Before they even landed, they could already sense the dense, almost impenetrable, aura of Gu.
That aura that went straight to the source, just by taking a breath, one could feel oneself and one's natal Gu improving slightly, and the bottleneck that had not loosened for many years seemed to show signs of improvement.
"This is it!" The old man from the First Palace, who was nearing the end of his life, could no longer contain the excitement in his voice.
"I say, Elder Feng, you shouldn't be out and about in your health. If you're not careful and bump into something, it will be a loss for Southern Border." Bai Cang's uncle, the sweeping monk of the Sutra Pavilion, Bai Shan, also rushed forward to help Elder Feng.
"Get out, get out! Even if I'm old, I'm not so old that I need you to help me up!" Elder Feng flung Bai Shan aside and transformed into a streak of light, entering the cave first.
The First Palace Master followed closely behind Elder Feng and flew inside.
Although Bai Shan was rebuffed, he was not angry. In the Gu Dao, the older the person, the more cunning they become; the living elders are the true treasures.
"Look, look, someone's always in such a hurry, don't hurt your back." A soft, feminine voice slowly rang out.
A beautiful woman from the Third Palace, dressed in colorful clothes and surrounded by a strange fragrance, was playing with a jade cicada on her fingertips.
Bai Shan completely ignored the beautiful woman, sniffed the air himself, and said, "It stinks."
He then pulled Bai Cang along, closely following in Elder Feng's footsteps.
The Third Palace specializes in poison and illusion, and its lineage intertwines with that of the Ninth Palace, which focuses on dreams and illusions.
This leads to a situation where the two palaces compete for disciples every time they are accepted.
Bai Shan's undisguised use of the word "truly stinky" pierced the beautiful woman's heart with precision.
The beautiful woman was none other than the Third Palace Master. Her elegant smile froze instantly, the jade cicada on her fingertips emitted a sharp cry, and the exotic fragrance emanating from her body became richer and more dangerous.
"Bai Shan, you're asking for death!" Hua Xiuyao's colorful clothes fluttered without wind, her voice icy cold.
"Palace Mistress Hua, please calm down. With such an unusual phenomenon before us, let's all work together to investigate. Let's put aside this little argument for now." Elder Li, a refined gentleman from the Second Palace, stepped in to smooth things over. His aura was calm, subtly forming a barrier that isolated the two from their tense standoff.
Hua Xiuyao took a deep breath, suppressing her anger. She knew this was not the time to fight, and the other palaces were also present; she couldn't afford to embarrass herself in front of them.
So, Palace Mistress Hua waved her hand, and led several elders from the Third Palace inside.
Seeing this, the other palaces also used their supernatural powers and rushed into the cave.
Upon entering the cave, all the arguments and grievances were instantly forgotten.
The vibrant cave, brimming with Daoist energy, captivated even the most seasoned Gu Dao experts.
Standing where Lin Yu was comprehending the Dao, Elder Feng closed his eyes and carefully sensed it. His hands brushed against the vines that emitted a lush green light, and his whole body trembled slightly.
"Pure, so pure!"
Elder Feng was so excited that he became incoherent, all because these vines were nurtured by the purest life force.
"If I could experience it firsthand by his side, perhaps I could glimpse a sliver of heavenly secrets."
Beside him, an elder from the Fifth Palace, a burly man with a booming voice, stroked the patterns on the stone wall and laughed loudly, "As soon as I arrived here, my natal Gu was incredibly excited. This place is simply a blessed land bestowed upon us by heaven."
The Fifth Palace specializes in physical and strength-based Gu worms, which is why the Gu masters of the Fifth Palace are all very burly.
"Elder Lu, please calm down. The origin of this place is unknown. If we rashly try to comprehend it, there may be unknown risks. Let's wait until we find out the reason, set up a restriction to prevent the Daoist essence from leaking out, and also to prevent outsiders from spying on us."
Elder Li, the refined and scholarly elder of the Second Palace, stroked his beard, demonstrating the most thorough consideration.
The Second Palace specializes in array Gu and artifact Gu. His first thought was to refine this place into a secret realm so that the Daoist essence of this place could be preserved forever.
"Elder Li is absolutely right. Life and death are intertwined here, and there is no guarantee that there will be no danger." In the Fourth Palace, an Old Ji echoed in a hoarse voice, and the eyes on the snake-headed cane she was holding were emitting a faint green light.
The Fourth Palace is an expert in life-and-death Gu and Medical Gu, and she is particularly sensitive to that aura of annihilation.
However, Bai Shan of the Ninth Palace was not focused on this Daoist aura, because he keenly sensed an extremely subtle yet familiar spatial fluctuation.
Bai Shan immediately felt at ease, becoming even more certain that this strange phenomenon was probably related to the thief, and that he had likely just left.
No matter how he tried to activate the Gu worms, he couldn't find a single clue to track them, and could only secretly regret that he was not as skilled as others.
Bai Shan wanted to track them down, but he had no way of doing so.
Meanwhile, the various palaces were exchanging words and having their own agendas, some wanting to monopolize the opportunity, others wanting to investigate cautiously, and the disputes were gradually resurfacing.
Just then, Elder Feng suddenly turned around, his imposing aura spreading out. "Shut up!"
Although he was on the verge of death, he was the most senior and strongest member of the Southern Border Gu Sect, and with a single sentence, he silenced all other voices.
"The Daoist essence of this place concerns the future of our Southern Border Gu Sect; it cannot be monopolized by one person or one palace."
"I propose that the Nine Palaces work together to refine this place into a secret realm, opening it once every ten years so that the younger generation of each palace can come and comprehend it. Every year, each palace must send an elder to bring the essence of Gu Dao to infuse into the secret realm, to prevent the Dao's energy from drying up."
The group exchanged glances, feeling somewhat resentful, but they also knew that Elder Feng's suggestion was the fairest.
If one forcibly seizes the opportunity, it will only result in mutual destruction, causing the Daoist essence to dissipate in vain.
Bai Cang nodded first. "I, Ninth Palace, agree!"
Seeing this, the other elders also echoed their agreement.
Without hesitation, Elder Lu stepped forward and slammed his fists into the ground. With a deafening roar, he forcefully ripped the entire cave out of the mountain and lifted it into the air.
The Second Palace Master, Old Wang, immediately commanded the elders to set up a formation of Gu, surrounding the entire cave.
The Old Ji from the Fourth Palace released her Medical Gu and Myriad Phenomena Life-Breath Gu to explore and eliminate potential dangers within the cave.
The other elders activated their Gu power, condensing their own understanding of Gu Dao into Dao principles and injecting them into the array to provide energy for the secret realm.
If there were ordinary people outside the cave at this moment, they would have witnessed a shocking scene: a huge spatial vortex appeared, and the cave that had been carved out slowly became transparent under the influence of Gu energy, eventually disappearing into the vortex.
At this moment, Lin Yu hovered above Flower Bamboo Village.
In front of the bamboo house, Ayi was sitting on a stone bench, her hands supporting her chin as she gazed at the sky.
Before leaving, Lin Yu took one last look at the girl from the Southern Border who had led him into the Gu Dao.
Finally, Lin Yu raised his hand and flicked out a ray of spiritual light, which was the Dao he had comprehended from the True Understanding of the Gu Dao.
A point of light appeared out of nowhere and entered Ayi's brow, and in an instant, Ayi seemed to be reborn.
I felt refreshed and my eyes even brightened.
"Lin Yu, is that you?" Upon hearing this bizarre change in herself, Ayi immediately thought of Lin Yu, that mysterious young man who always surprised people.