The Immortal Clan begins with deductive intelligence.

The four brats had barely disappeared when the study door was pushed open.

With a creak.

Xu Dayou chuckled as he squeezed in, bringing with him a chill.

"These little brats, I see Xu Xining is so smug, his tail is practically wagging in the air."

Xu Da sat down on the armchair at the lower end of the table, poured two cups of hot tea from the copper kettle, and pushed one of them to Xu Changqing.

"Chieftain, have you really agreed to their request?"

"I knew it was my uncle who was instigating this. A child that young wouldn't understand anything if no one guided him."

Xu Changqing didn't look up, but simply took a wolf-hair brush from the brush holder and spread out a sheet of gold-flecked Xuan paper.

"I've agreed. There's no time like the present. Since we're both in the mood, let's do it tomorrow at noon."

"The one who truly understands me is the clan leader."

When it came to serious matters, Xu Dayou's playful expression faded somewhat.

"I was thinking that you've been so busy with the fishpond and spirit stones these past few days that you might have some concerns. So I sent that kid Xining to scout things out. If you don't agree, I can use this to put an end to the clansmen's hopes and prevent them from getting restless."

Xu Changqing picked up his teacup, the rising steam blurring his features.

This is the elder of the family. He usually seems a bit muddled and even a little greedy.

But when it comes to crucial moments, all he thinks about is his family.

Xu Changqing nodded, tapping his fingers lightly on the table.

"Since we've come to the same conclusion, we don't need to wait until the second day of the second lunar month."

By the dim light, the two began to discuss the details of tomorrow's spirit divination.

From cleaning the ancestral hall to activating the spirit-testing plate, to the order of the children, and even the words to say to comfort them if their spiritual roots were not detected, he thought of everything.

This conversation lasted for more than an hour.

The water clock dripped softly, signaling the deep of night.

Once everything was settled, Xu Changqing felt a throbbing sensation between his brows.

He rubbed his slightly numb cheeks, preparing to write the edict to open the ancestral hall the next day.

Xu Dayou wasn't in a hurry to leave either.

He felt that the mature-beyond-his-years clan leader was pushing him too hard. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something comforting, but felt that any words would seem pale in the face of such a difficult situation.

Xu Changqing was unaware of his uncle's thoughts.

He had just dipped his brush in ink, but hadn't yet put it down.

But then, on a corner of the yellowed Xuan paper, a small black insect crawled up from who-knows-where.

The insect was extremely small, no bigger than a grain of rice, and completely black, making it stand out conspicuously on the rice paper.

It is crawling aimlessly along the paper.

A playful thought suddenly crossed Xu Changqing's mind, and he lightly drew a line of ink along the insect's path.

The ink was not dry; it was damp and smelled of pine soot.

The little insect touched the ink mark with its antennae, anxiously circled twice on the spot, then changed direction and crawled to the right.

Xu Changqing flicked his wrist slightly, and another stroke fell.

It blocked its path once again.

The little insect became even more anxious, its six thin legs darting around rapidly as it ran to the left.

Xu Changqing painted it again.

With just a few strokes, the tiny insect could only spin around in a small space.

Looking at the little creature that he had been working so hard to depict in his writing, Xu Changqing felt a strange sense of desolation.

Xu Dayou, who was standing to the side, let out a long sigh.

"Chieftain, how are we any different from these insects?"

Yes.

What difference is there?

On Cangwu Island, in the Nanzhu Marshland, and even in this vast world of cultivation.

Isn't the Xu family just like this worm?

Xu Changqing's gaze was somewhat unfocused.

The self from my past life, struggling in a sea of ​​exam questions and constantly hitting walls in society.

Isn't that how it is?

Whether in that concrete jungle or in this ethereal world of cultivation.

What stood in his way was never a wall, but rather the omnipresent rules and hierarchies.

The insect hesitated, and so did the man.

Xu Changqing's teasing thoughts vanished.

He stopped drawing, no longer wanting to draw those annoying ink marks.

The insect was still hesitating.

It tentatively stretched out its leg, touched the still-wet ink, and then withdrew it.

It was tired.

It remained where it was, its antennae drooping, motionless.

A hint of dejection flashed in Xu Changqing's eyes.

"Have you given up?"

Xu Dayou shook his head, his eyes filled with a sorrowful sympathy for those in the same boat.

"Indeed, dying from exhaustion is also fate."

The insect paused for a moment, then suddenly rubbed its forelegs hard against the paper twice.

Followed by.

"Buzz—"

A very faint flapping sound rang out.

The insect's carapace suddenly opened, and its two thin, transparent wings flapped violently.

It did not touch the ink stain that was not yet dry.

Instead, it rose directly from the ground, bypassing the insurmountable ink mark and the tip of Xu Changqing's pen that was suspended.

It circled once in the air, then flew towards the sliver of moonlight filtering through the window and disappeared.

Xu Changqing was slightly taken aback.

"this……"

Xu Dayou's mouth dropped open, his outstretched hand frozen in mid-air, and he remained stunned for a long time.

"This thing... can fly?"

Xu Changqing suddenly laughed.

"Yes! Yes!"

"This ink circle can trap crawling insects, but it can't trap flying insects."

"Uncle Dayou".

Xu Changqing turned his head, his eyes bright and piercing.

"What insurmountable barrier are Cangwu Island, the Zhang family, or even the Nanzhu Great Swamp?"

Looking at the clan leader's completely transformed appearance, Xu Dayou felt a great deal of relief from his frustration.

"Does the chieftain mean we can fly too?"

Xu Changqing spoke with certainty, his gaze fixed on the vast night outside the window.

"That's how it should be."

......

The following day at noon.

Xu Clan Ancestral Hall on Cangwu Island.

Although it is called an ancestral hall, it is actually just a slightly larger tiled house behind the main hall, where the ancestral tablets of the Xu family are enshrined.

Today, the ancestral hall's main gate is wide open, and the threshold has been polished to a shine.

Xu Changqing changed into a brand-new gray-blue robe and stood in front of the offering table with a solemn expression.

He held a disc-shaped magical artifact in his hands, engraved with runes representing the five elements and directions, with a groove in the very center.

This is the "Spirit Test Plate".

Xu Dayou stood to the side, holding a roster in his hand, a hint of anticipation on his old face.

Standing below were seven children named "hope," the oldest being six years old and the youngest only four and a half.

Behind them were the children's parents, each holding their breath, not daring to even breathe loudly, for fear of disturbing the spirits of their ancestors.

Whether mortals can cross the threshold between immortals and mortals depends entirely on whether this spirit-testing compass lights up today.

If it shines, it's like a meteoric rise to success, and the whole family benefits and lives a life of luxury.

If the sun doesn't shine, then all I can do is honestly farm and feed the fish; that's how my life will be.