The time had not been ripe before.
So Lu Chenxing had not brought it up.
In his previous life, he had unfortunately passed away in the prime of his youth.
Not only had he failed to fulfill his filial duties to his parents, he had instead left the white-haired to bury the black-haired.
What weighed even more heavily on Lu Chenxing was his younger brother, who had been born deprived of the right to see the world.
With the pillar of the family dead, it would be even harder for his brother to see the light again.
So his personal request was for the nation to look after his parents in that world.
Ideally, they could cure his younger brother's eyes.
In the eyes of Great Xia's leaders, this request...
Could not have been simpler.
At the same time, they gained a deeper understanding of their compatriot far away in another world.
He absolutely deserved to be called their "comrade."
The third delivery ended.
A notification immediately appeared in Ji Chang'an's mind.
In ten days, a passage would open, allowing him to send things to Lu Chenxing.
Lu Chenxing had left the next transmission opportunity to Huaxia because he wanted a reply.
In particular, he wanted to know how his parents and younger brother were doing.
This delivery...
Contained a full eight thousand Spirit Stones, along with additional pills, spirit talismans, and Law Artifacts.
The sheer quantity of cultivation supplies...
Left Ji Chang'an and the other senior leaders of Great Xia invigorated.
"It seems Comrade Lu's situation over there is fairly good. He's made his third delivery in such a short time, and the quantity of resources has increased more than tenfold. There are even Law Artifacts and spirit talismans."
"I just gave myself a crash course in cultivation novels. That world is a dangerous place that devours people without spitting out their bones. We still shouldn't be too optimistic."
"Novels are novels, after all. Comrade Lu has entered a real cultivation world. None of us knows the actual circumstances he faces, so we shouldn't worry needlessly that the sky will fall, either. For now, everything seems to be moving in a good direction."
"Yes, you all make very good points. Whatever the case, Comrade Lu has acted as a pioneer and made such an enormous contribution to our Great Xia. We must give ten thousand percent to fulfill his request!"
"In my opinion, the nation should look after not only Comrade Lu's parents, but all his other relatives as well. Furthermore, if cultivation slots become available in the future, they should receive priority. After all, these resources belong to Comrade Lu in the first place."
"Exactly. Although Comrade Lu was partly motivated by the system's cultivation feedback, he could have chosen the Lu Immortal Clan, which already has a foundation in the cultivation world. Yet he chose Great Xia instead. That shows his wholehearted devotion to his motherland. We must respond with the same wholehearted devotion. We absolutely cannot let a hero's heart grow cold!"
"Well said. Old Ji, I honestly wouldn't mind Great Xia's four great lineages becoming five."
Ji Chang'an was deeply gratified.
On matters of fundamental right and wrong, Great Xia's senior leaders had never disappointed him.
With such like-minded comrades beside him, why worry that great things could not be accomplished?
"Old Li is attentive and thorough. Sorry for the trouble, but I'll leave this matter in your hands."
Li Tao nodded firmly to show he understood.
With the nation's strength clearing the way, the Lu Household's rise was already inevitable.
"How are the troop deployments coming along? We must finish testing the Spirit Roots of Great Xia's ten million soldiers as soon as possible, select those with outstanding aptitudes to cultivate, and provide Comrade Lu with more cultivation feedback to help him gain a firm foothold in the other world."
Li Tao replied.
"The central, eastern, western, southern, and northern regions are deploying troops in batches. In about another half a day, a million soldiers will arrive in Jinghua City. Testing will take place in ten rounds, with the final results expected within a month."
"That's already the fastest possible schedule!"
"Well done!" Ji Chang'an patted his shoulder in satisfaction.
Secretary Li had remained at his side for ten years; his competence went without saying.
Of the ten thousand Great Xia soldiers tested last time, five had possessed Spirit Roots, including one with the highest-grade, single-attribute Heavenly Spirit Root.
The sample size had increased a thousandfold.
This filled Ji Chang'an and the other senior leaders of Great Xia with anticipation.
They wondered whether the number of "immortal seedlings" would also increase a thousandfold.
More importantly, they anticipated the number with single Spirit Root aptitude.
Failing that, Dual Spirit Root aptitude would do as well.
With cultivation resources limited and the quantity of Lu Chenxing's deliveries uncertain, Great Xia's senior leaders dared not use the resources carelessly.
They feared waste.
Of the five immortal seedlings found so far...
Only Zhang Weiguo, who possessed Heavenly Spirit Root aptitude, had begun cultivating, and he could use Spirit Stones to raise his cultivation without restraint.
Inside the meditation chamber built specifically for cultivation...
Bearing his mission, Blue Star's first cultivator, Zhang Weiguo, worked hard at his cultivation twenty-four hours a day, without rest, day or night.
The reason for this...
Was that he had discovered that ever since he began cultivating, he was always full of vigor and never grew tired or sleepy.
And so, he became a hardworking little beast of burden.
He strove for Great Xia, for Lu Chenxing, and for himself as well.
With a Heavenly Spirit Root, even if his Cultivation Method was ordinary, his cultivation speed far surpassed that of ordinary cultivators with three, four, or five Spirit Roots.
In a flash...
Seven days passed.
Spiritual power filled Zhang Weiguo's Dantian to the brim, and the bottleneck between realms naturally appeared. He immediately mobilized the spiritual power within him and drove it against the barrier.
For some reason, the bottleneck was as fragile as a sheet of paper and broke through in an instant.
A muffled rumbling resounded from his Dantian.
His sea of Qi expanded, leaving vast stretches of empty space.
He needed to continue drawing Spiritual Qi from Spirit Stones and refining it until his sea of Qi was completely full before he could attempt the next realm, the Qi Refining Third Layer.
Just after he broke through to the Qi Refining Second Layer, he received another invitation to meet with Chief Ji Chang'an.
This time, when Zhang Weiguo faced Great Xia's leaders, he was completely different from his first visit.
Especially that air of calm detachment from the mortal world about him.
Paired with his straight, upright figure...
If he changed into Daoist robes...
He would look every inch a banished immortal descended to the mortal world.
"Greetings, Chief!"
"Good, all good!"
"Comrade Weiguo, no need to stand on ceremony. Come, sit down and talk."
Zhang Weiguo sat down.
Taking his hand, Ji Chang'an said, "I imagine you have many questions, such as where your Cultivation Method, the Spirit-Sensing Stone used to test Spirit Roots, and that pile of Spirit Stones came from."
"You've already become a cultivator. It's time you understood the reasons behind all this, and whom we owe all these achievements to."
Ji Chang'an chose to tell Zhang Weiguo about Lu Chenxing's existence.
There was no need to hide it from a core member.
He would let him know who had guided him onto this path, and whom he should thank.
"Reincarnated into a cultivation world, awakened a system, bound it to Great Xia, transmitted cultivation resources... Lu Chenxing..."
As he listened to the chief recount what had happened...
Zhang Weiguo felt as though he were listening to a fantasy cultivation novel.
Yet the strength within his body reminded him...
That all of this had truly happened.
"Lu Chenxing."
"Chief, do you think it might be possible to break down the barrier between the two worlds once we become powerful enough, and welcome Comrade Lu home?"
"That conjecture isn't without possibility, but accomplishing it might not be easy. For now, both we and Comrade Lu are still very weak. Let's take things one step at a time."
"No one can say for certain what the future holds."
As he spoke, Ji Chang'an handed Zhang Weiguo the pills he had been holding for a long time.
"These are pills Comrade Lu transmitted back to aid cultivation. I've also had Spirit Stones delivered to your meditation chamber. I won't say anything more."
"Even setting everything else aside, for the sake of your own immortal path to longevity, you cannot slack off in the slightest."
Zhang Weiguo stood and gave a military salute.
"Rest assured, Chief. I, Weiguo, will not fail you, the nation, or Comrade Lu's expectations. To the summit of the immortal path, I will see my mission through!"
These were Great Xia's soldiers!
With bones of unyielding iron, they stood proud.
Fearless and undaunted, what could immortals and gods do to them?