Mundane Saint

Chapter 42 – Gifted words

"Keep this piece of calligraphy."

Gu Heng knew that Old Man Gu was not someone who could be persuaded easily. He needed time to think it over himself, and once he figured it out, everything would be fine.

After all, he was a grown man. He couldn't be like that Zhuge Gan fellow, who got all worked up just because his skills were outshone by someone else.

But Old Man Gu suddenly looked shocked. "Young Master Gu is giving me this calligraphy!?"

"Yes, it's yours."

Gu Heng shrugged nonchalantly.

It was just something he had casually written, originally intended for Old Man Gu to carve into a plaque. Why keep it?

"Besides, you need it. Don't forget to carve my sign. My medicine hall can't go without a sign, or people might think I'm up to something shady."

With those words, Gu Heng left.

He had other matters to attend to.

After Gu Heng left, it took Old Man Gu a long time to recover from his shock. He held the scroll with the words "Gu Family Medicine Hall" written on it, his withered hands trembling, his breath quickening with excitement.

He murmured, "Thank you, Young Master Gu..."

Old Man Gu knew the value of this piece was beyond measure.

The Dao rhythm contained within could help him break through once more!

Then he noticed Lu Yan, who was still sitting with his eyes closed, looking quite tense. With a sigh, he said irritably, "Alright, you can open your eyes now. The intent in this scroll won't kill you."

Hearing this, Lu Yan dared to slowly open his eyes.

He was genuinely afraid.

In the instant Old Man Gu unfurled the scroll, just catching a glimpse of the shortest stroke on the character made him feel the presence of death.

Had he seen even one full character, he might have already died, bleeding from all seven orifices.

"Old Master, who was that person just now—"

"Don't be disrespectful!"

Old Man Gu slammed the table, scaring Lu Yan even paler.

"Do you know who that Young Master Gu was?"

Lu Yan shook his head.

"He's a powerful figure who could wipe out the entire Sunflare Empire with just a flick of his finger! Don't be fooled by his youthful appearance; he's far older than I am!"

Lu Yan's eyes widened in disbelief.

He couldn't fathom why such a terrifyingly powerful being would be in Cloud Spirit City.

Old Man Gu glared sternly at Lu Yan, warning, "You were already quite disrespectful to him earlier. Fortunately, he has a good temper and a great disposition, living in seclusion among mortals. Otherwise, not just you, but your entire Lu Family wouldn't be able to withstand his wrath!"

"Do not let what happened today spread, or you'll face certain death!"

Old Man Gu's voice turned cold and murderous at the last word, making Lu Yan feel a sudden chill all over his body.

The old man knew well that such powerful beings living incognito hated being discovered by cultivators who would then pester them. Having lived in seclusion for decades himself, he understood this well.

If one chooses to live among mortals, they must do so thoroughly.

Even visiting must be done without appearing as a cultivator, but as a mortal.

Otherwise, it would disturb their mortal mindset!

He feared that if Lu Yan got too excited and let slip about the existence of such a powerful being...

Would he still want to live?

Lu Yan quickly nodded in assurance, "I will never reveal the secret!"

Though he said this, Lu Yan felt bitter inside. His mind was filled with the thought of how he had inadvertently offended such a terrifying existence. Telling others? That would only scare them half to death as well.

"Alright, since we've both encountered this, I won't treat you unfairly."

"Moreover, the senior's evaluation of you was quite positive. Although your aptitude may not be much in his eyes, it shows he sees potential in you."

Old Man Gu recalled Gu Heng's evaluation of Lu Yan earlier. "Slightly lacking in talent" might be a casual remark from such a high-level person, but Old Man Gu knew that he, who had pursued the Dao through calligraphy almost obsessively, wouldn't dare claim to deserve even that evaluation.

So, the senior's intention was clear.

Taking Lu Yan as his disciple would not be a loss!

He stared at the somewhat nervous Lu Yan for a while, finally slapping his thigh.

"I, Gu Yin, have never taken a disciple, but from today on, if you, Lu Yan, wish to be my disciple, I'll take you in! How far you go will depend on your own comprehension!"

Hearing this, Lu Yan's face lit up with joy. Without hesitation, he knelt down and performed the disciple's salute.

"Greetings, Master!"

...

It was only a few hours' journey from the Black Forest Gang's camp to Cloud Spirit City.

Chong Jiu led four or five subordinates at the Foundation Establishment stage into the city. Soon, guided by someone from the previous night, they arrived outside a certain alley.

"This is the place."

The person said shakily, while Chong Jiu merely glanced into the depths of the alley, then shifted his gaze to the somewhat worn shop across from it.

There was a small courtyard outside, the house was new, and there was no sign hanging. According to that unlucky fellow, a young cultivator lived here, supposedly at the Core Formation stage, on par with their Black Forest Gang leader.

Chong Jiu stared at the place for a long time.

He couldn't discern anything.

But he couldn't just walk in brazenly and knock on the door; that would be like stepping into a trap.

If the other party wasn't afraid of the Black Forest Gang's retaliation, there were only two possibilities—either he was stronger than their leader, Huang Su, and was at the Elemental Infant stage, or he wasn't that strong but had anticipated the Black Forest Gang's retaliation and was prepared.

From any angle, he couldn't just walk in.

The result would definitely be death.

"Hmm? Who's that?"

Chong Jiu suddenly noticed a delicate young girl coming out of the medicine hall. She was quite pretty. After practicing a few sets of martial arts moves in the courtyard, she went back inside.

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"Hey, that's the kid from last night!"

A burly man who survived the previous night pointed at her with wide eyes.

"What?"

Chong Jiu frowned, "Didn't you say the one you were chasing was a man? That's a girl."

"I knew it was a girl."

The burly man said awkwardly.

"How did you know? I couldn't tell it was a girl last night, so skinny and ragged, I thought it was a kid."

Another person asked, puzzled.

"...Because when I looked at him last night, I didn't get hard, so it must be a girl."

"......"

Everyone instinctively distanced themselves from the guy who spoke.

"If that's the case, the treasure the girl stole is probably already in that cultivator's hands by now. Damn it!"

Chong Jiu cursed. Although the subordinates he brought were at the Foundation Establishment stage, their skills were certainly not enough to deal with a Core Formation stage cultivator, or worse, an Elemental Infant stage one.

He pondered his options.

Finally, he had a good idea.

He was the strongest here, at the third level of Core Formation, the fastest runner. As for the others...

"You guys, go in there and check things out."

Chong Jiu gestured towards the medicine hall across the alley.

"Yes!"

The group responded in unison, quickly dispersing.

Chong Jiu watched them leave, then quietly slipped into the depths of the alley, planning to find a suitable corner to hide and observe the situation.

The house was quiet, with no one inside except the delicate girl.

The five men swaggered through the front courtyard and into the medicine hall, looking around and realizing it was a medicine hall.

"Is that guy an alchemist?"

One of them asked.

"Hmph, so what if he is? He's alone. If he messes with the Black Forest Gang, he can't just hide away so easily."

Another said.

They were about to venture further inside when someone noticed a rather beautiful and petite silver cat on top of the medicine cabinet.

"Huh? What a cute little cat."

The cat was curled up, sleeping soundly with its eyes closed, seemingly unaware of the intruders.

But as soon as he spoke, the cat suddenly opened its eyes, and a sharp red gleam seemed to cut through the air. In an instant, an overwhelming force, beyond their comprehension, pressed in from all directions!

Without even a scream, the five Foundation Establishment cultivators were reduced to ashes.

Chong Jiu was terrified, feeling his hair stand on end and his heart pounding!

It was a trap!

It had to be a trap!

Indeed, sending those fools in first was the right decision. Otherwise, even with his Core Formation stage cultivation, he might not have survived!

Chong Jiu fled from the alley in a panic.

"There's still one alive."

In the corner, a faint white light flickered from an ancient lamp.

"He won't escape... With such little strength, daring to trouble the master, these fools are truly ignorant."

Su Jinxi flicked her tail, speaking indifferently.

Chong Jiu hadn't even run a street away when that force suddenly enveloped him. As his legs suddenly became immobile, Chong Jiu was filled with horror, but then he understood...

It wasn't a trap.

It was a power far beyond their imagination—

His thoughts were abruptly cut off.

On a street bustling with pedestrians, Chong Jiu's body suddenly burst apart, blood and flesh splattering, causing exclamations and chaos among the onlookers.

But they couldn't let the blood of those ants dirty the medicine hall they revered as a sacred place.

As for outside the medicine hall?

Su Jinxi couldn't be bothered with it.

...

Gu Heng returned to the medicine hall, tossing a sugar pill to Su Jinxi on the medicine cabinet. She caught it easily with her mouth, swallowed it, and continued to play with her cat paws.

Everything was ready, just waiting for Old Man Gu to finish carving the sign and bring it over, then the medicine hall could open for business.

At this moment, Qin Yiyao was in the back room, examining Gu Heng's rather conspicuous forging platform.

Hearing the sound of the curtain being lifted, she turned around, meeting Gu Heng's gaze.

"Hmm, I see your body has gained some strength."

Gu Heng nodded in satisfaction.