Winter had passed, and spring was upon them once more, signifying the arrival of another New Year.
In Mystic Valley, the disciples were bustling about with preparations for the Spring Festival, while Gu An walked around with the White Spirit Rat cradled in his arms, inspecting each garden area.
The White Spirit Rat thoroughly enjoyed being held by him, its eyes closed, seemingly asleep.
A whooshing sound broke through the air from afar, and Gu An turned his head to see, a smile spreading across his face.
Ye Lan had returned.
She swiftly landed beside Gu An, retracting her flying sword into her storage bag, and said with a beaming smile, “Senior brother, I’m back for the festival. You wouldn’t be unwelcoming, would you?”
Gu An looked at her and asked with a smile, “Is the Law Enforcement Hall not busy?”
“No matter how busy it is, I can always find a few days to relax. A proper rest is conducive to cultivation—that’s what you’ve always taught me, and I’ve kept it in mind.”
Ye Lan blinked and said in a playful tone.
After chatting for a while, Ye Lan pulled Gu An toward the loft, saying as they walked, “Senior brother, let’s go to your room first. I have something to show you.”
A treasure?
Gu An set the White Spirit Rat down on the ground and followed Ye Lan.
As they made their way to the loft and entered the room, Ye Lan didn’t close the door, which relieved Gu An somewhat.
Ye Lan walked over to the desk and pulled a brocade box from her storage bag, looking sideways at Gu An with a victorious smile, “Senior brother, this is a Foundation Establishment congratulatory gift I prepared especially for you.”
“There’s no need for this. When you established your foundation, I didn’t give you any gifts.”
“Without senior brother’s Foundation Establishment Pill, could I have established my foundation? I’m definitely not one of those geniuses who can forcibly establish their foundation with their own Spirit Root Qualification,” Ye Lan said, shaking her head and smiling.
Hearing this, Gu An no longer demurred. He moved next to her, curiously looking at the brocade box.
Ye Lan opened the box, revealing a plant root inside that resembled ginseng. If one did not pay close attention, they would hardly notice the faint fluctuations of spiritual energy within.
[Human-Faced Tree (Reviving State): 0/600/22000]
Twenty-two thousand years of maximum lifespan?
Gu An raised an eyebrow; it was the first time he had seen the words “reviving state.”
Ye Lan explained, “This is the root of a sixth-grade Spirit Tree. Just plant it in the ground for a few years, and it will grow again, enhancing the spiritual energy of the area.”
Gu An asked curiously, “Such a precious treasure, where did you get it from?”
Ye Lan blinked and replied, “Not long ago, when I captured a spy from the Demon Path, I found it in the cave of a spy from the Thousand-Autumn Pavilion. I didn’t report it.”
“That… isn’t that bad?”
“Don’t worry, other disciples from the Law Enforcement Hall also keep some things, and the higher-ups have tacitly approved it. It’s fine as long as we don’t get too greedy, and no one knows about this treasure.”
Upon hearing this, Gu An felt less burdened. After thinking it over, he said, “If you need any herbs in the future, just let me know. I will soon have a second Medicine Valley, and we can help each other out.”
Ye Lan smiled, “Alright, I’ll go find the others now. I’ve brought gifts for them too.”
Gu An nodded, and Ye Lan then took her leave.
He gazed at the brocade box on the desk, considering where to plant it.
After much thought, he decided to save it for the Third Medicine Valley. The new valley needed a boost in spiritual energy; the more abundant the energy, the faster the herbs would grow.
Mystic Valley already had its own rhythm and didn’t need a Spirit Tree, not to mention Tianya Valley—why should he plant the seed himself?
Tianya Valley was Li Xuandao’s Medicine Valley. He only had managerial rights. Should he need anything from Tianya Valley, he could simply ask Li Xuandao for it.
Sometime later, Gu An put the brocade box into his storage bag and then sat at the desk, picking up a brush and beginning to write on a piece of paper.
The arrival of Ye Lan made the atmosphere in Mystic Valley even better.
As night fell, various activities for the Spring Festival began, the liveliness never ceasing. Once everyone was seated and started drinking, Zhen Qin asked Ye Lan to share her experiences of executing tasks as an Outer Disciple, and she agreed without refusal.
Besides protecting the Outer Sect, disciples of the Law Enforcement Hall also had to venture out for training experiences, and Ye Lan was no exception.
“The mission we took on at the time was to eradicate evil. We were sent to a mountain town where nearly a thousand households had died off in just a few short days. To prevent evil entities from further harming the civilians, the local authorities requested help from the Supreme Sect. There were seven of us…”
Ye Lan vividly recounted the experience, and since it was nighttime, the listeners, especially the disciples, were wholly engrossed and anxious, with the female disciples huddling together.
Watching the young girl who used to follow him around grow into someone who could stand on her own, Gu An’s smile never once faded.
When Ye Lan got to the part about the ghosts, all the disciples’ hearts rose to their throats, even Xiaochuan, Wuxin, and Su Han were particularly on edge.
It wasn’t until late into the night that the disciples dispersed.
Ye Lan followed Gu An back to the loft, where he took out a martial arts manual he had written and handed it to her, saying, “This is a leg technique manual I found in the Inner Sect a while ago. Practice it when you have some free time.”
Gale Shadowless Leg!
Ye Lan took the manual, not opening it right away but instead placing it into her storage bag. Looking at Gu An, she said, “Senior brother, you’d better be careful around Lu Jiujia in the future.”
“What’s wrong with him?” Gu An asked, puzzled.
Ye Lan sighed and said, “Remember how we talked about the infighting within the Supreme Sect? The elders who oppose the Sect Leader are secretly recruiting disciples. Lu Jiujia has taken an Elder of the Outer Elder Hall as his mentor, and that Elder is serving the Sect Leader’s adversary. If things continue like this, the Supreme Sect will inevitably erupt into chaos.
If the Sect Leader gets the last laugh, he will certainly clean out the disruptive disciples. Lu Jiujia won’t be able to escape.”
“I tried to warn him before, but he didn’t listen. He says that the path of Immortal Cultivation requires struggle and that it’s better to take a risk than to lead a mediocre life. His choice is not wrong, I’m just worried that if you get too close to him, you’ll be implicated later. He probably thinks the same, which is why he hasn’t returned to Mystic Valley.”
Hearing this, Gu An fell into silence.
He couldn’t interfere with Lu Jiujia’s choices because what Lu Jiujia had said was true—the path of Immortal Cultivation demands contention.
He didn’t vie for power because he could snatch life spans, and thus, he had no right to instruct others on how to cultivate immortality.
Ye Lan started talking about other matters, revolving around the Outer Sect. Surprisingly, the internal struggles of the Supreme Sect even involved the Ji Family and the royal descendants. Gu An listened with keen interest.
It was only by dawn that Gu An finally saw Ye Lan off.
Despite talking throughout the night, both of them were still full of vigor.
Before she left, Gu An reminded her not to forget to practice the Gale Shadowless Leg, to which Ye Lan nodded, her eyes carrying a trace of silent resentment.
After her departure, Gu An called his disciples to practice drills.
…
On a blistering summer day, the thirty-five-year-old Gu An stood by the window, gazing at the sky with a slight frown on his face.
He was waiting for Gu Yu.
The half-year deadline had passed; why hadn’t he come yet?
Gu An was looking forward to his third Medicine Valley every day, his seeds already prepared and awaiting sowing.
Could something have gone wrong?
Gu An’s concern grew; last month, when he visited the Outer Sect, he distinctly felt an unusual atmosphere. A new group of disciples in black had appeared in the city, said to be from a division established by the new Great Elder of the Outer Sect called the Demon Extermination Hall.
The Demon Extermination Hall was directly under the control of the Great Elder, and even the lowest Cultivation Level among its disciples was the fifth layer of the Foundation Establishment Realm. Their treatment was even above that of other divisions.
The Supreme Sect had eight Outer Cities; if the Outer Sect was like this, let alone the Inner Sect and the Main City of the Sect, such strife would surely spread to the Gu Zong.
Sigh!
So annoying!
It’s affecting my gardening!
All of a sudden, Gu An felt like throwing a punch to burst those troublemakers.
Just then, he sensed something and his gloomy face immediately bloomed into a smile.
He’s here! He’s here at last!
Gu An caught Gu Yu’s aura. Struggling to compose himself, he didn’t go downstairs.
After a while, Gu Yu finally landed within Mystic Valley.
“Gu An!”
Gu Yu called out loudly, drawing the attention of all the disciples in the valley.
Gu An pushed open the door, looked at Gu Yu, and said, “Brother Gu, come up and we’ll talk.”
Gu Yu threw the compass into his Storage Bag and then climbed the stairs.
After entering the room, Gu An closed the door and poured him tea. Gu Yu, however, didn’t sit down. Instead, he started browsing the bookshelf as if searching for something.
“I haven’t written the final volume of Investiture of the Gods yet,” Gu An spoke up.
Upon hearing this, Gu Yu showed his disappointment. He turned around to the table, took out a series of books from his Storage Bag, and finally, he produced a Token.
“This is your Valley Master Token; your Medicine Valley is situated between the Outer Sect and the Inner Sect, less than a hundred miles from the Outer City. For you, at the Foundation Establishment Realm, going back and forth would not be much trouble. These books are the life experiences penned by my father. You can refer to them.
My father said you’re not obligated to stick to the exact facts, so feel free to make changes, or even draw from his experiences to conjure up a fictional tale,” Gu Yu explained, his expression gleeful, as he hinted suggestively with his eyes to Gu An.
Gu An put down the teacup in front of him, took the Valley Master Token, and observed it. Unlike the bronze Token of Mystic Valley, this one was silver-white, with several layers of Restrictions sealed within.
“Later, I’ll take you to the Medicine Valley. If you get lost afterward, project your Divine Sense into the Token and it will guide you,” Gu Yu said after sipping his tea, then continued.
Gu An nodded; he couldn’t wait to see his new Medicine Valley.
Gu Yu seemed to recall something and said, “By the way, when you write about me, include Zhou Tongyou. Write him as the strongest young genius in the Immortal Cultivation World who greatly admires me, obedient only to my leadership.”
Gu An’s face twitched, “That doesn’t sound like a good idea; I’m afraid it could cause me trouble.”
“Whatever you want, just name it, I can fulfil it.”
“It’s not about the price.”
“A hundred Top-Grade Spirit Stones!”
“If he sees it, he will surely investigate me…”
“A thousand Top-Grade Spirit Stones, that’s all my possessions!”
“What about a pun; would that work?”
At this, Gu Yu raised his eyebrows, “Fine, but you can only change one character.”
“Agreed!”
Gu An promised, though he had no intention of defaming Zhou Tongyou in the book. He considered making these two into brothers who both loved and competed with each other, thus offending neither.
He could tell that Gu Yu bore no animosity towards Zhou Tongyou; otherwise, he wouldn’t just make Zhou Tongyou his underling but would slander him in the book.
Gu Yu was likely just envious of Zhou Tongyou. If Gu An could turn Zhou Tongyou into his brother and add some emotionally charged plot points, Gu Yu would probably be satisfied.
After resting for an hour, the two set off immediately, flying out of Mystic Valley on swords.