Chapter 124: The Value Of Spiritual Root Bearers
“Fang Shi… Immortal Master Fang!”
Qu Yan’s voice was uneasy. He noticed the coldness in Fang Shu’s eyes, and cold sweat immediately beaded on his forehead.
The other Dojo Disciples around them saw this and hurriedly spoke up:
“Greetings, Senior Brother Fang!” “Greetings, Immortal Master Fang.”
Everyone in the arena, regardless of age or seniority in joining the dojo, respectfully greeted him. No one dared to address Fang Shu as “Junior Brother.”
Qin Min, lying on the plank, heard the voice. Her expression changed, her eyes darted, and she stared intently in the direction of Fang Shu.
But because she was lying on the plank, she couldn’t see Fang Shu with her eyes; she could only sense that someone was indeed standing there.
Fang Shu scanned the Medicine Hall. He didn’t scold or do anything; instead, he calmly asked Qu Yan:
“Does Master know about this?”
Qu Yan’s expression became even more uneasy.
He wouldn’t dare let the Dojo Master know about such extortion. Moreover, he had deliberately chosen the time when the Dojo Master was out today.
Seeing the other man hem and haw, Fang Shu immediately understood. So he said to him with a half-smile:
“For this matter, you’d better tell Master yourself.”
Hearing this, Qu Yan immediately lowered his head:
“Yes, Immortal Master Fang is right.
I will definitely find Master to accept punishment. Today, I was too rude.”
As he spoke, Qu Yan felt a thread of relief in his heart and hurriedly bowed to Fang Shu again.
Regardless of whether Fang Shu was too lazy to manage the matter or deliberately gave him a chance to admit fault proactively, it was a good thing for him.
After speaking, Qu Yan lowered his head and hurriedly exited the Medicine Hall.
Before leaving, the man even hurriedly bowed to Qin Min on the plank as an apology.
The clamor in the courtyard stopped.
Fang Shu glanced at the crowd and planned to stroll away directly from the place.
As for what happened today, whether Qu Yan would come to “ask for marriage” with Qin Min again afterward, that was not his concern; the Dojo Master would decide.
Moreover, given Qin Min’s current situation, if she really married a fellow dojo brother, even as a concubine, in the environment of the Marketplace, it wouldn’t be a bad thing.
It was better than marrying an outsider and dying without a clear reason.
But just as Fang Shu turned around, a thumping sound of landing came from behind him:
“Senior Brother Fang, wait… wait!”
Looking back, he saw Qin Min, who had been lying on the plank with a cold expression. She struggled, rolled off the plank, and called out hoarsely.
Her sister Qin Ji immediately cried out in alarm: “Bao Er!”
Although her lower body was paralyzed, Qin Min supported herself with her hands. She refused her sister’s help and crawled forcefully toward Fang Shu, prostrating in salute, her face full of intense pleading hope:
“Senior Brother Fang, I heard that people from the Immortal Sect can bring servants and concubines when entering the sect.
Please take me in, Senior Brother Fang!”
The woman hurriedly added in panic:
“Senior Brother doesn’t need to take me up the mountain now. I can wait for you at the foot of the mountain—one year, two years, ten years! I just beg Senior Brother to think highly of me; I can wait forever!”
These words caused a stir among the surrounding disciples.
The crowd looked at the woman with suspicion, pity, or mockery.
“She’s already like this, and she still wants to go up the mountain and enter the sect? She really thinks she’s something special!”
“Tsk tsk, she’d rather be a servant concubine of an Immortal Sect disciple than a proper wife of someone else.”
The scene was silent, but the onlookers’ hearts were full of unspoken mutterings.
Fang Shu stared fixedly at the woman and didn’t speak; the ripples in his eyes increased a bit more.
Then, he cupped his hands toward Qin Min and was about to continue leaving.
Seeing Fang Shu turn away again, Qin Min’s face became anxious.
She crawled forcefully toward Fang Shu, heedless of the strange gazes from those around, and suddenly shouted loudly:
“Senior Brother, Senior Brother! I still have a Spiritual Root, I still have my womb, I can bear offspring, I’m not useless!
Please take me in, Senior Brother… even as a Cauldron, even as a Medicine Slave, please take me up the mountain!”
Her voice was hoarse, as if grasping the last straw, mixed with excitement and fear.
But Fang Shu only paused his steps slightly and didn’t turn back to look at her.
Watching Fang Shu’s gradually receding back, Qin Min cried out:
“Senior Brother! You were the one who led me into the dojo back then!!”
Her voice was shrill, as if she wanted to shout out all the unwillingness and despair in her heart.
………………
“Master, Junior Sister Qin Min’s injuries are truly beyond hope?”
In the Du Gu Guan hall, Fang Shu asked curiously.
After the Dojo Master returned to the dojo, she immediately called Fang Shu, Yu Er, and Xiao Li Li to the Assembly Hall to explain important matters.
Hearing this, the Dojo Master’s expression immediately became wistful.
She nodded heavily and sighed:
“I’ve examined her carefully and even asked the Immortal Sect Envoy to check. Qin Min’s spine is shattered, her organs are injured, her Qi and Blood are completely depleted, her Dantian is destroyed, and not even One Tribulation Cultivation remains.
That she can now escape death is already due to her strong will to survive, which is very rare. If her spine can be healed in the future and she can walk again, that would be ancestral virtue, great fortune, and strong destiny.”
The Dojo Master pronounced without mercy:
“As for cultivation, even though she has a Spiritual Root, it’s impossible now. After all, although Spiritual Roots are rare, they require the Physical Body as a foundation. Unless… she has the even rarer special Soul Spiritual Root, which can cultivate the divine soul without relying on the Physical Body.
But unfortunately, Qin Min does not.”
Understanding this, Fang Shu wasn’t too surprised and just nodded calmly.
These conditions were exactly as he knew.
Given Qin Min’s current physical condition, the only two ways she could connect to cultivation were: first, using her Physical Body to bear many offspring, hoping to produce descendants with Spiritual Roots.
This was the greatest value of her crippled body.
Second, because she had a Spiritual Root, those interested could use her as a special test material for experimenting with Pills and poisons, commonly known as a “Medicine Slave.”
Even for the first option.
Although innate Spiritual Root holders have a certain chance to produce offspring with Spiritual Roots, the probability is slim and unpredictable.
Even those Cultivating Immortality Noble Families can’t guarantee that Spiritual Root bearers will definitely produce Spiritual Root offspring.
It’s just that, according to marketplace sayings, the offspring of Spiritual Root bearers do have a slightly higher probability of being born with Spiritual Roots compared to those without.
But this probability is more like “impossible” versus “just in case.”
“Alright.” The Dojo Master said warmly:
“No more on this. I will keep Bao Er in the dojo and find her a good family later. As for you three, listen carefully to what I have to say about the situation after going up the mountain to enter the sect.
Entering the Immortal Sect isn’t purely a good thing as the marketplace says; there are many intricacies.”
Hearing this, Fang Shu immediately focused his mind and ignored distractions.
He couldn’t help but be surprised and glanced extra at the two women beside him, especially Xiao Li Li.
This year, besides him, these two women were also going up the mountain to enter the sect?
In the hall, Yu Er was fine; she looked calm, as if she had known about it long ago.
But Xiao Li Li was stunned, full of suspicion, as if doubting whether she had heard correctly.
Composing himself, Fang Shu listened carefully and finally understood the reason. He realized that going up the mountain was genuinely not a good thing for Xiao Li Li; it came with both risks and opportunities.
