45: Qiling Pill

Not only that, but the vastness of the Liu Clan Territory far exceeds your imagination—the Ancestral Tomb, Ancestral Hall, Dragon Transformation Pool, Lake of Reincarnation, Immortal Burning Furnace, Sword Tomb, Herb Garden, Abyss of Ten Thousand Beasts, time-space pagoda, Treasury of Ten Thousand Worlds, Danxia Sacred Hall, Tianshu City...

Dragon Transformation Pool—churning with golden liquid, it is said that soaking in it for a hundred days can shed one's Mortal body, awaken a Top-Grade Spiritual Root, and transform one's Aptitude entirely.

Lake of Reincarnation—the surface of the lake is like ink, reflecting not human figures, but Karma. Members of the Liu Clan often come here to spy on the weaknesses of their arch-enemies and gain the upper hand.

Treasury of Ten Thousand Worlds—divided into Heaven, Earth, Profound, and Yellow vaults. The Heaven vault stores Magic Treasure, the Earth vault stores Spiritual Veins, the Profound vault stores Cultivation Technique, and the Yellow vault stores rare items.

Tianshu City—magnificent and spectacular, it has everything one could need, and it even has a teleportation array that leads directly to important locations throughout the Zixiao Immortal Domain, making it the most important transportation hub in the Liu Clan Territory.

You stand on the top floor of the pavilion, gazing into the distance, and see only endless mountains and rivers beneath the sea of clouds.

With your current Cultivation, even if you flew through the air day and night without stopping, you would not be able to leave the sphere of influence of this Liu Clan Immortal Family in a hundred years.

Without the clan's teleportation array, you wouldn't even be able to see the borders of the Liu Clan Territory.

"Old Man Chen, haven't you seen enough yet!" Liu Xianer came running over, hopping and skipping.

After half a year of living together, you have become well-acquainted with this little girl—her name is Liu Xianer, and she is six years old this year.

"Have you ever been outside the Liu Clan Territory?" you asked casually.

"The clan rules say that you aren't allowed to leave until you reach the Nascent Soul stage." Liu Xianer pouted and shook her head.

"Then I'm afraid you won't be able to leave for the rest of your life." You teased her on purpose.

"Hmph!" The little girl was so angry that her cheeks puffed up.

"Alright, alright, Grandpa was wrong." You smiled and patted her head.

In truth, this little girl is quite pitiful.

Her father was merely one of the most ordinary among the millions of members of the Liu Clan Immortal Family; he had mediocre Aptitude and no presence whatsoever.

When she was three, her parents had an accident in a Secret Realm, and their remains were never recovered.

What's worse is that Liu Xianer was born without a Spiritual Root and relies on the spirit awakening pill provided by the clan to barely be able to Cultivate. As a result, her speed of Cultivation is shockingly slow, and after many years, she is only at the first level of Qi Refining.

In the vast Liu Clan Immortal Family, no one remembers that she even exists.

She lives all alone in this desolate courtyard, like a weed by the roadside that no one wants.

Because she is so lonely, she often wanders nearby, watching the patrolling guards from afar.

It seems that this makes her feel a little safer.

There are at least tens of thousands of Liu Clan orphans like her in the clan.

After learning about her background, you feel a heavy heart.

This girl is so much like you.

Poor Aptitude, no one to care for her, living like an invisible person.

The only difference is that you at least had parents who loved you, and while your Family was small, it was very warm.

But what about her? Her parents are gone, she is all alone, and in this massive clan of millions, she is as insignificant as a speck of dust.

Ten days later,

"Old Man Chen, let's go!" Liu Xianer came running over, hopping and skipping, and grabbed your sleeve. "Today is a good day to collect supplies!"

Before you could respond, her small hand had already firmly grasped yours, pulling you as she ran outside.

Along the way, she counted the carvings on the jade pillars of the rainbow bridge corridor—these were marks she had secretly made, terrified of getting lost in this maze-like territory.

After walking for half a day, you arrived at a pier floating in the air.

A huge spirit boat was parked there quietly, its hull covered in glowing runes, shimmering with spiritual light.

On the pier, Liu Clan members were boarding the ship in twos and threes. There were men, women, young, and old, but no one spared Liu Xianer a second glance.

When the spirit boat was full of people, it shot through the clouds with a whoosh, leaving a streak of light in the clouds. In less than an hour, it landed steadily in front of a majestic hall.

The square in front of the hall was astonishingly large, at least the size of a hundred football fields. Looking around, all kinds of spirit boats were parked in every direction, looking just like a group of giant beasts resting there.

The passengers filed off, surging toward the hall like a tidal wave.

You looked up and saw the plaque hanging high above the hall door, three gilded characters shining brilliantly in the sun—Central Hall!

It is said that the Central Hall was built with the legendary Profound Underworld Meteorite Iron. The silver formation patterns on its surface flowed like a galaxy, emitting a pressure that made it hard to breathe.

The hall door was a full hundred zhang high, with a stone statue standing on each side—one holding a Heaven-Measuring Ruler, and one holding a Fate Scale. Their stone eyes were cold and icy, as if they could see through everyone.

After entering the hall, Liu Xianer cautiously took out her cyan twin-fish jade pendant.

In the Liu Clan Immortal Family, everyone must refine a life-bound twin-fish jade pendant with their own blood essence when they are born. It records their Bloodline, Cultivation, and contribution points.

Disciple jade pendants come in four colors: gold is for direct descendants, purple is for core members, blue is for elites, cyan is for ordinary members, and white is for Handymen.

The resources that can be collected annually differ vastly depending on the color of the jade pendant.

A shining "treasure orb" hung from the ceiling of the hall. As soon as Liu Xianer revealed her cyan jade pendant, the orb shot out a beam of spiritual light, completing the scan instantly.

Soon, a Storage Pouch floated out from the orb and landed steadily in Liu Xianer's hand.

She gripped the small Storage Pouch tightly, a flash of happiness appearing in her eyes, but it quickly dimmed—

Because she knew that the things inside were pitifully few.

You suddenly remembered Ji Bin's Storage Pouch, glanced left and right, and quickly dragged Liu Xianer behind a coiled dragon stone pillar.

"Little girl," you lowered your voice, "I found a Storage Pouch that I can't open. Can you help me see if there's an identity jade pendant inside?"

Liu Xianer's eyes lit up "whoosh," just like a little squirrel that had seen a pinecone.

She raised her index finger to "shush," and after looking around, she whispered, "Let me take a look quickly!"

Her outstretched little hand was trembling with excitement.

You took out the blood-stained Storage Pouch from your bosom.

Liu Xianer took the Storage Pouch, probed it with her spiritual sense, and immediately gasped, her eyes widening. "Good heavens... there are over three hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones in here!"

She held the pouch, her hands trembling non-stop, and tried desperately to keep the corners of her mouth down, but they couldn't help but curl upward. "Old man! We're rich!"

Her voice was kept low, but she couldn't hide her excitement. "We can buy three hundred roasted spirit chickens with this!"

As she spoke, she licked her lips. "We can eat them every day!"

"Is there an identity jade pendant inside? Can it be used to collect supplies?" You swallowed nervously.

She shook her head and leaned close to your ear. "The Storage Pouch was lost, so the person must be dead, and the jade pendant will also be invalid."

After saying this, she opened her palm, and with a flash of spiritual light, Ji Bin's shattered blue jade pendant appeared in her palm.

You had originally wanted to use the purple twin-fish pendant to collect supplies, but you were worried about trouble, so you had to give up on that idea.

"Then take it all. Just help me exchange it for a 'spirit awakening pill' and a Qi Refining Cultivation Technique," you said.

"Are you crazy?" She almost shouted, quickly covering her mouth, her eyes widening. "You're at this age and still want to Cultivate?"

Knowing that there were also Mortals in Tianshu City, you pretended to sigh. "Before I die... I just want to taste the feeling of being an immortal."

She rolled her eyes and went hopping and skipping toward the counter.

When she returned, her arms were full of bottles and jars, and the cover of the Qi Refining Cultivation Technique on top, "Azure Spirit Art," was worn out.

In the bustling crowd, who would care about a little girl and a ragged old man?

Like two fallen leaves, you two quietly drifted back to the spirit boat.