Elements of Cultivation

Following Chen Zhao'hu's instructions, the five arrived at their destination shortly.

A waist-high fence surrounded a large, ink-black boulder about ten feet tall.

A man was dozing outside the fence.

As Li Ji'an and the other four approached, the man immediately opened his eyes. After a brief glance at the group, he closed them again.

After all, the target customers were mainly children, at most around fifteen years old. These five were clearly past that age.

"Excuse me!"

When Li Ji'an spoke, the man seemed quite surprised.

"Testing Spiritual Roots?"

Li Ji'an nodded.

"Ten taels of Spirit Sand per person."

Li Ji'an weighed out fifty taels of Spirit Sand and handed it over.

"You're all getting tested?" The man was even more surprised.

Then, understanding dawned on him.

These five must have come from a settlement far from any Immortal Market.

Without further ado, he took the Spirit Sand and opened the fence for them.

"Just place your hand here. The Spirit Testing Stone will sense the sensitivity of the Spiritual Root within your body. Each mark that lights up represents a strand of Spiritual Aura."

"Thank you!"

Li Ji'an didn't hesitate and went first, placing his hand on the stone.

He knew the nervousness and apprehension of the other four. By going first, he could set an example and perhaps lower their expectations a bit, making it easier for them later.

Hummm~

As his palm touched the stone, he immediately felt a coolness emanating from the black rock.

The next moment, a glowing mark began to appear where his palm was pressed.

First, a golden mark resembling a small sword lit up, just one strand.

Then, a mark of a small tree appeared, also only one strand.

A water ripple mark, a flame mark, a small mountain mark... they revealed themselves one by one.

Except for the flame mark, which had two strands, all the others had only one.

Li Ji'an accepted this calmly.

It was as he expected.

The four behind him wore heavy expressions.

Zhao Shuyao was the first among them. She was the same age as Li Ji'an and had lived in the Immortal Bestowed Dynasty the longest. According to Chen Zhao'hu, her Spiritual Root had been delayed the most.

If Li Ji'an was like this, how could she be any better?

"I'll go!" Seeing the other three hesitate, Zhu Linxian took a deep breath and stepped forward.

She and Zhang Tie Zhu were the youngest, becoming Immortal Seeds at seventeen and now just eighteen, giving them the most hope.

"Eight strands! Linxian's highest sensitivity is actually eight strands!"

As the Spiritual Aura manifested above Zhu Linxian's palm, Zhang Tie Zhu exclaimed with joy.

The sensitivity for the five elements—gold, wood, water, fire, and earth—were two, two, eight, four, and one, respectively.

"Good!" Dong Jiangling and Zhao Shuyao also clenched their fists and cheered.

Li Ji'an raised an eyebrow slightly. This was unexpected and even surprising. According to Chen Zhao'hu, in a place devoid of spiritual energy, innate Spiritual Roots wouldn't grow; instead, they would be slowly consumed.

If that were the case, if Zhu Linxian hadn't been born in such a place, what level of Spiritual Root talent would she possess?

It would have to be more than mid-grade.

High-grade Spiritual Root?

And her potential to form a Golden Core was wasted like this?

Li Ji'an immediately felt a pang of regret, like the proverb "oranges grown south of the Huai River taste like lemons when grown north."

Hearing the cheers of the group, the man outside the fence turned his head.

"..."

"What's there to cheer about with a low-grade Spiritual Root?"

"Heh~ Perhaps they're celebrating meeting the minimum requirement to be accepted as a son-in-law by the Wu family."

After calming down, Zhang Tie Zhu and the other three also came to their senses.

That's right, it was just the lowest grade of Spiritual Root, so what was there to celebrate?

Compared to their reputations as once-in-a-million geniuses in the Immortal Bestowed Dynasty, this was quite disheartening.

However, this also gave them hope.

At least it wasn't like Chen Zhao'hu said, completely cutting off their hope of cultivating immortality.

Afterward, the other three also went up to test one by one.

As expected, they all had low-grade Spiritual Roots.

Zhang Tie Zhu had the highest, an Earth Spiritual Root, sensing six streams of Spiritual Aura.

Dong Jiangling had the highest with four streams of Spiritual Aura, Metal-element.

Zhao Shuyao had the highest with three streams of Spiritual Aura, Wood-element.

Considering the Spiritual Root test results of the group, Li Ji'an had a general idea. It largely confirmed Chen Zhao'hu's words: the longer one lived in a spirit-suppressed land, the worse their Spiritual Root became.

"Brother Li, we all have Spiritual Roots! We can all cultivate immortality!" Zhang Tie Zhu was quite excited.

"That's right! Anything is possible," Li Ji'an encouraged.

Not long after, the five of them returned to Chen Zhao'hu's courtyard.

Upon learning the test results of the five, Chen Zhao'hu also looked at Zhu Linxian with unexpected surprise.

But in the end, he shook his head with regret.

"What? Linxian's Spiritual Root is already close to mid-grade, and it's still not enough?" Dong Jiangling became anxious seeing his reaction.

"That's right, talent close to a mid-grade Spiritual Root can barely be considered average in our Desolate Ridge Wasteland, but... not having started cultivation by eighteen is a bit too late," Chen Zhao'hu explained.

"Eighteen is too late? Does that mean you can't cultivate immortality if you're over fifteen?" Zhang Tie Zhu was also agitated.

"Not exactly. Age isn't a restriction for cultivation. Even if you start cultivating at fifty, there's still a chance to ascend step by step!"

"Then why..."

Chen Zhao'hu said with some helplessness, "Do you know why I haven't started cultivating?"

Li Ji'an asked, puzzled, "Brother Chen, you said before that there's always a sliver of hope and that your Spiritual Root talent has infinite possibilities. Then... why haven't you cultivated?"

"Heh, you think having a Spiritual Root is enough to cultivate?"

"Do you know the four essential elements of cultivation here?"

Chen Zhao'hu sighed, "Earth, Dharma, Wealth, Companions. You can't lack any of them!"

"The Spiritual Energy needed for cultivation is purest and most abundant only in lands with Spirit Veins. Outside of Spirit Vein lands, Spiritual Energy dissipates into the heavens and is already mixed and thin. For example, this place, while not a spirit-suppressed land like yours, still makes it difficult to cultivate Magical Power.

Places with Spirit Veins are already occupied by those Sects and Immortal Clans. Even the lowest-grade, first-tier low-grade Spirit Vein lands are fought over fiercely by countless people who wish to permanently occupy them, providing a glimmer of hope for further advancement for their descendants."

"The second is the Cultivation Method. Because everyone's Spiritual Root attributes are different, the required Cultivation Method is also different. Furthermore, it's not just the Spiritual Root with the highest Spiritual Aura sensitivity that matters; the other four elemental Spiritual Roots also have corresponding influences. Therefore, the most suitable Cultivation Method for each person is different. Having a Spirit Vein land isn't enough; you also need to find the Cultivation Method that suits you best.

Cultivation Methods are as precious as Spirit Vein lands. Some families rise to prominence relying on a single Cultivation Method."

"As for wealth, you've already seen Spirit Stones. Besides being used for transactions, their most fundamental purpose is to provide Spiritual Energy. Even in this spirit-poor land where the Spiritual Energy in the heavens and earth is insufficient for cultivation, you can directly refine the Spiritual Energy within Spirit Stones to cultivate.

However, minor cultivators won't need them. After all, once a Spirit Stone is refined, there's no turning back. If you can't absorb and refine it quickly, it will dissipate into the heavens and be wasted. Only senior great cultivators can directly refine Spirit Stones to cultivate.

Of course, Spirit Stones can be used to rent Spirit Vein dojos, trade Cultivation Methods, purchase Spirit Rice, pills, magic artifacts... In short, if you have enough Spirit Stones, you can buy anything."

"As for the last element, Companions: Masters, Fellow Daoists, partners... Cultivation cannot be done in isolation. Otherwise, it's easy to get stuck in a rut, leading to bottlenecks, or worse, qi deviation. Discussing the Dao and pooling wisdom is the right path..."

"... " After Chen Zhao'hu finished his patient explanation, the four people, excluding Li Ji'an, looked stiff.

When they were in the Immortal Bestowed Dynasty, they had noble backgrounds with ample resources, and their talents were extraordinary, so the Imperial Family actively supported them. They only needed to cultivate diligently. They had never experienced a situation where they had to solve everything themselves.

"So, why haven't I stepped into cultivation? Because I don't have these resources. If I want to cultivate, I'd have to go to the nearest United Market, but the rent there isn't cheap, and my Spiritual Root isn't good enough to be noticed by those families or Sects."

As he spoke, Chen Zhao'hu looked at Zhang Tie Zhu again, "This is why I said this girl is a pity. If she were under fifteen with talent close to a mid-grade Spiritual Root, she would definitely have had a chance to enter a certain family. But now, her value for cultivation has been lost."

Over the next month, the five gradually adapted to the gathering area and one by one confirmed Chen Zhao'hu's words.

On this day, Zhu Linxian, who had been silent for many days, finally couldn't hold back.

"No matter how difficult it is, I have to try!"

"That's right, the more we wait, the more we waste time. If we don't try, how will we know it's impossible!" Zhang Tie Zhu had been itching to go for a while.

They were the most hopeful and the youngest, having not experienced too much hardship from society.

"If we're going to die of old age here, then what's the point of coming to the Immortal Realm? Let alone seeking revenge on that beastly family," Zhao Shuyao was also unwilling.

"Yes! Even if we die, we have to try!" Dong Jiangling's eyes were fierce, and his attitude was resolute.

Li Ji'an looked at them, understanding them deeply.

Life is fleeting, like grass and trees in autumn; it passes too quickly!

This is their only life; they can't wait any longer.

Most importantly, if they couldn't cultivate immortality in their current situation, how could it compare to their fame throughout the Immortal Bestowed Dynasty?

"What are your plans?"

"The Yan Family is recruiting Land Reclamation Warriors. I plan to give it a try. If I have the chance to stay with the Yan Family, I can enjoy their first-tier high-grade Spirit Vein dojo and their Cultivation Methods," Zhang Tie Zhu said firmly.

"I plan to find an opportunity in the Immortal Market!" Zhu Linxian was the most unwilling.

"A Spirit Pill Shop is hiring receptionists. I want to give it a try." Zhao Shuyao found it difficult to make this decision.

"I also plan to check out the market first."