185: The more the better

Fledgling Eagle Courtyard.

Beside Liu Xuan sat a potted plant; it was not large, and a small five-colored tree swayed slightly, automatically consuming Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.

In the pot was not an ordinary spirit plant, but Liu Xuan's natal flying sword, the heavenly origin sword, which had taken shape.

The pot was not filled with soil, but with a tier 2 medium grade spiritual object called Tri-Origin Heavy Water. This substance was black in color, extremely heavy, and served as the primary material for many water-attribute Spiritual Artifacts.

Occasionally, a faint purple light flashed within the Tri-Origin Heavy Water; that was a tier 2 medium grade metal-attribute Ore, Purple Radiance Gold.

Fire, Wood, Earth—with three of the Five Elements Cultivation Techniques gathered, Liu Xuan used the heavenly origin sword's ability to refine the Five Elements to barely supplement the Water and Metal attributes, allowing the power of the heavenly origin sword to increase greatly.

Tier 2 Materials were not easy to buy; Liu Xuan had searched for a long time before finding suitable ones.

The Tri-Origin Heavy Water was purchased from the Sect's Dual Cultivation Hall. There was only this half-pot in total, which cost five thousand Spirit Stones, nearly the price of a tier 2 medium grade Spiritual Artifact.

There was a reason it was so expensive: this item was inherently a tier 2 medium grade material, and a top-tier one at that.

That he was able to buy so much was likely due to Grandmistress Su Waner or True Person Xiao personally giving the nod.

The Purple Radiance Gold was bought from the Nether Fire Sect—or to be precise, from the Three Poisons Ancestor Zi Ling. It was the size of a fist in total and cost three thousand Spirit Stones; it was also a tier 2 medium grade material.

The heavenly origin sword was limited by Liu Xuan's Cultivation, so its grade was only tier 2 Low Grade, but what level of power it could truly unleash was something Liu Xuan himself was not entirely clear about.

Fusion of the Five Elements, combined with the absorption of so many Advanced spiritual objects, and tempered every moment by three types of attribute mana—its Foundation was extremely deep, incomparable to ordinary Spiritual Artifacts; it was likely that only a Golden Core Magic Treasure could stably surpass it.

...

The next day.

Today was the day his eldest daughter Lingxiu and second daughter Lingyun turned thirteen. Liu Xuan specifically called them over to personally guide them in starting their Martial Artist Cultivation.

Lingxiu and Lingyun looked almost exactly the same; many people thought they were twins.

However, Lingxiu was lively, playful, and her eyes were full of Spiritual Qi, while Lingyun was relatively quiet and introverted, rarely speaking. Liu Xuan could tell at a glance who was the elder sister and who was the younger sister.

Although the two girls did not have Spiritual Roots, they had eaten quite a few spiritual objects since they were young, so they naturally carried a hint of Spiritual Qi and did not resemble ordinary Mortal girls.

"You don't need to be nervous, just do your best. There's no need to compare yourselves with your Eldest Son; his talent is better," Liu Xuan said with a smile, trying to comfort them.

Martial Artist Cultivation, like regular Cultivation, emphasized a peaceful state of mind; excessive pressure sometimes even had the opposite effect.

"Mm!"

The two girls nodded, then took a qi and blood pill and began to practice the Muscle and Bone Realm portion of the Green Wood Body Sculpting Art.

A moment later, unlike Eldest Son, painful expressions appeared on their faces, and sweat constantly beaded on their foreheads.

To say it was painful wasn't quite accurate; it was more like lifting heavy weights at the gym, with a sense of grimacing as they exerted all their strength.

Half an hour later.

Their bodies were sore and weak, and they were panting heavily, yet their Cultivation had not achieved a Breakthrough in the Muscle and Bone Realm.

Liu Xuan had long guessed this would be the result, so he did not look disappointed.

He instructed Da Shuang and Xiao Shuang beside him: "Take them to soak in a medicinal bath to recover their bodies. Just let them Cultivate normally in the future; do not force the children, lest you damage their Foundation."

"Yes!"

"Yes!"

Da Shuang and Xiao Shuang nodded in agreement.

Liu Xuan then instructed: "Go directly to Qingyao to get the qi and blood pills needed for the children's Cultivation."

"Also, raise Lingxiu and Lingyun's allowance to ten Spirit Stones per month. If you are willing, you can follow Xiao Rong to learn how to manage the Merchant Alliance's affairs."

"Thank you, Father!"

"Father is the best!"

Hearing that their allowance was ten Spirit Stones, the two girls were overjoyed, feeling that the fatigue on their bodies had lessened significantly.

Their talent was average, but their diligence was top-tier among all the children.

Without Spiritual Roots, they only had the path of the Martial Artist. Liu Xuan did not give up on them because of their poor talent, and both girls were grateful to their father from the bottom of their hearts.

Their strong reaction was mainly due to the influence of their mothers.

Da Shuang and Xiao Shuang would occasionally instill in them the ideologies of those great aristocratic families, saying that as the head of the Family, Liu Xuan had to consider the overall interests of the Family. Since their talent was not high, they shouldn't blame their father if they didn't get Cultivation resources in the future; they could only blame their own poor talent and lack of effort.

The two of them had been worried that if they didn't achieve a Breakthrough in their Realm like their Eldest Son today, their father would neglect them, and in the future, it would truly be as their mother had said, and their treatment would be gradually reduced.

Da Shuang and Xiao Shuang were even more shocked, and at the same time deeply moved. In their view, Liu Xuan treating their children so well was clearly a sign that he had deep feelings for them and had not forgotten their years of affection.

Ten Spirit Stones a month—many Concubines did not even receive such treatment; in the Sect, only an Outer Sect Deacon could reach that level.

The two children hadn't even broken through to become official Martial Artists, yet Liu Xuan was willing to spend so many Spirit Stones to nurture them. If this wasn't him cherishing their relationship, what could it be?

Liu Xuan waved his hand, signaling them to hurry and soak in the medicinal bath so as not to miss the optimal recovery time.

He could see that Da Shuang and Xiao Shuang had misunderstood, but he didn't point it out; having such a misunderstanding was a good thing.

There were few children who could Cultivate now, and he had so many Spirit Stones that he had nowhere to spend them. It was just a mere ten Spirit Stones; how could he possibly be stingy?

With the System in hand, he didn't need to worry about the future at all; he just needed to develop the present well.

...

In the following month, life returned to calm. Liu Xuan returned to a monotonous and boring life, guiding the children's Cultivation during the day and guiding the Concubines' Cultivation at night...

The children's strength grew rapidly, and the Concubines' Cultivation also grew rapidly. Relying on his own strength, Liu Xuan allowed the entire Liu Family's Foundation to grow rapidly.

Yan Qingyao used to hide from Liu Xuan under the pretext of Cultivation until she tasted the benefits once.

After that, she became proactive, but there were too many Concubines who wanted Liu Xuan to assist in their Cultivation; it was impossible to favor her alone.

For this reason, she pleaded with Liu Xuan, wanting to take a shortcut, but even after taking the shortcut, Liu Xuan still didn't agree to her.

According to the established rules, pregnant Concubines could receive more favor, and their priority would be higher in the future.

Yan Qingyao carefully calculated: pregnancy would only delay things for the two months of giving birth, but it would double her Cultivation speed for the rest of the time—it was very cost-effective!

Thus, ten years after giving birth to her daughter Lingyue, Yan Qingyao finally became pregnant with her second child.

It wasn't just Yan Qingyao; many Concubines who were dedicated to the path of the Dao were now very enthusiastic.

With over a hundred Concubines, if he took one a day, excluding those who were pregnant or had just given birth, there were still over a hundred; the queue would take over three months...

There was no other way! For the sake of Immortal Ascension, for the sake of the Family's great cause, for the sake of long-term freedom and ease... Liu Xuan just had to work a little harder!

At most, only one Concubine could be pregnant at a time, but there was no such restriction on guiding Cultivation!

Liu Xuan's strength was terrifying; he wasn't afraid of consumption—the more, the better!