Spirit Gathering

This pale golden card lay quietly in Yun Long's palm. It was the prize Yun Jiang had obtained with that precious draw opportunity when Yun Long broke through to the Qi Refining Realm.

Unlike the three initial cards from the beginner's gift pack, this was the first card the Yun Clan had truly drawn through its own fortune.

Their luck had indeed been good.

Though it was neither the "More Children More Blessings" function card Yun Jiang had hoped for, which could bring prosperity to the clan's descendants, nor the coveted Character Inheritance Card, a Second-Order Mid-Grade function card—Spirit Gathering—was already an unexpected delight.

One had to know that the three Character Inheritance Cards from the beginner's gift pack had all been First-Order Low-Grade.

The greatest benefit those three cards could offer the Yun siblings' cultivation was only enough to reach the threshold of the Third Layer of Qi Refining.

Now, with this Second-Order Mid-Grade Spirit Gathering Card, the Yun Clan's future path of cultivation would undoubtedly become much smoother.

[Second-Order Mid-Grade Spirit Gathering Card]: Once activated, it can create a spirit-gathering effect equivalent to a Second-Order Mid-Grade Spirit Gathering Formation. Its wondrous aspect is that it is formless and invisible during use, impossible to detect and impossible for external forces to destroy. Its effects are even greater when used atop a spirit vein.

A second-order formation had an extremely broad range, more than enough to encompass all the territory currently occupied by the Yun Clan.

But Yun Long did not choose to do so.

After careful consideration, he precisely confined the spirit-gathering effect to the core area within Evergreen Valley.

The front courtyard of the Yun residence was excluded.

In the future, all servants recruited by the Yun Clan would be housed in the front courtyard.

The reception hall where the clan received outside guests was also located there.

The instant the Spirit Gathering Card was activated, its pale golden surface turned a deep, profound black.

Whoever held this black card could continuously control the range and intensity of the Spirit Gathering Formation.

Yun Long did not keep the card on himself. Instead, he solemnly placed it back into the Family Genealogy.

Only after becoming clan head had he gained the right to peruse this mysterious genealogy, and he had gradually come to understand the clan fortune contained within it.

The moment the Spirit Gathering Card's effects spread out, the Yun Clan members in Evergreen Valley almost simultaneously sensed the distinct change in the surrounding Spiritual Energy.

Yun Ji in particular had always made relatively slow progress in cultivating the Wudang Xiantian Gong, yet at this moment, he could clearly feel that his cultivation speed had risen by nearly twenty percent out of nowhere!

He was already past fifty. Yun Long handled all matters great and small, leaving him with no need to worry too much and plenty of time to devote to cultivation.

In the past, he had always felt that his cultivation was sluggish and that he was too old. He had feared that he would never in this life touch that mysterious and profound Qi Refining Realm.

But now, the changes brought by the Spirit Gathering Card let him see the dawn of hope once more.

As for Li Lingyue and Shi Chen, who possessed Spiritual Roots, their perception of Spiritual Energy was even keener.

They only felt the Spiritual Roots within their bodies stir restlessly under the stimulation of the dense Spiritual Energy, as though they wished to break free from their restraints and actively gulp down the abundant spiritual energy between heaven and earth.

The Wudang Xiantian Gong cultivated by Li Lingyue and the Bodhidharma Muscle-Tendon Classic Shi Chen had only just begun learning were both suppressing this instinct of their Spiritual Roots to absorb Spiritual Energy on their own.

Afterward, Yun Long went to find his father, Yun Ji.

"Father, I would like to ask you to teach the Wudang Xiantian Gong to Uncle Li and Uncle Shi." Yun Long went straight to the point.

Yun Ji's expression tightened slightly upon hearing this. "Long, have you thought this through?"

"Our Yun Clan's cultivation method can be cultivated even without a Spiritual Root. Once one enters the gate, one can be said to have embarked upon the path of immortal cultivation."

"However," Yun Ji shifted the subject, his tone carrying several shades of caution, "when I taught Little Chen, I already discovered that directly cultivating these techniques without guidance is exceedingly difficult. If one wishes to figure it out and cultivate it to success alone, I fear something crucial is still missing."

"Little Chen is still young. Starting now, he still has hope of succeeding." Yun Long nodded, his tone steady. "But Uncle Li and the others are already advanced in years. Without the guidance of a cultivation method, trying to explore it by themselves will likely be as difficult as ascending to heaven."

Yun Long held something back in his words, not revealing his deepest concern.

What if the cultivation method was leaked because of this?

What if the secret behind the cultivation method—the foundation upon which the clan stood—was exposed as a result? What kind of risks would they then face?

Yun Ji gave his son a long, deep look.

He understood Yun Long. The current Yun Long must have already taken every possibility into account before acting.

"As for the change in the clan's Spiritual Energy just now, I can tell you clearly that I feel I have a chance to break through into the Qi Refining Realm." Yun Ji spoke slowly, his gaze deep. "Then, in theory, those two may also have such a chance. Even so, do you still intend to teach them?"

He vaguely guessed that this transformation in the clan was surely inseparable from that mysterious Family Genealogy.

But he did not ask.

Some secrets were better left unknown. This was destined to become a core secret of the clan that only the clan head could touch.

"Teach them." Yun Long's answer was decisive, without the slightest hesitation.

He was not worried about Li Pinghu and Shi Tie breaking through to Qi Refining.

Even if they truly did break through, the assistance they would bring to the clan would only be greater.

Besides, how slim was that possibility?

As long as they cultivated the Wudang Xiantian Gong, once they entered the gate, their strength would greatly improve.

That way, without him having to act lightly, the Yun Clan could establish itself more securely in the waters of Wanfang Lake.

"As for the essential secrets concerning 'Great Completion' in the cultivation method, we can wait until they have cultivated this technique to the peak of their current realm before teaching them." Yun Long added, having considered everything thoroughly.

Trust those you employ; do not employ those you distrust.

Li Pinghu and Shi Tie had both shared life-and-death hardships with the Yun Clan, so Yun Ji naturally had no objection to Yun Long's decision.

"Mhm." Yun Ji nodded, then abruptly changed the subject. A hint of teasing appeared in his eyes. "This matter is easy enough. But when do you plan to marry that girl Lingyue? The bridal chamber has been prepared for you two for quite some time now."

Yun Long was slightly stunned upon hearing this, then fell into a brief silence and contemplation.

He raised his head, tenderness and guilt flashing through his eyes.

"She has already waited too long."

"Tomorrow, Father."

The next day, Yun Long, the Yun Clan's third-generation clan head, married Li Lingyue.

The wedding was simple, yet no less solemn for it.

No guests were broadly invited, and there was no cumbersome extravagance.

Only several tenant farmers close to the Yun Clan, along with the father and son Shi Tie and Shi Chen, attended.

Within Evergreen Valley, red candles burned brightly, and joy filled the air.

Yun Long gently lifted the red veil from Li Lingyue's head.

What met his eyes was her lovely face, like pear blossoms bathed in rain, yet overflowing with boundless joy.

Tears slid across her smooth cheeks. They were not tears of sorrow, but happiness spilling over.

The two had grown up together as childhood sweethearts, their bond deep.

Only because of certain old rules and concerns of the Yun Clan had she waited silently, without complaint or regret.

At last, today, she had waited for the day that belonged to her—for the moment when she would join hands with the one she loved for a lifetime.

The only guests at the wedding were several of the Yun Clan's tenant farmers and the father and son Shi Tie and Shi Chen.

Yun Long lifted Li Lingyue's bridal veil, and her face was covered in joyful tear streaks. They had been childhood sweethearts, and because of the Yun Clan's rules, she had kept waiting. At last, she had waited for this day.