Rebuilding the Immortal Cultivator Clan Chapter 2196 - 1568: Guidance
Previously on Rebuilding the Immortal Cultivator Clan...
Li Zhirui remained puzzled as to why a person must reach the age of six before their Spiritual Root manifests. Even a slight deviation, be it a day, two hours, or mere minutes, and the Spiritual Root would still not appear!
He could only attribute this phenomenon to the most fundamental laws etched into the fabric of the Universe.
Therefore, it wasn't a matter of unwillingness, but rather a limitation he himself faced.
"Rest assured, I have made the decision to establish our Sect here and shall not depart. By this time next year, I will return with disciples to join us."
Naturally, this was only because the Tongtian Sect, having just been re-established, required his personal attention for certain matters. Once the disciples matured, Li Zhirui would not need to shoulder such a heavy burden, instead delegating minor tasks to them.
As the Tongtian Sect flourished, recruiting disciples annually became unfeasible. In the future, recruitment might occur only once every few years, or perhaps aspiring cultivators would need to find their way to the Mountain Gate independently.
During these past three days, his time was not spent idly waiting. He had journeyed to several commoner towns, disseminating news of the Tongtian Sect's founding and announcing his return for disciple recruitment.
Given Li Zhirui's extraordinary speed, he covered an immense distance within those three days.
However, he did not stray too far, recognizing that governing such a vast territory was premature and beyond his sole capacity at present.
In addition to informing the commoner settlements, he diligently scouted for suitable Spirit Mountains and Spirit Lands within a three-thousand-mile radius. These locations were being considered for future Spirit Field cultivation or other potential uses.
Concurrently, Li Zhirui made a visit to the nearest Immortal City, procuring essential low-level Spirit Seeds, Spiritual Objects, and Magic Artifacts to equip the aspiring disciples for their practice and utilization.
The Spiritual Objects he personally possessed, however, remained private.
This was because even a first-level Spiritual Object held immense value in the Tao Spirit Realm; a skilled Cultivator could, over time, cultivate a multitude of Spiritual Objects from a single source.
Furthermore, despite the modest cost of low-level Spiritual Objects, their demand was colossal. Anything possessing a unique quality was guaranteed to find a buyer.
...
As the sun rose and the moon set, three days elapsed with remarkable swiftness.
Li Zhirui returned to the very city where he had initially arrived. By now, a substantial throng of commoners had congregated, drawn by the spectacle, whether or not they had children eligible for recruitment.
Fortunately, the City Lord's Mansion officials, mindful of not offending the seldom-seen Immortal Master, had pre-arranged the crowd for orderly conduct, thereby averting excessive chaos.
It's worth noting that these commoners placed such unwavering trust in Li Zhirui, without questioning his alignment as a Cultivator or a Demon Cultivator, not solely due to his past actions in slaying rampaging Devil Beasts, but more significantly, because they were entirely unaware of the existence of Demon Cultivators!
This was a realization Li Zhirui came to later. The Tao Spirit Realm did indeed harbor the Demonic Dao and its practitioners, who wielded considerable power.
However, the Demonic Dao was situated in the distant Western Lands, separated from the Immortal Dao by formidable barriers, including the Primordial Spirit Race, the Devil Race, the Ghost Clan, and various other alien factions.
Consequently, interactions between the Immortal and Demon Paths were infrequent, and these commoners, dwelling in remote regions, seldom encountered even ordinary Cultivators, let alone Demon Cultivators?
"Eligible children, step forward to undergo Spirit Testing." Naturally, Li Zhirui could not individually test each Spiritual Root. Instead, he employed several Spirit Testing Arrays to expedite the process.
He deliberately refrained from recruiting older commoners, choosing instead to nurture children under the age of fifteen, fostering their cultivation patiently.
Cultivating their sense of allegiance and loyalty to the Sect was inherently easier at a younger age, thereby diminishing the likelihood of future betrayal.
Of course, even if someone were to betray the Tongtian Sect, it mattered little, assuming they could evade Li Zhirui's pursuit.
"Proceed inside."
With a resounding hum, the Formation sprang to life.
The Formation possessed the capacity to test five hundred children simultaneously. However, due to the stringent criteria he imposed, only one in a thousand met the required qualifications.
Thus, after a single round of testing, a mere ten individuals passed!
Even among these ten, the majority had only just scraped by the requirements; none could genuinely be described as possessing exceptional talent.
'No wonder the surrounding powers are hesitant to venture into this area for disciple recruitment...'
This recruitment ratio even surprised Li Zhirui.
Within the Tao Spirit Realm, a high-grade Great Thousand World, the prevalence of commoners possessing cultivation talent was considerably high, and their aptitude was generally excellent.
However, the commoners inhabiting this particular landmass fell far short of this established average.
After a moment of contemplation, Li Zhirui decided against lowering the standards. Instead, a different approach was employed to bring some children into the Sect. "The Tongtian Sect is looking to recruit a group of servant disciples; would you be willing to join?" Even for children who did meet the initial criteria, they would only become Outer Sect Disciples after successfully passing further assessments. However, given the Sect's current state of rebuilding, these distinctions were not yet clearly defined. The intention behind this was to establish foundational rules now, thereby avoiding potential complications when modifications might be needed later. "Immortal Master, could you please explain the differences for servant disciples?" "Their duties primarily involve more manual labor; beyond that, there are no fundamental differences. They will also be granted a Cultivation Technique and commence their cultivation journey." "My child is willing; I hope the Immortal Master will show mercy and accept him as a disciple." Some families engaged in farming readily presented their children, showing no hesitation. Conversely, officials and the gentry class were hesitant to have their children face hardship, revealing their indecision.