Establishing a Clan in the Eastern Wilderness: A Daily Divination, Cultivating Longevity in a Grotto

boom--

The Heavenly Book shone with brilliant golden light!

An invisible and intangible mysterious power surged from between his eyebrows, passed through the walls of the meditation room, crossed the mountain path, and fell straight into the underground river behind the mountain!

At the bottom of the underground river, the silver-scaled fish with its golden scales is fast asleep.

The moment the golden light entered its body, it suddenly awoke, its whole body trembling violently! Golden scales burst open one by one, and at the same time they burst open, they grew back—the new scales were larger and thicker, with dazzling golden light shimmering at their edges!

Its size expanded at a visible rate, growing from a foot long to more than three feet long!

Its aura rises steadily!

Early Stage of First Rank —

Mid-stage of Tier 1 —

Late Stage of First Rank —

Peak of Tier 1!

boom!

His aura remained steadily at the peak of the first tier, just one step away from the second tier.

At the same time, it opened its mouth and spat out a pale golden water arrow. The water arrow didn't disperse after leaving the water; instead, it solidified into a sharp blade, cleaving a millstone-sized rock on the riverbed in two!

Quasi-second-tier bloodline spell - Golden Scale Water Blade.

Where the water blade passed, the river was cleaved open, and it took three breaths for the gap to close again.

The silver-scaled fish floated in the water, its body shimmering with golden scales, its eyes blood-red, and a fierce aura emanated from it. Where was the trace of the docility of ordinary spirit fish?

The explanatory text appeared at the opportune moment:

[Spirit Beast: Golden Scaled Fish (Mutant)]

[Cultivation Level: Peak First Tier]

[Bloodline Talents: Golden Scale Body Protection (Tier 1 Excellent), Golden Scale Water Blade (Near Tier 2)]

[Potential: Tier 2 (Can reach Tier 3 after leaping over the dragon gate)]

[Note: This fish is untamed and aggressive, but it is completely dependent on Li Shouyi, who raised it from a young age.]

...

...

The next morning, just as dawn was breaking.

As usual, Li's father carried the bait basin and hummed a little tune as he came to the edge of the underground river.

"My sweet little fish, time to eat!"

He grabbed a handful of bait, about to scatter it into the water, when he suddenly froze.

On the water's surface, a large fish, about three feet long and covered in golden scales, swam leisurely. Its fins, as if crafted from gold leaf, shimmered in the morning light; with a flick of its tail, golden ripples spread across the water's surface.

Mr. Li rubbed his eyes, then rubbed them again.

You read that right.

He crouched down and tentatively threw a bait pellet into the water.

The golden-scaled fish leaped out of the water with a "splash," swallowed the bait in one gulp, and splashed water all over Li's father's head and face.

Mr. Li wiped the water off his face, and instead of being annoyed, he burst into laughter.

"Good fish! Good fish! Hahaha!"

...

...

In the quiet room, Li Changsheng began his daily divination as usual.

A yellow light flowed, and the deduced text slowly emerged:

[The Grand Competition of Families - Round One]

Three days later, the Yun Family Grand Competition officially began.

The first round of competition was not a traditional arena contest, but a "competition within five counties"—Anyang Prefecture governs five counties, each with five Qi-refining families, and each sending three representatives to carry out a mission in a designated area within their county. The mission details were unknown, but the key to victory lay not in combat strength, but in adaptability, teamwork, and overall capabilities.

The top three teams from each county will advance to the next round.

It's not a martial arts competition.

As he was pondering this, a report came from outside the door:

"Clan leader, Du Liu Niang from the Du family requests an audience!"

...

...

Reception room.

Du Liuniang looked thinner than when they last met, but her aura was more composed—she was at the fifth level of Qi Refining, with a solid foundation.

"Clan Chief Li," she said, getting straight to the point, "I've come to seek your guidance with the Grand Competition approaching."

Li Changsheng invited her to sit down.

Du Liuniang said, "I've been gathering information from the Zhenshi Division these past few days. This year's aristocratic family competition involves 25 families across five counties in Anyang Prefecture. Our Qinglan County has five families: our two families, the Cheng family, and two newly relocated families."

She paused, then continued, "The Cheng family goes without saying; you and I both know them. Of the two newly relocated families, one is the Nangong clan, headed by Nangong Jin, a peak Qi Refining cultivator with formidable strength. The other is an ordinary emerging family, not as powerful as us."

Li Changsheng nodded.

"What about the families from the old county?" he asked.

Du Liuniang's expression grew more serious: "Those established families in those counties have been passed down for at least a hundred years, with more than one person at the peak of Qi Refining in their clans, and some are even halfway to Foundation Establishment, just missing an opportunity. Compared to them, our newly established families..."

She didn't continue.

Li Changsheng understood what she meant.

"However," Du Liuniang changed the subject, "I came here to ask if Clan Chief Li has any thoughts on this? You have connections in the Yun family, don't you...?"

She looked at Li Changsheng with a hint of expectation in her eyes.

Li Changsheng pondered for a moment and said, "I have indeed heard some news—the first round of this competition will not be a martial arts contest in the arena."

Du Liuniang's eyes lit up.

"The specific mission is unknown," Li Changsheng said, "but since it's not a fighting arena, we can't just look at combat strength when selecting representatives. Adaptability, teamwork, and special abilities might be more important."

He stopped short of making a point.

Du Liuniang seemed to be deep in thought, then rose to take her leave: "Thank you, Clan Chief Li. I will go back and revise the list."

...

...

Three days later.

Upon receiving the message from the Yun family, Li Changsheng immediately took his younger sister Li Changle and his elder brother-in-law Chen Wenyuan, and rode flying horses towards Qinglan County.

The county town is located more than a hundred miles north of Qinglan Mountain. It is a small town built against the mountain, with city walls made of bluestone, about three zhang high. Although it cannot compare with the bustling market town, it still has a certain grandeur. There were already Yun family cultivators on duty at the city gate. After verifying their identities, they were allowed to enter the city.

There was a wide square in the center of the city, where dozens of people had gathered.

When Li Changsheng and his two companions landed, the Du family had already arrived.

Du Liuniang was dressed in a tight-fitting outfit, with a long sword hanging at her waist, and two members of the Du family standing behind her.

Next, they arrived at the Yu family's house.

The three members of the Yu family were led by a middle-aged man at the third level of Qi Refining, followed by two younger clansmen at the second level of Qi Refining. All three looked somewhat nervous, and their gazes swept over the crowd with a hint of timidity.

Du Liuniang whispered to Li Changsheng:

"The Yu family is a newly established family that has just moved here from elsewhere. They have a weak foundation, and if there are no surprises, they should be at the bottom in this competition of aristocratic families."

Immediately afterwards, the atmosphere in the room tensed up.

We've arrived at the Cheng family's residence.

Leading the group was Elder Cheng, a sixth-level Qi Refining cultivator with a grim expression. Behind him were two others—one was Cheng Lao Er, a fifth-level Qi Refining cultivator whose gaze towards Li Changsheng was filled with resentment; the other was an unfamiliar middle-aged cultivator, burly and with a cold, stern face, whose aura was clearly that of a powerful cultivator—

Peak of Qi Refining!

Du Liuniang's expression changed slightly, and she leaned closer to Li Changsheng and whispered:

"I've heard of that person. After the female cultivator from the Cheng family gave birth to the child of the second elder of the Yun family, she became quite favored in the Yun family and specifically requested the second elder to bestow a guest elder to support her family. This must be the person."

A guest elder at the peak of Qi Refining.

Li Changsheng's gaze narrowed slightly.

The Cheng family is determined to make a name for themselves in the aristocratic family competition.

Cheng Lao Er glanced at Li Changsheng, his gaze filled with undisguised provocation and smugness.

Li Changsheng ignored it.

A moment later, three streaks of light swept in from the horizon and landed steadily on the plaza.

Li Changsheng's pupils contracted slightly.

Three peak Qi Refining experts!

The leader was a middle-aged man with a fair complexion, no beard, sharp eyes, and a calm, mountain-like aura. Behind him were a man and a woman, both around thirty years old, who were also at the peak of Qi Refining.

Du Liuniang's voice rang in his ears:

"The one in the lead is Nangong Jin. The other two are his son and his Daoist partner. The strength of these three is among the top in the entire Anyang Prefecture among Qi Refining cultivators."

She paused, her tone grave:

"The Nangong family has only been in Qinglan County for a few months, but they are already showing signs of becoming the number one family in the county. Judging from this, they will most likely be the first family in Qinglan County to be promoted to the ninth rank."