From the family treasure tree to build an eternal family

Chapter 225 Birth, Old Age, Sickness and Death

Cold comes and summer comes, spring passes and autumn comes.

Time passed, year after year.

Three years later, Xu Xiaoniu's wife, Chen Xiulian, passed away peacefully.

Two more years passed.

This is the fifth year since the Xu family's reputation began to emerge.

In five years, Baihe Mountain has undergone a dramatic transformation.

Previously, the Xu family dared not reveal their spiritual land, so the spiritual land of Baihe Mountain was empty and desolate, almost like a wilderness, with only some flowers, trees and stones.

There's no need to hide it now. The array objects originally used to form the "Spirit Gathering Array" within the spiritual land have been replaced with higher-quality array objects.

The range of the spirit-gathering array has therefore been expanded.

The sacred land of Baihe Mountain is about three acres in size.

For a family with a Foundation Establishment cultivator, three acres of spiritual land is really too small. Fortunately, the Xu family doesn't have many cultivators yet, so three acres of spiritual land is barely enough.

Within the spiritual land, pavilions and houses were built in a staggered and orderly manner, serving as places for the Xu family members to cultivate their martial arts.

Adhering to the principle of not wasting any spiritual land space, Xu Fugui also cultivated several small "spiritual plant gardens" in it, planting many first-tier spiritual plants.

The azure blue of the blue ivy, the golden yellow of the flame tree, the fiery red of the red sap...

Various spiritual plants are planted in the spiritual land, like a garden embellishing the landscape.

Xu Fugui is 92 years old this year.

In the spiritual land of Baihe Mountain, he was planting spiritual plants. He was cultivating the "Spiritual Farmer's Qi Refining Technique," and had reached the perfection of Qi Refining. He also had the "Illustrated Compendium of Spiritual Plants" given to him by the empowering spiritual fruit.

He was adept at planting and caring for various spiritual plants, as well as using spells to promote growth and ripen them.

"The art of growth enhancement!"

He made a hand seal, and spiritual energy circulated through his meridians, transforming into the purest wood-type plant essence and infusing it into a Blue Vine.

The blue ivy, which was originally only one foot tall, grew at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The purple vines grew darker and thicker, while the blue flowers became increasingly vibrant.

After a while, the blue vine grew to more than two feet tall, and its growth became increasingly slow.

This is the maximum height of the Blue Vine, a result of its growth over a hundred years. A first-tier spiritual plant reaches its limit at a hundred years; further growth will not increase its medicinal properties.

Xu Fugui stopped what he was doing; he had consumed more than half of the spiritual energy in his dantian.

Take out a herb-gathering hoe and dig up the entire blue ivy plant, preserving it intact in a wooden box. The medicinal part of the blue ivy is its blue petals, but preserving the whole plant can greatly extend its shelf life.

Afterward, he buried a tender green seedling, less than the size of a palm, in the pit where he had just dug up the blue vine.

These are the seedlings of Lansigma he bred.

"A hundred-year-old blue vine is worth thirty spirit stones."

Xu Fugui thought to himself that although his Lingnong Qi Refining Technique was not outstanding in combat, it was quite good for earning spirit stones.

He can help a hundred-year-old spiritual plant grow in three days. If you include the time for rest and cultivation, he can earn thirty spirit stones in four or five days. For a Qi Refining cultivator, this is a very fast way to earn spirit stones.

Just as the seedlings of the spiritual plant were planted, someone came.

"Grandpa!"

This man, in his early twenties, was Zhongchuan's son, "Lijin." His face showed a hint of anxiety and grief as he used his lightness technique to float to Xu Fugui's side, barely touching the ground with his toes.

"Great-grandfather, my grandfather he..."

Li Jin's grandfather is Xu Xiaoyun.

"Let's go."

Xu Fugui didn't say much; he had expected this.

Some time ago, Xu Xiaoyun became bedridden and no matter what treatments she received, it was to no avail.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

In the bedroom.

An old man, thin and dark-skinned, lay on the bed with sunken eyes and cloudy pupils.

Xu Xiaoyun was 65 years old this year, which is considered normal for an ordinary person to die peacefully in their sleep.

But he had the nourishing plants from the Xu family to replenish his body, so he shouldn't have died so young.

It was because he overworked himself when he was young and often drank alcohol for social occasions, which caused him to develop chronic illnesses that even spiritual plants could not cure.

Beside the bed were his two sons: Zhongchao and Zhongchuan.

Several grandchildren were standing outside the door.

“Zhongchao, my biggest worry is Lijing. You have to find a way to help him cultivate immortality. He has suffered so much because he can’t see…”

Xu Xiaoyun, barely breathing, gave his last words.

Zhongchao's eyes reddened, and he nodded repeatedly: "Yes, Dad, I know."

“Zhongchuan, you have many children, you must educate them well. The most important thing is their character… Lijin and Liyu are both of marriageable age, you, as their father, have a lot to worry about…”

As Xu Xiaoyun was speaking, footsteps approached from afar and entered the room.

The people in the room looked in the direction of the sound.

"grandfather."

Zhongchao and Zhongchuan called out.

Xu Xiaoyun turned her head with difficulty, saw Xu Fugui, and said weakly, "Father~~"

He then waved to his two sons, saying, "You two go out first. I need to say a few words to your grandfather."

The two silently got up and left.

Only Xu Xiaoyun and Xu Fugui remained in the room.

"Father, I'm useless. I couldn't cultivate immortality and I've passed away before you."

A father and son; the 65-year-old son looked much older than his 92-year-old father.

It could not happen in the mortal world.

However, this kind of scene is very common in the world of cultivators.

Xu Fugui stared intently at Xu Xiaoyun, at a loss for words. He hadn't been by Xiao Gou's side when he died, making this final farewell completely different.

Just then, Xu Xiaohou arrived.

Xu Xiaoan arrived shortly afterward.

The eldest brother, Xu Xiaoniu, was far away in Yuanli City and did not get to see Xu Xiaoyun one last time.

On the main branch of the Xu family's family's treasured tree, another branch has stopped growing.

The branch representing Xu Xiaoyun will be forever frozen in time.

After Xu Xiaoyun's branch, two more branches branched off, followed by more branches representing her grandchildren. Although Xu Xiaoyun's branch stopped growing, the branches that followed continued to grow generation after generation.

Generation after generation, life goes on and on.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Five years is a fleeting time for cultivators.

Qi Refining cultivators, especially those in the late stage of Qi Refining, often find it difficult to advance even one level in five years.

Xu Fugui cultivated from the ninth level of Qi Refining to the peak of Qi Refining, but had no chance of breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage. He was old, had the lowest level of five-element pseudo-spiritual root, and his comprehension and talent were also average.

Without special opportunities, there is no hope of establishing a foundation in this lifetime.

For a Foundation Establishment cultivator, five years is but a fleeting moment.

Xu Xiaoniu, Xu Xiaohou, and Xu Zhongxi are all still at the first level of Foundation Establishment.

For the younger generation of the Xu family, the changes in five years have been significant.

Li Kun is nine years old and has started practicing martial arts and studying.

He was raised by his father, Zhongyao, until he was four years old, and later by his grandmother, Chen Xiulian.

His grandmother passed away two years ago, and he has been living with his uncle Zhonglei ever since.

Li Yuan is twenty-four years old, at the third level of Qi Refining, and at the first level of Martial Arts Grandmaster. Li Jing is eighteen years old, at the third level of Stance Training, and is about to reach the Perfection of the Acquired Realm. His martial arts talent is not outstanding. Even though he practiced stance training diligently and had a lot of Qi and Blood Pills to nourish him, he still failed to advance to the Innate Martial Artist Realm at the age of eighteen.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

A sacred place in Baihe Mountain.

Wisps of bluish-white smoke rose continuously from a house.

This is Xu Zhongche's alchemy room.

He was refining elixirs, putting medicinal herbs from century-old spiritual plants into the alchemy furnace.

The alchemy furnace was a high-grade magic artifact alchemy furnace that I bought from the Baili family three years ago for eight hundred spirit stones.

Ordinary high-grade magic weapons cost only three or four hundred spirit stones, but alchemy furnaces are special types, so they are expensive.

With Xu Zhongche at the ninth level of Qi Refining, this superior-grade magic weapon, the alchemy furnace, is more than enough for him to unleash his full potential.

Beneath the alchemy furnace, golden and cold white spiritual flames blazed.

This is the Yin-Yang Fire he cultivated using the "Yin-Yang Fire Technique".

After a while, the Yin-Yang Fire died down, and the alchemy furnace emitted waves of heat.

"open!"

As the alchemy furnace was turned on, a burst of scalding hot steam dissipated, revealing five spiritual pills within.

Xu Zhongche reached out into the air, and a spiritual pill flew out from the alchemy furnace to his fingertip. After smelling it, he put it in his mouth and tasted it.

"Well, it's done!"

This is a Qi-boosting pill, a common type of first-grade elixir, which can help cultivators in the mid-stage of Qi Refining break through to the next level.

The Qi-Boosting Pill in the market costs around 20 spirit stones per pill.

Xu Zhongche refined five Qi-boosting pills at once. The medicinal plants used to refine the pills were not whole plants; many were just a few leaves or roots used as auxiliary ingredients.

He carefully calculated that if he refined this batch of elixirs, he wouldn't be able to sell it for 100 spirit stones, but he could earn 50 spirit stones.

"These elixirs aren't that profitable."

He thought to himself that the rate of return was much lower than he had expected.

Because Qi-boosting pills are the most common first-grade elixirs, many beginner alchemists start with Qi-tonifying pills and similar elixirs. Therefore, the benefits of these common first-grade elixirs are not that high.

Xu Zhongche figured out the method for refining Qi-boosting pills on his own, and before he succeeded, he wasted countless spiritual plants.

Fortunately, Xu Fugui was able to cultivate and promote spiritual plants, and he did not lack first-tier spiritual plants, which enabled him to support Xu Zhongche's research on alchemy.

"Let's save the remaining four Qi-boosting pills and distribute them to our nephews of the Li generation later."

Xu Zhongche thought to himself.

Given the rapid growth of the "Li" generation, it won't be long before they need the Qi-boosting pills.

"Oh right, and also Qi and Blood Pills."

He suddenly remembered that he still needed to refine some Qi and Blood Pills.

Many children in the Xu family, whose generation name is Li, practice martial arts, creating a high demand for Qi and Blood Pills.

Xu Zhongche could easily master the Qi and Blood Pill, a common medicine.

Practice makes perfect. It's no exaggeration to say that he could refine a batch of Qi and Blood Pills without making a mistake, even with his eyes closed.

Using spiritual fire to refine Qi and Blood Pills, a batch of ten Qi and Blood Pills can be refined in just the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

He refined it several more times, producing a large number of Qi and Blood Pills, all made from ordinary medicinal materials.

Afterwards, he refined another batch of Qi and Blood Pills with added spiritual plants. This improved "semi-spiritual pill" Qi and Blood Pill was suitable for innate martial artists.

"It's time to train two alchemists among the younger generation."

He wanted to train alchemists to share his burden.

Refining simple Qi and Blood Pills nowadays does nothing to hone his alchemy skills; it's a complete waste of time and energy.

It's alright now, but in another ten or twenty years, when the generation with the character "Yi" is born and grows up, there will be more and more people who need Qi and Blood Pills.

After Xu Zhongche finished refining the pills, he walked out of the alchemy room and saw a woman in her early thirties waiting outside the door.

"Brother Zhongche~"

The woman saw Chung-cheol and quickly stepped forward.

"Sister-in-law, you've come to pick up your Qi and Blood Pills again?"

As Xu Zhongche spoke, he handed over two bags of Qi and Blood Pills: "Take these and distribute them to the children. This bag contains ten Qi and Blood Pills, which are for Li Yuan."

He knew that Li Yuan cultivated both Qi and martial arts, and that his martial arts realm had reached the Grandmaster level, so he needed to use this half-spirit pill, Qi and Blood Pill.

The woman's name was Sun Fang, and she was the wife of Xu Zhongsi, the fourth son of Xu Xiaoan.

None of Xu Xiaoan's four sons had the aptitude for martial arts, but several of his grandchildren showed promise for it.

The most talented among them is Li Gong, the youngest son of Xu Zhongsi and Sun Fang.

Li Gong is eleven years old this year, and he has already completed half of the second level of stance training.

Sun Fang was particularly concerned about her youngest son's progress in martial arts, after all, this was not ordinary martial arts training, but represented the hope of cultivating immortality!
Among the grandchildren of their Xiao'an branch, there must be a cultivator who can prove them wrong.

Sun Fang took the bag containing the Qi and Blood Pills from Zhong Che and thanked him repeatedly, saying, "Thank you, Brother Zhong Che."

"Sister-in-law, you don't need to be so polite."

Xu Zhongche waved his hand.

He handed the Qi and Blood Pill to Sun Fang so she could rest and recover her energy, as she still needed to cultivate afterward.

He has only recently reached the ninth level of Qi Refining and will need several more years of cultivation to reach the peak of Qi Refining.

At the age of forty-nine, he is still young for a Qi Refining cultivator, and the Yin Yang Fire Technique is a high-quality cultivation method. He may have a chance to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Sun Fang returned home with the Qi and Blood Pills.

"This bag of ten Qi and Blood Pills is for Li Yuan."

She was making plans in her mind.

Li Yuan is the strongest among the "Li" generation, and his father, Zhong Huai, is also a person of considerable cultivation among the "Zhong" generation.

"This bag contains a total of..."

She counted them and found forty Qi and Blood Pills.

So many Qi and Blood Pills were definitely not just for his family, but were given to him by Zhongche to distribute to all the younger generation who were practicing martial arts.

Among them, the Xiao'an branch has the largest number of people with the character "Li" in their name, and they are all of martial arts age, so they need a lot of Qi and Blood Pills.

Sun Fang would always be the first to go to Zhong Che after she ran out of Qi and Blood Pills. She went two or three times, and now Zhong Che simply gives them to her and lets her distribute them.

"My eldest son is Lili, my second son is Likai, and there's also Ligong..."

"The children of the third son's family, Lichuan and Lishan..."

Not all members of the "Li" generation need Qi and Blood Pills.

For example, the oldest member of the "Li" generation is Li Jia, the son of Zhong Yi. His eldest son, Yi Zhi, is already six years old, and he also has a second son, "Yi Yi".

Li Jia's situation was similar to that of his grandfather Xiao An and his father Zhong Yi: his aptitude was too poor, and his progress in practicing stance training was extremely slow, even with Qi and Blood Pills to nourish his Qi and Blood. Therefore, he had no choice but to give up the path of martial arts cultivation and immortality, and instead focus on having children and managing some agricultural affairs on Baihe Mountain.

After some mental calculation, Sun Fang decided to give her youngest son, Li Gong, three Qi and Blood Pills, and her other two sons two Qi and Blood Pills each.

Those from the Xiao'an lineage were all given two Qi and Blood Pills.

"Also, send two Qi and Blood Pills to each of Zhongchao and Zhongchuan's sons."

"And there's another one, Li Kun..."

Sun Fang thought of Li Kun, who had no parents.

Li Kun is nine years old this year, the youngest among those born in the "Li" generation. He has started practicing martial arts and has shown considerable talent.

Sun Fang, as the daughter-in-law of the Xu family, came from a farming family in Baihe Village and didn't have much of a vision. Within such a family, she harbored certain selfish motives.

"Just give Li Kun a Qi and Blood Pill, he'll be grateful to me."

she thought.

(End of this chapter)