Father and son talk

How could Li Tan not be angry when faced with the verbal taunts of Li Yi and his two lackeys?

However, high-ranking Disciples and ordinary Disciples were completely different classes, with a gap as vast as a chasm between heaven and earth!

"Unless I can surpass these dogs in talent, I should try my best not to have any conflicts with them before that. Otherwise, with their power, I might not even know how I died."

It is a good thing for people to have backbone, but having only backbone without leverage is foolish.

This is a man-eat-man world. The Heavenly Dao is unkind, treating all living things as straw dogs.

"The most important thing now is to return home and absorb this Wash Marrow Pill."

In Li Tan's perception, time seemed to speed up considerably, either because the long-awaited Wash Marrow Pill had already been purchased, or he was still immersed in Li Yi's humiliation.

Unknowingly, he had already arrived. It was just a dilapidated house, yet it felt so warm.

Entering the house, Li Tan looked around and sighed inwardly.

The furnishings in the room were very simple and clear, with only the necessary tables, chairs, beds, and stools for daily life. In the vast Li Family manor, it seemed very shabby.

Perhaps this was the life of an ordinary Li Family Disciple. The burden of life would make them shed their childishness early.

Next to the house was a kitchen built of wood and branches, which occasionally leaked water when it rained.

The toilet was diagonally behind the house, but it was pitifully small.

Unintentionally, Li Tan recalled the feeling of using the toilet on a hot day, and his already unsightly expression grew even darker...

A weathered figure walked out of the kitchen, presumably having heard some movement and come to investigate.

This was Li Tan's father!

"Li Zhi."

Upon seeing Li Tan's figure, a hint of color flashed in Li Zhi's cloudy, lifeless eyes.

"Li Tan, you're back."

"I just made some food. Come sit down and eat. I even dug up some wild vegetables; they should taste good..."

His voice was a little choked, as if he felt helpless about himself. His eyes were a little red, and he wanted to say something, but the words caught in his throat...

He opened his mouth several times, intending to speak... but finally fell silent again.

The dinner table was oppressively quiet. Both sides tacitly refrained from touching their chopsticks.

As time passed minute by minute, the food had long since grown cold, but the atmosphere remained like a block of ice, chilling to the bone.

The silence, where a needle could be heard dropping, was truly uncomfortable. Li Tan was the first to break the silence: "Father, this is the retirement Spirit Stone given by Elder Li Man's Family."

.......

Li Man was Li Yi's father, a powerful Building Foundation Early Stage Cultivator!

The Li Family's Ninth Elder was renowned and held a high position of power!

And his father, Li Zhi, had diligently worked under Li Man for over ten years, doing many "dirty and tiring jobs."

Perhaps it was because Li Zhi's Cultivation was low, or because he was old, or perhaps Li Zhi was truly "disobedient," so he was abandoned.

However, the latter possibility was very slim. For such a blemish affecting one's life, getting rid of it quickly would be the wise choice.

After all, there were countless Cultivators with weak Cultivation.

Merchants who frequently recruited people constantly had the phrase "If you don't do it, there are plenty of others who will" on their lips.

The most important resources for a Cultivator were nothing more than wealth, Dao Companion, Cultivation Technique, and territory....

Cultivators seeking powerful Cultivation would mostly choose a Dao Companion who could help them. Of course, there was no shortage of infatuated individuals anywhere.

In Li Tan's eyes, his father was a typical infatuated person.

Even though his mother had passed away, his father would often talk in his sleep at night, calling out his mother's name. He had discovered this accidentally multiple times when he had to urinate in the middle of the night.

"He didn't have many impressions of his mother; in fact, he knew very little about her."

"He vaguely remembered his mother being very cold towards him, only softly caring for him when his father returned. Scolding and beating were common occurrences."

"When his father was at work, his mother would always quietly leave the house alone, acting suspiciously, which made her seem very questionable."

"However, before she left, she unexpectedly left him a book."

The name of this book was....

Cultivating the Mind

According to the preface, this book was written by a powerful Cultivator who, after Breaking Through to a higher Realm, left it as a gift to express gratitude to the Heaven and Earth Mother who nurtured him.

Ever since his mother left, Li Tan often read this book, first once, then ten times, and finally a hundred times....

He often fantasized that as long as he fully understood this book, Cultivating the Mind,

"His mother would return."

But this book was just an ordinary book....

(The book was passed down from generation to generation in his mother's Family. Every Family Disciple had the right to read it, so it was not considered precious. This book was recorded in many Sects.)

The Family would establish cemeteries according to the status of their members.

On every festival, his father would go to the Family's "ordinary Disciples' cemetery" and bring some common food she liked when she was alive.

Even though their Family was very poor, his father was a man of principle, and he would go on time every time.

.......

Returning to the present, Li Tan said as he handed over the cloth bag in his hand.

"Li Tan, you already know."

Li Zhi was a little flustered, like a child who had done something wrong, hesitant to speak.

Li Tan pretended not to notice, smiling broadly, and said that he would definitely Awaken a good talent, and then their Family would get better.

"Then no one will dare to bully us anymore!"

In fact, Li Tan had no confidence in his heart, but he didn't know how to comfort his father, so it was a well-intentioned lie.

Li Zhi felt very uncomfortable. His body sat stiffly on the stool, only able to blame his own incompetence.

Li Zhi was at Qi Condensation Sixth Level. Among Loose Cultivators, he could be considered a minor expert, but within the Li Family, even the lowly guards had Cultivation at Qi Condensation Third Level.

The Family would not use resources on Disciples with low Aptitude. The vast majority of these people had only two paths to take.

One was to continue serving in the main Family, or to join a mercenary group outside and live a life on the edge.

Li Zhi suddenly stood up, and even his eyes underwent a drastic change: "Your father is incompetent, and your mother left early. The only wish your grandfather left behind was for me to look lightly upon worldly affairs and Cultivate diligently...."

"To join an Immortal Sect and become a high and mighty Foundation Establishment Cultivator! He once wrote a poem, and the name of the poem was very strange, called...."

"Live!"

A hint of tenderness welled up in Li Zhi's eyes, but then he seemed to remember something else, and his eyes gradually turned cold.

Tears also seemed to flow from the corners of his eyes.

"The sun was bright, I was young then, friends and neighbors called me a young man. A trace of pride in my chest, upholding righteousness, I journeyed afar. Illusions and setbacks forged my Dao Heart, a dispirited man gazed into the distance. When my Dao Heart becomes sharp, I will ascend to the heavens and devour a Phoenix!"

As the poem ended, Li Zhi's state again became dispirited, and his face showed an indescribable complexity.

"It turns out the poem's name wasn't strange; it just lacked one character. It should have been 'Live On,' but the last character needed to be added by oneself."

"He didn't add that last stroke, and I didn't add that stroke either."

A dizzying array of words filled Li Tan's heart with doubt, and various incomprehensions flooded his mind.

"Father, what is the meaning of this last line?"

"Didn't his grandfather pass away long ago? Isn't his father clearly alive? If he's alive, why can't he add that stroke?"

However, he did not ponder this question for too long.

There's a good saying: "If you can't figure it out, then don't think about it."

Perhaps Li Zhi was still not satisfied, and continued to speak to himself: "Perhaps this is the belief of insignificant small figures who survive, taking what they cannot do and what they cannot accomplish as a belief."

"Passing it down from generation to generation, inheriting it to the next generation, so that their descendants can complete the dreams they couldn't fulfill in their lifetime."

"I know this is selfish... but I have no other choice. I no longer have any leverage..."

Li Zhi's words were somewhat self-deprecating, and his mouth was filled with an inexplicable bitterness, as if he had swallowed a large mouthful of bitter juice.

"But Li Tan, your path has just begun! Your father doesn't want you to follow my old path, doesn't want you to become the person you hate later!"

"A wretch who pins his hopes on others."

"Your father will do his utmost to help you, even if it means betraying the Family! I will not hesitate!!"

Li Zhi's expression suddenly became serious! Then he reached into his collar.

There was actually a hidden hole in his collar that ordinary people could not detect! He pulled out a ring!

"Storage Ring!"

As a Li Family Disciple, even the most ordinary Disciple, would attend the Li Family's cultural introduction class.

Which young Li Family Disciple would not like such a precious and rare item?

It was precisely because of this that Li Tan remembered the knowledge of Storage Rings very clearly.

"Impossible! Impossible! Even the lowest-grade one-cubic-meter Storage Ring costs far more than ten thousand Spirit Stones!"

A hint of surprise flashed in Li Zhi's eyes, as if he thought Li Tan was making too much of a fuss. He then leisurely said aloud, "A horse cannot get fat without extra fodder at night; a person cannot get rich without unexpected wealth."

"If your father simply acted like a dog for decades, I'm afraid he wouldn't be able to afford a mere Storage Ring even in several lifetimes!"

"This Storage Ring contains two thousand Spirit Stones and a Cultivation Technique! Of course, the most valuable things here are the Storage Ring itself and the Cultivation Technique."

Li Tan was about to open his mouth to ask, but as thoughts churned and collided rapidly in his mind,

He wisely shut his mouth. Prying into matters was also a taboo for Cultivators.

In Li Tan's understanding, even the Elders in the Family only received a monthly salary of eight hundred Spirit Stones.

This amount of Spirit Stones was definitely not something his father could have embezzled!

Since his father was unwilling to say, he naturally wouldn't be so tactless as to ask.

Some matters were not something people at his level could access, lest he put himself in a worse situation.

At this thought, Li Tan's vigilance towards his father suddenly increased!

But such a small gesture naturally couldn't escape Li Zhi's eyes.

"Don't guess. I joined the evil Sect, Corpse Wraith Sect. The Family won't give resources to people with mediocre Aptitude like us. To make a living, I could only join the Corpse Wraith Sect, otherwise I'm afraid I would have already gone to see your mother."

"Besides, who doesn't want eternal life? To see the scenery from the mountain peak."

"Li Tan, you rest first. I'll come find you tomorrow."

Li Zhi said no more and walked straight out the door.

Looking at his father's back, Li Tan fell into deep thought.

In fact, Li Tan felt that his father was not muddle-headed; on the contrary, he had made the correct choice.

However, after so many years, he had never exposed any clues, always working diligently and actively. Perhaps his father had big plans.

.......

The place where Li Tan was located was called Qingfeng City. Qingfeng City had four universally recognized strongest forces: "Wang Family, Zhao Family, Li Family, and Song Family."

The Wang Family's shops sold Medicinal Pills, and since Medicinal Pills had high profits, they naturally made a fortune, truly a Legacy of merchants skilled in business.

They were very adept at human relations, and over time, the Wang Family had basically monopolized nearly 80% of the Medicinal Pill sales in Qingfeng City.

The Zhao Family mainly produced Talismans, but their business had been very poor in the past two years, leading to a significant decline in their prestige.

The Song Family mainly produced weapons. Nearly 50% of the weapons in Qingfeng City came from the Song Family.

As for the Li Family, where Li Tan was, it was quite special. The Li Family did not have outstanding technology or sales channels, but it seemed to be thanks to their Old Ancestor, as the Li Family had quite a few Spirit Stone veins.

However, even though there were many Spirit Stone veins, they had nothing to do with ordinary Disciples.

Ordinary Disciples could only receive two Spirit Stones a month, just enough to keep them alive but not let them starve, which was truly difficult.

And high-ranking Disciples ostensibly received one hundred Spirit Stones, but everyone knew the truth.

It was just a facade for outsiders, after all, a necessary condition for every Family Elder was Foundation Establishment....

Foundation Establishment Cultivators could not be appeased with just eight hundred Spirit Stones a month.

Qingfeng City belonged to one of the cities governed by Feng City. The six major cities governed by Feng City were: "Qingfeng City, Xufeng City, Lingfeng City, Fengtian City, Yanfeng City, and Daofeng City."

Above Feng City was direct imperial rule. As for Immortal Dao Sects and Demonic Path Sects, the imperial Family wanted to control them but was powerless.

Among the five major powers of the Immortal Dao Sects, the most representative was "Heaven Sword Immortal Sect!"

Followed by: "Blood Saber Sect, Spirit Pill Sect, Body Tempering Sect, and Illusion Sect."

The Demonic Path was often suppressed by the Immortal Dao, and it was even rumored that Demonic Path Disciples possessed the "excellent virtue" of killing their brothers and masters.

Therefore, the only outstanding Demonic Path Sects were "Corpse Wraith Sect and Nether Ghost Sect."

But this absolutely did not affect the strength of the Demonic Path Sects!

Demonic Path Sects had extremely low Aptitude requirements! And their strength increased rapidly.

This led to the fact that no matter what era, the Demonic Path might decline but would never wither!

Li Tan didn't think he had High Grade talent, after all, talent was mostly related to one's ancestors, and his closest Bloodline, his father, only had a Medium Grade Spiritual Root of Fourth Grade.

Spiritual Root was also known as Aptitude, a symbol of a Genius!

It was the entry ticket to becoming a powerful individual. Fifth Grade Low Grade was the worst, and First Grade High Grade was the best.

Fourth Grade Aptitude merely granted an entry ticket to Foundation Establishment. Without a great Opportunity, there was no hope for Golden Core in this life, as Golden Core True Person were the ones who truly held power on the continent.

Second Grade Aptitude and First Grade Aptitude almost guaranteed a Golden Core True Person! And the latter would have an unobstructed path before Nascent Soul!

Monsters like those with First Grade Aptitude were recorded in books. According to the books Li Tan had read,

Only one such top Genius would appear on the entire continent every hundred years.

As for the chosen Sect, it naturally depended on the situation!

"Demonic Path! Righteous Path! Neither should be a reason to restrain me, Li Tan. History is written by the victors, so why bother agonizing over Demonic Path or Righteous Path?"

In the unseen, the young man's conviction seemed to deepen by another point.

Li Tan originally intended to take the Wash Marrow Pill while sitting on the bed, but he was afraid of something unexpected happening. After all, if the bed was ruined, he wouldn't be able to sleep tonight.

So he simply sat on the stool, then took out the Wash Marrow Pill. The Wash Marrow Pill’s surface was blue, and upon closer inspection, there were faint specks of starlight on its exterior, making it appear extraordinary.

Without further hesitation, he opened his mouth and swallowed it.

Immediately, Li Tan felt a huge warm current sweep through his entire body, first from his torso, then his limbs, and finally his head.

Throughout his body, waves of comfortable sensations followed, and he could clearly feel the muscles and fascia within him cheering, even pulsating rhythmically.

Even the young man's spine clicked a few times, and as some black liquid flowed out, the effect of the Wash Marrow Pill officially manifested.

After a long while, Li Tan slowly stood up. There was a large amount of black viscous liquid on the surface of his skin, but one could vaguely see that the skin beneath the black liquid was a few shades more delicate, and his height had also increased slightly.