Chapter 933: Green Mountains Repay

"Bingbing, it's been so many years. How have you been?" Wang Changsheng said with a smile, looking at Su Bingbing.

Time had flown by. Wang Changsheng still remembered the first time he met Su Bingbing; she was very young and playful back then. In the blink of an eye, she had already advanced to the Core Formation stage.

"I'm doing well, Uncle, Aunt. You two must be close to forming your Nascent Souls, right?" Su Bingbing's tone held a hint of envy. As an Ice Spirit Root cultivator, reaching the Core Formation stage was no problem for her, but the Nascent Soul stage was another matter entirely.

Whether it was talent or cultivation techniques, they only allowed cultivators to progress faster in the early stages and wield more powerful divine abilities; talent was not absolute. There were five or six cultivators with variant spirit roots in the Taiyi Immortal Sect, as well as those with spirit bodies. In terms of talent alone, Su Bingbing was only above average, and she wasn't very confident about forming her Nascent Soul.

Wang Changsheng nodded with a smile and said, "We took a trip back to the Eastern Barrens and ran into your younger brother, Yu Ren. It's been so many years since your second aunt passed away. As his elder sister, you need to look after your brother more, understand?"

"If you ever encounter any problems you can't solve, remember to tell your uncle and me. We'll do our best to help you. Even though your second aunt is gone, you are still our niece, and your uncle and I will take good care of you." Wang Ruyan said with a loving expression, holding Su Bingbing's hands.

Su Bingbing smiled sweetly and said, "I understand, Uncle, Aunt."

Wang Changsheng asked about Su Bingbing's daily cultivation life, and she briefly recounted it.

She was doing quite well in the Taiyi Immortal Sect. Thanks to Wang Mingren and Wang Qingshan, her fellow disciples treated her kindly.

A deep horn sound suddenly blared. Su Bingbing took out a blue conch shell and activated a spell, and Wang Qingshan's voice instantly rang out: "Cousin Bingbing, Uncle Mingren and I are back. How have you been recently?"

"I'm just chatting with Uncle and Aunt! Cousin Qingshan, do you want to come over?"

"Ninth Uncle and Ninth Aunt are here too? Great, we'll be right over."

Wang Changsheng hadn't seen Wang Qingshan in a long time. He knew about Wang Qingshan's injury, and honestly, he was somewhat displeased with Wang Mingren's overzealous pursuit of merit, which almost cost Wang Qingshan his life.

Wang Changsheng could understand Wang Mingren's desire to earn merit, but he could not accept Wang Mingren unilaterally dragging Wang Qingshan into danger. It would have been different if it had been part of the Taiyi Immortal Sect's official deployment, but the issue was Wang Mingren's eagerness for merit and his unauthorized actions.

Wang Changsheng found this unacceptable. He held Wang Qingshan dearer than his own son, having spent a significant amount of time refining flying sword artifacts for him. Yet, Wang Mingren had dragged Wang Qingshan into a dangerous situation merely to satisfy his personal ambitions.

Despite his displeasure, Wang Mingren was a disciple of the Taiyi Immortal Sect and had already advanced to the Core Formation stage. Wang Changsheng found himself unable to do anything about Wang Mingren, nor could he punish him.

In terms of cultivation, Wang Mingren was at the Core Formation stage, just like him. In terms of seniority, Wang Mingren was Wang Changsheng's uncle.

Not long after, Wang Mingren and Wang Qingshan appeared before Wang Changsheng.

"Ninth Uncle, Ninth Aunt, what brings you here? Is everything alright back in the clan?" Wang Qingshan was delighted to see Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan.

Wang Mingren felt a mix of emotions. He had never imagined that Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan had already cultivated to the ninth layer of the Core Formation stage.

Logically, Profound-grade and Yellow-grade cultivation techniques had more stages, allowing for faster cultivation in the early phases, but their progress slowed down significantly in later stages. Wang Changsheng's cultivation had been relatively slow, leading Wang Mingren to mistakenly believe he was practicing a Profound-grade technique, which would make it difficult to reach the ninth layer of Core Formation. He had visited the clan's scripture repository but hadn't found any Earth-grade cultivation techniques there.

Most cultivators who practiced Profound-grade and Yellow-grade techniques remained stuck at the Core Formation stage, with very few ever forming a Nascent Soul. This was one of the reasons Wang Mingren felt confident when facing Wang Changsheng.

What he didn't know was that Wang Changsheng's cultivation had been delayed by his studies in artifact refining and managing clan affairs; otherwise, his cultivation would have advanced long ago. In recent decades, with more and more Core Formation cultivators in the clan, Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan were finally able to settle down and focus on their cultivation.

"Changsheng, Ruyan, you've cultivated to the ninth layer of Core Formation?" Wang Mingren's tone was tinged with surprise. The cultivation resources in the South Sea were abundant, perhaps Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan had been exceptionally lucky to reach the ninth layer of Core Formation.

With Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan just a step away from the Nascent Soul stage, Wang Mingren no longer dared to act as a senior and spoke with a much friendlier tone.

"By the grace of our ancestors, we've reached this point. Where have you two been? Bingbing said you weren't in the market city. Oh, and Qingshan, have your injuries healed?"

"Thank you for your concern, Ninth Uncle. Your nephew has fully recovered."

Wang Ruyan nodded with relief and said, "It's good that you're alright. Your Ninth Uncle and I were greatly alarmed when we heard you were seriously injured. You are a key talent for our clan's development; if anything were to happen to you, it would affect the entire clan's progress."

Upon hearing this, Wang Mingren's expression became somewhat awkward. He knew Wang Ruyan's words were directed at him.

After some small talk, Wang Qingshan suddenly remembered something. He took out a green wooden box, handed it to Wang Changsheng, and said, "Ninth Uncle, I've accumulated quite a lot of contribution points and exchanged them with the Taiyi Immortal Sect for a Three-Essence Spirit Stabilizing Incense. The Three-Essence Spirit Stabilizing Incense has a miraculous effect in resisting inner demons and can be somewhat helpful for forming a Nascent Soul."

"Three-Essence Spirit Stabilizing Incense? Qingshan, how did you manage to accumulate so many contribution points?" Wang Changsheng said with some surprise. The Golden Amber Jade Buddha Pendant also had this effect. The Three-Essence Spirit Stabilizing Incense, being helpful for forming a Nascent Soul, must be quite valuable. Unless Wang Qingshan had performed an extraordinary service, he wouldn't have been able to exchange for it.

"I pleaded with my master to get them in advance. It seems there's going to be a war in the Eastern Barrens, and I'll be participating. The contribution points were advanced to me. Ninth Uncle, Ninth Aunt, you've toiled for the clan for so many years; please focus on your closed-door cultivation and strive to reach the Nascent Soul stage."

Wang Qingshan had to repeatedly plead with Revered Sword Master Xiaoyao before he would agree. If Revered Sword Master Xiaoyao hadn't valued Wang Qingshan as a disciple, it would have been impossible for Wang Qingshan to get an advance on his contribution points.

Wang Changsheng nodded with satisfaction. He cherished Wang Qingshan even more than his own son, and Wang Qingshan had never disappointed him.

Hearing the words "Three-Essence Spirit Stabilizing Incense," an envious expression appeared in Wang Mingren's eyes. If he remembered correctly, one stick of Three-Essence Spirit Stabilizing Incense required 300,000 contribution points.

If he had 300,000 contribution points, he could exchange them for a Snow Jade Pill.

"Qingshan, that was very thoughtful of you. You must be extra careful and not be reckless in your pursuit of merit. If worst comes to worst, our clan can pool our efforts to repay the contribution points. Don't be reckless in trying to repay them; your safety is more important than anything else." Wang Ruyan said with a gentle smile and an earnest tone.

She emphasized the words "reckless in pursuit of merit," causing Wang Mingren's face to flush slightly.

"I will, Ninth Uncle, Ninth Aunt."

Wang Mingren's expression was still somewhat awkward, so he quickly changed the subject, saying with a smile, "Changsheng, I have a bottle of Sky Origin Pills here. Qingqing should be able to use them."

Regardless, Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan still had a certain chance of advancing to the Nascent Soul stage, so Wang Mingren naturally wanted to foster a closer relationship.

He took out a green porcelain bottle and handed it to Wang Changsheng. Sky Origin Pills could enhance magical power and were more effective when consumed by cultivators below the fourth layer of the Core Formation stage.

"Qingqing has already advanced to the fourth layer of Core Formation, so the Sky Origin Pills won't be of much use to her. However, they can be given to other clan members. Thank you, Uncle Mingren." Wang Changsheng said meaningfully, accepting the bottle of Sky Origin Pills.

"Other clan members? What? Has the clan gained another Core Formation cultivator?" Wang Mingren was slightly taken aback. Truth be told, he didn't know much about the clan's current situation; in fact, no one had told him.

Wang Ruyan smiled sweetly and said with a chuckle, "Not one, but five!"