Chapter 9

In the midst of a tranquil grove, there was a winding path.

Slowly walking to the end of this path, one could see an elegant bamboo house.

An elderly man in his fifties was sitting on a bamboo chair, leisurely fanning himself with a palm-leaf fan and sipping from a teapot, looking content and at ease.

Suddenly, the ease on his face vanished, and his brows furrowed slightly.

A sound of footsteps approached from afar, cautiously stopping beside him.

"Hmph, what is it?" The old man, though displeased at being disturbed, opened his eyes and asked impatiently.

Rong Yiyao, who had brought Rong Kaixuan, quickly said, "Elder, there's an issue at the ancestral hall. We need your judgment."

The old man waved his hand and said, "Whatever the matter, take it to the clan head. Hmph, I'm just a figurehead at the ancestral hall. I have no interest in your trivial matters."

Rong Kaixuan secretly found the old man's straightforwardness endearing.

Rong Yiyao, however, looked embarrassed. He chuckled and said, "Elder, if it were a minor issue, I would have handled it myself. But if I don't report this to you, you won't let me off easily in the future."

The old man was taken aback, slowly straightening his body in the chair. His gaze was not sharp, and he had no imposing aura; he looked like an ordinary old man.

However, just by seeing how respectfully Rong Yiyao treated him, one could tell that this old man was no ordinary person.

His gaze flicked between Rong Yiyao and Rong Kaixuan, and he said slowly, "Why did you bring this young one here? Oh, could it be that he has the potential of a Spirit Practitioner?"

When he said this, he seemed to finally show some interest.

The Rong family had a vast influence within a hundred miles. However, even after searching the entire area, the number of Spirit Practitioners the Rong family could recruit never exceeded thirty.

This old man was a true heavyweight in the Rong family and was deeply concerned about the family's rise and fall.

Rong Yiyao smiled and said, "Elder, this is our direct descendant, Rong Kaixuan." He turned and said, "Kaixuan, quickly pay your respects to Elder Jiehan."

"Yes, I pay my respects to Elder Jiehan," Rong Kaixuan hurriedly stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

Rong Jiehan accepted his bow with a casual air and said, "Get up. Since you have the potential of a Spirit Practitioner, you should cherish it and never waste it."

"Yes."

Rong Yiyao chuckled and stepped forward, saying, "Elder, if Kaixuan only had ordinary potential, I wouldn't have dared to bring him to you."

Rong Jiehan's eyebrows raised in surprise, and he asked, "Oh, what is his potential? What level has he reached?"

Rong Yiyao hesitated and said with a bitter smile, "I can't judge, Elder. Please test him yourself."

"What?" Rong Jiehan looked at him suspiciously, thinking, This young man is usually reliable, why is he being so hesitant and fidgety today?

Rong Yiyao, sensing the elder's confusion, quickly explained, "I mean, Kaixuan's potential is something I've never seen or heard of before, so I don't know how to categorize it."

Rong Jiehan's eyebrows shot up. If he was still a bit annoyed at being disturbed earlier, that annoyance was now completely gone.

"Kaixuan, demonstrate the process of absorbing Spirit Energy into your body for the elder," Rong Yiyao instructed solemnly.

Rong Kaixuan knew this was not the time to hold back. This opportunity was too rare, and if he didn't show his best, he would surely regret it.

He took a deep breath and focused his mind on the Third Eye.

As if responding to his call, the small sphere in the Third Eye began to move, releasing a mysterious and powerful force.

The moment this force was released, Rong Kaixuan immediately noticed a difference. This force seemed much stronger than before.

After a brief hesitation, Rong Kaixuan did not release all the power of the sphere but only about half.

Even so, the commotion he caused was much greater than before.

Countless white light points gathered around him, forming a light band that flowed into his body.

The strange force condensed into a sphere seemed to have an immense attraction to the Spirit Energy of heaven and earth. Even a small release could draw in a large amount of external energy.

As the light band entered his body, the Spirit Energy flow in the Third Eye became even more substantial.

Although this was the second time Rong Kaixuan was absorbing Spirit Energy into his body, he did not dare to be careless. After absorbing a little, he immediately retracted the power of the sphere.

When this force was retracted, the Spirit Energy he had gathered around him dissipated.

"Hmm," Rong Jiehan asked in surprise, "Young man, how long have you been cultivating Spirit Energy?"

Rong Kaixuan shook his head in confusion, "I have never cultivated any Spirit Energy."

Rong Jiehan's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and he stared at Rong Kaixuan as if trying to see through him.

However, Rong Kaixuan, with a clear conscience, met his gaze calmly.

After a moment, Rong Jiehan said solemnly, "Kaixuan... good. I will perform a simple spell, and you will try to replicate it." He raised a hand and lightly pointed at the air.

Instantly, a faint thread of Spirit Energy was released from his finger.

This thread of Spirit Energy was not strong, even weak, like a candle in the wind, ready to be extinguished at any moment.

However, this thread of Spirit Energy stubbornly persisted at the tip of his finger, and when it appeared, it exerted a strong attraction to the surrounding Spirit Energy. Bit by bit, the Spirit Energy gathered, making the Spirit Energy at the tip of Rong Jiehan's finger stronger.

Finally, when the Spirit Energy reached a certain limit, it suddenly made a "whoosh" sound.

The Spirit Energy at the tip of Rong Jiehan's finger transformed from quantity to quality, forming a light ball the size of a fist.

"Ha ha," Rong Jiehan laughed and casually threw the light ball.

"Boom..."

Although the light ball was not large, its power was not to be underestimated.

The light ball, moving at lightning speed, struck a pillar with great force. With a loud explosion, the pillar was shattered into countless pieces.

Rong Kaixuan drew a sharp breath, shocked to find that this small light ball, though unremarkable, moved faster than his punch and was as powerful as a punch condensed with true energy.

All of this was caused by the insignificant thread of Spirit Energy released by Rong Jiehan.

"Uncle, what a skillful technique," Rong Yiyao praised, extending his thumb. However, he was somewhat unimpressed in his heart.

Such a technique was effortless for Rong Jiehan, and he could perform it with ease. But asking a young man who had just come into contact with Spirit Energy to perform such a technique was a bit too much.

Rong Jiehan smiled at Rong Kaixuan and said, "Try it yourself."

Rong Kaixuan's face showed a hint of difficulty. If he were to release all the power of the sphere, he could do it. But releasing such a fine thread of energy was pushing his limits.

Rong Jiehan laughed and said, "It's fine, just try your best. Even if you fail, it's nothing to worry about."

Rong Kaixuan gritted his teeth and said, "Yes, I will give it a try."

He focused his mind, concentrating all his attention on the sphere in the Third Eye.

This was a huge challenge for him.

Slowly, a thread of mysterious power separated from the sphere. In terms of quantity, it was slightly more than the thread of Spirit Energy Rong Jiehan had released.

However, this was the smallest amount of energy Rong Kaixuan could control.

Slowly, he let this thread of power flow out of his body and to the tip of his finger.

When Rong Kaixuan also raised a finger, Rong Jiehan and Rong Yiyao's eyes widened, watching intently.

Then, they sensed it.

A faint and solitary force appeared at the tip of his finger.

The two men exchanged a glance and nodded. For a young man to control energy to such a fine degree was already quite remarkable.

However, their surprise was just beginning.

The moment this thread of force appeared, the vast Spirit Energy of heaven and earth surged towards it as if on steroids.

In an instant, there was a "snap" at the tip of Rong Kaixuan's finger.

Then, a light ball the size of a basketball appeared at his fingertip.

The three of them stared at the light ball in shock. Even the experienced Rong Jiehan and the one who had caused it, Rong Jiehan, were momentarily stunned.

His eyelids twitched, and Rong Jiehan shouted, "Throw it away, quickly throw it away..."

With his cultivation and strength, he was not afraid of the light ball.

However, if Rong Kaixuan lost control and the light ball exploded, causing him injury, he would regret it deeply.

Rong Kaixuan was startled and, without hesitation, threw the light ball.

The basketball-sized light ball instantly turned into a beam of light, flying toward Rong Yiyao at lightning speed.

Rong Yiyao's face changed dramatically. He shouted and a light shield appeared around him, as if he were protected by a large dome.

"Snap..."

The light ball struck the light shield, and it immediately exploded, scattering like stars. However, the light shield around Rong Yiyao also wavered, rippling like waves.

After a few breaths, the ripples slowly subsided.

Rong Yiyao's face was dark and uneasy, looking at Rong Kaixuan with lingering fear, his lips trembling but unable to utter a word.

Rong Kaixuan was panic-stricken and quickly explained, "Uncle Yiyao, I didn't mean to, I really didn't mean to..."