156: Xiao Ran breaks through the foundation

Although Liu Xuan had taken in Lu Huan, Lu Hui, and the other four women, he did not truly trust them.

Like Lu Ping, they were merely Concubines with the lowest status, on par with the newly arrived Junior Sisters.

They didn't even live in the Fledgling Eagle Courtyard but in the adjacent courtyard Liu Xuan had just acquired.

Ultimately, Liu Xuan merely used Lu Ping; if she hadn't had some value, Liu Xuan would have killed her back then.

For her to gain Liu Xuan's trust was exceedingly difficult, with only a slight possibility after her child was born.

Lu Ping, of course, understood this, as she wasn't truly in love with Liu Xuan either; she merely saw the immense benefits he offered and wanted to cling to him.

After these few months of life on the island, Lu Ping had roughly categorized Liu Xuan's women into four tiers.

The first tier had only one person, Lin Xue'er, who was in a class of her own. Liu Xuan showed extreme favoritism towards this Mortal Martial Artist woman; her words could almost represent Liu Xuan's.

The second tier consisted of Lin Anqi, Lin Yiyi, She Xiaorong, Yan Qingyao, and others. They either had deep affection for Liu Xuan or possessed strong abilities that helped him manage affairs.

The third tier included Bai Zhiwei, Yang Xiaoyun, Ye Manqing, and others who gained Liu Xuan's favor due to their beauty or children.

The last tier was the newcomers, including herself and the four younger sisters she brought.

Lu Ping didn't aspire to receive the same favoritism as Lin Xue'er; she only wished that Liu Xuan could set aside his prejudices and allow her to achieve the same level of control over some real power as She Xiaorong.

Although her status was the lowest tier, with her Late Qi Refining Stage cultivation and her identity as a Personal Disciple of the Three Poisons Ancestor of the Nether Fire Sect, she quickly became a well-known figure among the Concubines.

No one knew her initial intentions, nor did they know that Liu Xuan had planted a Puppet Gu in her Divine Soul.

Furthermore, Liu Xuan did not restrict her excessively, and within a few short months, she had built good relationships with She Xiaorong, Lin Xue'er, Lin Yiyi, and others, and even took over some Merchant Alliance affairs.

As long as Liu Xuan didn't intervene, she would be able to reach the second tier, like She Xiaorong, in a while... The days passed steadily, and many minor disturbances could be resolved without Liu Xuan's involvement.

Five months later.

Liu Xuan was leisurely guiding the children in their martial arts practice, with Lin Xue'er also helping to teach nearby.

The children varied in age and martial arts talent, often requiring individual instruction.

Liu Xuan alone couldn't teach them all; Lin Xue'er, Xiao Shuang (Younger Twin), and others did most of the teaching.

He only needed to focus on the few children with the best talent and fastest progress.

Among the children, the one with the best martial arts talent was his eldest son, Liu Daoyuan. This child not only had good talent but was also extremely diligent and hardworking; he had long since thoroughly grasped and integrated the fundamentals of the Green Wood Body Sculpting Art.

Moreover, he was naturally able to eat a lot and had an uncommonly strong physique. Since childhood, he had never lacked spiritual food, and his martial arts Foundation was probably unmatched by many in the entire Red Pine Sect.

If it weren't for the sake of a more solid Foundation, he could forcefully Breakthrough now and begin true martial arts Cultivation.

As soon as he was old enough, he would immediately be able to Breakthrough to the Muscle and Bone Realm and become a Martial Artist.

Even without Breaking through to the Muscle and Bone Realm, Eldest Son's strength was not much inferior to that of an ordinary Muscle and Bone Realm Martial Artist. Those ordinary Muscle and Bone Realm Martial Artists who hadn't experienced actual combat probably wouldn't be his match.

Besides his eldest son Lin Eldest Son, there were Daocheng, Ninth Son, Dao Yong, Dao Dan, Ling Miao, Lingyue... these children with Spiritual Roots had even higher Aptitude.

Among them, Daocheng had the highest Realm. This boy seemed to enjoy playing and be unreliable, but in private, he was the most diligent, second only to Eldest Son.

He always considered himself the second elder brother; besides his eldest brother Eldest Son, he believed he was the eldest of all his siblings.

Taking advantage of a break, Daocheng retrieved a long sword and, with his 'confidant' younger brother, came before Liu Xuan to perform a set of Innate Sword Qi Art sword techniques.

"Father!"

"How was it? Isn't my sword technique handsome?"

The word 'handsome' he learned from Liu Xuan, and he felt that the word suited him well.

"Just so-so!"

"Flashy but impractical."

Liu Xuan gave an honest evaluation.

"Oh~"

He lowered his head in disappointment for a moment, then cheered up, "Father, then teach me sword techniques!"

"Why do you want to learn the sword?" Liu Xuan asked.

"Because... it's handsome!"

Liu Xuan was helpless; this boy was always a show-off, loving to be in the spotlight since childhood.

"Your father's sword techniques are too profound; you can't learn them yet. First, practice the Green Wood Body Sculpting Art well!"

"Alright!"

Daocheng's eyes were firm, and with anticipation for profound sword techniques, he diligently went to practice the Green Wood Body Sculpting Art.

Liu Xuan looked at the children diligently practicing martial arts in the courtyard, a sense of satisfaction rising in his heart.

Feeling his own Qi and blood, the essence blood in his heart was already full, and his entire body had reached a limit. He had reached Body Refining ninth layer Perfection; he only needed an opportunity to Breakthrough to Martial Dao Foundation Establishment.

This opportunity wouldn't take too long; in as short as three to five days, or as long as one to two months, he would be able to Breakthrough.

During this time, he felt his cultivation had improved faster than expected. He wondered if it was because the third-tier Pine Spiritual Fruit True Person Xiao had given him earlier had improved his Aptitude, or the bonus brought by the children gradually growing up.

The children hadn't truly begun to Cultivate yet; the bonus brought by a single child was negligible, but the sheer number of them made it significant!

Over a hundred children, growing every day. Even if each child only brought a small bonus, multiplying it by a hundred was not to be underestimated.

'I'll verify it!'

Liu Xuan planned to rest for a few days without Cultivating. If he could sense an increase in his cultivation then, it would prove that it was the bonus brought by the children's growth.

"Buzz~"

Suddenly! Liu Xuan sensed a violent fluctuation in the Spiritual Qi on the island. He flew into the air, looking towards the direction of the disturbance.

'Jingxin Courtyard?'

His Eye of Delusion Breaking activated, Liu Xuan's pupils transformed into a black rotating vortex, and the flow of Spiritual Qi throughout Lake Heart Island clearly appeared in his vision.

The core of the Spiritual Qi fluctuation was the Jingxin Courtyard, and judging by the location, it should be Senior Sister Xiao Ran's secluded Cultivation room.

The underground Spiritual Vein was agitated, and the Spiritual Qi fluctuations grew increasingly intense, gradually condensing into a tangible spiritual cloud vortex above the Jingxin Courtyard.

'Is Xiao Ran about to Breakthrough?'

Xiao Ran was already a Qi Refining Perfection Cultivator, and the purpose of her seclusion was to Breakthrough to Foundation Establishment.

Judging by the commotion caused by the Spiritual Qi fluctuations, Xiao Ran had begun her Breakthrough to Foundation Establishment.

'I wonder if she'll succeed!'

Breaking through Foundation Establishment was not that simple. Agitating the Spiritual Qi was just the first step; the entire process required solidifying the magical power and completely forging the Dantian into a dao foundation to be considered successful.

Achieving Foundation Establishment not only transformed magical power and greatly increased the power of spells but also allowed one to engrave and refine proficient spells onto the dao foundation, becoming an Innate spell-like ability that could be cast with a single thought.

The Spiritual Qi fluctuations gradually intensified, and soon, all the Cultivators on the island could sense the change.

Some Cultivator Disciples quickly guessed that Xiao Ran was Breaking through Foundation Establishment, so they all flew into the air to watch.

Such an event sometimes didn't happen even once in ten years, and everyone was incredibly excited.