Journey of True Cultivation

Standing before a wooden door stood a secluded wooden house on the mountainside, hidden among thick trees. Only a narrow path marked the way down to the foot of the mountain.

Four figures were present. One was a nine year old boy. The other two were an eleven year old girl and a boy of the same age who stood beside her, clearly twins.

The boy stood facing them, positioned just outside the door. He smiled softly, his gaze fixed solely on the young girl's eyes.

Naturally, the twin brother noticed this look in the boy's eyes and felt a surge of irritation. But he didn't say or do anything. He knew there was little he could do about it. Instead, he had tried to persuade his sister to leave, pressing her repeatedly until she could no longer refuse.

The girl wore a sad smile, but her eyes remained crystal clear, beautiful, like a pair of pearls.

"Yuan, we'll go now," Wenli said gently. "But I'll come again after I awaken my fourth sense. So wait for me, alright? Take good care of Granduncle until then."

Yuan gave a bitter smile, his eyes filled with reluctant sadness. Still, he managed to say a few heartfelt words.

"Little brother will always make time if Big Sister comes to visit. There will always be a room for you in my humble house on this mountain."

He gave a quiet chuckle, filled with emotion, as the three slowly walked down the narrow path toward the foot of the mountain. He waved his hand gently.

Wenli waved back with a smile, while Baoyan and the guard trailing behind them gave only a polite nod, acknowledging Yuan's status within the family.

Now alone, Yuan let out a quiet sigh. He stepped back into his house, closed the door behind him, and wandered through the narrow hallways until he arrived at his cultivation room.

It had nearly been a full year since Yuan joined the Loose Long Family and became part of the Longwei Faction. A lot had changed during that time.

First of all, he was now nine years old and slowly approaching his tenth birthday. More importantly, his position within the family had drastically changed.

He was no longer considered a mere member of the Loose Long Family. He had become the designated heir to an elder's position, specifically, the successor to Elder Longwei Feng himself.

Normally, this would have been impossible. Outsiders could, at best, be appointed as minor elders, but they were never truly accepted into the core circle of power.

That all changed after the competition at the Martial Cloud Sect.

After displaying his exceptional talent in both cultivation and combat, Yuan's status began to rise rapidly. He was no longer just seen as a "Supreme Commander candidate", a title that was often more of a symbolic than meaningful.

Instead, he began to be treated like a true prince of the family.

The difference was like night and day. One was just a pawn on the board, the other, a piece with that could turn into real power and had true value to keep it.

But that wasn't the only change.

Since then, Yuan had thrown himself fully into cultivation. Just a month ago, he successfully awakened his third sense. That breakthrough had occurred during his latest stay in the Dragon Turning Cultivation Room.

Unlike his first visit, where he was only allowed to stay for a week, he now had access to the room at the beginning of each season, for a full month each time.

Thanks to this extended access, his cultivation had progressed significantly.

Naturally, the family took notice.

It was then that they officially recognized Yuan as a highly valued talent and finally treated him as one of their own. This elevation in status was only possible due to Old Man Longwei Feng's unwavering support, his influence, connections, and the trust he had earned within the family.

Without him, Yuan would never have received this level of respect.

Thinking about all the changes that had occurred, Yuan couldn't help but feel a surge of happiness. His long laid plans were finally beginning to unfold.

At first, he hadn't been sure whether he could even complete this initial step. But now, with everything proceeding so smoothly, his schemes were starting to take shape. Still, even as things progressed in his favor, he knew the clock was ticking.

He had just over six years left before his window of opportunity closed. By then, he needed to be at least at the peak of the early layer of the Blood Purification Stage. Without reaching that level, no matter how clever his schemes were, even if he could plot against the heavens themselves, he would be powerless and fall into his own trap.

Since being officially accepted as a true member of the Loose Long Family, Yuan had devoted himself to cultivation more intensely than ever before. He had pushed his training to its limits.

At one point, he had even asked Old Man Longwei Feng to allow him to undertake a brutal form of body tempering, one where he would intentionally damage his body and heal repeatedly, gradually forging a body of extreme resilience.

However, the old man had flatly refused.

Without sufficient healing pills, that kind of training would be more of a burden than a benefit. The time required for natural recovery would be too great, making the effort inefficient and even dangerous.

And without the old man's support, Yuan couldn't obtain the large number of healing pills he'd need for such extreme methods.

Accepting this reality, Yuan focused instead on refining his current cultivation. But with each new sense, the process took longer. If he estimated correctly, awakening his fourth sense would take at least another one or two years.

He still had some pills that could assist in awakening the next sense, but he had deliberately chosen to save them. His plan was to use those cultivation pills only when he approached the breakthrough to his fifth and final sense.

As for his influence within the Five Long Factions, it remained relatively shallow. However, his name was now known throughout both the main and inner families, recognized for his extraordinary talent and, of course, for having the unwavering support of Old Man Longwei Feng.

Thanks to his growing friendship with Wenli and Baoyanm, the twin princess and prince of the Longwei Faction, Yuan had even discovered the old man's true cultivation level.

According to Wenli, Old Man Feng wasn't just an elder, he was one of the family's three Grand Elders, standing at the high layer of the Blood Purification Stage.

That revelation had momentarily shocked Yuan. He had long suspected the old man held a significant position, but he had never imagined he was such a powerful cultivator.

Yet what surprised Yuan even more was learning that there were only three Grand Elders in the entire Loose Long Family who had reached that stage. As for the family head's cultivation level, Yuan hadn't dared to ask.

Some things were still too far above him to pry into, at least for now.

"Haaa…" Yuan sighed aloud, his mind swirling with countless thoughts that refused to settle.

"Scheming is truly something exhausting," he muttered inwardly, his eyes growing heavy with fatigue. Only then did he realize once again that he hadn't slept in several days.

Not sleeping had become a habit for him ever since his days in the Howling Wind Sect. Back then, the effects of the Azure Basilisk Flame allowed him to kept him constantly awake, allowing him to cultivate for many months without any problems.

But now, without the Azure Basilisk flame here, the once normal habit for him became a bad habit, annoying him constantly when he is cultivating for more than two days.

Although this bad habit had improved over the years, he now manage to sleep twice a week, he would still often forget to rest altogether, especially when he was deep in cultivation or lost in thoughts.

His mind was always active.

"Tsk." Annoyed by the creeping tiredness, Yuan couldn't help but to surrender to it.

He falled down on his bed and closed his eyes, the last thing he saw before he falled asleep was an tube filled with a little blood that stayed around his small table. 

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