293: Soul-Calling Tower, Wedding (two in one)

Lin Shiming put down the remnant scroll, his eyes filled with pleasant surprise.

This Magical Artifact was named the Soul Suppressing Tower, and its refinement was not particularly difficult.

However, its power was immense!

It not only integrated suppression, soul refining, and killing into one body,

but could even extract memories from some remnant souls.

Even if they were killed cleanly, even if they possessed a Family jade book.

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The only two defects were that it could not extract memories from Cultivators with too weak a Divine Soul.

For instance, Cultivators below the Foundation Establishment stage might not have even half a soul left after death. Additionally, it could only extract soul memories randomly.

It was not as good as the Blood-Breaking Demon Restriction, but compared to that restriction which required the blood of countless Mortals, Lin Shiming was more looking forward to using this Soul Suppressing Tower.

Moreover, like his Purple Wood Profound Heaven Sword Array, this Soul Suppressing Tower was a set of Magical Artifacts. The difference between controlling ten towers and controlling one was at least a hundredfold.

And if he were to control a hundred Soul Suppressing Towers at once, he could even put up a fight against a fifth-tier Magical Artifact.

Of course, this Magical Artifact also placed high demands on a Cultivator's True Essence, and the Materials were not easy to find.

The primary material for the Soul Suppressing Tower was Soul Suppressing Stone, followed by the Soul Formation inscribed upon it—both were incredibly precious.

Fortunately, he was only at the Foundation Establishment stage, so he could search for Soul Suppressing Stones in advance.

Lin Shiming cautiously put away the scroll artifact. With every page of the scroll he collected, his expectations for this artifact grew. Furthermore, this scroll artifact seemed more like an inheritance artifact.

Perhaps once he collected and refined them all, it would reveal the inheritance of a Beast Refining Family.

However, until he obtained it, it remained merely a guess.

But his Magical Artifacts for after the Purple Mansion stage were already determined: the Soul Suppressing Tower was a must-have artifact that needed nurturing, followed by the Taiyi Sword Grass seed to serve as a sword dao artifact.

Lin Shiming took out a green seed.

This was precisely the Taiyi Sword Grass seed. It was said that it could be hatched after reaching the Purple Mansion stage, and its maximum power could rival a sixth-tier Magical Artifact.

Naturally, Lin Shiming would not believe all of it, but with his system prompts, he was not afraid of any actual conspiracies hidden within the seed.

He placed several sealing formations on the flawless seed and then took out some fourth-tier Spirit Jade to carefully Seal the seed away.

After everything was in order, Lin Shiming began to swallow Mianyang Pills to cultivate.

With the bottleneck loosened, he naturally had to seize the time to Breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment Late Stage.

The transition from the Foundation Establishment Late Stage to the Peak is a process of polishing and condensing True Essence. As long as he was fast enough, he might not be much slower than Lin Xianzhi.

Swallowing one Mianyang Pill, he felt a stream of warm spiritual energy appear in his body. After several cycles, it was absorbed by his three Spiritual Altars.

The three Spiritual Altars absorbed it extremely quickly; the spiritual power of the Mianyang Pill was slightly insufficient!

After all, it was only a third-tier Medium Grade spirit pill, intended for increasing the cultivation of those in the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage.

At this moment, Lin Shiming also discovered the drawback of the Heavenly Wood Spirit Planting—though it could also be seen as a benefit.

Because of the Spiritual Altars, his cultivation speed was three times slower.

This was also why he had not released this secret technique in the Lin Family's Treasure Pavilion. It was fine for geniuses, but for Cultivators with slightly weaker aptitudes or poor luck, practicing Heavenly Wood Spirit Planting could potentially ruin them.

One must know that a Cultivator's time is always precious.

Especially for those with poor Spirit Roots and no fortuitous encounters.

Setting aside his thoughts, Lin Shiming quickly entered a state of cultivation.

Four days passed in the blink of an eye. Lin Shiming opened his eyes, the True Essence in his body surging like a burgeoning Purple Wood, rolling incessantly for a time.

The three Spiritual Altars also flickered with spiritual light, showing a faint tendency to expand.

This signified that he had made another bit of progress toward the Foundation Establishment Late Stage Realm.

However, today, he had to exit his seclusion.

Whether it was for the grand wedding, the clan meeting, or perhaps to provide cover for Lin Xianzhi.

As soon as he stepped out of his Immortal Cave, he noticed the difference in all of Fangmu Mountain: festive flowers, firecrackers, and auspicious clouds.

Fangmu Mountain was more lively than ever before.

Most of the Lin Family's Cultivators had returned to Fangmu Mountain, first to attend the Clan Head's wedding, and second for the clan meeting.

Stepping out of the Immortal Cave, Lin Shiyi was already waiting there.

"Clan Head!" Lin Shiyi was clearly worried that Lin Shiming would over-cultivate. As today's protagonist, Lin Shiming had to be present.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Second Brother!" Lin Shiming had already changed into his groom's attire, wearing a large red robe and a Goose Feather Hat on his head.

This appearance drew praise even from Lin Shiyi.

Following Lin Shiyi, they arrived at the Discussion Hall, which was also the place where the ceremony would be held.

With silk ribbons everywhere and bright 'Double Happiness' characters, the expressions of the Lin Family Cultivators had changed from their original awe and curiosity to celebration and congratulations!

Every Cultivator was beaming with smiles.

As the auspicious time arrived, countless firecracker spirit talismans and cannons roared.

Lin Shiming's Fifth Grandfather, Lin Yuzheng, announced the start of the grand ceremony.

Lin Shiming went to fetch the bride. Today, Lin Shitao wore a Phoenix Robe and Colorful Boots, her head covered by a red veil embroidered with 'Double Happiness.' Beneath her exquisite figure, her body trembled slightly.

Evidently, even as a Cultivator, Lin Shitao was excited at this moment.

Lin Shiming led Lin Shitao to perform the grand rites, bowing to the elders and drinking the nuptial wine.

Under the blessings of all the Cultivators, the grand wedding was completed.

All the elders and the 'Hou' generation Cultivators felt a sense of relief.

Toward this young man of the 'Shi' generation, they felt mostly gratitude.

It was he who had led the Lin Family back to prosperity. The welfare of the Family's Cultivators and various policies had benefited them greatly.

While they used to worry that Lin Shiming focused too much on cultivation, now, he was finally giving importance to marriage.

Moreover, he was joining in marriage with the Family's most formidable Alchemist.

After the grand ceremony came the banquet.

For this grand ceremony, countless spirit fruits, Qingling Wine, and various spirit fish and spirit meals were brought out.

These were all products of the Family. Although they had been selling heavily in recent years, many were still kept in the Family's Treasure Pavilion.

Additionally, Lin Shiming had transplanted many ordinary spirit plants and spirit fruit trees from the Secret Realm, so there was an abundance of various second-tier spirit fruits.

For the Lin Family's Foundation Establishment Cultivators, Lin Shiming even brought out a plate of third-tier Spirit Peaches.

These Spirit Peaches were from the tree obtained alongside the Star Spirit Shells. Now, that Spirit Peach tree was planted within his Grotto-heaven World.

After a round of toasting and feasting,

the grand ceremony ended, but the crowd did not disperse.

Because after the wedding came the clan meeting. As the Clan Head, Lin Shiming changed out of his groom's attire and led the clansmen first to the Ancestral Hall to pay respects to the ancestors.

After a round of sacrificial prayers, it also concluded successfully.

Everyone continued to gather at the Discussion Hall.

Due to space constraints, they eventually moved to the Plaza outside the Discussion Hall.

Many Cultivators were talking amongst themselves.

Looking at the vast assembly of Cultivators, Lin Shiming's heart was also filled with joy. Compared to when he first became Clan Head, the number of Cultivators in the Lin Family had increased several times over!

Now, the Lin Family not only possessed many Cultivation Technique inheritances, but the Alchemist inheritance had reached the fourth tier, while the Artifact Refining and Talisman Refining inheritances had reached the third-tier High Grade.

There were already more than ten Foundation Establishment Cultivators, and over twenty Cultivators at the ninth layer of Qi Refining.

Dual Spirit Root geniuses and Variant Spirit Root geniuses had also appeared one after another.

A Lin Family like this could definitely be described as having a bright future!

But he also understood that what they needed to do now was not just develop the Family, but also to fade from the Qingxuan Sect's view.

He could not withstand the specific inquiries of a Spirit-Questioning Talisman regarding the treasures he obtained in the Qingxuan Sect.

And time was pressing.

Once someone in the Qingxuan Sect broke through to the Nascent Soul stage, or once news of Immortal Master Shenji's Breakthrough spread, it might lead to a siege by the other six sects.

Their Lin Family was a subordinate Family; without strength, no matter which side they chose, problems could arise.

Therefore, the Lin Family had to at least stabilize themselves in the Outer Sea!

And reaching the Purple Mansion stage was a matter of extreme urgency.

Below the stage, the other Cultivators also looked toward Lin Shiming. Today was not the time for the Lin Family's triennial clan meeting; it was convened by Lin Shiming in his capacity as Clan Head.

Thus, they were somewhat curious about the content of the meeting.

"Thanks to the love and support of all my clansmen, I, Shiming, was able to become the Clan Head of the Lin Family at the age of thirty!"

"The Family's prosperity is inseparable from everyone's hard work!"

"However, this brief prosperity has far from reached the former glory of our Lin Family. Now, Seventh Grand Uncle has unfortunately fallen!"

"We of the younger generation must be twice as vigilant to take the Family a step further and restore the glory of a Purple Mansion Family!"

Lin Shiming spoke word by word, his voice powerful and extremely stirring!

Below the stage, the crowd slowly began to quiet down.

At this moment, Lin Shiming was extremely serious, and his inadvertently spreading True Essence made the Lin Family clansmen even more solemn.

After all, the Lin Family's current glory was because Lin Xianzhi had always supported the Family with his Foundation Establishment Peak strength.

With Lin Xianzhi's death, the Lin Family no longer had a Foundation Establishment Peak combatant.

They might even face oppression from other Foundation Establishment families. Perhaps rogue Cultivators who previously didn't dare to rob the market would emerge, and previously fair trades might be overturned.

After all, in the world of immortal cultivation, everything depends on strength.

Lin Shiming looked at the serious faces of the crowd. Even the elders and the 'Hou' generation Cultivators were all moved.

They had experienced the darkest times and understood better that glory was hard-won.

"Therefore, the first item for today is to change the Clan Head!"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone was instantly in an uproar.

Even Lin Houyuan, Lin Houyong, Lin Houwei, and others hesitated.

None of them expected that Lin Shiming's first act would be to replace himself!

One must know that they had not heard any rumors of this beforehand.

"I intend to enter life-and-death seclusion to Breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment Late Stage. If I do not succeed, I will not emerge!" Lin Shiming had already anticipated everyone's surprise and confusion, and he immediately continued:

"Shitao, for the Alchemist Pavilion, please refine more Mianyang Pills. Additionally, I ask Fifth Grandfather to continuously purchase pills that help Breakthrough Foundation Establishment bottlenecks!"

Lin Shiming spoke again.

Lin Shitao nodded on the spot. Even if Lin Shiming hadn't said it, she would have always refined spirit pills for him.

As for Lin Yuzheng, who was already over a hundred years old, although he was confused, he still nodded in agreement.

The other Cultivators also fell into silence.

They understood why Lin Shiming was stepping down as Clan Head. It was because the Family had no other Cultivators who could become a peak combatant besides Lin Xianzhi.

Lin Shiming was the first to Breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage and was the only Sword Cultivator in the Lin Family to have comprehended Sword Intent.

Lin Shiming looked around, and seeing that no one had any objections, he spoke again:

"The second item: the Dao Propagation Hall must be reformed again. The Innate Building and the Qi Refining Building can remain unchanged, but from today onwards, the Clan School Building will add lectures from various departments. Furthermore, biographies of Cultivators who have made significant contributions to the Family will be narrated and included in the Hall of Fame!"

"The Hall of Fame does not look at cultivation level, but only at contributions to the Family. The provisional members are Seventh Grand Uncle Lin Xianzhi, First Elder Lin Yuqing, Second Elder Lin Yuqi, Third Elder Lin Yushui, and Fourth Elder Lin Yutie!"

Lin Shiming spoke again, and this once more caused a huge sensation.

This was not a whim of Lin Shiming's; he had learned it from the inheritance tower of the Taibai Sword Palace.

Compared to sects, families are stronger in terms of cohesion.

If they only focused on developing strength, the future of the Family would likely fall into chaos!

Indeed, because they had experienced poverty and hardship, the 'Hou' and 'Shi' generations of the Lin Family were dedicated to the Family.

But one must be prepared for danger in times of peace. Those of the 'Ze' generation who had not experienced these things might not have the same mindset.

For the Family to endure, they had to value not only cultivation but also education.

The reason the Lin Family could develop so quickly was largely due to the Dao Propagation Building.

At the same time, the sense of Family identity and cohesion also had to be strengthened!

Those clan elders had experienced much, and they also saw the difference between the 'Ze' generation and other Cultivators.

To give the simplest example, Lin Zekong, a Dual Spirit Root of the 'Ze' generation, whether it was his behavior during the clan competition or his obstinacy over the past few years, showed them that the 'Ze' generation's loyalty to the Family was insufficient.

Their growth and experiences had been too smooth!

As the various clan elders, elders, and hall masters nodded one after another, the other Cultivators also began to nod.

There was also a sense of expectation.

Among immortal Cultivators, how many can reach Foundation Establishment, and how many can reach Purple Mansion?

Qi Refining stage Cultivators have a lifespan of only a hundred and twenty years. If they could make contributions and be praised in the Dao Propagation Building, that would be true eternal fame.

And if future generations saw it, they would naturally strive even harder!

Seeing the reactions of the other Cultivators, Lin Shiming also nodded. Next was the third decision.

"Starting today, the Family will vigorously support the Demon Hunting Hall. All those who can obtain double stipends in the clan competition can join the Demon Hunting Hall. Furthermore, the Artifact Refining Hall will prioritize providing Magical Artifacts, and the Alchemist Hall will prioritize providing spirit pills!"

This decision was naturally for the Family to vigorously develop Twin Wood Island.

The Family elders and Foundation Establishment Cultivators naturally knew about this, but for the rest of the Family's Cultivators, they were completely unaware of Twin Wood Island's existence.

The Lin Family could not possibly tell all clansmen about Twin Wood Island.

The issue of secrecy would be very serious, but having too few Cultivators on Twin Wood Island would also affect its development.

Especially for those bitter Cultivators in the Lin Family who currently have fourth or fifth-tier Spirit Roots but still set their hearts on longevity, Lin Shiming had to give them a chance.

And Twin Wood Island was undoubtedly the best place to forge combat abilities and increase cultivation.

After Shiming finished the three points, the next most important thing was who would be chosen as the Clan Head.

Everyone looked toward Lin Houyuan. As Lin Shiming's father and the previous Clan Head, he naturally had the qualifications.

Originally, Lin Houyuan was being nurtured as a top combat power because the Family had too few Foundation Establishment Cultivators, but now that there were more than ten, it was impossible to choose a Qi Refining Cultivator again.

From another perspective, the direction of the Family's peak combat power naturally lay with young Cultivators like Lin Shiming, Lin Shijie, and Lin Houwei.

Therefore, Lin Houyuan was definitely an excellent candidate.

Most importantly, Lin Houyuan was Lin Shiming's father!