The small family enjoyed a meal together joyfully.
They conversed, ate, and drank, and Jian Ning even gained 1 point of luck for sharing some emotions with his brother.
[Ding, congratulations to the host for gaining 1 point of luck from Jian Shi]
Upon hearing the notification, Jian Ning felt his heart beat faster and decided to check the status of the people at the table. Although he initially felt uneasy about Jian Shi seemingly taking away luck points, Jian Ning quickly overcame his sadness upon learning that Ling was only claiming luck points that Jian Shi had yet to take.
He began with his adoptive father, Jian Zhi.
"Ling, show me my father's status," Jian Ning asked inwardly.
[Display of Jian Zhi's status]
[Name: Jian Zhi]
[Cultivation: Rank 7 Innate]
[Age: 59 years]
[Body: None]
[Talents: High yellow-ranked cultivation talent // Middle yellow-ranked fire element talent // High yellow-ranked sword talent]
[Cultivation technique: "Jian Family Technique" (middle yellow rank)]
[Martial skills: Cannot be seen]
[Luck: Yellow-ranked luck]
Jian Ning was quite surprised by his father's status.
"Ling, why can't I see my father's martial techniques?" Jian Ning asked.
[Ding, in response to the host, your cultivation level is too low. With your level, you can only see detailed status of people of the same level or lower, unless you pay more
"Okay, understood."
Next, Jian Ning checked his mother's status, which was similar to his father's, except her cultivation level was innate rank 3.
"Alright, onto the most important! System, show me my brother's status."
[Display of Jian Shi's status]
[Name: Jian Shi]
[Cultivation: Rank 6 Physical Tempering]
[Age: 16 years and 11 months]
[Body: None]
[Talents: Low yellow-ranked cultivation talent // high Star-ranked weapon talent]
[Cultivation technique: Too high to be analyzed]
[Martial skills: 'Tiger Fist Technique' (low yellow rank) — perfection — // 'Mystic Phantom Steps' (middle yellow rank) — perfection — // 'Iron Palm Technique' (middle rank) — perfection —]
[Luck: Star-ranked luck (low level)]
Jian Ning was shocked by what he had just seen, both positively and negatively.
He was initially stunned by the astronomical level of luck his brother possessed.
"My God, his luck is astronomical, while his talents are practically nonexistent apart from weapons! He doesn't even have an elemental talent! Moreover, what is this cultivation technique that even the system couldn't analyze? And why is there such a significant difference between his cultivation talent and his weapon talents?" Jian Ning exclaimed in his mind.
"Ding, I would like to clarify that his talents were recently created," the phrase resonated in Jian Ning's mind.
"Ling has already told me that Jian Shi is one of the heavens' favorites, destined to transcend mortality and become an emperor. That could explain his peculiar status. Does he also have something like Ling? No, impossible. Ling told me she has been alone in all existence since the creation of heaven and earth, being the mixture of myself and Ling and constantly changing," Jian Ning began an inner monologue as he drifted off during the meal.
"'Son, why are you lost in your thoughts?' came his mother's voice.
"Nothing, Mom, I was just thinking of testing my strength in the Chang Jiang forest. Before that, I was thinking of going to the clan library to study some techniques," Jian Ning replied.
"Okay, but finish your meal first."
"Okay ~~" Jian Ning replied.
Jian Ning picked up his chopsticks and began eating very elegantly.
"Ling, show me my sister's status," Jian Ning ordered as he elegantly stuffed a piece of food into his mouth.
[Displaying Jian Mei's status]
[Name: Jian Mei]
[Cultivation: Rank 9, tempering body]
[Age: 15 years and 10 months]
[Body: Low-grade special body seed (from an external treasure)]
[Talents: Low-grade black cultivation talent, middle-grade water element talent, low-grade black wood element talent, high-grade sword talent]
[Cultivation technique: "Jian Family Technique" (middle-grade yellow rank)]
[Martial skills: "Hundred Flower Sword Technique" (low-grade yellow rank), "Iron Palm Technique" (middle-grade yellow rank), "Mystic Phantom Steps" (middle-grade yellow rank)]
[Luck: black-grade luck]
Jian Ning inspected Jian Mei's status and, as expected, her talents were significantly inferior to his.
But what shocked him the most was the fact that she possessed a 'low-grade special body seed'.
Jian Ning was already familiar with these 'seeds'; they were rare treasures of heaven and earth that could potentially give rise to special physiques.
Such treasures are extremely rare and precious. The last time such a treasure appeared in the lands of the Sui Kingdom, it caused bloody rivers and intense wars, until eventually a high-ranking member of one of the three great powers of the continent took it for his grandson.
Jian Ning finished his meal by placing his chopsticks on the bowl.
"Father, could you give me a badge so I can go to the clan library?" Jian Ning asked as he elegantly wiped his mouth.
His father, sitting across from him, looked up from his meal and said, "Of course, here," handing Jian Ning the badge of the fourth elder without even questioning why.
"With this badge, you can access every floor of the library and borrow as many techniques as you want," explained Jian Zhi.
Jian Ning's eyes lit up with joy, feeling warmth fill his heart. After all, although he wasn't Jian Zhi's biological son, his uncle had always treated him well and given him the best of everything.
Of course, Jian Ning didn't yet know that his position within the Jian clan was now so high, surpassing even that of his father.
"With this badge, I can learn more powerful techniques and increase my combat strength!" Jian Ning thought to himself.
"Thank you, father," Jian Ning replied respectfully as he took the badge with both hands.
Jian Ning left the dining room and headed towards the clan library.
~After a few minutes~
Jian Ning found himself standing before the clan library, and he couldn't help but be impressed.
The clan library was a massive three-story building, constructed primarily from a rare type of stone. Its most striking feature was the intricate formations that barred unauthorized access.
'I hope to discover a valuable technique here,' Jian Ning murmured to himself as he crossed the threshold into the library.