Chapter 240: Seven Years

Just then, dozens of streaks of spiritual light appeared on the distant horizon, flying rapidly towards Qinglian Mountain. Not long after, the streaks of spiritual light arrived near Qinglian Mountain; they were none other than the disciples of the four sects of Huangsheng Palace.

"Greetings, Senior Guang."

Seeing Guang Dongren, the disciples of the four sects of Huangsheng Palace quickly descended and bowed in salute.

"No need for formalities. Why have you come to Qinglian Mountain?" Guang Dongren asked, squinting his eyes.

"We, your juniors, are commanded by Martial Uncle Li to present a congratulatory gift to Fellow Daoist Wang, wishing him a joyful marriage and an early birth of noble sons.""We, your juniors, are commanded by our Master to present a congratulatory gift to Fellow Daoist Wang, congratulating him on his auspicious union.""We, your juniors, are commanded by Martial Uncle Tong to congratulate Fellow Daoist Wang on his wedding.""We, your juniors, are commanded by Martial Uncle Chen to present a congratulatory gift and congratulate Fellow Daoist Wang on his wedding."

Upon hearing this, Guang Dongren nodded with satisfaction and said, "Fellow Daoist Li and the others are very thoughtful. You've traveled a long way to congratulate my disciple; it's been a tough journey. Changsheng, treat them well. I, your master, still have matters to attend to, so I won't stay any longer." After saying this, Guang Dongren transformed into a streak of yellow light and streaked away.

"Yes, Master. Fellow Daoists, please come in." Wang Changsheng's smile deepened as he invited them into the main hall.

The expressions of the guests present varied. Guang Dongren had personally come to celebrate, and the four sects of Huangsheng Palace had sent representatives with congratulatory gifts. The Wang family was destined for great prosperity. The guests' smiles deepened, and they exchanged toasts with the Wang family members.

Two hours later, the guests gradually departed, and Wang Changsheng returned to his residence. He had drunk a good deal of spiritual wine, his face flushed crimson, but he remained clear-headed.

When Wang Ruyan heard footsteps, her heart tightened, and her heartbeat quickened. Not long after, the red veil was lifted. Wang Ruyan saw Wang Changsheng staring directly at her, and her face was flushed with shyness.

"My dear wife, I've kept you waiting." Wang Changsheng took Wang Ruyan's hands and gazed at her with tender affection.

Wang Ruyan softly acknowledged him, lowering her head, not daring to look at Wang Changsheng, and her ears were completely red.

Never had Wang Changsheng seen Wang Ruyan with such an expression. He gently said, "My dear wife, it's late. Let's rest."

"Wait, we haven't had the ceremonial wine yet," Wang Ruyan said shyly.

Wang Changsheng chuckled softly, drank the ceremonial wine with Wang Ruyan, carried her to the bed, and blew out the candles. After a while, sounds of male and female breathing came from within the room.

Time flew by; seven years passed quickly.

After Guang Dongren relocated two spiritual veins near Qinglian Mountain, the Wang family built a spacious fortress, Wangjia Fort, with three large mountains as its center, for easier management. Wangjia Fort covers an area of over three hundred mu and currently houses over three hundred cultivators. After the wedding, the Wang family absorbed more than a dozen rogue cultivators and three small families, each comprising over thirty cultivators. The entire clan now has four hundred and sixty-four cultivators. Among the mortals in the mundane world, six cultivators have emerged, belonging to the Qing generation.

In a certain secret chamber, Wang Changsheng sat cross-legged on a prayer mat, his eyes slightly closed. The stone chamber was filled with numerous blue light particles. As he inhaled and exhaled, the blue light particles eagerly surged into his body and disappeared. After a short while, all the blue light particles in the stone chamber had entered Wang Changsheng's body. Wang Changsheng opened his eyes, and a faint glint of light shot from his pupils.

Wang Shuyuan had given over fifty jin of undiluted Profound Yin Spiritual Water as part of the dowry. Utilizing this spiritual water, Wang Changsheng cultivated diligently for seven years and successfully advanced to the fifth level of Foundation Establishment.

Wang Changsheng opened the secret chamber door and walked out. Not long after, he appeared in a secluded courtyard.

In the stone pavilion, Liu Qing'er was smiling broadly and feeding two young children. The boy had regular features and appeared somewhat slender, while the girl had fair skin and a charming appearance, with a pair of dark, large eyes that were exceptionally lively. In the second year of their marriage, Wang Ruyan gave birth to a pair of dragon-and-phoenix twins for Wang Changsheng: Wang Qinghua and Wang Qingzhi. Wang Qinghua was the elder sister, and Wang Qingzhi was the younger brother. They both possessed three spiritual roots. Wang Qinghua's aptitude was slightly better; her wood spiritual root had a sensitivity of seventy-five.

"Dad, this is the little dog puppet I made. What do you think?" Seeing Wang Changsheng, Wang Qinghua immediately ran over, taking out a wooden puppy puppet.

Wang Qingzhi honestly called out "Dad," and sat on the chair, obediently eating his meal.

Wang Changsheng took the puppy puppet, examined it carefully, picked up Wang Qinghua, kissed her, and praised, "Excellent! You truly are Daddy's good daughter. You can make a puppy puppet now; in a few more years, you might even be able to refine puppet beasts. Your future achievements will certainly not be inferior to your father's."

Hearing Wang Changsheng's praise, Wang Qinghua immediately beamed with joy and proudly declared, "Of course! It took me seven days to carve it. I'll definitely be even stronger than Daddy in the future."

Wang Changsheng carried Wang Qinghua to the stone pavilion and sat down. He then asked about Wang Qingzhi's studies. They were still young, and were studying cultivation knowledge in the Lecture Hall. Wang Qingzhi answered truthfully. He spoke very little; Wang Changsheng would ask one question, and he would give one answer. This was unlike Wang Qinghua, who could give five answers for every question Wang Changsheng asked. Wang Qingzhi was reserved and rather honest in character, while Wang Qinghua was lively, active, and cheerful. The personalities of the brother and sister were completely opposite.

"Mom, where are Dad and Ruyan? Why haven't I seen them?"

After Wang Changsheng's wedding, Wang Mingyuan stepped down from the position of clan head. Wang Mingjiang was now managing the household. Wang Changfeng's aptitude was better than Wang Mingjiang's. Under Wang Changsheng's patient guidance, Wang Changfeng could already refine magic tools, though his success rate was still not high. Apart from refining magic tools, Wang Changfeng spent the rest of his time cultivating at his residence. Unable to acquire Heaven and Earth Spiritual Water, Wang Mingjiang had no choice but to ask a second-rank alchemist to help concoct spiritual water, barely managing to sustain his cultivation. Wang Qingqi had already been sent to Bailin Sect to learn alchemy from a second-rank alchemist and would not return in the short term. With the family's help, Wang Changping accumulated enough contribution points to exchange for a Foundation Establishment Pill from Bailin Sect, and successfully achieved Foundation Establishment. Wang Minglong was engaged in cultivation work. The contribution points he accumulated were simply not enough to exchange for a Foundation Establishment Pill, and he remained in the Qi Refining stage. Wang Changxue and Su Cheng became dual cultivation partners. With their care, the Wang family members at Bailin Sect were doing well.

"Your father went to drink with your Sixth Uncle. Ruyan is refining talismans in the Talisman Production Institute!"

At Wang Changsheng's suggestion, Wang Ruyan began to learn talisman refinement. Wang Shuming was a second-rank talisman master. With Wang Shuming's careful guidance and extensive practice, Wang Ruyan made rapid progress and could now refine several types of second-rank talismans. Within these seven years, Wang Ruyan's family gained two more Foundation Establishment cultivators. Both the Wang (Changsheng's) and Wang (Ruyan's) families were developing in a positive direction.

"Mom, Ruyan and I plan to go out for a while. I want to send Qinghua to Qingyue City, and have Seventh Uncle look after her on our behalf. Would you and Dad like to go too?"

Wang Changsheng planned to travel outside with Wang Ruyan, searching for Heaven and Earth Spiritual Water. In addition, he also wanted to find treasures that could neutralize malevolent qi. Malevolent qi was always harmful; while the Kuiyuan True Malevolent Qi improved his physique, it was also wreaking havoc on his physical body. He needed to resolve the latent problems caused by the malevolent qi as soon as possible. He couldn't guarantee that nothing would happen to the family during his absence. To be cautious, he would send Wang Qinghua to Qingyue City. Even if war broke out and enemies besieged Wangjia Fort, Wang Qinghua would be safe.

Liu Qing'er thought for a moment and said, "Qinghua is still young and needs someone to look after her. I don't trust anyone else. How about this: I'll discuss it with your father, and one of us will accompany Qinghua to Qingyue City. If we both leave, it might cause unnecessary panic."

"No problem, Mom. Please go ahead with your tasks. I'll go to the Talisman Production Institute to see Ruyan."

Most cultivators within Wangjia Fort resided on the three spiritual mountains. The Talisman Production Institute and the Puppet Refinement Institute were both on Qinglian Mountain. Not long after, Wang Changsheng arrived at the Talisman Production Institute.

After Wang Ruyan became a second-rank talisman master, she helped the Wang family cultivate two more talisman masters. Currently, there were seven talisman masters in the clan. Besides Wang Ruyan, a second-rank talisman master, there were also three first-rank high-grade talisman masters, among whom Wang Qingyun was the most talented. Wang Qingyun was Wang Changyu's second daughter, and could already refine first-rank mid-grade flying talisman soldiers.

Wang Ruyan was teaching several clan members of the Qing generation how to refine talismans, guiding and encouraging them simultaneously. "Although the art of talismans is the easiest to master," Wang Ruyan earnestly admonished, her gaze sweeping over them, "the failure rate is quite high for beginners. Failure is not scary. You must reflect seriously, think about where you went wrong, and continuously reflect, making a little progress every day. A little progress every day makes a huge step in a year, do you understand?"

"We understand, Aunt Nine."

"Alright, that's all for today's lesson. You may continue practicing after dinner."

"Yes, Aunt Nine," Wang Qingyun and the others replied in unison, and rose to leave.

"Hello, Uncle Nine.""Hello, Uncle Nine."

Wang Changsheng nodded. After everyone had left, he walked towards Wang Ruyan and jokingly said with a smile, "My dear wife, you're getting more and more formidable. I truly have good judgment."

"If my husband hadn't encouraged me back then, I wouldn't have become a second-rank talisman master."

Before Wang Ruyan married Wang Changsheng, she had followed Wang Shuming to learn the art of talisman refinement. However, her success rate was too dismal to behold, so she gave up. After she married Wang Changsheng, at his suggestion, she resumed learning the art of talisman refinement. Her success rate was extremely low, and she wanted to give up several times. However, Wang Changsheng stayed by her side, constantly encouraging her, helping her regain confidence. After several years of diligent practice, she successfully became a second-rank talisman master. The cultivation method she practiced was the "Mystic Sound Art", a yellow-grade second-rank music cultivation technique. She was still at the third level of Foundation Establishment.

To cultivate quickly, there are three methods. The first is to consume elixirs, large quantities of them, which requires a vast amount of spirit stones, and the difficulty of breaking through major realms is considerable. The second is excellent aptitude. Wang Ruyan possessed Gold, Wood, and Water spiritual roots, with Wood as her primary root, making her aptitude above average. The third is the cultivation method itself. Wang Ruyan cultivated a yellow-grade second-rank cultivation method, so her cultivation speed naturally wasn't very fast.

Wang Changsheng wanted to go out not only for his own reasons but also to improve Wang Ruyan's cultivation speed. Otherwise, the gap between him and Wang Ruyan would grow increasingly wide.

Wang Changsheng smiled faintly and said, "We are husband and wife; with a united heart, even yellow earth turns to gold. This is what your husband should do. By the way, my dear wife, I plan to travel outside with you to search for Heaven and Earth Spiritual Water or methods to improve your cultivation speed."

Wang Ruyan nodded: "Travel outside? No problem. Have you spoken to Father and Mother about it?"

"I've told Mother. I plan to send Qinghua to Qingyue City, and either Father or Mother will accompany her to Qingyue City for easier care."

"Should we send Qingzhi there too?"

Wang Changsheng shook his head: "If both Qinghua and Qingzhi are sent to Qingyue City, it might cause panic among the clan members. There won't be any wars in the short term. With Master and your Third Uncle present, even if war breaks out, they wouldn't dare truly annihilate the Wang family."