Three Thousand Years of Lifespan, Crisis Reborn

When Gu An saw Chu Jingfeng, Chu Jingfeng saw him as well.

Gu An was about to quicken his pace to go up and greet him, but Chu Jingfeng leaped up, soaring several zhang into the air, gliding over the hillside and landing before him like a wild goose.

"You must be Gu An. I have questions for you," Chu Jingfeng said in a deep voice.

Gu An feigned nervousness, bowed, and replied, "I am. Whatever you wish to ask, Senior, I will answer truthfully."

Seeing Gu An so honest, Chu Jingfeng's expression softened. He said quietly, "You have seen the Greed-Hatred Demon Ghost, and she even grabbed your throat. Do you still remember her face?"

Gu An shook his head and said, "The oil lamp wasn't lit in the room that night, so I couldn't see her face at all. As soon as she appeared, she scared me into a faint..."

As he said this, he secretly circulated the blood and qi in his body, causing his face to turn instantly red.

Seeing him so embarrassed, the anger in Chu Jingfeng's heart dissipated quite a bit.

What am I doing? Why am I making things difficult for a chore disciple... Chu Jingfeng thought with self-mockery.

His expression turned gentle as he said, "If you remember anything, or if you encounter anything, you can contact me."

With that, he took out a spirit stone the size of a hen's egg and said, "This is a special spirit stone. You can communicate with me by injecting your spiritual power into it."

He tossed the spirit stone to Gu An, then leaped into the air. A long sword flew from his waist out of thin air, and he stepped onto it, rushing out of the forest as leaves drifted down in his wake.

Whether it was an illusion or not, Gu An always felt that he had become even stronger after losing his arm.

Gu An didn't dwell on it and headed toward Medicine Valley with the spirit stone in hand.

Sigh, when will I be able to own my own storage bag?

The youth walked along the hillside in the forest, the dappled sunlight falling upon him, making it seem as if he were draped in a colorful robe.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, two years had passed.

Nineteen-year-old Gu An walked through the forest. He looked a bit taller than he had two years ago, and his frame was much sturdier. Even in simple cloth robes, he appeared clean and neat. His eyes, in particular, were exceptionally bright, and his long hair was tied loosely behind his head with a straw rope, with two thin strands falling over his forehead, giving him an even more dashing and unrestrained air.

Behind him followed a youth with an ordinary appearance, a head shorter than him, carrying a bamboo basket and wiping beads of sweat from his forehead as he walked.

"Senior Brother, how much further is it?" Xiao Chuan called out, sounding listless.

He was the only one in Medicine Valley with a lower seniority than Gu An, and he liked to follow behind Gu An on a daily basis. Hearing that Gu An was going to tend to a cave dwelling for an outer sect disciple, he had begged for a long time, and only this time did Gu An agree to bring him along.

Gu An had his own reasons for agreeing to bring him.

Because he had heard from Zhang Chunqiu yesterday that the owner of the cave dwelling had returned, he decided to bring Xiao Chuan along to prevent any accidents.

If the other party had malicious intent, seeing that there was another person present might make them hesitate.

Gu An didn't want to harm Xiao Chuan, but if something really happened, his Dragon Force Divine Origin Technique wasn't practiced for nothing.

"Almost there."

Gu An said without looking back. To be fair, he was starting to understand why Zhang Chunqiu liked him.

Having such an obedient junior brother was indeed worry-free.

Xiao Chuan let out a wail. He had already heard those two words no fewer than eight times; had he known it would be like this, he wouldn't have come.

Ten-odd miles was not a short distance for a mortal, and with the rugged mountain paths and the sweltering weather, Xiao Chuan felt like he was about to die.

Gu An didn't offer any more comfort, because they were truly almost there.

After about the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, Gu An pushed aside the tall grass and arrived before the cliff face. He didn't open the stone gate directly, but instead cupped his hands and said, "Junior Gu An, I have come to return the cave dwelling jade token to you, Senior."

Xiao Chuan stood on the other side of the grass, curiously examining the cliff face.

His background was no better than Gu An's, and he didn't know much about the cultivation world; in his eyes, an outer sect disciple of the Taixuan Sect was a big shot.

Rumble--

The stone gate opened, and a hoarse voice came from within:

"Come in."

Gu An turned back and said to Xiao Chuan, "Wait for me outside."

Xiao Chuan naturally didn't dare to follow him in. Just being able to witness the spectacle of the cave dwelling opening was enough for him to feel the trip was worth it.

Gu An stepped into the cave dwelling, feeling more confident than he had two years ago.

His confidence came from the lifespan he had accumulated; his lifespan had already reached over three thousand four hundred years.

In addition to the herbs inside the cave, Cheng Xuandan had also begun ordering him to pick third-grade herbs over the past two years, so his lifespan had increased rapidly.

A person's confidence comes from their strength. Although Gu An had only cultivated a sliver of spiritual power, he was no longer the person he used to be.

Passing through the tunnel, Gu An saw a person sitting by a stone table.

It was a middle-aged man with a gaunt figure. His Daoist robe looked loose on him, his hair was a mix of black and white, his eye sockets were sunken, and his cheekbones were prominent, giving him an air of someone with deep schemes.

At the first glance, Gu An felt that this person was not someone to be trifled with.

Zhu Moya (Qi Refining Stage, 9th Layer): 58/130/140

His maximum lifespan was not even as high as Zhang Chunqiu's, which meant his aptitude was inferior to Zhang Chunqiu's.

The reason his cultivation was higher than Zhang Chunqiu's was likely due to the accumulation of medicinal pills.

Gu An speculated in his heart as he walked quickly to Zhu Moya, took out the cave dwelling jade pendant, and offered it with both hands.

Zhu Moya took back the jade pendant and said softly, "You did well, I am very satisfied. There are ten mid-grade spirit stones in this bag, take it with you."

He picked up the cloth bag on the table and handed it to Gu An.

Gu An respectfully accepted the bag, secretly weighed it in his hand, and then thanked Zhu Moya.

"You may return now," Zhu Moya said with a wave of his hand.

Gu An nodded, bowed again, and then turned to leave.

As he turned, his keen eyes caught something, and his reaction was swift; he immediately cast a lifespan inspection.

[Greed-Hatred Demon Ghost (Second Tier): 31/140/180]

Gu An remained calm and walked away quickly.

Zhu Moya watched Gu An's retreating figure, his eyes turning cold. Only after hearing the sound of the mountain gate closing did he let out a cold snort and mutter to himself, "Consider yourself lucky."

The restrictions on the outer disciples' cave dwellings were very low-level. These so-called restrictions were merely magical mechanisms, and the magical mechanisms of outer disciples were naturally not sophisticated. Therefore, Gu An, standing outside the cave, heard Zhu Moya's self-talk, which made him feel even more uneasy.

Sure enough, there was a problem!

Gu An had previously suspected why the Greed-Hatred Demon Ghost had attacked all the way here without affecting Zhu Moya's cave dwelling along the path. It turned out that this guy was connected to the Greed-Hatred Demon Ghost.

"Senior Brother, did it go smoothly?" Xiao Chuan looked at the approaching Gu An and asked with a look of concern.

Gu An revealed a smile and said, "Smoothly. Let's go, it's time for us to return."

Xiao Chuan nodded, and the two walked in the direction they had come from. Only after they had walked a distance did Xiao Chuan begin to ask what kind of person the owner of the cave dwelling was.

Gu An gave a simple description, which left Xiao Chuan yearning for more.

For the rest of the journey, Gu An had no heart to pay attention to Xiao Chuan; his mind was filled with thoughts of the Greed-Hatred Demon Ghost and Zhu Moya's words.

No, this matter cannot be ignored; it is too dangerous!

Gu An thought of the spirit stones left behind by Chu Jingfeng and decided to ask Chu Jingfeng for help.

However, before that, he had to improve his strength just in case.

Having not spent his lifespan for three years, Gu An felt excited just thinking about it.

The Dragon Force Divine Origin Technique could conceal his aura, allowing him to hide his spiritual power very well. This time, he prepared to improve his cultivation first, then his offensive means.

"Should I evolve the Residual Wind Leg or the Li Family Seven Swords?"

Gu An began to struggle with this question.

An hour later, the two finally returned to Medicine Valley. Gu An took the bamboo basket from Xiao Chuan and walked toward his own courtyard.

The bamboo basket was filled with common medicinal herbs they had picked along the way.

Xiao Chuan was exhausted and had no energy to do anything else, so he headed straight for his own courtyard as well.

Gu An returned to his room, closed the door, placed the bamboo basket and the cloth bag on the table, and then went to his bed.

He took a deep breath and first sensed the auras of the others in Medicine Valley.

Meng Lang was practicing spells in the woods, Cheng Xuandan was refining pills, and Zhang Chunqiu was struggling to absorb qi.

Hmm, it seemed no one was paying attention to him.

Gu An pulled up his attribute panel.

[Name: Gu An]

[Lifespan: 19/3463]

[Spirit Root: Five Elements Better Spirit Root (Can invest lifespan to evolve cultivation)]

[Cultivation: Qi Refining Stage Level 1 (Can invest lifespan to evolve cultivation)]

[Techniques: Fire Control Art (Not mastered), Spring Wood Technique (Not mastered), Dragon Force Divine Origin Technique (Mastered), (Can invest lifespan to evolve cultivation)]

[Ultimate Arts: Residual Wind Leg (Not mastered), Li Family Seven Swords (Not mastered) (Can invest lifespan to evolve cultivation)]

Gu An cautiously invested one year of lifespan to evolve his cultivation.

[You practiced absorbing qi for one year. Due to your mediocre aptitude and the mediocre grade of your technique, your cultivation did not increase much.]

As soon as this prompt appeared, Gu An felt the changes within his body.

A wisp of spiritual power turned into two wisps...

The corners of Gu An's mouth twitched involuntarily. He had no choice but to turn his gaze toward the Spring Wood Technique.

He had only mastered this one qi-absorbing technique. As for the Fire Control Art, it was an auxiliary technique that an old servant had taught him when he was burning firewood at the Ji Family; as the name suggested, it was for controlling fire.

"Forget it, I won't wait for a more profound technique. Anyway, I can use my lifespan to evolve it. Even the most ordinary technique can be promoted to a peerless divine art in my hands..."

Gu An thought to himself, his eyes becoming firm.

He chose to invest one hundred years of lifespan into the Spring Wood Technique to evolve his practice.

[You practiced the Spring Wood Technique for one year. Due to your comprehension and mediocre aptitude, your attainment in the Spring Wood Technique improved only slightly.]

[You have practiced the Spring Wood Technique for ten years; you have finally mastered the Spring Wood Technique, and your Qi absorption speed has increased.]

[You have practiced the Spring Wood Technique for fifty years; your Spring Wood Technique has finally reached great success, and your Qi absorption speed has reached ten times what it was before.]

[You have practiced the Spring Wood Technique for one hundred years; you have gained new insights into the Spring Wood Technique, and the Spring Wood Technique has upgraded into the Spring Origin Art.]

A surge of memories flooded into Gu An's mind, all of them pertaining to the cultivation of the Spring Origin Art.

The Spring Origin Art was far less complex than the Dragon Force Divine Origin Technique, so it did not take long before Gu An opened his eyes.

After opening his eyes, he first listened for the sounds of others within Medicine Valley; Xiao Chuan had already fallen asleep, and the others were busy with their own tasks, with no one noticing him for the time being.

Now, a question arose.

Should he continue to improve the Spring Origin Art, or should he directly use the Spring Origin Art to evolve his cultivation?

The higher his mastery of a cultivation technique, the faster Gu An could increase his cultivation, which would also save on the investment of his lifespan.

After thinking it over, Gu An felt that the cultivation technique was the most important thing and could not be taken lightly.

He would start by burning a thousand years on it first!