Father's Teachings

Zhou Yang's daily life was no longer so monotonous with the arrival of his father, Zhou Xuanhao, and mother, Lin Yuting.

Since he was seven years old, his family had been together less than they were apart. Now that they were finally reunited and living together, all three of them, father and sons, cherished this precious time immensely.

Zhou Yang had even paused his daily cultivation. Every day, he either helped his mother create an oasis outside, digging in the desert to find unique desert delicacies, or listened to his father recount various strange tales he had seen and heard in the market town. His days were both fulfilling and joyful.

However, this family were ultimately cultivators. Even when chatting casually, they couldn't help but talk about cultivation-related matters.

One day, while Father Zhou was telling Zhou Yang about his experiences visiting a certain cultivation family, his expression suddenly shifted. He couldn't help but look at Zhou Yang and ask, "Yang'er, the Old Clan Leader said that you will be in charge of Haoyang Cave from now on. Do you have any plans for the development and utilization of the spirit veins here?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yang replied with some embarrassment, "Father, you're asking the right person. I've been busy with my cultivation all these years and haven't really thought about this aspect."

"Cultivation is paramount, and that's correct," Zhou Xuanhao nodded, approving of Zhou Yang's answer. Then, looking at him with encouragement, he continued, "But since you've reached a bottleneck, you might as well start planning for this. Your mother and I are both here, so feel free to share any ideas you have, and we can discuss them with you."

Hearing this, Zhou Yang knew that his father already had ideas and was merely testing him with this question.

To be honest, he had some reservations about this practice of his father and other elders always testing the younger generation before they did anything.

Although they were considered juniors, they were all thirty or forty years old. In the mortal world, they would be grandfathers, yet they were still treated like children by their elders. No one would be happy about that.

Even if they passed the test and received a few words of praise from their elders, what good would it do?

Would they then have to ask for candy like children receiving praise, excitedly asking their elders for treats?

He complained inwardly, but outwardly, he put on a thoughtful expression and lowered his head in contemplation. After a moment, he finally looked up with a troubled expression and said, "My knowledge is shallow, and I truly can't come up with any good ideas for this kind of construction. Father, you are experienced and knowledgeable, and I need your guidance on this matter."

"Haha, it's rare for there to be something you don't understand, Yang'er!"

Zhou Xuanhao burst into laughter, as if making Zhou Yang stumble was a very happy occasion.

It was no wonder he was like this. In their conversations these days, apart from when he was recounting strange tales of the cultivation world, which Zhou Yang couldn't interject into, Zhou Yang could always offer unique insights on any topic related to customs, traditions, or even governance systems. Sometimes, he would even leave his father speechless.

Zhou Xuanhao didn't know how his son, who had been cultivating within the family all along, managed to know everything. He felt completely unable to maintain his fatherly demeanor in front of him.

If Zhou Yang didn't look so young and wasn't his own son whom he had watched grow up, even if someone told Zhou Xuanhao that this was a Golden Core old monster who had cultivated for hundreds of years, he wouldn't have doubted it.

And this inner frustration, he couldn't confide in anyone, lest he be laughed to death!

Knowing this, it was not difficult to understand why he was so happy now.

With his mood lifted, he finally regained his confidence as a father. He let out a laugh, looked at Zhou Yang with pride, and said one by one:

"The spirit veins of Haoyang Cave are deep underground, and surrounded by rocks. It's impossible for you to open up spirit fields like Jade Spring Peak!"

"But this is not entirely a bad thing. The rocks on the spirit veins have been nourished by spiritual energy for many years, making them much harder than ordinary rocks. They are perfect for opening up spirit beast rooms to raise some low-level demonic beasts. Killing them for meat will also be a good source of income."

"Also, you can borrow some storage bags from the Old Clan Leader and bring more spirit soil from the spirit fields on Jade Spring Peak to pave the outer caves. This will allow you to plant some third-tier and fourth-tier spiritual medicines that require a lot of spiritual energy."

"Finally, the spiritual energy attributes of Haoyang Cave lean towards fire. This indicates that the underground fire and lava layer here is relatively shallow. After you reach Foundation Establishment, you can gather enough spirit stones to invite the Chen Family's ancestor from the Golden Sand Market to help open an underground fire channel. Then, the family's alchemists and artifact forgers won't have to travel to the Golden Sand Market to rent underground fire rooms when refining high-level pills and artifacts."

Zhou Xuanhao, having lived for nearly a hundred years, having been stationed in cultivator market towns for a long time, and having represented the Zhou Family to visit other cultivation families multiple times, had a wealth of cultivation knowledge that a "youngster" like Zhou Yang couldn't compare to.

The suggestions he made, though seemingly simple, were actually the best choices made after detailed investigation of the Haoyang Cave spirit veins and careful consideration of all aspects, tailored to the local conditions.

Although Zhou Xuanhao didn't say it, Zhou Yang, as an office worker in his previous life, understood these things clearly.

Then, he remembered that he had just complained about his father not being considerate of the younger generation. He couldn't help but feel ashamed and remorseful. With a face full of guilt, he bowed deeply to his father and said, "Father, your insights are profound. I am ashamed. Possessing a treasure mountain yet being unaware of it is truly a disservice to the family, the Old Clan Leader, and the elders' kindness!"

"Why must my son be like this?"

Zhou Xuanhao looked at Zhou Yang's action with some surprise, completely unable to understand why Zhou Yang was suddenly so solemn.

"Uh, Father, please don't mind me. I just feel ashamed and lost my composure."

Zhou Yang's face flushed with embarrassment. He quickly circulated his mana to suppress the unusual emotions in his heart, then forced a dry smile and looked up to find an excuse to gloss over it.

"Well, knowing shame is a good thing. At your age, with your current cultivation achievements, it's inevitable that you'll develop arrogance and look down on other peers or even senior cultivators. This mindset is very bad! I suggest you go out more in the future to see the outside world and interact more with cultivators outside the family. Once you've seen and heard about many geniuses in the cultivation world, you'll realize that your current achievements are nothing in the grand scheme of the cultivation world!"

Zhou Xuanhao nodded gently, not delving into the reason for Zhou Yang's shame, but simply lecturing him on the principles of life.

"Father is right. I was actually thinking the same thing, but perhaps we should explain this matter to the Old Clan Leader after you've completed that important task of yours."

Upon hearing Zhou Yang mention "that matter," Zhou Xuanhao fell silent.

Attempting to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage by consuming Earth Origin Spirit Milk was a matter of life and death, and success depended entirely on fate. There was nothing he could say now, and no need to elaborate further.

Seeing this, Zhou Yang cursed himself for bringing up a sensitive topic and quickly changed the subject. "Father, since you've suggested opening spirit beast rooms, and we have nothing else to do right now, why don't we try it out and see if this method is feasible?"

"Alright."

Zhou Xuanhao's eyes flashed, and he nodded slightly, skirting around the heavy topic.

Opening spirit beast rooms was simple enough. They just needed to summon their flying swords to cut through the rock walls. Zhou Yang, at Qi Refining Layer Eight, and Zhou Xuanhao, at Qi Refining Layer Nine, both possessed second-tier high-grade flying sword artifacts, making such rough work incredibly easy.

In less than half a year, the father and son duo, using the tunnels created by the Poison Fire Scorpions outside, had carved out four circular stone chambers, each over two hundred zhang long, ten zhang wide, and seven feet high.

These circular stone chambers had thick rock walls on all sides. Even a second-tier demonic beast, unless it was a Gold-Eating Rat that was skilled at digging and burrowing, would be unable to escape.

The Zhou Family also raised a type of first-tier mid-grade demonic beast, the Phoenix Crown Fire Turkey, on Jade Spring Peak. These beasts could grow up to forty to fifty kilograms, with firm, chewy meat... most importantly, they were filling and were highly favored by low-level rogue cultivators.

Zhou Yang planned to bring a batch of Phoenix Crown Fire Turkeys from Jade Spring Peak to raise in the spirit beast rooms after he reached Foundation Establishment to see how they performed.

Not long after the spirit beast rooms were completed, the Earth Origin Spirit Milk began to flow from the ten-thousand-year stalactite.

The flowing Earth Origin Spirit Milk had an amber hue, emitting an alluring fragrance. The quantity was not much, less than a liter.

"Half of it is enough for me. Keep the remaining Earth Origin Spirit Milk, Yang'er, and hand it over to the Old Clan Leader later."

As an Alchemist, Zhou Xuanhao was naturally the one to collect the Earth Origin Spirit Milk. After gathering the overflowing Earth Origin Spirit Milk into a jade bottle, he poured half of it into another jade bottle and handed it to Zhou Yang.

Then, he gazed affectionately at his wife and son standing beside him. After a full fifteen minutes, he chuckled and said, "Alright, everything that needed to be said has been said. No one is allowed to cry today; just wait quietly for my good news!"

"Husband!"

Lin Yuting softly cried out, her beautiful eyes filled with tears. Her jade hands tightly gripped the man's hands, unwilling to let go.

Although she had tried to comfort him long ago and understood his choice, now that the moment had arrived, as a woman, she couldn't help but burst into tears.

In contrast, Zhou Yang appeared unusually calm at this moment. His gaze met his father Zhou Xuanhao's, and he nodded gently. Then, he reached out and took his mother Lin Yuting's hand, softly persuading her, "Mother, let's go. Father needs peace of mind the most right now. We can't let him go into seclusion with worries!"

"Take care of your mother and don't let her do anything foolish!"

Zhou Xuanhao's Mana surged, gently pushing away his wife's hands. He then turned and walked into the secluded cultivation chamber without looking back, closing the chamber's gate with a "boom."

Thank you to the great "Wu Lin Meng Zhu" for the 10,000 Qidian coins reward. This single reward has directly propelled me to second place on the new book list. Also, thank you to the book friend "Shi Yan Xiao Xiao Bu" for the 500 Qidian coins reward, "Cun Min Zi Zhong Shu Cai Mai Dian Shu You" for the 300 Qidian coins reward, and to "Wang Shi Sui Feng" and three other book friends for their 100 Qidian coins rewards. Several of you have rewarded me for the second time. Thank you! Finally, I ask for recommendation tickets, recommendation tickets, and to join the new book investment group.