Bloodline Jade Talisman

That night, Xu Changshou tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

Zhang Zhengyuan's words had opened the door to loftier ambitions.

Before this, Xu Changshou's dream had been to become a wealthy landlord like Wang Yuanwai, with food and drink enough for a lifetime.

Now Xu Changshou had a new dream: to become an immortal.

He had even begun imagining how, one day, after achieving success in cultivation, he would fly on a sword to visit Wang Yuanwai and that shrew and show off in front of them.

As he kept imagining it, Xu Changshou drifted off to sleep.

He really did dream of immortals. Two powerful immortals were locked in a magical duel. With a wave of their hands, they could destroy heaven and earth, making the ground quake and the mountains tremble.

The two were a middle-aged man dressed in white and an old man wearing black Daoist robes.

The middle-aged man in white was elegant as an immortal banished from heaven and looked about forty.

The old man in black Daoist robes was sinister and uncanny, radiating an evil aura that sent chills down the spine.

For some reason, Xu Changshou felt a deep sense of kinship with the middle-aged man in white, as though it came from his very blood.

Thus, Xu Changshou hoped the middle-aged man in white would win the duel.

Soon, the scales of victory really did tip toward the middle-aged man in white. The old man was no match for him.

"Wang Mang, you're no match for me. You weren't before, and you aren't now. So what if you've cultivated an evil art?"

"Xu Gan, I'll fight you to the death!"

Under the white-robed man's attacks, the old man staggered, coughing up blood again and again.

"Die!"

The middle-aged man in white unleashed a golden flying sword, which instantly shot toward the old man.

The old man was aghast, and a vicious gleam flashed through his eyes.

"Xu Gan, if I die, don't think you'll get off lightly!"

As he spoke, the old man's aura suddenly grew stronger.

"I, Wang Mang, willingly sacrifice a lifetime of cultivation through Liberation by Violence to curse the Xu Family, sealing their bloodline for a hundred thousand years!"

"No! Wang Mang, damn you!"

The middle-aged man in white's expression changed drastically.

Boom!

Black light blazed, and the old man's body suddenly exploded. A mass of black vapor entered the white-robed man's body, and then the dream vanished.

Immediately afterward, another dream began.

In this scene, the middle-aged man in white sat in a lavish reception hall, with a large crowd of richly dressed people standing below him.

Now the white-robed man's temples were graying, and his face was full of weariness and helplessness.

The mood in the reception hall seemed grim. Everyone stood with their heads lowered, saying nothing.

The middle-aged man in white spoke. "How did things go this year?"

An old man rose and said respectfully, "Ancestor, three hundred and eighty-nine children were born into our Xu Family this year. Not one had spiritual roots."

At these words, the reception hall fell deathly silent.

Despair filled the white-robed man's eyes. "That Wang Mang... just what evil art did he cultivate? If it really lasts a hundred thousand years, won't our Xu Family..."

"Effective immediately, everyone in the Xu Family will withdraw from the Immortal Forest and conceal themselves in the mortal world."

"Ancestor, please don't!"

"We don't want to leave!"

"Ancestor, please reconsider!"

The Xu Family members all grew frantic. Once they left the Immortal Forest for the mortal world, their cultivation would stagnate without cultivation resources.

Xu Gan swept his broad sleeve and said sternly, "My mind is made up. Say no more. I intend to enter seclusion and refine a Bloodline Jade Talisman for our Xu Family."

"Ancestor, what is a Bloodline Jade Talisman?"

"I will embed the Xu Family's greatest treasure into our bloodline and fight for a sliver of heaven's providence for our family."

"I, Xu Gan, willingly expend ten thousand years of cultivation to fight for a sliver of heaven's providence for the Xu Family. Bloodline Jade Talisman, form!"

Half asleep, Xu Changshou dimly saw an enormous jade talisman floating above his head. It was rectangular and larger than a mountain.

The character for "Xu" was carved on its front, while an ancient character adorned its back. This character was intricate, with hundreds of strokes, resembling some kind of ancient talismanic symbol.

Xu Changshou knew few characters to begin with, and this ancient one was completely beyond him.

Boom!

Suddenly, the mountain-sized jade talisman came crashing toward him. Xu Changshou broke out in a cold sweat and jolted out of the dream.

After waking, Xu Changshou felt only a parched mouth and a burning sensation in his chest.

"Huh? What's this?"

Xu Changshou felt his burning chest and actually found a pure white mutton-fat jade pendant.

He gave it a gentle tug. The pendant was strung on a golden cord and had somehow appeared around his neck.

"What is this thing?"

Xu Changshou took off the pendant and examined it in the moonlight. He was stunned: that dream had been real.

The character for "Xu" was on the front of the pendant, and the intricate talismanic character was on the back.

"The Bloodline Jade Talisman!"

Xu Changshou's mind was in turmoil. What had that dream been about, and what connection did he have to the Xu Family in it?

Just what was this Bloodline Jade Talisman?

Could the jade talisman have been on me all along, only emerging because I developed a sense of qi?

Strange, so strange. Just what is this jade talisman? Xu Gan, the Xu Family ancestor, seemed to call it the family's greatest treasure. What kind of treasure could it be?

Though he did not understand what had happened, Xu Changshou knew this jade talisman was important. It must hold some earth-shattering secret, most likely connected to that dream.

After studying it for a long while without figuring anything out, Xu Changshou simply put the jade talisman away in silence.

I can't tell anyone about this, not even Zhang Zhengyuan.

Xu Changshou had a vague feeling that once he learned true immortal arts, he would surely be able to unravel the Bloodline Jade Talisman's secrets.

All trace of sleepiness left Xu Changshou, and he looked forward even more eagerly to learning true immortal arts.

At first light, he was already waiting outside Zhang Zhengyuan's door.

Before long, Zhang Zhengyuan opened the door and stepped out, his face solemn. "Changshou."

"Your disciple is here."

"Starting today, I will teach you the true method of immortal cultivation. However, before I impart these immortal arts, you must agree to one thing."

"What is it?" Xu Changshou scratched his head.

Zhang Zhengyuan said gravely, "The immortal arts I will teach you come from the Green Immortal Sect. I am also a member of the Green Immortal Sect. If you wish to learn its immortal arts, you must join the sect."

"Oh, I see!"

Xu Changshou scratched his head, suddenly hesitating.

He knew nothing about the Green Immortal Sect. What if it followed some evil, demonic path? After all, the old man in his dream had cultivated an evil art.

Seeing Xu Changshou hesitate, Zhang Zhengyuan hurriedly said, "Boy, don't fail to appreciate a good thing. Joining an immortal cultivation sect is something countless people dream of. Once you enter the sect, endless cultivation resources will be waiting for you. You can cultivate whatever method you want and get whatever kind of magical artifact you desire."

Xu Chang'an exclaimed in delight, "The Green Immortal Sect is that good? Is it very powerful?"

Zhang Zhengyuan nodded firmly and said solemnly, "The Green Immortal Sect is not only an upright and reputable sect, but also the greatest immortal cultivation sect under heaven. If you can join it, you ought to be laughing to yourself in delight."

"Yes, yes, yes! Wonderful! I'll join." Xu Changshou gladly agreed to join the Green Immortal Sect.

If the Green Immortal Sect really was as good as Zhang Zhengyuan described, it would be a hundred times better than tending cattle for Wang Yuanwai's household.

"Good. I will now impart a supreme immortal cultivation art to you."

Zhang Zhengyuan patted the small cloth pouch at his waist, and a jade slip appeared in his hand.