"Don't worry, little brother. Even if I'm not here, Butler Xia can still protect the Family. And even if Butler Xia can't hold them off, the Dark Guards you've cultivated this year are enough to be the last line of defense," Xiao Lin said with a smile, patting Xiao Li's shoulder.
"Dark Guards, Dark Guards, are naturally guards who protect the Family in secret. They cannot appear casually. Once they are exposed, the Dark Guards' effectiveness will be greatly reduced.
Moreover, the Fighting Qi Continent is vast, and our Xiao Clan has an extraordinary origin. In the future, we will definitely encounter powerful existences. Only by diligently Cultivating can we protect the Family."
This past year, Xiao Li has been cultivating the Family. He refined a Longevity King Pill for each of the older Elders in the Family, extending their Lifespan by three years, and also provided them with Elixirs to increase their cultivation.
Those Dou Ling Elders have successively reached the Dou King Realm, and some are still in seclusion attempting a Breakthrough. For these old individuals, Xiao Li had them hide, relinquish important positions, and hand them over to the younger members of the Family.
These old individuals then became the Family's Dark Guards, secretly protecting the Xiao Family. For the rest of the time, they devoted themselves to Cultivating, striving to Breakthrough their cultivation.
For these old individuals, only if they can Breakthrough to Dou Huang will they have enough Lifespan to protect the Family.
Xiao Li gave them everything he could: Elixirs for Cultivation and Profound Rank Advanced Cultivation Techniques. Whether they could Breakthrough to Dou Huang depended entirely on themselves.
"Big Brother, I'm leaving." A pair of black flame wings appeared on Xiao Li's back, and then he flew away.
Xiao Lin looked up, watching his younger brother depart, and sighed, "Ever since little brother displayed his extremely strong Aptitude, he has sacrificed a lot for the Family. Even if the Family has two Dou Huangs and several Dou Kings, it's still not enough. It seems the Family's future enemies will be very strong.
Could it be Dou Zun? Or even Dou Sheng! It seems everything depends on this item."
Xiao Lin was toying with an ancient jade that emitted a strange glow in his hand. Under the sunlight, strange patterns appeared on the surface of the ancient jade.
"Grandpa said this thing belongs to the Xiao Family, no! It is the Legacy item of the Xiao Clan! Even if the Clan is destroyed and its people perish, this item must not be lost. It seems little brother knows something. Cultivate! Strive to Breakthrough to Dou Huang before little brother returns, and give him a surprise!"
Xiao Lin thought to himself. His cultivation had been rapidly improving. How long had it been since he Breakthrough to Dou King? He was already an eight-star Dou King, and he still had many Elixirs to aid in Cultivation.
If he couldn't become a Dou Huang with all this, he might as well go to the Magical Beast Mountain Range and find a ape to spend the rest of his life with.
"Father, did Little Uncle leave?" A young man walked over. This young man looked quite heroic, walking with a Dragon-like stride and a tiger-like step. Most importantly, he resembled Xiao Lin by seventy percent.
"Zhan'er, you're here. Yes, your Little Uncle has left. According to him, he will be going to the Central Plains with the Dou Zun Academy Head of Canaan Academy this time," Xiao Lin said calmly. Indeed, this young man was Xiao Zhan, the father of the future Flame Emperor!
Xiao Zhan's eyes were filled with envy, but also a hint of disappointment, saying, "I really envy Little Uncle's Aptitude. It's a pity my Aptitude isn't good enough. I'm almost nineteen and only barely an eight-star Dou Shi (Great Dou Master). I feel a bit unworthy of the Elixirs Little Uncle gave me."
Xiao Lin patted Xiao Zhan's head: "Sigh~ If it weren't for your Little Uncle, you'd probably only be a Dou Practitioner now. And your Little Uncle also said that even if your Aptitude isn't good, he can pile you up to Dou Zong with Elixirs.
There are many Elixirs on the Fighting Qi Continent that can improve Aptitude. Some powerhouses even achieve greatness later in life. You don't need to be overly anxious; it's just that your current progress is slow. There's still hope for the future.
I just feel that Zhan'er has the Aptitude of a Dou Sheng in the future!"
Xiao Lin said with a smile, unaware that his words would truly come true in the future.
"Thank you for your encouragement, Father. Oh, right, Father, please teach me how to handle Family affairs. Since my Cultivation Aptitude isn't outstanding, I can help you with some matters and lighten your burden, so you can Cultivate more."
Xiao Zhan might not have been outstanding in Cultivation Aptitude, but when it came to handling Family matters, he was exceptionally serious. Xiao Zhan was very responsible, and he truly cared about his Family.
Xiao Lin nodded: "Good! I imagine your Little Uncle won't be the Clan Chief in the future. He's already arranged a Grand Elder position for himself, so he probably doesn't want to be the Clan Chief.
The burden of the Clan Chief will fall on you in the future, but Zhan'er, remember, as Clan Chief, your cultivation must be strong! Your methods must also be strong, otherwise, you'll easily be bullied!
While you handle Family affairs, don't neglect your Cultivation. Although your Aptitude isn't peerless, it's still pretty good. Work hard to Cultivate and strive to reach Dou Ling before you're twenty-five."
"Understood, Father. Oh, right, Father, where's Great-Grandpa?" Xiao Zhan inquired.
Xiao Zhan knew that his Great-Grandpa was still alive and had Breakthrough to Dou Huang. As the future Young Clan Chief of the Xiao Family, he knew many things.
"Your Great-Grandpa is busy with something and will probably need to be away for a few years. This matter is also related to your Little Uncle. Don't worry. Oh, and as usual, don't talk about anything related to your Great-Grandpa,"
Xiao Lin said sternly. After all, not many people knew the news that Xiao Ting was alive. Even Jia Xingtian thought Xiao Ting had left. Who would have thought that Xiao Ting was not only alive but had also Breakthrough to Dou Huang, and was now a six-star Dou Huang.
Indeed, in one year, Xiao Ting had Breakthrough two more stars in the Dou Huang Realm.
Xiao Li had collected several good Pill Formulas from the Cloud Mist Sect's treasure vault, including a Elixir that could enhance the cultivation of a lightning-attribute Dou Huang. Xiao Ting had relied on this Elixir to increase his cultivation by one star.
Coupled with another Elixir from Xiao Li that aided lightning-attribute Dou Huangs in improving their cultivation, with the help of these two Elixirs, Old Man Xiao had reached six-star Dou Huang, and this was not his endpoint.
In just five years, Old Man Xiao would be able to reach the Peak of Dou Huang, and then he could attempt to Breakthrough to Dou Zong.
The entire Xiao Family was steadily improving. Even Xiao Li's three Clan brothers, Xiao Lie, Xiao Ying, and Xiao Hu, had made significant progress. All three had reached the Great Dou Master Realm, and Xiao Ying's cultivation had even reached four-star Great Dou Master.
These three had made considerable achievements in handling Family affairs. Now, most of the older Elders in the Xiao Family had relinquished their positions, handing over the affairs to the younger members of the Clan... Cloud Mist Sect, Sect Master's Hall
The previous Sect Master, Yun Shan, was in seclusion attempting to Breakthrough to Dou Zong, and the current Sect Master, Yun Yun, was in the process of Breakthrough to Dou Huang. Currently, the Cloud Mist Sect's affairs were managed by the Grand Elder, Yun Ji.
"Grand Elder, the Mo Family of Yancheng has offered many good things, hoping to secure a position as a Cloud Mist Sect Deacon. What do you think, Grand Elder?" A white-robed old man stood up and said to Yun Ji.
At this time, in the Sect Master's Hall, the Cloud Mist Sect's Elder Council had gathered for a brief meeting. The old man speaking had a lower seating order, belonging to the Dou Ling Elder rank.
Yun Ji frowned: "The Mo Family of Yancheng? What kind of Family is that? Why do they want to secure a position as a Cloud Mist Sect Deacon? Are they trying to use the name of our Cloud Mist Sect to do some dirty deeds? Explain yourself, Yun Leng!"
The old man named Yun Leng was one of the instigators who led the Cloud Mist Sect into a situation of annihilation. However, at this time, Yun Leng had been part of the Cloud Mist Sect's Elder Council for no more than five years, but he was dedicated to the Sect and very protective of its reputation.
Yun Leng's cultivation was also good; he currently had an eight-star Dou Ling cultivation, and soon he might be able to attempt a Breakthrough to Dou King.
"This, Grand Elder…" Yun Leng didn't expect the Grand Elder to ask this. He had accepted Mo Cheng's gifts and intended to help Mo Cheng. Yun Leng hadn't thoroughly investigated the Mo Family.
"Hmph! Everyone remember, our Cloud Mist Sect is a Cultivation Holy Land. This place is for pure Cultivation, not for scrambling for power and profit. If anyone violates the Sect rules, this old man will show no mercy, do you understand?" Yun Ji said sternly, his Dou Huang Qi intimidating the entire hall.
"Understood!"
Yun Leng's head was bowed very low, and he began to reconsider his future actions.
Yun Ji suddenly raised his head: "Hmm? Why is he here? Cough cough, everyone, disperse. Remember what this old man said."
After Yun Ji gave his instructions, he left, and the other Elders left one after another.