Chapter 3: Clan Mission
Time flows unseen in cultivation; months passed in the blink of an eye amidst the mountain’s tranquility.
During this period, Song Changsheng devoted himself to diligent cultivation while taking on occasional odd jobs like refining tools or setting up formations to earn spirit stones. His days, though busy, were fulfilling and enjoyable.
But this peace was not to last...
Within the Clan’s Affairs Hall, Song Changsheng sat with over a dozen peers, all around his age. Each wore an expression of confusion, unsure why they had been summoned.
"Hey, Brother Song, do you know what this is about? Is it something good… or bad?" a rather skinny youth nudged Song Changsheng with his elbow and whispered.
Hearing this, the others all turned their eyes to him. After all, everyone knew that Song Changsheng wasn’t just the Clan Leader’s own grandson, he was also the only son of Fifth Elder Xia Yunxue.
He himself was one of the clan’s most promising Foundation Establishment seeds. Surely, he would have heard something.
But Song Changsheng could only offer a helpless smile and shake his head. “I honestly don’t know anything about this.”
There was no reason for him to lie. They would all find out soon enough.
Yet, that only served to heighten everyone's curiosity. One after another, the youth began discussing and speculating, their theories growing increasingly outlandish.
Just as the wildest guesses were beginning to spread, a voice suddenly rang out:
“Grand Elder has arrived!”
The previously noisy hall immediately fell silent, all eyes turning toward the entrance.
A tall, lean man stepped inside with the grace of a casual stroll. He wore a black robe embroidered with silver moon-cloud patterns edged in gold, a white jade crown atop his head. His gaze was piercing, and his temples were streaked with silver.
Song Changsheng and the others quickly stood and cupped their fists in greeting.
“Greetings, Grand Elder!”
This man was none other than Song Xianyun, the clan’s Grand Elder. He was one of only two remaining cultivators of the "Xian" generation who had reached Foundation Establishment and he was already at the late stage.
With Clan Leader Song Xianming often in closed-door seclusion, most of the clan’s affairs were handled by the Grand Elder. He was a figure of immense authority, and his appearance here today meant the matter at hand was no small issue.
“You may rise.”
Song Xianyun’s voice was aged but full of authority.
He swept his eyes across the crowd, pausing briefly on Song Changsheng before speaking.
“Children, you are all still underage. According to clan rules, you should remain on the mountain to focus on your cultivation. However, our clan is currently short-handed, and many external positions remain unfilled.
“After discussion within the Elders’ Council, we have decided to let you descend the mountain early to serve the clan. Since this breaks with custom, the choice is yours. If any of you are unwilling, you may speak with me in private. There will be no punishment.
“For those willing to go, the clan will not treat you unfairly. In addition to your usual cultivation resources, you will receive ten catties of spirit rice and two Gathering Spirit Pills each month.”
The group was stunned. They were to descend the mountain ahead of schedule?
Everyone knew that doing so meant losing access to the rare opportunity to cultivate atop a third-rank spiritual vein. Unsurprisingly, many faces turned sour with displeasure.
But there were also some who found the offer attractive, these were mostly those with poor aptitude.
With little hope of ever reaching Foundation Establishment, they preferred to begin serving the clan early, accumulating contribution points and spirit stones. Perhaps they could secure a better future for their descendants.
Song Xianyun took in everyone’s reactions without a flicker of emotion. He continued, his tone solemn:
“To ensure fairness, your assignments will be drawn by lot. Whatever task you draw is what you will carry out. Now, who will draw the first lot?”
Immediately, over a dozen pairs of eyes turned toward Song Changsheng. Among them, he had the greatest backing and was considered a top-tier genius in the clan.
Everyone hoped he would go first.
Song Changsheng nodded calmly. “The clan has raised me for sixteen years. Now that it faces difficulty, how could I shirk my duty?”
With that, he stepped forward to the Grand Elder and drew a jade lot from the container.
Written upon it were the words: “Ascension Assembly.”
He blinked in surprise. The Ascension Assembly? That was a short-term mission, he'd gotten lucky. It wouldn’t interfere too much with his cultivation.
With someone taking the lead, the others followed suit, whether willingly or begrudgingly. Although the Grand Elder had given them a choice, not a single person backed out.
Complaining was one thing but the clan had raised them for over a decade. Now it was time to give back. After all, this was their home too...
...
Back in his courtyard, Song Changsheng reviewed the details of his mission:
“One month from now, accompany an attendant of the Spirit Testing Hall down the mountain to a mortal city to measure spiritual roots. Task rewards are based on the number and quality of spirit roots discovered.”
“Still a month to go. Looks like I have some time to prepare,” Song Changsheng mused with satisfaction.
He had lived in this world for sixteen years, yet had never seen the world beyond the mountains. This was the perfect opportunity to broaden his horizons.
What’s more, his mother Xia Yunxue was currently stationed in that very mortal city. He hadn’t seen her since last year, and the wine at home was running low, it was a good time to restock.
As a cultivator of an outside lineage, it took exceptional talent to earn the clan’s support for Foundation Establishment. Xia Yunxue possessed just that, she was a mid-grade second-rank Spirit Brewer.
Among the many arts of cultivation, spirit brewing was a niche profession. Yet the wines produced by such brewers often had mystical properties and brought considerable profit to the clan.
With a mother like that, Song Changsheng had grown up practically soaking in wine jars. It had laid a strong foundation for him… but also left him with a slight drinking habit.
Still, that was hardly unusual. Cultivators had all sorts of eccentric hobbies. His was hardly the strangest.
“The Spirit Gourd I refined a few years ago is a bit too single-purpose for combat. If I engrave an array inside and reforge it into a Water-Fire Gourd, and combine it with my Water-Fire Commanding Technique, my combat strength will take another leap.”
The gourd hanging at his waist was no ordinary wine flask, it was his personally refined life-bound magical tool, a mid-grade first-rank item.
Having only recently advanced to a superior-grade first-rank artifact refiner, he had yet to upgrade it. Now that he was preparing to leave the mountain, it was time to do so.
"One month is enough time for me to raise my spirit gourd by a level. Since this is my first time descending the mountain, I should make sure to prepare well."
Without hesitation, Song Changsheng headed to the Contribution Hall.
He spent 300 contribution points to exchange for several water and fire attribute ores. Then, another 200 points for a few bottles of pills and several talismans.
Just like that, the majority of the points he had accumulated over the years were gone.
Life outside the mountain was far less predictable. Better to be overprepared than underprepared.
“Only 300 points left… I’ll have to be frugal from now on.”
Song Changsheng sighed as he looked at the number on his identity token.
Clan contribution points were incredibly valuable. One point could be exchanged for a single low-grade spirit stone but not the other way around.
Contribution points could be used to obtain any resource from the clan’s treasure vault and even exchange for all kinds of techniques and spells from the Scripture Pavilion.
Thus, within the clan, contribution points were far more important than spirit stones.
As a Foundation Establishment seed, Song Changsheng received an annual stipend of 50 spirit stones and 300 contribution points.
It seemed like a lot, but cultivation was expensive. A genius’s reputation was built upon resources.
After eight years of cultivation, he only had around two hundred lower-grade spirit stones and 300 contribution points left.
And that was only because he frequently took on odd jobs. Otherwise, he would’ve long been penniless...
(Chapter End)