Rebuilding the Immortal Cultivator Clan

Chapter 249 - 255: Impulse

On Wanxian Island, the family competition was in full swing, with a large number of exciting battles taking place every day.

Some previously obscure clan members had gained the familyʼs attention due to their outstanding performance in the competition.

Especially the younger clan members, who would now enjoy a tilt in clan resources, striving to enhance their cultivation levels as much as possible before the onset of the great war.

”Zhirui, have you taken a liking to any of the youngsters?” Li Shiqing asked with a smile.

Li Zhirui hadnʼt watched the family competition from beginning to end like Li Shiqing and others; aside from the first few days, he only appeared during todayʼs finals.

”Uncle, arenʼt you putting me on the spot? Iʼm not too familiar with them, how could I evaluate?”

Li Shiqing said with a smile, ”Perfect, today is the final day of the competition. Those who have made it this far, without saying anything else, certainly have decent strength. Take a look and see if anyone catches your eye.”

Li Zhirui felt a wry amusement; originally, he had only spoken a few words about Li Zhixuan because of her excellent temperament, and after that, he had not made similar remarks again.

But just that once, in the eyes of Li Shiqing and the others, he seemed like a Bo Le who could discern talent from afar and identify young geniuses.

As the competition commenced, the clan members on the viewing platform gradually quieted down, expectantly looking towards the center of the arena.

The two clan members in todayʼs first battle were both at the ninth level of Qi Cultivation, with almost no difference in their cultivation levels; or it could be said, at the very least, everyone who made it this far in the competition was in the later stages of Qi Cultivation.

There were no instances like in some tales where a lucky individual with incredibly good fortune makes it to the end by capitalizing on opportunities, or someone with a magical treasure and exceptional talent appears among the cultivators in the early or middle stages of Qi Cultivation.

In Li Zhiruiʼs view, the fighting between the two was naturally dull and uninteresting, merely casting spells for attack and defense, or summoning their Contracted Spirit Beasts to assist in the battle.

When they released their Spirit Beasts, Li Zhirui let out a light exclamation, asking, ”Has the family already bred a sufficient number of second-tier hybrid Spirit Beasts?”

Otherwise, how could it be possible that just any two individuals would have one contracted?

”Not exactly, but we do have a higher number of Flame Toads and Rift Steel Eagles; Black Rock Giant Bears are still rather scarce,” explained Li Shilian, who was in charge of this matter. ”The initial acquisition of these three types of Spirit Beasts included two male beasts for the first two, and they also produced larger litters, especially the Rift Steel Eagles, because the family previously had a flock of Jade Beak Eagles, which generated the most offspring.”

Even though later on, Li Zhiruiʼs Xiaoqing caused a ruckus and drove the Rift Steel Eagles away from the flock, the family subsequently split the Jade Beak Eagle flock into two and continued to breed them with the Rift Steel Eagles.

Even though Xiaoqing, in terms of potential and status, was far superior to the Rift Steel Eagles, they were still a third-tier Spirit Beast, and the family naturally would not easily discard them.

As for the Black Rock Giant Bear, the initial one we acquired was a female, and she only gave birth to at most two cubs at a time, thus the number of that species remains low in our clan to this day.

Well… due to the appearance of the Flame Toads, aside from a portion of the clan members preparing for Alchemy or Artifact Refining, or those whose Spiritual Roots were really incompatible, others all chose one of the two types of hybrid Spirit Eagles.

But if Li Zhirui had to choose, he would definitely pick the Flame Toad, because its higher bloodline comes from the fifth-tier Bath Fire Spirit Toad!

If one were extremely lucky and the Spirit Toad underwent a mutation, transforming the yang extreme to yin, giving birth to a trace of Taiyin Jade Toad bloodline, then at the very least, it would be of the sixth tier, and if the bloodline was more concentrated, the tier could be even higher.

Apart from these three third-tier Spirit Beasts, the clan had several other third-tier ones, including Li Zhiruiʼs Da Qing, Xiaoqing, Li Zhiyueʼs Water Spirit Turtle, and the third-tier Mist Bird, but nowadays, we only have a single beast of each type and havenʼt formed any flocks.

Speaking of which,

during the idle chatter among the few, the fight on the stage had also neared its end. In the end, it was the clansman who had contracted the descendant of Xiaoqing who proved to be the better fighter, defeating his opponent.

The subsequent battles werenʼt particularly noteworthy, yet Li Zhirui didnʼt grow impatient, after all, his cultivation had advanced, and having seen so many high-level battles, he naturally found the common sights by the roadside uninteresting.

But soon, a Qi Cultivation late-stage clansman brought him a bit of surprise.

This man, named Li Chengwu, was big and burly, and his aura was fierce—not resembling a cultivator, but more like a martial warrior from the mortal world.

His combat experience was extremely rich, and no matter the strength of the opponent, he could handle them with ease, even achieving several victories against stronger adversaries.

Moreover, he seemed to have had some fortune, having contracted a rare third-grade Ironclad Beast, whose defensive power in the same realm was even better than that of Da Qing.

”Itʼs a pity, the man is a bit old,” Li Zhirui remarked with some regret, judging by his looks, he should be in his thirties or forties.

At this age, yet only possessing the eighth level of Qi Cultivation—had he been a Loose Cultivator, one might say he had above-average talent, but in the now thriving Li family, his aptitude was indeed quite ordinary.

Hearing this comment, Li Chengmoʼs face showed a hint of awkwardness as he whispered somewhat embarrassingly, ”Uncle Jiushu, Chengwu is not even thirty yet this year.”

In fact, with Li Chengmo saying so, he was still giving face to Chengwu—Li Chengwu was only twenty-four years old!

”Ahem,” Li Zhiruiʼs expression stiffened and he cleared his throat unnaturally, ”Is that so? He probably just looks more mature than his age.”

He could use Divine Sense to inspect the otherʼs bone age, but the man was currently in battle. If he did so, it would undoubtedly disturb Li Chengwu, and might even lead to his defeat.

Li Zhirui would never do such a thing. He could only observe with the naked eye and hadnʼt expected to be mistaken.

”If thatʼs the case, then my Li family might have another Golden Core Seed.” Li Zhirui said with a chuckle.

The nearby Elders, hearing this, their faces immediately revealed a look of astonishment, even Li Shiqing and Li Shilian had not expected Li Zhirui to give such a high evaluation.

To know, within the Li family, there is a classification according to talent, from the lowest ordinary clansman, to important clansman, then higher to Foundation Establishment, and the highest being Golden Core Seeds!

Those who only managed to break through to the late stages of Qi Cultivation after the age of fifty, with almost no hope of achieving Foundation Establishment, were considered ordinary clansmen.

”Important” signifies those who are likely to break through Foundation Establishment before the age of sixty, while the even higher rank of Foundation Establishment is achieved before the age of fifty.

As for Golden Core Seeds, it doesnʼt mean they are certain to achieve Golden Core, but there is a possibility.

Even just a slight possibility was highly valued within the Li family.

”Letʼs see how he grows in the future.” Li Zhirui shook his head, as if retracting his earlier statement.

Truth be told, after uttering those words, he immediately felt a bit regretful. Thinking back, he realized his comment might have been impulsive, perhaps even driven by the desire to save face.