When his seventh son, Chaohe, gave his routine report, Lu Qing conjured the two blueprints and handed it over to him. He also got him to pass Mingchao a letter. The letter hinted that she would feel her cultivation process get smoother over the next five years.
Then, Lu Chaohe mentioned Lu Wenen.
Little Wenen had returned from the Qingfeng Sect.
Lu Wenen was the child with the Water–Wood Double Spiritual Roots who was picked up by the Qingfeng Sect when they came to select a disciple five years ago.
His father was Lu Mingcheng, a mortal with no Spiritual Roots. His grandmother was Lu Ranting, and his grandfather was once an unaffiliated cultivator who married into the Lu Clan. Thus, his entire lineage adopted the surname "Lu."
"Why did he suddenly return from the sect?" Lu Qing asked. "Were there any accidents?"
Lu Chaohe let out a long sigh. He looked very depressed and did not speak. It seemed as though he did not know how to report the matter to his father.
Lu Qing's mood also turned sour. He demanded, "Just tell me directly!"
"Wenen has already entered the Qi Refining Stage."
"What?" Lu Qing froze for a moment.
If his calculations were correct, wasn't Lu Wenen only 10 years old? Entering the Qi Refining Stage at 10 years old was an exceptional performance even for a cultivator with Double Spiritual Roots.
Then why did Lu Chaohe sigh just now?
Instantly, Lu Qing recalled that his seventh son had been mischievous and liked to joke since he was young.
He scolded, "You bastard, you even dare to joke around with me now?"
"Hehehe…" Lu Chaohe's laugh came from outside the door. "Don't be angry, Father. Don't be angry, Father."
Even though he did not float out of the chamber, Lu Qing could still imagine the playful smile on Lu Chaohe's face. The image he imagined gradually melded with his memories of his seventh son from decades ago. It made him miss the past slightly.
Of course, Lu Qing would not be angry.
When he was still "alive," the atmosphere in the Lu Clan had been rather good. They were not like the other clans, where there were a considerable distance and formalities between father and son. At his core, Lu Qing was a modern-day man who had come to this world as a spirit. He did not care for the rules and the traditional ways of thinking. It made the dynamic between father and son weird. He felt repulsed by it.
His nine children stood on an equal level as him in their interactions with him when they were growing up, even though their father was an influential Golden Core cultivator.
That joke was merely a small interlude. Lu Chaohe then explained Lu Wenen's situation to Lu Qing.
As it turned out, Lu Wenen had entered the Qi Refining Stage two months ago. He was considered one of the most exceptional disciples out of this generation of the Qingfeng Sect's disciples.
That was when Lu Ranting had arrived at the Qingfeng Sect.
Lu Ranting was Lu Wenen's grandmother. She had gone to the Qingfeng Sect to visit his grandson. Also, she had brought a few Spirit Stones and some cultivation resources along with her and wanted to hand it over to Little Wenen to aid in his training. The items she brought cost around 100 Spirit Stones.
The 100 Spirit Stones worth of items were mostly assets that Lu Ranting had accumulated over the years. She was no longer young at 73 years old. She was only four years younger than her ninth aunt, Lu Mingchao. Even though her cultivation progress had been rather good when she was young, she sustained severe injuries when the Zhao Clan attacked the Lu Clan. She kept her life, but she injured her core and no longer had a chance of becoming a Foundation Building cultivator.
She understood that and spent most of her time in recent years serving the clan. The clan gave her 15 Spirit Stones annually as a reward. Coupled with her efforts, she earned a decent amount of Spirit Stones and managed to amass a small fortune.
None of her sons had exceptional Spiritual Roots. However, her grandson Lu Wenen displayed exceptional talent. Thus, she was not stingy when providing him with resources.
She also heard the best piece of news when she arrived at the Qingfeng Sect. Lu Wenen had entered the Qi Refining Stage at the age of 10. His performance was one of the most exceptional among his batch of disciples, even in the vast Qingfeng Sect. He could be considered a little genius.
Lu Ranting could not stop smiling when she heard the news.
After discussing the matter with Lu Wenen's teacher, Zhang Shiman, she approved Lu Wenen's leave. After all, Wenen was still young. They could let him stay in the family for two years before returning to the sect.
Of course, staying home for two years did not mean that Wenen could slow down on his cultivation. The Lu Clan was also a clan that had Foundation Building cultivators. There was no worry that there would be no one to teach him when he came home. Zhang Shiman requested that Lu Wenen should have established a solid foundation when she saw him again two years later. It was best if he had entered the second tier of the Qi Refining Stage.
Thus, Lu Ranting brought her grandson back to the clan.
After he heard the summary, Lu Qing said, "We must not fall behind when it comes to nurturing our offspring. Little Wenen has his opportunities and resources in the sect, but the family must also give the appropriate amount of support. The clan must take on a higher burden in providing Wenen with the resources he requires in these two years. We shouldn't put too much pressure on Wenen when he returns to the sect two years from now. The clan can supply him with more resources."
"Yes. Elder Brother and I thought that way too."
"Also, it should be the same for Little Weiwen. Her talent would not be poorer than Wenen's, but we are nurturing her in the clan. We have to treat her well."
"Yes."
After he discussed the two children that the clan should focus their attention on, Lu Qing started to mention some other matters.
He was going to engage in closed-door training for five more years.
Lu Qing had arrived at an understanding. He would have to spend a long time in closed-door training in the future.
He was not alive anymore. All he could do to influence his clan was to leave his sons and daughters with his instructions and guide the direction that the clan should take. After he gave his instructions, most of the actions required a long time to bear fruit. One such example was the operation of defeating the ghosts at the Water Ghost Lake. Lu Chaoling even had to spend two and a half years forging a piece of magic equipment after he obtained a precious material…
Lu Qing had no way to help in these matters. All he could do was wait for time to pass and for the results.
The most direct influence he had over the clan was through the functions of the system. Unfortunately, using the functions of the system required Karma. Without Karma, the system was merely a statistical interface.
He only had 97 Karma left. Moreover, there was only one option, which he did not need, left in the "Exchange" tab.
Since there was nothing for him to do, he might as well engage in closed-door training.
Before he engaged in closed-door training, he repeatedly emphasized two things to Lu Chaohe.
First, they had to complete the three conquest missions that he found in the past.
He would be able to obtain several hundred Karma if they finished the three conquest missions. He would be able to exchange for the "Core Lifespan Recovery" when that time comes.
Second, he hoped that the clan would have finished their preparations for attacking the Water Ghost Lake when he woke up again.
Lu Chaohe was a little worried when he heard that his father was going to engage in closed-door training again so soon after he woke up. However, he did not feel too bad about it, having already experienced it once.
He believed that his father would wake up again five years later, as promised.