Bai Ruihua and Li Yuhong sipped spirit tea while playing a game of Go. Hearing Dongfang Jing’s words, Bai Ruihua fell into thought before saying, "Jing’er is a boy with a one-track mind. With such a simple heart, the trial of heart demons might actually be easier for him. However, if he ever hits a dead end he can't turn back from, it could be fatal. Sigh!"
Li Yuhong nodded in agreement. The others also grew pensive upon hearing Bai Ruihua’s words. It was true; the trial of heart demons was deeply tied to one’s state of mind. If one spent every day calculating and plotting, burdened by endless worries and attachments, then heart demons would surely arise one after another, making the trial far more difficult to overcome.
Everyone’s opinion of Dongfang Jing improved significantly. Ling Xiaoyin and Dongfang Jing clearly got along quite well; on the journey to Jinxing Star, Dongfang Jing had enjoyed playing with Ling Xiaoyin the most. He was fascinated by this child who looked exactly like Li Xue and doted on her like a precious treasure.
"Brother Jing is the best!" Ling Xiaoyin chimed in from the side.
Li Xue immediately spat out the spirit tea she was drinking. "Brother Jing?" That was too hilarious. Li Xue pointed at the little girl. "You’re not Huang Rong, so how can you call him 'Brother Jing'? Call him Big Brother Dongfang from now on!"
Dongfang Jing looked depressed. "Why can't she call me Brother Jing?"
Li Xue was too lazy to explain. "I’ll let Zihuang tell you why later!" Zihuang loved listening to her stories, and she had once told the bird about various wuxia novels. She believed Zihuang would be more than happy to enlighten them.
Hearing the youngsters’ chatter, Bai Ruihua shook his head and changed the subject. "The Bai family on Danxia Star is holding a grand assembly to select their next family head. I plan to go and take a look. Brother Yuhong, are you interested?"
Li Yuhong replied, "It seems you still can't set your mind at ease. I’ve heard Danxia Star is a hub for spirit herbs; it would be good to go and broaden my horizons!"
"I naturally won't be at peace until I’ve seen it for myself," Bai Ruihua said.
Li Xue and the others focused their divine sense, catching every word the two Nascent Soul seniors said. Their hearts raced with excitement. The Bai family of Danxia Star was a name they had seen in the *Records of the Cultivation World* since they first started practicing; how could they not want to see it for themselves?
The group exchanged glances and secret transmissions, trying to push someone forward to ask. In the end, a helpless Dongfang Jing was shoved to the front. He hung his head, stealing a glance at Li Xue. Only after seeing her encouraging gaze did he feel a bit better.
"Great-Great-Grandfather, can we go to Danxia Star to watch the festivities too?" Dongfang Jing asked Bai Ruihua.
The group nearly collapsed. This kid—how could he just say they wanted to "watch the festivities"? He couldn't even find a better-sounding excuse.
Bai Ruihua replied crossly, "This is a major event like the election of a family head, yet all you think about is watching the festivities! You are a member of the Bai family, so of course you must go!"
Dongfang Jing’s eyes lit up. He immediately turned to the group and said, "Did you hear that? I can go! As for you lot..." He paused. "Ask for yourselves!"
The group was speechless. Yu Ming cried out, "You brat, you’ve learned how to be slick!"
The others were speechless again—he had always been quite the slippery one, hadn't he?
Li Yuhong truly couldn't stand the youngsters' bickering any longer. "It’s no big deal. Leave Xiao Yun and Xiao Fei to mind the shop; the rest of you can all go!"
Everyone was overjoyed.
Danxia Star was divided into four continents, ruled by the four great families: Bai, Ling, Mo, and Fang, with the Bai family at the head.
Bailu Continent in the southeast was the seat of the Bai family. It was a plain with a mild climate, suitable for growing temperate spirit herbs. Lingfeng Mountain in the southwest was the home of the Ling family; it was a high-altitude mountain region with rugged terrain and a dry climate, perfect for growing arid and cold-natured herbs. The northern Moyuan was the territory of the Mo family, a typical snowy wasteland primarily used for cultivating ice-attribute spirit herbs. The eastern region belonged to the Fang family, including the islands scattered across the vast sea. The most famous location, Fangjia Bay, consisted of five large islands. Not only did it produce aquatic spirit herbs, but it also yielded various monster cores—all excellent materials for alchemy.
All four families operated under a system of a family head and elders. The current head of the Bai family, Bai Tianhe, was about to enter secluded cultivation to attempt the breakthrough to the Nascent Soul stage. This caused the struggle for the next head of the Bai family to reach a fever pitch, primarily among the direct line of descent.
Currently, the most talked-about topic in Bailu Continent was the candidates for the Bai family headship. Whether in tea houses, taverns, gambling dens, or even casual street gatherings, people were discussing it.
According to statistics from various sources, there were five most likely candidates. First was Bai Yisong of the 'Yi' generation, ranked third and known as Third Master Bai. He was at the mid-stage of Core Formation. His cultivation partner was Mo Shuying, the eldest daughter of the 'Shu' generation of the Mo family's direct line, who was also at the early stage of Core Formation. With her backing, his strength was formidable, and he had many supporters.
Next was Bai Yishan, ranked fifth and known as Fifth Master Bai. He was at the early stage of Core Formation and was a mid-tier High Grandmaster Alchemist. He also commanded significant support.
Then there was Bai Xingjun, ranked fourth in the 'Xing' generation and known as Fourth Young Master Bai. He was one of the geniuses of the Bai family’s younger generation, having reached Core Formation within a hundred years. He was famous throughout Danxia Star.
Bai Xingxuan, ranked thirteenth in the 'Xing' generation and known as Young Master Thirteen, was also a hundred-year Core Formation genius of the Bai family.
Finally, there was Bai Xingyu, the eldest of the 'Xing' generation, known as Eldest Miss Yu. She reached Core Formation in a hundred and thirty years and was another genius of the family. As the only female candidate for the headship, Eldest Miss Yu was a legendary figure. Rumor had it she had rejected a marriage proposal from the Ling family’s contemporary genius, Ling Yichu. She sought only to focus on her cultivation and refused to become a sacrificial lamb for the alliances of the four great families. She had remained in seclusion for fifty years until she reached Core Formation. Because of this, she had become an idol for many female cultivators, and even many male cultivators held her in high esteem, earning her a fair share of support.
Li Xue, Li Lin, Yu Ming, and Ji Rufeng, led by Bai Ruihua and Li Yuhong, followed Bai Fenghua to Danxia Star. When they had first gone to meet Bai Fenghua, Li Xue and Li Lin had "kindly" refrained from warning the others, wanting to give them a surprise. Sure enough, when they saw Bai Fenghua’s peerless elegance, everyone was stunned. It took Yu Ming and Ji Rufeng quite a while to snap out of it, leaving Li Xue feeling thoroughly satisfied.
The direct line of the Bai family consisted of four branches, with the top four elders each representing one branch. The family head was chosen from these four branches.
The Bai family’s Hall of Elders took into account that many family secrets were not to be known by outsiders. As the cultivation partner of the family head, there were many things that would be impossible to hide. Thus, Third Master Bai Yisong’s eligibility for the headship was disqualified.
Generally, if there were Core Formation cultivators in the 'Yi' generation with good aptitude and ability, there was no reason to let the next generation take over the headship. Consequently, Fifth Master Bai Yishan undoubtedly became the next family head.
Bai Fenghua was very satisfied. At the inauguration ceremony for the new family head, he announced a major event that would lead the Bai family into a new era.
Except for the branches of the Second and Third Elders who would remain to guard the Bai family on Danxia Star, the elite descendants and disciples of all other branches and houses—regardless of cultivation level—were permitted to go out for worldly experience, including traveling to other stars and domains.
This news sent the entire Bai family into an uproar. Being able to travel beyond their star system for experience was an incredibly tempting prospect. Many of the Bai family’s elite descendants and disciples were already itching to go.
