Watching Gu An suppress Meng Lang with a single kick, Xiao Chuan, Lu Jiujia, and Ye Lan were thrilled beyond measure.
Usually, Meng Lang always bragged that he was the strongest in Medicine Valley. Who would have thought that today, after losing control, he would be forced to his knees by Eldest Senior Brother with one kick?
No wonder Eldest Senior Brother was not Meng Lang!
Master truly had a discerning eye!
Gu An looked down at Meng Lang, who was kneeling before him, and said, "Still not awake?"
His spiritual power flowed down his right leg and into Meng Lang's body, forcibly soothing the chaotic spiritual power within him.
Meng Lang's breathing gradually steadied. The bloodshot in his eyes began to fade, and his ferocious expression slowly returned to normal.
Seeing that he had awakened, Gu An slowly withdrew his leg and helped him up.
Meng Lang suddenly jolted awake. He looked up at Gu An, gasping for air.
"Gu An... I... what happened to me just now?" Meng Lang asked with difficulty. His blood and qi were churning within him, making it hard to speak.
Gu An answered, "It seemed like you suffered a qi deviation."
Meng Lang's eyes widened at once. "I didn't hurt any of you, did I?"
Xiao Chuan and Lu Jiujia's expressions instantly turned strange.
Ye Lan instinctively wanted to answer, but Gu An stepped in before her and said, "It's fine. You restrained yourself at the crucial moment."
Meng Lang could not help letting out a sigh of relief. Forcing a smile, he said, "Of course... I am the true Eldest Senior Brother. How could I hurt you..."
Ye Lan looked at Gu An, her eyes filled with admiration.
Eldest Senior Brother was not only powerful, but gentle too!
Xiao Chuan and Lu Jiujia thought the same, while also looking down on Meng Lang.
That sounded nice enough. Just now, he had looked like a ghost!
Gu An had Xiao Chuan and the others disperse, while he supported Meng Lang back to his room.
"What cultivation technique are you practicing? It's far too sinister, isn't it?" Gu An asked. Though he had a poor opinion of Meng Lang, they lived together day and night. If possible, he still hoped Meng Lang would remain safe and sound.
Meng Lang chuckled. "Naturally, it's a divine technique... It's just that my aptitude and comprehension are insufficient, so it's easy for me to go astray in my cultivation. But I have no choice. I must become an Outer Sect disciple..."
Gu An asked in confusion, "Why must you become an Outer Sect disciple? Didn't you say before that you did not care?"
Meng Lang's face instantly darkened, and he fell silent.
Seeing that he did not wish to speak, Gu An did not press him. After helping him onto the bed, Gu An turned and left.
To Gu An, this was merely a minor interlude. He could not control anyone else's fate. Everyone had their own pursuits; if they died on the path of immortality, that was not necessarily a pity.
After arriving in the courtyard, Gu An continued practicing the Eight Directions Step.
Winter passed and spring arrived, bringing another year of fine scenery.
Early in the morning, remnants of ice and snow still lingered in Medicine Valley as Gu An led his junior brothers and junior sister up the mountain.
"Chopping trees and pulling out roots are also forms of cultivation. You can use your own spiritual power to do it. Once your spiritual power is exhausted, cultivate again. It will help improve your cultivation."
Dressed in green, Gu An stood amid the forest with his hands behind his waist, smiling softly. He cut quite the figure of an expert.
That day, he had subdued Meng Lang, who had suffered a qi deviation, with one kick, successfully establishing himself as an expert in the hearts of his junior brothers and sister.
Gu An had even sensed that his youngest junior sister had developed other feelings for him and had become increasingly fond of following him around. Fortunately, he promptly guided Ye Lan in cultivation, shifting her attention elsewhere.
How could cultivating immortality be about romance?
In this life, Gu An did not want to fall into the whirlpool of love too early. That would only make him lose his way.
Xiao Chuan turned back and asked, "Eldest Senior Brother, should we use our hands or our legs?"
Maintaining his smile, Gu An said, "Use whichever is more convenient. Cultivation is one matter, completing the task is another. You must find the right direction."
Was this how Zhang Chunqiu had felt before?
Talking nonsense really was quite exhilarating!
"Senior Brother Xiao Chuan, let's see who is faster!" Lu Jiujia said, rubbing his fists together eagerly.
Xiao Chuan agreed at once. Ye Lan also clamored to join, but unfortunately, the two ignored her. They did not like competing with girls.
Gu An simply watched them pull up trees while planning the new garden plot.
What medicinal herbs would be best planted on this mountain?
Gu An fell into thought.
Though Xiao Chuan and the other two were cultivators, their cultivation was not high. It took them a full half day to clear an open patch of ground. Gu An brought over the seeds of the third-grade medicinal herb Soul-Shaking Grass and had them plant them.
After finishing everything, the senior and junior brothers headed down the mountain together, chatting and laughing. The sun was setting, and their shadows stretched long across the slope.
Gu An had his junior brothers and sister speak of their goals. All three wished to enter the Outer Sect, though their motivations differed.
Xiao Chuan simply wanted to grow stronger. Lu Jiujia wanted to prove himself to his family. Ye Lan seemed to have some unspeakable difficulty and spoke vaguely.
Gu An listened with great interest. He believed everyone ought to have their own story.
Listening to different people's stories could also make his own life more fulfilling.
A month had passed since the Soul-Shaking Grass was planted. That night, the moon hung bright amid sparse stars.
Gu An sat cross-legged on his bed inside the room, looking at his Attribute Panel with inner conflict.
[Name: Gu An] [Lifespan: 20/3163] [Spirit Root: First-rate wood spirit root, fairly good four-element spirit roots (lifespan may be invested for evolved cultivation)] [Cultivation: Ninth layer Qi Refining Realm (lifespan may be invested for evolved cultivation)] [Techniques: Fire Control Art (not mastered), Divine Wood Pure Yang Technique (consummate mastery), Dragon Force Divine Origin Technique (consummate mastery), Alchemy (Entry Level) (lifespan may be invested for evolved cultivation)] [Ultimate Arts: Gale Absolute Shadow Leg (mastery through comprehension), Li Family Seven Swords (not mastered), Eight Directions Step (not mastered) (lifespan may be invested for evolved cultivation)]
Should he invest lifespan to break through his cultivation realm?
Cheng Xuandan had the ability to refine Foundation Establishment Pills. Now that he treated Gu An so well, perhaps Gu An could seek a Foundation Establishment Pill from him.
Yet Meng Lang's abnormality made Gu An wary of Cheng Xuandan once again.
Meng Lang did not have an illustrious background. If he possessed a divine technique, he could have practiced it long ago. Why had he waited until Li Ya and Zhang Chunqiu left before he began cultivating it?
With Gu An's current senses, he could be certain that Meng Lang had not interacted with strangers over the past two years. At most, Cheng Xuandan had summoned him. As for the conversations between those two, Gu An would not eavesdrop every time.
Forget it.
Relying on others was inferior to relying on himself. Better to be cautious!
On the path of immortality, one careless misstep would lead to shattered bones and pulverized flesh!
Gu An immediately invested one year of lifespan into evolving his cultivation.
[Special reminder: Cultivation is real. The evolution process turns the illusory into reality, and its consumption will exceed the lifespan required for actual cultivation.] [You focused on absorbing qi for one year. Because you did not have a Foundation Establishment Pill and lacked a fortuitous opportunity, you failed to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm.]
Two lines of prompts appeared before Gu An. Since he had failed to break through, his cultivation did not increase.
Gu An's expression did not change as he continued investing one year after another.
Failure, failure, failure...
After nine full attempts, he could no longer maintain his composure.
Damn it!
I refuse to believe this!
Invest a hundred years!
With anger rising in his heart, Gu An directly invested one hundred years of lifespan into evolving his cultivation.
[You cultivated by absorbing qi for ten years. Using your great attainments in the Divine Wood Pure Yang Technique, you forcibly attempted to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm, but ultimately failed.] [You cultivated by absorbing qi for twenty years. Using your great attainments in the Divine Wood Pure Yang Technique, you forcibly attempted to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm and ultimately succeeded.] [You cultivated by absorbing qi for thirty years. Your cultivation broke through to the second layer of the Foundation Establishment Realm.] [You cultivated by absorbing qi for fifty years. Your cultivation broke through to the Third-layer Foundation Establishment Realm.] [You cultivated by absorbing qi for seventy years. Your cultivation broke through to the fourth layer of the Foundation Establishment Realm.] [You cultivated by absorbing qi for one hundred years. Your cultivation broke through to the fifth layer of the Foundation Establishment Realm.]
Lines of prompts frantically appeared before Gu An's eyes.
Before he could rejoice, he sensed something was wrong. Breaking through so many layers at once—how great would the commotion be?
The instant that thought surfaced, his body began to heat up. The Divine Wood Pure Yang Technique started circulating automatically. He hurriedly rose and leaped through the open window.
His footwork was incredibly swift and utterly silent. In less than three breaths, he had rushed into the mountain forest. Kicking off the cliff face with both feet, he climbed rapidly like an ape. By the time he reached the mountaintop, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was already surging toward him.
He leaped forward and dropped into the dim forest. His right foot landed on a branch, and he borrowed its force to spring upward. After several jumps, he landed lightly on the ground.
Spiritual energy flooded wildly into his body, forming a vortex around him.
The speed at which he absorbed spiritual energy grew faster and faster, making him secretly shudder with fear. Fortunately, he had reacted quickly. Had he broken through in Medicine Valley, he would certainly have alarmed the others.
Cheng Xuandan and Meng Lang might not dare emerge, but Xiao Chuan and Lu Jiujia, those two blockheads, definitely would.
As Gu An thought, he rushed forward in quick strides, swift as a spirit fox. Beneath the night sky, the forest swayed, making rustling sounds.
With the Gale Absolute Shadow Leg, Gu An ran at astonishing speed, crossing mountains and ridges all the way.
He was getting farther and farther from Medicine Valley.
Before he stopped, his cultivation realm had already begun breaking through. Spiritual energy violently slammed through his eight extraordinary meridians while transforming his dantian.
It hurt!
Gu An frowned, but his pace did not slow.
After running wildly for more than ten li, he finally stopped in a forest and sat beneath a tree to circulate his technique.
As he cultivated, he sighed inwardly.
He had not expected that one hundred years of lifespan would let him break through from the ninth layer of the Qi Refining Realm to the fifth layer of the Foundation Establishment Realm.
It seemed that the lifespan he had taken was entirely real. Of course, the main reason he could break through so quickly was the consummate Divine Wood Pure Yang Technique.
If he invested a thousand years of lifespan, could he reach the Golden Core Realm in one breath? Or perhaps even touch the Nascent Soul Realm?
Gu An sank into boundless fantasies.
He absorbed more and more spiritual energy from heaven and earth. The entire forest seemed caught in a gale, swaying violently as fallen leaves scattered everywhere. Under the darkness of night, they resembled demons and monsters baring fangs and brandishing claws.
"This commotion is a little excessive..."
Gu An silently lamented. The drawback of evolving cultivation with lifespan had appeared: too much disturbance could easily invite trouble.
After evolution, his cultivation did not increase from nothing. Rather, all the spiritual energy required was compressed into a single period of time, allowing him to break through rapidly.
Going from the ninth layer of Qi Refining to the fifth layer of Foundation Establishment had already caused such a disturbance. When he advanced from the Golden Core Realm toward the Nascent Soul Realm, would it not shake heaven and earth?
If other cultivators were drawn here during his breakthrough, that would be troublesome.
Gu An was accustomed to considering the worst-case scenario.
No!
He had to be even more careful from now on!
Gu An decided that in the future, he would invest one year of lifespan into his cultivation each day and advance step by step.
Time passed swiftly. Beneath the night sky, fierce winds howled as Gu An's robe billowed and snapped, while the spiritual power within him rapidly increased.
After a while, his aura suddenly changed.
Foundation Establishment had succeeded!
His dantian transformed, producing spiritual power more quickly while stimulating his muscles, bones, and every limb to grow stronger.
It was not over yet!
His cultivation continued soaring. Rolling dust mixed with grass clippings swirled around him, creating a mighty spectacle.
Second layer Foundation Establishment Realm!
Third-layer Foundation Establishment Realm!
Fourth layer Foundation Establishment Realm!
Thanks to Yige Jingda for the reward of 600 Qidian Coins, and Book Friend 20220428083911600 for the reward of 100 Qidian Coins~~
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