Tempering

"Given to you by Zhao Tiangang? This is an excellent item." Zhao Tianzhong stroked his beard, his brows lifting. "You came to see me today; are you looking for treasures?"

"Grandson wouldn't dare. Alas, the world is flawed; what good is it for me to possess a precious weapon or armor?" Zhao Jinming replied. "Why don't you gift me a mount, Grandfather? A spirit pet would suffice as well."

Upon hearing this, the old man chuckled. "You brat, you're sharper than your father. Wait until you're older, married, and have children, then come ask me. Perhaps in a fit of joy, I might even give you a transport mount."

Jinming grew thoughtful. That would be wonderful indeed. A Golden Core stage mount—wouldn't that allow him to soar straight into the clouds?

"Then when will you arrange a betrothal for me, Grandfather?"

"It is still early. I would be more than happy to fill a house with dao companions for you."

Jinming felt a touch of shyness.

"I won't give you a mount, but here, catch." He tossed over a storage bag. "After you finish your visit, return to the manor." Zhao Jinming knew his grandfather was referring to tomorrow's trial, so he mounted his sword and flew away.

Zhao Tianzhong stroked his beard and slipped into the inner hall. "In this world, a son should be like a Qilin among men."

In an instant, Zhao Jinming arrived at his residence. Usually, his parents, Zhao Ankang and his wife, were not home. In the past, when he could not fly, his father would send him to the back mountains in the morning.

His father, Zhao Ankang, was a Senior Beast-Taming Deacon and the eldest son of the main family’s fourth branch. His mother, Mei Jinyan, was a deacon at the Zhao Clan's food guild. She was the legitimate daughter of the Mei family in Wenfeng City—a city neighboring Qingning City, located a thousand miles away—and the second daughter of Patriarch Mei Lanfeng. They had met years ago during a training expedition, and after their relationship flourished, the Mei family consented to the marriage. Later, they had one son, Zhao Jinming. Because Jinming was exceptionally gifted, Mei Jinyan struggled to conceive again.

It is difficult for cultivators to bear children; those with spiritual roots are especially hard to conceive. Without great fortune, assistance from the heavens, or the consumption of rare medicinal treasures, the aptitude of offspring tends to mirror that of their parents. A fetus within the womb absorbs the mother’s spiritual energy, drawing upon her spiritual roots, Golden Core, and Nascent Soul essence to nourish itself.

With this in mind, he took out the storage bag. After scanning its contents and tallying them up, he counted one thousand spirit stones. He tucked away his purse, bringing his total balance to one thousand nine hundred and eighty spirit stones. He hurried back into his room and retrieved two white porcelain bottles—one containing Essence-Replenishing Pills and the other Detoxification Pills, six of each. This was his entire personal stash.

The porcelain bottles were low-grade, first-tier magical artifacts capable of preserving the medicinal properties of the pills. He had originally asked his second grandfather for the detox pills, who only gave him four; he had to shamelessly pester his grandfather for the remaining two.

Unlike smaller cultivation families, the Zhao clan practices intergenerational instruction, where grandparents teach their grandchildren. Parents often lack the necessary experience, and one must not hinder a child's natural talent. Think about it: if you are merely at the Foundation Establishment stage, how can you teach someone else at the same level?

Those who reach the late Foundation Establishment stage can apply for the clan's triennial Deacon Examination. Once elected, they earn the right to instruct clan disciples. Such exams and meetings are usually organized by the third grandfather, with the six elders and the patriarch acting as judges.

He packed two or three sets of clothes and stuffed them into his storage ring. Then, he set up a first-tier Spirit-Gathering Array, placed spirit stones inside, and began practicing the Profound Spirit Technique.

He did not take a Heart-Calming Pill today; they were expensive, and consuming pills leaves behind medicinal toxins, which the body does not metabolize quickly. His aura rose steadily. The night passed.

Early the next morning, Zhao Jinming prepared some grain and vegetables and headed to the medicine garden. The Great Elder had instructed him to wait there.

Upon arriving, he immediately spotted Yan Qing. Jinming knew that "Fatty Yan" was at the ninth level of Qi Refining. In the past, he couldn't fly, and climbing the back mountains before dawn was dangerous, so he would often be late. Although he was from a side branch, he was exceptionally diligent. Years ago, the clan elders hadn't noticed him, and he was quite chubby. The Great Elder, a man of faith, had chosen him by chance, and he had slimmed down ever since.

Having received the White Snake Sword yesterday, things were different now.

As they waited outside the medicine garden, the Second Elder was observing them with his divine sense from within the house, perhaps appraising his elder brother’s eye for talent, or checking to see if Zhao Jinming’s group was qualified for the journey.

When all eight had arrived, the elder emerged. "If you are ready, let us depart." He brought out a spirit boat to carry them north. The boat was made of gold-money wood; the clan only possessed four, each with a fifteen-person capacity, and they had taken years of hard labor to craft.

Floating a hundred feet above the ground, the spirit boat traveled at a speed of a hundred meters per second, rivaling a peak Foundation Establishment cultivator.

"Le Caiyi, that looks like your younger sister over there."

"Where? I don't see her."

"Oh, it was too fast, we flew past it, over there."

In just a few hours, they arrived at the North Ridge. The North Ridge is a large mountain range north of the Great Qian Dynasty, consisting of both inner and outer regions. It is rich in spirit beasts and medicinal herbs but also carries inherent dangers; deep within, transformed beasts equivalent to the Golden Core stage are known to lurk. Deep in the northwest ridge, a demon king once caused havoc, but it was soon eradicated by the Great Qian imperial family. Since then, the beasts have been relatively docile.

Reaching the edge of the ridge, they descended from the boat. Zhao Jinming saw an eagle clutching a wolf several miles away and could not help but be surprised.

Following Zhao Jinming’s gaze, Zhao Jinshang remarked, "A Wind-Ling Eagle preying on an immature Gray Wolf. If the wolf were fully grown, the outcome would be uncertain, but as it stands, it is merely the eagle's meal."

Jinming couldn't help but ask, "Are we not going to help it?" As he spoke, he realized his mistake and added, "Survival of the fittest. Second Grandfather, I understand."

Jinshang nodded. "Follow closely; we are entering the outer perimeter." With that, he walked straight ahead.

The northern mountains were densely vegetated, with occasional low-grade herbs. When they encountered low-grade beasts on the way, the elder ordered them to hunt and gather food. Except for Fatty Yan, everyone present was above the Foundation Establishment stage. Jinming was still young, two or three years younger than his senior brothers and sisters. The elder wanted to let these talented clan members get a taste of blood.

On the first day, they saw no high-grade beasts, only small ones at the Beast-Qi stage. After traveling a hundred miles, they made camp at nightfall. They roasted their food, drank spring water, supplemented it with Yuan-Condensing Pills, and set up their tents. Everything was fine. Following the order of age, Senior Sister Caiyi took the night watch, and the night passed without incident.

On the second day, there were no major beasts, but the group found some Fire Dates and Cypress Heartwood. The elder mentioned that Fire Dates are always accompanied by Gathering-Fire Vines within a hundred meters, which sent the senior brothers on a frantic search; they finally discovered them within a few dozen meters. I merely assumed they had formed a natural formation.

Spirit herbs were scarce here, consisting mostly of mundane ones. Jinming had expected to hunt monsters to "level up." After several days without major beasts, the fighting spirit of these youths began to fade.

When asked, the elder replied mysteriously, "Spirit beasts are not much different from humans." Beasts with intelligence have stronger intuition than humans; if they sense danger, why would they easily let themselves be slaughtered for someone else's training?

By this day, it had been ten days. They had set up camp a thousand miles deep and had already broken through the outer perimeter of the North Ridge.

Over the past few days, Qin Dongyang had the good fortune to find an injured spirit fox, which Zhao Jinming fed an Essence-Replenishing Pill. Qin Dongyang later traded it for four hundred spirit stones to Senior Sister Zhao Luanfeng. He intended to give Jinming fifty, but he refused. Jinming knew that Senior Brother Dongyang was short on money; his gesture was only natural.

Even so, Zhao Jinming was also short on spirit stones.

On this day, at the hour of the Rat, the elder instructed, "From now on, two people will stand guard at night."