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

Yun Jiuniang felt a little regretful, but politely asked, "Clan Chief Li, are there any Soul Crystals you haven't taken out yet?"

Li Changsheng looked at her with a puzzled expression. Logically speaking, this amount was already enough to advance, and even if there was more, there was no need to take it out again.

Yun Jiuniang explained with a smile, "We made a bet. If the Li family wins the championship..."

"Win the championship?" Yun Qilang interrupted with a sneer, "Ninth Sister, aren't you giving the Li family too much credit?! The Li family only managed to obtain 1,100 merit points by sheer luck, yet they still dare to dream of winning the championship. If that's really the case, I'll just give this Warm Sun Jade to the Li family for free!"

The Warm Sun Jade can help Qi Refining cultivators accelerate their cultivation speed, making it a rare and valuable Tier 1 treasure.

Li Changsheng's heart skipped a beat: "Is Young Master Yun truly telling the truth?"

Yun Qilang felt a strange sense of unease at his question. Could it be that the Li family really had some hidden trump card? He subconsciously looked at Yun Jiuniang, who was looking at him with a half-smile.

"Seventh Young Master," she said slowly, "weren't you quite bold just now? What, you regretted it as soon as the words left your mouth? If you're scared, it's not too late to admit defeat now."

Yun Qilang's face flushed red: "Who's afraid! My word, Yun Qilang's, is my bond!"

Steward Zhou also found it amusing and added with a chuckle, "I can vouch for you. Young Master Yun is a man of his word and would never go back on his promise."

Yun Qilang was caught in a dilemma and could only bite the bullet and say, "If the Li family can win the championship, I will offer this Warm Sun Jade with both hands!"

Nangong Shun sneered from the side: "A fifth-level Qi Refining cultivator wants to win the championship? Dream on."

Li Changsheng remained silent.

He simply took out a soul crystal the size of a pigeon egg, with pale gold patterns flowing throughout, from his storage bag and placed it on the table.

Quasi-second-tier Soul Crystal.

Manager Zhou's pupils contracted slightly. He picked up the soul crystal, examined it carefully for a moment, took a deep breath, and said in disbelief, "This... is indeed a near-second-tier soul crystal. In terms of merit points... five hundred."

He paused, then looked at Nangong Jin: "The Nangong family has 1,200, and the Li family has 1,600. The champion of this first round of competition is—"

"The Li family."

The entire room fell silent.

Yun Qilang's face went from red to white, then from white to green—a truly spectacular sight.

Yun Jiuniang smiled and reached out to take the Yin-Yang Umbrella on the table and the Warm Sun Jade from Yun Qilang's waist into her pocket: "Thank you for your generosity, Seventh Young Master."

Yun Qilang's lips twitched, but he couldn't utter a single word. He glared fiercely at Li Changsheng, kicked aside the slumped Elder Cheng, and stormed off.

Nangong Jin stared blankly at the near-second-tier soul crystal. After a long while, she turned to look at Nangong Shun, who was also stunned. Her voice was very soft, but it sounded like a slap in the face.

"See? There are always people better than you, and mountains beyond mountains."

Nangong Shun lowered his head, not daring to utter a sound.

Steward Zhou announced with a smile: "In the first round of the competition in Qinglan County, the Li family, the Du family, and the Nangong family have advanced. The next round of the competition will be held in Anyang County, and the details will be announced at that time. Representatives from each family should report to the county town in three days."

After saying that, he collected the soul crystal and rode away on a cloud.

Yun Jiuniang walked up to Li Changsheng and handed him the wine gourd and the Warm Sun Jade: "Clan Chief Li, these are yours."

Li Changsheng quickly waved his hand: "Ninth Miss, how can this be—"

"Why can't I use them?" Yun Jiuniang interrupted him with a smile. "If you hadn't taken out that near-second-tier soul crystal, I wouldn't have been able to win these three items. This is an unexpected bonus. The wine gourd and the Warm Sun Jade are useless to me, but they are of great benefit to the Li family. You can accept them without worry."

"Next, prepare well for the next round of the competition. The spot in the Five Dragons Mountains is the most important thing."

Li Changsheng accepted the two magical artifacts and solemnly clasped his hands in thanks: "Thank you, Miss Jiu."

Li Changle had already come closer, her eyes sparkling as she stared at the warm jade: "Brother! Our family has gained two more treasures!"

Li Changsheng put the two magical artifacts into his storage bag.

The Book of Destiny sent a familiar vibration through it:

[Family Luck Value +300]

[Current Family Luck Value: 300/6000]

"It seems that opening the inner space of the Book of Fortune last time exhausted all the fortune!"

but.

If he could enter Five Dragon Mountain, he believed he could quickly gather six thousand luck points.

"Let's go home!"

...

...

Outside the gate of Qinglan Mountain.

Li Shouyi stood at the front with his hands behind his back, gazing at the distant horizon. Behind him, his eldest cousin Li Changming, Li Chang'an, Li Yue, and other clansmen stood on either side, all eagerly awaiting his arrival.

"Uncle Shouyi," Li Changming couldn't help but ask, his voice tinged with trepidation, "Do you think... the clan leader and the others can make it into the top three?"

Before Li Shouyi could speak, Li Chang'an, who was studying methods to upgrade the grade of spirit fields, suddenly raised his head, his face flushed red: "The clan leader will definitely be in the top three!"

His voice was crisp and loud, startling everyone around him.

"Who is the clan leader? Since he's gone, he's bound to win!" Li Chang'an clenched his fist, his tone as certain as if he were saying the sun was rising in the east.

Li Shouyi glanced at him, smiled, and said, "It's good that you're back safe and sound."

suddenly--

A small, bright red dot appeared on the horizon.

"They're here! They're here!" Li Chang'an was the first to shout.

The crimson dot drew closer and grew larger—it was Crimson Feather. Its golden-red plumage shimmered in the morning light, its wingspan reaching over ten feet, exuding an awe-inspiring presence. On Crimson Feather's back sat three figures steadily—Li Changsheng in front, Li Changle in the middle, and Chen Wenyuan at the rear.

All the whiskers and tails are intact, not one is missing.

Li Shouyi finally loosened his clenched fist and exhaled a long breath.

Chi Yu circled once above the plaza before slowly descending. Li Changsheng leaped down, and before he could even regain his footing, Li Changming rushed forward: "Clan leader! Did you make it into the top three?"

Li Changle leaped off Chi Yu's back, her face flushed and her eyes crinkling with joy: "Big cousin, we didn't just get into the top three! We won first place!"

The square fell silent for a moment after these words were spoken.

"I knew it! I knew the clan leader could do it!" Li Chang'an's voice cracked with excitement, his face flushed red, and he shouted at the top of his lungs, "Clan leader is mighty! The Li family is mighty!"

...

...

Council Hall.

As soon as Li Changle entered, she couldn't contain herself any longer and began chattering about her experiences on the mountain. From the statues in the dilapidated temple to the faces in the ancient books, from the siege by the rice children to the chase by the ghost pipa, she gestured wildly at the thrilling parts, her little face turning white and red in turns, keeping everyone in the hall on the edge of their seats.

Li's mother, who was attending to him, turned pale when she heard that the Cheng and Du families had almost been wiped out. She grabbed Li Changsheng's sleeve, her fingers icy cold.

"Chang Sheng," her voice trembled, "we're not going to the second round...."

The hall fell silent.

Mother Li's eyes reddened, her voice soft yet firm: "We now have spiritual fields, spiritual veins, and a spirit-testing platform. It's a thousand times, ten thousand times better than the days we had in Li Family Fortress. The second round of the competition is against top-tier Qi-refining families. The first round was already so dangerous; who knows what we'll encounter in the second round? I only ask that you all stay safe and sound; I don't ask for anything else."

Li Changsheng looked at his mother and felt a warmth in his heart.

He grasped his mother's hand and smiled, "Mother, have you forgotten? The whole of Li Family Fort knows that your son cherishes his life the most."

After hearing what he said, Li's mother couldn't say anything more.

Li Changsheng's smile faded, and he said seriously, "Mother, now that our Li family has settled in the Eastern Wilderness, you've seen the living conditions here. Our arch-enemy, the Cheng family, is still around, and the faction led by the Second Elder of the Yun family is currently in power. If we don't advance, we'll fall behind. This competition is a great opportunity for us to gather resources and develop rapidly. If we miss it, we may not have another chance."

Li Shouyi nodded and said in a deep voice, "The child is right. In this Eastern Wilderness, it's either you eat people or people eat you. We cannot retreat."

Li's mother opened her mouth, but ultimately said nothing more.

Li Changsheng looked at his father: "Father, I plan to make a substitution for the second round of the competition."

Li Shouyi raised an eyebrow.

"Brother-in-law has been quite exhausted this time and needs to rest," Li Changsheng said. "I plan to have you take over."

Li Shouyi was taken aback.

Li Changsheng explained, "The golden-scaled fish you raised is already a peak-level first-tier combat-type spirit beast, and it only obeys your commands. Your participation is equivalent to having an additional peak-level Qi Refining combatant."

Li Shouyi was silent for a moment, then nodded: "Okay."

Li Changsheng then looked at his younger sister: "Changle, continue to fight. You are a formation master, and you also have the Qingqiu Formation Plate bestowed by Master Yu. If it's a team battle, you're indispensable."

Li Changle nodded vigorously.

"Then it's settled." Li Changsheng stood up. "Father and little sister, take a good rest. We'll set off early tomorrow morning."

He turned to Li Chang'an, took out the dozen or so golden-patterned spirit stakes from his storage bag, and handed them over: "Chang'an, these spirit stakes will be useful after they grow into a forest. They're yours now."

Li Chang'an took the spirit stake, holding it in his hands, his eyes sparkling: "Don't worry, Clan Chief, I will definitely plant it well!"

...

...

Li Changsheng returned to his small courtyard.

He walked to the open space in the courtyard, took out the first-grade top-quality spirit-gathering tree from his storage bag, and carefully planted it.

The moment the sapling was planted, an invisible force of attraction spread outwards from it. The spiritual energy scattered in the air around Qinglan Mountain seemed to be drawn by an invisible hand, converging towards this small tree.

Spiritual energy, like threads, poured into the courtyard from all directions, where it was absorbed, compressed, and purified by the Spirit Gathering Tree before being slowly released.

The concentration of spiritual energy in the entire Qinglan Mountain is increasing at a visible rate.

First, the spiritual spring well in Li Changsheng's meditation room—with a humming sound, the spiritual energy gushing out suddenly became several times more concentrated, advancing from the lower grade of the first rank to the middle grade of the first rank.

The underground river behind the mountain.

As Li's mother was squatting by the mulberry tree nursery watering the plants, the soil at her feet suddenly loosened, and a milky-white spiritual energy gushed out from a crack in the ground. The soil swelled up, and a clear spring gushed forth, forming a small puddle on the edge of the field.

"This is... the Spirit Spring Well!" Li's mother was both surprised and delighted. She dropped the water ladle and ran to find Li's father.

"Dad! Another spirit spring well has appeared on the back mountain!"

Father Li was feeding the fish by the river when he heard this. He rushed over, squatted down by the puddle, examined it closely, tested the water temperature, scooped up a mouthful, tasted it, and grinned, "First-grade low-level, the spiritual energy isn't bad. With this well, the spirit mulberry tree can grow. This time next year, we can harvest mulberry leaves and raise silkworms!"

The Garden of Spiritual Herbs.

Li Chang'an had just planted the golden-patterned spirit stakes and straightened up to wipe his sweat when suddenly his feet trembled. He looked down and saw that in the eastern corner of the spirit herb garden, the soil had loosened and another spirit spring had emerged, gushing out milky white spirit mist.

Li Chang'an was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed.

This year, he used the corpses of those bandits to cultivate ten acres of new spiritual fields. He was just worried about not having enough spiritual energy from the spiritual veins, and this spiritual spring well came at the perfect time! He squatted by the well, scooped up a handful of spiritual spring water and poured it on the newly planted spiritual stumps, muttering, "Drink more, drink more, grow well..."

The courtyard of my grandmother, Madam Li.

As Li was weaving a ritual robe under the eaves, she suddenly sensed a fluctuation of spiritual energy coming from a corner of the courtyard. She got up and went over, only to see that the soil at the base of the courtyard wall had loosened, and a new spiritual spring was gushing out water.

"Oh," she chuckled, "another bite."

Just as she was about to report back, she suddenly heard a very faint sound coming from the inner room.

It looked like someone had turned over.

Li paused for a moment, then tiptoed into the inner room.

On the bed, the mysterious woman who had been in a coma for nearly two years twitched her eyelids slightly.