The next day, before the first ray of dawn arrived, Lan Ruomeng was already leading her junior sisters in wielding their long sabers at the training grounds, practicing the Drawing Saber Strike.
"Heh!"
"Hah!"
"Heh!"
"Hah!"
...
Under Lan Ruomeng's guidance, more than a dozen young women were rhythmically drawing and sheathing their long sabers.
After half an hour, Yu Lan, who had just joined the sect this year, showed signs of fatigue. Her cultivation was only at the mid-stage of the Transcending Mortal Realm, making her the weakest among the women. Moreover, the sabers used for practicing the Drawing Saber Strike were not made of ordinary iron, but forged from a metal called Profound Heavy Gold, weighing ten thousand pounds. If they could use the spiritual power within their bodies, ten thousand pounds would be nothing to a Transcending Mortal Realm cultivator.
However, when practicing the Drawing Saber Strike, they could only rely on their physical strength. Yu Lan's body had not yet adapted to this wild training method. Being able to persist for half an hour was already a testament to her strong willpower.
"Senior Sister Lan, I can't do it anymore!"
Yu Lan was only sixteen years old, the youngest among the women, while Lan Ruomeng had joined Leaving Regret Peak earlier than anyone else, for more than twenty years already. The other junior sisters had joined Leaving Regret Peak in recent years.
"Persist for another half incense stick's time, and today's morning practice will be over for you."
Lan Ruomeng encouraged her.
Everyone present had different cultivation levels, so naturally, the time they spent practicing the Drawing Saber Strike also varied. Those with stronger cultivation practiced for a longer time, while those with slightly weaker cultivation practiced for a shorter time. If it weren't arranged this way, for someone like Yu Lan, whose cultivation was low and body not strong enough, too much time would not only be ineffective but would also damage her foundation.
Half an incense stick's time wasn't long, but for Yu Lan, it felt like an eternity.
"Phew!"
After half an incense stick's time passed, Yu Lan could no longer endure the fatigue in her body and unceremoniously plopped down on the ground, completely abandoning her ladylike image.
Soon after, others also finished their morning practice and sat down on the ground, drenched in sweat.
"You all..."
Lan Ruomeng shook her head helplessly. With her current strength, she no longer needed to practice the Drawing Saber Strike every day, but as the eldest senior sister, she felt it was her responsibility to lead by example. So, when Leaving Regret Peak gradually gained new blood, she would practice the Drawing Saber Strike with them.
"Senior Sister Lan, I've always had a question," Yu Lan said.
"A question? What question?" Lan Ruomeng asked.
"Promise me, you won't get angry when I say it," Yu Lan said with a hint of slyness in her eyes.
Lan Ruomeng became even more curious. She said with a smile, "Don't worry, I won't get angry with you."
Having received Lan Ruomeng's guarantee, Yu Lan then spoke her question.
"Senior Sister Lan, you admire Martial Aunt Huaiyu so much. When you joined our Leaving Regret Peak, why didn't you become Martial Aunt Huaiyu's disciple but instead became Martial Aunt Yushui's disciple?" Yu Lan asked.
"This..."
"You idiot, it must be because Martial Aunt Huaiyu didn't accept senior sister. Do I need to ask that? Senior Sister Lan, am I right? ... Uh, Senior Sister Lan, why does your face look so bad? Are you sick?"
Before Lan Ruomeng could speak, the girl next to Yu Lan answered for her, but Lan Ruomeng glared at her with a dark face after hearing it.
"Long Xiaoxiao, you go over there and practice the Drawing Saber Strike for an extra half incense stick's time!" Lan Ruomeng said coldly.
"Ah... Senior Sister Lan, didn't you say you wouldn't get angry?" Long Xiaoxiao's face fell.
Lan Ruomeng sneered, "Hmph, I said I wouldn't get angry with Junior Sister Yu Lan, but I didn't say I wouldn't get angry with you."
The women couldn't help but recall Lan Ruomeng's words earlier. She had said to Yu Lan, "I won't get angry with you," indeed not saying she wouldn't get angry with others.
"Senior Sister Lan, you're so cunning!" Long Xiaoxiao said, dejected.
"Hehe, I call it being smart. I know you all too well. How can I do it without digging a pit?" Lan Ruomeng said, looking pleased.
Long Xiaoxiao dejectedly picked up her long saber and continued to practice the Drawing Saber Strike with "Heh," "Hah," "Heh," "Hah," eliciting a burst of suppressed laughter from the other women.
"Senior Sister Lan, is what Senior Sister Xiaoxiao said true?" Yu Lan asked.
"Don't listen to her nonsense. From the moment I became aware, Master was by my side. She brought me back to Leaving Regret Peak. It's not the same as you all. I didn't go through any whetstone selection!"
Lan Ruomeng said with a smile. She admired Martial Aunt Huaiyu simply because her personality was very similar to Martial Aunt Huaiyu's.
"Huh, how is this so much like the legendary 'relationship'?"
"Are you talking about getting in through the back door?"
"Back door? Aren't those who get in through the back door usually incompetent? Senior Sister Lan's cultivation is so strong, she doesn't seem like she got in through the back door, does she?"
"There are always exceptions!"
"That makes sense!"
The women chattered incessantly, and Lan Ruomeng couldn't bear it any longer and roared, "What are you all saying? Do you think today's morning practice was too little and want to add more?"
"No, no!"
Hearing the words "add more," the women immediately fell silent, not daring to speak. They could see that Long Xiaoxiao, who was currently doing extra practice, looked like she was wearing a mask of pain. They didn't want to suffer the same fate.
"You all... When Martial Aunt Huaiyu was your age, she wouldn't complain..."
Lan Ruomeng helplessly began to speak.
As soon as the women heard this, they all revealed expressions of "as expected."
"Here we go again. Senior Sister Lan is starting to tell us about Martial Aunt Huaiyu's glorious deeds again."
"Even the opening line 'When Martial Aunt Huaiyu was...' hasn't changed."
"Senior Sister Lan is definitely a true fan of Martial Aunt Huaiyu."
"Only Yushui, the Martial Aunt, can tolerate Senior Sister Lan. If my master knew that the person I admired most wasn't her, she would definitely spank me."
"Shh, keep your voice down. Don't interrupt Senior Sister Lan, or we'll have to do extra practice like Xiaoxiao."
...
At this time, Lu Chengfeng, Gu Huaiyu, Yushui, Li Qin, Ronghua, Yun Shuang, and Gu Changsheng had a complete view of their performance.
Although Yushui, Li Qin, and Ronghua had long known about Gu Changsheng's existence from Gu Huaiyu and Lu Chengfeng, yesterday's dinner was the first time they had actually met him.
In their preconceived notions, Gu Changsheng should have been a venerable old man with the air of an immortal, so they couldn't help but be stunned when they saw how young and handsome Gu Changsheng was, followed by restraint. However, Gu Changsheng's amiability gradually eased their restraint, and they slowly began to regard Gu Changsheng as their elder.
"Senior, you must be laughing at us!" Yushui said a little awkwardly, thinking to herself whether she had assigned too little or too simple morning practice for them. However, this was what she had set according to each person's situation, which might not be the best, but was the most suitable for them.
After all, not everyone was a genius. They were naturally talented enough to join Leaving Regret Peak, but they were far from Gu Huaiyu's level.
Gu Changsheng waved his hand and said, "This is what it feels like to have a home!"
Gu Changsheng sighed. Back then, he had originally wanted to take Gu Huaiyu to the Great Heaven Blade World, but on the way, they encountered a chaotic phenomenon that was nurturing a treasure. In order to wait for the treasure to be born, he brought Gu Huaiyu to the Purple Sun Great World.
Originally, he had just wanted Gu Huaiyu to casually mingle in the Heavenly Profound Saber Sect, learning the basics of the saber, but plans couldn't keep up with changes. The bronze coffin he obtained from the ancient God Clan's inheritance ground changed, and out of curiosity, he entered the Chaos Burial Realm, spending three Chaos Days there, but a thousand years had passed in the myriad worlds.
Originally, for Gu Huaiyu, she was just a passerby at Leaving Regret Peak, but now, a thousand years had passed, and she had already regarded this place as her home.
Her life so far had only been a little over a thousand years, and she had dedicated most of her time to Leaving Regret Peak. If she were to leave, she would be very reluctant.
Yesterday, the two of them, master and disciple, had a heart-to-heart talk, and Gu Changsheng asked Gu Huaiyu if she wanted to leave this place. Gu Huaiyu shook her head decisively, but she still said, "If Master wants me to leave, I will leave."
But how could Gu Changsheng force Gu Huaiyu to leave with him? So he told Gu Huaiyu to stay here without worry. Anyway, no matter how big the myriad worlds were, it was only a step away for him.
And Gu Changsheng vaguely felt that Gu Huaiyu was trying to walk her own path of the saber. Although the Great Heaven Blade World was the most suitable place for saber cultivators to cultivate, it also restricted the possibilities of countless saber cultivators.
It was like a dynasty. The stronger it was, the more perfect its system was. The more perfect the system, the more law-abiding the dynasty's people were. This wasn't to say it was bad, but the result was that it would be more difficult to break the rules within it. This was also why many dynasties, when they reached their peak, couldn't maintain it for long and began to decline.
No innovation!
Since Gu Huaiyu was already trying, Gu Changsheng naturally fully supported her.
"Girl, then stay here and cultivate well. I still have something to do and need Yun Shuang to go with me."
Gu Changsheng said to Gu Huaiyu.
"Master, you just came back for a day. Why are you leaving again?" Gu Huaiyu pouted in dissatisfaction.
"Yes, Teacher, why not stay for a while longer?" Lu Chengfeng was also reluctant.
Gu Changsheng shook his head and said, "If you want to see me, you can go to the Mortal World yourself. I've already set up a teleportation array in the girl's room. As long as the girl uses her Chaos Xuanhuang Tower, she can teleport you to the Mortal World."
The Chaos Xuanhuang Tower was the Chaos Treasure nurtured by the chaotic phenomenon back then. Now, it was only equivalent to an Immortal Artifact, but as Gu Huaiyu's strength increased, its grade would also increase. It was a treasure with extremely strong defensive power. With it, even an Immortal King couldn't hurt Gu Huaiyu.
"Alright then!"
Gu Huaiyu and Lu Chengfeng also knew their limits and didn't try to persuade Gu Changsheng any further.
Yun Shuang was still in the dark. She looked at Gu Changsheng and asked, "Senior, what do you need me to do? It can't be..."
As she said this, Yun Shuang revealed a hint of shyness on her face. If it was Gu Changsheng, it wouldn't be impossible!
"Ouch!"
Yun Shuang felt a sharp pain on her forehead. She saw Gu Changsheng knock on her forehead.
"What are you thinking about, you little girl?" Gu Changsheng said with a smile.
"You big watermelon, how dare you have designs on my master!"
Gu Huaiyu was no longer the naive girl she used to be. In addition, with Yun Shuang's succubus identity, she knew what Yun Shuang was thinking with just a little thought.
Lu Chengfeng and the others also looked at Yun Shuang with strange eyes.
Yun Shuang's face turned awkward.
"Buzz!"
A strange vibration came from the air, breaking the awkward atmosphere.
Lu Chengfeng frowned slightly. She said, "This is the abnormal sound of the sect's grand formation being activated. Someone is attacking the mountain gate!"
"Is that so?" Gu Huaiyu's eyes lit up. She drew her battle saber with a whoosh, looking eager to try.
"..."
Gu Huaiyu also realized that she was too excited. She said awkwardly, "Ahem, what I just said was, who is so bold as to attack our Heavenly Profound Saber Sect? I'll see if I don't chop them to death."
Gu Changsheng smiled. A thousand years had passed, but this girl's personality hadn't changed. She was still so eager to fight.
"Teacher..."
Lu Chengfeng looked at Gu Changsheng.
"Go ahead, don't worry about me," Gu Changsheng said with a smile.
"Don't worry about me either!" Yun Shuang followed suit.
Lu Chengfeng nodded. She said to Li Qin and Ronghua, "Third Junior Sister, Fourth Junior Sister, the two of you have the highest attainments in formations. Leaving Regret Peak will be entrusted to you to guard. Yushui, you come with me."
"What about me? Don't forget about me. I'm also a member of Leaving Regret Peak." Gu Huaiyu immediately became unhappy when Lu Chengfeng didn't call her name.
Lu Chengfeng glanced at Gu Changsheng and, seeing that Gu Changsheng didn't object, said to Gu Huaiyu, "Then you come along too, girl."
After saying that, Lu Chengfeng led Yushui and Gu Huaiyu towards the direction where the abnormality was coming from, while Li Qin and Ronghua settled the disciples of Leaving Regret Peak and also activated the protective formation of Leaving Regret Peak.
Lu Chengfeng and Gu Huaiyu both tacitly didn't ask Gu Changsheng or Yun Shuang to take action. Lu Chengfeng felt that she already owed her teacher too much, and Gu Changsheng wasn't a member of the Heavenly Profound Saber Sect either.
As for Gu Huaiyu, she simply felt that this matter wasn't enough to trouble Gu Changsheng. If it really came to a critical moment, Gu Huaiyu believed that her master wouldn't stand idly by, because that was her master, and he wouldn't let her be sad.
The women left one after another, leaving only Gu Changsheng and Yun Shuang in place.
Gu Changsheng took out a wine pot, found a clean stone, and sat down, leisurely drinking wine. The wine in the pot was a thousand-year-old spirit wine brewed by Gu Huaiyu. It was a strong liquor, and she, this disciple, knew that he liked to drink strong liquor.
"Senior, what do you need me to do?"
Seeing that there was no one else around, Yun Shuang couldn't help but wonder what Gu Changsheng needed her to do. She was only a mere Immortal King, what help could she provide?
Gu Changsheng smiled mysteriously and said, "It's been so many years since you've returned. You must miss your mother, the Empress, very much, right?"
"I... I don't really miss her that much," Yun Shuang said in a low voice. She actually wanted to say that she didn't miss her mother at all, but it would be against her conscience to say so, especially after her state of mind changed yesterday, letting her know that she had been able to roam freely outside for tens of thousands of years with her mother's tacit permission. She still felt a little guilty about leaving secretly back then.
"Not much, that means you do miss her. This time, I'm only looking for you to be a middleman," Gu Changsheng said.
"A middleman? Senior, you should know my mother, the Empress. If you want to find her, just go to the Demon Realm to find her, why bother having me be a middleman?" Yun Shuang asked, puzzled.
"I don't just know your mother, the Empress, we're practically too familiar. But precisely because we're too familiar, it wouldn't be good to look for her rashly."
Gu Changsheng inwardly sighed, feeling it was more than just familiarity. If he hadn't run so fast back then, he might have been 'eaten' by Yun Wuyue. Thinking about it now, he admired his own willpower for resisting the allure of Yun Wuyue, the most captivating being in all the realms.
Yun Shuang didn't understand the meaning behind Gu Changsheng's words. She said, "Since Senior wants me to be the intermediary, then I will do it."
If it were before, Yun Shuang might have hesitated, but her state of mind had improved yesterday, and Gu Changsheng had also given her a Great Dao Golden Pill. Initially, she was skeptical about the effects of the Great Dao Golden Pill, but last night, after consuming it, even before it was fully refined, she could feel her cultivation increasing at a visible rate. At this rate, even if she didn't cultivate in the future, she could break through to the Immortal Venerable realm in tens of thousands of years.
Moreover, she had a feeling that the Immortal Emperor realm was not out of reach for her.
The Great Dao Golden Pill that Gu Changsheng gave her was so powerful that she was naturally grateful. Therefore, when Gu Changsheng asked her to return to the Demon Realm with him to see her mother, she agreed without hesitation.
Compared to the great kindness Gu Changsheng had shown her, this matter was nothing in terms of repaying his kindness.
"Hmm?"
Suddenly, both Gu Changsheng and Yun Shuang's expressions turned serious.
"Demonic energy!"
Gu Changsheng said.
"How can there be demonic energy in this world?" Yun Shuang frowned.
Demonic energy was a unique type of energy specific to the Demon Realm, and only beings from the Demon Realm could absorb it. Normally, other worlds shouldn't have demonic energy. The Primal Demon Lord suppressed in the Demon Suppression Land of the Red Dust Realm was a rare occurrence in all the realms.
"Secret Realm!"
Yun Shuang immediately thought of the secret realm that appeared in the Tianxuan Small Dao Domain five hundred years ago. Since that secret realm was related to her mother's thoughts, it wouldn't be strange for it to generate demonic energy.
A thought flashed through Gu Changsheng's mind, and he immediately understood the cause and effect.
He looked at Yun Shuang with a strange expression and said, "This demonic energy is related to you!"
"Me?"
Yun Shuang was puzzled. How could it be related to her?
However, Gu Changsheng didn't say much. Instead, he took a step forward, and his figure disappeared.
Seeing this, Yun Shuang quickly followed. She was curious how the demonic energy could be related to her. After arriving in the Ziyang Great World, she hid in someone's tomb, and then she was encountered by Gu Changsheng and his disciples. After that, she spent thousands of years in the Lihen Peak. During this time, she hadn't done anything.
Now, saying that the demonic energy was related to her felt a bit unfair!
(I went back to my hometown yesterday after work to pay respects to ancestors during the Qingming Festival. Today's update is squeezed in.)
