Chapter 7: Father's Heirloom

The Xu Residence.

Upon returning to the Xu Residence, Jiang Fan immediately closed the door and tightly clenched his fists. "Lu Zheng, I refuse to believe I'm inferior to you!"

He opened the "True Scripture of Pure Wind" and began to read it carefully. Perhaps it was due to his body being cleansed by the Primordial Void Ancient Tree, but he found understanding this rather obscure, high-grade Yellow-tier cultivation method surprisingly easy.

An hour later, with a bright glow in his eyes, he sat cross-legged and began to cultivate. "Qi flows to the Dantian, mind focused, forgetting everything; no wind, no self..." He silently recited the incantation, and his transparent spiritual root, like a vast root system anchored in the void, slowly absorbed the spiritual energy from the air.

The stronger the spiritual root, the faster the absorption rate. The more profound the cultivation method, the faster the absorption rate. The two combined complemented each other perfectly.

Soon, invisible wisps of spiritual energy converged from all directions, integrating into his Dantian and transforming into pure spiritual power.

He cultivated tirelessly, completely absorbed in the process, until dawn, when a dazzling ray of sunlight shone on his eyes, waking him.

He slowly opened his eyes. With a flicker of expectation, he jumped out of bed, circulated his Dantian, gathered his Qi, and threw two punches. Pfft— A slight popping sound of compressed air reached his ears.

"Qi Refinement Stage Two! Qi Refinement Stage Two in a single night!" Jiang Fan was overjoyed. "Xu Yining took a full three days to reach Qi Refinement Stage One, didn't she?"

Despite his prolonged joy, he wasn't complacent. "Qi Refinement Stage Two isn't enough; to protect myself and Xu Youran, I need to become even stronger."

Jiang Fan muttered to himself. He tried to continue cultivating but found that the rate of spiritual energy absorption had slowed significantly. "In the Qi Refinement Stage, the later it gets, the slower the cultivation; it requires Qi Refinement Liquid to progress. But Qi Refinement Liquid is very expensive, and Qin Changsheng won't sell it to me!"

He frowned slightly. Suddenly, a thought sparked in his mind. He murmured, "Before he died, Father told me to bury the box he carried for ten years in front of his grave. He instructed me not to dig it up until the seed had sprouted. Could there be cultivation resources left for me inside?"

Since his father could leave him such a miraculous seed, the mysterious box must also contain something extraordinary.

He got up and opened the door. He then heard Xu Youran's pleading voice from the neighboring courtyard. "Aunt Wang, these are the resources the clan gave me this month. Please don't take them."

Wang Yingfeng, accompanied by two personal maids, cornered Xu Youran. The maids held her arms down while Wang Yingfeng pulled a bottle of Qi Refinement Liquid from Xu Youran's embrace, her expression cold. "Don't think I don't know you want to give this to that good-for-nothing Jiang Fan! You want him to win? Ha, dream on!"

Smash— Wang Yingfeng violently smashed the bottle of Qi Refinement Liquid onto the ground. The precious liquid splattered everywhere, mixing with the dirt. Xu Youran, frantic, struggled free from the maids and threw herself to the ground, scooping up the mud soaked with the spiritual liquid, hoping to salvage some. But the spiritual liquid and mud were inseparable; it was useless.

"Aunt Wang!" she cried, tears welling in her usually calm eyes. "Little Fan is already so pitiful; why do you bully him like this? You even make things difficult for him over a single bottle of Qi Refinement Liquid!"

Wang Yingfeng clapped her hands dismissively. "Who's bullying him? Qi Refinement Liquid belongs to our Xu family. If he has any backbone, he should get it himself. If he relies on a woman to secretly give it to him, not only will people in our Xu Residence look down on him, even beggars on the street would spit at him. Let's go!" She swayed her hips and left, clearly pleased. Jiang Fan didn't even have a single bottle of Qi Refinement Liquid; he could dream of winning against her nephew.

Xu Youran knelt helplessly on the ground, hugging her knees and sobbing, blaming herself.

Just then, a hand rested on her back, gently patting it. Startled, she turned her head and saw Jiang Fan. Her self-blame intensified, and she fell into his embrace, sobbing, "I'm so sorry, Little Fan, I'm useless! I should have been more careful; then Aunt Wang wouldn't have found out."

Jiang Fan gently patted her thin back, his heart filled with tenderness. "Silly girl, I couldn't thank you enough, so why would I blame you?"

Xu Youran, with red-rimmed eyes, still blamed herself immensely. "But that was the only Qi Refinement Liquid I could give you."

How could I be worthy of such a fiancée? Jiang Fan became even gentler. "There's one thing Wang Yingfeng said that I agree with. A man who relies on a woman's help to win is not only looked down upon by outsiders, but I would also look down on myself! Don't worry, I'll figure out a way to get Qi Refinement Liquid myself. Go back and rest now, and just wait for my news."

Xu Youran was silent for a long time, then suddenly nodded. "Okay, just do your best. No matter the outcome, I won't blame you." With that, she left the backyard and the Xu Residence. She headed towards Cloud Mist Mountain on the outskirts, a place rich in spiritual herbs. She couldn't bear to see Jiang Fan alone and helpless, so she still wanted to do her best to help him. Although the effects of those spiritual herbs were far inferior to Qi Refinement Liquid, they were better than nothing.

At the same time, Jiang Fan also left the Xu Residence and went to the burial grounds on the outskirts.

"Father, your unfilial son has come to see you." He knelt before the grave, burning a lot of paper money and candles, his mind recalling the years he spent with his father.

His father was a man of few words, who loved to drink. When drunk, he would point to the sky and curse, as if venting injustice. When sober, he would gaze at the moon, tears streaming down his face. Regardless of whether he was drunk or sober, his gaze was always gentle when he looked at Jiang Fan.

"Father, I'm getting married, but it's not Xu Yining. It's Xu Youran, whom you liked more. You once said she was actually more suitable to be my wife, with her gentle, quiet, and polite nature." Jiang Fan's smile faded as tears streamed down his face. "If you were still alive, you'd be beaming from ear to ear, wouldn't you? Once we're married, I'll definitely bring her to see you."

Wiping away his tears, Jiang Fan spoke with a hint of apology, "But your son has run into a bit of trouble and needs to open the box you left behind, Father. Please forgive me for disturbing your peace."

After repeatedly kowtowing, Jiang Fan raised his hoe and began to dig the earth in front of the tombstone. He dug a full three feet deep before finally unearthing a black wooden box.

"Huh, it hasn't rotted at all." Jiang Fan picked it up, a look of surprise in his eyes. As far as he could remember, this wooden box had always been like this. It showed no damage and no signs of erosion from time. Even after being buried underground for three years, it hadn't been gnawed by snakes, insects, rats, or ants, nor had it been corroded by the damp soil. It seemed the wooden box itself was no ordinary item.

With a slight flutter in his heart, he twisted the latch of the wooden box, hearing a click. This wooden box, which his father had guarded for fifteen years, never letting it leave his side, and never opening it himself, finally saw the light of day after Jiang Fan's seed had sprouted.

Creak! As the wooden box opened, something that made Jiang Fan's pupils constrict sharply came into view.