Transmigrating to the Qi Cultivation Path, I became an outdated Foundation Establishment cultivator.

"Boy, why didn't you stay in Guiyuan Cave to continue your cultivation?"

Or is it that the He family doesn't recognize the token I gave you?"

The hunched old man in front of He Ziyang was none other than He Sheng.

It had been more than a year since I last saw He Ziyang. He had grown quite a bit taller, and his features had matured, making him even more handsome.

"Senior, please grant me permission to cultivate in the cave when I went to the back mountain with your order. Both the elders in charge of the clan and the senior elders allowed me to do so."

However, the elder of the clan later said that I was still young and my mind was not yet settled, so it was not appropriate for me to spend a long time cultivating in such a lonely and cold place as Guiyuan Cave.

So I established this Green Bamboo Courtyard and attracted many disciples of similar status to me to study and cultivate together.

Now, I can return to the Yuan Cave to cultivate for one day every ten days, and I never lack supplies on ordinary days.

..."

He Ziyang said all this in one sentence: the elders of the He family have treated him very well, and he asked He Sheng not to blame them.

He Sheng nodded slightly, agreeing that the elder had put a lot of effort into cultivating He Ziyang.

"However... one should still be diligent in cultivation."

When they first met, He Ziyang was only at the first level of Qi Refining, and he still hasn't been able to advance to the second level.

Even though this kid's spiritual root aptitude was only slightly above average, He Sheng still felt it was a bit slow.

However, He Ziyang clearly did not think so, and he said:

"Senior, I now practice breathing exercises for an hour each morning, noon and evening. Master Yun said that my body is not yet fully developed, so this is already the best way."

If you are too diligent, you may damage your meridians.

"And when I switched to cultivating the 'Thousand-Ren Jade-Severing Technique' before, it took me several months to recover..."

Is that true?

He Sheng hurriedly searched Piao Ge's memories and realized that he was really an amateur.

Early-stage Qi Refining cultivators are still in the mortal realm, firstly because their physical bodies are still fragile, and secondly because their spiritual consciousness has not yet developed.

The former refers to the limited capacity of the meridians. If the meridians are circulated and qi is refined too frequently, it may indeed damage the meridians, or even cause permanent damage.

The latter is a difference in energy. Once a cultivator is born with spiritual consciousness, he is no longer the same as an ordinary person. He can be energetic even if he doesn't sleep or rest for twelve hours a day.

"Brother Piao was an exception back then. From the moment he embarked on the path of immortality, he nourished himself with various spiritual medicines such as the Meridian Strengthening Pill and Qi Nourishing Powder, which enabled him to practice breathing exercises for five hours a day."

Back then, Piao Ge was supported by the entire clan, while He Ziyang is now at most a key talent being cultivated. Given the constant ups and downs the He family has faced, it's normal that there's a significant difference in the level of support they receive.

"Tell me about the He family."

Since the cultivation guidance almost led to a misunderstanding, He Sheng simply changed the subject.

He Ziyang fell silent for a moment after hearing this before recounting all the changes in the He family over the past year, with a focus on the widow Liu Yunxi and the second branch of the family, led by Piao Ge's mother, who were both ordinary nobles.

Clearly, the second wife is widely recognized as a cancer within the Ho family.

"Liu Yunxi will leave the He family soon, so there's no need to worry about that."

Putting that aside, what are your thoughts on the future of the Ho family?

He Sheng did not simply regard He Ziyang as a twelve or thirteen-year-old boy. Based on their previous conversation, he felt that the boy was quite opinionated.

He Ziyang's eyes lit up upon hearing this, and he said happily:

"That woman left? Did the senior intervene?!"

He Ziyang was still a young man, and when he heard something happy, he couldn't help but show his emotions and raised his voice a little.

But he found that the other teenagers around him seemed not to hear him, and there seemed to be a barrier between him and the others.

Such methods made He Ziyang's heart skip a beat. He quickly composed himself and began to ponder He Sheng's problem.

"I am young and inexperienced, and I can only do my best to answer your questions."

The root of the He family's problems lies in the lack of a successor. After the clan head passed away, the elders struggled to keep the family afloat, but the second branch, for their own selfish reasons, let the wolf into the house, leaving the clan powerless to resist.

Therefore, the most important task in the future is to cultivate new Foundation Establishment cultivators.

As for how to cultivate them, that's worth discussing.

But regardless of the approach, unified authority and unity of purpose are essential.

Given the current situation, I believe we should abandon the distinctions based on blood ties, separate immortals from mortals, and promote people based solely on their talents.

..."

He Sheng hadn't expected to get any serious answers, but to his surprise, He Ziyang had a whole set of answers.

First, he discussed the strategy of separating immortals from mortals, and then he talked about the great development of the Green Bamboo Academy.

According to his plan, Qingzhu Academy should not only enlighten the cultivators of the clan with all kinds of arts, but also allow each person to learn a kind of immortal art.

In this way, not only do these distant relatives have a livelihood, but if the clan grows stronger in the future and wants to develop new industries, there will also be readily available manpower.

"Did you come up with all of this yourself?"

"I once privately consulted Master Yun about this matter. The saying 'the separation of immortals and mortals, and the promotion of talent' has deeply influenced me."

As for the Qingzhu Academy in Daxing, it represents the sentiments of us distant descendants from collateral branches of the family.

He Sheng nodded again, becoming increasingly satisfied with He Ziyang.

His unwillingness to return to the He family was partly due to his reluctance to confront the underlying thoughts of those close to Piao Ge, including Liu Yunxi, other concubines, and Piao Ge's mortal mother.

He had no desire to touch upon these ties from his past.

He Sheng pondered for a moment, then took out a piece of gold paper and used his magic to write on it:

The black tortoise is superior.

Separation of immortals and mortals

Daxing Qingzhu.

These twelve simple words represent the direction he has set for the He family in the future. As for whether the patriarch He Weixian will follow it, he believes that after the news of the Lianyue Lake incident spreads, He Weixian should not have the courage to disobey.

He Sheng placed the gold paper on the desk in front of He Ziyang, and then reached out to pluck the little monkey from the window.

As soon as the Minghui Water Ape disappeared, the boys who had been gathered around the window were all astonished. They looked around but still couldn't find He Sheng.

"Let's go."

As He Sheng was about to put the little monkey in his arms and leave Changyang Mountain, the little guy refused. He stood on He Sheng's arm and kept chirping and gesturing with his hands.

"You don't want to leave? You want to stay here... listen..."

It took He Sheng a long time to understand why Minghui Water Ape wanted to stay at Qingzhu Academy to study.

A monkey said it wanted to learn...

While He Sheng was surprised, a thought suddenly occurred to him.

'Could this be the way the intelligent ape is awakening its wisdom?'

Upon thinking of this,

He Sheng made up his mind.

He then made a hand seal, using the "Soul Imprint Technique" to leave a life soul imprint on Minghui Water Ape's body to strengthen the connection between the two.

When he captured the Minghui Water Ape, he had already branded it with the beast-taming method from the "Ten Thousand Demons' Joint Transformation Technique". Now he was just reinforcing it to prevent any loss in the future.

Then, He Sheng pointed at He Ziyang and said to the little monkey:

"While you stay in this Green Bamboo Courtyard, you must stay with him and are not allowed to run around on your own."

The little monkey nodded repeatedly, scratching its ears and cheeks with delight.

"Kid, I'm entrusting this monkey to your care. Don't let this old man lose it."

Upon hearing this, He Ziyang carefully took the Minghui Water Ape into his hands. Perhaps because he was under He Sheng's command, or perhaps because of the addition of this monkey, he felt closer to He Sheng and couldn't help but ask:

"Senior, may I ask how I should address you?"

After a moment's thought, He Sheng said:

"Lord of the Manor!"

You may address me as such from now on.

After saying that, He Sheng disappeared in a flash.

A moment later,

The middle-aged man in the blue robe, whom He Ziyang called "Master Yun," arrived late, leading the clan elder.

The elder, being a highly skilled cultivator, immediately noticed the golden paper on He Ziyang's desk that emanated the spiritual pressure of Foundation Establishment. He quickly pulled He Ziyang aside and inquired about it in detail.

After hearing He Ziyang's explanation, Elder He Weixian was still somewhat skeptical. He knew that Liu Yunxi had caused him a lot of trouble over the past year, and he was at a loss for what to do.

However, at sunset that day, the Liu family actually sent people to take Liu Yunxi away and return He Linxue and her son to their home.

Afterwards, the Liu family frequently interacted with the He family, not only returning all of the He family's properties but also gifting them a Lingtian Manor as an apology.

This was just the beginning. As news of Lianyue Lake spread, various families sent people to Changyang Mountain to present every penny of the ward's money from Xiajiang Ward last year.

While He Weixian was overjoyed, he was also somewhat apprehensive. After consulting with several trusted confidants, he finally...

He personally made a trip to Tiandu Mountain to deliver the gifts of money sent by the Liu family as an apology, along with the gold from various other families, as a token of gratitude. He then entrusted the little green snake to present them to Lord Xuan Turtle.

He Sheng counted the gifts and found that they were worth fifty to sixty thousand spirit stones in total, which made him very satisfied with He Weixian.

One month later,

With only a few days left until the auction, He Sheng gave the little green snake some instructions and then headed towards Yuanxia Immortal City.