Gu Xuanzhan rolled his eyes at Gu Wanhao and waved his hand dismissively.
“You've been so overly dramatic since you were a child.
Huan'er doesn't need it now, but won't he need it in the future?
Besides, how can something given by this Old Ancestor be taken back?!!!”
Gu Wanhao's old secrets were exposed by Gu Xuanzhan, and his old face flushed.
“Huan'er, hurry up and thank your Great Grandfather! This is a treasure that can save your life in the future!”
After bowing respectfully, Gu Changhuan raised his hands above his head and accepted the gift.
“Gu Changhuan thanks Great Grandfather. I will surely show filial piety to Great Grandfather in the future, repay the Family, and help our Gu Family prosper for generations.”
Gu Changhuan spoke earnestly, every word sincere.
“You are truly sincere, child. I suppose your grandfather didn't teach you these words.
With such ambition in such a young child, why should our Gu Family worry about not prospering?”
Gu Xuanzhan said with relief. He was old, and his Lifespan was limited.
Now, besides wanting to advance further in Cultivation, the only thing he couldn't let go of was the Family. But precisely because of the Family, he dared not risk everything.
Gu Changhuan was still young and naturally didn't understand Gu Xuanzhan's sentiments, but the words he had just spoken were also from his heart.
When Gu Changhuan was at home, he often heard his parents lamenting that they couldn't protect the Family, couldn't show filial piety to their own parents, and as children, could only hide under the protection of their elders.
Every time Gu Changhuan heard this, he felt a sense of empathy.
After bidding farewell to Gu Xuanzhan, Gu Wanhao led Gu Changhuan back to his residence.
“Is this where grandfather lives?!”
Gu Wanhao's residence was not an Immortal Cave, but a two-courtyard house with grey walls and green tiles.
In a corner of the courtyard, there was a peach tree, and the peaches on it were already slightly pink, looking exceptionally tempting.
Gu Changhuan spotted the peach tree at a glance. He wondered how these peaches tasted. When he had free time, he would definitely pick one to try!
He thought.
Gu Wanhao, being an old master, saw Gu Changhuan staring at his High Grade Tier 1 spiritual peach tree and guessed what Gu Changhuan was planning.
“You can only eat from that peach tree after Huan'er officially starts Cultivating. If you eat it now, it will burst your little belly!
Huan'er will live in the east wing room from now on.
Grandfather will live in the main house. Tomorrow morning, Grandfather will have someone take you to the Scripture Pavilion. You must follow Great Grandfather and learn well. If you don't understand anything, feel free to ask. Do you understand?”
“Huan'er understands.”
Having his thoughts exposed by his grandfather, Gu Changhuan scratched his head in embarrassment.
After returning to his room, Gu Changhuan, who had been running around for half the day, started yawning. After washing up, he lay on the bed and fell asleep shortly after.
The next morning, a member of the Gu Family took Gu Changhuan to the Scripture Pavilion to meet Gu Xuanzhan, who was already sitting there, eyes closed in meditation.
Gu Changhuan bowed with a smile, unable to contain his happiness at the thought of being able to Cultivate and become a Cultivator today.
“Gu Changhuan greets Great Grandfather.”
“You've arrived. Have a seat!”
Gu Xuanzhan waved his hand, and a futon appeared on the ground.
Gu Changhuan sat on the futon and took the book Gu Xuanzhan handed him.
It was a history of the Gu Family. Gu Changhuan casually flipped through a few pages and found that it meticulously recorded the history of the Gu Family's rise and establishment.
“Can Gu Changhuan read?”
“Reporting to Great Grandfather, Gu Changhuan studied for nearly two years at the Family School and also learned the Thousand Character Classic. I understand most of the characters in this Family history.”
Gu Changhuan replied.
Gu Xuanzhan nodded. This would save him a lot of trouble.
Gu Xuanzhan poured himself a cup of wine, took a sip, smacked his lips in enjoyment, and slowly said,
“Our Cultivators, according to the level of Cultivation, are successively divided into Qi Training Stage, Foundation Establishment Stage, Zifu Stage, Golden Core Stage, and Nascent Soul Stage. Above Nascent Soul, it is said there is also the Soul Transformation Stage.
Each major Realm is divided into three minor Realms, and each minor Realm is further divided into three layers. For example, for the Qi Training Stage, Early Stage Qi Training is layers one to three, Middle Stage Qi Training is layers four to six, and Late Stage Qi Training is layers seven to nine.”
“However, most Cultivators are trapped in the Qi Training Stage their entire lives, with a Lifespan of no more than one hundred and twenty years. A small number of exceptionally talented individuals, if they have the Opportunity, can enter the Foundation Establishment Stage and enjoy a Lifespan of two hundred years. The higher the Cultivation, the longer the Lifespan.”
“Our Gu Family has been established for three hundred and twenty-seven years. Our Old Ancestor was a Late Zifu Stage master and also an Alchemist, which is why our Gu Family has been known for Medicinal Pills since its establishment.
Alchemy is one of the hundred arts of Cultivation, and it can be said to be the most profitable skill.
For so many years, our Gu Family has prospered and grown in the Nine Serenity Mountain Range, and the Alchemy Legacy left by the Old Ancestor can be said to have contributed immensely.”
Gu Xuanzhan paused, then continued:
“Our Gu Family's Old Ancestor was originally a Loose Cultivator. He was exceptionally talented, and at a young age, he was already a master at the eighth layer of Zifu Stage.
If nothing unexpected happened, he would very likely achieve the Golden Core Stage.
Unfortunately, during the human-Yao Beast war in Qingzhou over three hundred years ago, the Old Ancestor participated in the battle and was too prominent. He was heavily injured by several Yao Beasts surrounding him. Although he managed to survive, his Foundation was damaged, preventing his Cultivation from advancing further.
But because the Old Ancestor had significant military achievements, he was rewarded with many rare spiritual items.
The Old Ancestor was unwilling to let his Legacy be buried and did not want to join a School.
He sought out several like-minded Fellow Daoists and decided to jointly find a mountain range to establish a Family.
They ultimately chose the Nine Serenity Mountain Range. At that time, the Nine Serenity Mountain Range was occupied by nine Zifu Stage Yao Beasts. After the four Family Old Ancestors jointly eliminated the nine Yao Beasts, they divided the territory.
Our Gu Family occupied Bifeng Mountain, the Fang Family occupied Yuhua Mountain, the Yu Family chose Yan Mountain, and the Zhang Family chose Fengming Mountain.
Over the years, our Gu, Fang, Yu, and Zhang families in the Nine Serenity Mountain Range have supported each other, which is why we have stood firm in the Qingzhou Cultivation World.”
“After the Old Ancestor occupied Bifeng Mountain, he married wives and concubines, established Family rules, and set the generational names for his descendants: Tong Zheng Cun Xuan, Wan Shi Chang Qing, Hao Ran Feng Ze, Xian Dao Yong Chang, a total of sixteen characters.
Each generation is fifty years. If a Cultivator or Mortal has descendants within three generations, they can be ranked according to the ancestral generational names.”
Speaking of this, Gu Xuanzhan sighed. The Family had been established for over three hundred years, and since the Old Ancestor passed away, it had actually been in decline.
In its heyday, the Gu Family had one Zifu Stage Cultivator, the Old Ancestor, and seven Foundation Establishment Cultivators, but now......
“The Gu Family continues to this day, with over two hundred Cultivators and over a million Mortal clan members.
Among them, the vast majority of Cultivators are stuck in the Qi Training Stage, and there are only four Foundation Establishment Stage masters.”
Gu Changhuan listened attentively, then thought:
No wonder there were so many brothers and sisters in the Family, yet only he possessed a Spiritual Root. The probability of a Mortal having a Spiritual Root was truly too low.
“The Gu Family holds a Spiritual Root Testing Ceremony every three years to test whether age-appropriate children possess Spiritual Roots.
Children with Spiritual Roots can come to Bifeng Mountain to Cultivate. Children with excellent Spiritual Roots are usually carefully nurtured to support the Family in the future.”
“Speaking of Spiritual Roots, they are also divided into different grades.
The best Spiritual Root is a single-attribute Spiritual Root. If a Cultivator has a single Spiritual Root, they can achieve Golden Core at an extremely fast pace without obstacles, barring any accidents.
Therefore, a single Spiritual Root is also called a Heavenly Spiritual Root, meaning a Spiritual Root bestowed by Heaven, a favored child of the Heavenly Dao, but a Heavenly Spiritual Root is a one-in-ten-thousand existence among Cultivators.”
“Slightly inferior to the Heavenly Spiritual Root is the Variant Spiritual Root.
Variant Spiritual Root Cultivators Cultivate a bit slower than Heavenly Spiritual Roots, but their strength will be much greater than Cultivators of the same Realm.
Next are Double Spiritual Roots. Double Spiritual Root Cultivators are also rare and highly sought after for a Family like ours.”
Gu Xuanzhan said this with some pride, for no other reason than that he himself was a Double Spiritual Root Cultivator.
Then, for some unknown reason, Gu Xuanzhan's expression slightly darkened.
“Most Cultivators are actually Three Spiritual Roots, Four Spiritual Roots, or Five Spiritual Roots.
However, Four Spiritual Roots and Five Spiritual Roots are difficult to Cultivate due to their complex Spiritual Roots and are also called False Spiritual Roots.”
