Spiritual Root

The stout man seemed to relish the awestruck gazes of those around him, smiling and saying, "Easy, easy..."

Princess Dongyang led the way, with the stout man following. Just as he was about to enter the rear hall, he suddenly stopped, turned around, his small eyes, squeezed into slits by his rolls of fat, swept over everyone, and he said indifferently, "Who is Qin Sang?"

In an instant, all eyes in the Sacred Palace fixed on Qin Sang.

Princess Dongyang raised her eyes slightly.

Qin Sang, who had thought the young man surnamed Han had stood him up and was filled with disappointment, hurriedly bowed and said, "Reporting to the immortal master, I am Qin Sang."

The young man sized up Qin Sang, let out a 'hmm,' and pointed a finger at him, saying, "After the enthronement ceremony, come find me."

With that, he turned and walked into the rear hall.

The great hall fell silent.

Qin Sang could feel the surprise and envy in those gazes, as well as the resentment from the Heir Apparent, and even King Dongyang, who was about to become the ruler, was staring intently at Qin Sang.

Admiral Mu leaned closer and asked in a low voice, "Rumor has it you saved an immortal master's life. Is it true?"

Governor Feng knew a bit more, "I remember he seemed thinner than this fellow, right?"

Qin Sang was still immersed in his joy and paid no attention to the two. Since the young man surnamed Han hadn't forgotten him and had even sent someone over, didn't that mean his chances of getting his request granted were very high?

After a moment of silence, the Palace Master of the Sacred Palace quietly reminded King Dongyang, "Your Majesty, the auspicious time is almost past."

"Oh? Oh!"

The ruler and his officials in the hall finally came to their senses. King Dongyang hurriedly held the imperial seal, stepped forward, and carefully placed it between the jade register and the jade book. The enthronement ceremony began.

The ceremony's rituals were elaborate. Later, they moved outside the hall, and officials were enfeoffed. It lasted for nearly three hours. Fortunately, the mountain wind was not strong, and the winter sun was warm, so everyone could endure it.

Finally, King Dongyang was enthroned as Emperor, establishing the reign title Wude.

Qin Sang was granted the title of General Who Assists the State and Marquis of Jiang Prefecture.

Qin Sang accepted the enfeoffment with a calm expression. He waited until the enthronement ceremony concluded and the new Emperor led the officials down the mountain back to the Jade Palace. He, however, remained at the Sacred Palace and was led by the Palace Master towards the rear hall.

Princess Dongyang, who should now be called Grand Princess, had disappeared somewhere.

In the hall, only the stout young man remained, seated in a grand chair, his eyes closed, motionless. He appeared to be asleep, but in reality, he was cultivating.

As soon as they entered the hall, the stout young man opened his eyes, waved for the Palace Master of the Sacred Palace to leave, and lazily said to Qin Sang, "Let's make this quick. Senior Brother Han asked me to tell you something. The path to immortality is hard to find, not only because of the countless dangers after cultivating but also because to cultivate immortality, one must possess a Spiritual Root. Among mortals, those with Spiritual Roots are one in ten thousand. This means if you choose to cultivate immortality, your chances are extremely slim. However, if you remain in the mortal world, the Sacred Palace will ensure your descendants enjoy wealth and honor for three generations. Choose for yourself."

Qin Sang was slightly taken aback, realizing that cultivating immortality required having a Spiritual Root.

Then, he immediately thought that he had already cultivated the Netherworld Scripture to the fifth level. He must possess a Spiritual Root, so he naturally had nothing to worry about.

However, Qin Sang still asked a few more questions, "What is a Spiritual Root?"

"How would I know what it is?"

The stout young man pouted. He didn't know why Senior Brother Han was so interested in a mortal and even asked him to explain it clearly. "Spiritual Roots are divided into the five elements: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, corresponding to the spiritual energies of the five elements in heaven and earth. Only by possessing a Spiritual Root can one comprehend the Dao of Heaven and cultivate spiritual energy and True Essence within the body. In short, without a Spiritual Root, one cannot even sense the spiritual energy between heaven and earth, let alone cultivate. Also, just because you have a Spiritual Root doesn't mean our Han family will accept you. If you have a pure Heavenly Spiritual Root, let alone the Han family, even the major immortal cultivation sects will vie for you. But if your Spiritual Root is mixed, like a Four-element Spiritual Root or even a Five-element Spiritual Root, you won't be able to establish your Foundation by the time you die. Even with Senior Brother Han's recommendation, you won't be able to enter the inner sect of the Han family."

Hearing this, Qin Sang, who had felt so confident, became anxious again. He asked carefully, making the stout young man impatient, and only then did he gain a superficial understanding of immortal cultivators.

He learned that the realms after entering immortal cultivation were all called the Qi Refining Stage, which is refining essence into qi. During this stage, one nourishes the Nascent Soul and transforms the physical body, extending one's lifespan by several decades compared to mortals.

The Qi Refining Stage has thirteen levels. Upon reaching the tenth level, one can prepare for Foundation Establishment.

Cultivators in the Foundation Establishment stage possess powerful combat strength and are considered true immortal cultivators in the cultivation world. Those who cannot establish their Foundation are of little use to a sect.

Whether one can establish their Foundation is related to one's destiny, but more importantly, it depends on talent, which is the Spiritual Root.

Those with Single Spiritual Roots, or Dual Spiritual Roots, or Triple Spiritual Roots, known as True Spiritual Roots, have a good chance of establishing their Foundation. However, for pseudo-spiritual roots like Four-element or Five-element Spiritual Roots, the hope of establishing their Foundation is very slim.

The stout young man explained clearly to Qin Sang that those with Spiritual Roots are one in ten thousand, and True Spiritual Roots are even rarer. Single Spiritual Roots are encountered perhaps once in several decades, so he shouldn't get his hopes up.

If Qin Sang possessed a pseudo-spiritual root, he could still go to the Han family, but he would only be an ordinary person in the outer sect. He might live a few years longer than mortals and have his basic needs met, which was perhaps not as good as being a king or marquis in the mortal world, with the Sacred Palace's protection, enjoying a lifetime of wealth and honor.

But now, if Qin Sang gave up, how could he be reconciled?

Qin Sang didn't know if the Netherworld Scripture corresponded to the realms of the Qi Refining Stage. He had only taken five years to cultivate to the fifth level. This speed shouldn't be considered slow, right?

Doesn't this indicate that his talent is not bad?

"Immortal Master, I've decided," Qin Sang said in a deep voice. "Please test my Spiritual Root."

The stout young man was already annoyed by Qin Sang. Upon hearing this, he huffed, "Is the path to immortality that easy to seek? I see you won't turn back until you hit a brick wall. Stick out your hand."

Qin Sang nervously extended his hand, fearing that his talent wasn't good enough and also fearing that the stout young man would discover he was practicing demonic arts.

Unexpectedly, while Qin Sang was still worrying in secret, he suddenly heard the stout young man say coldly, "You have no Spiritual Root, no affinity with the immortal path. That's it, you can leave."

Qin Sang froze, thinking that testing a Spiritual Root would involve some kind of immortal technique.

The stout young man lightly touched his arm and immediately withdrew his hand, concluding that Qin Sang had no Spiritual Root.

"Impossible!"

Qin Sang exclaimed in disbelief. If he had no Spiritual Root, how could he cultivate the Netherworld Scripture, how could he cultivate spiritual energy, and how could he wield the Purple Soul Bell and the Ice Silkworm Armor?

"How is it impossible?"

The stout young man roared, "I already warned you, those with Spiritual Roots in this world are one in ten thousand. Even in immortal cultivation families, those with Spiritual Roots are extremely few. If you have no Spiritual Root, you have no Spiritual Root. Don't cause trouble here!"

Qin Sang's eyes turned cold. He didn't know how he had offended this immortal master, who seemed to find him very displeasing.

Seeing the stout young man turn to leave and push open the door, Qin Sang quickly flashed forward to block the doorway, "I want to see Immortal Master Han!"