Chapter 5: Give birth, give me lots of children!
Soon, Li Su discovered that the “Many Children, Many Blessings” system had undergone a new change after the number of his descendants exceeded ten thousand. The new change entailed an additional reward for every concubine he took, which was a Youth-Preserving Pill. Although the pill couldn’t extend one’s lifespan, it could bestow eternal youth.
Looking at it this way, the rewards from the system change based on the number of my descendants, Li Su pondered.
The accuracy of the “Many Children, Many Blessings” system was truly remarkable. The system’s rewards were not contingent on Li Su’s individual strengths. After Li Su reached the Foundation Establishment stage, there were no substantial changes in the system’s rewards. However, once the number of Li Su’s descendants surpassed ten thousand, a significant change occurred.
When the number of Li Su’s descendants exceeded 1,000, the “Many Children, Many Blessings” system didn’t provide tangible rewards but elevated Li Su’s majesty. It ensured that the entire Li family, including Li Su’s descendants, revered him as the patriarch without any disobedience. Now that the number had surpassed 10,000, the rewards had evidently improved.
Although the cultivation world contained a Youth-Preserving Pill, the materials required to create it were rare and difficult to obtain, making everlasting youth hard to achieve. Consequently, the system’s rewards were far superior. Furthermore, with an increasing number of descendants in the future, there might be even more changes to come.
“Nam Ming, the Li family’s business can now expand to the entire Wu Kingdom. You and your siblings should discuss and divide the territory amongst yourselves,” Li Su’s calm voice resonated in the main hall.
“Yes, Father,” replied several elderly men and women in their sixties and seventies with the utmost respect. These elderly individuals were all Li Su’s children. The contrast was striking—over a hundred years old, Li Su still appeared youthful, while his first batch of children had already grown old. The distinction between immortals and mortals was vividly apparent.
“Furthermore, the reward for childbirth is doubled. After marriage, every descendant of the Li family must bear a minimum of five children. If they have more than ten children, the reward will be doubled once again,” added Li Su.
“Yes, Father,” they responded. Naturally, they wouldn’t dare to voice any objections to their father’s fascination with “outsiders.” In fact, they wouldn’t dare to oppose any of his decisions and could only dutifully comply.
“These few pills should be able to extend your lifespan,” Li Su said as he distributed the pills bestowed upon him by the sect leader to his children. Although these children were capable, they were already advanced in age, and Li Su had no use for the pills himself. Thus, he decided to give them to his children.
“Thank you, Father,” the children exclaimed happily as they gratefully accepted the pills from Li Su.
After organizing everything, Li Su quietly departed from the main hall and returned to his estate. Yes, Li Su had resolved to further increase the rewards and encourage the Li family’s descendants to have more children. Naturally, this would necessitate the expansion of the Li family’s business. Although cultivators didn’t value worldly wealth, the Li family had grown so vast that most of their descendants were ordinary mortals who required such material prosperity.
“Are you pregnant again?” Li Su asked Ning Xiaoyu.
She was displeased and furrowed her brow. Her first child was just six months old, and she was pregnant again. It hadn’t even crossed his mind—ever since she gave birth to their first child, Li Su had been pulling her towards him almost every day. How could she not get pregnant?
Being Li Su’s first “immortal,” she knew he took extra care of her. Li Su smiled, leaning his head against Ning Xiaoyu’s belly, listening intently. Although he hadn’t felt any fetal movements yet, as a foundation-building cultivator, Li Su could already sense the presence of the tiny life within her womb.
“Haha, wonderful!” Li Su’s face lit up, and he pulled Ning Xiaoyu close, kissing her passionately. Seeing her husband so happy, Ning Xiaoyu’s frown gradually faded, replaced by a joyful smile. Even though she had conceived again so soon, she felt content as long as her husband was happy.
A few months later, Ning Xiaoyu gave birth to their second child, but unfortunately, the child did not possess spiritual roots. It was challenging for two cultivators to conceive children with spiritual roots. Even if they were both immortal cultivators, it remained highly improbable for all their children to possess spiritual roots.
However, one of the new concubines that Li Su had taken in the past two years had given birth to a child with spiritual roots, albeit of mediocre quality. Nevertheless, having spiritual roots was still a significant advantage. As a result, the Li family now had three descendants with spiritual roots. Li Su had arranged for numerous maids and matrons to care for these three children, intending to send them to the immortal sect once they reached the age of twelve. It was crucial for their bodies to fully develop before commencing their cultivation practice, as starting too early could have adverse effects.
Li Su’s own spiritual roots had also grown stronger. Under his new system of incentives, the Li family had seen a considerable increase in members this year.
“Bear more children, as many as possible!” Now that his own lifespan was no longer a concern, Li Su had decided to become a procreating machine, dedicating more time to expanding his offspring. With a larger pool, there would always be one or two descendants with spiritual roots. Moreover, there were rewards for increasing the number of offspring, which fueled his motivation.
Consequently, Li Su’s frequency of taking concubines significantly increased. After entering the foundation-building stage, many affluent families in the Wu Kingdom sought to marry their daughters to Li Su, making it easier for him to acquire concubines than before.
“Husband, how am I getting pregnant again so easily?” Ning Xiaoyu voiced her worries again. It wasn’t simple for cultivators to conceive, yet Ning Xiaoyu seemed to possess a particularly fertile physique. Under Li Su’s cultivation, she became pregnant again less than a year after giving birth to their second child.
They had been married for less than four years, and she had already conceived three children!
Wow, how is she so fertile? Li Su wondered happily.