Alchemy, One Jade, One Promise

Gu An tried not to dwell on Cheng Xuandan's intentions. He focused his attention beyond the valley, guarding against an enemy attack.

He kept watch for the entire night.

Only when dawn was about to break did Gu An quietly return to his room.

Gu An wanted to inspect the battlefield, but he feared there might be a trap, so he could only endure.

The arrival of Ye Lan and Lu Jiujia brought more life to Medicine Valley. The two of them dragged Xiao Chuan all over the valley, running about everywhere. They were in the bloom of youth and brimming with energy; even the usually silent Xiao Chuan became livelier because of them.

Gu An leaned against a wooden railing in one of the gardens, holding Travels of the Green Hero in both hands as he enjoyed the autumn breeze.

From time to time, his gaze drifted toward Cheng Xuandan's loft.

Their exchanged glance last night lingered in his mind. He wanted very much to speak with Cheng Xuandan, yet feared upsetting the delicate balance between them.

At that moment, Lu Jiujia came before Gu An and asked expectantly, "Senior Brother, I heard from Senior Brother Meng that you are proficient in a profound leg technique. Could you teach me? I'm willing to take over all your harvesting duties."

Gu An looked at him and smiled. "I wouldn't say I'm proficient, but if you want to learn, of course I can teach you. As for harvesting, leave that to your senior brother. I have to do something, after all, and harvesting happens to be something I enjoy."

Hearing this, Lu Jiujia respected Gu An even more.

Senior Brother really was a good person!

He was thrilled beyond measure.

Gu An tucked the book in his hands into his robe, then began teaching Lu Jiujia the Residual Wind Leg.

Before long, Xiao Chuan and Ye Lan also came running over to learn. As for Meng Lang, he could not bring himself to lower his pride. Besides, he felt Gu An was not as strong as him. The reason he had told Lu Jiujia about Gu An's leg technique was simply so Lu Jiujia would stop pestering him.

The moves of the Residual Wind Leg were sharp and fierce. Even though Gu An held back, the three young disciples were dazzled by it.

An hour later, just as Gu An was wondering what excuse he could use to slip away, a voice came from afar:

"An'er, come here."

Gu An turned his head and saw Cheng Xuandan standing by the window, beckoning to him.

Here it came!

Gu An immediately headed toward Cheng Xuandan's loft. Xiao Chuan and the other two gave it no further thought and continued practicing the Residual Wind Leg.

He entered Cheng Xuandan's room, closed the door behind him, then quickly stepped before Cheng Xuandan and bowed.

Cheng Xuandan sat cross-legged before the pill furnace. He pointed to the other side of it and said, "Sit."

Gu An went to the spot Cheng Xuandan had indicated and sat cross-legged, all the while preparing his words in his heart.

"You found Chu Jingfeng?" Cheng Xuandan's very first question interrupted Gu An's train of thought.

Good heavens, straight to the point!

Gu An stopped pretending and replied, "Yes. He came to find me before and said that if I found any clues about the Greed-Hatred Demon Ghost, I could contact him at any time. Senior Brother Zhang recommended me to tend the Cave Mansion of an Outer Sect disciple named Zhu Moyai. When Zhu Moyai returned, I went to hand things over and saw the Greed-Hatred Demon Ghost he had hidden behind the vines. His Cave Mansion was too close to ours, so I had no choice but to seek out Chu Jingfeng."

Cheng Xuandan nodded. "You did the right thing. Chu Jingfeng truly was the only person you could seek out for this matter. He is no simple man. Not only is he exceptionally gifted, but his background is also illustrious. That is why he could become an Inner Sect disciple while still in the Foundation Establishment Realm."

He had powerful backing?

No wonder he dared investigate the Greed-Hatred Demon Ghost!

Gu An felt relieved. He had also worried that Chu Jingfeng might fail, and that the Great Cultivator behind the Greed-Hatred Demon Ghost would eventually trace the matter back to him.

"Chu Jingfeng has been investigating the Greed-Hatred Demon Ghost all along. That is why he accepted Medicine Valley's assignment. This is a contest between his father and some important figure in the sect. But as your master, I am still puzzled. You returned from Zhu Moyai's place months ago. Why did you only seek out Chu Jingfeng recently?" Cheng Xuandan stared at Gu An as he asked.

Gu An said helplessly, "Master, you should understand me. I fear trouble, and I do not want conflict with others. No matter how Meng Lang ordered me around, I could not be bothered to argue with him. So I originally intended to pretend I had seen nothing. But when Master brought my junior brother and junior sister into Medicine Valley, I had no choice but to contact Chu Jingfeng."

Those words came from the bottom of his heart. That truly was his reason.

Cheng Xuandan looked deeply at him, then glanced toward the pill furnace beside them. "You did very well. From now on, you are my True Disciple. I will teach you everything I know."

"As for this matter, let master and disciple alike forget it. Whether it is Chu Jingfeng's father or the important figure behind the Greed-Hatred Demon Ghost, neither is someone we can afford to provoke."

Gu An froze at those words. Looking at Cheng Xuandan's profile, he suddenly felt that he might have misunderstood this master of his.

"Master!"

Gu An immediately rose to his feet and bowed deeply to Cheng Xuandan with utmost solemnity.

Cheng Xuandan looked back at him, his face carrying a kindly expression utterly unlike his usual self.

"If there is anything you want to understand or learn in the future, you may come to me. Do not feel that you are disturbing me. This master has not many years left to live, and there are not many days left for me to teach you." Cheng Xuandan's gaze and tone had never been so gentle.

Gu An sat down and carefully asked, "Master, can you refine a Youth-Preserving Pill?"

A cultivation novel protagonist's standard opening equipment was a Youth-Preserving Pill, preserving their youth forever. Gu An had no desire to become a white-haired old man in the future.

Cheng Xuandan shook his head with a laugh, then raised a hand and made a grasping motion through the air. A jade bottle appeared in his hand. He poured out a pill and handed it to Gu An.

Gu An did not hesitate and swallowed it directly.

He dared to be so bold because both the Divine Wood Pure Yang Technique and the Dragon Force Divine Origin Technique possessed detoxifying effects. Saying that he was now immune to a hundred poisons would not be an exaggeration.

Seeing that Gu An had no guard against him whatsoever, Cheng Xuandan's eyes revealed a trace of gratification.

After swallowing the Youth-Preserving Pill, Gu An felt nothing unusual. It was as though he had eaten a piece of rock sugar that melted the moment it entered his mouth.

"Do you have any interest in Alchemy?" Cheng Xuandan asked.

Gu An's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly nodded. "To be honest, Master, I have long wanted to learn Alchemy from you. I was merely too embarrassed to ask before."

Cheng Xuandan stroked his beard and laughed heartily.

The atmosphere in the room became exceptionally harmonious. Cheng Xuandan began teaching him Alchemy, starting with how to light a pill furnace. Since Gu An had learned the Fire Control Art, he learned quickly enough that Cheng Xuandan mistakenly believed he possessed talent for Alchemy.

Later, once Cheng Xuandan's explanation moved beyond fire, Gu An began to grow muddled, leaving Cheng Xuandan silent for quite some time.

After Gu An and Cheng Xuandan formed a genuine master-disciple relationship, Medicine Valley grew even livelier. Cheng Xuandan, who had stayed shut in his room all year round, also began coming out and about, incidentally instructing Gu An and the others on how to cultivate medicinal herbs.

Lu Jiujia and Ye Lan grew increasingly fond of Cheng Xuandan and often praised their master as kind and approachable. Meng Lang scoffed at this.

After the great battle that night, there was no more sign of fighting beyond the valley.

Neither Chu Jingfeng nor Zhu Moyai came to Medicine Valley. Gu An did not dare investigate the situation and could only bury the matter in his heart.

Time flew by.

A year passed in the blink of an eye.

Gu An crossed the threshold of twenty years old, and his lifespan rose once more to over two thousand eight hundred years.

At noon that day, Gu An lay on a cliff halfway up the mountain reading. Medicine Valley lay below him, and he could see Xiao Chuan and Lu Jiujia sparring with leg techniques.

Ever since the words Alchemy had appeared on Gu An's Attribute Panel, he had stopped pestering Cheng Xuandan.

The process of learning pill refinement was simply too tedious.

It was worth mentioning that, at Gu An's suggestion, Cheng Xuandan had exchanged for more seeds from the Outer Sect. Once they had truly become master and disciple, Cheng Xuandan had to be said to be quite conscientious.

Gu An rested his head on his left hand and held the book in his right. He blew out a breath, using it to turn a page.

His eyes suddenly widened, and he immediately sat up.

The latest Travels of the Green Hero actually included illustrations!

There was something to it!

Gu An carefully admired the illustrations in the book, all the while criticizing them without pause.

A shrill cry descended from the sky. He abruptly looked up, his gaze turning sharp.

A white eagle with a wingspan of over ten feet descended. When it was nearly twenty feet away from Gu An, it released its claws, dropping a letter. Gu An casually caught it.

The white eagle traced a perfect arc through the sky and swiftly vanished beyond the other side of the mountain.

What a handsome eagle!

Gu An could not help thinking of his White Spirit Mouse. It was barely the size of a palm and utterly useless.

He opened the envelope and discovered that, besides the letter, there was also a jade pendant engraved with the character Chu.

He tucked the jade pendant into his belt, slipped Travels of the Green Hero into his robe, and only then examined the letter.

The letter had actually been written by Chu Jingfeng.

Chu Jingfeng first briefly explained the battle from before. Zhu Moyai had already died beneath his sword. Over the past year, he had gathered evidence everywhere and brought down the Great Cultivator who had controlled the Greed-Hatred Demon Ghost. He told Gu An not to worry about the matter any longer.

That jade pendant was a token of the Chu Family. If Gu An encountered a problem he could not resolve, he could use it to find Chu Jingfeng or seek out one of his clansmen.

The Chu Family recognized jade, not people. One jade meant one promise.

Gu An's favorable impression of Chu Jingfeng soared. He had not expected this proud Inner Sect disciple to value loyalty and righteousness so highly.

Even if Chu Jingfeng had given him nothing in return, Gu An could not have done anything about it. Besides, he had previously said that Chu Jingfeng need not contact him again.

After reading the letter, Gu An tore it apart and scattered the pieces across the ground. With a slight twist of his right foot, spiritual energy shook beneath him, reducing every scrap of the letter to dust.

The spiritual energy of the eighth level of Qi Refining was just that powerful!

The corners of Gu An's lips lifted. Then he leaped into the air, gliding away like a soaring swan. Along the way, his toes tapped upon leaves in the trees along the mountain slope before he landed gracefully all the way below.

Lu Jiujia and Xiao Chuan had long since grown accustomed to this sight.

Gu An kept his aura at the second level of Qi Refining, while he had revealed the Residual Wind Leg long ago, earning Cheng Xuandan's repeated praise. He now looked like an impressive martial arts expert.

Gu An acted with a low profile, but he felt he could not hide forever. Revealing an appropriate portion of his strength would help him live his farming life more comfortably.

The instant he landed, the White Spirit Mouse scampered over and climbed up his leg onto his shoulder.

"It has been several days since I tested your leg techniques. Come on, let's spar. The two of you can join forces." Gu An smiled at Xiao Chuan and Lu Jiujia.

Xiao Chuan and Lu Jiujia exchanged a glance, then immediately charged toward Gu An.

The three of them fought with leg techniques on the grass outside the garden. Their bodies shifted, their long legs lashed like whips, and for a time the wind howled as grass clippings flew everywhere.

Gu An fought one against two, using a single leg to dismantle the leg techniques of Xiao Chuan and Lu Jiujia.

Although Xiao Chuan's leg technique had a decent shape to it, it was somewhat clumsy. Lu Jiujia, on the other hand, was highly talented. His kicks already carried the bearing of the Residual Wind Leg, but every move of his was still slower than Gu An's.

After the time it took to drink half a cup of tea, Xiao Chuan and Lu Jiujia were already panting heavily. They exchanged a glance, then conceded in unison.

Gu An slowly withdrew his leg from where it hung in the air and smiled. "You have both improved greatly. Senior Brother had a very hard time dealing with you. Before long, I reckon you will surpass me."

"How long is before long?" Xiao Chuan asked stiffly.

Gu An patted the dust from his trouser leg and smiled. "That depends on how diligent you are."

The White Spirit Mouse lay on his shoulder and let out a series of squeaks, as though it were laughing.

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