章節 38: 38 Chapters of Two Years in Retreat
In Harmony Courtyard, after patiently calming down, Zhao Sheng sent away Zhao Xiaoqi, who had come to inquire about news.
Having sent off Zhao Xiaoqi, he shook his head with a bitter smile and couldn't help but sigh, "The mastermind behind the scenes is really painstaking, even resorting to spreading rumors among the mortals. It seems they won't stop until the Zhao family is tormented to death."
By this time, Zhao Sheng had already vaguely guessed who was manipulating everything behind the scenes—most likely Wei Chengwo, that old fox.
Only he would stop at nothing to achieve his aims.
The reason Wei Chengwo wanted to drive the Zhao family to their demise was not only aimed at the Zhao family's cultivators but also, more importantly, for the sake of the fifty thousand mundane relatives of the Zhao family.
Don't assume that mundane relatives are unimportant to a cultivation family.
On the contrary, they are the most important foundation for any cultivation family.
Take the Zhao family as an example, among the thirty-one cultivators of the Zhao family, more than ten came from mundane families.
Once the Wei family assimilates the fifty thousand relatives of the Zhao family, the number of newly emerged cultivators in their family will surely increase significantly.
In the cultivation world, a considerable part of cultivation families grows their power by continuously assimilating the mundane relatives of other families.
Zhao Sheng also guessed that perhaps not only he had figured this out, but also several astute elders in the family probably had a rough idea as well.
But what of it!
Wei Chengwo's move was clearly brazen, the conspiracy almost overt.
It was the Zhao family's own incompetence that had exposed such a grand vulnerability.
Regarding this, Zhao Sheng had no good solutions, only to react as challenges arose.
The key to breaking this situation lay in whether the two elders could successfully establish their Foundation.
If successful, everyone would have a bright future.
If not... they would only have to make other plans!
...
The Sun blazed fiercely, and July seethed with heat; two months had swiftly passed.
That day, Zhao Sheng was entirely focused on drawing an Invisibility Talisman in the talisman-making room.
A moment later, as the talisman paper's surface flashed with spiritual light and the intricate and ornate rune vanished, an Invisibility Talisman formed suddenly.
Seeing Zhao Sheng succeed again, Zhao Chongwei, who was nearby, dropped her talisman pen in disheartenment and complained to Zhao Sheng, "Chonghe, why is the Invisibility Talisman so difficult! I've already failed more than ten times today."
Zhao Sheng approached her, picked up a ruined talisman from the table, and after examining it for a while, he said, "Xiao Wei, your penmanship and rune shapes are correct, and all the spiritual acupoints are intact. The reason for your repeated failures is the uneven distribution of spiritual power between the runes, causing blockages at the nodes."
Zhao Chongwei took the talisman and looked at it for a while, then said dejectedly, "I've tried my best to control it, but the Invisibility Talisman is too complicated. I've used all my energy on its rune shapes and spiritual acupoints; I really can't manage anything else. Not everyone is as freakish as you!"
Zhao Sheng was left speechless. So it's all my fault!
Eventually, he could only comfort her, "Don't rush, take it slow. Practice makes perfect. With your current progress, you'll master it in at most three months."
Zhao Chongwei couldn't help rolling her eyes, disdainfully saying, "Are you mocking me for being dumb!"
On hearing this, Zhao Sheng's face stiffened, and he hurriedly apologized, "Young lady, you are the family's genius girl, reaching the third layer of Qi Refining at just seventeen. I, a mere second-layer Qi Refining novice, dare not mock you."
Hearing him say this, Zhao Chongwei's frustration abated somewhat, but she still sighed, "What use is the third layer of Qi Refining? It doesn't help the family at all. When will the elders come out of seclusion?"
Zhao Sheng's expression darkened as he comforted her, "Don't worry, the two elders will surely succeed!"
After hearing this, Zhao Chongwei clasped her hands together, bowed her head, closed her eyes, and prayed sincerely, "Ancestors, bless our Zhao family with another Foundation Establishment Cultivator!"
Finished, she elbowed Zhao Sheng and urged, "Chonghe, pray with me quickly."
Zhao Sheng was somewhat speechless.
Who says cultivators aren't superstitious, they're actually very superstitious.
Just like Zhao Keru, the alchemist of the Zhao Family, every time he started his alchemy furnace, he would bathe and change clothes, burn incense, and pray, with great pomp and ceremony.
Not only him, but most artifact refiners, alchemists, and array masters in the Cultivation World also practiced similar worship rituals. Some worshipped heaven and earth, some revered the sages of their path, and some even worshipped their own ancestors.
Seeing Zhao Sheng unmoved, Zhao Chongwei urged, "Hurry up!"
Zhao Sheng touched his nose and reluctantly muttered a few blessings from the ancestors.
Due to his perfunctory attitude, Zhao Chongwei severely scolded him.
It wasn't until Zhao Sheng "reformed" that she let him off.
After all, praying for one's own descendants isn't such an uncommon practice!
As it turned out, praying to the ancestors proved utterly useless.
Two days later, bad news struck like a bolt from the blue, throwing the Zhao Family into disarray.
Zhao Jingang had failed in his Foundation Establishment!
Not only had he failed, but many of his meridians were broken, and his realm had regressed to the early stage of Qi Refining Ninth Layer.
Within half an hour, Zhao Chonghe, as the only member of his generation, and seven powerful elders of the Zhao Family once again sat around the round table.
This time, the atmosphere in Unity Hall was even heavier than it had been two months earlier.
There was no doubt that Zhao Jingang's failure was a severe blow to the Zhao Family, one that shook everyone's confidence deeply.
During this emergency meeting, Zhao Sheng did not speak up; after all, there was nothing much to say.
A failure was a failure, and the sky hadn't fallen.
This time, the other elders of the Zhao Family displayed great rationality; after a brief period of dejection, they immediately arranged to handle the aftermath efficiently.
To put it simply, they decided to block the news externally, downplay the failure internally as much as possible, stabilize morale fully, and crack down hard on any rumors.
After leaving Unity Hall, Zhao Sheng immediately went to the Good Deeds Hall, using his status as Family Head to draw ten years of spiritual salary in advance and exchanged all the treasures like the flying sword and Mystic Wave Crystal in his storage bag for Fasting Pills and Spirit Origin Pills.
Then, he plunged into the Water Vein Cultivation Room, embarking on a lengthy period of closed-door cultivation.
He had started preparing for a way out.
If Zhao Jinding also failed,
Zhao Sheng decided that once he advanced to the Qi Refining Third Layer, he would head to Heavenly Pillar Mountain ahead of time.
Time flew swiftly by, and two years passed in the blink of an eye.
That day, a disheveled Zhao Sheng finally emerged from the cultivation room.
At this point, no one knew that he had successfully advanced to the Qi Refining Third Layer.
After emerging from his retreat, Zhao Sheng boarded a wooden boat and instructed the boatman to sail towards the shore of Dragon Carp Lake.
Midway through the journey, he was shocked to discover that the number of boats on Dragon Carp Lake had increased by more than sixty percent from two years ago.
From wooden boats thirty feet long to wide-bottomed boats with upward-curving bows, totaling over a hundred of various types and sizes.
Moreover, there were two mid-sized Dragon Head Magic Boats over thirty feet long and seven or eight feet high, their surfaces flickering with countless rune spiritual lights, racing across the lake at high speed.
Occasionally, someone on the magic boats would cast a luminous fishing net into the water.
This busy scene seemed to symbolize the great prosperity of the Zhao Family.
However, the sight did not please Zhao Sheng; instead, he furrowed his brows tightly.
Standing at the bow of the boat, Zhao Sheng muttered to himself, "Things are looking grim!"
After landing, Zhao Sheng quickly learned of another dire piece of news from his clan members.
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