The 'Little Granduncle' Sū Jǐn referred to was the biological father of her own father, Sū Yǎn, and the direct cousin of her Granduncle. Sū Jǐn's Granduncle and this Little Granduncle were born to the same set of parents as brothers.
Back then, Sū Jǐn’s biological mother married into the Sū Clan through a tribe alliance. She represented the dignity of the Wood Witch Tribe. Initially, she was married to the eldest legitimate son of the Granduncle, Sū Zhāng. Sū Zhāng was the biological father of Sū Jǐn and her younger sister, Sū Shèn.
However, while Sū Jǐn's mother was pregnant with their second child, Sū Shèn, Sū Zhāng’s former sweetheart returned. Sū Zhāng was determined to get a divorce and remarry, even if it meant being expelled from the clan. After confirming his eldest son’s true intentions, Sū Jǐn's Granduncle immediately expelled him from the clan. He decided that raising a disobedient son was worse than raising a piece of charred meat. When the alliance was first needed, the Granduncle had asked his eldest son if he could accept the marriage, and the boy had agreed perfectly well. Yet, he pulled out halfway through. How could one just walk away from an arranged alliance? Was this not rubbing his father’s old face into the brick floor? Driven to fury, the old man chased his 'great' son out.
He then married the pregnant daughter-in-law to his adopted son, Sū Yǎn, who was the youngest son and had not yet married. Thus, Sū Yǎn happily stepped into the role of a father, picking up not just a wife, but two children in one go. Of course, since the two of them were blameless, the old man could not let Sū Yǎn or his new daughter-in-law, Lín Línghuā, suffer. Therefore, he used his own resources and quota to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill for Sū Yǎn. When Sū Yǎn's cultivation reached the required level, he would be able to return to the Spirit Cave controlled by the family and go into seclusion to break through to Foundation Establishment. He also transferred the ownership of a house that had been under the eldest son's name—the very courtyard where Sū Jǐn’s family lives now—to the fourth daughter-in-law, Lín Línghuā. The value of this property alone exceeded one hundred thousand Spirit Stones.
Lín Línghuā had grown up in the Witch Clan and was accustomed to circumstances where a brother failed and the wife was passed to the younger brother. After all, she had come here through a political marriage; she couldn't simply return home. Besides, she had two children, and Sū Yǎn had a better temper, was better-looking, six years her junior, and was obedient and well-behaved. Consequently, after declining twice to no avail and confirming that Sū Yǎn was also willing, she 'reluctantly' accepted the new marriage to the younger brother. After giving birth to Sū Shèn, Lín Línghuā had a third pregnancy a year later, producing a pair of twin boys. They were Sū Jǐn’s third and fourth younger brothers, who had just turned one year old this year. With four children in the house, the young couple could barely keep up, so they decided not to have any more. That was enough.
"What? My grandfather left a stash of Spirit Stones with the Granduncle?" Sū Jiǎn asked in shock, wondering how that could be.
"That’s right. I was sitting on a small stool listening when my father told my mother," Sū Jǐn replied.
Upon hearing this, Sū Jiǎn immediately vowed to himself that he would never gossip with his wife in front of Su Xiaohe again.
"Xiao Hua, you can rest easy now, right? Our family has Spirit Stones. As long as you cultivate diligently and strive to break through to the fourth layer, just leave the rest to your parents," Sū Jiǎn said, turning back to his daughter.
Sū Huà thought: It looks like I have to give it my all this time.
"Father, I certainly won't let you down."
"Xiao Hua, we should put in the effort as best we can, but don't force yourself too hard. If you really can't break through, then so be it," Liu Yuniang said, seeing Sū Huà tensing her small body, and immediately spoke up to comfort her.
"Don't talk about giving up. It hasn't reached the final moment yet. We cannot quit; Xiao Hua must work hard!" Sū Jiǎn encouraged his eldest daughter. Seeing her father’s anticipating and approving gaze, Sū Huà felt a twinge of guilt and swallowed hard. Then, she nodded vigorously.
"Rest assured, tomorrow I will go chat with Master Cai."
"Hmm."
Sū Jǐn returned to her room and first caught up on the cultivation she owed for the day. Then, she took out the 'Grand Evolution Spirit Refining Formula' and began to ponder.
As she mulled over the Cultivation Formula, Sū Jǐn also thought about other things. She understood everything Master Cai had explained, but what kind of object should she meditate on? Perhaps she should meditate on a willow tree. Willows were easier to visualize, especially since there was a large willow tree in their courtyard—one that had been planted many years ago and was almost becoming a Spirit Tree. Yes, that would be it. Besides, she had no other better choices.
After settling on her object of meditation, Sū Jǐn began to visualize. After a moment, she gave up. She rested for a bit, then tried to meditate again. She rested, then tried again. After struggling through five or six rounds, Sū Jǐn felt greatly stifled. Every time she tried to visualize a willow tree within her Sea of Consciousness, an image of a massive ancient tree would appear and interfere with her meditation. Every time she reached for the willow, the ancient tree would emerge. It was so colossal, and its image was mysteriously blurry. How was she supposed to meditate on that?
Unable to continue, Sū Jǐn decided to sleep first and ask Master Cai tomorrow how to solve the problem of being constantly interrupted. She tucked herself into bed and was fast asleep within a few breaths. As soon as she fell into a deep sleep, the 'Grand Evolution Spirit Refining Formula' began to operate on its own, as if a paintbrush were slowly tracing strokes within her Sea of Consciousness.
At first, the brushwork was weak, and the completed strokes would dissipate, forcing her to redraw them. Or, the finished strokes would look like they had several layers of phantom images, not real at all. But gradually, each stroke, though short, became very clear and solid, connecting one after another. The pattern slowly took shape.
By the time dawn arrived, a simple, green, tree-like sketch had been completed within Sū Jǐn’s Sea of Consciousness. The moment the tree was finished, it fell directly into the center of the Little Witch Heaven. The phantom image of a giant ancient tree there flickered for a few moments, and after merging with the green tree, in less than three breaths, a verdant, two-meter-tall, solid tree appeared out of thin air, firmly taking root in the black, fertile soil.
Although this tree wasn't very tall, it possessed a mysterious charm. The most important thing was that it seemed to be alive.
Early the next morning, Sū Jǐn just woke up. Although she was full of energy and not feeling fatigued, she wanted to complain about the strange occurrence of failing to visualize anything last night. But before she could get the complaint out, she suddenly felt, to her surprise, that there was an extra tree in her Little Witch Heaven.
Her consciousness hurriedly dove into the Little Witch Heaven. There, in the central area, a verdant tree with an ancient and mysterious charm stood majestically. Was this not the very ancient tree that had appeared in her Sea of Consciousness so many times and interfered with her attempts to visualize the willow? How did it appear here? Where did it come from?
Sū Jǐn stared at the ancient tree in astonishment, even reaching out to touch it. This tree... it seemed to be breathing.