Half a month later.
"Lu Changsheng, you've done very well. Not only did you marry three women from our Lu Lineage, you got Lanshu pregnant in just half a month!"
"Our Lu Lineage has always been fair with rewards and punishments. Naturally, we won't shortchange you. These are your rewards!"
"One low-grade magical flying sword!"
"One Green Bamboo Daoist Robe!"
"One bottle of Yellow Dragon Pills!"
"One hundred jin of spirit rice!"
In a hall at Green Bamboo Manor, Lu Yuanding addressed Lu Changsheng.
Half a month had passed since Lu Changsheng's wedding.
Knowing that cultivating on his own would yield limited results, Lu Changsheng had barely cultivated during that half month, pouring all his energy into making babies instead.
And his efforts hadn't been wasted.
Lu Lanshu, one of his three wives, had been confirmed pregnant.
When he heard the news, Lu Changsheng was delighted and excited.
Whether in his previous life or this one, this was his first time becoming a father.
Even though many self-serving motives lay behind this child's conception, his joy came from the heart.
The moment he learned he was going to be a father, he had already decided on the child's name.
If it was a boy, he would call him Ping'an; if it was a girl, he would call her Xile.
They reflected his wish for his child to live safely and happily.
Upon hearing the news, Lu Yuanding, head of the Lu Lineage, had personally come to Green Bamboo Manor to commend Lu Changsheng.
And he had brought generous rewards.
One low-grade magical artifact, worth fifty spirit stones.
One Daoist robe, worth thirty spirit stones.
One hundred jin of spirit rice, worth ten spirit stones.
One bottle of Yellow Dragon Pills, worth ten spirit stones.
In other words, Lu Changsheng had received resources worth a hundred spirit stones.
The other Immortal Seedlings' eyes turned red when they heard about the rewards.
Their gazes toward Lu Changsheng brimmed with envy, jealousy, and resentment.
After all, while they cultivated with the Lu Lineage, they received only two spirit stones and ten jin of spirit rice a month.
Yet the rewards given to Lu Changsheng now amounted to nearly three years of their resources.
Three years' worth of resources, just for being the first to have a child.
They practically ground their back teeth to pieces.
"Thank you, Patriarch!"
His face alight with joy, Lu Changsheng offered his respectful thanks.
He hadn't expected such rewards for being the first to have a child.
But he also understood that Lu Yuanding was using him to spur the others into hurrying up and making babies.
"Hehe, you've earned this. Our Lu Lineage never shortchanges anyone."
"When you have children, I will reward you as well."
"And whoever is the first to have a child with spiritual roots will receive an even greater reward!"
Lu Yuanding swept his gaze over the crowd as he spoke.
Those words fired everyone up somewhat, making them eager to go home and get straight to making babies.
Even Li Feiyu was a little tempted.
However.
When others subsequently had children, their rewards were only one bottle of Yellow Dragon Pills and ten jin of spirit rice.
They couldn't compare at all with the rewards Lu Changsheng had received for being first.
A little over another month passed, and Lu Changsheng's wife Lu Qing'er became pregnant as well.
For this second pregnancy, the Lineage offered no additional rewards.
If they rewarded every birth, the Lu Lineage would probably have been emptied out long ago.
Then, a little over half a month later, Lu Changsheng's third wife, Lu Zi'er, was also confirmed pregnant.
In just over two months since joining the Lu Lineage, Lu Changsheng had gotten all three wives pregnant, leaving the other Immortal Seedlings speechless. Doesn't this fellow need to cultivate? Why is he pushing so hard?
Besides Lu Changsheng's tireless efforts, he had also kept calculating their ovulation periods. Together with the Fertility Decoction supplied by the Lu Lineage, this had maximized their chances of conceiving.
In short, Lu Changsheng could say with a clear conscience that he had done his best.
Once all three women were pregnant, Lu Changsheng began settling down to cultivate.
Since all three wives were pregnant, Uncle Fu sent over two more maids to attend to Lu Changsheng's household.
These two maids had fair skin and outstanding looks and figures. One glance was enough to tell that they hadn't been sent merely to attend to his daily needs.
Clearly, seeing how good he was at producing children, the Lu Lineage had sent them over for him to "breed" with.
For the moment, Lu Changsheng had no designs on the two maids.
He wanted plenty of children, but this sort of thing couldn't be rushed. He had to take his time; a thin stream flowing steadily was the way to go.
Tilling the fields every day really did hurt the body.
Before he began cultivating, doing it too often had merely left him feeling a little weak.
But after he began cultivating, Lu Changsheng could clearly sense his vital yang essence draining away. It affected not only his physical condition but also his cultivation speed, and he needed time to recover.
This was also why the other Immortal Seedlings were unwilling to make babies like mad.
They really could ruin themselves doing it.
In the blink of an eye, more than half a year passed.
"I've finally broken through to the first level of chain qi!"
In the cultivation room, Lu Changsheng sat cross-legged in a green Daoist robe. He opened his eyes and let out a long breath of stale air, his face brimming with joy.
It had been nearly ten months since he came to the Lu Lineage.
He had finally drawn qi into his body and broken through to the first level of chain qi.
He was officially an immortal cultivator!
Naturally, this pace was nowhere near fast.
But it wasn't particularly slow, either.
After all, when he first arrived at the Lu Lineage, he had spent quite a bit of time making babies.
The chain qi realm had nine levels in total. The first three weren't difficult; as long as one kept cultivating, advancement would generally come as naturally as water flowing into a channel.
Lu Changsheng owed his breakthrough at this pace largely to that bottle of Yellow Dragon Pills, which had saved him several months of arduous cultivation.
Otherwise, Lu Changsheng estimated that he would have needed another two or three months to reach the first level of chain qi.
This also made him realize the importance of money and resources in cultivation.
And during those months, cultivation hadn't been the only thing he did.
He had taken both maids Uncle Fu sent as concubines and successfully gotten them pregnant.
In response, Uncle Fu sent over two more reasonably attractive maids.
He also commended Lu Changsheng, raising his monthly resources to three spirit stones and twenty jin of spirit rice.
"Lanshu should be giving birth soon, shouldn't she?"
Lu Changsheng rose to his feet and straightened the Green Bamboo Daoist Robe he wore.
Although this robe wasn't a magical artifact, it was still quite extraordinary.
Once worn, it could automatically change size to fit him perfectly, while also warding off heat and cold and remaining free of dust.
After coming out of seclusion, Lu Changsheng spent some time with his wives and concubines, then went over to Li Fei-
-yu's home for a visit and to catch up.
Among all the Immortal Seedlings who had come to the Lu Lineage, Li Feiyu was the only one he regularly visited.
It wasn't merely because the two had known each other from the beginning.
It was also because Li Feiyu had saved his life on their journey to Green Bamboo Mountain.
After spending so much time with him, Lu Changsheng had learned that although Li Feiyu was a man of few words, he had a cold exterior and a warm heart, and was someone worth forming a close friendship with.
A little over half a month later.
"Don't be nervous. Your wife has been living here at Green Bamboo Manor, nourished by spiritual energy. She's healthy and strong, so giving birth won't pose any danger."
"Besides, there's an immortal cultivator delivering the baby. Don't worry."
Outside the room, Lu Changsheng listened to Lu Lanshu's cries of pain, repeatedly clenching and unclenching his fists as Li Feiyu comforted him from beside him.
"I'm not nervous. I'm just excited and happy."
Lu Changsheng took a deep breath and let it out as he spoke.
But his wandering gaze and distracted thoughts made it obvious that he was just putting on a brave front.
"Have you thought of a name for the child?"
Li Feiyu asked.
Although the child would belong to the Lu Lineage after birth, the father still had the right to choose a name.
As for the surname, Lu Changsheng shared the Lu Lineage's surname, so there was no need to fret over that.
"I have. If it's a boy, Ping'an. If it's a girl, Xile."
Lu Changsheng answered absently, his thoughts still drifting.
Before long, a clear, ringing infant's cry came from inside the room, making Lu Changsheng jolt.
And just then, without warning, a system notification sounded in Lu Changsheng's mind.
[Congratulations on the birth of your first offspring, host. You have received one lottery draw!]
"Huh? A lottery draw?"
Hearing the system notification, Lu Changsheng froze for a moment.
Then he immediately realized that this was an offspring achievement reward from the system.
He had no way to check these achievements; he could only discover them through trial and error.
Setting aside the system lottery, Lu Changsheng watched the birthing room with concern written across his face.
Before long, the door opened.
A woman stepped out, carrying a red, wrinkled infant wrapped in a blanket.
"Congratulations, young master! It's a little boy!"
Lu Changsheng reached out to take the infant. Looking at his wrinkled, bright-red face and round, dark eyes, he smiled from the bottom of his heart.
"From today onward, your name is Lu Ping'an."
"My son!"
Before you continue