Building a long-lasting family lineage starting with genealogy

Chapter 126 The Wind Rises, Fellow Daoist, Please Wait (Seeking Subscriptions and Votes)

Xu Mingxuan nodded upon hearing this.

He patted Xu Dezhao on the shoulder and said with satisfaction, "You are indeed my eldest brother's son. You must remember that as a member of the Xu family, you must think things through carefully, and as the head of the family, you must think even more carefully."

"Third Brother, are you taking this opportunity to scold me?" Xu Mingshu raised an eyebrow. "Be careful, or I'll go back and tell Father."

Xu Mingxuan shook his head and laughed, "Xueji, you've been spoiled by your father. If you act impulsively and bring trouble to the Xu family, do you think your father will punish you?"

"Third Brother, I acted impulsively this time. Next time, I will definitely listen to your opinion first, okay?"

"Hopefully."

At that moment, the cry of an eagle echoed from the sky.

Xu Mingshu looked up and said to Xu Mingxuan, "Ada said they went in the opposite direction from what we wanted."

"That's good. If they're going to our Xu family's place, then we'll have to consider whether to leave them here in the Broken Tooth Mountains forever."

Xu Mingshu then understood Xu Mingxuan's thinking: as long as the Xu family was not threatened, everything could be overlooked.

But if it poses a threat, then it must be eradicated completely, leaving no future trouble.

but--

"Third Brother, didn't you say there might be future troubles? How can we keep them here?"

"The mountain man has his own clever plan."

Xu Mingxuan smiled gently, then looked at Wang Yan and asked, "How are you? Are your injuries alright?"

"Reporting to Third Master, I feel completely recovered."

Xu Mingxuan nodded, "Then let's continue. Let's try to explore this area today and go home in three days."

"Yes, Third Master."

the other side.

Su Dingzhen and his group searched for several days and only found one spiritual herb that was several decades old, namely the Blue Heart Flower. The rest were only a dozen or so that were over ten years old.

In remote and impoverished areas, medicinal herbs are scarce.

In the end, they could only leave disappointed.

Back at the Su family home.

Several teams that went out to collect herbs handed over the medicinal herbs they had gathered and the materials from the monsters they had hunted.

Apart from their team, the rest suffered more or less injuries.

Where there is abundant spiritual energy and medicinal herbs, there are naturally more demonic beasts.

Su Dingzhen and his group ranked second to last in terms of harvest, so naturally they didn't get any martial arts pills.

The Su Family Mission Hall.

hall.

After everyone else had left, Su Dingzhen remained there.

The Su family elder in charge of the mission hall stroked his beard and looked at him with suspicion, "Su Dingzhen, is there anything else?"

"Reporting to Elder Shangfang," Su Dingzhen said respectfully, clasping his hands in greeting, "I encountered an unexpected incident during this trip."

"Oh, tell me about it," Su Shangfang said casually.

"In our search for the elixir, we encountered a herb-gathering team from another family."

"What's so strange about that? Did they actually attack you?"

"No, but some of them ride demonic beast mounts, and they will give a healing pill to any injured martial artist. It is not for ordinary people, but the Jade Dew Pill commonly used by cultivators in the early stage of Qi Refining."

"Is there such a thing?"

Upon hearing this, Su Shangfang's eyes widened in surprise, and he pondered, "I remember that there are no families in our Moon Lake County that tame spirit beasts, and the Jade Dew Pill is not cheap enough for ordinary people to use."

"Moreover," Su Dingzhen added, "their location is in the Broken Tooth Mountain Range, where spiritual energy is scarce, and few aristocratic families would send herb-gathering teams to such a place."

"Specially appearing in places with sparse spiritual energy? That's quite intriguing."

Su Shangfang's gaze darkened slightly. "It seems that some people have calculated that the end of my Su family's ancestor is not far off and have started making preparations in advance."

He paused, looked at Su Dingzhen, and said with a faint smile, "Dingzhen, you did well. I will report this matter to the patriarch and the Grand Elder. It's time to investigate the backgrounds of some aristocratic families in the county as soon as possible."

Say it.

With a wave of his hand, two bottles of pills flew out of his storage bag and landed in Su Dingzhen's hands.

"One bottle contains martial arts pills, a reward for the Su family guards who are with you. The other bottle contains a Breakthrough Pill."

He swept his thoughts across the area and said calmly, "The peak of the fourth level of Qi Refining is still a bit low. The higher the cultivation level, the better one can contribute to the family."

"I truly understand, and I will certainly not disappoint Elder Shangfang's expectations."

"Well, let's go down."

"I'll take my leave now."

Su Dingzhen took a few steps back, then turned and stepped out of the mission hall.

"Taming spirit beasts? There are very few families in the Great Wei that tame spirit beasts, but there are quite a few in the Great Liang. Which family could it be?"

Su Shangfang then reported the matter to higher authorities.

A cup of tea.

The head of the Su family, the elders of the Su family, and almost all the martial arts masters above the mid-stage, except for those who were in seclusion or had gone out, were gathered together.

Unfortunately, like Su Dingzhen, they were prejudiced and assumed that it must be some Qi-cultivating family in Yuehu County that was secretly accumulating strength.

They are just waiting for the end of their Su family patriarch's life so that they can take advantage of the turmoil in Yuehu County to rise to power.

Dark clouds lingered over Yuehu County, foreshadowing an impending storm.

On the Qingjiangdongxi side, however, the sun was still shining brightly.

When Xu Mingxuan and the others returned to the Xu family, Xu Mingxuan naturally told Xu Chuan, Xu Mingwei, and Xu Mingyuan about the matter.

“I know the Su family,” Xu Mingyuan said. “They used to be the only Foundation Establishment family in Yuehu County. Since the rise of the Zhou family, they have not been as powerful as before. I heard that the two families have had a grudge for a long time, and there have been constant frictions between the family members in recent years.”

Furthermore, I've heard a rumor that the Foundation Establishment Ancestor of the Su family is nearing the end of his life. It's probably not unfounded, though the exact timeframe is unknown.

Upon hearing this, Xu Mingwei and the others fell into deep thought.

After a moment, Xu Mingwei said, "The Yuehu County is about to be thrown into turmoil, and it is already a situation where wolves are devouring tigers. This should be an opportunity for my Xu family."

“Brother is right, not to mention the Zhou family, that mighty tiger, is also watching us closely. If we can obtain the Daoist scriptures of the Su family, an old Foundation Establishment family, it will save my Xu family decades of accumulation.”

The Xu family is not weak now, but their collection of Daoist scriptures on cultivation is very limited, even compared to other Qi-cultivating families in Yuehu County.

Xu Mingyuan smiled slightly, "Tantou has grown a lot in the past two years, and his insights are now quite remarkable."

Xu Mingwei nodded in satisfaction.

"What about me?" Xu Mingshu asked curiously.

"His strength is growing rapidly, but his temperament still needs to be tempered," Xu Mingwei said calmly.

"Brother~"

"Alright, Xueji, stop being so stubborn. Just listen to your brothers' arrangements."

Xu Chuan glanced at them, a slight smile playing on his lips, and nodded, saying, "You are all good. My Xu family knows when to be patient, but when the wind rises, we must ride it."

However, this place is fraught with danger. You all need to plan carefully, and then come back to me with the results after you've discussed them."

"Yes, Dad."

The group left the bamboo house one after another.

Apart from Xu Mingshu, who still lacks maturity, the others have all grown up to be capable of handling things independently.

Xu Chuan doesn't need to offer excessive guidance; he only needs to provide a few pointers at crucial moments when shortcomings arise.

In the past few days, Xu Chuan consulted the oracle about the fortune of his family, and the results were all neutral.

This indicates that the encounter with the Su family's herb-gathering team has not yet had any impact on the Xu family.

This is indeed the case.

The counties far from the prefectural city were all calm and peaceful, but within the prefectural city itself, dark clouds loomed, and unrest was brewing.

Half a month later.

The Su family invited the heads of various Qi-cultivation families to a gathering at the Su residence. During the gathering, they proposed to cultivate talents from each family and asked them to send one or two individuals to the Su family.

The Zhou family naturally turned and left on the spot, accompanied by other prominent families who were on good terms with them.

The rest are allies of the Su family.

A single suggestion clearly divided the entire Yuehu County.

This situation also affected other martial arts families, since grandmasters are also formidable fighters. Both the Su and Zhou families sent people to secretly contact each other.

--------------

the other side.

Xu Mingxian searched for him in the imperial city without success.

After all, high-grade first-tier magic arrays, soul restriction techniques, breath concealment techniques, and spirit beast restrictions are extremely rare and are only likely to appear at auctions.

Normally, unless you happen to be there, you will hardly see them in major shops or street stalls.

"So I found an introductory text on the art of artifacts and talismans."

Ordinary formations are of little use to Xu Mingxian.

As for alchemy, unless it is an ancient alchemical text, it is of no use to Xu Chuan.

However, such ancient books are mostly collected by various aristocratic families, and they would not easily take them out. Unless Master Xu Chuan personally visits, it is possible to trade one or two.

"Indeed, if they could be easily found in the market, why would the rogue cultivators of the Great Wei have to go through so much trouble?"

"That's enough. If there's no progress in a couple of days, let's go home. Otherwise, we'll be letting Father down."

Xu Mingxian walked on the streets of the market.

Suddenly, a middle-aged voice came from behind.

"Fellow Taoist, please stay."

Xu Mingxian turned around in surprise and saw three people standing not far behind him. The person in the middle had the same cultivation level as him, both at the eighth level of Qi Refining. However, judging from his appearance, he should be over seventy years old and was wearing a dark black robe.

The other two were also at the seventh level of Qi Refining, with gray hair and beards.

The person on the left is wearing a gray Taoist robe, while the person on the right is wearing a blue wide-sleeved robe.

The leader, a Qi Refining Level 8 cultivator, smiled faintly and said, "Fellow Daoist, don't be nervous. We mean no harm. My name is Zhang Yanzhi."

During the conversation, he pointed to the people on his left and right and said, "This is Daoist Chongxu, and this is Fellow Daoist Jinhu. May I ask how you should address me?"

There's something fishy about talking to someone without a reason.

Xu Mingxian was extremely wary, but since the other party was polite and considerate, she couldn't be impolite herself.

"Daoist Yunming," Xu Mingxian returned the greeting and said calmly, "What business do you fellow Daoists have with me? We should not have met before, should we?"

"Zhang and Fellow Daoist Jinhu have been friends for many years, and Zhang only recently met this Daoist Chongxu. As for calling him Daoist..."

Zhang Yanzhi smiled slightly and said, "May I ask if you are a formation master, fellow Daoist?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Mingxian became even more wary. "How did Fellow Daoist Zhang know this?"

"Actually, we have been wandering around the market for several days, looking for a formation master. The day before yesterday, Daoist Chongxu happened to meet you, and it seems that you were looking for formations and classic texts on formations."

We had planned to leave if we found nothing, and then explore the ancient cultivator's cave on our own.

"Explore the cave?"

Zhang Yanzhi said, "That's right. The cave is protected by a great formation. Although it's not a top-tier formation, without a formation master, it would take the three of us countless days to break through and explore it."

"Cave dwelling." Xu Mingxian pondered to herself: This trip has yielded nothing, and I am somewhat ashamed to face my father. The ancient cultivator's cave dwelling should contain some ancient books, and perhaps there will be some unexpected surprises.

However, his divine sense swept over them again, revealing one late stage of the eighth level of Qi Refining, one late stage of the seventh level of Qi Refining, and one early stage of the seventh level of Qi Refining.

In a one-on-one situation, Xu Mingxian fears no one.

If it is a game
"This humble Taoist does indeed know some techniques for breaking formations," Xu Mingxian said.

"Would Fellow Daoist Yunming be interested in joining us to explore the ancient cultivator's cave?" Zhang Yanzhi's eyes flashed with a sharp light.

"What level of cultivator left behind that cave dwelling?"

"Judging from the strength of the formation, it is less than the second level, and its location is in a place where the spiritual energy is relatively thin in Guangling County. It should have been left by an ancient cultivator who has reached the Great Perfection of Qi Refining." Daoist Chongxu guessed.

Guangling Prefecture?
Xu Mingxian's heart skipped a beat. Wasn't that right next to Yuehu County?

(End of this chapter)