Chapter 25: Secret Meeting

On Qinglian Mountain stood a majestic cyan pavilion. Its plaque bore three large golden characters: "Qinglian Tower."

Inside the spacious hall, two large, carved wooden chairs occupied the central place of honor. Below them, rows of cyan wooden chairs lined both the left and right sides. Each chair's backrest was carved with a cyan lotus flower.

Six Wang clan elders sat on the cyan chairs along the sides. They were all from the "Yao" generation and had retired from active duties. Their usual responsibilities included instructing younger generations or guarding the clan's ancestral hall, and they rarely intervened in clan affairs. However, Wang Mingyuan would consult with them on any major clan initiatives.

"Sixth Brother, what's happened now?" asked an elder in a cyan robe. "The last time Mingyuan called us together, it was to have the younger clan members start working two years early. He wouldn't bring them out any earlier, would he? Sixteen-year-olds have low cultivation levels and don't understand many things. It would be even worse if clan members under sixteen went out to work."

The elder was gaunt, with a goatee and several deep wrinkles creasing his forehead.

The cyan-robed elder was Wang Yaoheng, who was sixty-two years old and ranked eighth in seniority among the "Yao" generation.

Wang Yaoheng possessed four spiritual roots and, despite cultivating for many years, was only at the fifth level of Qi Condensation. He taught basic cultivation knowledge in the Lecture Hall.

"Probably not!" replied a slightly hunched elder, shaking his head. "Mingyuan couldn't possibly overlook that point. Besides, the clan currently has no new sources of income and doesn't need that many people. Some clan members from the 'Chang' generation coming out early to work is already enough to handle the current situation."

The hunched elder was Wang Yaocong, who was sixty-three years old and ranked sixth in seniority among the "Yao" generation.

Wang Yaocong possessed five spiritual roots and was only at the third level of Qi Condensation. He was proficient in Five Elements spells and was responsible for teaching younger generations how to cultivate.

"Mingyuan really is something, calling us all here and then not showing up himself," complained a benevolent-looking elder in a white robe, his brow furrowing slightly. "I need to go back and see my grandson! I don't have much time to waste."

The white-robed elder was Wang Yaochen, who was fifty-five years old and ranked tenth in seniority among the "Yao" generation.

Wang Yaochen possessed four spiritual roots and, despite cultivating for many years, was only at the fourth level of Qi Condensation. He was proficient in planting techniques.

"Twelfth Brother, where is your wife?" Wang Yaocong asked, puzzled. "Doesn't she usually take care of your grandson?"

"The spiritual mulberry trees are growing well this year, and a large quantity of spiritual mulberry leaves can be harvested," Wang Yaochen said. "The female family members couldn't handle it all, so my wife went to help. The important task of looking after the grandsons fell to me. Those two naughty boys, Changjing and Changlong, ran everywhere and wouldn't stay still. I had to chase after them, and my old bones are nearly falling apart. It took me a great deal of effort to get them to sleep." Despite his complaints, when he spoke of his grandsons, his face was full of happiness.

His aptitude was not good, and he was getting old; his greatest joy was doting on his grandsons.

Wang Yaocong waved his hand and said, "Alright, Twelfth Brother, stop complaining. There must be something very important for Mingyuan to call us here. If you're worried about no one looking after Changjing and Changlong, I can ask your Sixth Sister-in-law to go take a look. Although her legs aren't very good, she can certainly handle looking after two three-year-old children."

"No need, Sixth Brother," Wang Yaochen politely refused. "I just got them to sleep. They shouldn't wake up for at least an hour."

"Changjing and Changlong are still small. It won't do to leave them unsupervised at home," Wang Yaoheng suggested. "They possess spiritual roots and are the future of the clan; we mustn't be careless. Sixth Brother, you should still let your Sixth Sister-in-law go look after them! That way, everyone will be at ease."

"Eighth Brother is right, I'll just..."

"No need. I've already asked Second Sister-in-law to go look after Changjing and Changlong," Wang Mingyuan's voice suddenly rang out.

As soon as his voice fell, Wang Mingyuan entered, accompanied by a tall elder in a yellow robe.

The yellow-robed elder was Wang Yaozong, the Wang clan's only Foundation Establishment cultivator, who rarely made appearances on ordinary days.

"Second Brother, what brings you here?" Wang Yaocong and the others quickly stood up upon seeing Wang Yaozong.

"Mingyuan has an important announcement, and he asked me to come as a witness."

Wang Yaozong walked to the main seat and sat down.

Wang Mingyuan walked to Wang Yaozong's side. He smiled faintly at Wang Yaocong and the others, then said seriously, "Sixth Uncle, Eighth Uncle, I have good news for you. A small Xuanjin ore vein has been discovered within Ping'an County, which is under our control."

Hearing this, Wang Yaocong and the others were startled, then ecstatic with joy.

"What? A Xuanjin ore vein? Is that true?"

"Mingyuan, how large is the Xuanjin ore vein? How many years can it be mined?"

"Mingyuan, quickly send people to occupy that Xuanjin ore vein."

Wang Yaozong smiled faintly and said, "Alright, don't all get so excited. Let Mingyuan explain everything clearly. Fifth Brother and Ninth Brother have already led people to guard it. Mingyuan, please give everyone a detailed explanation of the Xuanjin ore vein's situation!"

"Yes, Second Uncle," Wang Mingyuan nodded. "A few days ago, zombies appeared in Qing Shi Town in Ping'an County. Changsheng, who is responsible for guarding Ping'an County, immediately led people there when he learned of the zombies..."

After listening to Wang Mingyuan's narration, Wang Yaocong nodded discreetly and asked, "Mingyuan, how much Xuanjin ore can be extracted from that ore vein daily? How many jin of Xuanjin can be refined, and for how long can it be mined?"

"Currently, three thousand jin of Xuanjin ore can be extracted daily," Wang Mingyuan replied. "One hundred jin of Xuanjin ore can be refined into one liang of Xuanjin, meaning three jin of Xuanjin can be refined per day. According to Qinglin's estimation, it can be mined for three to four years. The extracted Xuanjin ore will be stored in the warehouse and sold after the Xuanjin is refined."

"Excellent! Our ancestors bless us!" Wang Yaocong exclaimed, his expression somewhat excited. "With this Xuanjin ore vein, our lives will become much easier. Changsheng has rendered a great service this time; he must be properly rewarded."

"Mingyuan, you didn't just call us old fellows here to tell us this news, did you?" Wang Yaoheng said seriously.

Wang Mingyuan let out a light breath, his expression becoming serious as he stated solemnly, "This Xuanjin ore vein can help our Wang clan overcome its immediate difficulties. All of you uncles here know that our Wang clan has always relied on selling spiritual grains and silkworm silk for a living, with very little income. There are over a hundred cultivators in the clan, and everyone's expenses add up to a significant sum. We've barely managed to keep the clan running by relying on the wealth accumulated by previous generations. As the saying goes, 'Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.' The Xuanjin ore vein will eventually be depleted. I plan to select two clan members for cultivation, hoping to train our own Artifact Forgers. Do any of you uncles present have any opinions? Please speak them so we can discuss."

"Train Artifact Forgers? Excellent!" Wang Yaoheng exclaimed, his expression somewhat excited as he decisively agreed. "Our ancestor, Wang Yuangang, was a mid-tier second-level Artifact Forger who left behind more than ten artifact forging blueprints. If not for the lack of sufficient financial support, we would have trained a first-level Artifact Forger long ago. With the support of the Xuanjin ore vein, we must train an Artifact Forger and restore our ancestors' glory!"

"That's right. Just sitting idle and relying solely on farming makes it difficult to maintain the clan's operations," another elder chimed in. "We must have new sources of income. Artifact forging is our ancestral profession, and we have a certain foundation. I agree."

"I also agree, but two people are too few," someone else added. "Let's expand it to five!"

Wang Mingyuan's brows furrowed slightly, and he said with some difficulty, "Five? The expenses for training two people are already considerable, let alone five."

"My meaning is to select five clan members with artifact forging talent from within the clan, cultivate them for a period, and then conduct an assessment," explained Wang Yaocong, the Sixth Brother. "From those, we select the two best-performing clan members for further training. If we only select two clan members to directly train as Artifact Forgers, firstly, we might not unearth the best talent. Secondly, talent is hard to determine; didn't the clan fail before when it directly selected two clan members to train as Artifact Forgers?"

"Sixth Brother is right," another elder agreed. "Training Artifact Forgers requires a significant amount of spiritual stones. We can't just throw a lot of spiritual stones at them based on a bit of talent. Let's use facts. Through assessment, we keep the two most outstanding clan members for training. This way, everyone will be convinced. After all, artifact forging talent is difficult to determine. We can't just say someone has talent because they've read a few artifact forging classics and memorized some basic theoretical knowledge! Second Brother, what do you think?"

Hearing this, the others all looked towards Wang Yaozong.

Wang Yaozong thought for a moment and said, "Sixth Brother is right; this is a good suggestion. This way, everyone will be convinced. If we directly select two clan members to train as Artifact Forgers, and they fail, other clan members will inevitably gossip. After all, artifact forging talent is difficult to determine and not very fair. Only by letting facts speak for themselves can we truly convince everyone."

Wang Mingyuan nodded and said, "Since Second Uncle has spoken, we will select five clan members for a period of training, and from those five, we will select two to train as Artifact Forgers. Do any of you uncles have any recommendations?"

As soon as his voice fell, a somewhat rough voice suddenly rang out: "I recommend Wang Changsheng."