Xia Yunxue (Please Keep Reading)

After receiving the assignment, Song Changsheng swiftly set out for the Garrison Manor. His steps were hurried, and so was his heart. He had waited nearly a year for this meeting.

Song Luding had considered this point as well, which was why he had deliberately set the start date three days later, allowing Song Changsheng to spend more time with his mother.

"Who are you looking for?" At the entrance to the Garrison Manor, a Cultivator with thick brows and large eyes looked Song Changsheng up and down, his face full of wariness.

"This little brother is Song Changsheng, one of the hosts of this Immortal Ascension Assembly. I have come to pay respects to the Fifth Elder." Song Changsheng cupped his fists in salute.

Hearing this, the Cultivator's attitude took a one-hundred-and-eighty-degree turn. Smiling warmly, he said, "So you're Clan Brother Changsheng. I always hear the Fifth Elder talking about you. Wait a moment, I'll go report right away."

Before he could even turn around, Song Changsheng felt his vision blur. A woman in a pale-yellow flowing-cloud dress, her hair arranged in a cloud-following bun, appeared before him.

The woman had an oval face, with only a jade hairpin in her hair and no other adornments. She wore no makeup, and a warm, faint smile rested on her face. She could not be called a beauty capable of toppling kingdoms, yet she gave people an exceptionally warm feeling.

"Your child pays respects to Mother!" Song Changsheng was about to perform a great kneeling salute when the woman supported him before he could move.

This was the Fifth Elder of the Lineage, as well as his birth mother—a Foundation Establishment Early Stage Cultivator, Xia Yunxue!

Not only was she the Lineage's sole Second Tier Mid-Grade Brewmaster, she was also its only Outer Clan Elder.

"Back in the residence, I sensed your aura. I thought it was an illusion, but it really was you. You've already broken through to the Qi Condensation Stage, Late Phase?" Xia Yunxue pulled Song Changsheng into the residence, her eyes brimming with delight.

"Reporting to Mother, your child broke through four months ago. I've also improved in arrays and artifact refining." Before Xia Yunxue, Song Changsheng had none of his usual modesty and spoke with great pride.

"Good child, your talent is no weaker than those Cultivators with Variant Spiritual Roots. Foundation Establishment is within sight." Xia Yunxue's heart was filled with countless emotions. That tiny little child from back then could now descend the mountain to carry out missions in the blink of an eye.

A smile appeared on Song Changsheng's face. He had heard these words from many people before, but hearing them from different people made them feel different to his ears.

The moment he sat down, Xia Yunxue began chattering away, asking about this and that—whether he was eating well, whether he was living well, whether he lacked Cultivation Resources, and other everyday concerns.

Once she started speaking, it seemed as though she could not stop. Not only did Song Changsheng not find it irritating, he found it deeply warm.

In his Previous Life, he had been an orphan and had never enjoyed the warmth of a family. It had been a lifelong regret, yet after living again, that blank space had instead been filled.

Amid Xia Yunxue's chatter, night slowly descended, and the chirping of insects began to rise outside the window.

Song Changsheng suddenly said, "Mother, I want to eat fish."

Xia Yunxue froze for a moment before realizing that the sun had already set. She hurriedly rose to her feet. "All right, Mother will make you something delicious right away."

In less than two hours, Xia Yunxue had prepared an entire table of dishes, all Song Changsheng's favorites. His nose could not help but sting. A child with a mother was like a treasured gem—nothing could be truer.

During the meal, Xia Yunxue did most of the talking while Song Changsheng kept his head down and ate, responding now and then. It was simple, yet warm...

In a flash, three days passed, and Song Changsheng returned to meet up with Song Luding and the others.

The Immortal Ascension Assembly, watched by hundreds of thousands, was about to begin.

Since there were only two compasses for testing Spirit Roots, they split into two groups. Song Luding took Song Changsheng and Song Changjiu to handle the four cities in the east.

Song Luzi, meanwhile, took Song Changying to handle the three cities in the west.

"Clan Uncle, if we test out a Heavenly Spiritual Root this time, what reward do you think the Lineage will give us?" Song Changjiu asked, his face full of yearning.

Song Luding laughed heartily. "Brat, you may be small, but your ambitions are quite large. Forget a Heavenly Spiritual Root—even one Twin Spiritual Root would satisfy this old man."

"Clan Brother Changjiu, the Lineage has stood for nearly five hundred years, yet there has never been any record of a Heavenly Spiritual Root appearing in Ling Province. I'm afraid your wish will come to nothing." Song Changsheng said with a smile.

Spirit Roots might not be one in a thousand, but one only appeared among seven or eight hundred people at best, and most of them were Mixed Spiritual Roots.

A Heavenly Spiritual Root was something one did not even dare dream of.

"People have to have dreams." Song Changjiu muttered.

As they talked, they arrived at the Spirit Testing Room of the first city. A long line had already formed there, stretching beyond the eye's reach.

"So many people... when are we going to finish testing them all?" Song Changjiu stared at the sea of heads and was instantly dumbfounded.

"Not that many—just a few thousand. Hurry and begin. Don't waste time." Song Luding remained cool as could be, taking out a token and opening the Spirit Testing Room.

The Spirit Testing Room was not large, and its furnishings were simple: a Meditation Cushion and a pillar half a person's height tall, covered in densely packed patterns.

"Changsheng, stay inside and assist me. Changjiu, guard outside. Let people in when I tell you to. Understood?"

"Oh." Song Changjiu immediately wilted. He had originally wanted to see how Spirit Roots were tested.

Song Luding took out a compass the size of a washbasin and secured it atop the pillar. He then took out a green crystal and placed it into a groove in the pillar.

"This is a Heavenly Profound Stone, an indispensable item for testing Spirit Roots." Song Luding explained to Song Changsheng as he worked.

Soon, the first Child was let in. He looked about eight or nine years old and seemed extremely uneasy.

Song Luding lightly stroked his beard and said kindly, "Come, child. Place your hand in the middle of this compass."

The Child timidly extended his hand and placed it on the compass. In an instant, the compass bloomed with a faint glow. Song Changsheng raised a brow. A victorious first strike—the very first one had a Spirit Root.

I wonder what his aptitude is like.

Very soon, the pillar beneath the compass gave its answer, lighting up with crimson, green, and yellow radiance.

"Three-inch Fire Spiritual Root, Five-Inch Wood Spiritual Root, four-inch Earth Spiritual Root. Average aptitude." Song Luding nodded in satisfaction. The first one had average aptitude; their luck was not bad.

"I... I have a Spirit Root?" The Child looked at his own hands, seemingly unable to believe it.

"That's right. Go wait to one side."

"Great! I have a Spirit Root!" The Child was nearly jumping with excitement. Since childhood, he had known how important Spirit Roots were. Now, he had grasped hold of a different future.

After waiting for a while and seeing no one come out, Song Changjiu immediately knew that someone had a Spirit Root. However, the Spirit Testing Room had a Restriction, so he could not see what was happening inside.

"If only it were a Heavenly Spiritual Root." Song Changjiu muttered. He still could not let go of the thought of a Heavenly Spiritual Root.

One Child after another was called inside. Perhaps the first had used up all their good fortune; among the nearly thousand who followed, not a single Spirit Root appeared.

Just when Song Changsheng was beginning to feel bored, another little girl finally tested positive for a Spirit Root. Unfortunately, she had a Four-Element Spiritual Root, with almost no possibility of breaking through to Foundation Establishment.

It was not that a Four-Element Spiritual Root could not achieve Foundation Establishment. Rather, the resources she required were simply too vast. Nurturing her to Foundation Establishment was several times more difficult than nurturing someone with a Three-Element Spiritual Root.

The Lineage's resources were limited. They could not squander them like this. The ceiling of her life would likely be the Qi Condensation Stage.

Sometimes, even Song Changsheng did not understand whether letting them step onto the path of cultivation was right or wrong...

Two days quickly passed. Of the more than two thousand people in the first city, only three had Spirit Roots.

On the third day, their luck was somewhat better in the second city. Four emerged from three thousand people, but they all had Four-Element Spiritual Roots or Five-Element Spiritual Roots. Not one had a Three-Element Spiritual Root.

This was all normal, and everyone had been mentally prepared. Then, in the third city, the appearance of a quiet, taciturn little boy brought them a surprise...

If you have extra tickets, fellow Daoists, please move your little hands that bring fortune and give it a tap~