“Second Uncle, don’t worry. I’m already extremely satisfied. The fact that I can cultivate at all is more than enough for me!”
Wang Baoling said with admiration written all over his face, “Not bad, not bad. It’s best that you can think this way!”
With that, Wang Lin looked up at the sky outside and said, “It’s getting light. Pack up a few things. Once the Tu family finishes accepting disciples, you’ll come straight back to the Tu family with me.”
“All right!” Wang Baoling nodded.
There wasn’t much to pack at home. They simply brought some dried food and clothes and prepared to leave.
A short while later, Wang Lin led Wang Baoling out of the Wang family residence. Looking back, he sighed, “Ah, the two of us are leaving this time. Who knows when we’ll be able to return home?”
Wang Baoling, however, wasn’t nearly as sentimental. He had only been in this world for a few months, and it wasn’t as if he had developed very deep feelings for the Wang family’s ancestral home.
“Let’s go!”
Wang Baoling followed his second uncle to the village entrance.
Although dawn had only just begun to break, quite a few people were already standing in line.
“Immortal Master Wang, you’re here early!”
Wang Baoling turned around and saw a beautiful young woman wearing a Daoist robe and a purple cloud hairpin.
“Miss Tu Lu, this is my nephew, Wang Baoling. He has a five-element spirit root and can cultivate!” Wang Lin took the initiative to introduce him.
Tu Lu looked Wang Baoling over curiously, then introduced herself with a smile. “My name is Tu Lu. It’s nice to meet you!”
“It’s nice to meet you too, fair immortal maiden!” Wang Baoling said with a smile.
As they spoke, a handsome, broad-faced young man with sharp features walked over.
“Martial Uncle Wang, almost everyone is here. We can begin the spirit testing!”
With that, the young man secretly shot Wang Baoling a glance, his expression carrying a faint warning.
Wang Lin seemed to notice the warning and introduced him. “Nephew Ta Than, this is my biological nephew, Wang Baoling!”
Ta Than hurriedly wiped the threatening look from his face and smiled at Wang Baoling. “I’m Ta Than. I look forward to your guidance!”
Wang Baoling glanced at Ta Than, then at Tu Lu, and a hint of understanding appeared on his face.
In the distance, Hoang Ky and Ton Gio Manh saw Wang Baoling standing with the immortal masters and hurried over to ask, “Brother Wang, what’s going on?”
“That’s right. The immortal master in charge of accepting disciples is my second uncle!”
“Your second uncle?” The two were stunned at first, then looked at him with unmistakable envy.
“As long as you have a spirit root, you can cultivate too!” Wang Lin told them.
“Excellent, excellent! We’ll go get in line!” The two men stood at the back of the long line, both visibly excited.
“Anyone over sixty, leave the line! Anyone who has undergone spirit testing before, leave the line!” Wang Lin barked coldly at the disorderly crowd.
“Whoa!” Half the people in line immediately left.
Wang Lin nodded and said to Tu Lu and Ta Than, “Let’s get started.”
Tu Lu, Ta Than, and Wang Lin split into three groups and began testing everyone’s spirit roots.
“Place your hand on the Spirit-Testing Stone. Don’t do anything else,” Wang Lin told the crowd.
After several successive rounds of testing, no one had passed. The scene, which had originally been noisy, grew heavy and oppressive.
Wang Lin wasn’t surprised or disappointed. Ta Than and Tu Lu beside him seemed just as accustomed to this outcome.
Half a day passed in the blink of an eye, and so far, not a single person with a spirit root had appeared.
Soon, it was Ton Gio Manh and Hoang Ky’s turn to have their spirit roots tested.
The two men glanced excitedly at Wang Baoling. Then Hoang Ky placed his hand on the Spirit-Testing Stone.
However, the Spirit-Testing Stone showed no reaction at all.
“Try again,” Wang Lin said to Hoang Ky.
Hoang Ky’s face had gone pale. He reached toward the Spirit-Testing Stone again, but it still showed no reaction whatsoever.
“You don’t have a spirit root,” Wang Lin said expressionlessly.
Hoang Ky walked dejectedly to the side, his face filled with disappointment. Ton Gio Manh immediately reached toward the Spirit-Testing Stone.
Still, the Spirit-Testing Stone showed no reaction.
“You still have two chances,” Wang Lin said with a smile.
Ton Gio Manh didn’t hesitate and placed his hand on the Spirit-Testing Stone again.
After another half day, the Spirit-Testing Stone still showed no reaction whatsoever.
“Hahaha, looks like I don’t have the aptitude for cultivation either!” Ton Gio Manh said with a bitter smile.
“From now on, we’d better focus on pursuing official honors, then settle down, get married, and have children!” Hoang Ky said with a pained expression.
With that, the two turned to Wang Baoling and said, “Brother Wang, may everything go smoothly for you. May your immortal path endure!”
“Thank you!” Wang Baoling clasped his fists in gratitude.
Half a day later, everyone in the entire village had finished being tested.
Tu Lu said helplessly, “There really isn’t a single person here who can cultivate!”
“Lu-Lu, this trip wasn’t completely fruitless. At least Martial Uncle Wang’s nephew can cultivate!” Ta Than said with a laugh.
“Miss Tu Lu, Nephew, we’ll take our nephew back to the Tu family first. You two can go test the remaining villages,” Wang Lin said.
“All right, all right!” Ta Than immediately agreed, delighted at the chance to be alone with Tu Lu.
Tu Lu glanced at Ta Than, then said, “All right.”
Wang Lin nodded and raised his hand, taking a carriage out of his storage pouch.
“Baoling, let’s go!”
Wang Baoling climbed into the carriage curiously. Inside were four meditation cushions, and the walls were covered in dense, mysterious runes.
Wang Lin took out two spirit stones and pressed them into the top of the carriage.
The carriage quickly flew into the sky.
Wang Baoling watched the scene in astonishment.
“All right, I’ll tell you about the Tu family,” Wang Lin said.
“All right, Second Uncle!”
“Qingzhou has four great families: the Ly family, the Tu family, the Tran family, and the Phung family!”
“Of these, the Tu family and the Phung family are the weakest, with only two Foundation Establishment cultivators each.”
“However, the Tu family has an old ancestor in the late Foundation Establishment stage, so it isn’t actually at the bottom.”
“Other than that, the strongest forces in Qingzhou are the Taiji Immortal Academy and the Myriad Talismans Sect. It’s said that the Taiji Immortal Academy has a Golden Core old ancestor guarding it, while the Myriad Talismans Sect has more than a dozen Foundation Establishment cultivators.”
“Qingzhou also has a number of other families, but they either have no Foundation Establishment cultivators or only one. They aren’t worth mentioning.”
“The Tu family is divided into three branches. The main branch is led by Tu Quoc Huy, who is also the Tu family patriarch. He’s at the late Foundation Establishment stage.”
“The second branch is led by Tu Canh Huy, who’s at the early Foundation Establishment stage. That Tu Lu from earlier is his granddaughter!”
“The third branch is led by Tu Vu Huy, who’s at the thirteenth level of Qi Refining. Your second uncle belongs to this branch.”
Wang Baoling nodded. If his second uncle put it that way, then there was obviously conflict among the Tu family’s three branches.
“The third branch has only one son, Tu Phi, who handles all of the branch’s affairs. Tu Vu Huy basically doesn’t concern himself with the branch’s affairs.”
“Tu Phi and I are both sixth-level Qi Refining cultivators. He’s a little older than you, so you should get on good terms with him!” Wang Lin instructed.
“Don’t worry, Second Uncle!” Wang Baoling nodded.
After that, his second uncle went over the matters concerning the Tu family’s main and second branches that required his attention.