1: Chapter 1 Wang Shouren of Lotus Pier

Misty Immortal Continent, Baishan County of the Yue State.

One hundred miles east of the county town, a huge mountain shaped like a sleeping tortoise lay dormant quietly.

On the tortoise's back, the Heavenly Pool was crystal clear, and at its center embraced a small snail-like island, where pavilions and kiosks with flying eaves and bucket arches stood, resembling an immortal palace fallen to the mortal world.

Lotus leaves covered the water surface, and plump spiritual fish leisurely swung their tails, occasionally leaping out and startling up ripples of water splashes.

Midsummer should have been the most beautiful season here, with lotus flowers in full bloom and fragrance drifting all over the pier. It was precisely the harvest season for the prominent cultivation Family, the "Lotus Pier Wang Family".

Yet today, this blessed immortal land lacked any festive air, leaving only a patch of blinding plain white.

"Alas, it is a troubled autumn. The Family only has one remaining Foundation Establishment Grand Elder. If no one breaks through to the Foundation Establishment Stage within three years, can our Wang Family still maintain its current status? I am afraid even this Lotus Pier will not be preserved."

Wang Family Head Wang Yaozu frowned deeply, and inside the antique side hall, the responsible figures of the Wang Family's Yao generation likewise wore expressions of sorrow and bitterness.

They had been deliberating for an hour, precisely because of the Family's current difficult predicament.

Cultivation families looked glorious on the outside, but only those who bore the Family's glory understood that if a Family wanted to endure and prosper for a long time, the succession of high-end combat power was indispensable.

"Could it be that we have to relocate the Family?"

"No, Second Brother, do not speak such words again. If such rumors appear within the clan, do not blame me for disregarding brotherly ties."

A Family was not like a Loose Cultivator who could leave wherever they pleased. A Family often bore the efforts and hopes of generations. Once relocated, not only would the foundation cease to exist, but there would also be the peril of annihilation.

Right now, the Wang Family was facing such a dilemma. Grand Elder Wang Chongshan had passed away, leaving the Family with only one Foundation Establishment combat power, Wang Chongyang, whose Lifespan had only three years remaining.

Moreover, the Yao generation of the Wang Family did not have high Aptitudes. Wang Yaozu, who had the highest cultivation, possessed a four-attribute Spiritual Root and was tied down by trivial matters. At seventy-two, he had only reached the Qi Refining Great Perfection stage, and now his vitality was fading with no hope for Foundation Establishment.

On the other hand, a few people among the third generation of the Wang Family had decent Aptitudes, and even two of them had Spiritual Root resonance rates exceeding eighty. It was just a pity that their cultivation time was too short.

If there were enough time, and the Wang Family expended some of its foundation to assist, it would not be a problem for one of them to achieve Foundation Establishment, but unfortunately, time was the scarcest resource.

"Yaozu, we must come up with a solution. Even if it exhausts our Wang Family's foundation over three years, we must pile up resources to forge a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Otherwise, once the Sixth Clan Uncle passes away, the Ma Family of Funiu County from a hundred years ago will serve as a cautionary tale—the entire clan was annihilated overnight."

Wang Yaozu: "Second Brother, it is not to that extent yet. The Ma Family brought this upon themselves by making too many enemies. Our Wang Family has always been kind to others, and we have never made things difficult even for Loose Cultivators. Besides, our Wang Family still has Foundation Establishment families among our in-laws."

"Even so, the attitude of the nearby Xiaoshan County's Ning Family and Funiu County's Yan Family towards our Wang Family has always been poor, and it is even more impossible for them to accept our Wang Family producing another Foundation Establishment cultivator."

The three Wang Family Yao generation members—Wang Yaozu, Wang Yaowen, and Wang Yaowu—all fell silent.

If one does not plan far ahead, worries will soon arrive. The three had been plotting this matter for days without coming up with a good plan, and today they had even summoned the pride of the younger generation, Wang Yaozu's own son.

They wanted to see if the young man's mind would be a bit more agile.

Just as the room fell into silence and the three of them were frowning with worry,

A voice suddenly came from behind Wang Yaozu, who was sitting at the head seat.

"Second Uncle, Third Uncle, Father, I have an immature idea, though I do not know if I should say it."

The youth in white standing behind Wang Yaozu suddenly spoke up, breaking the silence.

The three raised their heads, and curiosity flashed in the eyes of Wang Yaozu and Wang Yaowen.

The youth had handsome eyebrows and bright eyes, with a black lotus mark between his brows. Just standing there would make people unable to help praising him as a man of exceptional talent.

This youth was none other than the number one person of the Wang Family's third generation, Wang Shouren.

"Could it be that calling for Shouren today was truly the right thing to do?" This thought arose in the minds of the two men simultaneously.

However, Wang Yaowu acted as if he hadn't heard Wang Shouren's words at all, not caring in the least.

Instead, he made no effort to conceal his own views. The reason was very simple: if the entire clan poured resources into cultivating the best member of the third generation, his own son—even with a three-attribute Spiritual Root—could not compare to Wang Shouren, who possessed a special attribute Spiritual Root.

"The three of us elders are experienced and haven't thought of a solution; what kind of solution could a twenty-year-old greenhorn like you have?"

The other two intended to test him and did not speak, observing Wang Shouren's reaction instead.

Seeing this, Wang Shouren did not feel timid because of his third uncle's cold words; instead, he took a step forward with calm composure.

Afterward, he fetched three empty teacups and placed them before everyone.

The three thought he was going to serve tea.

Yet they saw Wang Shouren pick up the teapot and unhurriedly pour water into the empty cup closest to Wang Yaowu.

Just as the tea was about to be full, he suddenly accelerated his hand speed, and the water column rushed straight to the bottom of the cup. In an instant, water splashed everywhere, spilling over half of the table.

The three elders frowned slightly, and Wang Yaowu let out a cold snort: "So rash and impatient, what kind of decorum is this!"

Wang Shouren was neither anxious nor annoyed. He fetched a cloth to wipe the tabletop clean before picking up the pot once again.

This time, he lowered the spout close to the rim of the cup, letting the tea slowly slide down the porcelain wall into the cup. The water surface rose steadily until it was full, without a single drop splashing out.

"Second Uncle, Third Uncle, Father,"

Wang Shouren presented the three cups of tea one by one before speaking unhurriedly.

"Leaving aside the Foundation Establishment Stage, are our Wang Family's disciples weaker than those of the Ning Family and the Yan Family?"

Wang Yaozu: "Naturally, they are not weaker. There are nineteen people in the Late Stage of Qi Refining and thirty people in the Middle Stage of Qi Refining in the Yao generation. Among them, your second uncle and I both possess the cultivation of Qi Refining Perfection. The Shou generation does not yet have anyone in the Qi Refining Late Stage, but there are fifty people in the Middle Stage of Qi Refining. Even counting the Family guards, our Wang Family's Qi Refining period numbers equal the sum of both of their families combined."

Wang Shouren nodded and asked another question.

"May I ask, if we exhaust all the resources within the clan to cultivate a Foundation Establishment cultivator in three years, what percentage of certainty does the Family have?"

The three remained silent. Wang Yaowen, who had put forward this suggestion, struggled for a moment before biting the bullet and answering.

"Shouren, to tell the truth, your father, your third uncle, and I are all past seventy years old with no hope for Foundation Establishment. According to our previous discussion, we would cultivate the one with the highest Aptitude among the third-generation clansmen."

"However, precious resources like the foundation establishment pill are strictly controlled by the Sects of the Yue State, and coupled with the lack of time, our certainty is less than thirty percent..."

The so-called person with the highest Aptitude naturally referred to Wang Shouren.

After saying this, Wang Yaowen also lowered his head.

Wang Shouren nodded: "Although I have not experienced the path of Foundation Establishment, I have heard the Sixth Clan Elder mention it. Among a hundred Qi Refining Great Perfection practitioners, without the aid of Foundation Establishment items, those who can successfully achieve Foundation Establishment are fewer than can be counted on one hand."

"Gambling the Family's future on a thirty percent certainty—I can understand Second Uncle's worry. But what if I said I have a way for the Family to develop steadily for at least ten years without exhausting our resources?"

"What?"

"What?!!"

The three looked at Wang Shouren, who wore a confident expression, in simultaneous disbelief.

"Water is akin to our Wang Family's resource foundation, and the cup represents the Family's disciples. If one is impetuous and blindly pours frantically, even a good cup of water cannot catch it; instead, it will splash everywhere and be wasted in vain."

He pointed to the empty cup that had been half-spilled: "Not to mention exhausting resources, the cup itself would similarly fail to withstand the pressure and suffer damage."

A flash of astonishment crossed Wang Yaozu's eyes, and he had already understood his son's meaning.

However, Wang Shouren was not in a hurry to conclude. Instead, he lifted another empty cup and scrutinized it carefully against the daylight outside the window.

"Cups are not isolated from one another. If the cups are placed closer together, once one cup is full, it will naturally overflow into the adjacent cup. Just like our Wang Family, if we only stare at pouring into one person, that person can at most hold the volume of one cup even if they burst. But if we arrange the disciples in the clan into a formation, once one is full, the remaining grace can nourish the next. Even if no one rushes to Foundation Establishment for the time being, as long as this water is not spilled, it is still within our Wang Family's cup formation."

He put down the teacup, took a step back, and bowed deeply to the three elders.

"In this nephew's foolish opinion, rather than putting all our eggs in one basket and exhausting our foundation to forge a Foundation Establishment that might not succeed, it is better to spread out the cup formation and broadly accumulate pool water. Within three years, even if no one achieves Foundation Establishment, as long as the water in the cups is full and the lotus in the pool is thriving, anyone who wants to move against our Wang Family will first have to weigh whether they can catch this pool full of water."

"For a Family's survival, stability is paramount. Other families follow the same logic and would never dare to risk massive Family losses to attack our Wang Family."

The side hall fell silent for a time.

After a long while,

Wang Yaowen: "Good! What a metaphor of cups of water; it encapsulates the art of running a prominent Family."

Wang Yaowu: "Shouren, is this true? Are you truly willing to give up the cultivation resources from the Family's foundation?"

"Of course it's true. Three years is too tight. Even if Medicinal Pills are supplied endlessly, it would already be a stretch for me to enter the Qi Refining Great Perfection in three years, and I really have no certainty for Foundation Establishment."

Wang Yaowu suddenly changed his previous cold indifference and instead clapped his hands and laughed heartily.

"Yaozu, you've raised a good son! Previously, I underestimated the younger generation."

Faced with his third uncle's praise and the pride in his father's and second uncle's eyes, the youth did not stop there, but spoke once more, stunning everyone present with his brilliance.

"Aside from the threats of other families, there is also the jealousy of Loose Cultivators, which we cannot fail to consider."

The three nodded. Although most Loose Cultivators were weak in strength, biting you every couple of days would still leave the Wang Family with endless trouble. This was a realistic problem that had to be solved.

"Father, Uncles, solving this trouble couldn't be simpler. Do you know what our Wang Family's greatest reliance is nowadays?"