235: Taking on an apprentice, Lu Yuanxiang

Three days later.

Xiao Ran came out of seclusion, her body radiating the Aura of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, possessing a hint of the oppressive pressure of a superior compared to before.

This was still the result of her stable cultivation, her ability to freely control her Aura, and her deliberate restraint. If she were to unleash her Aura completely, ordinary people would not even be able to look directly at her.

"Husband! I... I think I'm pregnant."

Xiao Ran arrived before Liu Xuan, placing one hand on her lower abdomen and stroking it gently.

Her expression was complex; it wasn't that she was happy or unhappy, she just felt a bit strange.

Pregnancy and childbirth! In her decades of life, she had never considered this issue. This suddenly appearing little life left her feeling at a loss.

"What?!"

"Is it true?"

Liu Xuan's calm face instantly revealed a look of surprise and joy. "Let me check!"

"Hahaha!"

After a simple check, it was confirmed that Xiao Ran was indeed pregnant, and Liu Xuan laughed heartily.

Back then, when Zi Lan reached the Foundation Establishment, they had worked hard until now without her conceiving. For Xiao Ran to succeed so quickly, how could Liu Xuan not be excited?

This was the first Foundation Establishment Cultivator to be pregnant, and Xiao Ran's Spiritual Root talent was not low. Unless they were extremely unlucky, the child's talent would definitely not be bad.

"Ran'er, give birth to the child, and I will promise you anything you want!" Liu Xuan held her small face and kissed her on the forehead.

"Mm!"

Xiao Ran had already decided to give birth to the child the moment she told Liu Xuan the news of her pregnancy.

Her Dantian injury had healed, and she was able to successfully reach the Foundation Establishment so quickly—all of this was thanks to Liu Xuan. Even if just to repay this favor, she had to give birth to the child.

After Liu Xuan's excitement subsided, he suddenly thought of a question.

Calculating the time, Xiao Ran had conceived a day or two before her Foundation Establishment Breakthrough. In other words, when she got pregnant, she was still a Qi Refining Perfection Cultivator.

So, should the child's talent be calculated based on the mother being a Qi Refining Cultivator, or a Foundation Establishment Cultivator?

"What's wrong?" Seeing Liu Xuan lost in thought, Xiao Ran asked.

Liu Xuan explained his thoughts to her.

"This..."

Xiao Ran was also stumped. Conceiving just before a Breakthrough—she had never heard of such a situation!

A Breakthrough in one's Realm was extremely important to every Cultivator. Most people needed to burn incense and bathe before seclusion to clear their minds of distractions to achieve the best state for the Breakthrough. Who would do that kind of thing before a Breakthrough?

Even if one were practicing Yin and Yang Cultivation Technique or Cauldron Cultivation Technique that required Dual Cultivation to assist in a Breakthrough, it wouldn't lead to pregnancy. She had set a precedent.

"Forget it! No matter what, it's my child."

Since he couldn't figure it out, he stopped thinking about it. Even if it were calculated based on Qi Refining Perfection, there was still a chance for great talent.

Half a month later.

The Foundation Establishment Grand Ceremony was held as scheduled, and White Crane Lake became lively once again. The cloud-breaking flying boat, black crow flying boat, and ordinary ornate pleasure boats... were scattered like stars, stretching for over ten miles across the lake, looking like a city on the water from afar.

The liveliness of this ceremony was several times greater than the last. The last time, only some Cultivators from Yongning and the surrounding counties came, but this time, almost all the major families of the Red Pine Sect had sent people.

Of the nine Foundation Establishment Cultivators of the Red Pine Sect, besides Wang Qiao who was executing a secret mission and Su Wan who was under house arrest by Liu Xuan, the other seven all came.

Adding in some Old Ancestors from Foundation Establishment Family in various counties of the Red Pine Sect, just the number of Foundation Establishment Cultivators who arrived reached sixteen.

If one added Zi Lan and Xiao Ran, a total of eighteen Foundation Establishment Ancestors were gathered on White Crane Lake.

"The rise of the Liu Family is unstoppable!"

The speed at which the Liu Family at White Crane Lake developed was astonishing; Liu Xuan's fathers-in-law and mothers-in-law felt it the most intensely.

From the very beginning as a small patrol envoy in Yongning, a Qi Refining early-stage Cultivator, to the head of a Family now possessing two Foundation Establishment Ancestors, it had only taken twenty years!

Not only that, Liu Xuan's own cultivation had already reached the ninth level of Qi Refining, and he was not yet forty years old. If there were no accidents, he would also successfully reach the Foundation Establishment.

It was said that among his Concubines, there were several at the Late Qi Refining Stage, and his numerous offspring had good overall talent, with some even having a Third-grade Spirit Root.

A few decades later, how many Foundation Establishment Cultivators could the Liu Family produce? By that time, apart from the Xiao Family of the Red Pine Sect, I am afraid no other Family could compare to it!

The ceremony began. Zi Lan and Xiao Ran stood on Liu Xuan's left and right sides respectively, receiving the various Foundation Establishment Ancestors who had come to offer congratulations.

Xia He, She Xiaorong, Lu Ping, Zhang Kexin... the Concubines following behind him were also at the Late Qi Refining Stage, or even close to Perfection.

With so many beauties by his side, and their cultivation levels being so high, many Foundation Establishment Ancestors were envious.

An Yunxi did not like such boring, polite social scenes, so she was currently in the Artifact Refining Workshop researching fun Magical Artifacts with Dashan; otherwise, everyone would be even more envious.

"Hahaha!"

"Head of the Liu Family, this is the pearl of my Lu Family, Lu Yuanxiang. She has loved the Dao of Talismans since she was young and wants to take you as her Revered Master. What do you think..."

The person speaking was the head of the Yongning Lu Family, Lu Pingan, and beside him followed a bright, beautiful young girl.

Taking a Revered Master? Everyone glanced at him with disdain. To put it bluntly, wasn't this just sending a woman to Liu Xuan?

Lu Pingan looked honest; who would have thought he would be so shameless!

A dignified Foundation Establishment Ancestor, how could he do such a thing?! Even if he wanted to curry favor with the Liu Family, he should have let his subordinates handle it.

Liu Xuan looked at Lu Yuanxiang. Although the little girl couldn't be considered a top beauty, her eyes were clear and bright, possessing a kind of vitality and energy.

She was very bold and not timid in such a scene, staring with her big eyes at Liu Xuan, her eyes full of curiosity and excitement.

"She is indeed a good seedling!"

Liu Xuan nodded with satisfaction and laughed: "Old Ancestor Lu, rest assured, I will definitely do my best to teach her well."

"Then many thanks, Head of the Liu Family!"

Lu Pingan bowed and instructed Lu Yuanxiang beside him: "Why don't you go over and pay respects to your Revered Master."

"Greetings, Revered Master!"

Lu Yuanxiang stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

"Greetings, Mistresses!"

The little girl was very sensible. After Liu Xuan told her to rise, she ran over to pay respects to Zi Lan, Xiao Ran, and the others.

Watching the scene before him, Lu Pingan smiled knowingly. Liu Xuan had so many Concubines; simply sending a woman was nothing new.

Through his maneuvering, Lu Yuanxiang became Liu Xuan's first Disciple. Her uniqueness was immediately apparent. As long as she performed well in the Liu Family in the future, she would certainly receive more attention.

After the small interlude, the ceremony continued as normal until the afternoon, when the official ceremony concluded.

In the guest hall on the second floor of the cloud-breaking flying boat.

Liu Xuan took out a pot of precious spirit wine to receive his Revered Master, Ancestor Qingyun, alone.

"Little Xuan, you shouldn't have gotten involved with the Xiao Family at this time!" Lin Qingyun sighed.

Xiao Changfeng's time was running out, and given the things he had done before, the destruction of the Xiao Family was only a matter of time.

Marrying Xiao Ran at such a time and becoming the son-in-law of the Xiao Family was definitely not a wise move, as it meant bearing a risk for nothing.

Liu Xuan understood his Revered Master's meaning. His expression remained unchanged as he pushed the filled wine cup over.

"Revered Master, I have a secret to tell you, you must not tell anyone else!"