"What kind of family should we find for you?"

Wearing a jade crown and a feathered robe, the Taoist priest strolled high in the sky on the leisurely white clouds, his eyes, radiating mysterious light, casually sweeping over the towns and villages scattered across the land.

"If I were to find you a good family, it would be a betrayal of the time you chased after me!"

As he spoke, the Taoist looked down at the ball of spiritual light he held in his hand, which emitted a dim glow. This small, dim ball of light, barely enough to hold a handful, expanded and contracted upon hearing Feng Bingwen's words, but it could not even transmit a complete thought.

"Got it!"

The Taoist's gaze swept over the majestic city walls and bustling villages, finally settling on a somewhat dilapidated village. He raised his other hand, made a few quick calculations, and nodded slightly.

"In this way, one can avoid karmic consequences, which is excellent!"

After selecting his target, the Taoist descended from the clouds and entered the impoverished village. He could see that the farmers who were out in the outside world were mostly wearing tattered clothes, and even those who were slightly better dressed were covered in patches.

Seeing this, the Taoist's gaze remained calm and composed, showing little emotion. He simply followed the result of his calculations and walked into a thatched hut.

In the Taoist's eyes, a peasant woman of ordinary appearance and rough skin was wielding a wood-chopping knife, chopping pieces of wood to the appropriate size.

Beside the peasant woman's village, two teenagers were helping out. One was carrying firewood, while the other was stacking the chopped timber piece by piece. Inside the house, the Taoist priest could hear cries and tender care.

The Taoist priest watched this scene without making a sound. He simply stood there, but neither the woman chopping wood, the child helping, nor the villagers passing by on the roadside could see his presence.

As time passed and noon approached, wisps of smoke rose from the chimneys, and a short, slightly thin man carrying farm tools came out with two honest-looking boys.

"..."

Gazing at the family of eight, Feng Bingwen pursed his lips, then couldn't help but sigh softly.

"Many children bring many blessings!"

Such situations are all too common among humans. Given the opportunity, ordinary humans will try their best to reproduce as many offspring as possible, partly to continue the family line. After all, in harsh environments, the proportion of children who can survive to adulthood is not high, and the mortality rate of young children is very high. Perhaps a cold can take away a child's life.

On the other hand, poverty means that the cost of raising a child is extremely low, and a child is a source of labor for a family.

"An eight-member family is already struggling to make ends meet!"

The Taoist priest entered the family's house and his gaze fell on their dining table, which contained a plate of wild vegetables and coarse grains mixed with rice bran, without a trace of meat.

"There's a ninth one left!"

Feng Bingwen's gaze fell on the peasant woman, who had a very good appetite. Her belly was slightly swollen, and a faint life force was developing, though her consciousness had not yet coalesced.

"well!"

The Taoist sighed, and the dim ball of light he held in his hand was thrown out and deliberately entered the peasant woman's stomach, where she ate the coarse rice without any reaction.

"You can come here in August!"

Feng Bingwen didn't even need to calculate to deduce the approximate time of the peasant woman's delivery. He had already predicted from the sky what kind of treatment the child in her womb would receive after birth.

Abandoned baby!

This is a choice made by ordinary people between the ever-growing number of family members and limited resources. However, such behavior still retains a shred of conscience, as there is still a possibility that the abandoned child will be picked up and raised by a kind-hearted person.

There is another, even more heinous act: infanticide. However, this mostly happens to baby girls, who are simply drowned in the water because they do not meet their parents' needs and they do not want to waste money and food.

This situation was common in secular dynasties with low productivity. Feng Bingwen could not stand it, but even as a mortal immortal walking among mortals, he was helpless to change it.

He can save one person, ten people, or even a hundred or a thousand people, but he cannot save ten thousand or a hundred thousand people. There are too many cases like this!

The only way to solve this dire situation is to improve productivity, and that is exactly what the Mohists are doing.

However, it is unknown how long it will take for the mechanical arts promoted by the Mohists to develop and benefit Feng Bingwen in the area he is currently looking at. But no matter how long it takes, it will eventually change the situation of the human race in the Nine Provinces!

It's impossible to completely eliminate the problem of people abandoning and drowning babies, but it's possible to significantly reduce such heinous incidents. This is something that Feng Bingwen cannot intervene in for the time being.

Wow!

In August, a cry rang out in Linjia Village, accompanied by a woman's weak and desperate pleas. A short figure, walking hurriedly, walked to the stream beside the village under the cover of night.

Her eyes searched around her for a moment, and she picked up a few withered tree trunks. After tidying them up a bit, she tied them to the small swaddling clothes. After hesitating for a moment, she threw them into the stream, then turned around decisively and walked home without looking back.

"To give birth but not to raise is to sever the cause and effect."

Watching the short figure that never turned back, Feng Bingwen's body gradually materialized beside the stream. Then, looking at the tiny swaddled baby about to sink into the water, he reached out and beckoned. The clear, flowing water seemed to possess its own life force, transforming into a hand that gently lifted the baby up.

"It really worked!"

Feng Bingwen lowered his head and looked into the dark eyes of the baby in swaddling clothes, which were neither crying nor making a fuss, and reflected the stars in the night sky. A wicked smile immediately appeared on his face.

"I am currently lacking a servant boy to attend to my needs, and with your qualifications, you would be a perfect fit!"

"Giggle!"

Hearing Feng Bingwen's words, the infant, who was reincarnated from the spirit of true fire, immediately giggled. Then, perhaps because his human body was too small, a sense of fatigue came over him, and he fell into a deep sleep while being held by Feng Bingwen, emitting soft and regular breathing sounds.

"The spirit of the Earthly True Fire has successfully reincarnated. Fellow Daoist Nanming, you can rest assured!"

As the night deepened and peace returned, even the faint sounds of weeping gradually faded into the empty village. Feng Bingwen left as silently as he had come, only this time with a swaddled baby in his arms.

Not long after, Feng Bingwen, who had been gone for more than half a year, returned to the True Fire Secret Realm. Zhuque, who had been suffering from the anticipation of gaining freedom, flew over almost the moment Feng Bingwen appeared, and then looked at the infant being held by Feng Bingwen with great excitement.

"This is the reincarnation of a human with the Earthly True Fire?"

The spirit of Nanming Lihuo constantly scrutinized the small and fragile life in Feng Bingwen's hands, its excitement overflowing.

"Genuine, guaranteed!"

Feng Bingwen answered with great confidence that similar methods exist in all major immortal sects, but the basic requirements are relatively high, and those who have not reached a certain level cannot withstand the secret technique of reincarnation.

However, in most cases, very few cultivators are able to reincarnate, and even fewer are able to regain their memories after reincarnation. The vast majority of them become obscured in spirit after reincarnation, becoming completely different people.

As for this minor flaw, Feng Bingwen didn't mention it to these True Fire Spirits; there was no need. Besides, Feng Bingwen had already found the best method for their reincarnation, so what was there to complain about?

"Are you, human, trying to deceive us?"

The Spirit of the True Fire of the Sun also flapped its wings and flew over. Its eyes, burning with blazing true fire, were full of curiosity. It looked the tiny person in the swaddling clothes in Feng Bingwen's hands up and down, and after comparing them, it became somewhat disdainful.

Tiny and fragile creatures!

"Why would I lie to you? Stay away, lest you burn this child. He will be my attendant in the future!"

Feng Bingwen waved his hand dismissively, and with his movement, five-colored mystic light surged from behind him, transforming into a palm that sent the True Fire Spirit flying hundreds of feet away.

"Too fragile!"

At this moment, Zhuque, who had been examining the reincarnation of the Earthly True Fire in Feng Bingwen's hand for a long time, spoke, her voice filled with hesitation and a hint of resentment.

"Am I destined to be reborn as a human?"

Even with all the flowery words from Feng Bingwen, and even the manifestation of a magical artifact, the first choice in the mind of the Nanming Fire Spirit is still a being with the Vermilion Bird bloodline, even if it is just a demon beast.

After all, the state of this human after reincarnation was no different from that in its memory; it was still so weak. It was hard to imagine how such a weak human could produce a cultivator similar to this Taoist!

"Weakness is only temporary. I was born just like you, but I only cultivated for a few years and still gained the right to speak with you. The growth potential of the human race far exceeds your imagination. And with your spirituality, after being reincarnated as humans, your aptitude will not be weak. If you become disciples of my senior sister, attaining immortality will be no problem at all!"

Feng Bingwen patiently persuaded him.

This reincarnation technique requires the other party to cooperate actively; otherwise, it can cause problems for the caster.

"Is that really true?"

Suzaku still had doubts in its eyes. If it had a choice, it would certainly want to be able to have great power after reincarnation, and then cultivate step by step. It's better to have a high starting point. The starting point of the human race is still too low.

"Young man, you're being far too kind-hearted. A mere few fire spirits, and you're already haggling like this? Where have you lost the dignity of the Supreme Dao? If you ask me, just suppress them and be done with it, whether they like it or not, just wipe them all out!"

A surge of immortal power erupted from Feng Bingwen's body, and the Imperial Void Cauldron, which had previously suppressed the True Fire Spirits with its higher-level power, reappeared.

"Fellow Daoist, I wish to be reborn as a human!"

Seeing his own hesitation and attempt to bargain, the Taoist priest in front of him was once again provoked, causing the spiritual treasure he carried to erupt, and the spirit of the Southern Bright Fire no longer hesitated.

"snort!"

The Imperial Void Cauldron snorted in dissatisfaction, and then its vast immortal might pressed down on the Sun True Fire Spirit, which was huddled to the side like an enlarged quail.

"And you?"

"I don't want to be reincarnated, I think it's great here!"

Having personally experienced firsthand the pain of being reincarnated from the Earthly True Fire, Jinwu immediately shook his head and whispered.

No, you want to!

The Imperial Void Cauldron spoke in an unquestionable tone.

"I don't want to!"

Jinwu's voice was weak, but his resistance was quite firm.

Although he was suffering under the oppression of Lingbao, the pain of reincarnation seemed even more unbearable. Not to mention that after successfully reincarnating, he would not only become a weak human, but also lose all the power he currently possessed. He did not yearn for freedom, so why should he give up all of this?

"You spineless wretch! Young man, I really don't like this scruffy bird. Go and extract its spirit, then find a brothel and throw it in!"

Not receiving a satisfactory answer, the Imperial Void Cauldron became dissatisfied and started shouting, ordering Feng Bingwen around.

In reality, he had already planned it out with Feng Bingwen, one playing the good cop and the other the bad cop. Otherwise, if the attitude was too nice, one of the little firebirds would always feel that she had a choice, and would be hesitant and uncomfortable.

"Isn't this a bit inappropriate? After all, it's going to become my senior sister's disciple. If it's born in a brothel, it won't sound good if word gets out!"

A look of hesitation appeared on Feng Bingwen's face.

What is a brothel?

Both the Golden Crow and the Vermilion Bird were confused, but although they didn't understand what it was, they knew it probably wasn't a good place.

"It's just a place where humans use it for pleasure!"

Feng Bingwen said casually,

"You don't need to know too much. I will find you an ordinary but problem-free birth!"

"I……"

Jinwu wanted to say something more, but

"Come with me, Jin Yan!"

Suzaku spoke.

"After I leave, you'll be all alone here. Can you endure the long period of loneliness?"

"There are other True Fire Spirits here!"

"Fellow Daoist Feng will not let them go. Whether they like it or not, you will send them to reincarnation!"

Zhuque understood perfectly that the Taoist priest had gone to such great lengths to obtain the power of the True Fire. As long as their spirituality was stripped away and they were sent into reincarnation using the secret method of reincarnation, the remaining power would be at the Taoist priest's disposal.

"Fellow Daoist is indeed wise!"

Feng Bingwen smiled slightly and did not deny it. He had never hidden his purpose. The reason for all this trouble was to sever the cause and effect. If he forcibly suppressed it, he would probably add a lot of evil deeds to his name.

"So, I had no choice at all!"

Jinwu finally understood that his fate seemed to have been sealed the moment the Taoist appeared, whether he liked it or not.

"No, you can choose freedom, or I can send you to be reincarnated!"