The Spiritual Root Testing Ceremony drew to a flawless close.
The shock it delivered became the primary topic of conversation among the Zhou, Lin, and Yin families, and indeed among cultivators across ten thousand li around.
One could already foresee that news of a peerless genius endowed with both a Heavenly Spiritual Root and an Innate Dao Body would soon sweep across the entire Tiannan Continent!
Why was this?
The reason was quite simple!
In this world, though bearers of Heavenly Spiritual Roots were rare, across a vast population base they would inevitably appear from time to time. At most, they could be hailed as once-in-a-century geniuses, and their upper ceiling was firmly set.
Those with special constitutions were rarer still, yet they too emerged every now and then.
However!
To possess both a Heavenly Spiritual Root and a special constitution was exceptionally rare.
Moreover, unlike many geniuses whose special constitution did not fully harmonize with their spiritual root, Zhou Fuyou's spiritual root and physique shared the most perfectly aligned, homologous attribute.
The compounding effect of the two yielded an unimaginable boost to both cultivation efficiency and combat prowess!
The last person endowed with a similar combination had long made a name for himself across the entire Central Plains, and was once treasured like a priceless jewel by the Five Elders of Tianyuan.
That man was Shi Ju!
Hailing from the Shi family of the Twelve Great Houses, he possessed a Fire Heavenly Spiritual Root and an Innate Nine Yangs Dao Body.
At just two hundred years of age, he had advanced to the Nascent Soul stage.
Not only that, nurtured by the Tianyuan Dao Sect, he had even forged a Lightning Dao avatar.
He was hailed as invincible among his peers, his combat strength formidable in the extreme!
This was amply demonstrated when Shi Ju fought in the Eastern Desolation war, crossing realms to contend against a Great Demon Emperor.
The sole blemish on Shi Ju's record was likely his defeat at the hands of the Desolate Hermit Luo Chen in the Five-Hundred-Year Grotto-Heaven Tournament, where his Lightning Dao avatar had even been shattered by the Desolate Hermit.
Yet even so, having comprehended the true intent of the Fire Origin Law, Shi Ju remained a pivotal figure of immense standing in the Tianyuan Dao Sect.
And now, Zhou Fuyou had shown comparable potential.
His name would eventually spread throughout the Tiannan Continent, and perhaps even the entire Central Plains!
Provided, of course, that he did not perish along the way!
***
"Dean, are we truly not taking Zhou Fuyou with us?"
Aboard an ornate flying boat, a cultivator from Yuheng Court looked at Mo Wanting with concern.
Mo Wanting shook her head. "He insisted, so there was nothing I could do. This is the Zhou clan, after all."
"But what if someone conceives malicious designs and attempts to harm him before he comes into his own? What would we do then?"
At this, Mo Wanting merely smiled.
"With the Zhou family Old Ancestor watching over him, nothing will go wrong."
"Can the Zhou Old Ancestor manage? Rumor has it his lifespan is near its end, and his realm is only mid-stage Nascent Soul..."
Facing her subordinate's doubts, Mo Wanting did not explain. She recalled the terrifying pressure she had felt upon meeting the Zhou Old Ancestor in person not long ago. That was a presence no current Nascent Soul cultivator of the Mo clan could evoke; only the three late-stage Nascent Soul elders of the Mo clan at its peak had ever made her feel that way.
In other words, unbeknownst to many, the Zhou family Old Ancestor, Zhou Yunshen, had already stepped into the late Nascent Soul stage.
With his days numbered, he would surely defend Zhou Fuyou with his life.
With such a Great Cultivator protecting him, Zhou Fuyou might be even safer here than inside the Tiannan Dao Palace!
On the deck of the flying boat, a dozen other youths stood in groups of twos and threes.
Zhou Yuwei, Zhou Yuhao, and Zhou Ping'an from the Zhou family were among them.
On this journey, they would be admitted into the most authoritative Dao Palace on the Tiannan Continent, becoming favored sons of heaven envied by all.
Yet Mo Wanting, who had initially been quite warm toward them, now paid them little heed, speaking almost entirely of Zhou Fuyou, who had not come along.
This left many of them feeling indignant.
Mo Wanting paid no attention to their moods. Once her subordinates completed their inspection, she waved her hand.
"Return to the Dao Palace!"
The ornate flying boat circled twice in the sky and then vanished into the far reaches of the horizon.
Down on the ground.
A crowd of Zhou family cultivators looked up until even the vessel's shadow disappeared, only then reluctantly turning their attention back.
Clan Head Zhou Junxiao breathed a sigh of relief, then looked at the twenty youths standing at the very front of the crowd, his eyes filled with satisfaction.
Out of a hundred people tested, twenty-three were found to possess spiritual roots, including several with excellent aptitude such as dual spiritual roots. This had truly been a bumper harvest for the Zhou family.
Even so, the subsequent nurturing could not be neglected.
"From tomorrow onward, you shall all report to the family's Hall of Passing Techniques every morning to learn foundational cultivation knowledge."
"After one month, once you have acquired a basic understanding of cultivation theory, you may officially begin your practice and enter the Scripture Pavilion to select three basic spells."
"Keep this in mind: do not slack off!"
"I know some of you received instruction at home, but those were merely your parents' personal interpretations and prone to bias. The clan elders in the Hall of Passing Techniques derived their knowledge from the Old Ancestor himself; it is more comprehensive and more accurate, which will be of immense help for advancing to higher realms in the future."
Zhou Fuyou stood at the very front of the crowd, quietly listening to these words.
He knew the Clan Head's arrangements were not solely for those reasons.
Beyond what was said, it was likely also intended to accommodate the mortal offspring brought over from Coral Town. After all, those children had not been immersed in theoretical guidance from an early age; this single month was meant as a buffer period for them.
Zhou Fuyou cared nothing for such matters. He cared about only one thing.
"Clan Head!"
Zhou Junxiao shifted his gaze to him and said in a gentle tone, "Fuyou, do you have a question?"
Zhou Fuyou asked a very simple question: "Where will those who were not found to have spiritual roots go?"
Zhou Junxiao smiled. "They will be sent to Coral Town to live and multiply, providing the clan with basic supplies and bloodline descendants."
"Can they not remain within the clan?"
"If their parents or elders reside within the clan, they may stay temporarily. But once they reach sixteen years of age, they will still be sent away."
The youth frowned.
Zhou Junxiao already understood his thoughts; after all, he knew why the boy had stubbornly insisted on remaining in the clan.
He sighed and said, "In truth, sending them away is the best choice for those without spiritual roots. The clan is composed entirely of cultivators. Whether in daily living or in cultivation and sparring, the slightest lapse can cause spiritual energy to leak, which can easily harm mortals by accident. Moreover, the agony of being unable to cultivate will only grow heavier day and night when surrounded by cultivators, twisting their minds. Do you understand what I mean?"
Zhou Fuyou stood frozen.
He muttered, "Without spiritual roots, can one truly never cultivate?"
***
"Without spiritual roots, one can still cultivate!"
"As expected of the generation's Alchemy Grandmaster who reigned supreme across the Eastern Desolation!"
"Just how on earth was such an ingenious elixir concocted?"
In a side hall behind the Coral Hall, an old man with an ashen face stared fanatically at three medicinal pills before him. Behind him lay a shattered alchemy furnace amidst a floor littered with debris.
Evidently, he had failed countless times in his experiments.
Suddenly.
A weathered voice echoed through the hall.
"Chongxiao, time is up."
Zhou Chongxiao, a second-generation Zhou kinsman, was one of the clan's six current Golden Core cultivators.
Back then, he had received guidance from the Old Ancestor and advanced to the Golden Core stage alongside Zhou Xiaocheng.
During his breakthrough, he had even received assistance from pills bestowed by Luo Chen.
The reason Zhou Yunshen had singled out Zhou Chongxiao was that he was the Zhou family's only surviving Alchemy Master, yet his lifespan was nearly spent.
For the sake of the family, Zhou Yunshen had invested resources into him, forcefully helping him reach the Golden Core stage to prolong his life.
Hearing that weathered voice now, Zhou Chongxiao dropped to his knees and pleaded anxiously, "Old Ancestor, give me a little more time! I will surely reverse-engineer the formulas for these three pills!"
"How much time is 'a little'?" Zhou Yunshen asked.
Zhou Chongxiao hesitated. "Three years... no, ten years! Regardless, as long as we deduce these three formulas so mortals can cultivate, our Zhou family will inevitably rise in Tiannan and become the greatest cultivation clan in the entire Mountain Sea Realm! For this, Chongxiao is willing to dedicate all the time left in his life!"
"Three years? Ten years? A lifetime?" Zhou Yunshen's tone carried unmistakable disappointment, and he sighed. "Enough. How could his methods be something you could unravel? The countless failures over these past few years have already proven everything. Continuing your research will yield nothing."
"Old Ancestor!"
"That child has grown up and needs to use these three pills. Furthermore, the juniors of our Zhou family cannot endlessly rely on outside elixirs to aid their cultivation. It is time you leave this place and contribute your strength to the clan."
A gentle breeze swept past, and the three pills before Zhou Chongxiao vanished in an instant.
The old man's outstretched hands hung suspended in the air, his face filled with loss and desolation.
He only regretted that he could not meet the Alchemy Grandmaster face-to-face to seek guidance in the boundless Dao of Alchemy!
***
Outside the grand gates of the Coral Hall.
Zhou Fuyou stood somewhat anxiously, uncertain why the Old Ancestor had suddenly summoned him.
Did he merely want to see him?
If that was the case, would his concealed cultivation be discovered?
And if it was discovered, how should he explain it?
Amidst the youth's apprehension, the heavy doors opened without warning.
Zhou Fuyou took a deep breath, composed himself, and stepped inside.
Unlike the unfamiliarity he had imagined, the moment he entered, an innate sense of kinship welled up within him.
It stemmed from deep within his body!
Was it bloodline?
Zhou Fuyou did not understand where this feeling of shared origin came from; he simply bowed respectfully toward the figure seated above.
"Fuyou greets the Old Ancestor!"
"Raise your head!"
Zhou Fuyou looked up, gazing at the elderly man above.
He wore the Zhou family's most iconic attire—broad robes with wide sleeves of plain white, and one could easily imagine a brilliant red coral embroidered in full bloom across the back.
This was the Zhou family's highest symbol of distinction.
Ranked below it were the golden-coral white robe worn only by the Clan Head, followed by the blue coral worn by elders, and the white coral for ordinary clan members.
This was also a memorial kept by the Zhou family to honor their past during the Northern Sea era.
Yet at this moment, all Zhou Fuyou felt was the weathered elder's gaze looking down upon him.
It was an appraisal, tender affection, and yet carried a trace of detachment.
How remarkably complex!
Zhou Fuyou could not fathom why he looked at him this way.
Finally, Zhou Yunshen spoke.
His very first words struck Zhou Fuyou with a jolt of alarm.
"So swift. You are already about to establish your foundation."
Zhou Fuyou swallowed hard and replied in trepidation, "The Old Ancestor's discerning eyes see all. Fuyou is indeed close to Foundation Establishment."
Zhou Yunshen smiled gently. "It is not that my eyes see all, but that you have been cultivating right under my nose, and owing to certain special reasons, I can sense your exact realm. Were it another Nascent Soul True Person, they might not necessarily see through your concealment."
Zhou Fuyou was thoroughly astonished.
He had indeed practiced a concealment spell and was confident he could fool Foundation Establishment cultivators or even Golden Core cultivators, but he had never imagined he could hide anything from a Nascent Soul True Person.
Yet he had not expected the Old Ancestor to hold him in such high regard!
Was it due to his constitution?
"When will you be able to break through?"
The old man's question drifted down leisurely.
Zhou Fuyou reported honestly: "At any time. The only reason I have not taken that step is fearing my skills are unpolished and something might go awry."
"What could possibly go wrong with you?"
The old man murmured softly in a voice so faint that Zhou Fuyou likely did not catch it.
Zhou Fuyou hesitated for a moment before taking the initiative to ask, "May I ask what instructions the Old Ancestor has in summoning Fuyou here?"
"Do not be nervous. There are a few matters, but for you, they are all good things."
With that, the old man waved his hand, and three jade platters floated before Zhou Fuyou.
On the first jade platter lay a storage bag patterned with black and white go stones.
On the second jade platter was a neatly folded white robe alongside an identity token.
On the third jade platter were three small vials.
"These are?" Zhou Fuyou was somewhat bewildered.
The old man smiled. "That storage bag was left for you by Dean Mo Wanting of Yuheng Court before her departure. I have inspected it; inside are the three most orthodox water-attribute cultivation arts of the Tianyuan Dao Sect, all capable of leading directly to the Nascent Soul stage. There are also numerous water-attribute spells, cultivation insights, medicinal herbs to aid your practice, and more. She was extending goodwill toward you, which is why she bestowed such a precious gift."
Zhou Fuyou came to an understanding. "Is it because of my aptitude?"
"Indeed! The Mo family to which Mo Wanting belongs was the clan of the previous Tianyuan Dao Sect Sect Master. At its peak, it was the greatest clan in the Central Plains and even the entire Mountain Sea Realm. But during the war in the Central Plains, the Mo family was cast down to rock bottom, leaving scarcely any Nascent Soul True Persons among them. Thus, they were marginalized to the Tiannan Continent, which led them to relinquish high-level authority in the Tiannan Dao Palace and voluntarily seek posts within the Seven Stars Courts, all to enlist a large pool of outstanding talents in hopes of drawing on external strength to recover their vitality. Your aptitude is exceptional, so much so that she did not hesitate to violate sect rules to secretly gift you core cultivation arts. However, in my view, you have no need for those three arts."
Zhou Fuyou opened his mouth, somewhat surprised. It was evident that his Old Ancestor had long known he was cultivating the Dew Cicada Art, which focused solely on rapidly soaring through realms.
He hesitated. "I can switch arts."
To his surprise, Zhou Yunshen waved his hand. "There is no need to switch. With your aptitude, any cultivation art will become first-rate in your hands. Besides, the Dew Cicada Art is itself a top-tier art from the Northern Sea sacred land, the Yuan Demon Sect, no inferior to those of the Tianyuan Dao Sect. All you need to do in the future is go to the Tiannan Dao Palace to obtain the latter half for higher realms."
Zhou Fuyou felt relieved; it seemed he had not chosen his primary cultivation art poorly.
He smiled. "Even so, I should still keep the Mo family's favor in mind."
Yet Zhou Yunshen rejected his thought once more.
"There is no need to hold this favor in mind; in fact, I advise you not to associate too closely with them."
"Ah? Why?"
"There is no why. One day you will naturally understand." Zhou Yunshen shifted the topic, pointing toward the other jade platter. "You should understand what that robe signifies. Only I may wear the red-coral white robe; from now on, your status in the clan is equal to mine! That token carries the same meaning. Henceforth, clan resources are yours to take as you wish, the Scripture Pavilion is completely open to you, and even the clansmen may be deployed at your discretion after informing Clan Head Zhou Junxiao."
This time, Zhou Fuyou was thoroughly dazed.
Yet before he could ponder why the Old Ancestor treated him with such extraordinary generosity, his entire mind was seized by the words that followed.
"On the final jade platter are three pills bestowed by an old friend of mine from years past, the Desolate Hermit. He holds another title—the Alchemy Grandmaster—possessing divine and uncanny mastery in the Dao of Alchemy. Since the Alchemy Saint ascended, he stands supreme in this realm's alchemy! And these three pills are what he painstakingly concocted to break the divide between immortal and mortal, enabling even mortals to cultivate."
Break the divide between immortal and mortal, enabling even mortals to cultivate!
The youth's breath caught sharply.
He fell to his knees and called out, "This child thanks the Old Ancestor for your benevolent gift!"
Zhou Yunshen shifted his body slightly, as if avoiding receiving the full bow, and merely said calmly, "You may take your leave!"
Zhou Fuyou stood up excitedly, cradled the three jade platters in his hands, and slowly retreated from the Coral Hall.
Stepping outside the hall into the blazing midsummer sun, he felt his spirits soar with pure delight.
Ever since his aptitude was revealed, everything had turned for the better!
He had escaped his previous predicament, leaping to become the person of highest standing within the clan.
Any resource was his for the taking.
And most importantly of all, his sister would be able to cultivate as well!
"With things like this, I can enter seclusion and break through to the Foundation Establishment stage without any lingering worries."
Chapter 1035