Ji Family Secret Technique

After brushing off Xiao Chuan and Lu Jiujia, Gu An walked toward his courtyard, pulling the Travels of the Green Hero from his robes as he prepared to properly savor the illustrations in the book.

Just as he reached the front of his courtyard, Ye Lan hurried up to meet him.

"Senior Brother, I want to learn the Residual Wind Leg too!" Ye Lan said, her cheeks puffed out in anger.

Gu An closed the travelogue naturally and asked with a smile, "What's wrong? Is Senior Brother Meng refusing to teach you spells?"

Ye Lan grew even more indignant, aggrievedly saying, "That's right! He was so dismissive when he taught me. I got anxious and we started arguing, and then he just snapped at me, saying he had to prepare for the Outer Sect assessment and didn't have time to deal with me, telling me to get lost."

Seeing her cheeks puffed up like balls, Gu An found it amusing, but he held it in and didn't laugh.

"Since Senior Brother Meng is busy, don't bother him. How about this: tomorrow at noon, I will teach you the Residual Wind Leg myself, how about that?" Gu An said gently.

Ye Lan asked in surprise, "Why tomorrow?"

"Your senior brother is tired, so show some consideration. I was just pestered by your other two senior brothers; you can go ask them," Gu An said, pointing toward Xiao Chuan and Lu Jiujia in the distance.

After saying this, he bypassed Ye Lan and walked toward his room.

Ye Lan noticed the book in his hand and secretly wondered, Is this Travels of the Green Hero really that good?

Gu An returned to his room and closed the door. He lay on his bed and picked up the Travels of the Green Hero once again.

The reason he liked the Travels of the Green Hero was that it was a serialized book, with a new volume appearing every half a year.

Chasing a serialized book in the world of cultivation gave Gu An a feeling of returning to Earth.

He quickly became immersed in the contents of the book.

He strongly suspected that this book was written by a cultivator from the Taixuan Sect, though he didn't know the author's cultivation level. Unfortunately, the book lacked detailed accounts of combat, focusing only on sightseeing, landscapes, and romance.

Half an hour later.

Gu An suddenly heard movement from the room next door. Meng Lang seemed to be rolling on the floor, his breathing extremely chaotic.

Hm?

Did he mess up his cultivation?

Gu An hesitated on whether to go check, but Meng Lang stopped quickly. The kid didn't even cry out in pain, and as the surrounding spiritual energy began to flow toward his room, Gu An knew he had started practicing again.

Tsk tsk.

Li Ya has already risen; could it be that Meng Lang also has his own fortuitous encounters?

Good heavens, if you count it that way, the three of them entered Medicine Valley on the same day, apprenticed under the same person, and all have great opportunities—it's almost legendary.

Gu An thought about it for a moment, then felt he was overthinking.

It would be good enough if this kid Meng Lang could just die of old age.

In his view, given Meng Lang's personality, once he left the valley, he wouldn't last long before dying. He couldn't speak well and was easily agitated; he didn't look like a cultivator at all.

He stopped dwelling on it and continued to savor the Travels of the Green Hero.

Gu An practiced Qi absorption for six hours every day, basically using his sleeping time to cultivate. Cultivators didn't need to sleep; the process of absorbing Qi was itself a better conditioning and relaxation process than sleep.

During the remaining time, he didn't just read travelogues; he had other books as well. Cheng Xuandan had already passed the Record of Hundred Herbs to him. The Record of Hundred Herbs was compiled by the Taixuan Sect and recorded various spiritual flowers and herbs of the world, with Cheng Xuandan specifically adding notes on some of their medicinal properties.

Cheng Xuandan's cultivation wasn't great, but having lived for a hundred years, he was indeed knowledgeable and experienced.

That was the one good thing about people with poor aptitude: they could use more time to fill themselves with knowledge and experience.

Another winter snow arrived, with heavy flakes dancing in the air, covering the garden in pristine white. Gu An was directing his junior brothers and sisters to clear it away.

As for Meng Lang, that guy had become obsessed, hiding in his room all day to practice. Now, Gu An couldn't order him around, and Cheng Xuandan said to just let him be.

Every edge of the garden had special talismans that could generate heat, but these talismans had a time limit. Once they expired, it only took an hour for the heavy snow to cover the entire garden.

Watching Xiao Chuan, Lu Jiujia, and Ye Lan busy at work, Gu An's mind drifted.

He was becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the output of Medicine Valley; he had to reclaim more land!

Once this winter passed, Gu An would arrange for them to go up the mountain to chop down trees and clear the soil.

A sound of something piercing through the air came from afar. Gu An turned his head and saw a man in plain clothes stepping on a flying sword, crossing the snow-filled sky like a sword immortal.

Du Ye!

Gu An subconsciously cast his Lifespan Inspection on him and discovered that this guy's cultivation had already reached the sixth level of the Qi Refining realm.

He was breaking through a bit too fast!

Du Ye's arrival also attracted the attention of Xiao Chuan and the others.

Du Ye flew through the air until he reached the space near Gu An. He leaped, landed, and raised his hand to sheath his sword. The long blade slid into the scabbard at his waist, the sword light shimmering in the vast white world. The entire process was fluid and incredibly dashing.

Xiao Chuan and the others stared with wide eyes. They hadn't joined the Taixuan Sect to do chores; they all wanted to cultivate, but their mediocre spiritual roots had led them to this plight.

They had all joined Medicine Valley while waiting for an opportunity.

Du Ye sized up Gu An, patted his shoulders with both hands, and laughed, "Not bad, you've grown up completely. You're no longer the little brat who used to follow behind my butt."

Gu An smiled and exchanged pleasantries with Du Ye, while cursing him in his heart.

We're all just servants, what are you putting on an act for?

After circling around a few times, Du Ye finally brought up the real business. He lowered his voice and asked, "How are the herbs coming along?"

"Come with me to get them." Gu An nodded with a smile.

He had indeed saved up some herbs, which were the due share of the Medicine Valley's head disciple, and he was prepared to give them all to Du Ye.

Although he could plunder lifespan, that sort of thing required time.

Before he was truly invincible, he had to maintain a good relationship with the Ji Family; it might come in handy in the future.

No matter how strong the Chu Clan was, they were only powerful within the Taixuan Sect. The Ji Family was different; they were a top-tier aristocratic family of the entire Great Cang Dynasty. The Ji Family branch Gu An had previously stayed with was merely a branch in a single city, and disciples of the Ji Family could be found in every cultivation sect across the Great Cang Dynasty.

Along the way, Du Ye began to chat about the Outer Sect.

"Li Ya is from your Medicine Valley, right? He's been quite the talk of the town lately. He is a member of the Great Cang royal family and is currently vying for power with his older brother. The two have even made a life-or-death duel pact, causing quite a stir."

"It's said that a few years ago, Li Ya was still a piece of trash. I don't know what kind of fortuitous encounter he had, but his cultivation has progressed by leaps and bounds. He is now at the second level of the Foundation Establishment realm."

Hearing Du Ye mention Li Ya, Gu An became interested.

Why does Li Ya sound like a bitter, vengeful protagonist from a fantasy novel?

Gu An asked curiously, "Must one reach the Foundation Establishment realm to become an Outer Sect disciple?"

Du Ye nodded and said, "That goes without saying. Take me, for example; my cultivation isn't high enough. Even though I'm in the Outer Sect, I'm still considered a servant. It's just that I stay in the Outer Sect city, so I'm able to come into contact with these matters."

"Reaching the Foundation Establishment realm allows one to be promoted directly to an Outer Sect disciple, and reaching the Golden Core realm allows for promotion to an Inner Sect disciple. Above Inner Sect disciples, there are Disciples of Inheritance and True Disciples. These are the rules on the surface, but if one has exceptional talent, they can break the rules."

"Our Third Miss is one such person. She was a Disciple of Inheritance the moment she entered the sect, and she already has thoughts of challenging for the position of True Disciple. To become a True Disciple, cultivation alone isn't enough; one must be able to command respect and have sufficient prestige, which is why we have to pave the way for her."

When Du Ye brought up Ji Xiaoyu, he became instantly long-winded.

For the first time, Gu An didn't find him annoying and listened attentively.

The two entered the house, and as Gu An listened, he took out the bundle he had prepared long ago.

Du Ye spoke for quite a while before finally stopping. He lifted the bundle, weighed it, and said with dissatisfaction, "Why is there so little?"

Gu An laughed. "There's plenty of time ahead. Cultivation isn't a matter of a year or two. Rather than me overstepping my bounds and getting greedy, only to be demoted out of the valley, it's better for me to stay put and provide herbs year-round. I won't keep a single stalk; I'll offer them all to you."

Upon hearing this, Du Ye's expression softened. He pressed, "Really?"

"Really. With my aptitude, what kind of herbs do I need? Living out my life in peace is my pursuit." Gu An nodded.

Du Ye opened his mouth, eventually sighed, and reached his right hand toward the Storage Bag at his waist. He took out a secret manual and handed it to Gu An.

Gu An took it and saw the words 'Eight Directions Step' written on it.

This caught him by surprise.

Has this guy finally found his conscience?

Du Ye explained, "This is a footwork technique from the Ji Family. Although it is only the basic footwork for the Ji Family's ultimate technique, the Qilin Step, if you learn it and speed up your pace, you might be able to escape a calamity if you run into trouble in the future. This type of footwork doesn't depend on spiritual root aptitude; as long as you spend the time, you will eventually learn it."

Gu An looked at Du Ye in a new light. Just as he was about to say something, Du Ye picked up the bundle, patted him on the shoulder once more, and brushed past him.

Gu An turned around, followed his footsteps, and saw him out.

Arriving in the courtyard, Du Ye looked back at him and said, "After all, you and I grew up together. Even if we drift apart in the future due to our choices, the bond will always remain. If you're not doing well, you can come find me."

With that, his left hand struck the scabbard. With a clang, his precious sword left its sheath. He leaped up and stepped onto the sword, flying away.

What a cool Sword Flight Technique!

Gu An looked down at the manual in his hand, his lips curling upward.

He began to flip through the Eight Directions Step and started practicing right there in the yard.

A Ji Family ultimate technique?

I wonder if I can use my lifespan to evolve and practice it, and perhaps deduce the full Ji Family ultimate technique.

After Xiao Chuan and the other two finished cleaning all the garden areas, they hurried to Gu An's courtyard, watching him practice his footwork with curiosity.

"Senior Brother, what technique are you practicing?" Ye Lan asked curiously.

Gu An moved his feet while asking with a smile, "Do you want to learn?"

"Yes!"

The three spoke in unison.

Gu An replied, "I'll teach you once I've mastered it."

Bang!

The door to the nearby house was pushed open. Meng Lang, his eyes bloodshot, walked out. His forehead was covered in bloody veins, looking terrifying and horrific.

Xiao Chuan, Lu Jiujia, and Ye Lan were all startled.

Meng Lang charged directly toward Ye Lan, who was closest to him, like a crazed beast with a fierce and murderous aura.

Ye Lan was stunned with fear, unable to react in time.

In less than a breath, Meng Lang was about to collide with Ye Lan.

Gu An grabbed Ye Lan's shoulder and pulled her back, while simultaneously stomping his right foot onto Meng Lang's chest.

Boom!

Meng Lang's aura erupted, his internal energy swirling around his body as his feet carved two long furrows into the ground.

Gu An slowly straightened his right leg, forcing Meng Lang to retreat.

Xiao Chuan and the others widened their eyes, Gu An's figure deeply etched into their vision, leaving them stunned.

Is Senior Brother really this strong?

Although Gu An always won when sparring with them, that was without using spiritual energy; Xiao Chuan and Lu Jiujia had both believed they would eventually surpass their senior brother.

Meng Lang suddenly grabbed Gu An's right foot with both hands, a savage force attempting to snap it.

Gu An leaped up abruptly, then stomped down with great force, pressing Meng Lang until he fell to his knees with a thud.

Meng Lang's knees sank into the dirt, his entire body trembling as he found it impossible to push Gu An's foot away, looking utterly wretched.

Thanks to Jian Xing for the 500 Qidian coin tip~~