Chapter 81 Detecting Spiritual Roots

It's normal for parents to favor children with outstanding talents, but looking at Cao Nanning's gloomy expression, Xu Yuankun subconsciously thought of himself.

To be fair, both of them were very talented, but they were overshadowed by their more talented relatives, which led to them inexplicably becoming nobody.

"Nanning, haven't you considered asking your own people for help?"

Cao Nanning's spirits lifted, and he hurriedly spoke.

"I've looked before, but that would make it easier for the other two families to spot us, since they are stronger."

With my uncles here this time, I'm sure I can accomplish this task.

"You're too happy too soon, Nanning. The Moon Gazing Return here might have been picked by the Cao family."

Fifth Brother, since Nine Star Mountain is in such chaos, even the Cao family generally doesn't dare to approach it casually. If we want to get Wang Yuegui, we'll probably have to go to Nine Star Mountain.

Fifth Brother frantically tugged at his hair, glanced at the two of them, then turned back to look in the direction of Linghua Mountain, weighing his options in his mind.

Finally, he gritted his teeth and slapped both of their shoulders hard.

"This time I'll accompany the two of you to Jiuxing Mountain. Nanning and Linghua Mountain are dangerous, so you must listen to me."

After seeing Cao Nanning nod seriously, he looked at Xu Yuanlang.

"Yuen Long, we two must take good care of this boy no matter what."

Xu Yuanlang understood that Yu Gongcao Nanning was a direct descendant of the Cao family, and if something happened to him, the entire Xu family would be held accountable.

As for himself, he is the son of his second sister, so of course he must protect him.

"must!"

After making up their minds, the three of them left the spot and headed towards Jiuxing Mountain.

Unbeknownst to them, high above, a night owl was watching them from below, its large, round eyes reflecting the figures of the three. After seeing them leave, the owl flapped its massive wings and flew away into the distance.

At the same time, villages near Wuliang Mountain were mobilized, and all children under the age of five were gathered together for the spiritual roots to be tested by Qi Refining cultivators from the Xu family.

Since the exact quality of a child's spiritual root had to be determined by testing it with an array on Mount Wuliang, they could basically only determine whether a child had a spiritual root.

The Xu family is a Foundation Establishment family. There are not only villages nearby, but also several towns. There are at least tens of thousands of children in the area. Therefore, measuring spiritual roots will require all the cultivators to work for nearly a month.

In Daling Village, all the school-aged children, dressed in either tattered or luxurious clothes, lined up neatly.

Most of them are still too young and are being held by their parents. Compared to the clueless children, the parents are even more anxious.

They knew very well that if their child had spiritual roots, he could directly become a celestial master that others could only dream of, and would also be bestowed with a large amount of gold and silver treasures, making the family instantly rich.

At the same time, they were also worried: what if their own child didn't become a Celestial Master? What if the neighbor's child did?

"Dongdong!"

At the entrance of Daling Village, in a clearly dilapidated house, a woman wearing a gray handkerchief was wrapping fried dough in lotus leaves and handing it to her three- or four-year-old child.

"I need to take care of your father and can't leave. Go by yourself and don't wander off."

The boy named Xu Dong, drooling, took the fried dough. It was a rare delicacy from his family. He took a sniff and then carefully handed it back.

"Mother, take this to Father to eat, I'm not hungry."

As soon as he finished speaking, his stomach rumbled, and he gave a sheepish smile, feeling a little embarrassed.

The woman felt a lump in her throat; her son was so sensible that it broke her heart. She wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and then forced the child into his hands.

"Does the family need just one more piece of bread? Take it and eat it, hurry up!"

Xu Dong walked to the door, then suddenly turned back and said.

"Mother, just wait, I will definitely beg the immortal masters to save Father."

After saying that, he ran out in a flash, causing the woman to shout anxiously behind him.

"No, please don't anger the immortal master."

But her voice was destined to fade away in the wind.

Xu Dong arrived at the center of the village, only to find that he was too late. A long line had already formed, and he saw several of his playmates among them.

With plenty of time to spare, he spotted a large millstone in the middle of the village, jumped onto it to bask in the sun, and as the sunlight shone on him, his eyelids began to droop, and he fell fast asleep.

"There isn't a single person with spiritual roots in the entire Daling Village. Sure enough, the more diluted a cultivator's bloodline is, the harder it is to find spiritual roots."

Xu Yuanmiao was the one who conducted the tests in Daling Village. She shook her head in disappointment after checking the last child as the sun was setting.

The village chief beside him had a bitter expression. Generally speaking, if a cultivator comes out of the village, he will have a lot more say in the surrounding area. He will have priority in competing for water resources or going into the mountains to hunt.

"Village chief, have all the children of the appropriate age been examined?"

The village chief's rough, wrinkled face showed a thoughtful expression. After thinking for a moment, he spoke.

"I don't remember very clearly..."

"Hey, this little guy is sleeping soundly."

As Xu Yuanmiao was about to leave, he suddenly caught sight of the little guy sleeping soundly on the millstone. He was so asleep that he didn't even notice the oil cake wrapped in lotus leaf falling out.

"Whose child is this? Aren't you afraid of catching a cold? Wake up!"

Xu Yuanmiao assumed he was a child who had been tested, so he gently patted his stomach, and Xu Dong, who was still half asleep, opened his eyes.

"Fairy sister? You're so beautiful!"

He spotted Xu Yuanmiao, who looked like a fairy, at a glance and called out instinctively.

"This little guy has a sweet tongue."

"By the way, Immortal Master, Yongzi's family at the edge of the village, he hasn't had his spiritual root tested yet."

The village chief's eyes lit up, and he quickly picked him up.

"This kid is very clever and bold, and he's also very sensible. He must have spiritual roots."

Seeing the village chief tirelessly promoting Xu Dong, Xu Yuanmiao nonchalantly extended his finger and placed it on Xu Dong's wrist.

The spiritual energy was then sent out and circulated through Xu Dong's body. If he did not have a spiritual root, the spiritual energy would quickly dissipate into the outside world through his pores.

If one has a spiritual root, the spiritual root is like a dam, locking the spiritual power within the body.

Of course, some of it will dissipate in general, but less so compared to ordinary people without spiritual roots.

"Um?"

Xu Yuanmiao was stunned. Hadn't he sent some spiritual energy into it? How come there was no leakage at all?

Undeterred, she sent it again, but the spiritual energy still didn't dissipate. Xu Dong's body was like a sponge, completely retaining her spiritual energy.

The village chief grinned. From Xu Yuanmiao's reaction, he guessed that this kid must have spiritual roots. Finally, a master immortal had emerged from the village.

"Come back to the mountain with me!"