When mentioning the beast tide, there were constant reminders.
"Father, how have you been lately?" Lu Xuanji asked.
"Still the same as always, I am already one hundred and thirty years old. Without a great opportunity, it's hard to become a Purple Mansion Cultivator. Only you have a good chance!" Father said with a smile, full of expectations for his son.
Father awakened his spirit root at the age of six, with the qualification of Three Spirit Roots, inclined towards the lower class. At the age of fifty-three, he reached the peak of Qi Refining. At that time, there happened to be an extra Foundation Establishment Pill in the clan, which Father bought with contribution points and took to attempt Foundation Establishment.
Unfortunately, the attempt at Foundation Establishment failed.
Then, he entered a long and arduous debt repayment period.
After working hard for the clan for twenty consecutive years, he finally paid off the debt.
At the age of seventy, unwilling to give up, Father closed off again to attack the Foundation Establishment Realm. This time, without a Foundation Establishment Pill, he still miraculously turned the impossible into possible and became a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.
After becoming a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, Father was in high spirits and wanted to attack the Purple Mansion Cultivator, but soon reality slapped him in the face.
It took twenty years to break through a small layer.
The time spent in the later period was even more.
At the time of sitting down, Father was only at the fifth layer of Foundation Establishment.
Seeing no hope for Purple Mansion, Father placed his hopes on the next generation.
At the age of one hundred, he married a female cultivator from the Ye Family, who is Mother, and had three children over thirty years.
Eldest brother, without a spirit root, went to the mortal world, marrying many wives, and lived carefree.
Second sister, with Five Spirit Roots and limited prospects, worked in the clan for ten years, then went to the secular world to manage family business.
He awakened Three Spirit Roots, leaning towards the upper class, comparable to Dual Spirit Roots, with hope for Purple Mansion.
Father placed some hopes on Lu Xuanji.
For the son's future, some things need to be planned in advance.
"Son, do you know how much a Foundation Establishment Pill costs?"
Father asked.
"A Foundation Establishment Pill costs about ten thousand spirit stones," Lu Xuanji said, quoting the price of the Foundation Establishment Pill.
The various materials needed for a Foundation Establishment Pill cost three thousand spirit stones. However, after refining into an elixir, the price is ten thousand spirit stones, with a profit margin of two hundred thirty percent, truly a huge profit.
"Ten thousand spirit stones is only the market price!" Father sighed, "The actual price is at least fifteen thousand spirit stones."
"According to the family rules, to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill, three conditions must be met: one is to reach Qi Refining Peak before the age of sixty; another is to gather ten thousand spirit stones or contribution points; and one is to make corresponding contributions in the clan."
"Son, if you want to buy a Foundation Establishment Pill before sixty, you need to accumulate at least ten thousand spirit stones. My annual income is four hundred spirit stones, and after excluding some necessary expenses, I can save two hundred spirit stones a year. If we're frugal, and add the contribution points saved before, and borrow some debts, it is still possible."
"Dad, isn't it too tight for you like this? Do you have enough spirit stones for expenses?" Lu Xuanji was worried, "Without spirit stones, how do you cultivate?"
Father saving spirit stones means that his expenses are very low, progress in cultivation will be very slow, or even may not advance.
It means that Dad has already given up cultivation to save money for him to buy a Foundation Establishment Pill.
"My prospects are limited. Whether I become the fifth layer or seventh layer of Foundation Establishment, it makes little difference; I am still far from the Purple Mansion Realm. I might as well support you!" Father said, quite open-minded, with an indescribable calm in his words.
"Father, you don't have to do this. You are sacrificing too much!"
Lu Xuanji said.
"My sacrifice is great, but for you, it is all worth it. Without the sacrifice of our predecessors, where would the rise of the younger generation be!" Father said, "If you can become a Purple Mansion Ancestor, Dad's sacrifice is worth it. Our generation is not afraid of sacrifice, just afraid that the sacrifice is not valuable! I will save the spirit stones, you must strive to reach the peak of Qi Refining before fifty."
Lu Xuanji sighed, "Father, I will work hard!"
The family gathered together, chatting and speaking some words of closeness.
Mother has Five Spirit Roots, with low qualifications; now in her fifties, but only at the second layer of Qi Refining, she mostly plants some spirit medicine around Purple Sun Mountain, or refines some White Sun Pills to earn profit. Father guards a certain mine vein, leading some cultivators from the family to mine spiritual ore.
The difficulty of mining spiritual ore is high, with various dangers that might arise. Mortals cannot participate in the mining, so only cultivators can personally go to mine spiritual ore.
Father, as a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, often entered the mine caves to mine some spiritual ore.
Father smiled, talking about some events that happened at the spiritual ore mines, not only having to guard against demonic insects appearing in the mine veins, but also against some loose cultivators who engage in robbery.
In Father's description, loose cultivators are unstable factors in the cultivation realm, often killing and robbing treasures, plundering mine veins, looting some shops, engaging in wicked dealings, with poor moral integrity, doing things without any regard, to the extreme of evil.
Lu Xuanji listened and asked questions.
...
After a three-month vacation, Father left.
The ore veins couldn't do without Father; a Foundation Establishment presence was needed.
Not long after, the cultivators who had gone out returned one after another, gathering at Purple Sun Mountain.
Cultivators in retreat came out of their cave mansions.
Dong, dong, dong!
At this moment, the bell sounded, ringing continuously nine times.
The cultivators of the Lu Family gathered on the square, as the Purple Mansion Ancestor of the Lu Family appeared.
Upon appearing, the Lu Family Ancestor emitted a terrifying aura, a trace of horrible oppressive pressure emanated out, like a humanoid nuclear bomb, with destructive power.
"The once-in-a-century beast tide is about to appear... Under the beast tide, we cultivators must protect the mortals. Although mortals are insignificant, they are the foundation of cultivators. Without a large mass of mortals as a base, how would cultivators come into being? Saving an insignificant mortal today might be the mother of a future Nascent Soul True Monarch."
"I hereby order, each of you shall ride your flying boats, go and receive the mortals, and bring them to Purple Sun Mountain!"
"Lu Tianyi, responsible for Dan Yang County, to receive the mortals."
"Lu Tianming, responsible for Beichen County, to receive the mortals."
"Lu Xuance, responsible for Qingshui County, to receive the mortals."
"Lu Yan'an, responsible for Xuanwu County, to receive the mortals."
"Lu Yanping, responsible for Black Stone County, to receive the mortals!"
"Lu Wanli, responsible for Tianshui County, to receive the mortals!"
The ancestor ordered, and more than a dozen Foundation Establishment cultivators of the clan were dispatched, heading to nearby counties, to receive the mortals.