Family Cultivation: Evergreen of the Song Family

Wanxiang Stone Forest is to Wanxiang Palace what the Song family’s Sutra Library is to it. It is the foundation of a sect and an important support for the inheritance of Taoism.

No matter where it is placed, it will be covered tightly and it is impossible to take it out for outsiders to view and understand.

Even if it's just a part of it, it's amazing.

Moreover, the routes opened each time are different. Except for the real core area, 99% of the stone statues of the demon king are open to the public. Even tickets are not required. It is completely free.

This is really puzzling.

Sensing the surprise and confusion of the Song family, the Wanxiang Palace steward straightened his chest and said proudly: "If you are poor, you should take care of yourself; if you are rich, you should help the world. This is the instruction left by our founder, and it is also the belief and pursuit that our palace has always upheld."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone was shocked and couldn't help but stand in awe.

In this world full of intrigue, everyone for themselves, and ruthless greed, the concept of the Vientiane Palace is truly shocking.

The key is that they are not just talking, Vientiane Palace has been interpreting it with their actual actions.

Opening the Wanxiang Stone Forest, allowing Yuanying Zhenjun to preach, joining Zhulu Academy, promoting exchanges between various cultivation circles, reducing the information gap between cultivation circles in remote areas...even some of the secret realms in the palace are no longer exclusive, and opening them to the outside world has become the norm.

These are all measures that are truly beneficial to the forces below. The earliest ones have been implemented for tens of thousands of years, and the most recent ones have been implemented for thousands of years.

Wanxiang Palace has also been committed to easing conflicts and eliminating confrontations among all parties. Thanks to their good example, there has not been a large-scale war between sects in the Daqian cultivation world for thousands of years.

It was not uncommon for conflicts to be resolved through battles, as happened between the two Song dynasties, with the Wanxiang Palace acting as notary.

With internal friction reduced, everyone worked together to develop the vast East China Sea with all their strength.

This series of measures laid the foundation for Daqian's prosperity and harmony. Now even the surrounding cultivation circles such as Daimyo and Yulong have been deeply affected.

The monks of Wanxiang Palace often appear on the battlefields against various alien invasions, not to mention the sea people.

For example, the Great Xiao Immortal Dynasty was often plundered by the barbarians on the Snowy Plateau, and when the Great Qi Dynasty mobilized the entire world to expedition to the Demon Realm, there were disciples of the Wanxiang Palace who shed their blood. However, most of the time they participated as independent cultivators, and few people knew about it.

Each and every one of them is the reputation accumulated over tens of thousands of years.

Therefore, the dominant position of Wanxiang Palace west of the Tianshan Mountains has never been just reflected in its strength, but also in its responsibility and commitment as a major human race. This is also the image it has always shown to the outside world.

Now it has been confirmed again by the deacon, and for a moment, everyone couldn't help but admire him.

"The philosophy of your palace's ancestor is truly admirable. It's a pity that I was born in the wrong era and cannot listen to his teachings in person. What a pity." Song Changsheng shook his head with regret. These words really resonated with him.

If everyone in the world thought and acted this way, then there would undoubtedly be fewer imbalances and disputes in the world.

It's a pity that it's just something I can think about.

After expressing his regret, he turned his gaze to Song Jingrun and the others and said, "This is a rare opportunity. You can each choose a stone statue that is destined for you to comprehend. Remember, don't be greedy."

Song Changsheng's words earlier made the Wanxiang Palace steward feel good about it, and he took the initiative to remind him: "The further you go, the stronger the true spirit of the stone statue will be. You don't have to rush to choose."

"Thank you for reminding me."

The crowd continued to move forward and saw various stone statues of demon kings. Song Jingrun was the first to make a decision. He chose a [Black-armored Dragon Turtle], which had a trace of true dragon blood, a tortoise-shell dragon head, and a hideous face, which was daunting.

Next was Song Jingwei. Her choice was the [Sky-Splitting Demon Butterfly]. This was one of the demon kings that Song Changsheng had seen. It had an extremely powerful bloodline. After it had fully grown up, it could tear apart the clear sky with a flap of its wings.

Song Jingyuan chose a [Golden-eyed Macaque]. This demon king is quite special. It belongs to the "moderate faction" among the demon clan. It is extremely less aggressive. The clan usually lives in seclusion in deep mountains and valleys, and has a strong interest in brewing wine.

So much so that their pair of perverted "golden eyes" are often used by them to search for spiritual fruits.

[Monkey Wine] is not the patent of this ethnic group, but they are the most famous because they use the most exquisite ingredients.

Song Jingyuan's choice of it was destined to be fate.

Song Jingrui chose a petite [Four-tailed Heavenly Fox]. Even though it was just a man-made stone statue, its pair of narrow fox eyes revealed a gleam of cunning and wisdom.

The most surprising one was Song Jingyuan. He actually chose a [Mad Blood Bull]. In terms of bloodline, this bull was the lowest in the Wanxiang Stone Forest. For this tribe, the fourth level was already the top, and its intelligence was extremely low. It could only be said that birds of a feather flock together.

Song Youfu and Song Qingxing were slow to make a choice.

The former was always thinking about the whereabouts of the [Silver Ring Treasure Hunting Rat] and had no intention of doing that at all, while the latter simply didn't find a suitable one.

"Can you sense the presence of the treasure-hunting rat?" Song Changsheng asked secretly while holding Song Youfu.

"There's something strange about this stone forest. I can only sense its approximate location, which is in the palace in front of us."

A palace suddenly appeared in the middle of a stone forest, and it looked unusual no matter how you looked at it.

Hearing this, Song Changsheng looked at the Wanxiang Palace steward who was leading them and asked, "What's the place ahead?"

“That is the forbidden area in the palace. The Palace Master often retreats there. We need to take a detour and we will reach the Valley of Ten Thousand Flowers in a few steps.

Recently, the spiritual flowers in the valley are blooming collectively, attracting all the spiritual butterflies nearby. This is a unique view of our palace. You can come and take a look. It’s not a problem to take a few spiritual butterflies back with you.”

As he was speaking, a sky blue butterfly the size of a palm floated down onto Song Changsheng's shoulder, its wings reflecting a dreamy light under the sunlight.

The deacon immediately raised his hands in surprise and said, "Congratulations, Master. This is a rare [Phoenix-winged Flash Butterfly] in the valley. It can pollinate spiritual plants, improve their quality, and promote their growth."

At this moment, Song Changsheng's mind was completely on the words "forbidden area in the palace". He had no intention of paying attention to the spirit butterfly at all. He just responded casually with a few words.

The deacon just thought that Song Changsheng was knowledgeable and didn't think much about it. He just enthusiastically introduced the types of spiritual butterflies in the Wanhua Valley.

Song Changsheng was not in the mood to listen. Although the [Silver Ring Treasure Hunting Rat] had first-rate self-preservation capabilities, the Palace Master of Wanxiang Palace was a Yuanying Zhenjun. If he was disturbed, things would be troublesome.

The most important thing is that he hasn't thought of any good way to bring it out yet.

"Please come in, sir." The deacon stretched out his hand.

Song Youfu immediately cast a pleading look towards Song Changsheng.

At this moment, the palace gate suddenly opened without any warning, and a faint voice came out: "Young friend, are you interested in coming in and chatting?"

Song Changsheng inexplicably felt a gaze falling on him. He knew that this sentence was addressed to him. And the owner of this voice came from the master of the Wanxiang Palace who was in seclusion!
From this moment on, Song Changsheng knew in his heart that the [Silver Ring Treasure Hunting Rat] was most likely "caught".

He sighed secretly, handed Song Youfu to Song Qingxing beside him, and said respectfully: "It is an honor for this junior to be invited by the True Lord."

"I'll have a chat with Chief Song. You take these friends to another part of the Stone Forest and let them choose the appropriate Dharma images. Now that we're here, don't return empty-handed."

The deacon suddenly shuddered, and replied excitedly: "Disciple will obey the orders of the Palace Master."

"Take good care of Youfu, I'll be back soon." Song Changsheng patted Song Qingxing on the shoulder, then walked towards the door that was open for him.

The door was pitch black, and even standing at the door, one could not see what was inside.

Without hesitation, Song Changsheng stepped in. A hazy colorful light flashed, and when he opened his eyes again, the world had changed.

This place doesn't look big. Judging from the surrounding furnishings, we should have entered a cave.

The spiritual energy is even richer than that of the fifth-level spiritual vein in Wanxiang Mountain, and it also contains abundant five elements laws.

In the center of the cave is a lotus pond, surrounded by fairy air, with golden lotus leaves and lotus flowers looming in it. There is also a fully developed lotus pod, and the plump lotus seeds are like golden elixirs, releasing an enticing fragrance.

From time to time, spirit fish jump out of the water in the pond.

The spirit fish was red all over, with a slender body, a dragon-like head, two conspicuous tentacles on its lips, and powerful spiritual energy fluctuations emanating from its body.

"【Six-Aperture Golden Lotus】, 【Dragon Fish】."

A hint of surprise flashed in Song Changsheng's eyes.

[Six-Aperture Golden Lotus] is a fourth-grade top-grade spiritual plant, and its lotus seeds are one of the three main materials for refining [Golden Pill]. It is almost never seen in the outside world, but here there are rosaries and fully developed lotus pods.

[Dragon Fish] Needless to say, it has a trace of true dragon blood in its body. Unlike other spirit fish that can only stop at the first or second level throughout their lives, as long as it crosses the Dragon Gate, it can transform into a true dragon like other dragons.

In fact, its bloodline is much purer than the [Black-armored Dragon Turtle] chosen by Song Jingrun.

Eating a dragon fish is equivalent to fifty years of hard training.

In addition to these, the shock that this place brought to Song Changsheng has not yet ended. Dozens of rare spiritual medicines are planted in the surrounding area, the lowest of which are fourth-level, and the extremely precious [Five-Colored Spiritual Soil] is also used. The [Dragon Pattern Fruit] and [Phoenix Blood Flower] needed to refine [Golden Pill] are all among them, which makes Song Changsheng's heart burn with excitement.

He even saw a meter-tall [Purple-veined Peach Tree], which was a fifth-tier longevity treasure. The fruit it produced was used to refine [Life-extending Pills], which could extend the lifespan of cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage and below.

Su Ding tried his best but failed to find one, otherwise he would not have chosen to die together with the [Black Dragon Demon King] in the end.

Compared with it, other magical medicines inevitably pale in comparison.

"This is the foundation of the Yuanying Sect!"

Song Changsheng was amazed. This was just the tip of the iceberg, and it was an existence that was out of reach for the Song family.

No wonder the [Silver Ring Treasure Hunting Rat] would sneak in. Who wouldn’t be tempted by such a treasure?
Continue forward, step through a door, and you will see twelve stone statues of monsters.

Compared to those outside, these stone statues gave Song Changsheng a feeling that they might come back to life at any time. The condensed demonic aura they exuded was like facing a demon king directly. This was definitely not just a stone statue.

Among them, a stone statue located in the corner instantly attracted Song Changsheng's attention.

Compared with other stone statues that are hundreds of feet tall, this stone statue looks particularly small. It is a rat demon with every hair clearly visible.

"【Treasure Hunting Rat】?" Song Changsheng blurted out immediately.

This is naturally not the [Silver Ring Treasure Hunting Rat] he is looking for. This is the real [Treasure Hunting Rat], a magical monster that gathers the luck of heaven and earth. The [Silver Ring Treasure Hunting Rat] is just a subspecies of it.

After seeing this stone statue, Song Changsheng finally understood why the [Silver Ring Treasure Hunting Rat] entered this place despite Song Youfu's dissuasion. It was the racial heritage that attracted it!

"Do you think these stone statues are different from the ones outside?" A gentle voice suddenly sounded behind Song Changsheng.

Song Changsheng was startled and looked back, only to see a middle-aged monk in a light grey Taoist robe with cloud patterns and a jade crown standing there with a smile on his face. He had a jade whisk draped over his forearm and was standing there quietly, as if he had merged into the surrounding space.

His clothes fluttered in the wind, making him look like a banished immortal who was detached from the world.

He was only ten feet away from Song Changsheng, and he didn't even notice when this person appeared.

"Song Changsheng of the Wangyue Song family pays homage to the True Lord of Tianxiang." Song Changsheng saluted hurriedly. The only one who could possess such strength here should be the Lord Palace Master.

"No need to be polite."

Yi Tianzheng waved his whisk, and an invisible force immediately lifted Song Changsheng up. He smiled and said, "These stone statues here are directly shaped by the demon king's body and true spirit, so they are different from those stone statues in the outside world."

"Thank you, Master, for clarifying my doubts."

Song Changsheng was shocked. This meant that at least twelve demon kings had fallen at the hands of the Wanxiang Palace, and they were all demon kings with extremely strong bloodline powers.

“I see that you seem to have something on your mind, so just tell me frankly. I might be able to help you solve your confusion.” Yi Tianzheng said with a faint smile.

Song Changsheng took a deep breath, gritted his teeth and bowed, saying: "To be honest with you, Master, I am here to apologize for my crime."

Confess and you will be treated leniently. If you still harbor hope in front of such a strong man, you will be digging your own grave.

"Apology? Are you referring to this little guy?"

Yi Tianzheng stretched out his left hand, and the [Silver Ring Treasure Hunting Rat] was curled up in his palm, and it seemed that it had fallen into a deep sleep.

Compared with before, it had a more vast aura on its body, exactly the same as the stone statue of [Treasure Hunting Rat] he had just seen.

Seeing this, Song Changsheng couldn't help but sigh. This was "catching both the rat and the stolen goods". He smiled bitterly and said, "Reply to Master Zhenjun, that's right."

"This little fellow is quite interesting. I didn't even notice him when he came in. He not only sucked away half of the true spirit of the [Treasure Hunting Rat], but also ate up two [Spiritual Ginseng] plants in the medicine garden. He is sleeping soundly now."

Hearing this, Song Changsheng's mouth twitched suddenly...

...(End of chapter)