Ji Family Head, Old Ancestor, the Cruel Reality

Several days later.

Ji Haoyuan took the resources he had obtained from the Family Treasury and entered the Seclusion Chamber, fully activating its sealing formation.

This meant that Ji Haoyuan's seclusion this time was nothing less than a death seclusion.

Unless he succeeded and personally opened the sealing formation from within, he could only wait for the formation's time limit to expire before it dispersed.

During this process, outsiders could not interfere at all, much less lift the restrictions from outside and open the Seclusion Chamber's doors.

This kind of seclusion was generally used when attempting to break through to Foundation Establishment.

Without question, Ji Haoyuan was now seeking to advance to Foundation Establishment.

However, at the beginning, aside from his elder brother Ji Haohuan, no one else in the clan knew of what he had done.

The truth was that, over the years, his presence within the family had been far too faint.

Especially over the past twenty years.

Other than a few older clansmen from his own generation, the younger members of the clan had rarely seen him.

They had only heard scattered bits of news about him from some of their elders.

They knew that their family had once had an elder with great hopes of successfully advancing to Foundation Establishment.

And so.

The days passed one by one.

In the blink of an eye, a month had gone by.

That day.

At last, one of the clan Elders discovered that the Seclusion Chamber's sealing formation had been completely activated.

He was immediately startled and hurried to find out who had silently activated the sealing formation within the Seclusion Chamber—and placed it in a fully activated state.

This was no trivial matter.

Before long, the matter had alerted all the family Elders, including the Clan Leader.

Everyone began making inquiries and investigating.

It did not take long for them to roughly determine who was currently in death seclusion.

For a time, everyone fell silent.

As family Elders, whether from the older generation or the relatively younger one, they were clearly all part of the family's innermost circle. Naturally, they knew exactly what the three words "Ji Haoyuan" represented.

"Go inform Old Ancestor of this."

In the end, it was the current Ji Family Head, Ji Yunfan, who broke the silence.

He was a man of around forty or fifty.

His features were square and upright, his actions decisive, and his abilities outstanding.

He was also at peak Qi Refining.

It was precisely because he had led the Ji Family over these years that the family's morale had not completely scattered, and it still retained a considerable degree of cohesion.

After speaking, he seemed to think of something else and continued:

"Also, go notify Fourth Uncle that Fifth Uncle has entered death seclusion... Forget it. There's no need to tell Fourth Uncle."

Just as he reached this point, Ji Yunfan seemed to realize something and immediately shook his head.

The Fourth Uncle and Fifth Uncle he mentioned were Ji Haohuan and Ji Haoyuan.

As blood brothers—and with Ji Haohuan responsible for guarding the Family Treasury—there was no way Ji Haohuan would not know that Ji Haoyuan intended to enter death seclusion.

If they went to bring up the matter with him now, it would serve no purpose beyond adding to Ji Haohuan's grief.

After all, everyone present understood that Ji Haoyuan, at the age of a hundred, had entered death seclusion in pursuit of Foundation Establishment. His chances of success were practically nonexistent.

And that was without the aid of a Foundation Establishment Pill.

If he failed, the only outcome awaiting him would be death in meditation.

Perhaps he had chosen this method precisely to seek his own release.

After all, the others in the clan—especially the younger generation—might not know much, but as Elders at the heart of the family, they knew at least something of Ji Haoyuan's circumstances.

Putting themselves in his shoes, no matter who it was, they likely would not be able to face all of it with complete composure.

Therefore.

Though Ji Yunfan and the others each harbored different thoughts, they could more or less understand Ji Haoyuan's actions.

Some time later.

Outside a courtyard on the Back Mountain.

A white-haired old man with a hunched body, wrinkled skin, and many age spots on his face lay on a reclining chair, listening to what Clan Leader Ji Yunfan told him. For a long time, he said nothing.

Only after quite some time did his somewhat cloudy gaze slowly withdraw from the distance, and he softly said:

"I understand."

After a pause, a bitter smile appeared on his face. His murky eyes finally turned toward Ji Yunfan before him, his tone carrying both desolation and a sigh.

"This is good as well. It's just that these past years have been hard on you."

Ji Yunfan's expression shook, and he hurriedly bowed in respectful salute before speaking solemnly:

"Old Ancestor, you overpraise me.

Compared to you, what I have done is nothing at all."

Yet the old man, Ji Bochang, merely shook his head.

"If the family had not held you back, with your aptitude, methods, and abilities, Yunfan, had you chosen to join the Crimson Cloud Sect, you might well have had a chance of successfully achieving Foundation Establishment.

In the end, it was the family that bound your hands and feet."

"Old Ancestor, please do not say that."

Ji Yunfan hurriedly shook his head.

"Without the family, there would be no me as I am today. Since I was born into the Ji Family, I should naturally serve the family.

"And besides..."

At this point, Ji Yunfan paused slightly before saying with utter firmness:

"This was my own choice. I have no regrets."

"Good child."

Ji Bochang looked at Ji Yunfan with a deeply moved expression. In him, he seemed to see traces of what Ji Haoyuan had been like in his youth.

But in the end, he still gently shook his head.

"Enough, enough.

You may leave for now.

These old bones of mine can probably buy you another year or two.

Make the necessary arrangements as soon as possible.

Whatever must be discarded or abandoned, whether things or people, must be dealt with decisively.

I know this may be cruel for you, but this is the family's current reality.

We no longer have much time, nor do we have much room to choose."

Hearing Ji Bochang's words, Ji Yunfan's heart shook violently.

He raised his head to look at Old Ancestor before him, but Ji Bochang had already slowly closed his eyes.

Ji Yunfan immediately understood Old Ancestor's meaning.

Just as he had said, this was an exceptionally cruel matter for Ji Yunfan and for the entire family.

But this was reality.

In this Cultivation World, where the weak were prey to the strong, weakness itself was the original sin.

Once Ji Bochang died in meditation, the Ji Family's present strength would be utterly insufficient to sustain everything it currently possessed.

The best course was to take advantage of Ji Bochang still being alive and decisively cut off the tail to save the body.

That was, through deliberate arrangements, to proactively abandon certain people and things.

Namely, the so-called family businesses, as well as some ordinary family members.

At that thought, a look of determination gradually appeared on Ji Yunfan's face.

He solemnly gave Ji Bochang a deep bow. After saying, "I understand," he turned and withdrew.