Chapter 299: The Wealthy Uncle! Phoenix Gu!

Hongye Valley Marketplace.

Inside a room in a tavern.

Qu Changge listened as his nephew recounted his life over the years, the situation at home, and the condition of his sister, Qu Zhenzhen.

Upon hearing that his sister was still as carefree and innocent as ever after all these years, a slight smile appeared on his stern face, softening the demonic aura between his brows.

Especially when he heard his nephew helplessly mention how he and his siblings were being pressured into marriage by their mother, Qu Zhenzhen, and that he had no choice but to come here to manage the business, he couldn’t help but laugh.

“Quanzhen, Yuzhen, Caizhen, Huaizhen.”

Qu Changge murmured the names of his four nephews and nieces.

He knew that among the four, Lu Quanzhen and Lu Caizhen had Spirit Roots, while Lu Yuzhen and Lu Huaizhen did not, making them ordinary people.

However, even Lu Quanzhen and Lu Caizhen’s Spirit Roots were low, being only Eighth-Tier and Ninth-Tier Spirit Roots.

“Quanzhen, what are your plans for the future? Is there anything you desire?”

Qu Changge asked gently.

“Plans? Desires?”

Lu Quanzhen paused at his uncle’s words.

He wasn’t sure if the other was testing him or being sincere.

After thinking for a moment, he said, “I am quite content with my current life. My only hope is to break through to Foundation Establishment in the future, so I can protect my family, my mother, and my younger siblings.”

“If I look further ahead, it might be to see the world after reaching Foundation Establishment.”

Lu Quanzhen said sincerely.

Although it wasn’t everything, it was indeed what he was thinking.

“Break through to Foundation Establishment and see the world.”

Qu Changge nodded slightly.

From the conversation, he could tell that his nephew was a smart and determined person.

While his words might not have been entirely honest, they were mostly true.

He understood this well.

After all, they had only just met, so it was impossible for the other to fully trust him.

Perhaps his nephew was still wary of him, unsure of his true intentions.

Qu Changge spoke softly, “With an Eighth-Tier Spirit Root, breaking through to Foundation Establishment will not be easy.”

“True, but I believe that effort can overcome anything.”

Lu Quanzhen’s expression was firm as he replied seriously, “My father only had a Ninth-Tier Spirit Root, yet he still became a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Now, with the support of the family, as long as I work hard, I have hope of breaking through to Foundation Establishment.”

“Lu Changsheng.”

Hearing this, Qu Changge was slightly taken aback by the determination in his nephew’s eyes.

From the information he had gathered, he naturally knew about his sister’s husband, which led him to suspect that the man had strayed onto a demonic path.

After all, it was extremely difficult for a cultivator with a lower-Tier Spirit Root, especially a Ninth-Tier one, to break through to Foundation Establishment.

He asked, “Do you respect your father?”

“Yes, Father may have his flaws, but he treats Mother and us siblings very well.”

Lu Quanzhen shared more about his family’s situation and his father, Lu Changsheng.

For instance, his father would scrimp and save to provide cultivation resources for his mother, his aunt, and to lay a foundation for him and his siblings.

The family his father built was mostly for their sake, even though it had been running at a loss, he ensured they had cultivation resources and benefits.

As for his father’s marriages and concubines, as a son, he didn’t feel it was his place to comment.

Hearing this, Qu Changge fell into deep thought, becoming more curious about meeting his brother-in-law.

His intuition told him that his brother-in-law must be hiding a big secret!

“Quanzhen, with an Eighth-Tier Spirit Root, breaking through to Foundation Establishment will be difficult.”

“This pill is called the Heavenly Restoration Pill. It has the effect of purifying a cultivator’s Spirit Root. After taking it, your Spirit Root will be improved, which will help you.”

Qu Changge produced a black jade porcelain bottle from his palm and handed it to Lu Quanzhen.

He knew that his nephew still didn’t fully trust him.

So, he planned to give him benefits to lower his guard.

Besides, his nephew’s biggest obstacle to breaking through to Foundation Establishment was his Spirit Root.

Since that was the case, improving his Spirit Root would solve the problem.

“Heavenly Restoration Pill, purifying the Spirit Root!?”

Lu Quanzhen was shocked as he looked at the porcelain bottle, unsure if his uncle was telling the truth.

Even though he had never heard of the Heavenly Restoration Pill, he knew that such pills that could improve Spirit Roots were incredibly rare and valuable!

If word got out, it would cause a huge uproar, even attracting Golden Core cultivators’ attention.

That his uncle could produce such a rare pill made him suspicious.

“However, I obtained this pill by chance. I’m not certain of its efficacy or properties. Do you dare to try it?”

Qu Changge asked with a slight smile.

“Since Uncle has offered it, I am naturally willing to try!”

After thinking for a moment, Lu Quanzhen respectfully accepted the offer.

He felt there was no reason for his uncle to harm him.

If his uncle wanted to kill him, he could have done so directly.

Unless his uncle wanted to control him through the pill to achieve something against Bihu Mountain.

But that possibility seemed unlikely.

Besides, he had taken precautions before coming here.

His father, Lu Changsheng, had given him an “Avatar Talisman,” which he could use to escape in case of danger.

He took the porcelain bottle, opened it, and poured out a pill the size of a dragon’s eye, emitting a crystalline glow.

The pill seemed alive, its glow fluctuating, with streams of light flowing across its surface.

“Heavenly Restoration Pill.”

Lu Quanzhen gazed at the pill, his pupils contracting slightly.

Just from its appearance, he could tell it was no ordinary pill.

Without hesitation, he swallowed the pill.

“Boom!”

As soon as Lu Quanzhen took the pill, a profound sensation surged through his body.

His Spirit Root!

His Spirit Root was throbbing!

A mysterious force was causing his Spirit Root to resonate.

Faced with this, Lu Quanzhen quickly sat cross-legged and began to absorb the pill’s effects.

“Heh.”

Watching his nephew’s resolute and decisive actions, without any hesitation, Qu Changge smiled faintly.

He had lied about the pill’s efficacy and properties to test his nephew.

Seeing his nephew’s response now, he was very satisfied.

On one hand, he was pleased with his nephew’s trust in him.

On the other hand, he was satisfied with his nephew’s decisiveness.

After all, in the world of cultivation, being indecisive was highly frowned upon.

His nephew was not only meticulous and intelligent, recognizing his uncle through a simple conversation.

But also calm and composed, barely reacting when his hidden talisman was discovered.

Now, faced with the pill from his uncle, he acted decisively, without hesitation, greatly pleasing Qu Changge.

He believed that his nephew would have no trouble reaching Foundation Establishment in the future. As for Golden Core… that would depend on his fate.

However, if it came to that, as his uncle, he would naturally help him a little more.

Time passed slowly.

After a long while.

Lu Quanzhen opened his eyes, clearly feeling that his Spirit Root had been improved.

But he wasn’t sure how much it had improved.

Qu Changge stepped forward, placing his hand on his nephew’s shoulder to check his Spirit Root.

“Hmm?”

At that moment, Qu Changge noticed a Spirit Talisman in his nephew’s forehead sea of consciousness.

The talisman was quite extraordinary, likely reaching the third level.

He didn’t touch it.

Realizing it was probably his nephew’s Substitute Life Charm.

As for how it came to be, he knew about his brother-in-law’s reputation as a Top-Tier second-level Talisman Master and guessed that it must have been given by him.

That his brother-in-law would give such a precious talisman to his nephew made him very pleased.

“Not bad, a Fourth-Tier Spirit Root.”

Qu Changge withdrew his hand and said with a light smile.

“Fourth-Tier Spirit Root!?”

Lu Quanzhen was stunned by the revelation.

A Fourth-Tier Spirit Root was already a Top-Tier middle-Tier Spirit Root, just one step away from becoming a High-Tier Spirit Root!

With an Eighth-Tier Spirit Root, he couldn’t guarantee breaking through to Foundation Establishment.

But now, with a Fourth-Tier Spirit Root, he was confident he could succeed in Foundation Establishment!

“Quanzhen thanks Uncle!”

Lu Quanzhen looked at Qu Changge, took a deep breath, and bowed respectfully.

At this moment, he realized that his uncle was not simple, definitely not an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator!

An ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator could never produce such a pill!

Nor would they so easily give such a rare pill to someone!

“Heh, no need to thank me. Here, take this fruit as well.”

Qu Changge produced a purple-gold fruit the size of a fist.

The fruit had dragon scale-like patterns and emitted a rich fragrance.

“Uncle, I can’t accept this without giving anything in return. I don’t even know how to thank you for the Heavenly Restoration Pill, so how can I accept this spiritual fruit as well?”

Lu Quanzhen said respectfully.

He didn’t recognize the fruit before him.

But its appearance alone made it clear that it was extraordinary.

At this moment, he really couldn’t understand why his uncle was giving him so many things upon their first meeting.

He hadn’t even had time to fully experience the effects of the Fourth-Tier Spirit Root.

“This is a gift from your uncle, just a token of my affection. Take it.”

Qu Changge said, his tone leaving no room for doubt.

“Thank you, Uncle!”

Lu Quanzhen took a deep breath, accepted the spiritual fruit, bowed, and then took a bite.

However, the Dragon Scale Fruit was so hard that he couldn’t bite through it.

“Heh, this fruit is called the Dragon Scale Fruit. It has the effect of cleansing the marrow, improving cultivation, and solidifying one’s foundation. To consume it, you need to crack it open with a Geng Metal tool.”

Qu Changge explained, taking out a small golden hammer and gently tapping the Dragon Scale Fruit, causing the dragon scales to fall off.

“Dragon Scale Fruit? Cleansing the marrow, improving cultivation, solidifying the foundation?”

Lu Quanzhen asked, looking at the fruit in his hand with a mix of surprise and doubt, “Uncle, should I go back to the training room at home to consume it?”

“Either way is fine.”

Qu Changge said casually.

Hearing his uncle’s words, Lu Quanzhen didn’t ask further.

After a moment, the Dragon Scale Fruit was fully peeled, revealing a golden fruit.

Without hesitation, under Qu Changge’s watchful gaze, Lu Quanzhen consumed the fruit.

The fruit’s flesh was fragrant, melting in his mouth.

It then turned into a surge of pure and immense energy that flowed through his entire body.

At this moment, Lu Quanzhen felt a warm sensation all over his body.

But as he finished the Dragon Scale Fruit, the immense energy surged through his body like a tidal wave.

“Boom, boom, boom—”

Inside Lu Quanzhen, it felt like a volcano erupting, rumbling loudly as his body trembled, and sweat and impurities seeped out from his pores.

“Quanzhen, the process will be a bit painful.”

Qu Changge said softly, throwing out several small flags that formed a barrier in the room to prevent too much noise.

After all, although the room had a barrier, it was only for soundproofing and wasn’t very effective.

“Buzz, buzz, buzz—”

Lu Quanzhen didn’t speak, and couldn’t even if he wanted to, as his face contorted in pain.

He felt as if every inch of his skin, every bit of his flesh, was undergoing an indescribable transformation, causing excruciating pain.

But despite the pain, he could clearly feel his body growing stronger, expelling impurities, and making his meridians and bones much tougher.

At the same time, the bottleneck of the Sixth Layer of Qi Refining he was stuck at broke through at that moment.

Effortlessly, as if it was meant to happen, he broke through!

After breaking through to the Seventh Layer of Qi Refining, his cultivation continued to rise!

The peak of the Seventh Layer of Qi Refining!

The Eighth Layer of Qi Refining!

“Boom!”

In no time, he broke through to the Eighth Layer of Qi Refining.

And his cultivation continued to rise, almost reaching the peak of the Eighth Layer of Qi Refining.

At this moment, even Lu Quanzhen was stunned.

He felt that the Dragon Scale Fruit’s effects were too exaggerated!

It had directly propelled him from the Sixth Layer of Qi Refining to the Eighth Layer!

Moreover, he could clearly feel that compared to the increase in cultivation, the Dragon Scale Fruit had mainly strengthened his body, meridians, bones, and foundation.

He opened his eyes and noticed a foul smell around him.

Nearby, Qu Changge gently raised his hand, and a breeze blew away the foul odor and impurities from Lu Quanzhen’s body, turning them into ashes.

“Quanzhen thanks Uncle!”

At this moment, Lu Quanzhen was at a loss for words.

He knelt before his uncle, expressing his heartfelt gratitude.

If he had any doubts or suspicions about his uncle before.

After the Heavenly Restoration Pill and Dragon Scale Fruit, he had none left.

There was no need!

If his uncle had ill intentions, why would he go to such lengths?

Just the pill and fruit alone were priceless treasures, impossible to measure with Spirit Stones!

He wasn’t worth such an effort if his uncle had ulterior motives!

So, it must be out of genuine familial affection!

Because of his mother, his uncle treated him so well!

“Quanzhen, no need to be so formal.”

Qu Changge smiled, hearing the sincerity in his nephew’s words.

He realized that at this moment, his nephew had come to trust him.

He asked, “Is your mother, along with Yuzhen, Caizhen, and Huaizhen, usually at Bihu Mountain?”

“Yes, Mother barely leaves Bihu Mountain.”

“If you wish to see Mother, I can invite her to stay at Hongye Valley Marketplace for a while. She will be very happy to know that you are still alive.”

Lu Quanzhen said, speaking to Qu Changge with a bit more closeness.

Yue Kingdom.

Inside a courtyard.

“What’s going on!?”

Lu Changsheng was utterly confused.

He had just sensed a mysterious resonance and knew that one of his children had developed a Fourth-Tier Spirit Root.

But then he realized, none of his children were just born.

After checking through his system, he found no new births.

This left him completely puzzled.

Just as he was pondering this, thinking it was a mistake, a surge of Qi suddenly appeared, condensing into a drop of liquid Qi.

The amount of Qi wasn’t much.

But it was the most Qi he had ever received at once.

Even more than when his son Lu Qingshan broke through from the Seventh Layer to the Eighth Layer of Qi Refining!

“What???”

Lu Changsheng was utterly baffled.

“Changsheng, what’s wrong?”

His wife, Lu Miaoge, noticed his strangg expression and immediately asked with concern.

“It’s nothing, nothing, just something came to mind.”

Lu Changsheng shook his head and said.

But he couldn’t contain his curiosity and said that he had a sudden insight in the talisman arts and needed to go digest it.

Hearing this, Lu Miaoge and Lu Miaohuan didd’t ask further.

Then, Lu Changsheng went to his room and started checking on each of his children’s statuses through his system.

After a long time.

[Name: Lu Quanzhen]

[Lifespan: 28/111]

[Talent: Fourth-Tier Spirit Root]

[Cultivation: Eighth Layer of Qi Refining]

[Ability: Management Compatibility (61%)]

“What’s going on?”

“How did Quanzhen’s Spirit Root become Fourth-Tier, and how did he suddenly break through from the Sixth Layer to the Eighth Layer of Qi Refining!?”

Lu Changsheng stared at his son’s status panel, utterly bewildered.

If it were just a breakthrough from the Sixth Layer to the Seventh Layer, he could understand.

After all, Lu Quanzhen had been stuck at that bottleneck for years, so breaking through was reasonable.

But the problem was, not only did he break through two layers, but his Spirit Root also jumped from Eighth-Tier to Fourth-Tier.

“Did Quanzhen encounter something, some kind of fortuitous event? But isn’t he still at Hongye Valley Marketplace managing the business?”

“And a Rare Treasure that can improve Spirit Roots to this level must be at least Third-Tier, extremely rare. Given Quanzhen’s situation, it should be difficult for him to come across such a treasure.”

Lu Changsheng was deeply puzzled, desperately wanting to go home to see what was going on with his son.

But at this moment, he could only temporarily suppress his confusion and curiosity.

By the time he returned to the courtyard, it was already dark.

Lu Changsheng called his wife to bed and mentioned the idea of going home soon.

The two women agreed, knowing that they had been away for a long time.

They said that once this trip was over, they would send their children back to Golden Sun Sect and then head home.

Jin Kingdom, Five Poison Sect.

Inside a lavish Great Hall.

Nangong Mili, dressed in a purple palace gown, her figure graceful and alluring, gazed at the dark golden bowl in her hand, covered with intricate patterns.

Inside the bowl was a Gu insect, shaped like a silkworm, its body golden and jade-like, shimmering with crystalline light.

This Gu insect’s body shone with brilliant hues, dreamlike and illusory, sometimes taking the form of a purple butterfly emerging from a cocoon, and at other times, a divine phoenix reborn from its ashes. It was mysterious, magnificent, and dazzling.

“Phoenix Gu.”

Nangong Mili gazed at the Gu insect, her emotions surging.

Years ago, when she learned about the Locking Emotion Gu from her disciple, Meng Xiaochan, she immediately returned to the sect and requested the Phoenix Gu, hoping to use it to undo the effects of the Locking Emotion Gu.

But the Phoenix Gu was rare, and the only one the sect had was used by the Five Poison Sect leader for healing.

She had waited ten years, and today, the new Phoenix Gu was finally ready.

“Lu Changsheng!”

Nangong Mili’s red lips parted slightly as the image of a handsome man appeared in her mind.

For the past ten years, she had been trying to forget Lu Changsheng.

The Locking Emotion Gu’s effect made it impossible to suppress feelings for its host.

These feelings would grow over time, becoming stronger and stronger.

Until one loved so deeply, they were utterly devoted, even losing themselves!

Although she had stayed away from Lu Changsheng for the past ten years, trying to suppress her longing.

The time they spent together, the Mysterious Pearl inside her, the Golden Core Dao Rhythm, and her daughter Nangong Yaoyao, made it impossible to forget him completely.

At this moment, she wasn’t even sure if her feelings for Lu Changsheng were due to the Locking Emotion Gu or were genuinely from her heart.

When the real seems false, and the false seems real, who can tell them apart?

“Even if I, Nangong Mili, fall for a man, I will not be the one to be overly sentimental!”

Nangong Mili’s cold and enchanting face turned serious as she pushed away the chaotic thoughts in her mind.

She then sent a message to her disciple, Meng Xiaochan, informing her that she was going into seclusion and asking her to take care of her daughter, Nangong Yaoyao, during that time.

When she thought of her daughter, Nangong Yaoyao, her cold and bewitching face softened, a maternal glow brightening her expression.