Ascending from the mortal realm to become an immortal begins with taking charge of a grotto-heaven.

Zhang Li sat cross-legged on the futon, surrounded by a pale red aura. The morning light peeked in through the window and shone on his face.

"call!"

He let out a long breath, slowly finished his work, and opened his eyes. His cultivation had improved again. This path of cultivation, with its daily progress, was simply too attractive.

After a quick wash, Zhang Li walked out of the house, intending to cook some spirit rice to eat.

A yellow streak of light shot from the horizon, passing through the defensive array without hindrance, and landed directly in front of the courtyard in the center of the lake. When the light dissipated, a communication jade talisman engraved with the sect's mark floated quietly on the bluestone ground.

Zhang Li raised an eyebrow, stepped forward, raised his hand and took the jade talisman into his palm, transferring a wisp of magic power into it. The information inside the jade talisman slowly entered his mind.

It turned out that a notice came from the Immortal City, instructing him to bring the taxes from the Qin family of Xiaohuan Mountain to Yunyu Immortal City in five days to report on his duties, collect his salary, and apply for the missing spiritual materials.

The signatory was actually Su Qinghe. She was an inner disciple from an extraordinary background. Instead of focusing on cultivation and breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage within the sect, she took on the job of guarding Yunyu Immortal City. It was truly strange.

Zhang Li couldn't figure it out, so he simply stopped thinking about it.

The Qin family of Xiaohuan Mountain had sent someone to visit once before, bringing Zhang Li a jar of spirit honey, but it had already been consumed. This time, while collecting taxes, they might be able to get some more.

Putting away the jade talisman, Zhang Li summoned Wang Mu and Li He, and said:

"A message came from the Immortal City, asking me to report for duty within five days. It will take some time to get there. During my absence, this spiritual field will be entirely managed by the two of you. If there are any problems that cannot be solved, put them aside for now and we will discuss them when I return."

"Yes, senior brother."

The two bowed in agreement.

"Hmm, here's a bottle of Qi-Nourishing Pills. You two can take it and divide it up."

As he spoke, Zhang Li took out a bottle of Qi-Nourishing Pills that he had refined himself from his storage bag and handed it over.

Wang Mu and Li He were overjoyed at the sight and quickly accepted the elixir bottle with both hands, bowing repeatedly to express their gratitude.

They were just menial laborers in the sect, working themselves to the bone but barely earning a few spirit stones in return. They might not even see rare items like pills once every year or two.

"Thank you so much, Senior Brother! We will definitely guard the Spirit Field Fish Farm well and ensure that nothing goes wrong!" Li He said excitedly. Wang Mu echoed him, repeatedly assuring him that no accidents would happen.

After saying that, Zhang Li patted his storage bag, and the magical artifact he controlled soared into the sky, heading towards Xiaohuan Mountain.

……

"Brother, do you think the Qingxuan Sect cultivators will really come today? I'm not sure. I also don't know why Father insists we wait here."

"Father told us to wait, so we waited. Why are you making so many demands?"

"Sigh! You... I'm finding you're becoming more and more like your father."

No sooner had the two finished speaking than a red streak of light streaked across the sky at incredible speed, landing a short distance in front of them in an instant.

"Are you two fellow Daoists from the Qin family of Xiaohuan Mountain? I am Zhang Li, a disciple of the Qingxuan Sect, here to pay my respects."

The person who arrived was Zhang Li. He saw the two people from afar and guessed that they were from the Qin family when he saw them standing in front of the Xiaohuan Mountain path, so he asked them.

The two exchanged a glance, and the older one stepped forward and said, "Qin Changyuan of the Qin family greets Fellow Daoist Zhang. My younger brother Qin Feng and I are here on the orders of our family head to welcome you."

"Qin Feng, Qin Changyuan..."

After a moment's thought, Zhang Li remembered the identities of the two men. These two brothers were the sons of Qin Mu, the head of the Qin family. Both of them were at the mid-stage of Qi Refining and were the pillars of the next generation of the Qin family.

"You two are too kind," Zhang Li said, raising his hand slightly to help them up. "I have come today only to collect the Qin family's taxes from last year. I wonder if the taxes have been prepared? I have to go to Yunyu Immortal City to report on my duties in five days, so I cannot delay."

"Everything is ready. Fellow Daoist Zhang, please move to the mountain for a detailed discussion."

As he spoke, Qin Changyuan stepped aside to make way for the mountain path.

Zhang Li nodded slightly and walked up the mountain.

The Qin family of Xiaohuan Mountain only has two kinds of products that they can be proud of: Golden Cloud Spirit Rice and Black Gold Honey.

Golden Cloud Spirit Rice is nothing special; it's just a common type of mid-grade spirit rice that can accelerate a cultivator's progress.

However, this black honey has a unique use; it can strengthen the body, and the effect is quite good, as Zhang Li has already experienced.

Upon reaching the mountainside, they saw a cluster of houses built against the mountain, roughly the size of a town. However, Zhang Li remembered that the Qin family only had a dozen or so cultivators with cultivation abilities.

Qin Changyuan, who was standing to the side, seemed to notice Zhang Li's confusion and explained, "These houses are for clan members who do not have cultivation. My Qin clan does not have many members, and we have always lived together since the clan was founded."

"Most families only support their cultivator disciples, while ordinary members are either sent down the mountain or settled in a small area. It's rare to see your entire clan living together like this," Zhang Li said casually as he glanced at the scattered houses.

Qin Changyuan sighed softly: "The rules set by our ancestors state that regardless of whether a child has spiritual roots or not, they are all of the Qin family bloodline and cannot be separated. Moreover, living on Xiaohuan Mountain, where the spiritual energy of heaven and earth nourishes them, makes it more likely that newborns will carry spiritual roots."

There is indeed such a saying in the cultivation world: children born in mortal lands have an extremely low probability of carrying spiritual roots, but those who are conceived and born in places surrounded by spiritual veins for many years have a chance of developing spiritual roots that can increase several times over.

Another theory suggests that children born from unions between cultivators are more likely to possess spiritual roots and, to a certain extent, inherit the spiritual root aptitude of one of their parents, or even surpass it.

Unknowingly, they arrived at the mountaintop and saw several courtyards standing in rows. Zhang Li was led to the one at the very top.

"Haha, Fellow Daoist Zhang's presence at my humble abode truly brings honor to the Qin family!"

Just as they entered the courtyard, they heard a hearty laugh, and a middle-aged man in a brocade robe strode over.

"This junior greets Clan Chief Qin."

The newcomer was none other than Qin Mu, the patriarch of the Qin family, a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator. Zhang Li bowed and said.

"Fellow Daoist Zhang, you're too kind. Please come in."

Qin Mu led Zhang Li into the main hall.

Wooden tables and chairs were placed in the hall, and a cup of spiritual tea had already been brewed on the table, with a faint spiritual aura wafting through the air. Qin Mu raised his hand to gesture for Zhang Li to sit down, while the brothers Qin Changyuan and Qin Feng wisely did not follow.

Qin Mu gently swept the foam off the tea with the lid, looked up at Zhang Li and said, "It has been hard for Fellow Daoist Zhang to personally come up the mountain to collect taxes this time. I will arrange for the taxes to be sent to the Crescent Lake Spirit Site in advance next year, so that I will not trouble you to make another trip."

Zhang Li picked up his teacup and took a small sip. The gentle spiritual energy of the tea spread down his throat. He slowly said, "I am bound by the sect's orders. It is my duty. I cannot say that it is hard work."

Qin Mu nodded and smiled, "I understand. This year, the Qin family produced a little over 400 catties of black honey and 4,500 catties of golden cloud spirit rice."

As he spoke, Qin Mu took out a storage bag and pushed it toward Zhang Li. Zhang Li estimated the amount in his mind: "There are about 800 catties of Golden Cloud Spirit Rice and eight jars of Black Gold Honey, which is about 40 catties. It's more than the amount that should have been handed over."

He understood what it meant instantly.

Having received the benefits, Zhang Li naturally expected to reciprocate, so he dropped the matter of verifying the specific production figures.

After handing over the taxes and chatting with Qin Mu for a while, Zhang Li got up to take his leave of the Qin family once the spiritual tea in his cup was finished.