Chapter 17 Taking on the Role of Valley Master

Gu An had indeed underestimated the range of the White Spirit Rat's activity. He had followed it for more than ten miles, and the rat still hadn't stopped.

The farther they got from Mystic Valley, the less enthusiastic he became.

Although he had been to the Outer Sect, it was only a single route.

With Mystic Valley as the center, if he went beyond a radius of twenty miles, he felt there would be danger, even though he was already at the seventh layer of the Foundation Establishment Realm.

Fortunately, the White Spirit Rat didn't keep going. When they were almost twenty miles away from Mystic Valley, the rat finally stopped.

It was still mountainous terrain. A small stream flowed down from the mountains, and the White Spirit Rat stopped by the stream and began circling around.

Gu An walked over. The vegetation on both sides of the stream was abundant, and there were many stones of various sizes.

He picked up the White Spirit Rat and then swept his right leg across.

Boom—

Grass and debris flew everywhere, and stones scattered in all directions. With just one sweep of his leg, Gu An cleared a large open space.

He focused his eyes and saw that there was a square stone slab by the stream.

Goodness!

A stone cover?

Gu An squatted down before the slab. The stone slab was engraved with mysterious patterns. Whether it was text or drawings, he had never seen anything like it before.

He could feel a trace of spiritual energy leaking from the edge of the slab. Perhaps that was why the White Spirit Rat had found this place.

In the Foundation Establishment Realm, one already had Divine Sense, an invisible and intangible power. When probed by Divine Sense, it was like having a Heavenly Eye, able to see through objects.

Gu An rarely used it, but that didn't mean he didn't have Divine Sense. In fact, reaching the seventh layer of the Energy Cultivation Realm allowed one to begin cultivating Divine Sense.

He immediately gathered his Divine Sense, intending to penetrate the stone slab to explore the space below.

However, as soon as his Divine Sense touched the slab, it was bounced back by a mysterious force, causing his body to tremble.

So strong?

Even the Divine Sense of a seventh-layer Foundation Establishment cultivator couldn't penetrate its restriction…

Gu An hesitated. With such a strong restriction, could there be a huge danger below?

There was spiritual energy surging inside. Either it was nurturing some heavenly treasures, or someone was in seclusion down there.

No!

Can't be reckless!

He needed to observe for a while first!

Gu An released the White Spirit Rat and then moved the surrounding stones and weeds to cover the mysterious slab. After thoroughly concealing it, he grabbed the White Spirit Rat and turned back to the valley.

The White Spirit Rat squeaked, but he ignored it.

After returning to Mystic Valley, Gu An didn't mention this to anyone, as if he had never left the valley.

In the following nights, apart from doing his daily tasks, Gu An would go near the stone slab to observe.

Night after night, there were no signs of the covering being disturbed around the slab.

Besides this, Gu An noticed that each night Wuxin would go into the forest, seemingly searching for something.

He didn't expose Wuxin, as his intuition told him that Wuxin's identity was not simple.

Having a life span of over three hundred years at the second layer of the Energy Cultivation Realm, he must have cultivated some kind of miracle skill.

Gu An had once observed Wuxin's cultivation with his Divine Sense but found nothing out of the ordinary. It appeared to be normal Qi Absorption cultivation.

And so, the scorching summer passed.

Mystic Valley gradually became covered with yellow hues. Gu An had opened up seventeen garden plots in the surrounding mountains and forests, increasing the workload such that Xiaochuan and the others had to patrol daily.

One evening,

Cheng Xuandan found Gu An and signaled him with his eyes to follow. The master and disciple headed toward the northern peak.

Gu An looked at Cheng Xuandan's back with mixed feelings.

Cheng Xuandan's life span had decreased further, with his age matching his current life span, indicating he was about to die.

Although he had been tricked by Cheng Xuandan, the man had indeed done a lot for him. As Cheng Xuandan was about to die, Gu An couldn't help but feel a bit saddened.

He tried to convince himself not to be sad.

He sought the path of immortality and longevity, and he would experience many such separations in the future. He would eventually become accustomed to it.

Of course, this was under the condition that he could continue to survive.

Wuxin, who was watering, saw Gu An and Cheng Xuandan and raised an eyebrow.

He memorized the direction they were heading, thinking there must be a secret in that part of the forest.

Once they had entered the forest, Cheng Xuandan said, "I'm taking you to the entrance to the underground, and you must not tell anyone about this place, including your junior brothers and sisters. Today they may be close to you, but once they leave Medicine Valley and experience the outside world, they will become strangers to you."

Gu An did not refute. He had always known this.

As long as Xiaochuan and the others had not abandoned their goal of becoming Outer Disciples, they would part ways eventually.

After hesitating for a moment, Gu An asked, "Master, were you originally a person from the Thousand-Autumn Pavilion, or were you chosen by them later?"

Cheng Xuandan's steps were heavier than before. He replied, "My experience is the same as yours; my identity comes from a lineage."

Gu An fell silent.

He suddenly felt that Cheng Xuandan was also a pitiful person.

"After helping my master with some tasks, this identity became inescapable, but I don't regret it," Cheng Xuandan said.

Hearing his master's words, Gu An hesitated.

He hadn't done much yet. Could he still get out?

Cheng Xuandan began to recount his interactions with his master, describing a temperamental mentor who was sometimes strict and sometimes whimsical, like a child.

In Cheng Xuandan's words, his master was like an old child who never grew up.

Taking a winding path behind the peak, Cheng Xuandan stopped in front of a moss and vine-covered rock wall.

"Master, is the Grandmaster still alive?" Gu An couldn't help but ask.

He thought of the stone slab he had been observing. It wasn't far from Mystic Valley, and given that the Master of Mystic Valley was a Demon Path infiltrator, he suspected that the slab might have been left by Cheng Xuandan's master.

Cheng Xuandan replied, "He left before his death, and I will follow his example. I'm leaving tomorrow; everything in Medicine Valley will be in your hands."

Gu An frowned, contemplating not Cheng Xuandan but his master.

So, Cheng Xuandan's master might still be alive?

Cheng Xuandan took out a compass from his sleeve. He pushed aside some vines on the rock wall to reveal a recess, then placed the compass into it. As he channeled his spiritual power into the compass, it began to tremble and emit a faint light.

Gu An could clearly sense that Cheng Xuandan's aura was becoming even more frail.

He couldn't help but worry that Cheng Xuandan might suddenly die here.

The rock wall began to tremble, with a low rumbling sound. Soon, a cave entrance appeared, which Gu An had to stoop to enter.

Cheng Xuandan said, "You go in; I'll wait for you outside."

Gu An hesitated and said, "Master, give me the compass. After you leave, I'll go in."

Cheng Xuandan laughed, then removed the compass and handed it to Gu An.

A stone door emerged from within the cave entrance, sealing it again seamlessly, making it appear as if there were no entrance at all.

Cheng Xuandan turned and walked down the mountain, with Gu An following.

"The underground space has its complete formation. If you want to plant some Spirit Grasses or Spirit Flowers that you don't want anyone to know about, you can choose to plant them down there," Cheng Xuandan said softly, as if making his final instructions.

Gu An listened attentively, feeling conflicted. He was grateful for Cheng Xuandan's actions, but he always retained a bit of caution in his heart.

Until the end, he couldn't relax.

After all, Cheng Xuandan was going to die soon. He could relax after his death.

Gu An would burn incense for Cheng Xuandan every year and honor him then.

The descent down the mountain was slow, and Cheng Xuandan's voice was faint as he detailed everything about the underground space. Gu An listened carefully, the details were many and didn't seem fabricated.

When they returned to Medicine Valley, it was already dark.

Cheng Xuandan gave Gu An some final advice: "Life is long, and being mediocre in talent can sometimes be a good thing. You can do the things you want to do."

Gu An watched as Cheng Xuandan walked back to his pavilion. After he closed his door, Gu An continued to stand there, lost in thought.

He stood there for nearly an hour before finally heading to his courtyard.

His junior disciples were cultivating in their own rooms. The courtyard was very quiet.

That night, Gu An focused on his cultivation.

As dawn approached, he heard Cheng Xuandan's footsteps. Walking to the window, he saw Cheng Xuandan descending the stairs.

Cheng Xuandan's steps were unsteady, and he walked very slowly.

He didn't look in Gu An's direction. After descending, he headed straight for the valley entrance.

Gu An watched his silhouette disappear from the valley entrance and didn't leave the window.

As the morning sun rose from the eastern mountain, the first rays of sunlight passed over the mountain, shining on Gu An and elongating his shadow.

When Xiaochuan, Lu Jiujia, Ye Lan, and Wuxin gradually woke up, they all sensed an unusual atmosphere in Medicine Valley.

They quickly realized what was wrong. At this time, their senior brother would usually lead them in training. The body refining technique called "Young Eagle's Flight" had its own mysteries.

The ever-dedicated Gu An didn't lead them in training today.

It wasn't until noon that Gu An showed up. He gathered them together and announced that Cheng Xuandan had left and that he was now the Master of Medicine Valley.

Xiaochuan and the other three were a bit excited and inquired about where Cheng Xuandan had gone. Ever since Li Ya left, Cheng Xuandan had become gentler and treated his disciples very well, so they had a good impression of him.

Only Wuxin was not particularly affected.

After a half-hour of commotion, the junior disciples finally dispersed.

Gu An went to the mountaintop, gazing in the direction Cheng Xuandan had left.

When he could no longer see Cheng Xuandan's figure, he went to Cheng Xuandan's pavilion.

Cheng Xuandan's pill furnace was still there, and the table beside it was covered with many things, including a storage bag, letters, various keys, and even a jar of Spirit Flowers.

He picked up a letter and read it. The content was simple:

'I know you love picking flowers and herbs, so before my departure, I leave a fifth-grade Tiger Blood Flower for you as a farewell gift.'

Gu An smiled and then picked up the storage bag.

Of all the things, this was what he was most interested in.

How could a cultivator not have a storage bag?

Thus, he began to inspect Cheng Xuandan's inheritance.

It wasn't until evening that Gu An left Cheng Xuandan's pavilion, now with a purple fabric bag at his waist: Cheng Xuandan's storage bag.

He headed to the northern peak and made his way to the rock wall with the underground entrance. He retrieved a compass from the storage bag and placed it into the recess in the rock wall.

Accompanied by a low rumbling, a cave entrance appeared before him.

Gu An removed the compass and stooped to enter. After just five steps, the passage suddenly became spacious, and the entrance began to close.