At that time, they were both too young, just kids, and neither had started cultivating yet. Shawn Carter had even forgotten what exactly sparked the duel, only that he ended up beating her, which led to her challenging him to a duel several times every year for so many years.

Forget it, better not to dwell on that now. He should go find The Ancestor first to see what exactly was wrong with his body.

Thinking of this, Shawn Carter quickly waved his hand and said, “You go into seclusion first. I’ll handle my own matters. That woman is very strange, and I’m already having someone look into her background. As for Eric Carter and Jack Carter and the score with them, I’ll settle it myself.”

“If you didn’t get distracted playing around, you’d be at the Earth Spring Realm by now and wouldn’t have to fear Eric Carter and the others. But as things stand, how could you possibly beat them?” As soon as Emily Johnson heard that Shawn Carter wanted to handle things himself, she immediately shook her head in disapproval. She knew Shawn Carter’s situation best—he loved to play, and whatever he played, he mastered, but he just didn’t put his heart into cultivation. If it weren’t for their constant duels, he might not have reached this level by now.

“Don’t worry about that. No matter what, I still have a fifty percent win rate in our duels.” Shawn Carter waved his hand and quickly walked inside. For him, the issues with Jack Carter, Eric Carter, and even Grace Quinn all needed to be resolved, but the most pressing matter now was the sudden appearance of that golden vortex inside his body.

“You’ve got some nerve saying that!” Hearing Shawn Carter claim a fifty percent win rate, Emily Johnson was speechless. But since Shawn Carter was adamant about not letting her interfere, she decided to wait and see. After all, while others always thought Shawn Carter was inferior to his father, Emily Johnson didn’t see it that way. Besides, she was about to go into seclusion to break through, and once she succeeded, if Shawn Carter really ran into trouble, she’d be even more confident in helping him.

With that thought, Emily Johnson didn’t linger and hurried back.

Chapter 3 The Ancestor Can’t Tell Either

Although his arm hurt a lot at the moment, Shawn Carter still managed to endure it and quickly walked inside. This time, he reached a courtyard in the inner compound but was stopped by guards. They looked more like two personal attendants than guards. Although Shawn Carter was a direct descendant of the Wu family, not just anyone could enter here. Without wasting words, Shawn Carter directly took out a token he had prepared in advance, which had three flames on the back and a large Wu character on the front.

As soon as the two saw the fiery aura on the token, they respectfully took it, asked Shawn Carter to wait outside, and went in. After a while, they came back out and led Shawn Carter inside.

The courtyard was made up of rows of fiery red trees, giving it a very unique look. Upon entering, one immediately felt an incredibly comfortable sensation, and at the innermost part stood a house built entirely from this fiery red wood.

The furnishings inside the house were simple. At the window facing the lake stood an old man who looked to be in his sixties, with red hair and beard—even his eyebrows were red. Even dressed in plain clothes, he was striking wherever he went.

The person who led Shawn Carter in bowed respectfully and quietly withdrew. After all, the man before him was the true living ancestor of the Wu family, Henry Carter, who had lived for one hundred and eighty years. In recent years, he had stopped cultivating and stayed put only because he’d reached a bottleneck.

“You’re Jiang Xiong’s son. Are you sure you need to use this now?” Henry Carter continued gazing ahead as if deep in thought, only acknowledging the visitor’s arrival. The token was in his hand, so he clearly already knew who it was. The flames on the token had been personally refined by him, and the three flames on it possessed a certain power. More importantly, the token allowed the bearer to consult him about anything at any time.

This was a tradition and rule of the Wu family for over three thousand years. Normally, different members would systematically train the younger generation, and those who made contributions would be rewarded. One such reward was a token with a mark left by a family member of a certain rank, depending on the merit. When the recipient encountered problems in cultivation, they could consult the elder who left the mark, provided the elder was available.

After all, as one of the five great families of the Six Clans Alliance, the Wu family’s direct line alone numbered over a million, with tens of millions of collateral relatives and tens of thousands of cities and territories. The combined strength of the five families in the Six Clans Alliance was not much weaker than the surrounding kingdoms. In such a vast family, even direct descendants wouldn’t have special privileges unless they were found to be exceptionally talented.

Normally, there were dedicated instructors for cultivation, and every so often, managers from various fields would give lectures. Even ordinary elders only lectured every few months. The family set various tasks for ordinary members, and completing them earned all kinds of rewards, including the marked tokens. The unified family instruction was completely different from receiving personal guidance from a powerful elder or one of the nine great elders.