Biluofeng.
With Qingquan Immortal Venerable absent, even the moisture in the mountain air had faded, leaving it noticeably dry.
As sun and moon turned, Gu Ze had not cultivated in seclusion for long, yet he broke through to the fifth layer of Qi Refinement without any bottleneck.
Opening his eyes, a hard-to-conceal brilliance flashed within them. Gu Ze exhaled two breaths of white mist, completely stabilizing the shift in his cultivation.
It had only been ten days since his last breakthrough. Gu Ze knew well that his current body was not blessed with such terrifying talent.
This was all the result of thoroughly refining the Lingquan he had obtained from Qingquan.
With his spiritual awareness enhanced, Gu Ze found many details of cultivation methods he had previously been unable to grasp suddenly becoming much clearer.
Li Xunmiao’s cave dwelling was not far from his own courtyard, and these days, she hadn’t come to disturb him.
I wonder how junior sister’s cultivation is progressing now?
Glancing around at his empty abode, Gu Ze let out a faint sigh.
In essence, he was just an ordinary person who had fallen into the world of a book.
Even if he could pursue immortality and the Dao, the loneliness of the vast immortal path was hard to endure.
Opening his system panel, Gu Ze found that Li Xunmiao’s cultivation had already reached the third layer of Qi Refinement.
With the speed of a ‘Feng Ao Tian’, her breakthrough in cultivation didn’t surprise Gu Ze much.
She wasn’t arrogant or impatient, nor did she come to show off. It seemed Li Xunmiao was also adapting to life in the Immortal Realm, growing ever more composed.
As he was sighing, the courtyard door was suddenly knocked.
A graceful silhouette stepped into the courtyard—there was no need to guess who it was.
Only…
The aura from Li Xunmiao’s body was clearly still at the second layer of Qi Refinement.
But on the system interface, she had already reached the third layer, hadn’t she?
“Senior Brother Gu, cultivation is truly difficult. Xunmiao has made almost no progress these past few days. I wonder if today senior brother could give me some guidance?”
Li Xunmiao asked cautiously at the door.
Gu Ze’s eyebrows rose. Li Xunmiao was actually hiding her cultivation?
And she was hiding it even from him. Had Qingquan given her some order?
A trace of doubt arose in his heart, but Gu Ze remained calm, opening the door and inviting Li Xunmiao inside.
Watching Li Xunmiao’s evasive gaze and slightly flushed cheeks, Gu Ze became even more unable to fathom what she was thinking.
A few days earlier.
Li Xunmiao had taken the initiative to contact Qingquan Immortal Venerable, informing her master she had broken through to the second layer of Qi Refinement, while also making a small request.
“A method to hide your cultivation? I do have many ways to help you conceal your cultivation, but why are you looking into this?” Qingquan was very puzzled.
Yet, her disciple’s performance was excellent—breaking through to Qi Refinement second layer in just one day, and having gained the benefit of the innate rootless water, resolving a three-hundred-year longing of her own.
Her mood had been superb in recent days, and any request Li Xunmiao made, she was willing to grant.
Throughout history, those who concealed their cultivation and played the pig to eat the tiger were always old schemers. Qingquan had always displayed her perfect Golden Core cultivation boldly, never hiding it.
Li Xunmiao researching how to hide her cultivation at the second layer made Qingquan a bit uneasy.
“I… just don’t want to draw too much attention, to avoid unnecessary trouble.” Li Xunmiao found an excuse.
“Nonsense. My disciple ought to be dazzling, amazing all under heaven! With me here, what trouble do you fear? In all the Yunhai Immortal Pavilion and even the world, I’ve never feared anyone,” Qingquan said disdainfully.
“I still beg Master to teach me how to conceal my cultivation,” Li Xunmiao persisted.
“Fine, seeing that you’re not of a timid nature, and being new to the Immortal Pavilion, a moment’s caution is understandable.”
“But, once you understand your own strength, you surely won’t wish to hide it anymore. I’ll grant you a magic artifact, which can hide your cultivation at will, though it will be useless against Foundation Establishment and above.”
Just so.
No matter how strong, a Qi Refinement artifact could not affect Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Li Xunmiao thanked Qingquan, and upon receiving the artifact, finally revealed a satisfied smile.
She didn’t care much about being a direct disciple. In fact, being watched by so many was more of a burden to her.
Wearing the Mo Ran Mask and treating others coldly, she truly had no idea how to interact with people—especially not knowing what motives others had for approaching her.
But Senior Brother Gu was different.
When she was still weak, he treated her with genuine kindness and never coveted any treasures, handing everything over to her. These days, he had taken good care of her as well.
If possible, she wanted to become a light that was not so dazzling, so that others would notice Senior Brother Gu’s strength as well.
At the same time, she needed enough power to turn the tide and guard against sinister people with hidden schemes.
By hiding just a bit of her cultivation, she could slow her steps to stay beside Gu Ze, yet unleash her true strength when it mattered most, catching enemies off guard.
***
Today, she came to Gu Ze having already concealed her cultivation.
[Ding~ Detected that Li Xunmiao has obtained a fortuitous encounter: Supreme artifact Bi Xin Jin Fu]
[Bi Xin Jin Fu: The bearer can fully hide their own cultivation. Below Foundation Establishment, it is flawless.]
[Host receives reward: A full-power strike at the Great Perfection of Qi Refinement]
Another supreme artifact, its effect covering the entire Qi Refinement stage. There was no doubt it was Qingquan’s handiwork.
Gu Ze’s reward was also on par with a one-time use supreme artifact.
Thinking about it, when Li Xunmiao became Qingquan’s true disciple, he himself had received a Golden Core-level reward related to Qingquan.
She obtained the life-bound cultivation method that pointed straight to above Nascent Soul, while Gu Ze received the invaluable innate rootless water coveted even by Qingquan herself.
She gained the divine sword Zang Tian, which would serve her until her breakthrough at Golden Core, while he received a reward matching the Golden Core level, personally imparted by Qingquan.
The system really didn’t shortchange him; all the rewards were of equal value.
The only flaw was that they all seemed to be one-time use.
Well, Li Xunmiao’s future opportunities would be countless; this gain was just a drop in the ocean.
Knowing that Li Xunmiao was deliberately hiding her cultivation, Gu Ze did not expose her.
He had only found out about her cultivation change via the system. If he questioned Li Xunmiao, he would be unable to explain himself.
As for Li Xunmiao’s request for his guidance in cultivation… This was something she ought to ask of Qingquan!
“Um… Master said she is in seclusion these days, not on Biluofeng, and told us not to disturb her.” As if reading his mind, Li Xunmiao explained. She looked at Gu Ze eagerly, as if afraid of being refused.
Though Biluofeng was filled with elders and expert disciples, Li Xunmiao knew none of them; the only one she could rely on was Gu Ze. Even if she did know others, she would still only come to Gu Ze.
Having been asked by his junior sister, Gu Ze, for the sake of his reputation, had to grit his teeth and step up.
“Junior sister, watch how I cultivate. I don’t know if it can serve as a reference for you,” Gu Ze said, then sat cross-legged, tongue against palate, five hearts to the sky, calming his breath and entering meditation.
“So… this is how you sit for meditation?” Li Xunmiao covered her mouth, surprise shining in her bright eyes.
Gu Ze’s newly arranged posture instantly collapsed.
He stared at Li Xunmiao in disbelief: “So, how do you usually cultivate?”
“Well… lying down, sometimes on my stomach.”
Is this human? Is this even human? For the first time, Gu Ze felt a hopeless sense of powerlessness in front of a true genius.
Suddenly, he pressed both hands on Li Xunmiao’s shoulders, startling the girl.
Gu Ze’s eyes were wide and intense, his voice grim as he enunciated each word:
“I’m going to teach you proper cultivation methods right now, but whatever you do, don’t mention to Qingquan Immortal Venerable that you’ve been cultivating lying down these past days. Otherwise… I feel like she’ll make me pay for it.”
Clearly, Qingquan hadn’t taught Li Xunmiao how to meditate—perhaps she’d forgotten, or maybe thought it too basic to mention.
But Li Xunmiao’s lying-down cultivation was way out of line. Luckily, it was caught in time.
If, in the future, her progress slowed and Qingquan found out, Gu Ze—the attendant responsible for her guidance—would be the first to be questioned.
How could Qingquan, as master, bear such blame? The responsibility for not guiding Li Xunmiao properly would surely be placed on Gu Ze.
“So… Senior Brother Gu, are you going to teach me here, or in my cave dwelling?” Li Xunmiao asked weakly.
She had never invited Gu Ze into her cave dwelling before.
Today was a fitting opportunity.
The more she spoke, the redder Li Xunmiao’s face became.
Such a direct invitation, it was her first time. At fourteen, just awakening to her feelings, it was hard for her not to develop a faint affection for the person closest to her.
She couldn’t even say what this feeling was—only that Gu Ze was different from anyone else.
But things did not proceed as the fated female protagonist had envisioned.
“No need for all that trouble. I’ll give you a ; everything is explained in there. Every disciple at the foot of the mountain has a copy—I’m surprised you don’t.”
Li Xunmiao had been hoping for some hands-on teaching from Gu Ze.
Studying a book felt like a bucket of cold water over her head.
“Hmph.” Li Xunmiao abruptly raised her hand and punched Gu Ze’s shoulder twice, less fierce than a kitten’s pawing.
Senior Brother Gu was truly clueless about romance!!
After taking three punches from Li Xunmiao, who was now at the third layer of Qi Refinement and had absorbed the essence of the artifact Junlong Yulong Qi, Gu Ze’s joints almost felt out of place.
Before he could ask what she meant, Li Xunmiao snatched the manual and swiftly left.
For several days after, he didn’t see Li Xunmiao’s shadow.
Hopefully, she hasn’t decided that meditation is too dull and gone back to cultivating in her sleep, Gu Ze worried.
While the two of them were working hard on their cultivation, news gradually spread that Qingquan Immortal Venerable had accepted a disciple.
When Li Xunmiao entered, she triggered a phenomenon in heaven and earth, which many high-level cultivators had noticed.
But since Qingquan made her move first, no one else tried to compete.
After all, everyone knew that Qingquan currently had no direct disciples.
All of Biluofeng’s disciples were trained by elders or just left to themselves at the foot of the mountain.
Of course, some doubted that Qingquan, who had only accepted one disciple in three hundred years—and that disciple had left to found her own sect—was really the best choice to guide a genius like Li Xunmiao.
But with the sect master silent, the other Peakmasters couldn’t be bothered to get involved.
If Qingquan found out anyone was giving her trouble, her reputation as the strongest Golden Core wasn’t just for show.
On the main peak, Buzhou. Beneath its thick, heavy clouds was an elegant abode, surrounded by bamboo, rock pools, flower gardens, and swings—a place built by someone with the heart of a mischievous child.
Qingquan rode the wind over. She paid no heed to the clouds shielding Buzhou Peak, poking a huge hole through them, completely spoiling the place’s beauty.
Inside the abode, Gong Lixing sensed the return of this troublesome ancestor he’d finally seen off a few days ago. He immediately shut his door, pretending not to be in.
Last time she’d come to ask for the Yunhai Immortal Pavilion’s most secret supreme techniques—who knew which artifact she was after this time.
Every time Qingquan came, it was never good news!
“Sect Master, I’m about to break through!” A hearty laugh pierced through the soundproofing array Gong Lixing had set for cultivation, even amplified by spiritual power, creating an echo in his ears.
See? Not good news. Qingquan said she was about to break through… What? Break through!
With a bang, the formation Gong Lixing had set at the door was shattered, and his golden robe was left in disarray as he stumbled out in haste.
A terrifying divine sense swept from Qingquan’s body; Gong Lixing knew she wasn’t joking—there was indeed a faint sense of breakthrough about her aura.
Qingquan’s path to Nascent Soul was as hard as ascending to the heavens. Had she really found some innate treasure to make up for her shortcomings?
But such a treasure appearing in the world would surely be sensed by other experts, and some could even deduce its appearance in advance.
Just what kind of opportunity had Qingquan obtained?
Gong Lixing’s face turned the color of pig liver as he looked at Qingquan’s smug expression. He wanted to ask, yet dreaded hearing her show off.
“A certain Daoist friend gave me a portion of innate rootless water—how about that? My friend’s generosity is unmatched, right?”
Qingquan started talking to herself. Although in her heart she thought of him as a thief, she still called him Daoist friend out loud—just for the sake of such a gift, Gu Ze was worthy.
“—Hiss!” Gong Lixing couldn’t help but suck in a breath of cold air. It really was an innate treasure.
“Who exactly is this person? I can’t even deduce a thread of cause and effect?” Gong Lixing grew ever more curious.
“Not telling you.” Qingquan snorted. She herself hadn’t figured out Gu Ze’s identity yet.
If she accidentally let something slip and Gong Lixing caught her little thief, half the fun after she reached Nascent Soul would be gone.
Showing off in front of Gong Lixing was just her way of getting back at the lecture he’d given her a few days before.
The more anxious Gong Lixing got, the happier she became.
“Sect Master, now I lack for nothing. I’m planning to immediately begin condensing my sea of consciousness and breaking through to Nascent Soul. As for the specific arrangements…”
Qingquan returned to the main topic.
Seeing she wouldn’t reveal the identity of the great expert who had aided her, Gong Lixing gave up.
Someone who possessed such an innate treasure had every reason to act cautiously. In fact, it made sense that even at his level he couldn’t deduce a thing.
“Very well, I’ll make the arrangements right away. Yunhai Immortal Pavilion is finally going to have another Nascent Soul…”
“And one more thing. While I’m in seclusion breaking through, I’ll leave those two little ones at Biluofeng in your care. Li Xunmiao is new to the immortal path and still very inexperienced in many ways. My leaving now betrays my responsibilities as master.”
“But the path to the Yuanying Dao is one I’ve awaited for over three hundred years—now is the time for one final gamble. When I return from forming my Nascent Soul, I’ll make it up to Xunmiao.”
“As for Gu Ze—you’re quite interested in him, aren’t you? Perhaps he has secrets of his own.”
Qingquan fiddled with the Peakmaster Token at her waist, recalling her recent days with her disciples.
Having a disciple was quite nice—she really hadn’t had the urge to take one in for a very long time.
Her last disciple… She hadn’t seen her since. Who knew what would become of Li Xunmiao?
After listening to her request, Gong Lixing cupped his hands and smiled wryly: “Daoist friend, you really know how to use this old man. Do you think I, the sect master, have nothing better to do?”
“…Aren’t you idle?”