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Kun City was located in the southwest. Even in winter, the trees and plants in the forest only dulled in color slightly, without shedding many leaves.
However, the air in the forest became extremely chilly, and few were willing to go out during this time.
Of course, cultivators didn't pay much attention to such a chilly atmosphere.
Qin Feng walked leisurely in the outer forest of Qifeng Mountain.
Because he never ventured deep, he seldom encountered danger. Even if he came across some tigers, leopards, wolves, or bears, with his current strength at the third level of Qi Refinement, dealing with these ordinary beasts was not a problem.
Moreover, he was accompanied by a Swallowing Sky Toad.
Ribbit, ribbit...
Several croaks came from the forest, and the shadow of the Swallowing Sky Toad flashed, leaping out from the depths of the forest and landing on Qin Feng's shoulder.
In the past few months, Qin Feng had taken it into the mountains nearly every day to forage for food.
With the Swallowing Sky Toad's strength equivalent to the late stage of Qi Refinement, there was almost no danger in the outer area of Qifeng Mountain. Qin Feng followed behind, searching the forest for rare spiritual medicines and occasionally coming across a few spiritual trees.
He had tried to transplant those spiritual trees into the Demon Refining Pot, but unfortunately, the pot had no spiritual energy, so the trees couldn't survive. Instead, the pot absorbed all the spiritual energy within the trees.
During this time, the Swallowing Sky Toad also hunted several demon beasts, which Qin Feng refined using the Demon Refining Pot, slightly increasing his cultivation.
"It's time to go back."
Qin Feng looked at the sky, reached out to hold the cool body of the Swallowing Sky Toad, chuckled lightly, and turned to walk out of the mountain.
Today was the day for the family selection to compete for disciple quotas. Although the Family Head had directly given him one of the spots upon showing his cultivation at the third level of Qi Refinement, and there was no need to compete with other youths, he still needed to make some preparations.
After all, once the selection was over, they would head to the Commandery and follow the Elder from the Beast Taming Sect, who came to Tieling County to recruit disciples, back to the sect's mountain gate.
His father likely had many things to say to him.
Even though what needed to be said had already been said, his father only had him as a son, and after raising him with difficulty, the separation was bound to be filled with reluctance.
......
At the Qin Family ancestral hall, Clan Leader Qin Guanbao personally presided over the ancestral worship ceremony.
After the clansmen finished worshipping the ancestors, the Clan Leader looked around and said, "This year, it's again the time to send family disciples to join the Beast Taming Sect for cultivation.
Our Qin Family is small and humble, with not many quotas to enter the sect, nor can we afford to send too many clansmen to the Beast Taming Sect. Otherwise, apart from being unable to support them, it would also cause a gap in the family's cultivators. Therefore, the ancestors stipulated that each generation could only send two cultivators at most to the Beast Taming Sect for cultivation.
Of course, the world is unpredictable, with fortune and misfortune coming hand in hand. Joining the Beast Taming Sect is both an opportunity and possibly a misfortune for them.
Not only due to the cruelty of the cultivation world, but the competition within the Beast Taming Sect's outer sect is also extremely fierce. A slight carelessness can result in death and destruction.
Twenty years ago, the two children we sent to the sect didn't survive. Within a few years of entering the sect, they both died during a mission. This is also why the family doesn't dare to send too many disciples to the sect."
Qin Guanbao sighed lightly, clearly pained by the deaths of those two juniors.
Realizing that his words might dampen the spirits of the clansmen, especially since two juniors were being sent to the sect today, he quickly added, "But don't worry. As long as you are cautious and don't do things beyond your capabilities, generally, there won't be any accidents.
For instance, both Qin Long and I gained opportunities for Foundation Establishment in the sect."
After smoothing things over, he then beckoned to Qin Feng and another fifteen or sixteen-year-old pretty girl standing not far away.
The two immediately stepped forward, not daring to delay.
They were the excellent disciples selected by the Qin Family this time.
There was no need to mention Qin Feng. With his third-level Qi Refinement cultivation, no other youth could compete with him for the spot, so he had already secured the quota to join the Beast Taming Sect without needing to contend with others.
The girl, Qin Xi, came from a collateral branch of the family, and her parents were ordinary people. However, she had an extraordinary root bone and worked hard. At fourteen, she penetrated her meridians, opened her spiritual acupoints, and became a cultivator. Thus, she was accepted into the ancestral home to be taught cultivation techniques by the clan elders.
She advanced to the second level of Qi Refinement in less than two years, overcoming various challenges to snatch this quota from her peers.
Qin Guanbao looked at the two youthful faces in front of him with a sense of satisfied relief. "Back then, I was your age when I joined the Beast Taming Sect. Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, a hundred years have passed. I'm now one hundred sixty-seven and can't protect the family for many more years.
In the future, the family will depend on you young people. As you join the Beast Taming Sect, the family will provide you with some resources to help you have a smoother journey in the sect.
However, you must not rely solely on the family's resources for cultivation but must seek your own opportunities within the sect. Otherwise, your progress in cultivation might not be far-reaching.
Furthermore, as cultivators from the Qin Family, remember to support each other. Our Qin Family's foundation in the sect is shallow. If you don't work together, the path will only be more difficult."
Qin Feng replied, "Rest assured, Clan Leader. We will cultivate well and support each other, never betraying the family's expectations."
The girl, Qin Xi, also nodded with a determined expression.
Though she was introverted and somewhat unfamiliar with the clansmen at the ancestral home due to her background, she still rarely spoke.
Qin Guanbao took two storage bags from a tray held by a clansman and handed one to each of them, saying, "These contain some resources from the family. Every year, the family will send some resources to you through trusted channels. If you have any needs, you can also relay them through the sect's affiliate merchant guilds. The family has connections with the merchant guilds in the Commandery capital and can receive your messages.
Additionally, the family can't provide endless resources. Ten years later, after you have adapted to life in the Beast Taming Sect, everything will depend on you."
Saying this, Qin Guanbao turned his gaze to Qin Feng and continued, "Currently, the only family member in the Beast Taming Sect is your clan uncle, Qin Ying, who entered the sect with your father. He now works at Spiritual Vulture Peak in the outer sect.
When you enter the sect, pay him a visit. He will look after you and guide you on how to navigate sect matters, sparing you many detours."
"Yes, Clan Leader, we understand."
The two agreed quickly.
Having someone in the sect to look after them was a good thing and was, in fact, a Qin Family tradition.
Generally, unless something unexpected happened, even if Qin Family cultivators in the sect couldn't establish a foundation, they would stay a few more years to look after the younger generation joining the sect. Only after these juniors had a firm foothold would they consider returning to the family.
Qin Ying was like this. He entered the Beast Taming Sect with Qin Long forty years ago, but due to lack of talent and opportunities, he was now nearly sixty and still hadn't reached Foundation Establishment. Originally, he should have returned to the family long ago.
However, given the accidents that happened to the two Qin Family members of the next generation who joined the sect—they both died during training—he had to stay to personally look after Qin Feng's generation of family disciples.
"Alright, you two go home and arrange your affairs. Tomorrow morning, follow me to the Commandery city."
With a wave of his hand, Qin Guanbao dismissed everyone.
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