Qin Ruqing saw the testing plate flickering back and forth between red and green lights, and she had a bad feeling about it and thought,

‘What does this mean? Red when it wants to be red, green when it wants to be green. What’s with this jumping around? Am I some sort of traffic light?’

When the Grand elder suggested seeking the judgment of the ancestors, Qin Ruqing’s face completely fell.

Who was the Grand elder? Apart from the ancestors, he had the highest cultivation level in the Qin family.

If even he couldn’t understand the situation with the testing plate, could there really be a problem?

Her rich experience from reading novels in her previous life made Qin Ruqing imagine all sorts of plot twists.

For example, that she wasn’t actually the child of the Qin family but was picked up by her parents that she possessed the bloodline of a monster, causing the testing plate to malfunction.

Then she would be expelled from the Qin family, embarking on a journey to uncover her true identity and seek revenge…

Heavens, she couldn’t think about this any longer!

On the other side, Luo Xian heard about seeking the judgment of the ancestors and anxiously said, “Grand elder, judging by the colors on the testing plate, isn’t Qingqing a Fire-Wood dual spirit root? Why do we need to seek the ancestors’ judgment?”

The Grand elder shook his head, simply saying, “It’s not just a Fire-Wood spirit root.” As for why they needed to seek the ancestors’ judgment, he didn’t explain.

The second elder looked puzzled, “I remember earlier that this child’s bloodline filled the testing plate in one go, which indicates an extremely pure spiritual root. If it wasn’t for the plate lighting up in two colors, I would have suspected she was a Heaven Spirit Root…”

“Heaven Spirit Root wouldn’t make the testing plate light up in two colors,” a slightly lazy voice interjected.

Qin Ruqing looked over to see it was her second uncle.

Her second uncle, named Qin Dehao, had a fair complexion, no beard, and narrow phoenix-like eyes.

Qin Ruqing remembered most vividly that her second uncle had the worst relationship with her father, and they would often argue.

He seemed quite dissatisfied with her father being the clan leader.

Among all those present, only her second uncle’s gaze revealed a sense of detachment.

When everyone looked at him, he casually adjusted his sleeve and said, “Why are you all looking at me? I’m just stating the truth.”

“Furthermore, the Grand elder suggests seeking the ancestors. But isn’t the ancestor currently in seclusion? Must we disturb him over such a trivial matter as testing the aptitude of a junior in the clan?”

“What do you mean by that? What’s so trivial about this phenomenon? Can’t it be that Qingqing has awakened some special physique or bloodline, causing the testing plate to undergo such a change? If that’s the case, what’s wrong with seeking the ancestors’ judgment?” Qin Deming said with a stern face.

“Special physique or bloodline?” Qin Dehao emphasized those words, glanced at Qin Deming with disdain, chuckled, and didn’t continue.

But anyone could see the mockery on his face.

Qin Deming regretted speaking out as soon as he did.

Truly, special physiques and bloodlines were extremely rare, rarer even than Heaven Spirit Roots.

They were basically one in a million in terms of aptitude.

Those with special physiques were undoubtedly favored by the heavens.

While others might have a long and arduous path to immortality, they would have a smooth and straightforward journey.

As parents, they naturally wanted to think positively about their children.

But others might not.

Qin Deming’s face turned livid, and he wanted to argue back.

However, considering his identity as the clan leader and how arguing with his brother in front of the ancestral hall was unseemly, he suppressed his anger.

The atmosphere in the ancestral hall

The atmosphere grew tense and stagnant.

In truth, although Qin Dehao’s words were unpleasant, there was some truth to them — it did seem a bit excessive to hastily summon the ancestor just because a younger member’s aptitude test showed some irregularity.

The elders glanced at each other.

The second elder stepped forward to smooth things over, “The clan leader is right. In such a situation, we can’t rule out the possibility of awakening a special constitution, haha.”

No one took this seriously.

But surprisingly, the grand elder nodded slowly, “I also think so.”

“Based on the spirit-testing plate’s performance, I suspect she has a Heavenly Spirit Root and awakened some special constitution, which caused the inability to detect her root attribute. But with my current abilities, I can’t yet determine what this constitution is. We must summon the ancestral elder and use secret techniques to find out.”

When the grand elder said this, everyone looked at him in astonishment.

Heavenly Spirit Root and an awakened special constitution? Either of these alone would be considered impossible, let alone both together.

Qin Deming and his wife’s emotions could be described as riding a roller coaster.

Qingqing possibly awakening a special constitution? Regardless of its truth, the grand elder was never one to make baseless claims; if he said it, there must be a seventy percent chance.

Determined, Luo Xian quickly signaled to Qin Deming.

Understanding immediately, Qin Deming spoke loudly, “If it were just a problem with the younger generation’s aptitude test, we shouldn’t disturb the ancestors rashly. But now, if Qingqing indeed has the potential to awaken a special constitution, and we all know what that implies, it concerns the future development of our clan. As the Qin clan leader, I believe we have sufficient reason to summon the ancestor!”

The clan leader had spoken, now it was up to the opinions of the other elders.

The grand elder remained composed and calmly said, “Agreed.”

The second elder, a peacemaker, looked around and chuckled, “I see no problem with that.”

The other elders echoed their agreement.

And so, the decision to summon the ancestral elder was settled.

Qin Ruqing felt like the situation was like a roller coaster.

One moment, her uncle was arguing with her father, and the next moment, the grand elder suggested she might have awakened a special constitution, setting the tone for this matter.

A special constitution…

Qin Ruqing wasn’t too shocked, to be honest.

After all, she had always hoped that after spending 5000 points on the System’s Divine Elixir and consuming fifth-grade spiritual medicine, there would be some effect!

In her heart, Qin Ruqing was somewhat hopeful, but mostly anxious.

Honestly, as long as the conclusion about her aptitude wasn’t settled, this tension would continue to grip her.

As for summoning the ancestral elder… she had never met him since childhood.

Occasionally, her father mentioned that the ancestral elder seemed to always be in seclusion, recovering from his injuries?

While Qin Ruqing pondered this in her heart, she returned to the group of children.

Although the decision to summon the ancestral elder was made, the testing would continue.

Obviously, the elders meant to discuss the ancestral elder’s summoning after the clan’s examination was completed.

The subsequent tests were not as thrilling as Qin Ruqing’s.

Among the children of the branch,

It’s the striking talent that catches the eye.

This is inevitable in the cultivation world, where cultivators value bloodlines because spiritual roots often inherit traits.

Those with spiritual roots are more likely to have children with spiritual roots, and higher-level cultivators are more likely to have talented offspring.

For families with a heritage, even if they have fallen somewhat, as long as their foundation remains, there is hope for a comeback.

However, for commoners and wandering cultivators, the chance of having spiritual roots is greatly reduced.

This is why ordinary people and independent cultivators struggle especially hard — in this dangerous world, without the ability to protect oneself, one must rely on the strong.

It’s a harsh truth, yet very real.

However, the subsequent tests did bring some surprises.

In this clan examination, aside from Qin Ruqing and Qin Qiurong from the main line, there were twelve children from branch lines.

Among them, besides the usual Three Spiritual Roots and Four Spiritual Roots, there were even two with Double Spiritual Roots.

One of them had exceptionally high purity in her spiritual roots.

The girl with high purity was named Qin Zhiyao, possessing both Fire and Wood Double Spiritual Roots.

These types of spiritual roots were common in the Qin family but highly valued, as the Qin family excelled in alchemy and was a renowned medicinal family.

The other Double Spiritual Root belonged to a boy named Qin Yu, with Earth and Wood Spiritual Roots.

This was also excellent, as Earth and Wood Spiritual Roots excelled in cultivating spiritual plants and could manage the clan’s medicinal gardens in the future.

These two children were selected separately and, despite being from branch lines, would now be integrated into the main family for education, entering the Qin family’s academy and enjoying treatment equal to the main line.

Qin Ruqing could clearly sense the disappointment in the remaining children.

She sighed inwardly.

This was almost more cruel than the college entrance exam.

Even if you fail the college entrance exam, you can still retry or find plenty of opportunities elsewhere to prove yourself.

But in the cultivation world? These children would be defined as good or bad, high or low, at the age of eight.

If your aptitude is good, you soar to great heights, entering the main family and receiving special training.

However, if your aptitude is poor, you remain in a subsidiary branch with resources and environment vastly inferior to the main family.

When you grow up, you serve the main family in a “peripheral” role.

Unless there’s a stroke of luck or significant achievement, there’s virtually no chance of becoming a core member of the family.

Seeing this, Qin Ruqing not only felt no joy but rather a heavy heart.

The cruel reality of this world was slowly revealing itself to her.

This was nothing like the games she used to play.

In games, everything could be reduced to data, making it detached, with the sole focus on leveling up and defeating monsters.

But here, every detail was painfully real.

Qin Ruqing quickly adjusted her mindset.

From now on, she must be extremely cautious.

Even though there was a system, even if the system’s rules were identical to the game she played in her previous life, she couldn’t let her guard down.

Approaching this world with arrogance, like a transcendent being, would be a grave mistake.

She might not even know how she died one day in the future.

In her previous life, she was indeed a privileged “successor to socialism,” but in this life, some of her concepts needed adjustment.

She was keenly aware that this world and her previous life were completely and utterly different worlds.

After the clan examination, most people were escorted away, leaving only a few core members of the Qin family.

Several elders, Qin Deming as the clan leader, naturally remained, and Luo Xian stayed because of Qin Ruqing’s involvement.

Besides them were Qin Dehao, Qin Dexin… and two younger members, Qin Ruqing and Qin Qiurong.

Qin Ruqing, being directly involved, had no reason not to stay, but Qin Qiurong’s presence puzzled her.

She guessed it might be because of their third aunt?

Qin Deming and the grand elder went to summon the ancestral elder.

The rest waited in a quiet room behind the ancestral hall.

During this wait, Qin Ruqing kept guessing what the ancestral elder would look like.

Could it be an elderly figure in a green robe with gray hair, looking dignified yet aged? Or perhaps a kindly old lady?

Qin Ruqing lost track of time—maybe fifteen minutes? Or half an hour? Before she knew it, a person had quietly entered the room.

Her features were delicate yet carried a hint of determination.

She appeared calm but exuded an aura of authority.

Clad in a light green daoist robe, her hair tied simply with a jade hairpin.

To Qin Ruqing’s eyes, she seemed like a goddess-like figure.

Had the Qin family always had such a commanding presence? Why had she never noticed before? Suddenly, Qin Ruqing widened her eyes in realization—

Th-the Ancestor!

The Qin family’s ancestral elder looked like this?

Normally, when someone is referred to as an ancestor, people instinctively imagine a figure adorned with signs of age like white hair.

However, their ancestral elder appeared remarkably elegant and, from a modern perspective, couldn’t be more than in her forties.

The ancestor gestured casually, and everyone began to bow respectfully.

Qin Ruqing and Qin Qiurong, being the younger generation, performed a profound bow.

The ancestral elder waved her hand lightly and said, “Rise.”

She got straight to the point, “Where is that child?”

Qin Deming and Luo Xian’s expressions stiffened noticeably.

Qin Deming chose his words carefully and pointed to Qin Ruqing beside him, “Respecting the ancestor, she is the young lady, named Ruqing.”

The ancestral elder nodded faintly and said, “Qin Ruqing, come forward.”

Qin Ruqing instantly felt like she was being called to the principal’s office.

She approached the ancestral elder nervously, standing before her without daring to meet her gaze directly.

The ancestral elder beckoned to the grand elder, “Spirit-testing plate.”

Then she looked at Qin Ruqing, her tone unexpectedly gentle, “Child, give me a drop of your blood.”

Without hesitation, Qin Ruqing pricked her middle finger with a silver needle and let a drop of blood fall into the spirit-testing plate.

The scene repeated as before.

The spiritual patterns on the plate filled up completely, and alternating red and green lights shimmered.

The ancestral elder’s expression remained unchanged, as if she had expected this.

With a single hand gesture, she performed a technique, and a stream of spiritual light entered the plate.

The pointer on the spirit-testing plate began to spin wildly.

Then, an astonishing scene unfolded.

The light on the spirit-testing plate stabilized, and eventually, the green light faded away, leaving a brilliant red glow.

The ancestral elder nodded calmly, “As expected, fire attribute, maximum purity of spiritual roots, it is the Heavenly Fire Spiritual Root.”

Heavenly Fire Spiritual Root? It’s actually the Heavenly Fire Spiritual Root!

Qin Deming and Luo Xian exchanged a glance, both filled with excitement.

Qin Deming clenched and then relaxed his fist.

To avoid any mistakes, he asked, “But previously, how could the young lady also stir the Wood Attribute Spiritual Stone in the spirit-testing plate?”

The ancestral elder did not answer directly.

Instead, she looked at Qin Ruqing again, her voice unusually gentle, “Child, give me another drop of blood.”

Qin Ruqing’s expression was blank as she obediently pricked her finger again.

She was about to let the blood drop into the spirit-testing plate when the ancestral elder stopped her.

The drop of blood on her fingertip floated slowly in the air before finally landing in the ancestral elder’s hand.

The ancestral elder held the droplet up to her eyes, where others saw a normal drop of blood, she discerned a faint blue hue swirling within.

“Your blood carries the aura of wood.” The ancestral elder mused to herself.

Lastly, to the astonishment of everyone present, the ancestral elder put the drop of blood to her lips and closed her eyes.

After some time, the ancestral elder opened her eyes again, fixing her gaze on Qin Ruqing’s bewildered face, showing a hint of excitement and fervor.

“The blood is full of vitality and carries a presence that even surprises me. This aura can resonate with the spiritual energy within me. Truly, it is a special constitution, and a particularly remarkable one…”

She paused briefly before delivering her final conclusion, “If my guess is correct, it should be… Dao Physique.”

—Dao Physique?!!

Everyone’s eyes widened in disbelief.