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Chapter 36: Marrying Qu Zhenzhen!

As a cultivation family, the Lu family obviously couldn't just take anyone into their home.

At least, Lu Changsheng didn't have that privilege yet.

However, the stationed disciples recognized Lu Changsheng and didn't give him too much trouble.

When they saw that Qu Zhenzhen was not a cultivator, just an ordinary person, they gave her a quick check and let her pass.

They only asked Lu Changsheng to report to Uncle Fu.

"Thank you."

Lu Changsheng nodded in thanks and led Qu Zhenzhen and Li Feiyu to Qingzhu Mountain Manor to return the Spirit Horse to Uncle Fu and report.

When Uncle Fu saw that Lu Changsheng had returned from his trip and brought a young girl with him, he looked at him strangely and felt somewhat speechless.

He realized that Lu Changsheng had asked about marrying and taking concubines when he re-signed the contract earlier, and it turned out that this was what he was waiting for.

Since he couldn't take a concubine from the Lu family, he decided to bring someone from outside.

But since it was only a woman, Uncle Fu didn't say anything. There wasn't much he could say.

After all, except for his interest in women, Lu Changsheng had performed well in all aspects of talisman making, and the Lu family was quite satisfied.

However, when Uncle Fu realized that Qu Zhenzhen had a Spirit Root, he became more serious.

He told Lu Changsheng that he could bring people in, but he couldn't bring cultivators or people with Spirit Roots to Qingzhu Mountain casually.

This was because the spiritual energy of Spirit Vain was limited.

Adding another person to cultivate would consume an additional amount of spiritual energy.

Even though a few more people in Qingzhu Mountain's wouldn't matter much, it was still something to consider.

But that was a rule of the Lu family.

If they could bring people in at will, everyone would bring their own relatives and friends to Qingzhu Mountain, and wouldn't Qingzhu Mountain become overcrowded?

Especially since Lu Changsheng was living in Qingzhu Valley, he couldn't just bring people in at will.

So Uncle Fu told Lu Changsheng that he could only bring two people.

If he wanted to bring more people in the future, he would have to pay with spirit stones.

As for the Nine Netherworld Hound, Uncle Fu didn't say anything.

It was quite normal for cultivators to raise a demonic beast as a spiritual pet, and the Lu family didn't have any rules or restrictions regarding this.

Besides, there were different breeds of demonic beasts, and the Nine Netherworld Hound was still a puppy that looked like a small wolf dog and did not attract much attention.

Therefore, Uncle Fu didn't pay much attention to it, and only reminded Lu Changsheng to be careful himself.

With so many children at home, it wouldn't be good if the pet hurt them.

Lu Changsheng naturally nodded his head in agreement.

After thanking Uncle Fu, he carried the Nine Netherworld Hound and took Qu Zhenzhen back to his residence.

Lu Changsheng brought Qu Zhenzhen home, and the wives and concubines in the family would naturally have no objections

Although the Lu family was a cultivator family, Lu Changsheng's wives and concubines were all raised in the secular world and had some feudal thoughts.

Especially with Lu Changsheng's talent in making talismans, his status in the Lu family had risen, and after moving to Qingzhu Valley, the relationship between his wives and concubines was extremely harmonious.

The principle of the husband being the head and the wife being the neck was not outdated.

After Lu Changsheng briefly explained Qu Zhenzhen's unfortunate background to his wives and concubines, they were very caring toward this new sister and helped Qu Zhenzhen quickly integrate into this new family.

However, because of the big changes and the strange environment, Qu Zhenzhen lacked a sense of security, and she clung to Lu Changsheng the most.

Whenever she saw Lu Changsheng, she would stay close to him.

Lu Changsheng didn't mind.

He also spent more time cultivating and deepening his relationship with Qu Zhenzhen every day.

After more than half a month of deepening their relationship, Qu Zhenzhen completely opened her heart to Lu Changsheng.

She revealed all the information about her family situation.

She comes from a scholarly family in Zhoushan Mansion, Dongyang County, Qinzhou.

Except for her brother Qu Changge, who went to the capital to take the imperial examination, , everyone else in the family was brutally murdered by the old man.

When she mentioned that she didn't have any relatives earlier, it was also because she knew that Lu Changsheng couldn't possibly take her to find her brother at that time.

There was also a hint of attachment to both Lu Changsheng and Li Feiyu.

After all, she was in a state of fear, panic, and despair at that time.

Meeting Lu Changsheng and Li Feiyu, who had saved her, was like a ray of light appearing in the darkness, something she wanted to cling to.

Otherwise, as a weak woman, she didn't know what she would do in the future.

And after spending this time together and getting closer and closer to Lu Changsheng, she felt very happy with her choice.

Since she knew that Lu Changsheng was a person she could trust with her life, she also developed feelings for him, so she didn't hold back.

In the end, she asked Lu Changsheng to help her find her brother, Qu Changge, and tell him about the family situation and her current situation.

She didn't mention anything about avenging her parents. Maybe she knew that it wouldn't be easy for Lu Changsheng either, so she didn't bring it up.

For such a small matter, Lu Changsheng naturally agreed and promised to help her find her brother.

At the same time, seeing that Qu Zhenzhen was opening up, Lu Changsheng proposed to her.

At this request, Qu Zhenzhen naturally blushed and nodded in agreement.

After that, Lu Changsheng asked Uncle Fu for help and arranged a simple wedding at Qingzhu Mountain Manor to marry Qu Zhenzhen.

After all, the girl came to Qingzhu Mountain with him all alone. Of course, Lu Changsheng wanted to give her enough security and a proper status.

"Why did Lu Changsheng get married again?"

"He recently went on a trip and brought back a woman."

"Oh my, he's already married nine times, why is he getting married again?"

"He already has more than ten children, why have more?"

"Ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous. He doesn't even need to have fifty children, so why go on?"

"You can see that he really loves children."

"Doesn't he need to cultivate?"

"Does he look like he's cultivating by constantly getting married and having kids?"

"I just used my spiritual eye to take a look, and this bride has spiritual roots."

"No wonder."

Many members of the Lu family and immortal seedlings attended Lu Changsheng's wedding, and they were amazed at his decision to remarry.

After all, he already had nine wives.

For a cultivator of his age, this was undoubtedly a sign that he had given up on cultivation.

The Immortal Seedlings were even more confused.

It was obvious that Lu Changsheng didn't need to have any more children, yet he was actively taking another wife and continuing to have children.

Even though they didn't want to get married and have children, and only wanted to focus on cultivation, they were still forced to procreate.

The wedding was simple, with no elaborate ceremonies, just a formality.

Afterwards, they invited the Lu family members from Qingzhu Mountain Manor and the immortal seedlings to enjoy a meal to add a bit of festivity.

The wedding banquet cost Lu Changsheng twenty-four Spirit Stones.

As for the gifts from the other guests, Lu Changsheng returned them all.

It wasn't because he thought they were too much.

The Lu family members from Qingzhu Mountain Manor and the immortal seedlings were originally poor and struggling.

His financial situation was good now, so he didn't need to covet this small amount of money.

Otherwise, people would say that he deliberately arranged the wedding to cheat them out of gifts.

Lu Changsheng also gave a red package to his good friend Li Feiyu.

After all, Li Feiyu had witnessed his relationship with Qu Zhenzhen, so it was only right to show his gratitude.

At the same time, he asked Li Feiyu to write to the Crimson Whale Gang and help them find Qu Zhenzhen's brother, Qu Changge.

After eating their fill at the wedding banquet, Lu Changsheng arrived at the bridal chamber.

"Zhenzhen."

Lu Changsheng called out when he saw Qu Zhenzhen sitting on the bed, dressed in a phoenix crown and a rosy cloud robe, with a red veil covering her head.

Qu Zhenzhen didn't speak, but under her robe, her feet clad in red embroidered shoes couldn't help but shrink slightly.

Seeing this, Lu Changsheng chuckled softly and approached Qu Zhenzhen, gently lifting the red veil.

Qu Zhenzhen's delicate, blushing face, as beautiful as carved jade, was revealed.

"Husband."

Qu Zhenzhen's fair face blushed as she shyly called out.

Even though she had been with Lu Changsheng for so long and had developed trust and affection for him, Qu Zhenzhen still maintained a shy demeanor.

That was just her personality.

"Zhenzhen, it's time to rest."

Lu Changsheng looked at Qu Zhenzhen, her eyes downcast and her face full of shyness, and he reached out to hug her, not knowing where her hands were hidden.

"Husband, the candles have not been blown out yet. Mmm~"

Qu Zhenzhen's voice was soft and tender, but before she could finish speaking, she let out a flirtatious humming sound.

Page 2 of 4

Chapter 37: Can We Have Ten Children?

The next morning.

A ray of sunlight penetrated through the sparse green bamboo branches and fell into the room, shining on the messy red wedding gown next to the bed.

On the floor beside were a pair of boots, embroidered shoes, a pink belly band adorned with lotus flowers, and pure white silk stockings.

On the bed, Qu Zhenzhen's delicate body was wrapped in the blanket like a little kitten, clinging to Lu Changsheng's arm and sleeping in his embrace.

Her long legs were also wrapped around Lu Changsheng's body, with part of her round and jade-like calf sticking out of the blanket, revealing a delicate and beautiful little foot that could be held in one's hand.

As soon as Lu Changsheng woke up, he felt like he was being hugged so tightly that he could hardly breathe.

He opened his eyes to see Qu Zhenzhen in his arms.

Her hair was disheveled, and there were still traces of tears at the corners of her eyes.

She seemed to have cried for a long time last night, clinging to him as if she was afraid he would leave.

Seeing the tears at the corners of her eyes and her red eyes, Lu Changsheng felt a sense of tenderness in his heart. He thought that Qu Zhenzhen really loved to cry and was easily moved to tears.

He wanted to sit up a little, but since Qu Zhenzhen was holding on too tightly, he gave up and lay down and let her hug him.

She was shy and lacked a sense of security, so she clung to him tightly. Since they had just finished their wedding night, he didn't mind accompanying her further.

After a while, Qu Zhenzhen's eyelashes fluttered slightly. She opened her watery eyes, looked at Lu Changsheng, and called out in a slightly hoarse voice, "Husband"

"Wake up."

Lu Changsheng chuckled as he gently stroked her soft and delicate cheek.

Qu Zhenzhen didn't say anything. She gently rubbed her cheek against Lu Changsheng's palm and pressed her delicate body tightly against Lu Changsheng's arms.

Lu Changsheng just held her quietly and stroked her gently, enjoying the silence between them.

After a while, Qu Zhenzhen's little feet exposed outside the quilt moved uneasily. The crystal jade toes curled inward for a while, stretched and tightened again, and kept moving.

She blushed and shouted to Lu Changsheng: "Husband~"

Then the two of them cuddled for a while before getting out of bed.

After getting dressed and getting up, Qu Zhenzhen suddenly asked, "Husband, am I pregnant?"

After spending so much time with her sisters and seeing so many children at home, Qu Zhenzhen also knew that Lu Changsheng loved children and wanted to have children herself.

Qu Zhenzhen was both scared and eager.

She wanted to have a warm family again.

"Do you really want to have children for your husband?"

Hearing this, Lu Changsheng smiled and said quietly.

Qu Zhenzhen's ears turned slightly red as she replied softly, "Yes."

Seeing this, Lu Changsheng hugged Qu Zhenzhen, kissed her delicate earlobe, and said softly, "Then is having ten children okay?"

Qu Zhenzhen's body stiffened when she heard this, her eyes widened and she felt a bit overwhelmed.

Ten children…

When would they even have time to give birth to them?

"Hehe, just kidding. It's time to eat," Lu Changsheng laughed.

Although his words were somewhat playful and teasing, Lu Changsheng couldn't deny that he had such thoughts.

After all, Qu Zhenzhen had a Spirit Root.

Of course, he hoped that she would give birth to more children.

However, he would still respect Qu Zhenzhen's wishes and not treat her as a mere childbearing machine.

In the following days, Lu Changsheng spent time with Qu Zhenzhen every day and taught her how to cultivate immortality.

The cultivation technique he used was the loot from Niutou Mountain, a primary cultivation technique called "Longevity Cultivation".

Compared to the Return to Origin Technique, it also had some anti-aging effects.

Lu Changsheng also wanted to use this method to evaluate Qu Zhenzhen's talent.

Before, Uncle Fu could only tell that Qu Zhenzhen had Spirit Roots, but he couldn't tell what kind.

After observing Qu Zhenzhen's practice speed of absorbing qi, Lu Changsheng tentatively judged that Qu Zhenzhen must have an eighth-grade Spirit Root.

Just a little better than his Ninth Spirit Root. However, Lu Changsheng was already very satisfied.

As long as Qu Zhenzhen had Spirit Roots, the child they conceived together would have a high probability of inheriting Spirit Roots.

That was enough for him.

One month later, with Lu Changsheng's diligent cultivation, Qu Zhenzhen successfully became pregnant.

When Lu Changsheng heard the news, he was overjoyed.

After all, she was his first wife with Spirit Roots.

Since they both had Spirit Roots, the probability of their child inheriting Spirit Roots was as high as one or two out of ten!

One or two in ten might not sound high, but compared to the probability of one parent having Spirit Roots, it was ten times higher!

Lu Changsheng couldn't help but feel even more excited about the birth of this child.

At that moment, Lu Changsheng also remembered the foundation building material required for the Immortal Beauty Technique he had purchased at Niutou Mountain.

He decided to go into seclusion and complete the foundation of the Immortal Beauty Technique while automatically cultivating.

During this trip, Lu Changsheng also realized the advantages of being handsome to a certain extent.

Aside from other things, Lu Changsheng felt that if he had a dark complexion and an ordinary appearance, things wouldn't have gone so well with Qu Zhenzhen.

"After all, good looks make women willing to give themselves, while being ugly means being a servant in the next life."

Upon entering the cultivation room, Lu Changsheng took out several spiritual materials from his storage bag:

– A fist-sized piece of red gold.

– A piece of green wood about the size of a baby's arm.

– A bottle of clear and translucent spiritual water.

– A piece of fiery red stone.

– One bag of earth-yellow soil.

These were the five elemental spiritual materials he bought at Niutou Mountain to cultivate the Immortal Beauty Technique.

He placed the spiritual materials in front of him and sat cross-legged.

"Screech!"

Lu Changsheng lightly shouted as he activated the Immortal Beauty Technique. Spiritual energy surged within him, causing the five types of spiritual materials to float in the air and slowly rotate around him.

As a result, wisps of aura flew out from the spiritual materials and entered his body.

Thus, ten days later, Lu Changsheng had completely refined all the five-element spiritual materials and opened his eyes, thus completing the foundation of the Immortal Beauty Technique.

In the following long period of time, the Immortal Beauty Technique would work automatically, refining his appearance without the need for cultivation, making him more and more handsome.

The moment the technique was successfully established, Lu Changsheng's entire being underwent a mysterious transformation.

Not only did his facial features change, but his aura also underwent subtle changes.

However, it was difficult to describe the specific details.

It was just that he seemed much more comfortable, as if he was basking in the spring breeze.

Lu Changsheng didn't pay too much attention to these minor changes on his body. He left the cultivation room and went to the courtyard to accompany his wives, concubines, and children.

In the courtyard, his eldest son, Lu Ping'an, was sleeping with the little Nine Netherworld Hound, looking very harmonious.

When they first brought the Nine Netherworld Hound back, his wives and concubines were a little worried, afraid that it might harm the child.

But after a while, they found that the Nine Netherworld Hound was very gentle.

Besides eating, it mostly slept, so they gradually stopped worrying.

They fed it every day on behalf of Lu Changsheng.

Meanwhile, a group of children enjoyed the Nine Netherworld Hound's company as a playmate, often disturbing him to the point that he could not sleep peacefully.

Six days later, Lu Changsheng's fourteenth child was born.

It was a boy with no Spirit Root.

With so many children, Lu Changsheng felt that he was becoming increasingly indifferent to the newborns.

Without Spirit Root or system rewards, even witnessing the birth of a child didn't bring him much joy.

"No wonder the ancient emperors treated their sons like playthings," Lu Changsheng remarked as he looked at his fourteenth son, feeling a bit nostalgic.

He could clearly feel the change in his mentality over the years.

However, he only occasionally thought about these feelings and quickly pushed them out of his mind.

Page 3 of 4

Chapter 38: The Second Child with Spirit Root!

Time flies by like a flash, and half a year has passed in the blink of an eye.

In those six months, Lu Changsheng had given birth to fifteen or sixteen children.

None of them had Spirit Root, which made Lu Changsheng even more eager for the child in Qu Zhenzhen's womb.

At the same time, thanks to Lu Changsheng's efforts in the past six months, he had impregnated five more concubines.

Except for Qu Zhenzhen, who was still pregnant with her first child, all of his other three wives and six concubines were already pregnant with their second child.

Even Lu Zier and Lu Qing'er, the two sisters, had already begun their third pregnancies.

One day, after Lu Changsheng finished his daily cultivation, he went to the study to start making talismans.

These two tasks had become his daily routine.

With his cultivation at the third level of Qi Refinement, making mid-level talismans was no longer a challenge for Lu Changsheng.

He could paint them easily.

As for the high-level talismans, due to the limitations of his spiritual strength and mental energy, as well as the quality of the brush, ink, and paper, they posed some difficulties.

He could only risk failure and forcibly create some relatively simple high-grade talismans.

Therefore, only a small portion of the advanced talisman paper and ink he bought from Niutou Mountain was used to make talismans for emergencies.

He planned to wait until his cultivation progressed further, buy a good brush, and then make more talismans.

After all, there was no way to sell the talismans he was making now, so he was just making them for his own use in case of emergencies.

After making two mid-level talismans, Lu Changsheng put down his brush and prepared to relax with his wives and concubines.

As he was leaving the study, a servant handed him a letter.

It was a letter from Hong Yi.

The letter mainly talked about catching up on old times and mentioned that the writer had been doing well lately. His father, Marquis Ru Yi, had also entrusted him with some family affairs. Then he inquired about Lu Changsheng's current situation.

This was not the first letter Lu Changsheng had received from Hong Yi.

It was the third letter he had received since returning to Qingzhu Mountain, and Lu Changsheng naturally understood why Hong Yi was writing to him.

"Now I have some surplus talismans to sell. Even if the Lu family finds out, they won't blame me."

Lu Changsheng thought to himself.

The reason he had hesitated to sell talismans to Hong Yi before was simple.

He was afraid that his private dealings with Hong Yi would be discovered by the Lu family.

If the Lu Family found out and saw that he had a lot of talismans to sell, it wouldn't be good.

But after all this time, with over a year of experience as a skilled talisman master, it was normal for him to have some surplus talismans to sell.

Immediately, he replied in the letter that he did have some talismans for sale, and he could sell them if he needed them.

He also inquired about the terms of the transaction.

Naturally, It was impossible for him to leave Qingzhu Mountain just to sell the talisman so he left it up to Hong Yi to figure out how to proceed.

After finishing the letter, Lu Changsheng handed it to a servant to be sent to the post office.

The Lu family had a station for sending letters to the secular world, but it was relatively slow. It would probably take a month or more for a letter to reach Hong Yi.

If there were urgent matters, they would have to use messenger talismans.

Afterwards, Lu Changsheng went to the backyard to accompany his wives and children.

This had become his daily routine.

Seeing Qu Zhenzhen's swollen belly, Lu Changsheng also remembered her brother's situation.

He went to Qingzhu Mountain Manor to ask Li Feiyu if there was any news about Qu Zhenzhen's brother, Qu Changge, from the Crimson Whale Gang.

However, Li Feiyu said that they still hadn't received any relevant information about Qu Changge from the Crimson Whale Gang.

It had been over half a year, and there was still no news about Qu Zhenzhen's brother, making Lu Changsheng even wonder if something unfortunate had happened to his brother-in-law.

After all, as Qu Zhenzhen said, her brother was just an ordinary scholar.

The journey to the capital for the imperial examination was thousands of miles long, and it was not out of the question that they might encounter danger along the way.

Lu Changsheng planned to wait for some time, and if there was still no news, he would ask Hong Yi to help him investigate.

After all, the Crimson Whale Gang was just a gang, and once they left Tianshui Prefecture, their influence was limited.

At the junction of Jiang Country Qinzhou and Jizhou, there is a cliff with steep mountains and jagged rocks.

The cliffs were surrounded by thick fog, making it difficult to see the other side. The valley between the cliffs, shrouded in fog, seemed to be bottomless, causing anxiety to those who approached.

At that moment, in the seemingly endless and deep valley:

*Whoosh…*

*Woo…*

A gray mist enveloped the area, and eerie winds howled, resembling the cries of ghosts and wolves.

In the middle of the valley was a blood-red lake about ten meters wide.

There were piles of white bones around the lake, sending chills down one's spine, and the blood-red lake itself was even more terrifying.

The bloodwater was dark and sinister, exuding an indescribable evil aura and bubbling with blood bubbles.

Each bursting bubble was accompanied by a faint and eerie howl.

In the middle of this lake of blood was a cocoon as thin as a cicada's wing, emitting a crystal-like blood-red light.

The cocoon undulated in the blood lake as if it were breathing, emitting a blood-red light that was both captivating and eerie.

If one looked closely, one could vaguely see a man wrapped in the cocoon.

At that moment, the man seemed to be about to open his eyes, but the next moment, a blood-red lotus flower appeared on his forehead, causing his eyes to close tightly as he fell into a deep slumber.

Three months later…

"Peak of the Third Level of Qi Refinement!"

"But to break through to the fourth level of Qi Refining, who knows how much longer it will take…"

In the cultivation room, Lu Changsheng, who was sitting cross-legged, opened his eyes, exhaled lightly, and muttered to himself.

"It took me one year and four months to break through from Qi Refining Level Two to Qi Refining Level Three."

Lu Changsheng had reached the peak of Qi Refining Level Three.

But this time, he could clearly feel that the breakthrough from Qi Refining Level Three to Qi Refining Level Four was different from before.

There was a bottleneck, a hurdle that couldn't be overcome easily and required a lot of patience and hard work.

Lu Changsheng didn't pay too much attention to it.

After all, with his mediocre aptitude, it was already quite remarkable that he was able to progress at this rate and reach the peak of the third level of Qi Refinement.

He had a clear understanding of his own position.

A late bloomer!

Things would get better as he had more and more children.

"Zhenzhen should give birth soon."

Lu Changsheng stood up, patted his dust-free robe, and walked out of the practice room

Eleven days later, Qu Zhenzhen gave birth.

At the moment the baby was born, Lu Changsheng immediately felt a mysterious sensation outside the delivery room.

It was the palpitation of a Spirit Root.

He knew that his child had a Spirit Root.

This made Lu Changsheng very excited.

He felt that his anticipation over the past half year had not been in vain.

"It seems that I still have to have children with women who possess Spirit Roots."

"Otherwise, if I only have one Spirit Root, the probability of the child inheriting it would be too low."

"Before, when Little Seven had a Spirit Root, it was pure luck."

Lu Changsheng took a deep breath, feeling very happy and excited.

Seeing Lu Changsheng's attitude, some of his wives couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy.

Despite their virtuous and gentle nature, they couldn't help but feel that Lu Changsheng favored Qu Zhenzhen a bit.

Not only did he show more concern for Qu Zhenzhen on ordinary days, but now, with the birth of their children, he seemed much happier than before.

However, they also understood the reason.

Qu Zhenzhen had a Spirit Root and could cultivate immortality, and the children she had with Lu Changsheng would probably inherit Spirit Roots as well.

Naturally, this caused Lu Changsheng to show a little more favoritism.

"When Little Seven was born, the system gave a bonus."

"If I have ten children with Spirit Roots, the system should give a bonus as well."

Lu Changsheng didn't notice his wives' expressions as he was immersed in the joy of the child's birth.

When Little Seven, Lu Xianzhi, was born, he received a reward for having his first child with a Spirit Root. This led him to speculate that the system would probably give rewards based on the number of Spirit Root children born.

Soon the midwife came out of the delivery room carrying the baby.

It's a boy.

Lu Changsheng walked into the delivery room with the baby in his arms and visited Qu Zhenzhen.

Although Qu Zhenzhen was a cultivator, she became pregnant not long after she started practicing.

As a result, she had not yet completed the process of refining qi in her body, and her body remained very weak.

Moreover, the early stages of qi cultivation don't improve one's physical condition very much.

Seeing the weak Qu Zhenzhen, Lu Changsheng put her to sleep, handed the child to the wet nurse, and went to the cultivation room to cultivate.

He couldn't see the child's Spirit Root, and he couldn't clearly observe the changes in his own Spirit Root.

Therefore, he could only judge the improvement of his Spirit Root and estimate the level of the child's Spirit Root through this simple and straightforward method of cultivation.

Page 4 of 4

Chapter 39: The Fifth Lottery Draw!

A few hours later, Lu Changsheng opened his eyes and took a long breath.

"It's a bit better than Xiao Qi's spiritual root."

Through the cultivation he had just done, he could sense that his cultivation speed had increased by more than ten percent compared to before.

This indicated that the child's Spirit Root was better than the first child he had with Spirit Root, Lu Xianzhi's Spirit Root.

But it wasn't significantly better.

Lu Changsheng estimated that it was also a low-grade Spirit Root, maybe eighth or seventh grade.

Because of the spiritual roots of his last child, Lu Xianzhi, Lu Changsheng had already had some expectations in his mind.

The highest was an eighth-class Spirit Root.

Like him, it was most likely a ninth-class Spirit Root.

"That's enough. With this ten percent improvement and the blessing of Xiao Qi's Spirit Root, my cultivation speed has almost reached that of an eighth grade Spirit Root."

"As long as my children are born in large numbers, even if they all have low-grade Spirit Roots, I can still bring about a qualitative change through quantity."

"Perhaps my future cultivation speed can even surpass the legendary Heaven Spirit Root!"

Lu Changsheng muttered to himself, feeling very satisfied.

This kid only had a low-grade Spirit Root, so he didn't care too much about it.

As far as he was concerned, it was already very good that his child had a Spirit Root.

Where else would there be requirements for levels?

Besides, when these two children grow up and their Spirit Roots fully develop, it will be a great improvement for him.

Most importantly, after the children grow up and become adults, they will be able to cultivate immortality, and their strength will enhance his own as a father.

And if the children have Spirit Roots, there is also a chance that when they marry and have children in the future, their descendants will also have Spirit Roots.

From generation to generation, there is hope and the future!

Thinking about having more children with Spirit Roots in the future, all these children successfully cultivating, branching out, and he as their father being able to relax, Lu Changsheng felt ecstatic, feeling a bright future ahead.

Three days later, Lu Changsheng received another letter.

It was from Hong Yi.

He said that as long as Lu Changsheng had a certain amount of talismans, he could send trusted people with spirit stones to the side of Qingzhu Mountain to trade and show his sincerity.

After reading the letter, Lu Changsheng thought for a moment.

He replied that if Hong Yi came in three or four months, he would be able to produce about one hundred talismans.

After all, it had been a long time, and selling a hundred talismans wouldn't be excessive.

Besides wanting to make some money from selling talismans, Lu Changsheng also considered using the profits to strengthen his relationship with Hong Yi through the talisman business.

Earlier, Hong Yi had mentioned in his letters that he was in charge of some affairs at Marquis Ru Yi's residence.

He was dealing with cultivators, gathering information from the cultivation world, searching for people with Spirit Root aptitude, and finding cultivation resources and treasures in the mundane world through martial artists in the Jianghu.

Therefore, Lu Changsheng felt that he might be able to use Hong Yi in the future.

First, he could use Hong Yi to get some cultivation materials and resources without having to go out himself.

And…

As the number of children increased, Lu Changsheng also noticed a problem.

It seemed like he was having children a little too fast.

Originally, he had planned to wait until his children were in their teens before sending them out into the mundane world.

However, Lu Changsheng realized that at his current rate of having children, by the time Lu Ping'an, the first batch of children, reached their teens, he would have around seventy to eighty, or even close to a hundred children.

Of course, having many children was not a problem. Under his current circumstances, he could afford to raise them all.

The problem was that such a situation had never happened in Qingzhu Valley before.

Some time ago, the housekeeper Lu Bo came to talk to him and said in a vague way that it was okay to have a baby, but he wanted Lu Changsheng to take his time.

Previously, Lu Yuanding had mentioned that children should be sent out when they are six years old, but it wouldn't matter if they stayed an extra three to five years.

However, with so many children, Lu Changsheng estimated that the Lu family would probably not agree to keep them in Qingzhu Valley until they were in their teens.

Lu Changsheng also thought about strengthening his relationship with Hong Yi.

When the time came to raise the child in the secular world, in addition to relying on the Crimson Whale Gang, he could also ask Hong Yi for help in taking care of the child.

After all, compared to the Crimson Whale Gang, the route through Marquis Ru Yi's residence with Hong Yi seemed to be more stable.

As for placing the child with the secular Lu family, Lu Changsheng was not very willing. He was afraid that his child would be indoctrinated with a bunch of Lu Family-related family thoughts while growing up in the Lu Family.

In the blink of an eye, another two months passed. Lu Changsheng's eighteenth and nineteenth children were born.

As expected, neither of them had Spirit Roots.

After the birth of these two children, Lu Changsheng was eagerly looking forward to the next child, which would be born in about a month.

This would be his twentieth child.

According to his speculation on system achievements, the number twenty might trigger a system achievement reward.

Looking at the clear and crisp fall weather outside, Lu Changsheng went for a walk in the backyard with a baby in each arm.

In the courtyard, his three-year-old, almost four-year-old eldest son, Lu Ping'an, was playing with some small children, chasing and frolicking with the Nine Netherworld Hound.

Raised for over a year, the Nine Netherworld Hound had grown considerably.

Standing over a foot tall, its fur was as black as ink, smooth and shiny like satin, with sharp fangs protruding from its mouth, and a crimson vertical mark on its forehead that was frightening to look at.

Lu Changsheng estimated that even an ordinary martial artist would be no match for the current Nine Netherworld Hound.

A demonic beast with a heavenly bloodline was no joke.

However, when faced with human children who were wary of dogs and were so young, even the Nine Netherworld Hound with a trace of true spirit bloodline could only run around and flee from the children's pursuit.

When it saw a child fall, it would rush back to help him up.

He was bearing the pressure that should not be there at his age.

Compared to Lu Ping'an, his second son Lu Wuyu and his sister Lu Wuyou were much calmer, watching their brothers and sisters run around.

Lu Changsheng looked at the children playing in the courtyard, his wife holding the baby, and his pregnant wife, with a faint smile on his lips.

This was the simple life he led – cultivating, spending time with his wives and children, enjoying peace, tranquility, and happiness.

However…

Lu Changsheng knew very well that in this world, in this society, such peace, happiness, and beauty were fragile like soap bubbles.

Strength was needed to protect this tranquil beauty.

"So I must strive to protect this peaceful and beautiful life and make our future life even better," Lu Changsheng muttered to himself.

A month passed in the blink of an eye.

Lu Changsheng's long-awaited twentieth child was finally born.

Even though the child was born without any Spirit Root stirring, the system message he had been expecting sounded.

[Congratulations, host, on reaching twenty offspring. You have earned a chance to draw a prize!]

"Just as I hoped!"

Lu Changsheng exclaimed in delight upon hearing the system's notification.

After settling the child, Lu Changsheng went to his study to begin his fifth drawing.

"System, I want to draw a lottery."

Lu Changsheng muttered silently.

Immediately, the familiar lottery wheel appeared in front of him.

"I wonder if I can draw a cultivation technique this time?"

Lu Changsheng thought to himself as he looked at the lottery wheel.

At this stage, what he wanted most was a good cultivation technique.

After all, in order to build a towering skyscraper from the ground, a solid foundation was essential.

With a good cultivation technique, he would be able to improve both his foundation and his cultivation speed, and he would be able to reach a higher level than his current shoddy cultivation technique.

Lu Changsheng was extremely worried. He was afraid that if his cultivation realm increased in the future, but his basic martial arts techniques remained inadequate in the early stages, it would lead to an unstable and weak foundation compared to others, which would cause discomfort.

Without further ado, Lu Changsheng took a deep breath and said, "Start the lottery!"

Immediately, a golden light appeared on the pale red roulette wheel and began to spin rapidly.

After a moment, the golden light slowed down, and to Lu Changsheng's eager eyes, it stopped at the martial arts technique spot.

Chapter 40: Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique!

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining the Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique.]

[The reward has been issued to the system space, and the host can check it at any time.]

A translucent jade booklet pattern appeared along with the system prompt sound.

"Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique?"

"Is this a body refining technique?"

Although joy had just appeared on Lu Changsheng's face, it froze again.

Although he wanted to cultivate techniques, what he wanted was a qi refining technique, not a body refining technique.

Among the cultivators, there was also the practice of body refinement known as body cultivation.

Compared to cultivation techniques, body cultivation could greatly compensate for a cultivator's weaknesses in the early stages, such as weak survival skills and melee skills.

However, body cultivation technique required more time, effort, and resources than qi cultivation technique.

Most cultivators simply didn't have the time, energy, and resources to cultivate both body and qi refinement technique.

After all, for most cultivators, the cultivation base, the magical treasures, and the divine abilities were their main priorities.

The physical body was only a secondary concern.

As a dignified immortal cultivator, who would want to fight in hand-to-hand combat?

Body cultivation certainly has its advantages in the early stages.

"Sigh, the first time I drew a technique, it was an auxiliary technique. Now I have a body refining technique."

"Is it really that difficult to get a qi refining technique?"

Lu Changsheng shook his head with a sigh.

"But since it's a body refining technique, so be it. It's always good to have a variety of skills."

"Besides, the body is the foundation of the immortal. Other cultivators may not focus much on body refinement, but the path I intend to take in the future does indeed require me to refine my physical body."

Lu Changsheng took a deep breath.

Of course, he didn't despise body refining techniques.

It's just that at this stage, relatively speaking, he was more interested in qi refining techniques.

However, as a cultivator with several wives and concubines, and one who planned to take on more in the future, he felt that he really needed body refinement to properly improve his physical body.

Soon, Lu Changsheng opened the system space to check the technique he had acquired.

[Technique: Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique]

[Grade: Authentic]

[Description: An inherited technique of Bai Zao Mountain, it forges the flesh, meridians, and bones of the human body with heavenly treasures and earthly treasures, making the physical body as strong as a magical weapon, indestructible like a vajra, and possessing various divine abilities of different magical weapons!]

"Wow!"

"This is actually a genuine class technique!"

Lu Changsheng was surprised to see the level of the technique.

Techniques are divided into: Primary, Advanced, Profound, Peripheral, and Genuine.

Genuine Grade is the highest grade he currently knows.

The Immortal Grace Technique that he had obtained earlier was a Peripheral Grade Technique, so he was extremely surprised.

He had thought that the system could only produce Peripheral Grade techniques.

Unexpectedly, this time, it directly gave him a Genuine Grade technique.

"I can only say that the system is awesome!"

After seeing the description of the Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique, Lu Changsheng couldn't help but take a deep breath.

Using heavenly materials and earthly treasures to forge the flesh, meridians, and bones of the human body, making the body similar to a magical weapon with the power and abilities of a magical weapon.

Just by looking at this description, one could tell how extraordinary this technique was and how terrifying it would be once it was perfected.

"However, if you refine your body like a magic weapon, you won't make yourself infertile, right?"

Lu Changsheng suddenly thought of a problem.

He stayed at Qingzhu Mountain every day and liked to read books in his spare time.

The books he read were very diverse, and he remembered reading in an ancient book that many seemingly powerful techniques had side effects.

For example, after cultivation, a man's body might become female and unable to reproduce, or his character and temperament might be affected by the technique, and so on.

If there really were such side effects, he would never be able to cultivate them.

Without thinking too much, Lu Changsheng's mind stirred slightly, and he activated the Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique.

Immediately.

Information about the Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique, including the cultivation method, detailed techniques, and other information, poured into Lu Changsheng's mind like a revelation.

After a long time, Lu Changsheng opened his eyes and took a deep breath.

This technique was incredibly deep.

If it hadn't been for the system that directly imparted the technique into his mind, he would have been able to understand it directly.

For such an authentic technique, without someone to guide him, even if it was placed in front of him, it would be difficult for him to understand it and start practicing it.

Even if he managed to understand it, without guidance he would easily run into problems in his cultivation.

As for the side effects he had just thought of, after thoroughly understanding this Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique, he realized that he had worried too much.

An authentic technique is great and profound.

At this level of technique, aside from the high threshold and the difficulty of cultivation, there were basically no problems like side effects.

"However, the more powerful the technique, the more difficult it is to cultivate."

Lu Changsheng also sighed.

The cultivation method of this Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique sounded very simple.

Using rare and precious materials from heaven and earth, one can refine the flesh, meridians, and bones of the human body into treasures.

In this process, one can either refine the entire body into a supreme treasure all at once, or one can proceed slowly and refine it step by step.

But ultimately, the goal is to forge the entire body into an indestructible vajra body that can rival heavenly treasures.

With a simple gesture one can unleash earth-shattering divine powers.

However, cultivating this technique is extremely difficult and resource-intensive.

From the very beginning, one must rely on rare and precious materials from heaven and earth to nourish the body.

As the body adapts, higher-level materials must be used to temper and refine the flesh.

This allows the body to gradually progress, comparable to treasures such as magical instruments, spiritual treasures, divine treasures, heavenly treasures, and more.

This process not only consumes resources, but it is also extremely dangerous and requires the utmost caution.

If one is too aggressive or impatient, a small mistake could cause the body to be unable to withstand the refining effects, resulting in its collapse and demise.

After all, the refinement of the body into various treasures is an unimaginable and extremely dangerous act that inherently defies the natural order.

"But I have fully understood this Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique. As long as I am patient and progress slowly, there should be no problem."

"Besides, even though this Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique is difficult to cultivate, it contains a secret method that allows for shortcuts."

"That is, you can condense the treasures directly into your body and use them to nourish yourself."

"It would be impossible for ordinary cultivators to use treasures to refine their bodies, because most of the cultivators of the Foundation Establishment only have one or two treasures at most."

"But I have the system. In the system's prize wheel, even authentic-grade cultivation techniques can be drawn. If I can draw a treasure from the treasure wheel, maybe even a spiritual treasure!"

"If I can get a treasure in the future, I can use it to cultivate this Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique, which will allow me to make rapid progress in body refinement."

Lu Changsheng thought silently, his eyes flickering with determination.

Although this technique was very difficult and had an extremely high threshold, in Lu Changsheng's eyes, it was still very good and suited him well.

Immediately, Lu Changsheng left the study and went to the training room.

He took out a lump of black iron the size of a pot lid and started practicing the Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique.

This lump of iron was the shield magic instrument he had received from the three bandits at Niutou Mountain earlier.

Under the attack of the talismanic golden brick, the shield artifact was damaged and deformed, destroying all of its restictions and making it suitable only for sale as scrap.

However, this scrap could still be used to create artifacts, making it a kind of 'Heaven and Earth Treasure'.

Lu Changsheng sat cross-legged, holding the shield, and began to use the Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique.

As his palms circulated spiritual energy, they gradually turned crimson, extracting the essence of the material from the shield artifact to nourish his body.

The shield was refined from cold, dark iron, and as Lu Changsheng absorbed its essence, he felt a touch of coldness entering his body.

After practicing for an hour, Lu Changsheng stopped and exhaled deeply.

"Even though I have reached the third level of qi refinement, my physical body lacks any foundation. Practicing for an hour is about the limit; if I continue for too long, it could easily harm my body."

"Besides, the material of this shield is of the metal element and tends to be cold. If I continue to practice the Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique with only this material, it might cause hidden injuries. It's best to get materials of the five elements to balance the yin and yang."

Lu Changsheng stood up and stretched his muscles and bones.

While practicing the body refining techniques, it was easy for the body to suffer from wear and tear, resulting in subtle hidden injuries that were difficult to detect.

Since Lu Changsheng had thoroughly understood the path of body refinement through the Treasure, he naturally knew how to practice this technique to maximize its benefits without harming his body.