It was noon when Gu An left Tianyun Garden. He had no desire to linger in the streets and headed straight back to the inn.
Halfway there, Gu An suddenly remembered that he hadn’t handed over the Black-Pattern Iron to Senior Sister Yun. After thinking it over carefully, he felt that Senior Sister wouldn’t care about such a paltry amount anyway, so he kept it for himself with a clear conscience.
His conversation with Yun Xiuyan had opened a door that had previously stood only a crack ajar. Now it was wide open.
Gu An returned to the inn. As soon as he sat down cross-legged on the bed, a voice sounded in his mind.
[One of the Black Spirit Fish you raised has died of old age, returning a Spiritual Qi Cluster to you!]
The voice sounded four times in succession, and four clusters of spiritual Qi appeared in Gu An’s Dantian.
Gu An paused, puzzled. He had walked back without using spiritual power, a trip of seven or eight minutes.
Why had the goose only started eating now?
He couldn’t explain it, but there was no point dwelling on it. Let them eat whenever they liked. He had his spirit stones, and the feedback would follow. That was all that mattered.
Surely Yun Xiuyan wasn’t planning to keep the fish alive rather than eat them?
Given the gluttonous nature of the Purple Cloud Goose, Gu An felt that even if Senior Sister Yun wanted to keep them, she wouldn’t be able to.
His guess proved right. At noon on each of the next three days, four currents of spiritual power entered his dantian, giving his cultivation a substantial boost.
Just now, Gu An was sitting by the window, holding a spirit stone in his hand, meditating facing the moonlight.
[One of the Black Spirit Fish you raised has died of old age, returning a Spiritual Qi Cluster to you!]
[One of the Black Spirit Fish you raised has died of old age, returning a Spiritual Qi Cluster to you!]
[One of the Black Spirit Fish you raised has died of old age, returning a Spiritual Qi Cluster to you!]
..
Eight notifications came in quick succession. Gu An blinked. Had the goose got up for a midnight snack?
Suddenly, joy appeared on Gu An’s face. Without time to think further, he closed his eyes again and emptied his mind.
He felt that the spiritual power in his Dantian was so full it seemed about to overflow. Looking inward, it matched the description in the Water Origin Art of being full without spilling over.
It was time to break through to the fifth layer of Qi Condensation!
Gu An began circulating the Water Origin Art. The spiritual power in his Dantian moved along the meridians in a cycle, repeatedly washing through his Dantian and meridians, gradually widening them. This chapter is updated first at NovelPing.
Dripping water can wear through stone!
Amidst the sound of flowing water, Gu An’s Dantian and meridians were filled with spiritual power, leaving not a single empty space.
Finally, as if a certain boundary had been broken, the previously somewhat sluggish spiritual power surged through the meridians once again, faster and with greater quantity.
Everything fell into place naturally.
The breakthrough increased his spiritual power by half. He could not yet control all of it, and a little leaked out, bathing him in flickering blue light.
The seeping spiritual power turned into a vortex, drawing a gust of wind through the window, scattering the furnishings in the room.
Gu An opened his eyes and hastily drew the escaping spiritual qi back into himself. The wind died away, leaving the room in disarray. He decided not to sleep in there.
He leaped out of the window frame, climbed onto the roof, and lay down with his hands behind his head.
A pale half-moon and faint stars cast soft light over his face.
..
The next morning, Gu An woke up leisurely among the roof tiles, couldn’t help but stretch.
“So comfortable. It’s been a long time since I slept so well.”
Gu An jumped down, went to the inn’s front desk, found the shopkeeper, gave him a silver ingot, instructed him to have the room cleaned, and then walked straight out the door.
This inn was on Vermilion Bird Avenue, not far from Tianyun Garden. In a short while, he arrived at Tianyun Garden.
He followed the white jade path to Yun Xiuyan’s courtyard, where several senior disciples were already waiting.
After greeting them, Gu An gained a preliminary understanding of these senior brothers and sisters.
Qian Jinbao, eighth layer of Qi Condensation, on Garrison Duty in Baigu Commandery.
Huang Xuan, seventh layer of Qi Condensation, on Garrison Duty in Zhuyang Commandery.
Wang Nan, sixth layer of Qi Condensation, on Garrison Duty in Danyang Commandery.
Gu Feng, sixth layer of Qi Condensation, on Garrison Duty in Qingbai Commandery.
These four all had higher cultivation than Gu An. If Gu An hadn’t just broken through to the fifth layer of Qi Condensation today, the gap would have been even larger.
However, they were all fellow disciples of the same sect with no grudges. No incidents of belittling occurred. They chatted about everything, and no one was left out. The atmosphere was harmonious. Follow the newest chapters on novelping dot com.
Gu An was relieved, though a little disappointed. All the stories had scenes where some arrogant fool got put in his place. He had hoped to watch a little drama.
It never occurred to him that he had precious little to show off. If anyone ended up humiliated, it would probably be him.
After a short while, a bearded burly man arrived. Everyone stood up to greet him. After the introduction, Gu An learned that this Senior Brother Tan was already at the ninth layer of Qi Condensation.
Only the royal family’s Foundation Establishment cultivator stood above him in Yun Kingdom. Barely past fifty, Tan still had a chance of reaching Foundation Establishment himself.
Gu An was startled. The ninth layer of Qi Condensation-this realm only required polishing the Dantian’s spiritual power to perfection before one could attempt Foundation Establishment. Taking that step would make everything different.
This level of cultivation was especially rare in the Yun Kingdom. Even Senior Sister Yun Xiuyan was only at the eighth layer of Qi Condensation.
Thoughts racing, Gu An quickly cupped his hands in greeting: “Greetings, Senior Brother Tan.”
Tan Chengfeng casually returned the gesture. “Greetings, Junior Brother Gu.” He then ignored Gu An and sat down on his own. Seeing this, everyone else also sat down and began chatting again.
Gu An listened attentively from the side, hearing Senior Brother Tan Chengfeng talk about killing evil cultivators, Senior Sister Wang Nan describe the evening scenery of the rosy clouds, Senior Brother Qian Jinbao share strange tales and anecdotes..
He marveled at the vastness of the world and the dangers of the cultivation world, greatly broadening his horizons. His resolve to pursue longevity by raising spirit beasts became even firmer.
A little later, a thin young man arrived on the wind. “Sorry I’m late, everyone.”
“Han Geng, what kept you? We’ve been waiting.” Tan was the first to speak, clearly displeased.
“Forgive me, Senior Brother Tan. You heard about the clan massacred in Yellow Wind Commandery? That’s my posting. The sect was furious and sent Martial Uncle Wang to investigate. I got roped into doing the legwork. It’s been miserable.”
Han Geng repeatedly apologized while explaining to everyone.
“Have they caught them? Slaughtering a clan and destroying a spirit vein—those robbers must have a death wish.” Tan sounded furious, and the others joined in condemning them.
Han Geng shook his head. “No. Martial Uncle Wang found signs that they had fled into Beastmaster Sect territory, so he returned to report.”
“Also, I heard that those two didn’t just do this one thing. They even robbed and killed the son of Pavilion Master Hua of the Hundred Ingenuity Pavilion in Qingyuan Immortal City.”
That only made the group angrier. “Those Beastmaster Sect bastards again! One day we’ll storm their spirit lands and tear their strongholds down. Then they’ll see what we can do!”
Gu An listened with great interest, occasionally joining in with a curse or two. He was also a disciple of the Qingyuan Sect. His position determined his stance, and he had a considerable dislike for the Beastmaster Sect.
As far as Gu An knew, the Beastmaster Sect was also a Golden Core Sect.
The Qingyuan Sect was located in the Qingyuan Mountains. The Qingyuan Mountains bordered the Cloudmist Mountains to the north, a place rarely visited by humans. The other three directions were mostly plains, where the three kingdoms of Yun, Chen, and Zhao were established. Yun Kingdom was located to the west, bordering You Kingdom; this You Kingdom was the sphere of influence of the Beastmaster Sect. The two robber cultivators had probably run to You Kingdom.
There was much friction between the two sects, with occasional fights and casualties on both sides. They could be called sworn enemies.