246: Chapter 246 Inviting the Chen Family

"You! 'Deserved to get hurt,' you say? Looks like you and I will have to exchange blows!" Fan Lianheng shouted in anger.

"Heh, fine by me," Feng Chengqian teased.

His cultivation level was one layer lower than Fan Lianheng's, but Fan Lianheng only had one Tier 2 Low Grade Magical Artifact, whereas he had two. Which of them was stronger was still uncertain, not to mention he felt quite confident he could defeat Fan Lianheng.

Fan Lianheng struck first, summoning a yellowish-brown Flying Sword. Having managed his Family alone for many years, his experience and encounters were far beyond what Feng Chengqian could compare to.

Thus, every move he made was seasoned and ruthless, aiming straight for his opponent's vital spots with every strike.

Seeing this, Feng Chengqian sneered disdainfully and likewise summoned a Flying Sword. In his hand, he held a Water-Stabilizing Pearl, which radiated waves of blue light around him to protect his body.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Fan Lianheng attacked continuously. Relying on his Earth-attribute elemental force, he suppressed Feng Chengqian's Water-attribute Flying Sword within a few moves. Then, knocking the sword aside, he bought himself a few breaths of time to attack Feng Chengqian directly.

However, several consecutive blasts were unable to break through the defensive barrier of the Water-Stabilizing Pearl in a short time.

Frowning, he muttered incantations under his breath while forming hand seals with both hands.

Mountain-Collapsing Seal!

He shouted loudly, and instantly, all the surrounding Earth-attribute Spiritual Qi gathered around him, forming a massive, square rock that pressed down toward Feng Chengqian.

Facing this powerful aura, Feng Chengqian finally grew serious, not daring to underestimate the attack. He drove his Flying Sword with all his might to slash at the massive rock, while the Water-Stabilizing Pearl in his palm burst with brilliant light to protect him with full force.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Feng Chengqian's Flying Sword slashed against the massive rock, barely chopping off a few corners. By the time the rock slammed completely into the barrier formed by his Water-Stabilizing Pearl, it had only shrunk in size by a quarter.

Bang!

Crack!

The barrier of the Water-Stabilizing Pearl held out for less than a few breaths before being crushed to pieces by the giant rock.

And Feng Chengqian himself was sent flying dozens of zhang back from the impact.

Fortunately, Fan Lianheng held back in time. Otherwise, if he had truly killed the man here, the relationship between the two families would have escalated from sheer enmity into an irreconcilable fight to the death.

The Cultivators of the Fan Family grew instantly excited seeing their Old Ancestor defeat his opponent.

In contrast, the members of the Feng Family turned purple as pig liver, looking utterly humiliated.

Cough! Cough!

Feng Chengqian coughed up a mouthful of blood, fear in his eyes. If the other party hadn't held back just now, he would have truly died, far beyond suffering merely this slight injury.

As for why his opponent was able to crush him so decisively, besides his lower cultivation level, more importantly, the opponent had an elemental counter against him, and the Earth-attribute Spiritual Qi here was far richer than the Water-attribute Spiritual Qi.

"Thank you for showing mercy, Fellow Daoist Fan. Before long, my third brother will pay a personal visit," Feng Chengqian said. Knowing he was no match, yet unwilling to give up this location, he could only lead his clansmen away for now, waiting for other Family members to take action later.

His third brother, Feng Chenggong, was completely different from him. Not only had he achieved Foundation Establishment over sixty years earlier, but his cultivation had also reached the Fifth Layer of Foundation Establishment, making him the second strongest fighter in the Family.

Hearing this, Fan Lianheng frowned deeply. He had experienced Feng Chenggong's strength before. Back when he had just stepped into the Foundation Establishment Stage, Feng Chenggong had crushed him under the guise of "guidance" using his Third Layer Foundation Establishment cultivation, deliberately embarrassing the Fan Family.

Now, the man was already at the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment, his strength even more unfathomable.

Even if his fifth uncle stepped in, he might not be able to subdue him, unless his fifth uncle were still in his prime.

"First send more hands to speed up the digging. We must haul away a portion before they arrive," Fan Lianheng ordered.

Just as he was about to leave, he turned back and added, "If they really show up, at worst we'll report the news here to the Chen Family. Exchanging it for contribution points with the Chen Family is better than giving it to the Feng Family for free."

...

A few days later.

Wuyue Mountain.

"Family Head, a few days ago, two forces under our banner seemed to have gotten into a conflict," Chen Lingqian came to the ancestral hall and reported.

"Which two?" Chen Changjie asked in doubt.

"It's the Fan Family and the Feng Family. A few days ago, Foundation Establishment Cultivators from both sides fought near their border," Chen Lingqian continued.

Seeing Chen Changjie fall into thought, he added, "Should we send someone to investigate?"

"There's no need. As long as it doesn't harm our Chen Family's interests, leave it alone. Besides, Lingqian, Eleventh Aunt has seen your hard work and toil for the Family over these years. It's been quite some time since you reached the Ninth Layer of Qi Refining. Seize the time these next few years to reach the Perfection of the Ninth Layer of Qi Refining, and then you can attempt Foundation Establishment," Chen Changjie advised gently.

Hearing this, Chen Lingqian looked shocked. In recent years, the Family's foundation establishment pills were not plentiful, so whenever a batch was pill-refined, priority was usually given to those clansmen with higher talent whose cultivation had reached the Perfection of the Ninth Layer of Qi Refining earlier.

He had run errands for the Family for many years, yet because his talent, cultivation, and contributions were insufficient, he couldn't obtain a foundation establishment pill. Though the fault lay not with the Family, and he understood that the Family's decisions were beneficial for its future development,

he still harbored a bit of resentment in his heart.

But now, with Chen Changjie's comforting words, his grievances vanished into thin air in an instant. His years of dedication had finally yielded a reward, along with the recognition of his fellow clansmen.

"Thank you, Eleventh Aunt. Your nephew will certainly not let you down," he thanked her with cupped hands, wiping away the tears at the corners of his eyes.

"Mm." Looking at his departing back, Chen Changjie let out a sigh. A Family is a large collective; even if many things were guaranteed to be fair, in the end, true and complete fairness was impossible.

A few more days passed, and news reached Chen Changjie's ears that Chen Linglong had achieved Breakthrough to Foundation Establishment. She immediately went over.

Looking at Chen Linglong, who had already emerged from seclusion, her eyes were filled with relief and satisfaction. Just a few days ago she had given pointers to Chen Lingqian, and now Chen Linglong had made a Breakthrough.

"Congratulations, Linglong," Chen Changjie and the others said happily.

"Thank you, Eleventh Aunt, thank you everyone. This kid did not fail his mission and successfully achieved Foundation Establishment, though the quality of my Dao Foundation is only Low Grade," Chen Linglong expressed his gratitude. Although he had only forged a Low Grade Dao Foundation, for a clansman like him whose Aptitude was not particularly great, being able to complete Foundation Establishment was already a stroke of immense good fortune.

As they were chatting, another piece of news arrived: Chen Lingjun had failed his Foundation Establishment attempt and was severely injured.

This bucket of cold water instantly extinguished most of their joy. They rushed over immediately, and even Chen Linglong, who had just achieved Foundation Establishment, hurried along with them.

Arriving at Chen Lingjun's Immortal Cave and seeing his pale face and weak, dispirited aura, everyone sighed inwardly.

Even though the Chen Family was now a Purple Mansion Family, they still could not guarantee that every clansman would reach the Foundation Establishment Stage, showing just how difficult the hurdle of Foundation Establishment was.

"It's alright, Lingjun. Keep trying next time," Chen Changjie comforted him.

The others also joined in to offer words of comfort.

Yet everyone knew that after this failure, Chen Lingjun would have no further chance at Foundation Establishment. He was already fifty-six years old. Forget about preparing for another attempt at Foundation Establishment within four years, he might not even fully recover from his injuries.

And once a Cultivator passed the threshold of sixty, their vital blood and Qi would decline, making Foundation Establishment even harder. On top of that, the difficulty of obtaining another foundation establishment pill was unimaginable.

Of course, it wasn't as if no one over sixty had ever successfully achieved Breakthrough to Foundation Establishment. A few years ago, a non-clansman Cultivator in the Chen Family, relying on years of accumulated contributions, had successfully achieved Breakthrough to Foundation Establishment at sixty-five.

One could imagine how great the difficulties he faced back then were. For one, if these non-clansmen Cultivators wanted to obtain a foundation establishment pill—or even Foundation Establishment Spiritual Items—the required contributions were far higher than those for direct lineage members of the Chen Family.

Secondly, the vast majority of non-clansmen Cultivators had poor talent, with many possessing Five Spiritual Roots or Four Spiritual Roots. That non-clansman Cultivator back then had been held in higher regard by the Chen Family due to his Three Spiritual Roots, and combined with his diligent efforts, he was able to become a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.