Chapter 3: Lin Family Sons
At the end of the year, the family gathered for a meal.
In a huge hall, three tables were set up. The women sat at one table, Lin Batian and the second generation of the Lin family sat at another, and the third generation had their own table.
Lin Batian had nine sons and six daughters. The eldest brother, Lin Shan, was already forty-eight years old and had reached the peak of the tenth level of Qi Refining. The second brother, Lin He, was forty-six years old and also at the tenth level of Qi Refining. The third girl, Lin Die, was twenty-five years old and had reached the seventh level of Qi Refining, being the most talented among the second generation of the Lin family.
The fourth girl, Lin Yuan, was twenty-four years old and had reached the fourth level of Qi Refining. The fifth brother, Lin Hai, was also twenty-four and had reached the fifth level of Qi Refining. Then there was the sixth brother, Lin Jiang, who was seventeen years old and at the first level of Qi Refining.
Lin Jiang's younger siblings had not started their cultivation yet. Cultivation didn't have to start too early. Lin Batian set a rule that cultivation would begin at the age of twelve. Before the age of twelve, some physical exercises were done. Now that the Lin family had more money, they would even have medicinal baths.
The eldest grandson of Lin Shan, the eldest brother of the Lin family, was Lin Keli, who achieved the seventh level of Qi Refining at the age of thirty. There were also seven or eight descendants at the third and fourth levels. After Lin Batian's painstaking efforts for decades, the Lin family had now established its position in the Yun State.
Following the tradition of previous years, Lin Batian would review the achievements of many descendants today. Those who did well would naturally receive more rewards, while those who did poorly would receive strong criticisms.
"Lin Jiang."
Lin Batian gave a comment, but he put Lin Jiang at the end. Throughout the process, Lin Jiang was just eating and almost made Lin Batian angry.
"Dad, I'm here."
"Can you stand up for me? Your nephew's cultivation level is higher than yours."
Lin Batian was very satisfied with his many children. Even if their cultivation speed was not fast, they had other talents that could help him manage the family. But this youngest child was really going to drive him crazy. He couldn't do anything right. It had been five years, and he was still at the first level of Qi Refining Stage.
"I understand, Dad. I will definitely work hard on my cultivation."
"If you still can't break through to the second stage next year, I'll kick you out. It's really making me angry."
"I understand, Dad."
Lin Jiang lazily answered, but he didn't care. He wasn't in a hurry. He was already over five hundred years old, living longer than his old man. As for the Qi Refining Stage, it didn't seem embarrassing to practice for a few hundred years.
The other brothers of the Lin family shook their heads secretly at this. If Lin Batian wasn't present, they would sarcastically mock their useless brother. He was causing them embarrassment, and they were ashamed to say that they had such a brother.
The Lin family didn't have any fancy family traditions yet. The whole family was still growing, so the atmosphere at this gathering was still good. Lin Jiang couldn't care about too much, the meal was just too delicious.
Whether it was meat or vegetables, they were all grown in spiritual land. When the head chef cooked them, they became incredibly tasty. Lin Jiang was too busy enjoying his meal.
"Sixth Brother, stop eating. You're only at the first level of Qi Refining. Do you want to explode and die?"
Lin Hai, who was standing beside them, couldn't bear to watch anymore. He quickly stopped Lin Jiang. These foods were full of spiritual energy. Someone on the first level of Qi Refining couldn't eat much of them. They would explode and die if they couldn't handle the spiritual energy in them.
Lin Jiang was frightened by these words and quickly put down his chopsticks. However, Lin Jiang had already decided that when he returned to the Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa, he would also raise some magical beasts to eat. He would also develop a few acres of spiritual land to grow vegetables.
Life was all about being happy. If you weren't happy, then what was the point of eternal life?
The young disciples couldn't handle the spiritual energy and quickly left the scene. Those with higher cultivation continued. Lin Jiang also left with his sister Lin Ying. Lin Ying was thirteen years old and had been practicing for a year. She had the same level of cultivation as Lin Jiang.
"Sixth Brother, they're all going to the market. Should we go too?"
"Okay, I'll listen to you."
Lin Jiang nodded his head. The original owner had been to the market, but he hadn't been yet and wanted to go and see.
Thirty miles away from Lin Jiang's mountain gate, there was a market founded by the Lin family. It was used as a trading place for cultivators within a thousand miles. This was also a very important source of income for the Lin family. Lin Jiang's eldest brother usually presided over the market.
Of course, relying on him alone was not enough. Lin Batian had also recruited many auxiliary officials at the Foundation Establishment Period to guard the town. The Lin family's heritage was too thin, and their descendants hadn't fully grown yet. Currently, many crucial positions in the Lin family were filled by people that Lin Batian had invited. Lin Batian was also the absolute pillar of the Lin family. If he was gone, the Lin family would immediately collapse, and it couldn't even avoid being swallowed up.
It would take several decades to wait until the second and third generations of the Lin family were fully grown, and they had a group of cultivators at the Foundation Establishment Period. Only then could the Lin family be considered truly stable.
The market of the Lin family was crowded with a large number of independent cultivators. There were also many ordinary people. As the end of the year approached, it became even more lively, with a wide variety of snacks and other things.
The currency in the market was spirit stones and spiritual beads. The standard spirit stone in the cultivation world was three inches long, one inch wide, and one inch thick. The remaining scraps were polished into spiritual beads. In theory, one hundred spiritual beads could be exchanged for one spirit stone.
As long as one didn't buy cultivation resources, the purchasing power of spirit stones was still strong. Lin Jiang bought a lot of snacks for Lin Ying and it only cost around twenty spiritual beads.
"Brother, Brother, look, this is Mother's shop."
"This is grandmother's, and that is also grandmother's."
"That belongs to Aunt Wu."
"This belongs to Auntie Lin."
Lin Ying pointed at the many shops in the market and said, "More than half of the shops in the market belong to Lin Batian's wives and concubines. Of course, they don't run the shops themselves, they rent them out to others and only collect the rent each year."
Lin Jiang was not interested in these things. He had no talent for business. He preferred Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa. He loved farming. Farming was a talent ingrained in his genes.
They played until midnight before the group of Lin family young masters and ladies hurried back to the mountain gate. Normally, they wouldn't be allowed to return so late because it wasn't very safe.
Early the next morning, Lin Jiang bid farewell to Zhuang Rong. He had to return to Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa. He had a somewhat cold personality. The crowd at Lin family's mountain gate was too large and too bustling for his liking.
Before leaving, Zhuang Rong handed a bag of spirit stones to Lin Jiang and said, "Son, you must cultivate well. If you can't break through the second level by next year, your father will really kick you out."
"Mom, I have money. What do I need this for?"
"Listen, take it. Starting this year, all the earnings from Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa will go to you. Don't give it to me anymore. I have money. Your grandfather left me a lot. Since you're my only son, who else should I give it to?"
"Lin Ying also started practicing, and I need to take care of her a bit."
"Keep it, don't worry, practice well."
"Got it, got it."
Lin Jiang accepted the spirit stone and sighed in his heart. It's a pity that parents' love for their children, he couldn't let it go.
Two days later, Lin Jiang returned to the Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa. The tenants in the estate were busy decorating for the New Year. Mortals still paid attention to these things, but cultivators were not as interested. After all, high-level cultivators usually focused on seclusion and didn't bother with such matters.
Lin Jiang pondered on how to manage the Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa well. Now, all the income from the villa belonged to him, but what was the difference?
Even though Lin Jiang was taking it easy, he wouldn't mind having a few more spirit stones. The more spirit stones, the better.
