoxia to sit down and eagerly discussed with him the insights from cultivating the first layer of the Supreme Purity Chaos Genesis Scripture.
Jiang Zhaoxia didn't hold back and seriously shared his experiences.
After talking for a while, Li Qingqiu gained several valuable insights. He had to admit, Jiang Zhaoxia's cultivation aptitude truly deserved the label "Excellent," and his comprehension was truly outstanding.
Days passed. Ten days later, Li Dongyue became the third disciple to successfully cultivate spiritual energy. This brought Li Qingqiu some comfort—it wasn't that his own aptitude was poor, it was that Jiang Zhaoxia's was simply monstrous.
After fifteen days of training, Zhang Yuchun finally managed to cultivate spiritual energy as well.
Before Zhang Yuchun could even report this joyful news, Li Qingqiu already knew that a fourth person had succeeded. A line of text appeared before his eyes:
[As more than half of your disciples under the Daoist Legacy have entered the first layer of the Nourishing Origin stage, the Azure Firmament Sect has truly stepped onto the path of immortality. You have received one Fortune Opportunity.]