I Built A Family Of Immortal Cultivators

Chapter 1: The Destitute Cultivator

"Oh no, Fellow Daoist Lin, be careful!"

"Bang!"

In an unknown valley in the Dangyan Mountain Range of the Zhao Kingdom, three cultivators were besieging a first-stage mid-level demonic beast, the Blaze Wolf. Their swords danced in the air, and it seemed like they were about to kill the beast. Unexpectedly, as the beast made its final struggle before death, it pounced on a middle-aged cultivator to the east. The cultivator couldn't resist in time and was bitten on the shoulder by the beast. The other two cultivators quickly killed the beast, but the wound caused by the Blaze Wolf was deep, and a trace of fire poison had seeped into the cultivator's body. The injured cultivator's face showed a painful expression.

"Fellow Daoist Lin, are you alright?" Another cultivator quickly asked.

"I'm fine, but my arm feels numb. Fellow Daoist, could you please cut off the legs and claws of this beast for me?" Lin Qing, the cultivator beside him, said.

After glancing at Lin Qing, the cultivator nodded and said, "Of course, Fellow Daoist Lin, please wait a moment."

Soon, the cultivator used his sword to cut off the four limbs of the Blaze Wolf and handed them to Lin Qing.

"Thank you, Fellow Daoist."

Lin Qing thanked him with a fist salute, then took his own gains and left with his sword.

Just as he left the valley, Lin Qing found a hidden place to clean his wound. Looking at the exposed bone in the wound, Lin Qing, who had been enduring the pain, now had a grim expression on his face. He quickly took out a bottle of wound medicine from his storage bag and sprinkled it on the wound.

"Hiss!" He took a deep breath and almost cried out in pain.

Afterwards, he endured the intense pain and carefully bandaged the wound. After a while, a hint of color returned to Lin Qing's face.

Now that he had calmed down, Lin Qing didn't rush to leave. Looking at the wound on his body and the nearly unusable sword he had used to defend against the Blaze Wolf, a desolate expression appeared on his face. He let out a long sigh.

Originally, he thought that after transmigrating to this world of cultivation, with the experience of two lifetimes, he would become an extraordinary figure, or at the very least, he would be able to experience various scenes on the path of cultivation. However, he never expected that from the day he was born in this world until now, a full forty-six years had passed, and he had only reached the third level of Qi Refining. In the world of cultivation, he couldn't even be considered a minor character, at most, he was cannon fodder.

Furthermore, he had a sense of unease in his heart. Today, they had planned to ambush the demonic beast to earn spirit stones, but this injury not only damaged his sword, but if the fire poison in his body wasn't cleared in time, he was afraid that even his cultivation at the third level of Qi Refining would not be preserved. The loss would be too great, and the little he had gained would be impossible to make up for.

Looking at the grass stained with blood in front of him, he recalled the scene when he bid farewell to his parents in this world, carrying a hundred taels of gold and full of ambition to seek immortality. Lin Qing's heart was filled with even more sorrow.

When he learned that there were cultivators in this world, he was not yet sixteen years old. He couldn't wait to leave his parents and search for immortality. Despite his parents' numerous attempts to stop him, it was in vain. They could only let him go alone. However, out of deep parental love, his parents gathered a hundred taels of gold for him to use on his journey. Fortunately, he only used three taels of gold to find a sect, and he was lucky enough to be tested and found to have spiritual roots.

Although it was said that having spiritual roots in this world meant one could cultivate, there were still differences in the quality of spiritual roots. From the lowest Five Elemental Roots to the highest Heaven Elemental Roots, they represented a disparity in aptitude. And his spiritual roots were the worst.

Even the lowest Five Elemental Roots were not enough to qualify as an outer disciple of the sect.

After the test, the people from the sect directly asked him to leave the mountain. He repeatedly requested to join the sect, but it only annoyed the cultivator in charge of testing his spiritual roots. The cultivator mocked him, saying that with his aptitude, he would never reach the mid-level of Qi Refining in his lifetime. He was a waste among wastes and should just become an ordinary person as soon as possible.

Although he had no choice but to leave the mountain, he was still dissatisfied in his heart. He believed that even with his poor aptitude, he would still achieve some accomplishments.

After leaving the mountain, he used the gold to find a cultivation market and spent fifty taels of gold to buy a cultivation technique that could be practiced up to the mid-level of Qi Refining. However, the extent of his poor aptitude still exceeded his expectations. It took him a full twenty years to cultivate to the third level of Qi Refining, and since then, his cultivation had been stagnant for ten years.

He had thought more than once about what would have happened if he hadn't tested his spiritual roots, and what would have happened if he had listened to the advice of that unfriendly cultivator.

Perhaps, by now, relying on his parents' wealth, he would have had multiple wives and concubines, a house full of children, and his parents would have been able to enjoy the happiness of a complete family.

But his parents had already passed away five years ago, and his only younger brother had lost his life early on in the Yinhua Alley, squandering the family fortune.

When he returned home, all he faced was an empty house, with spiders crawling in the corners. The thousands of acres of fertile land and the prime shops in the city had long turned into illusions, taken over by others.

And he, he was still just a third-level Qi Refining cultivator.

"Do not bully the young for being poor, do not bully the middle-aged for being poor, do not bully the elderly for being poor, the dead are great, hehe."

Thinking of this phrase he had seen somewhere in his previous life, Lin Qing showed a self-deprecating smile. Perhaps this phrase was the best embodiment of his life.

Looking up at the sky, Lin Qing stood up, clutching his wound.

"Perhaps I should have realized long ago that I am not a genius favored by the heavens, a world-changing talent. I am just an ordinary person, as ordinary as can be."

The pain in his shoulder pierced his heart, causing his steps to falter from time to time. Lin Qing had to cut off a section of bamboo from the roadside as a makeshift crutch, slowly making his way towards his home. At forty-six years old, still considered middle-aged, his slightly hunched figure revealed signs of aging when viewed from behind.

To call it a home was an exaggeration; it was just a house in a cultivation market called Qingmuji.

Qingmuji was located at the foot of the Yandang Mountains. Due to its advantageous location, cultivators had gradually gathered there a hundred years ago. Fifty years ago, cultivators from the Xuan Yu Pavilion were sent to set up defensive formations, officially establishing the market and bringing it under the jurisdiction of the Xuan Yu Pavilion. Today, there were over a hundred cultivators stationed here year-round, with countless passersby. Mortals also gathered around Qingmuji.

Qingmuji itself was a market about a hundred meters long and wide. The formations laid down back then could withstand the Foundation Building stage for fifteen minutes. Compared to the places where mortals lived outside, it was naturally much safer. As the managers of Qingmuji, the cultivators from the Xuan Yu Pavilion also ensured the safety of the cultivators inside. No one was allowed to engage in conflicts. So, ten years ago, Lin Qing rented a small house inside the market. Although it was tiny, it provided some peace of mind.

Before reaching Qingmuji, Lin Qing discarded his crutch, straightened his clothes, making himself look no different from before he set out.

Although his shoulder still hurt, he couldn't show any weakness.

Walking through the mortal streets, the mortals around him occasionally cast envious glances at him. Although Lin Qing was only a low-level Qi Refining cultivator, to mortals, regardless of their cultivation level, cultivators were always high and mighty immortals.

When he was fifty meters away from the market gate, a grass mat appeared by the roadside, with a young girl kneeling beside it.

Lin Qing didn't need to look to know what was happening. It was a mortal selling herself to bury her deceased family member, a common occurrence. For mortals, being able to live here and gain the favor of cultivators was like ascending to heaven in one step, but more often than not, life was difficult for them. After all, there were simply too many mortals.

After a casual glance, Lin Qing was about to leave. He never let these things affect him.

But after taking a few steps, his pace slowed down.

"When mortals die, they still have descendants willing to sell themselves for the funeral, but what about me?"

With a flicker of thought, Lin Qing suddenly felt a bit dazed. Today's injury had already dealt a heavy blow to him, and the kneeling girl and the grass mat beside her pierced his heart. His shoulder suddenly became intensely painful again.

(End of this chapter)