Ancestral Teachings

After three cycles, Sanbao stopped his cultivation and walked out of his room. After basic activities like washing up and eating, he began to stroll through the backyard of the Luo Mansion.

It was not that Sanbao did not want to continue cultivating, but his meridians were currently aching unbearably. If he were to push himself further, he feared he might damage his foundation. Sanbao naturally understood the principle that too much is as bad as too little, and that one must balance work with rest.

For the past two years, Sanbao had lived a reclusive life, almost completely cut off from the world. However, the people of the Luo Clan had always been very kind to him, taking care of him in every way possible; otherwise, he likely would not have made it this far. At this moment, Sanbao felt it was time to pay them a visit.

"May I ask if Big Brother is home?"

There were over a dozen small courtyards in the back of the Luo Mansion, each housing different people, including direct descendants of the Luo Clan, guards, and servants. Sanbao had first come to the home of the eldest, Luo Kaifeng. As for Old Luo, the two were as close as father and son, so such formalities were unnecessary.

"Oh, so it's Third Brother who has come. Come in and sit for a while. Xiaohong, bring some tea quickly. Your eldest brother just left for the Copper Mine and hasn't returned yet." Following the servant's announcement, a young woman walked out gracefully; she was Ren, the wife of Luo Kaifeng.

"It's only been a few days, but Third Brother has put on some weight and his complexion looks much better. Come, come, let your sister-in-law take a good look. Is your illness completely gone?"

Ren didn't care about formalities, pulling this brother, who was two years younger than her own son, into the house. She touched this and checked that, looking every bit like an elder sister-in-law acting as a mother.

As for the true nature of Sanbao's "illness," she knew nothing at all.

"I'm well, Sister-in-law. The illness is gone. Thank you all so much for taking care of me these past two years!" Sanbao replied with a cheerful smile.

"Oh, Third Brother, you're being too formal. We are blood relatives, after all. What's a small matter like this..." While replying to Sanbao, Ren secretly marveled at his composure and tact, especially considering he was only twelve years old.

The two chatted about household matters, getting along exceptionally well.

"Second Miss, no, no, it's terrible..." A servant boy suddenly burst into the room. Seeing Ren, he didn't care that Sanbao was present and shouted in a panic.

"Xiao Wu, why are you in such a rush?" Ren stood up with a whoosh, her voice filled with indignation and reproach.

A faint aura of authority radiated from Ren, and only then did Sanbao realize that this sister-in-law was actually a Spirit Cultivator expert. But who was this "Second Miss" referring to? Could it be that the servant was from Ren's maiden family?

"It's... Second Miss, it's just that... the Third Young Master of the Ren family, his foot was chopped off by someone!" Although the servant saw Sanbao, he assumed he wasn't an outsider and hurriedly answered.

"What? Who is it that dares to be so bold?"

Ren was truly panicked this time. The Third Young Master of the Ren family was her favorite nephew and the most talented of the entire third generation of the Ren Clan. The future of the Ren family had been counting on him to inherit their legacy, and now he had been maimed.

Most importantly, did the person who cut him not know what kind of backing she, Ren, had? Even if they didn't care about the Ren family's face, did they dare to disregard the Luo Clan?

In Lushan Town, there probably wasn't such an existence.

"Second Miss, it... it was Yan Wuhua of the Yan Clan. The Third Young Master took a fancy to an embroidered treasure sword on the street, but Yan Wuhua claimed it was something he had his eye on. The two argued, and later, later, the Third Young Master was chopped by him." The servant stammered in his reply.

"Are you all useless? Did you just stand there and watch the Third Young Master get maimed?" Upon hearing it was the Yan Clan of Lushan, Ren's spirit immediately dampened. After all, the Yan Clan was the "number one" power in Lushan Town.

"The Yan Clan had several thugs with them. We wanted to help, but they blocked us, so we had no choice but to let the Third Young Master..."

"Fine, go back first. Tell the Master, and I will deal with it when I return." Ren was somewhat annoyed and waved the servant away.

"Third Brother, look, something has happened at my maiden home. I need to rush back. Today..."

"Oh, urgent matters come first. I'll come visit you again when there's time..." Sanbao didn't linger, intending to leave before Ren. Just as he reached the door, another person rushed in—it was the second young master of the Luo Clan, Luo Caiguang.

"Mother, Third Cousin was chopped by Yan Wuhua of the Yan Clan. Should we... Oh? Third Uncle, you're here too?" The fourteen-year-old Luo Caiguang was already a head taller than Ren. With his sturdy physique, he looked no different from an eighteen or nineteen-year-old youth, appearing much older than the thin and small "Third Uncle" that was Sanbao.

"Yes, Caiguang, long time no see," Sanbao could only stop.

"Oh, I went to Lushan for training for a while and just got back yesterday. As for you, it's truly strange to see you anywhere other than the back mountain! Is your illness better?"

Compared to two years ago, Luo Caiguang had matured significantly in both body and mind, which made Sanbao quite envious. He thought to himself:

This "nephew" Caiguang is only two years older than me, yet he is already so strong and fierce, while I am still a "little shrimp."

"The illness is gone, though I haven't fully recovered yet," Sanbao replied.

"Oh, then you can cultivate spirit power in the future. That's great! Our Luo Clan is about to produce another expert. Oh, right, I'm going to teach Yan Wuhua a lesson in a moment. Do you want to come along?" Luo Caiguang said loudly, his voice filled with confidence.

"Guang'er, don't be reckless. That Yan Wuhua is nearly ten years older than you and is already a four-star Spirit Scholar. How could you possibly be his match?" Ren hurriedly intervened.

"What's there to fear? I'm a three-star Spirit Scholar too. If we really fight, it's not certain who will lose." Luo Caiguang looked arrogant. In his eyes, aside from one person in the Yan Clan, no one was worth his concern.

"Nonsense! Have you forgotten our Luo Clan's ancestral teachings? You are not allowed to leave the mansion now. I am going home, and if anything happens, I will have your eldest brother notify you." After saying this, Ren left in a hurry.

As soon as Luo Caiguang heard about the ancestral teachings, he wilted halfway and pulled Sanbao to the side to sit down.

"Ancestral teachings again. Third Uncle, we are about the same age. Tell me, isn't our Luo Clan's ancestral teaching complete nonsense? It demands we constantly increase our strength, but forbids us from fighting. What kind of bullsh*t teaching is that?"

"Caiguang, if the Clan Head heard you say that, you'd be skinned alive. Since the ancestral teachings say so, there must be a reason. Suppose we have a very powerful enemy that even the Clan Head cannot deal with, and he is constantly searching for us. What do you think we should do?" Sanbao had to offer a mix of comfort and guidance.

"Then, of course, we hide and cultivate properly, and when we have the strength, we go and kill them all!" Luo Caiguang was full of murderous intent, truly the arrogance of youth.

"Exactly, isn't that what the ancestral teachings require?" Sanbao asked in return.

"Right, why didn't I think of that? But that's not right either. Our Luo Clan is the absolute boss in Lushan; what kind of powerful enemy could we have?" Luo Caiguang nodded and then shook his head. Although he didn't fully grasp the logic, his resistance to the ancestral teachings softened.

With his current level of experience, it was naturally difficult for him to know about the top-tier existences in this world.

"Third Uncle, do you know what I saw in Lushan these past few days? I saw a third-tier spirit beast! Fortunately, Big Brother was there, otherwise..."

"A third-tier spirit beast? I've even seen a sixth-tier spirit beast..." Sanbao chuckled inwardly, but he said nothing, listening quietly to Luo Caiguang and occasionally interjecting a word or two.

Since the two were of "similar" age, they soon began chatting about everything under the sun. Most of the time, Caiguang was talking and Sanbao was listening.

Both sides got what they needed: Caiguang could demonstrate his "extraordinary" knowledge in front of his Third Uncle, and Sanbao was happy to receive information he was otherwise unaware of.

"Second Young Master, Second Young Master! Oh, Third Master is here too. Second Young Master, the Eldest Young Master wants you to go to the main gate~" The appearance of a servant interrupted the two who were chatting happily.

"What? Go to the main gate? Good, Big Brother must be going to cause trouble for the Yan Clan. Let's go, Third Uncle, let's go together~" As soon as Caiguang heard his brother's call, he jumped off the stool and pulled Sanbao along.

Sanbao originally wanted to refuse, but after a moment of hesitation, he changed his mind and the two went off happily.

Previously, due to his health, Sanbao had maintained a very low-profile life. Aside from a limited number of people, many didn't even know that the Luo Clan had an extra second-generation descendant. But now that he had successfully completed the Blood Fusion and his cultivation of spirit power was on the right track, it was time to engage with the world. With this thought, Sanbao agreed to Caiguang's invitation.

The two soon arrived at the main gate of the Luo Mansion. The eldest young master of the Luo Clan, Luo Caiyang, was standing there in high spirits, and several of Ren's clansmen, along with over a dozen guards from the Luo Mansion, were all fully armed and ready to depart.