Protect Our Patriarch

Wang Shouzhe's mind stirred as he asked, "Could there be some hidden truth in all of this?"

"Longzuo Commandery was originally a frontier commandery with many directions to develop. When Ancestor Zouxuan chose this place to establish his clan, he naturally had his plans."

"Looking back, Ancestor Zouxuan was just a direct descendant of the Wang's Clan in Longzuo. The Wang's Clan was not doing well at that time, declining all the way. Even the transition of power was extremely difficult, and they didn't have much resources to cultivate their clan members."

"However, Ancestor Zouxuan was born with awakened bloodline, qualifying him to challenge the Heavenly Realm. Therefore, he was not willing to live a mediocre life."

"So, Ancestor Zouxuan went out to seek opportunities. In the foreign lands, he found a very hidden relic belonging to the ancient Xuanwu Dynasty. With the grace of this relic, Ancestor Zouxuan successfully advanced to the Spirit Platform Realm."

"But when Ancestor Zouxuan discovered the relic, he didn't get the biggest opportunity. Therefore, he established the Wang's Clan here, hoping that his descendants could gradually control the relic and gain continuous benefits from it. The relic is only about a thousand miles away from us."

As Long Yan narrated, it became clear why Ancestor Zouxuan had moved south.

"So there's such a secret." Wang Shouzhe suddenly realized. Suddenly, his heart moved, and his face changed slightly, "Then my father back then......"

Wang Shouzhe had always suspected something was wrong about his father, Wang Dingyue, who had gone to the foreign lands to seek opportunities and died. After all, the family still had some surplus wealth at that time. If they sold it at a loss, they could still afford a Heavenly Spirit Pill.

"Alas, speaking of this, it's all my fault." Long Yan's eyes flashed with bitterness, "Yes, when Dingyue reached the peak of the Qi Refining Realm, I discussed this with him. After all, opportunities are rare, and both my nephew Qiongyuan and I have ventured into the relic and benefited from it."

"But I didn't expect such bad luck. He encountered a fourth-order beast on the way. Even though I tried my best to protect him, I couldn't save his life." Thinking of this, Long Yan's eyes were filled with guilt and sorrow. She was obviously very upset about Wang Dingyue's death.

"Ancestor, what's past is past. Besides, your condition wasn't good at that time, which worsened your injury." Wang Shouzhe comforted softly, "But Ancestor, what kind of relic is it? How can we benefit from it? And what are the dangers?"

Wang Shouzhe asked several questions in a row, expressing his doubts.

In his opinion, no matter how good the ancient relics are, one must be alive to enjoy them.

If he had to venture into the foreign lands for a small Heavenly Spirit Pill, it would not be worth it. He would rather farm slowly and accumulate wealth over time.

With the current wealth of the Wang's Clan, buying a Heavenly Spirit Pill would not hurt them too much.

If he didn't ask clearly, or prepare thoroughly, he would not venture into the depths of the foreign lands without great confidence.

"That relic was a trial ground opened by the Xuanwu Dynasty to recruit potential young people. It's not dangerous in itself, even if you fail the trial, your life won't be in danger."

"When Ancestor Zouxuan was at the peak of the Qi Refining Realm, he passed the first trial and received a consolation prize... a stored Heavenly Spirit Pill."

"Uh......"

Wang Shouzhe broke out in a cold sweat. What kind of relic was that? They even called a Heavenly Spirit Pill a consolation prize...

No wonder back then, the former clan leader Wang Dingyue wanted to take a risk in the foreign lands.

Given the conditions of the Wang's Clan at that time, if they could earn a Heavenly Spirit Pill, it would be worth risking their lives.

"The first trial is not too difficult, but not too easy either." Long Yan explained, "The guardian is a puppet beast at the peak of the Qi Refining Realm. As long as you defeat it within the rules, you pass. If your Xuanwu combat skills are solid, you can barely pass this trial."

"As for the Heavenly Spirit Pill, I heard that the Xuanwu Dynasty was extremely powerful, with territories spanning hundreds of thousands of miles. A mere Heavenly Spirit Pill is really nothing. The reward for passing the second trial is substantial."

Long Yan continued, "The second trial is to fight against two beasts at the peak of the Qi Refining Realm at the same time! Once you pass, you can get a pill that improves your bloodline quality."

"A pill that improves bloodline quality?" This made Wang Shouzhe's eyes light up. What he lacked most now was this, which was much harder to get than a Heavenly Spirit Pill.

"Back then, I barely passed the second trial and got the bloodline improvement pill and a Heavenly Spirit Pill." Long Yan continued, "Unfortunately, my bloodline talent was not very high at the start, just a medium D-grade. After taking that pill, I only reached a medium A-grade, without awakening a second bloodline."

"But even so, when I advanced to the Spirit Platform Realm, my Water Element bloodline was mutated into the Xuanwu bloodline. And in terms of talent, I was much stronger than the average person with a double bloodline."

As Long Yan narrated.

Wang Shouzhe finally understood why Long Yan's combat power was so strong.

And after she advanced to the Spirit Platform Realm, she made rapid progress, always suppressing Ancestor Xuanfu.

If it weren't for that accident back then, Long Yan would probably be in the Heavenly Realm now.

And it's well known that the Xuanwu bloodline is one of the three different attribute bloodlines, which is much more lethal than the pure Water Element bloodline. But it also has a drawback, its self-healing ability is not as good as the Water Element bloodline.

Although Ancestor Xuanfu had heard Long Yan talk about this before, her eyes still showed some emotion. After Long Yan broke through to the Spirit Platform Realm, she had the most glorious thirty years, leaving her far behind.This made her doubt her life at that time. Now hearing her talk about it, she felt a sourness in her heart.

"Ancestor, the second challenge is to fight two cultivators at the peak of the Qi Refining Realm. Is the third challenge to fight three?" Wang Shouzhe said with a hint of mockery.

"Yes, the third challenge is just like that, so I only managed to pass the second one." Long Yan Ancestor said with a hint of helplessness, "Those demonic puppets are extremely difficult to deal with, I had to fight with all my might to pass."

Wang Shouzhe was somewhat speechless, the designer of the trial really had no brain, could it be that there would be four in the fourth challenge? I can't help but laugh~

However, as soon as the Ancestor spoke, Wang Shouzhe was moved.

But if he wanted to win against two opponents of the same level, it would be quite difficult. Let alone three, with his current strength, it was simply impossible!

Upon hearing this.

Liu Ruolan blinked her eyes and said, "Ancestor Xuanfu, did you sell me to the Wang's Clan for this secret?"

Ancestor Xuanfu coughed twice, her eyes slightly embarrassed, "Ruolan, don't misunderstand, I did this purely for your sake."

"Your talent is already extremely high. But the higher it is, the more you can't miss such an opportunity. Not to mention the spirit pill from the second challenge, it will definitely have some effect on you. But the key is to win the third challenge! According to the meaning expressed by the ruins, once you pass the three challenges, you can become a disciple of the Shenwu Dynasty and go to the Shenwu Dynasty for cultivation."

Wang Shouzhe frowned, "The Shenwu Dynasty, hasn't it been destroyed for over a hundred thousand years?"

Ancestor Xuanfu shook her head, "Although the Shenwu Dynasty has been destroyed, its ruins still exist everywhere. And the core area of the famous Shenwu Dynasty is still a mystery."

"Even the Purple Mansion Academy attaches great importance to the ruins of the Shenwu Dynasty, so this opportunity cannot be missed. Besides, the innate Taoist seed I got back then was from a ruin of the Shenwu Dynasty. If we can find the core area..."

So that's it, Ancestor Xuanfu's ambition is quite big.

Wang Shouzhe nodded secretly, but pondered, "There's another question, why didn't my sixth grandfather, Wang Xiaohan, go to the ruins for the trial?"

Long Yan Ancestor explained, "This Shenwu trial is not for everyone. First of all, you have to be under the Spirit Platform Realm, and you can't be over forty years old. Xiaohan had already missed the age. Your father, Wang Dingyue, barely qualified."

Well, it seems that the Shenwu Dynasty has high requirements. Those who are slightly inferior don't even get the chance to try.

"Can those who haven't reached the peak of the ninth level participate in the trial?"

"They should be able to. The problem is that if you haven't reached the peak of the ninth level, it's hard to beat the demonic puppets at the peak of the ninth level, it's a waste to go."

"Can you go again after winning two challenges?"

"This... I seem to have heard the Spirit Artifact say that you have to start over if you come again, and the rewards won't be repeated."

As Wang Shouzhe kept throwing out questions, he was constantly refreshing Long Yan Ancestor's worldview.

Ancestor Xuanfu on the side was gradually getting impatient, "That, Shouzhe. Have you finished asking your questions? Get ready, we'll set off in a couple of days."

"Wait! Ancestor Xuanfu, are you just going like this?" Wang Shouzhe was a bit dazed, "This seems a bit too hasty."

"Shouzhe, are you not ready yet?" Ancestor Xuanfu asked with a puzzled face.

Are you kidding me, what do you mean not ready yet?

I haven't even started preparing yet, right?

Wang Shouzhe broke out in a cold sweat, Ancestor Xuanfu was a bit rash, and then questioned, "Ancestor Xuanfu's plan, is it just the four of us going?"

"No, there's also Liu Yuanhui." Ancestor Xuanfu said calmly, "Don't worry, even if we encounter a fourth-order beast, the two of us, me and Cousin Long Yan, will be enough."

This confidence, seems a bit too much.

Wang Shouzhe stroked his chin and pondered, "A fourth-order beast is nothing, but what if we encounter two fourth-order beasts? What if we encounter a fifth-order beast? Does Ancestor Xuanfu have a contingency plan for this?"

Ancestor Xuanfu's eyelid twitched, she said irritably, "Where are there so many fifth-order beasts in this world? According to Cousin Long Yan, it's only a thousand miles away."

"We've already gone deep into the foreign territory for a thousand miles, so we need to be fully prepared." Wang Shouzhe said.

"Your so-called full preparation is...?" Ancestor Xuanfu suddenly had a bad premonition.

"At least if we encounter a fifth-order beast, we can't say we can kill it, but at least we can deter it."

"Besides, my bloodline talent is not enough, I can barely win the second challenge, but I definitely can't win the third one."

"Once I break through to the Spirit Platform Realm, I won't be able to participate anymore, there's only one chance in life. So I plan to first collect some heavenly treasures that can enhance my bloodline, as well as some things that can deter fifth-order beasts."

"When are you going to prepare for this?" Ancestor Xuanfu's eyelid twitched, suppressing the urge to beat someone.

"Anyway, there's no rush, just take your time. Unless I'm absolutely sure, I won't take the risk, and by the way, wife, you're not allowed to go either."

"Opportunities and such, you have to have a life to fight for. Most heavenly treasures can be bought with money, if not, we can slowly farm, slowly accumulate wealth. Then buy, buy, buy!"

Liu Ruolan obediently nodded and said, "Mm, husband, I'll listen to you."

Ancestor Xuanfu almost fainted from anger, she looked at Long Yan Ancestor in a daze and said, "This kid of yours, is he so afraid of death? We've worked so hard, but it's for the younger generation to seek opportunities. Those geniuses, for the sake of opportunities, which one of them isn't fighting to the death?"

Long Yan Ancestor was also a bit embarrassed, her great-great-nephew indeed didn't have that kind of fearless spirit of the geniuses."Um... My husband, Shouzhe, is not a coward. He just likes to plan for the worst in every situation."

"However, I think Shouzhe is right. It was my lack of foresight that led to Dingyue's death. Shouzhe, you decide on this matter. We will set off when you are ready."

"Kid, if you don't want to go, that's fine." The Ancestor Xuanfu was quite upset, "I can go with Ruolan and Yuanhui alone."

"Ancestor, if my husband says we can't go, then I definitely can't go. I am a daughter-in-law of the Wang's Clan..." Unexpectedly, Liu Ruolan shook her head directly, "Moreover, my husband is right, it's always good to be more prepared, we have to consider our children."

"My wife, you are so obedient."

"My husband is the best, always considering our family."

"Marrying you is the greatest fortune of my life."

"Marrying you, Wang Shouzhe, is the greatest blessing of my life, Liu Ruolan."

The couple, singing praises for each other, didn't forget to show their affection.

Both Ancestors, who had been single for over a hundred years, turned their heads away upon hearing this.

This was too mushy...

Then, Ancestor Xuanfu reluctantly said to Wang Shouzhe: "Alright, you go and prepare. But hurry up..."

"Ancestor, give me the map first, so I can plan our route as soon as possible." Wang Shouzhe got to the point. He wouldn't let others take control of such a risky adventure in the outer domain.

Ancestor Long Yan did as he said and handed an old map to Wang Shouzhe.

Then Wang Shouzhe began to prepare.

A month later, Ancestor Xuanfu asked him if he was ready.

Wang Shouzhe calmly replied, not yet.

He was still not ready in the second month.

In the third month, when Ancestor Xuanfu went to find him, she was shocked to find that Wang Shouzhe had already gone out shopping.

"Ancestor, my husband said he found a way through a friend to buy something that can kill a fifth-order beast. Also, he has found a solution for the bloodline evolution and marrow cleansing pill." Liu Ruolan, holding their first and second child, said calmly, "Also, my husband said if I don't have a storage ring, I won't be able to bring my change of clothes, daily necessities, and my favorite snacks. He said he would buy me a storage ring."

Each sentence shocked Ancestor Xuanfu, each item made her eyes widen... even casually buying a storage ring!

I can't even afford a storage ring...

Bringing daily necessities when going out? Is this a picnic?

How could Wang Shouzhe be so extravagant and inconsiderate?

For a moment, Ancestor Xuanfu felt a sour feeling in her heart.

She, a core disciple of the Academy, how did she suddenly become a pauper?

...