Jiang Kingdom, Azure Cloud Sect.
On a white jade plaza shrouded in ethereal immortal mist, hundreds of boys and girls sat cross-legged, motionless.
Their eyes were tightly shut, their expressions varied.
Some looked furious, some terrified, some ecstatic, and some utterly grief-stricken...
"Hiss..."
Among the crowd, Lu Changsheng let out a muffled groan and opened his eyes, his hand instinctively covering his forehead.
Deep within his brain, torrents of memories surged out like floodwaters, battering his mind.
As those memories flooded in, Lu Changsheng understood what had happened.
He had transmigrated.
He had arrived in a world of immortal cultivation.
Yet for eighteen years, the mystery of his previous life had remained veiled.
Only today, during the fourth trial of the Azure Cloud Sect's entrance examination-the "Heart-Questioning Platform"-had his memories of his previous life awakened.
"Someone woke up this quickly? An exceptional Dao heart!"
Not far away, several Azure Cloud Sect examiners were surprised to see Lu Changsheng wake up.
The Heart-Questioning Platform was the fourth trial of the Azure Cloud Sect's examination, testing the Dao heart.
In other words, it tested one's state of mind and willpower.
The awakening of Lu Changsheng's past-life memories had made him the first to wake up.
"Lu Changsheng, ninth-grade spiritual root, eighteen years old. What a pity."
"His perseverance in the second trial was only below average, yet he has such a Dao heart. How strange, how strange."
"With a Dao heart like that, if he had a seventh-grade spiritual root, he would be a promising cultivation seedling even at eighteen."
"A ninth-grade spiritual root at his age leaves little potential. No matter how steadfast his Dao heart is, it's useless."
After checking Lu Changsheng's information, quite a few people looked regretful.
Naturally, Lu Changsheng could not hear the "immortal masters'" comments.
His attention was immersed in his own mind.
With the awakening of his past-life memories, that transmigrator's essential-the system-had also arrived.
The Many Children, Many Blessings System!
As its name suggested, the more children he had, the greater his blessings would be.
These blessings were not some vague, intangible good fortune, but concrete, visible benefits.
According to the system's introduction, there were currently two benefits.
First, there were numerous achievement rewards related to offspring.
Whenever he triggered an achievement, the system would grant a reward.
Second, his children's spiritual root aptitude and cultivation would all contribute bonuses to him, their father.
Furthermore, the aptitude and cultivation of his children's children-his descendants-would also grant him bonuses.
However, those bonuses would be smaller than those from his own children, decreasing by half with each generation.
Why does this feel like a child-raising game? Have babies, raise children, unlock achievements, and earn rewards.
But with this system, doesn't that mean my spiritual root aptitude can improve too? As long as my descendants have good aptitude and high cultivation, I'll soar right along with them. I could even become an immortal without lifting a finger!
After learning how his system worked, Lu Changsheng was thrilled, brimming with excitement.
In this world, the first requirement for immortal cultivation was a spiritual root.
Spiritual roots were divided into nine grades.
Ninth through seventh grade were low-grade.
Sixth through fourth grade were middle-grade.
Third through first grade were high-grade.
Above first grade were earth spiritual roots, heaven spiritual roots, and certain rare mutated spiritual roots.
During the aptitude test in the first trial, Lu Changsheng had learned that he only possessed a ninth-grade spiritual root.
It was the worst kind of spiritual root.
Immortal cultivation would be extremely difficult, and his future achievements would be limited.
But now that he had the Many Children, Many Blessings System, Lu Changsheng felt that his future path to immortality would not be so difficult.
As long as he had plenty of children, raised them well, and worked hard to build a great Lineage, he, its patriarch, could soar without lifting a finger.
"Father! Mother! No!"
"It wasn't real! It was all just an illusion!"
"Hahaha! I did it! I've become an immortal!!!"
"No, this is the illusion! You won't fool me!"
At that moment, the boys and girls on the Heart-Questioning Platform began waking up one after another, shouting as though they had just experienced nightmares and interrupting Lu Changsheng's thoughts.
"Lu Changsheng, when did you wake up?"
The people beside him were surprised to see that Lu Changsheng had already awakened.
"I only woke up a little while ago."
Lu Changsheng replied as he studied the three young men and two young women before him.
Hong Yi, sixteen years old, eighth-grade spiritual root, the son of a nobleman's concubine.
Han Lin, fifteen years old, seventh-grade spiritual root, a blacksmith by trade.
Li Feiyu, eighteen years old, seventh-grade spiritual root, the young leader of the Red Whale Gang.
Xiao Xiyue, fifteen years old, fourth-grade spiritual root, a young lady from a scholarly Aristocratic Clan.
Zhao Qingqing, sixteen years old, sixth-grade spiritual root, a physician by trade.
Like him, these five were cultivation seedlings brought here by the Azure Cloud Sect's branch in the mortal world.
Over the course of the journey, they had become fairly familiar with one another.
However, that familiarity was merely a matter of huddling together for warmth in an unfamiliar environment.
Their backgrounds differed too greatly for the five of them to find much common ground.
Only Han Lin was a little closer to Lu Changsheng.
Since Lu Changsheng came from a farming household, he and Han Lin had more to talk about.
I think I was the first to wake up. I wonder if I'll be able to enter the immortal sect.
Watching the people around him gradually awaken, Lu Changsheng pondered.
Even with the system at his side, he still hoped to join the Azure Cloud Sect.
After all, he was merely an ordinary farmer's son who had obtained this chance at immortality through a stroke of luck and been brought to the Azure Cloud Sect for its examination.
If he could not join the Azure Cloud Sect, pursuing immortal cultivation would be extremely difficult.
Cultivation required "wealth, companions, methods, and land," with none dispensable.
Wealth needed little explanation.
Whether in the mortal world or the cultivation world, money came first.
Companions meant fellow cultivators and comrades.
Methods meant cultivation techniques, Dao arts, and instruction from others.
Finally, land referred to a place to cultivate.
Ordinary mortal regions, for instance, lacked spiritual veins and had thin, meager spiritual energy, making cultivation extremely slow.
If he could join the Azure Cloud Sect, he would have all four necessities covered during his initial stages.
That was also why countless people wanted to enter an immortal sect.
"Step forward when your name is called."
Before long, once everyone on the Heart-Questioning Platform had awakened, an Azure Cloud Sect steward floated in midair, took out a jade register, and began announcing the names of those who had passed.
"Zhu San, Xiao Yuan, Han Lin... Xiao Xiyue, Zhao Qingqing..."
Names were called out one by one.
Those whose names were called were excited and overjoyed, filled with longing for their future paths to immortality.
Meanwhile, those whose names had not been called grew increasingly heavyhearted, filled with disappointment.
"That's it?"
Seeing the Azure Cloud Sect steward put away the list, Li Feiyu looked utterly unwilling to accept it.
"Why isn't my name on the list!?"
Hong Yi also bit his lip tightly, his face turning slightly pale in disbelief.
Although he had only an eighth-grade spiritual root, he came from nobility and had already spent money and called in favors to smooth the way.
"Whew!"
Seeing that his name was absent as well, Lu Changsheng sighed, his heart somewhat heavy.
Still, with the system at his side, he was not too distressed.
Some of those nearby burst into loud sobs on the spot.
"Everyone else, leave the sect grounds immediately!"
The Azure Cloud Sect steward spoke indifferently.
Then, with a sweep of his sleeve, an auspicious cloud appeared beneath the chosen candidates' feet and carried them away.
The remaining hundreds departed with bitter expressions, unwilling to accept the outcome.
"Once we step beyond this gate, we may all be people, but our fates will never be the same. Immortals and mortals walk separate roads!"
As they left the Azure Cloud Sect's gates, many lamented and cried out.
Having failed to enter an immortal sect, even if they embarked upon the path of cultivation, they would only be rogue cultivators.
Their fates would be utterly different from those of immortal sect disciples.
Hong Yi, too, stared unwillingly at the Azure Cloud Sect, wreathed in immortal mist and radiant clouds, sighing again and again.
During their journey here, he had even pursued Xiao Xiyue.
But now, Xiao Xiyue had been found to possess a fourth-grade spiritual root and successfully joined the Azure Cloud Sect, while he had been eliminated.
She had instantly become someone he could gaze upon but never reach.
His status as the son of a nobleman's concubine counted for nothing before an immortal sect disciple.
Even Han Lin, whom he had looked down upon, and Zhao Qingqing, whom he had never considered pursuing, had now joined the Azure Cloud Sect and would become people he could only look up to.
What should I do next?
Lu Changsheng glanced at the Azure Cloud Sect's gates, took a deep breath, and considered the road ahead.
Although he had the system at his side.
Putting it to use would not be easy.
There would be an initial period of accumulation.
He would need to keep marrying wives and having children, then raise and nurture those children.
The time, money, and energy required would all be considerable.
For him as he was now, it would be difficult.
Although he possessed a spiritual root, he was merely an ordinary farmer's son, utterly penniless.
If he could not join an immortal sect or another such faction, his spiritual root would not be worth much.
Just as everyone was descending the mountain, a refined-looking man in his thirties or forties, dressed in a long blue-green robe, approached and addressed them.
"Young friends, the Lu Lineage of Green Bamboo Mountain is currently recruiting twenty live-in sons-in-law. We offer a blessed cultivation ground with spiritual veins and manuals for immortal cultivation. Would any of you be interested?"
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