Chapter 5 - Chapter 5: Descending the Mountain

"The Spiritual Convergence and Rain Spell has almost no offensive power except for irrigating spiritual plants. If I learn this spell, throughout my Qi Refining stage, I'll have one fewer offensive spell compared to ordinary cultivators. In battles, I'll have fewer options," Zhang Zhixuan thought to himself, then asked, "Nineteenth Uncle, are there any other tasks suitable for me besides guarding the spiritual fields?"Zhang Mengling waved his hand. "Although you're mature beyond your years and have good cultivation, you're still no match for experienced loose cultivators at the foot of the mountain—dangerous tasks aren't suitable for a promising cultivator like you. Whether it's entering the mountains to hunt demonic beasts or searching for spiritual herbs, we don't need you for that for now. Putting you in charge of a market shop would be a waste of your talents. Of course, you could also learn some pill-refining or artifact-refining skills from your uncles in the market. But you're still young; you shouldn't divert your energy to the 'hundred arts of immortal cultivation' yet. You need to reach the Ninth Layer of Qi Refining as soon as possible, then find a way to achieve Foundation Establishment—only then can you change the clan's fortunes."He paused, his tone softening. "Don't overthink it. Go down the mountain to guard the spiritual fields. This task is relatively leisurely, and you can use the spiritual energy in the fields to cultivate. Though it's not as good as the mountain or the market shops, you'll have more free time for cultivation all year round. You need to take the long view—don't be eager to fight or compete with others after going down the mountain. Avoid the market as much as possible; it's a chaotic place with mixed crowds and isn't always safe. Even if guarding the spiritual fields means learning one fewer spell, it will let you live safely for ten years."The Zhang Clan's rules balanced fairness with cultivators' innate talents. Heavenly Spiritual Root cultivators never needed to handle clan tasks down the mountain—devoting themselves to cultivation was their greatest contribution to the clan. For Two-Spiritual-Root cultivators, each completed task earned them the same amount of free cultivation time. For Three-Spiritual-Root cultivators, one year down the mountain granted nine months of free cultivation time; for Four-Spiritual-Root cultivators, only six months; and for Five-Spiritual-Root cultivators, just three months.While these rules somewhat protected the interests of "false spiritual root" (low-grade spiritual root) cultivators, they essentially exploited their labor to better support "true spiritual root" (high-grade spiritual root) cultivators. In the four hundred years since the Zhang Clan settled in Lushan, they had never produced a Heavenly Spiritual Root cultivator—even Two-Spiritual-Root cultivators were rare, appearing only once every few decades. Most cultivators were Four or Five-Spiritual-Root cultivators, still stuck at the Sixth or Seventh Layer of Qi Refining even in their seventies or eighties.Of course, some "false spiritual root" cultivators still managed to achieve Foundation Establishment and Golden Core. For example, the Zhang Clan's founding ancestor Zhang Tairen was a Four-Spiritual-Root cultivator. But he was fortunate—when he was young, he discovered the cave abode of a late-stage Foundation Establishment loose cultivator. With the resources from the cave, he reached the Ninth Layer of Qi Refining at the age of forty. He then sold the Fourth-Rank spiritual artifact he found there, bought two Foundation Establishment Pills from the Qingxuan Mountain Market, and successfully achieved Foundation Establishment with a bit of luck—thus founding the Zhang Clan of Lushan.After settling in Lushan, Zhang Tairen took many wives and concubines. In just over a hundred years, he fathered over thirty children. Though only half of them had spiritual roots, under his protection, few died young. Within decades, the clan gained a foothold near Lushan. His eleventh son, Zhang Chuyun, was especially talented—a rare Thunder Spiritual Root cultivator who joined the Qingxuan Sect as a teenager. In just over a hundred years, Zhang Chuyun broke through both Foundation Establishment and Purple Mansion, becoming a high-ranking elder in the Qingxuan Sect. With his support, the Zhang Clan grew stronger: they opened a second Third-Rank Spiritual Vein at Jiuhua Mountain, occupied over half the shops in the Xihe Market, and even trained four or five Foundation Establishment cultivators. At that time, the Zhang Clan could provide a Foundation Establishment Pill for clan members every twenty years, helping cultivators with good spiritual roots achieve Foundation Establishment.Regrettably, over a hundred and fifty years ago, Zhang Chuyun was injured in a battle outside and passed away at the Qingxuan Sect's mountain gate. Without his protection, the Zhang Clan began to decline. In just over a hundred years, the clan's Foundation Establishment cultivators gradually passed away, and the number of Foundation Establishment Pills they could obtain grew fewer and fewer. By the time Clan Leader Zhang Leqian was injured in battle thirty years ago, the clan was on the brink of collapse.Without a Foundation Establishment cultivator to protect them, the Zhang Clan could never hold onto their Third-Rank Spiritual Vein at the mountain gate—eventually, they would lose their home. They would have to rely on old connections to seek refuge with the Qingxuan Sect. By then, they would abandon their mortal relatives at the foot of the mountain, and even their few shops in the market would be seized by other immortal cultivation clans in Taicheng County. Though cultivators with good spiritual roots could become outer disciples of the Qingxuan Sect, their situation would be barely better than loose cultivators—spending most of their time on sect tasks with little free time for cultivation.Zhang Zhixuan copied the remaining Qi Refining stage techniques, then chose five spells: the Spiritual Convergence and Rain Spell, the Green Vine Binding Spell, the Object Control Spell, the Spiritual Eye Qi-Viewing Spell, and the Blazing Shield Spell. By noon that day, he had descended Lushan Mountain.Though he had lived in this world for over a decade, Zhang Zhixuan had never traveled far. His father was a cultivator, so he had grown up on the mountain. When his father went out, other uncles in the mountain took care of him. After awakening his past-life memories at the age of six, he had focused on cultivation. Even with two lifetimes of experience (over forty years in total), he felt a surge of excitement as he left Lushan.Hundreds of years ago, Lushan was just a desolate mountain range. After four hundred years of hard work by generations of the Zhang Clan, it was now filled with spiritual energy—giant trees over ten or twenty zhang tall grew everywhere. After descending the mountain, Zhang Zhixuan traveled over three hundred li south, soon leaving Lushan behind. Looking out, he saw a vast alluvial plain spanning over five hundred li; beyond it lay the boundless, spiritual energy-dead ocean. This ocean was a relic of ancient immortal battles—its spiritual veins had been completely destroyed, unable to nurture even a wisp of spiritual essence.Once, a Golden Core cultivator tried to cross this ocean. He flew continuously for four and a half years before finally reaching the Qingli Sea, where immortal cultivators gathered. During those four and a half years, he spent every day flying—he exhausted all his mana-replenishing pills, and even his Spirit Stones and spirit water were completely used up. If he hadn't found a way to replenish spiritual energy and escape, his cultivation would have declined, and he would have perished in the endless, deadly sea.Even a Fifth-Realm Golden Core cultivator faced such danger crossing the ocean—let alone low-rank cultivators. Thus, low-rank cultivators avoided this spiritual energy-dead land at all costs.