Demonic Shadow Divine Technique, Jiang Qiong's Appreciation

"What kind of secret technique?" Gu An asked with anticipation. He had already learned many spells from Jiang Qiong, but when it came to spells, the more the better.

Once Jiang Qiong left, it would be hard for him to encounter another ancestor who was so dedicated to teaching him.

Jiang Qiong took a bite of a large chicken leg and said triumphantly, "One of the nine great secret techniques of our Thousand Autumn Pavilion, the Demonic Shadow Divine Technique!"

Demonic Shadow Divine Technique?

It sounded...

Gu An frowned and asked, "Is this a cultivation method?"

He didn't lack cultivation methods. Switching methods meant he would have to rebuild his spiritual power, and he didn't want to waste his lifespan.

"I told you, it's a secret technique. The Demonic Shadow Divine Technique will help you act as a mole more effectively. You'll understand in a moment," Jiang Qiong said vaguely, her mouth so full of chicken that she could barely speak.

Gu An's face twitched.

I don't want to be a mole for the Demonic Path!

Forget it, I'll just wait for Jiang Qiong to leave. In the future, I'll say what people want to hear when I'm with people, and what ghosts want to hear when I'm with ghosts. Walking through the world, one's identity is defined by oneself.

At noon the next day, Gu An was reading under a tree. Seven steps away, Ye Lan and Zhen Qin were practicing swordplay, their movements elegant. Unfortunately, they couldn't capture Gu An's attention.

"Senior Brother, Senior Brother Li Ya is here!"

Xiao Chuan ran over to say, followed by a man—it was Li Ya.

Gu An stood up immediately, tucked the Travels of the Green Hero into his robes, and walked toward Li Ya.

"Let's talk inside the building," Li Ya said first.

Gu An nodded and led him upstairs.

Zhen Qin stopped swinging her sword and looked at Ye Lan, asking nervously, "Aunt-Master Ye, is Senior Uncle Li Ya here because of those two demonic cultivators from yesterday?"

"Perhaps," Ye Lan replied, glancing back and speaking softly.

Inside the room.

Gu An and Li Ya sat opposite each other. As he poured tea for Li Ya, he asked, "What's the matter?"

Li Ya spoke up, "I plan to stay in the Mystic Valley for half a year. Is that alright?"

"That is naturally fine. You can stay as long as you like. Did you run into some trouble?" Gu An replied without hesitation, taking the opportunity to show concern.

Li Ya hesitated for a moment, then decided to share what happened yesterday. If Junior Brother Gu knew about these things, perhaps the pressure would motivate him to cultivate harder.

After hearing the story, Gu An widened his eyes in shock, "Those two are dead? Won't the Ten Thousand Yin Sect cause trouble?"

Li Ya scoffed, "They attacked Li Xuanyu and me. If anyone is looking for trouble, it will be the Taixuan Sect going after the Ten Thousand Yin Sect. Besides the Taixuan Sect, the imperial court will also pressure them. Li Xuanyu is, after all, my father the Emperor's most beloved daughter."

Gu An asked in surprise, "Then they still dared to attack Senior Li?"

"Xu Ruye and the Cicada Concubine are wicked and unscrupulous. The Cicada Concubine had a grudge against Li Xuanyu back in Ye City. When they finally found Li Xuanyu alone, they naturally wouldn't let the chance slip. And besides..."

Li Ya said with disdain, but stopped himself at the end.

"And besides what?"

"Nothing."

Gu An felt like hitting someone. If you were going to say that, you shouldn't have even mentioned the word "besides"!

Li Ya looked at Gu An and asked, "Since yesterday, have you seen anyone else passing through the Medicine Valley?"

Gu An shook his head.

"You didn't see it, but if that Nascent Soul Realm senior hadn't intervened yesterday, Li Xuanyu and I would have been in grave danger. That senior's sword path was truly terrifying. Plucking a leaf to kill an enemy—a ninth-layer Foundation Establishment cultivator was like a vegetable in a field before him, killed by a single leaf..."

Speaking of yesterday's battle, Li Ya became excited and began to describe the scene.

Gu An widened his eyes, occasionally gasping in feigned shock, as if listening to a tall tale.

The Nascent Soul Realm senior had merely flicked two leaves, yet Li Ya used every word in his vocabulary to describe it, clearly stirred.

"A swordsman should be like that. The swordless state is superior to the sword; whatever is in one's hand is a sword. Even I... in short, I have found my direction. From now on, I will focus on practicing the sword and studying the sword path..."

Li Ya revealed a look of longing. Gu An nodded, feeling secretly amused.

Brother, the senior you're praising to the heavens is right in front of you. It's a pity your cultivation is too shallow to see through it!

Gu An interrupted Li Ya's reverie and asked, "The World Outer Sect Assembly is such a grand event, why doesn't the sect send disciples to patrol, or send someone to guard us menial disciples?"

Within a fifty-mile radius of the Mystic Valley, there were at least six outer sect disciples' caves. Although most people weren't in their caves, if the sect gave the order, someone would surely come.

Li Ya's smile faded. He said gloomily, "Think about why someone in the sect would dare to raise a Greed-Hatred Demon Ghost outside the outer sect. Isn't it because the sect doesn't hold menial disciples in high regard? But don't worry, I will stay until the World Outer Sect Assembly ends."

Gu An was silent for a moment, then asked, "Are you not participating?"

"My cultivation isn't enough. To participate rashly would only lead to injury. Such a grand event will surely be dominated by those at the ninth layer of the Foundation Establishment realm," Li Ya shook his head.

This remark made Gu An look at him with newfound respect; he actually had a good sense of self-awareness.

Of course, it might also be that the blow dealt by Xu Ruye was just too great.

The two chatted for a while longer before heading downstairs. Gu An asked Xiao Chuan and Tang Yu to help clear out a courtyard so that Li Ya could stay there alone.

Everyone in the valley was overjoyed to learn that Li Ya would be staying for half a year; for one, they would have someone to protect them, and for another, they could learn sword techniques from him.

In their eyes, Gu An was great in every way, except that he knew too few spells to offer them any guidance. Li Ya was different—he was a genuine Foundation Establishment cultivator!

In the days that followed, cultivators often flew over the Mystic Valley on their swords. Gu An also witnessed various flying artifacts and demonic beast mounts, which couldn't help but stir emotions in his heart.

This is what a world of cultivation should look like!

A month later, in the dead of night.

Jiang Qiong leaned against the Azure Vine Tree, her right leg swinging back and forth, revealing a fair, tender calf beneath her hem that shimmered in the light. She held a book in her hands, her gaze drifting toward Gu An in the distance as he picked medicinal herbs.

She suddenly flipped to her feet, the book in her hand flying into the pendant around her neck. She stretched her body, loosening her limbs.

"Good grand-disciple, stop working for a moment and practice the Demonic Shadow Divine Technique first."

Jiang Qiong called out, leaping over to land in front of the alchemy furnace. Pills were being brewed inside, and wisps of white smoke rose from the lid.

Gu An replied without turning his head, "It's fine, I'll be done very soon."

Jiang Qiong shook her head with a smile, thinking to herself, This kid is truly diligent and rare; I should refine some pills for him.

Half an incense stick later.

Gu An arrived beside Jiang Qiong with the harvested herbs. He placed them on the ground categorized by type, his meticulousness making Jiang Qiong even more satisfied.

This child is truly impeccable!

Gu An had harvested over 1,300 years of lifespan in one go, and he was in a very good mood; such opportunities for a harvest were hard to come by.

"Continue your practice. If there's anything you don't understand, ask me at any time," Jiang Qiong said softly, staring at the furnace.

Gu An nodded and began to practice the Demonic Shadow Divine Technique. He had been practicing this technique for a month, but it still hadn't appeared on his attribute panel, which left him quite annoyed.

He was determined to master it now!

The Eight Sceneries Grotto-Heaven fell into silence. Gu An and Jiang Qiong sat cross-legged near the furnace, their figures blurred by the alchemy smoke.

Four days later, the Demonic Shadow Divine Technique finally appeared on Gu An's attribute panel.

He looked at his attribute panel, a satisfied smile appearing on his face.

[Name: Gu An]
[Lifespan: 27/12268]
[Spirit Root: First-class Five-Element Spirit Root (Wood and Earth attributes are more prominent)]
[Cultivation: Eighth Level of the Nascent Soul Realm]
[Techniques: Fire Control Art (Not mastered), Divine Wood Pure Yang Technique (Mastered), Dragon Force Divine Origin Technique (Mastered), Alchemy (Novice), Myriad Gu Profound Technique (Not mastered), Yin-Yang Art (Not mastered)]
[Ultimate Skills: Gale Absolute Shadow Leg (Proficient), Great Vast God-Startling Sword (Proficient), Eight Directions Step (Not mastered), Demonic Shadow Divine Technique (Not mastered)]
[Spells: Soul Capture Technique (Not mastered), Sword Flight Technique (Proficient), Soul Bewitching Eyes (Not mastered), Poison Wood Formation (Novice), Wind Control Technique (Not mastered), Corpse Control Technique (Not mastered)]

If it could appear on the attribute panel, it meant it was real!

Over the past five years, Jiang Qiong had taught him eight different techniques and spells.

She was very professional!

This also changed Gu An's opinion of her; although she was a demonic cultivator, her teaching attitude surpassed that of the righteous path.

Gu An stood up, bowed to Jiang Qiong, and said, "Grand-teacher, let's stop here for tonight. I'd like to go back and rest."

Jiang Qiong remained sitting in front of the furnace, her body wreathed in demonic energy. Without opening her eyes, she said, "Practice well when you go back. I'll be leaving in two years at most."

Gu An didn't say a word and turned to leave.

Jiang Qiong opened one eye and glanced at his retreating back, thinking, This kid seems a bit sad. Well, where else would he find a grand-teacher as good as me? Seeing him so lonely, I'll find someone to replace me when I return, let him follow me to cultivate in the Thousand Autumn Pavilion, and then have my father find someone to teach him the way of the sword.

Gu An, with his back to her, walked quickly toward the cave entrance.

He suppressed the joy in his heart, not letting himself laugh out loud.

Finally, she's leaving!

Although Jiang Qiong was very good to him, he preferred to enjoy the Eight Sceneries Grotto-Heaven all by himself.

Returning to the forest, Gu An didn't go back to his building immediately. He headed into the distance, intending to find a place to invest one year of lifespan into his cultivation.

He felt he was close to the ninth level of the Nascent Soul Realm, perhaps within these next few days.

Even though he felt it was close, he remained restrained, only investing one year of lifespan each day.

Traveling twenty miles away, Gu An sat cross-legged under a tree. He suppressed his aura to the lowest point, making himself almost indistinguishable from the flowers and grass.

He immediately invested one year of lifespan into his cultivation, and instantly, spiritual energy surged toward him.

The surrounding flowers and grass swayed, as if cheering for him, wishing for his early breakthrough.

Soon, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth returned to calm, signaling that he had completed one year of breath-gathering practice.

Gu An stood up, preparing to leave. Just as he was about to take a step, he suddenly sensed something and immediately hid behind the tree.

About four seconds later, two whistling sounds cut through the air as they streaked across the sky above Gu An's head.

Gu An's eyesight was far beyond that of an ordinary person; he caught sight of the two figures and quickly cast two lifespan inspections.

[Zuo Yijian (Golden Core realm, 9th layer): 142/490/980]

[Zuo Lin (Foundation Establishment realm, 2nd layer): 27/280/1400]

Golden Core realm, 9th layer!

Gu An was secretly curious, wondering which sect or faction these two came from.

After they had walked far away, Gu An quietly returned to Mystic Valley.

Early the next morning, he led the disciples in their exercises as usual, while Li Ya greeted him and said he was going to the Outer Sect.

It wasn't until noon that Li Ya returned on his flying sword, and he even brought someone back with him.

It was none other than Zuo Lin, whom Gu An had inspected the previous night.

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