The Great Elder, accustomed to such scenes, spoke calmly, "6,673 this year. That's slightly more than in previous years."
"But the more people, the higher the chance of discovering spiritual roots. It just means we'll have to work a bit harder over the next two days."
Testing children for spiritual roots was a labor-intensive process. In previous years, four or five cultivators at the ninth level of Qi Refinement would handle the task, completing it in roughly one day.
However, with several elder uncles having fallen in battle, this year's spiritual root testing fell solely on Elian and the Great Elder, making the task especially exhausting.
At first, Elian was excited at the prospect of identifying a few promising seeds for the family. However, as the hours dragged on, his enthusiasm began to wane.
After testing over a thousand children, all of whom lacked spiritual roots, a sense of discouragement set in.
Finally, as evening approached, Elian took the arm of a young child and sent his spiritual energy into their body. To his surprise, he felt a faint resonance.
"Ah!"
Elian's eyes lit up with joy. Probing again, he confirmed the presence of a weak spiritual power.
The Great Elder noticed Elian's expression and hurried over. Taking the child's hand, he sent his spiritual energy into the child's meridians. After a moment, he sighed.
"What a pity—it's a four-root constitution."
Hearing this, Elian focused his spiritual energy on the child's meridians again. This time, he sensed the faint presence of four spiritual attributes.
Among spiritual root types, a four-root constitution was considered below average. Cultivators with such roots progressed slowly and typically struggled to reach the later stages of Qi Refinement in their lifetime.
Despite the poor aptitude, the discovery of a child with spiritual roots was still a small victory. It marked a hopeful beginning.
The Great Elder gently instructed the child to be taken aside and continued the testing.
Perhaps Elian's initial success was a good omen. They soon discovered two more children with spiritual roots.
By the end of the session, the Great Elder wore a satisfied smile. The two-day testing revealed three children with spiritual roots. Aside from the first four-root constitution, one child had five roots—a poor aptitude not worth mentioning—but the last had a three-root constitution.
A three-root constitution was considered reasonably promising. The Chen family typically produced such cultivators every few years. With dedicated cultivation, such individuals could still achieve Qi Refinement stage nine by their seventies, becoming elders who could contribute to the family.
"Pity there wasn't a dual-root," Elian remarked after the testing, a hint of regret in his tone.
"You brat," the Great Elder said with a wry smile. Discovering three children with spiritual roots was already an exceptional outcome. Most years, they found only one or two.
As for dual-root constitutions, the Chen family produced one roughly every twenty years.
Shaking his head, the Great Elder glanced at Elian and smiled.
"The testing here is complete," he said.
"But there are still six towns that need their children tested. I can't leave Pingyang City, so you'll have to handle it."
Elian nodded.
"I'll depart shortly."
Over the past centuries, Pingyang City's population had reached its capacity. Eighty years ago, during the Chen family's peak, they had expended great resources to cultivate six low-grade spiritual veins within a few hundred miles of the city.
These six small spiritual veins supported the establishment of six towns, collectively known as the Pingyang Six Towns.
Each town was protected by high-grade tier-one formations and housed mid-stage Qi Refinement cultivators, capable of defending against beasts below the Foundation Establishment stage. These towns acted as a buffer zone, shielding Pingyang City and the fertile plains within.
"These fertile plains, stretching hundreds of miles, show the foresight of our ancestors from eighty years ago," Elian mused as he crossed the plains, sighing deeply.
"But what a shame…"
If not for the devastating losses suffered during the Beast Tide sixty years ago, which crippled 70–80% of the family's strength, they wouldn't be in such dire straits today.
In the harsh wilderness of the Eastern Desolation, relatively safe lands like these fertile plains were exceedingly rare. Properly developed, this region could support millions of mortals, drastically increasing the number of cultivators the Chen family produced each year.
Yet the family's weakened state meant such growth could attract catastrophic attention.
The souls and flesh of millions of mortals would be irresistible to high-level demonic beasts or demonic cultivators. Such a blood sacrifice could forge a tier-three demonic treasure, powerful enough to tempt even Purple Mansion cultivators.
To avoid drawing such attention, the Chen clan had intentionally controlled the population's growth rate.
Elian moved swiftly. Within little more than an hour, he reached the first town.
As the largest and most developed of the six, this town housed over 15,000 people, with over 700 eligible children.
Spending several hours testing the children, Elian found no spiritual roots. Without delay, he moved to the other towns.
Over the next two days, he visited five towns, completing all the testing. Not a single child with spiritual roots was found.
"The last one…"
Looking at the map, Elian sighed, his hopes for the final town low.
Pingyuan Town, the farthest from Pingyang City, was also the most underdeveloped. Positioned as the first line of defense, it faced frequent attacks from demonic beasts and venomous creatures. With only 3,000 residents, including 800 black-armored cavalry guarding against low-tier beasts, the town's eligible children numbered fewer than 200.
"Something's wrong."
Ten miles from Pingyuan Town, Elian felt a growing unease.
To guard against beast attacks, Chen family rules required black-armored cavalry patrols within ten miles of the town. Today, however, he saw no sign of them.
Even more unsettling was the faint scent of blood carried on the wind.
"This isn't good!"