Cultivating Immortality Begins with Rejuvenation.

Chapter 13: Reserve Immortal Seedling
Ning Yutan was only two months away from turning seventeen when he had already completed bone tempering, which would rank him among the top ten in the entire Chong'an Prefecture's century-long historical record.

If nothing unexpected happens, there is a high possibility that he will become an Immortal Seedling in one fell swoop at the Immortal Seedling Ceremony three years later.

So, Marquis Dingyuan was very happy and hosted a banquet for guests from all over the world.

Naturally, teachers and students from Xunxian Academy were also invited into the Marquis' Mansion.

The mansion, with its carved beams and painted buildings, winding paths and luxurious atmosphere, amazed and envied everyone.

In the Xianci Dynasty, due to the relationship between the royal family and the immortals, true martial arts are respected, and almost all power and glory are linked to martial arts and immortal seedlings.

The ancestor of Marquis Dingyuan was a founding hero and was granted the title of marquis. To keep this title or even go further, it is also linked to the emergence of immortal seedlings. If the marquis's mansion can produce a real immortal seedling, there is a chance to enter the imperial city and be promoted to duke.

In order to cultivate immortal seedlings, the Marquis' Mansion not only married into the families of meritorious nobles and martial arts families, but also recruited martial arts masters, so it had a lot of interactions with Xunxian Academy.

He also pays close attention to the promising talents in Xunxian Academy.

"Dad, Mom, this is Li Ji'an. He is very talented. Now he is in Xunxian Academy, only slightly worse than me. He has a bright future." When everyone in Xunxian Academy was congratulating him, Ning Yutan introduced Li Ji'an individually without knowing the etiquette.

This action instantly attracted the attention of all the dignitaries in the room.

Young Mu Ai?

"Hey, Yu Tan, don't be rude, and don't be complacent. Nephew Li is as handsome as jade, with an imposing manner. You can tell at a glance that he is no ordinary person. You are just walking a little too fast now. You must know that there are many things in the world that can be achieved through accumulation and development, and those who start later will eventually succeed." Marquis Dingyuan was very composed and shrewd, and he resolved the awkwardness with a casual remark.

By the way, he also took the opportunity to look at Li Ji'an a few more times, and felt very satisfied.

Now seventeen-year-old Li Jian is more than eight feet tall. He has been cultivating his qi and blood for many years, and his bones are strong and his tendons are long. He has no extra fat and his body is slender and strong.

He has sharp eyebrows, bright eyes, a high nose bridge, a face as sharp as a knife, and clear edges and corners. His face has almost lost all childishness, and he looks like a handsome young man.

In particular, his facial features are calm and his temperament is gentle and elegant. He does not look like a young and frivolous person with a biased mind.

He subconsciously glanced at his eldest daughter Ning Sujin, who was following behind reluctantly. The more the Marquis looked at them, the more he felt that they were a perfect match.

Although the offspring of martial arts masters may not necessarily have good bones, the probability is relatively high. This was his intention when he went through so much trouble to coax Ning Sujin's biological mother, Su Susu, into the Marquis' Mansion.

Of course, what satisfied him most was Li Ji'an's family background: an orphan!
As for Ning Yutan, the immortal seedling, there is definitely no need for him to worry about marriage. After all, he wants to enter the immortal world and become an immortal.

After Ning Yutan finished the introduction, he smiled ingratiatingly at Li Ji'an, then turned his head proudly to look at Ning Sujin who was serving as a foil.

Ning Sujin was in a bad mood the whole time, only occasionally glancing at where Li Ji'an was.

After three rounds of wine, the guests and hosts enjoyed themselves.

The Marquis and the First Lady deliberately kept Li Ji'an to talk for a few more words, and before leaving, they gave him a thousand taels of silver.

From then on, Ning Sujin worked hard and endured hardships. On the surface, she was as hardworking as Ning Yutan, but secretly she was almost crazy.

One year later, the bone calcination was completed and blood transfusion began.

This made Ning Yutan, who had already made some progress in blood transfusion, feel the crisis again, and he practiced even harder, trying to widen the gap again.

The two girls were chasing each other, which made Li Ji'an very envious. Under the same effort, the other party had better bones and muscles than him, so the progress was faster. He had no way to stop them, not to mention that the other party had better bones and muscles than him and was more competitive than him.

He did not lose his composure and followed the procedures step by step. After another half a year, he finally completed the bone tempering and started the blood transfusion.

At this moment, there is only a year and a half left until the once-in-a-decade Immortal Seedling Ceremony.

He knew that it was impossible to complete the blood transfusion in this Immortal Seedling Ceremony, but he did not relax at all. After all, there was still a chance when he turned 30. As expected, a year and a half later, as the Immortal Seedling Ceremony drew closer, the Immortal Seedling Ceremony of Chong'an Prefecture also reached its final deadline.

"Ning Yutan, bone age is nineteen years and nine months. The blood transfusion was successful. He lived up to the emperor's grace and was honored to ascend to the Immortal Seedling. In three days, he will set off for the Imperial City to meet the emperor and wait for his immortality!"

"Ning Sujin, with a bone age of twenty years and eight months, has completed a complete blood transfusion and is a talented candidate. She is a reserve and can enter the Immortal Palace together. In ten years, she may have the opportunity to ascend to the Immortal Seedling."

"Li Ji'an, bone age is nineteen years and eleven months. He has achieved a minor success in blood transfusion. He has good talent and is ranked as a reserve. We can enter the Immortal Palace together. In ten years, he may have the opportunity to become an Immortal Seedling."

……

To Li Ji'an's surprise, after making some progress in blood transfusion, he was actually qualified to enter the Immortal Palace as a reserve in advance.

"Xunxian Palace seems to be under a lot of pressure? Are they so short of immortal seedlings?"

In the end, only three people from the entire Chong'an Prefecture entered the Xunxian Palace in the imperial city. The Xunxian Academy celebrated in large numbers, and the dean's heart was finally at ease. Not only did he not have to worry about being punished, but he was also rewarded.

The Dingyuan Marquis Mansion was decorated with lights and colorful decorations, and the sound of gongs and drums was deafening. Along with the selection results of the Imperial City Xunxian Palace came the imperial edict for promotion to Duke and ten thousand taels of gold.

Moved into the imperial city and was granted the title of Duke Dingguo!
While the whole mansion was celebrating, Li Ji stood quietly under the peach tree in the courtyard, frowning slightly.

Before traveling through time, he had read a sentence while studying a classic masterpiece: In a society ruled by feudal emperors, except for those who objectively know the consequences, anything that is prohibited is beneficial but they don't want to share it with you, and anything that is advocated, encouraged and widely publicized is a pit that needs you to fill.

Similarly:

If praying to Buddha really works, you wouldn't even be able to enter the temple.

If farming really could make one rich, farmers would have no land to farm.

If hard work really can make you rich, even street sweepers would need connections.

If donating blood is good for your health, why would it be your turn?

So... is this so-called immortal seedling real? Is it a good thing?
On the surface, it seems fine, but if we look beneath the surface, why would the immortals go to such great lengths to select immortal seedlings from across the nation? What benefits would ten immortal seedlings every ten years bring to the immortals?
Could it be that all immortal masters are saints, and they really only want to give mortals like them the opportunity to cultivate immortality?

Li Ji'an became more cautious.

Also temporarily changed the goal of this life.

Fortunately, he is not an immortal this time, but only a reserve, and there is a high probability that he will not be able to become an immortal even after ten years. Being able to go to the imperial city to verify the authenticity of the "immortal" is a success.

"Brother Li, my father asked me to invite you to go to the imperial city with us, okay?" Ning Yutan invited Li Ji'an immediately.

"Okay, thank Duke Dingguo for me!" The journey to the imperial city is long and there are many unknown risks on the road. With the protection of Duke Dingguo, it will be much safer.

"That's great. I won't be bored on the road because Brother Li is traveling with me." Ning Yutan cheered.

Seeing that Ning Yutan's nature had hardly changed in the past five years, Li Ji'an had a certain recognition of his character.

Apart from her bitchy behavior towards Ning Sujin, she is a simple-minded, beautiful and kind girl.

"Brother Li, that old woman is so evil. She even cursed me that my trip to the Imperial City would be a bad omen. She's clearly jealous. Let's not talk to her anymore."

Li Ji'an burst out laughing. He was originally planning not to respond to such topics as usual, but suddenly something came to his mind.

"Hmm? She said your trip to the Imperial City is a bad omen? Can you tell me the reason?"

(End of this chapter)