Clan Cultivation: Starting from Beast Taming

Another issue concerns the mindset of Cultivators themselves.

In the entrenched way of thinking among many Cultivators, mortals are frail and short-lived, sometimes a mere common cold or flu could snatch their lives away.

A Demon Beast could inadvertently let out a roar and it might scare several people to death.

With this way of thinking, they naturally don't believe that mortals could be of any help to Cultivators.

At best, they might allow mortals to do completely risk-free tasks like cooking and laundry.

This mindset isn't necessarily wrong, as if there were enough manpower, giving the same tasks to Cultivators would undoubtedly yield much better results than if mortals were to do them.

However, given the current number of Zhou Family Cultivators and clan members, they were far from the luxury of assigning several personal secretaries strictly for the Clan Leader's work, let alone two guards for the gates!

Zhou Chun himself felt the need for these people to aid in his office work.

Hence, employing mortals as a compromise was an excellent solution.

Even better, using mortals wouldn't cost the family any kind deeds, almost making the transaction costless.

But as much as Zhou Chun liked the idea, he wasn't in a position to make this happen just yet.

For one, the family elders might not agree with the initiative.

Secondly, finding suitable mortals for the job would also take time.

Therefore, Zhou Chun planned to have the Zhou Family Cultivators stationed in the Mortal Marketplace secretly look for candidates and provide targeted preliminary training.

Once he succeeded in his Foundation Establishment and truly secured the position of Vice Clan Leader with a say in matters,

bringing up this proposal then should be no issue.

While Zhou Chun was quietly planning this move, Mu Yuntian, a Foundation Establishment-stage Cultivator from the Mu Family who had originally joined the Green Lotus Temple, had come to pay a visit to the Zhou Family.

This Mu Yuntian, an Inner Sect Disciple of the Green Lotus Temple, was a clan elder brother of the former Clan Leader Mu Yunshan, with his cultivation level reaching the late stage of Foundation Establishment.

The Mu Family had originally intended to support him fully in his attempt to reach the Purple Mansion stage.

But now that the Mu Family had met disaster, he found himself not only unable to receive further assistance from his family but also had to step up and shoulder the burden of helping rebuild the Mu Family, a stroke of ill fortune indeed!

Upon his arrival at the Zhou Family, he forthrightly requested to see the Zhou Family's Supreme Elder, Zhou Mingde.

Seeing this, Zhou Chun had no choice but to ask Elder Zhou Chongshan to deliver the message and to escort the visitor to a side hall next to the Central Peace Hall to rest.

Before long, Zhou Mingde arrived in the side hall accompanied by Zhou Chongshan.

Upon seeing Zhou Mingde, Mu Yuntian, who still dressed as a Taoist priest, quickly stepped forward and deeply bowed, saying,

"When my Mu Family met calamity, among all the allied families, Senior Zhou was the first to come to our rescue. The surviving Cultivators of my Mu Family are overwhelmed with gratitude and cannot thank you enough!"

"Now that I have been granted permission by the Sect to return to Lanzhou and rebuild our family,"

"today I have specifically come to see Senior Zhou, hoping that based on the friendship between our two families, you would honor us with your presence at the Mu Family's rebuilding ceremony on Biyun Mountain in a fortnight."

Upon hearing his words, Zhou Mingde's eyes flashed with a hint of surprise before he said, "Taoist Friend Mu is too kind. The Zhou and Mu families are allied, and when the Mu Family was in trouble and sent out a call for help, how could the Zhou Family remain indifferent?"

"I regret that I was a bit too late that day and failed to save more Cultivators of the Mu Family!"

As he spoke, he personally stepped forward to help Mu Yuntian rise.

He then continued, looking at the man, "However, I'm puzzled by what Taoist Friend Mu just said. You mentioned that returning to rebuild the Mu Family is with the Sect's permission, so does that mean you will continue to cultivate within the Green Lotus Temple in the future?"

Hearing his words, Mu Yuntian immediately replied with respect, "Senior Zhou, to be frank, my return this time to rebuild the Mu Family is also by the special grace of the Sect, which has allowed me to reside in the Mu Family as a disciple of the Sect until I can cultivate Foundation Establishment Cultivators from among the Mu Family's current younger generation."

"I see, I understand now," Zhou Mingde said, nodding slightly as he grasped the implication of the words.

After a moment of contemplation, he gently shook his head and said, "If that's the case, it would not be appropriate for me to go. Let the Acting Clan Leader of the Zhou Family and one of the Family Elders go instead."

Once he finished speaking, a clear sense of dismay could be seen in Mu Yuntian's eyes.

However, he knew that once Zhou Mingde had spoken as such, there would be no chance of changing his mind.

He could only respond accordingly, "Yes, if Senior has no intention of attending, I naturally wouldn't dare to impose. I will wait for the arrival of the Zhou Family's fellow Taoists at Biyun Mountain."

Then, feeling disappointed, he left the Zhou Family, escorted out by Zhou Chun.

When Zhou Chun returned to the top of Pagoda Peak after seeing off Mu Yuntian, Zhou Mingde looked at him and a few Family Elders and suddenly asked, "What do you all think about Mu Yuntian's decision to reside in the Mu Family as a Green Lotus Temple disciple?"

The Elders were momentarily taken aback by the question before they all bowed their heads in thought, contemplating the purpose behind his inquiry.

Perhaps uncertain of Zhou Mingde's intentions, after some time, none of them seemed willing to be the first to speak.

This caused Zhou Mingde's brows to raise, and he turned to Zhou Chun, saying, "Since the Elders are reluctant to speak first, why don't you, the junior, share your opinion first?"

When called upon, Zhou Chun could no longer remain silent and replied, "Yes, then this junior will humbly express his thoughts."

He then looked up and said, "This junior believes that for a great Sect like Green Lotus Temple, even if some high-ranking individuals sympathize with the Mu Family's plight, it's unlikely that they would actively help the Mu Family to rebuild in such a manner."

"It's more likely that Mu Yuntian himself made such a request to the Sect, and the Sect's leadership either out of sympathy for the Mu Family's circumstances or for some other reasons, agreed to this method for him to rebuild the family."

At this point, his tone paused slightly, and his voice grew a bit softer as he continued, "As for Mu Yuntian's intentions in doing so, whether he wishes to use his status as an Inner Sect Disciple of Green Lotus Temple to deter other forces with designs on the Mu Family, or whether he cannot bear to part with that status, I wouldn't dare to speculate recklessly!"

"Well said, very insightful," Zhou Mingde said, showing a trace of surprise as he looked at Zhou Chun, nodding in approval of his answer.

He then turned his gaze to the other Elders and asked, "And you? Do you have anything else to add?"

"This junior feels that Mu Yuntian lacks sincerity. He thanks the Supreme Elder for rescuing the Mu Family, but only expresses his gratitude verbally, without ever sending a suitable gift," Zhou Jiarui quietly presented his opinion at this time.

To this, Zhou Chongshan was the first to shake his head and say, "You can't say that. The lack of a gift might be because he believes that ordinary gifts cannot reciprocate such a favor, and thus he did not send any thoughtlessly."

"Besides, if the Mu Family wishes to rebuild, they will need funds for various expenses. If he is a wise man, he should be using every valuable thing he has to rebuild the family at this time!"

Hearing this, Zhou Jiarui's mouth opened, but he held back the urge to argue and finally said in a low voice, "Perhaps it is so."

Seeing this, Zhou Mingde shook his head slightly and gestured with a wave of his hand, "Enough with the analysis, we will eventually find out what kind of person Mu Yuntian truly is. Let's leave it at that."

He then ordered, "Zhengchun, you and Jiarui will together visit the Mu Family when the time comes. Choose some gifts that would be of help to the Mu Family's reconstruction, and make sure to avoid any idle talk about our Zhou Family."

"Yes, this junior obeys the order," they responded.

Zhou Chun and Zhou Jiarui echoed the command in unison.

After Zhou Mingde had left, the two of them discussed the matter of selecting gifts with the other Elders. Only after a thorough consultation did they draft a suitable list of gifts and began preparing the corresponding items.

Half a month later, Zhou Chun and Zhou Jiarui set out for Biyun Mountain with the prepared gifts to fulfill their appointment with the Mu Family.