"Evil beast, today is the day you die!"
Ancestor Dongguo shouted loudly, flicking his Dao robe. A golden sword beam flew out, shooting directly at the blood pupil of the Foundation Establishment spider. However, the spider raised one of its legs.
Clang!
The Foundation Establishment Blood Pupil Spider retreated three or four steps, and the golden sword beam rolled back accordingly.
After circling in the air, it hovered at Ancestor Dongguo's side.
Knowing that a formidable opponent had arrived this time, the Foundation Establishment Blood Pupil Spider immediately let out a fierce roar at Ancestor Dongguo.
In the next moment, it spat out a strand of spider silk, shooting it toward Ancestor Dongguo.
Ancestor Dongguo's divine consciousness spread out. Even with the faint mist, how could he be caught in a sneak attack?
After easily evading, he launched a fierce attack on the Foundation Establishment Blood Pupil Spider.
Not to mention he still had many disciples and grand-disciples to consider.
Ancestor Dongguo launched a violent attack for a moment, completely enraging the demon beast and luring it away from the vicinity of its nest. However, the Foundation Establishment Blood Pupil Spider seemed to have concerns and refused to leave too far no matter what.
Ancestor Dongguo had no choice but to keep it entangled.
A Dongguo family youth at the seventh layer of Qi Refining, wearing the family's only breath concealment magical artifact, secretly entered the cave.
At the same time, seeing the Foundation Establishment demon beast leave, Xu Mingwei immediately transmitted his voice, "The mist has no effect on me, and with the breath concealment array artifact, infiltrating shouldn't be a big problem. You go wait at the outer perimeter. I'll go get the spider eggs, and once I have them, I'll immediately rendezvous with you."
Xu Mingshu and Xu Dezhao nodded slightly and immediately moved away from this place.
The cave inside was not small and similarly, mist lingered within.
Neither the Dongguo family's young cultivator nor Xu Mingwei dared to rashly use divine sense to probe. If there were still Blood Pupil Spiders present, it would alert them.
If the Foundation Establishment demon beast returned, they would certainly face near-certain death.
"Damn it, with such poor visibility, how am I supposed to find anything?" the Dongguo youth cursed inwardly.
Xu Mingwei's eagle eyes emerged as he looked around in all directions. Although he discovered where the Blood Pupil Spider eggs were located, there were two Blood Pupil Spiders guarding that spot.
They were each as tall as a person and were seventh layer of Qi Refining demon beasts.
Perhaps he could divert trouble eastward.
Xu Mingwei immediately threw a stone near the Dongguo youth's feet.
This sound was particularly clear in the cave.
Hiss, hiss!
The two Blood Pupil Spiders immediately let out a series of hisses.
"This is bad!" The Dongguo youth slapped his storage bag, took out a superior-grade ice-blue talisman, and quickly activated it.
"Seal them for me!"
Although the two Blood Pupil Spiders were not afraid of fire-element spells, ice-element spells could still freeze them for a period of time.
This was something Ancestor Dongguo had specially bestowed upon him for self-defense.
He had originally wanted to sneak in quietly, but having been discovered, he no longer had any reservations. He instantly released his divine sense, probing the entire cave.
Then he discovered a figure in the process of stealing Blood Pupil Spider eggs.
Xu Mingwei naturally sensed this.
After taking seven eggs, he looked at the remaining one and recalled Xu Chuan's words, leave some leeway.
He immediately stopped and transformed into a black lightning bolt, darting out of the cave in an instant.
The Dongguo youth had wanted to chase after him, but seeing that one Blood Pupil Spider egg remained, and that the frozen Blood Pupil Spiders faintly showed signs of breaking free...
He immediately leaped to the side of the spider egg, took it, and also darted toward the cave exit.
Just as he approached the cave entrance, the two Blood Pupil Spiders had already broken free from the ice seal and let out sharp hissing sounds.
The Foundation Establishment Blood Pupil Spider not far away heard this sound and immediately moved toward the cave.
Ancestor Dongguo's divine consciousness constantly monitored the surroundings.
Seeing a figure dart out from the cave, he thought it was his own clan member at first, but quickly realized it was not. Just as he was about to give chase...
The Foundation Establishment Blood Pupil Spider, mistaking it for an attack, spat out a strand of spider silk to block him.
Then another hissing sound came from inside the cave, and only then did the Foundation Establishment Blood Pupil Spider disregard him and swiftly return.
Ancestor Dongguo planned to pursue that black figure again when another loud shout rang out.
"Ancestor, save me!"
The one sent in was a true spiritual root cultivator from the Dongguo family, and he also wore a rare breath concealment magical artifact. He could not be lost.
Ancestor Dongguo could only go save him first.
Narrowly escaping death, he rescued him from the jaws of the Foundation Establishment Blood Pupil Spider, then quickly ascended into the air.
"Did you obtain it?"
"Reporting to Ancestor, I obtained it, but only one egg. Someone else also entered the cave to steal them, but this disciple could not see clearly how many he took."
"That person, I also discovered him, but unfortunately due to an unlucky turn of events, I failed to intercept him." Ancestor Dongguo said, "I'll have someone escort you back to the clan first."
"The things my Dongguo family sets its sights on are not so easily taken away!"
With those words, he pursued in Xu Mingwei's direction.
The second encirclement ended hastily, with both the Blood Pupil Spiders and the encirclement team sustaining losses.
Those rogue cultivators had only come to watch the excitement and naturally had no courage to take action.
"Who is that person? His speed was swift as lightning. I wonder if he successfully stole spider eggs from the Dongguo family?"
"Do you even need to ask? Ancestor Dongguo personally went after him. How could he not have succeeded?!"
"This person is somewhat unfamiliar. I saw him traveling with two fairy maidens earlier. He should have recently arrived in Qingya Commandery. Could he be from a aristocratic family in another commandery?"
"Perhaps, but regardless of whether he's a rogue cultivator or from an aristocratic family, the Dongguo family probably won't let this matter rest."
A rogue cultivator suddenly cupped his fists toward the others, "Fellow Daoists, Qingya Commandery will probably not be very peaceful from now on. This Han will take his leave first."
The other rogue cultivators also returned the gesture with cupped fists, then watched as the cultivator surnamed Han departed.
"What this person said has some merit. If the Dongguo family vents their anger on us rogue cultivators, we'll inevitably become tools for their rage."
"A place of trouble, fleeing is the best strategy!"
"Exactly, exactly."
After Xu Mingwei rendezvoused with Xu Mingshu and the others, he continued flying on his sword.
The other two rode on Ah Da and Ah Er respectively.
After all, Xu Mingwei's speed already far exceeded cultivators of the same realm. At full force, he was even slightly faster than the Azure Fire Eagles at their current stage.
"Such fast speed, it even exceeds the scope of the Qi Refining stage."
Ancestor Dongguo pursued with full force from behind, occasionally forming hand seals to cast superior-grade wind-element spells. Only after two or three quarters of an hour did he finally spot Xu Mingwei and his group. However, this distance was still forty to fifty li away.
"There are actually accomplices, and those are late-stage Qi Refining flying spirit beasts?"
"Who are these people?"
His eyes gleamed as he pondered, then his voice carried forth, "Fellow Daoists, you've taken my Dongguo family's belongings and think you can just leave like this?"
"Ancestor Dongguo, these items are demon beast eggs. What do they have to do with the Dongguo family?" Xu Mingwei said, "Moreover, I only took one egg. Why must Ancestor pursue us so relentlessly?"
"If that's the case, then stop and let this old man examine things. If it's truly as you say, this old man will naturally let you leave."
Xu Mingwei laughed, "Is Ancestor perhaps joking?"
"If we stop, won't our lives and deaths be entirely in your hands?"
"This old man can swear an oath."
"Then please swear the oath first before we talk."
After that, Xu Mingwei paid him no more attention.
Ancestor Dongguo also stopped casting wind-element spells and instead took out a pill from his storage bag, swallowed it, and silently recovered his magical power.
Once his magical power recovered somewhat, he would pursue at full force again and might be able to catch up.
"Three little thieves, don't let this old man catch you!"
Foundation Establishment cultivators had considerable flying speed. The Azure Fire Eagles, after all, were still at a low realm. If they were at Qi Refining perfection, they should be able to exceed Ancestor Dongguo by quite a bit.
An hour later, Ancestor Dongguo suddenly accelerated, closing the distance by five or six li in just a moment.
If this continued, catching up to Xu Mingwei and his group was only a matter of time.
Xu Mingwei leaped onto the Azure Fire Eagle Ah Da's back, turned toward Ancestor Dongguo, and the Ink Flood Dragon Bow appeared in his hand.
The next moment, magical power surged.
A black dragon rushed toward Ancestor Dongguo, reaching him in an instant.
Ancestor Dongguo's expression changed, and he immediately summoned a superior-grade defensive magical artifact.
Clang!
The instant of collision produced a sound like a great bell ringing in the sky.
Struck by the impact, Ancestor Dongguo's flying speed immediately stalled, and he was sent flying back dozens of meters.
Although he suffered no injury, the arrow qi soared to the heavens. The might of a single arrow shook his spirit.
"It's actually even stronger than a Qi Refining perfection cultivator wielding a superior-grade magical artifact?!"
Such an attack was sufficient to threaten Ancestor Dongguo himself.
This momentary pause.
Xu Mingwei and his group once again disappeared from Ancestor Dongguo's sight.
Ancestor Dongguo gazed at the vast sea of clouds, a trace of hesitation arising in his heart.
Even if he expended magical power to catch up again, he might still be blocked by another arrow. Moreover, this expedition to suppress the spider nest was not without gains.
"However, these people are definitely not rogue cultivators. Most likely they're disciples of a Foundation Establishment aristocratic family from some commandery."
After deliberating briefly, Ancestor Dongguo flicked his sleeve and sighed, "Forget it."
He turned and returned to Qingya Commandery.
Half an hour later.
"Looks like he didn't pursue us." Xu Mingwei let out a long breath. He had really been afraid the other party would pursue relentlessly, chasing him all the way to the Xu family.
"That Ancestor Dongguo must have been frightened by Father's arrow," Xu Dezhao said with a beaming smile.
"That's right, Big Brother's full-force strike has already exceeded the scope of Qi Refining cultivators, approaching the attack power of the Foundation Establishment stage."
"I must also thank Father for his reminder," Xu Mingwei said. "Ordinary people who obtained these spider eggs would definitely not leave any for others. Because there was a gain this time, that Ancestor Dongguo hesitated."
"So, Big Brother, did you really only take one egg?" Xu Mingshu's eyes widened.
"How could that be? Of course I deceived him. There were eight Blood Pupil Spider eggs in total, and I took seven."
"Hehe hehe!" Xu Mingshu immediately laughed. "If that Ancestor Dongguo knew, he'd probably be so angry he'd vomit blood."
"With seven eggs, I'm confident I can cultivate a group of Blood Pupil Spiders for our Xu family in the future."
"That way, we'll never have to worry about materials for robes and boots again," Xu Dezhao also said with a happy smile.
Returning to the Xu family, Xu Mingshu immediately began hatching these Blood Pupil Spiders according to the method recorded in the "Spirit Control Scripture."
Xu Dezhao and Xu Mingwei also returned to their daily lives.
Bai Jing regained her vitality and seemed to want a different way of living. She began practicing martial arts together with her daughter-in-law Yang Ronghua.
After all, in the entire Xu family, from top to bottom, only the two of them were truly ordinary people.
Their descendants, whether male or female, would all walk either the martial path or the immortal path.
Previously, they felt it was fine to continue as they were but Xu Chuan had given them new life and also gave them the physical condition to practice martial arts.
"Mother, Sister-in-law, the matter of practicing martial arts is all about perseverance. If you want to achieve something, you still need to rely on persistence. As for talent..."
Wu Rushan paused, then continued, "That's only something a minority of people possess."
"Rushan, then we'll trouble you to instruct Ronghua and me from now on. It won't affect your cultivation, will it?"
Wu Rushan smiled and shook her head, "Of course not, Mother. I was able to reach the innate perfection realm because of the abundant resources the Xu family accumulated for me."
"But grandmaster is a huge threshold that greatly values aptitude."
"Even those martial arts aristocratic families in the commandery capital, very few people can cross it."
Yang Ronghua also nodded, "Indeed."
"Don't worry, Rushan. I heard from your father that he's already researching pills that can help martial artists break through bottlenecks. If successful, you'll also have a chance to break through to grandmaster. I heard this was even proposed by Mingyuan."
Wu Rushan was stunned upon hearing this.
Yang Ronghua smiled, "It seems Second Brother still cares about you, Rushan."
Hearing this, Wu Rushan pursed her lips in a slight smile, as brilliant as peach blossoms in the third month.
Under Xu Chuan's appearance-preserving technique, the Xu family women all maintained the appearance of being in their twenties, as if youth had been rekindled.
Even Ah Li, who had always served Bai Jing, had received this grace.
Although this technique could not free them from the limits of their lifespan, that vitality could keep their appearance perpetually youthful, and their bodies would also be somewhat stronger with fewer ailments.
Time flashed by.
Two years passed.
Among the Xu family's second generation, Xu Mingxuan and Xu Mingshu both successively advanced to the early ninth layer of Qi Refining.
Xu Mingyuan was a bit slower, having reached the late eighth layer of Qi Refining.
Among the third generation, Xu Dezhao was also at the early ninth layer of Qi Refining, while Xu Dezhao had recently stepped into the late ninth layer of Qi Refining.
Below them, the one with the highest realm was Ren Xiaoyao.
He had now also stepped into the early eighth layer of Qi Refining.
The Xu family was brimming with talent. A group of third-generation youngsters had now gradually matured, many had awakened spiritual roots and were currently in spiritual root purification.
There were also some who would be able to cross into the innate realm within a year.
Among those the Xu family had recruited with spiritual root aptitude, most were currently around the first layer of Qi Refining.
Those whose aptitude reached true spiritual root had reached the third layer of Qi Refining.
The hundreds with decent bone structure had now all stepped into the third-rate martial artist level.
From low-end to mid-end and even high-end level experts, the Xu family was now becoming increasingly robust.
They increasingly had the scale of an aristocratic family.
Wu Mingsheng reached Qi Refining perfection last year. Two months later, when crafting a superior-grade magical artifact, after failing three or four times, he finally succeeded in refining it and named it "Azure Sky."
This was the Xu family's first truly superior-grade magical artifact and was bestowed upon Xu Dezhao as the current family head's sword.
Later, after consuming five or six sets of materials, he crafted another one called "Flying Star."
Wu Mingsheng had once promised Xu Chuan to craft three superior-grade magical artifacts to offset three superior-grade Divine Sense Pills.
Now one still remained.
Wu Mingsheng had also recently planned to craft again.
While Xu Dezhao's cultivation had greatly advanced, he had already crafted all types of medium-grade magical artifacts once, including cauldrons, bells, attack artifacts, defensive armor, robes, and boots, as well as medium-grade boats.
His rapid progress made Wu Mingsheng exclaim that he was a prodigy.
Now he had already begun learning to craft superior-grade magical artifacts.
As for Wu Da and the other two, although their artifact path had made some progress, they were still at the stage of crafting medium-grade magical artifacts, and their success rate and quality could only be considered average.
At most, they could craft ordinary attack and defense magical artifacts like flying swords, daggers, awls, and shields.
For more difficult magical artifacts like bells, pill cauldrons, and artifact cauldrons, they had never succeeded even once.
This was a matter of talent.
Of course, even when Wu Mingsheng crafted such superior-grade magical artifacts, his success rate was not high.
There was also Xu Mingyuan, who had already begun crafting medium-grade talismans.
The difficulty was considerable. Besides when he first started learning, producing one talisman in ten-plus attempts was rare but recently he had stabilized at successfully producing one medium-grade talisman in six or seven attempts.
Lu Feng, however, could not. He might only be able to draw one medium-grade talisman in eight or nine attempts.
Xu Mingxian's mastery of formations had become increasingly unfathomable. Presumably, he was not far from completely comprehending the formations in the inheritance.