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Chapter 31: True Dragon Bloodline
🕑 Added 2024-12-08 09:00:20 +0000 UTCEver since Zuo Lin had taught Gu An swordsmanship, every time they met, Zuo Lin would stare at him with a resentful gaze, making Gu An feel quite uncomfortable. Fortunately, with Li Ya around, Zuo Lin didn't dare to pester him too much.
Days passed, and every day, cultivators would fly over Xuan Valley.
Whenever someone passed by, Gu An would use his life essence to investigate their cultivation levels. He even detected the presence of Nascent Soul cultivators but could never discern which sect they belonged to.
Spring came and went, and summer arrived as Gu An turned twenty-eight.
After reaching the ninth level of the Nascent Soul stage, he temporarily paused his daily cultivation plan. He feared wasting his life essence and decided to accumulate a large amount of it for a breakthrough in the future.
Aside from hard work, he also believed in the mystical arts of fate.
As the scorching summer heat descended.
In the forest, Gu An lay beneath a tree, reading a book, while Wu Xin directed Tang Yu, Su Han, and Zhen Qin to pull weeds. Xiao Chuan and Ye Lan were cultivating in the valley.
Tang Yu wiped the sweat from his forehead and glanced at the Green Hero's Journal in Gu An's hands, his eyes full of curiosity.
What kind of book is that?
The biggest mystery in the valley was what exactly was recorded in the Green Hero's Journal.
The three disciples all wanted to read it, but unfortunately, the entire set was privately stashed away by Gu An, and they couldn't find it anywhere in the library.
Suddenly, a large white spirit mouse darted out of the grass and scurried into Gu An’s arms—it was the White Spirit Mouse.
Noticing something in its mouth, Gu An sat up straight. The mouse spat out an egg the size of a chicken's egg, with a pale blue-white shell covered in wavy brown patterns.
He could feel the spiritual energy radiating from within.
Is this a demon beast egg?
Gu An had seen demon beast eggs before in the outer sect cities, their prices varying, with some fetching astronomical sums that made his scalp tingle.
Making sure that Wu Xin and the others hadn’t noticed, he quickly stashed the egg into his storage bag.
The White Spirit Mouse raised its head proudly, and Gu An chuckled, giving it a playful rub.
Once the weeds were cleared, the group began sowing new seeds. After all the work was done, they headed back to Xuan Valley together.
As they walked, Tang Yu inquired about the difficulties of practicing the Remnant Wind Kick. He wasn’t fond of swordsmanship, making him the only one among the three disciples dedicated to mastering the technique.
Gu An patiently gave him advice, all while keeping a firm hold on the White Spirit Mouse to prevent its escape.
When they returned to the valley, Li Ya, who had gone to the outer sect in the morning, had already returned, but Zuo Lin had not. For Gu An, this was a relief.
Li Ya approached Gu An and said, “The Great Outer Sect Tournament has concluded. Now begins the inter-sect exchanges. During this time, there will be disciples patrolling the area, and I should return soon.”
Gu An, hearing this, immediately showed a look of reluctance and said, “Then I won’t keep you. You have your heart set on the Dao, and I can’t hold you back. But remember, if you ever miss this place, you’re always welcome back. As long as I’m alive, I’ll be waiting for you.”
Li Ya nodded, then pulled Gu An upstairs into the pavilion. After closing the door, he took out three white jade bottles from his storage bag and placed them on the table. “These three bottles contain Foundation Establishment Pills, High-Grade Spiritual Qi Pills, and Marrow Cleansing Pills. Keep them safe and don't expose them easily, especially the Foundation Establishment Pill. You must save one for yourself. Don’t trust your disciples too much—many have killed their masters over pills. The human heart can change.”
Gu An was stunned and immediately waved his hands. “I can’t accept this. Even if I were the Valley Master for a hundred years, I wouldn’t have enough spirit stones to repay you…”
“Repay what? You’re my junior brother, and I’ll probably be bothering you in the future. If you don’t take it, I won’t return again!” Li Ya glared at him, his tone stern.
Hearing this, Gu An reluctantly accepted the bottles, feeling deeply touched.
More than the value of the pills, what mattered most to him was Li Ya’s sentiment.
Li Ya continued, “Last night, about a hundred miles from here, there was a battle between demon cultivators. Several people died, and they were all geniuses from various sects. Their deaths will surely provoke investigations. It’s best you stay in the valley for the next few days.”
Gu An nodded, but before he could say anything, Li Ya turned and left.
He didn’t exit through the front door but instead leaped out of the window, soaring into the sky on his sword and disappearing beyond the mountaintop.
Gu An turned back to look at the three bottles of pills on the table, silent for a long time.
Finally, he sighed and waved his sleeve, storing the bottles into his storage bag.
...
Late at night, Gu An arrived at the Eight Views Heavenly Cave and walked to the Ancient Vine Tree.
Jiang Qiong was still sitting in front of the pill furnace, meditating. Her aura was growing stronger, nearing the ninth level of the Core Formation stage. Gu An was genuinely happy for her.
She was finally about to leave!
“Good disciple grandson, it’s been a while since you came. I almost thought you had forgotten me,” Jiang Qiong’s voice sounded.
Gu An stepped forward and saluted, replying helplessly, “Master, could you stop calling me ‘good grandson’? I can’t bear it.”
Demon cultivators truly have no sense of propriety in their words.
Jiang Qiong smiled but didn’t respond.
Gu An took out the demon beast egg from his storage bag and brought it to Jiang Qiong, asking, “Master, what kind of demon beast is this?”
Hearing this, Jiang Qiong opened her eyes, casting a casual glance at the egg. At first, she didn’t care much, but suddenly, her eyes widened in shock.
She turned around, snatched the egg from Gu An’s hand, and examined it closely, as if her gaze could pierce through the shell.
Seeing this, Gu An grew nervous.
Sure enough, this thing isn’t simple!
When Li Ya had mentioned the battle between demon cultivators the previous night, Gu An suspected that the White Spirit Mouse had scavenged the egg from the battleground. In all his years living in this area, he had never seen a demon beast, let alone a demon beast egg.
“It really is the sacred beast of the Gu Hao Sect…” Jiang Qiong muttered to herself.
Sacred beast?
Gu An’s eyelids twitched, and he suddenly wanted to strangle the White Spirit Mouse. It had brought him trouble.
Jiang Qiong handed the egg back to Gu An, saying, “This is a Sky Dragon, a rare demon beast with the True Dragon bloodline. It can grow to become a ninth-tier demon beast, with the power to flatten mountains and overturn seas. The Gu Hao Sect regards it as a sacred beast. Take good care of it. A Sky Dragon serves only one master in its lifetime, and while it is gentle and loyal to its master, it is extremely ferocious towards others. If its master dies, the Sky Dragon will go mad and slaughter the world.”
Hearing this, Gu An quickly said, “If it’s so powerful, it’s better for you to take it, Master. You’ll need help as you roam the cultivation world.”
“Are you sure?” Jiang Qiong asked with a half-smile.
Gu An nodded, his expression sincere.
Seeing this, Jiang Qiong’s expression softened, and she couldn’t help but feel touched.
Thinking back, since they had met, this boy had always been respectful toward her and never slacked off when carrying out her orders. His words now didn’t seem to be empty flattery.
Jiang Qiong had faked her death for seventy years, and it was because of betrayal that she had ended up in her current state. Over the years, she had harbored hatred toward many people. When she first met Gu An, she had been full of suspicion. That’s why, after her recovery, she had tested him.
Jiang Qiong pushed the Sky Dragon egg back into Gu An’s hands. As their hands touched, he felt a slight chill.
“Don’t refuse. The Ancient Vine Tree needs strong protection. Raise the Sky Dragon here, and you won’t have to worry about being exposed,” Jiang Qiong said seriously.
Hearing this, Gu An realized it made sense.
This way, it would also prevent anyone from stealing the spirit herbs and flowers.
Gu An sighed, “Alright then.”
Jiang Qiong then began to recount the legends and habits of the Sky Dragon, helping him understand more.
The more Gu An listened, the more excited he became, and he began to look forward to raising the Sky Dragon.
Finally, he left the egg under the Ancient Vine Tree for Jiang Qiong to take care of.
...
In the following month, fewer and fewer cultivators flew over Xuan Valley. Eventually, three days passed without any sign of a cultivator, and Gu An decided it was safe to leave the valley.
He still had other jobs to attend to, and they provided a significant amount of life essence that he couldn’t afford to miss.
Compared to battles and killing, Gu An preferred a steady and peaceful way to accumulate life essence.
At noon, he first went to Chen Li’s cave. Chen Li wasn’t there, so Gu An spent the time tending to the spirit herbs before leaving.
Next, he went to Li Xuan Yu’s cave.
Li Xuan Yu also wasn’t there, so Gu An got to work.
As expected of a princess, Li Xuan Yu had recently planted a batch of fifth-tier spirit herbs, which filled Gu An with anticipation.
Fifth-tier spirit herbs took at least five years, if not more, to mature. But fortunately, Gu An had time to wait.
Just as Gu An was about to finish up, Li Xuan Yu suddenly returned.
“Greetings, Senior Li,” Gu An quickly stepped forward and saluted.
Dressed in her usual white, Li Xuan Yu still exuded her cold, pure aura, but Gu An could sense that her energy was unstable.
She’s injured again.
Always getting into fights…
Li Xuan Yu spoke softly, “You’re Li Ya’s junior brother, so there’s no need to call me ‘Senior.’ You can just call me ‘Senior Sister.’”
Hearing this, Gu An had no choice but to comply, addressing her as Senior Sister.
Li Xuan Yu glanced around the cave and said, “You’ve done well. Would you like me to recommend you for this job? If I speak up, the employers will give me some face and won’t shortchange you.”
“I’d be grateful for that. Thank you, Senior Sister!” Gu An quickly replied. He was still working towards amassing ten thousand years of life essence to break through to a higher realm, so he wouldn’t refuse any opportunity.
Li Xuan Yu nodded and said, “Come back in a month.”
Gu An saluted and then took his leave.
After he left, Li Xuan Yu walked to her bed and began circulating her energy to heal her injuries. Her face quickly turned pale, devoid of any color, and then she spat out a mouthful of black blood onto the floor.
Outside the cave, Gu An sensed the sudden surge in her energy, guessing that her injuries had flared up. However, he didn’t stop his steps.
He wasn’t a healer, and besides, he didn’t want to get too involved with Li Xuan Yu.
...
After the Great Outer Sect Tournament ended, time in Xuan Valley returned to its usual fast pace.
When Gu An saw Li Xuan Yu again, her injuries had mostly healed. Under her guidance, he met five outer sect disciples. With that, he was now managing the caves of seven outer sect disciples.
Since each cave had different requirements, Gu An found himself leaving the valley every three to four days. To make travel easier, he raised his visible cultivation level to the sixth level of the Qi Refining stage. Each time he went out, he would use the Sword Control Art. After all, at the fifth level of Qi Refining, his spiritual power wasn’t enough to make the round trip in a single day.
He didn’t use his Heavenly Solemn Sword but instead traveled on a simple flying sword, a standard artifact he had exchanged for at the outer sect, to avoid drawing attention.
Autumn came and went, covering Xuan Valley in falling leaves.
After autumn passed, winter arrived, blanketing the valley in snow.
One day, Gu An was in his pavilion, writing with a brush.
Having read so much of the Adventures of Green Hero, he wanted to try his hand at writing his own story. He had recently learned from a trip to the outer sect that writing books could earn spirit stones, though the review process was quite strict.
With his background as a reincarnated Earthling, Gu An felt confident he could surprise the Tai Xuan Sect with something new.
The more spirit stones he earned, the more seeds he could buy!
As he wrote fervently, he suddenly sensed something unusual and furrowed his brow.
Outside the window, the sky had darkened, and rolling thunderclouds were sweeping in from the horizon, filling the heavens and forests with an overwhelming sense of divine might.
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