Cultivation: Beginning with the Heart Reflecting Heaven and Earth

Mu Dong was about to say something more, but upon hearing Lei Yunxing's words, he quickly chimed in, "That's right! There's no need for so many formalities; addressing each other as brothers is sufficient!"

As he spoke, Mu Dong nudged Mu Xue with his hand, and Mu Xue then popped out from behind Mu Dong, calling out shyly, "Brother Lu!"

Lu Qian quickly returned the greeting: "No need for such formalities! I'll be so bold as to say that we can simply address each other by our given names!"

Mu Dong laughed heartily, "My sister rarely sees strangers, so you don't need to worry about her! After class, how about we have a drink and chat?"

Even Lei Yunxing found this a bit strange. "Mu boy, we've known each other for so long, and you've never invited me before. Why are you inviting him now? What's your purpose?"

Lu Qian was also a little puzzled, but he hadn't dared to ask before. Now that Lei Yunxing had asked on his behalf, that was perfect.

Mu Dong made no attempt to hide anything, simply saying, "It was my ancestor who wanted us to get closer to each other. Besides, we always see the same people, so it's a bit of a surprise to see a new face. Brother Lu, wouldn't you like to learn more about what's going on here?"

To be honest, Mu Dong does seem to be a very honest person.

More importantly, Lu Qian knew very well that although Tao Pili and Mu Linyuan didn't seem to get along, they actually understood each other quite well, almost like old friends. No matter how he thought about it, he didn't need to worry about the Mu brothers harming him. Besides, he genuinely wanted to learn more about what was happening here, so he simply said, "Then we'll meet there!"

Lei Yunxing immediately chimed in, "I want to go too! I'm afraid Brother Lu will be bullied by you!"

Mu Dong naturally wouldn't refuse, "Just come along! Plenty of food and drink!"

As the group chatted and laughed, Jin Changgeng approached the crowd, indicating that the lesson was about to begin.

Unbeknownst to them, Mu Dong, Mu Xue, Lu Qian, and Lei Yunxing had also moved closer together, looking like a small group, drawing more attention from the others.

Lu Qian could sense that the people here were much simpler than those in the Canghai Sect. They didn't have that kind of scheming and manipulative air about them, and they were even too lazy to maintain superficial interpersonal relationships.

The reason is also unknown. Those who can stand here are basically talented people with backgrounds. The Holy Land will prepare cultivation resources for them, so there is no need for intrigue. Naturally, they will appear relatively simple.

This is the foundation of the Holy Land, which can provide the best conditions to nurture these geniuses.

"Today, we'll continue our journey to the arena to discuss basic spells and also test your knowledge."

Almost the instant Jin Changgeng finished speaking, someone scoffed, "Boring!"

He was a young man wearing a blue Taoist robe who looked somewhat arrogant. He had an ordinary appearance, and his eyes were full of disdain. He looked arrogant and haughty. Even when Jin Changgeng looked at him, he was not afraid to meet Jin Changgeng's gaze.

Lu Qian was dumbfounded. He could guess that Jin Changgeng's status was not low, but he never expected that someone would dare to disregard Jin Changgeng's authority and show him no respect at all. Is this the world of geniuses?

Jin Changgeng remained smiling, showing no sign of anger. "Lin Guihai, if you feel that the following lessons will not be helpful to you, you can choose to leave directly."

Lin Guihai snorted dismissively, but didn't move, seemingly deciding to stay.

Upon seeing this, Lei Yunxing spat on the ground, "You bastard! Just because you have a Heavenly Spiritual Root, you're always so arrogant, thinking you're so great?"

Lin Guihai's eyes flashed with a cold light as he looked at Lei Yunxing.

Lei Yunxing, however, remained unfazed, glaring at him angrily, "What? You're not convinced? Let's fight!"

Lin Guihai snorted coldly, but didn't say anything more.

Lu Qian stared in disbelief. This was a rare Heavenly Spiritual Root, a rare find in the Canghai Sect over the past few decades, something that could be easily found in the Canglan Holy Land.

Moreover, although Lin Guihai is arrogant and dares to challenge the instructor because of his Heavenly Spirit Root, he does not dare to confront Lei Yunxing head-on. This shows that Lei Yunxing is more powerful than he looks. Otherwise, why would others not dare to provoke Lin Guihai?

Lu Qian felt like he was in a dream. He suddenly felt like he was surrounded by monsters and that he was the only normal person.

Perhaps it was because Mu Dong and Mu Xue, and Lei Yunxing's easygoing attitude, that Lu Qian relaxed. But upon closer reflection, he realized that almost everyone here was a genius, and even the worst among them had two spiritual roots, which was far beyond Lu Qian's reach. He suddenly felt immense pressure!

Mu Dong seemed to sense what Lu Qian was thinking and asked in a low voice, "Are you very surprised?"

Lu Qian didn't dare to speak, he just nodded.

"Actually, the Heavenly Spiritual Root is nothing special. It's a treasure in an ordinary sect, but it's just so-so in a holy land."

Mu Dong explained, "Before cultivating to the Golden Core stage, there is no threshold for Heavenly Spiritual Roots. But once you reach the Nascent Soul stage, Heavenly Spiritual Roots only have a 50% chance of successfully breaking through. Of course, in my Holy Land, the chance is higher, but it's still nothing special."

"What our Holy Land values ​​most are geniuses with comprehension. As long as their spiritual roots aren't too bad, they're not that important. For example, the Canghai Palace, as a legitimate Holy Land, prefers to recruit disciples with both water and fire spiritual roots. Moreover, as long as they grow up, most of them become strong individuals with formidable combat power!"

Lu Qian wanted to say that even a disciple with two spiritual roots, one of water and one of fire, would be considered a genius in the Canghai Sect, but he couldn't bring himself to say it because he knew that disciples with two spiritual roots needed to use connections to enter the Zhou Tian Academy.

In the Holy Land, disciples with two spiritual roots are indeed nothing special. Those with heavenly spiritual roots may be considered geniuses, but they are not as valued as Lu Qian imagined. At most, they can say a few mischievous words in class and dare not leave directly.

In a place like the Canghai Sect, a Heavenly Spiritual Root would be treasured as soon as one enters the sect, and would be immediately accepted as a disciple by a Nascent Soul cultivator, never to leave the mountain until one has mastered a great divine skill.

However, in the Canglan Holy Land, while those with Heavenly Spiritual Roots may receive some special treatment, it is not very common. Normally, they are taught by Foundation Establishment instructors in an equal manner. If one wants to receive superior treatment, it is not possible to rely solely on having Heavenly Spiritual Roots.

In any case, compared to the Canghai Sect, the Heavenly Spiritual Root definitely has a better future in the Canglan Holy Land, that much is certain.

Seeing Lu Qian deep in thought, Mu Dong suddenly said, "Perhaps you are one in a million geniuses; it's not impossible."

As soon as these words were spoken, many people looked at Lu Qian. It seemed that they did not completely regard Lu Qian as a good-for-nothing, and they had some guesses in their hearts.

Noticing the meaningful look in Mu Dong's eyes, Lu Qian humbly replied, "My cultivation is too low; I am far from being a genius."

Somewhat amusingly, Lu Qian discovered that these geniuses with outstanding spiritual roots actually didn't value their spiritual roots much.

Everyone knew that Lu Qian only had three spiritual roots, but when Mu Dong jokingly said that Lu Qian was a genius, not many of them thought that Mu Dong was joking.

"Could it be that I'm about to be exposed?"

After a moment's thought, Lu Qian realized it wasn't a big deal. The only thing that couldn't be exposed was the Zhou Tian Xing Qiao (a type of acupoint), and everything else was irrelevant. There was no need to hide anything here.

and……

"They don't even think I'm truly useless. Maybe they trust Tao Pili too much. Anyway, it can't be because of me!"

Lu Qian had only known Tao Pili for a short time, but he could clearly tell that Tao Pili was not the kind of person who couldn't distinguish between public and private matters. It was very strange that he would suddenly use his connections to help his junior.

If Tao Pili really wanted to carefully cultivate his juniors, keeping them by his side would undoubtedly be the most effective way. Why did he send Lu Qian to Zhou Tian Academy? Does Tao Pili, a Golden Core Elder, lack the resources to cultivate Qi Refining disciples?

The most likely explanation is that Tao Pili believed Lu Qian was a genius, which is why he sent him to the Zhou Tian Academy, a place teeming with geniuses. Otherwise, sending someone with mediocre talent to the Zhou Tian Academy might not have been a good thing.

"Elder Tao, your usual behavior has already given you away; how could you still want to hide it!"

Lu Qian felt somewhat helpless, but as long as he revealed the Zhou Tian Xing Qiao, he hoped that no one would make the connection!