Chapter 31: Geometric Growth (2)
“Husband, is it sweet?” A stunning female cultivator fed Li Su a grape in the Li mansion. “Sweet, indeed sweet. I love grapes the most,” Li Su replied.
The upcoming wandering cultivators meeting drew Li Su’s attention. His main goal was to observe changes among wandering cultivators, gather information, and check for any signs of demon cultivators in the three major immortal sect areas.
Unlike the immortal sects, wandering cultivators were more down-to-earth and numerous, often privy to small talk and gossip.
“Senior Li~” As Li Su arrived, a group of wandering cultivators surrounded him. There were even more this year, including many from the Four Qi Kingdoms and Northern Yan Kingdom. The number of female cultivators had also increased.
In the Wu Kingdom, most attractive female cultivators were already married to Li Su. However, the overall number of cultivators remained significantly smaller than ordinary people.
Spiritual roots were rare; sometimes, a city with over ten thousand people couldn’t produce a single individual with spiritual roots. There was also the possibility of undiscovered individuals with spiritual roots.
Li Su suspected that many such hidden talents existed in the three major immortal sect areas, but large-scale spiritual root detection was impractical in this world.
Under regular circumstances, even if an individual possessed spiritual potential, there would be noticeable distinctions from the norm, such as increased strength, enhanced mental acuity, and overall better vitality.
Refined spiritual roots infused a breath with spiritual energy, contributing beneficial effects to the body over time, even without active cultivation.
Hence, those with spiritual roots rarely went unnoticed after entering the ranks.
Beyond immortal sects and cultivation clans, numerous secular sects existed, along with a greater number of postnatal and prenatal experts compared to cultivators. However, Li Su dismissed these postnatal and prenatal experts as insignificant.
In reality, these experts hold some local prestige, often receiving excellent training if their exceptional abilities were recognized from a young age.
If proven to have spiritual roots, these experts were often sent to the immortal sects in a process known as “forming a spiritual bond.”
This served as the survival strategy for certain secular sects.
On Immortal Peak, Li Su was surrounded by numerous wandering cultivators, who were unusually enthusiastic this time.
Li Su learned that incidents of wandering cultivators going missing had significantly decreased after dealing with the cultivator Bai.
This Bai cultivator occasionally targeted individual wandering cultivators whenever an opportunity arose, but it was inefficient.
Despite the many wandering cultivators on Immortal Desolate Peak, Bai cultivator’s cautious approach avoided trouble during their gatherings.
Li Su reflected that this cultivator lacked the boldness to accomplish significant deeds.
Considering they were demon cultivators, Li Su believed that a bolder approach, setting traps on Immortal Desolate Peak after reaching the later stages of foundation establishment, could effectively eliminate the wandering cultivators.
While some might escape, Li Su thought that after this wave, finding a secluded place to digest the harvest would be more advantageous than the current situation. However, this cultivator’s timidity prevented such actions.
This indicated that demonic cultivators could only hide like mice in the gutter in the regions of the three major immortal sects.
The path of righteousness was flourishing, which was indeed a positive development.
It was also possible that the cultivator Bai was preparing to reach the pinnacle of Foundation Establishment or even become stronger.
This individual even had intentions towards Li Su, inviting him to the Blackwood Forest several times, possibly planning to strike there.
By nightfall, Li Su had accumulated a collection of handkerchiefs, embroidery, and other tokens of affection, with even more female cultivators presenting them. Some came from Four Qi and Northern Yan Kingdom. This left some wandering cultivators envious.
As a result, in the following one or two years, joyous events continued in the Li family.
“The Li family ancestor has taken another immortal~”
“Yes, it’s a shame. My daughter has just come of age, but now the Li family ancestor only accepts immortals~”
Joy permeated the Luo City area once again. Interestingly, there were individuals in that region experiencing melancholy.
Due to Li Su’s preference for taking concubines, the patriarchal tendencies in the Luo City area had somewhat diminished.
Many affluent and even ordinary families hoped to have a beautiful daughter to marry into the Li family. However, beauty was not guaranteed; some parents found their daughters less presentable.
Even those with average-looking daughters found them transformed into “immortals” after being wedded to Li Su, causing envy and frustration.
Unfortunately, mortals couldn’t compete with “immortals.”
Immortal concubines, not only stunning in appearance, exuded an otherworldly aura. Many dream of marrying an “immortal,” willing to die the next day for such a union.
After over a year, the Li family’s population had grown to 40,000 even faster.
Li Su contemplated the population growth model, anticipating even faster growth in the future, potentially reaching geometric exponential levels.
After this population breakthrough, 100 years of cultivation were rewarded, alongside an overall enhancement for the family.
Li Su’s descendants saw a 0.1% increase in the probability of having spiritual roots.
Though he initially found it low, Li Su realized that a 0.1% improvement was quite commendable, considering the inherent difficulty of possessing spiritual roots, likely involving celestial rules.
The system’s ability to provide such a reward for the entire family, coupled with the increasing population, promised lasting effects.
Upon this understanding, Li Su couldn’t help but smile, appreciating the positive outcomes.