vstars 42. Did I owe you something in my past life?
42. Did I owe you something in my past life?
Finally, Xu Yan let out a long breath, only to find that not a single cultivator had left; they were all silently watching him.
A thought flashed through his mind, and he guessed the reason. He immediately added, "Heaven is the witness! If there is anything untrue or inaccurate in what I, Xu Yan, have said, may Heaven punish me!"
The cultivators breathed a sigh of relief and then all looked at He Tiannan.
Master He's face darkened: "Why are you all looking at me like that? Do you expect me to swear an oath? I don't even know as much as this kid!"
The cultivators then withdrew their gaze, but still showed no sign of leaving.
Xu Yan had a vague feeling that something was wrong, He Tiannan was even more on guard, and Cheng Shouchun was even prepared to fight to the death.
Master He was only about to break through, but had not yet broken through to the Nascent Soul stage. It was truly beyond his capabilities to fight against more than twenty Golden Core cultivators on his own.
But Gu Shouxin only hesitated for a moment, then asked doubtfully, "May I ask, young friend, what do you mean by 'filth'...?"
"Clean, absolutely clean!" Xu Yan answered crisply. "Not even a speck of dust can be left behind, and the finest hairs must be removed, otherwise it could easily become red, swollen, and inflamed, even life-threatening!"
Gu Shouxin nodded: "That's easy!"
Anyone who achieves success in cultivation will purify themselves with true essence, so that no dust or skin flakes can get close to them, let alone be contaminated.
Xu Yan's gaze swept over everyone: "I wonder if any of you seniors have any questions?"
The cultivators looked at each other, and in the end, no one spoke.
Gu Shouxin said, "In that case, let's disperse and go back to try it out."
He spoke simply, but his expression was somewhat grave.
It's difficult to avoid damaging the dantian, and it's unrealistic to take the Zhuiyunzi for one's own use. It's easier to treat damage to the dantian with elixirs.
The inability to cultivate is troublesome, but since the disciples of each family have already lost their cultivation due to Zhuiyunzi's actions, it's not a big deal. Moreover, they already have the foundation laid before, so starting over will surely lead to great progress, and therefore it's not a major problem.
Even though Xu Yan thought possession was the most difficult thing, it was not impossible for cultivators.
Possible attribute compatibility...
Su Han's element is fire, with some earth and metal elements. Where can he find a demon core that perfectly matches his element?
This is driving me crazy!
Besides the Five Elements, there are also wind, thunder, light, darkness, etc., which are not included in the Five Elements. Xu Yan just happens to belong to thunder, and he also encountered thunder pills, which is quite an anomaly.
If it were a seasoned, worldly person, they would probably suspect that such a double coincidence was a setup.
However, those who practice spiritual cultivation each have their own karmic circumstances and experiences, and they shouldn't let such a coincidence cause them to have wild thoughts.
The group finally left, and Xu Yan breathed a sigh of relief: "Finally, it's resolved!"
"Solve it?" He Tiannan sneered. "Although this demon core cultivation method has some merit, it still has many hurdles due to the harm done by Zhuiyunzi. Actively implanting a demon core—what's the difference between that and being a demon? Which orthodox cultivator wouldn't call it a heretical path?"
"That's true." Master Cheng nodded in agreement.
Xu was somewhat surprised and asked hesitantly, "Then, will you be able to pass the test of spiritual consciousness?"
He Tiannan shook his head: "It's hard to say!"
Qi Refining only involves spiritual thought, while Foundation Building involves spiritual consciousness. The former is like a toddler learning to speak, while the latter is like a strong and healthy man!
Xu Yan analyzed it carefully and concluded that although the concept of divine consciousness was somewhat idealistic, it was not entirely without clues.
First and foremost, the higher one's cultivation level, the stronger one's spiritual sense.
He really can't analyze this.
Secondly, consciousness is somewhat similar to a hard drive; the more information it accesses, the more content it stores, and the more space it occupies.
When a system becomes too large, even deleting it takes some time, which leads to the emergence of an unorthodox form of "power."
It's unclear whether it's right or wrong, but this is the most reasonable explanation he could find.
Xu Yan had just secretly planned that if the disciples or nephews of various families did not have strong enough spiritual sense, they could be sent to him for training for a period of time, and he might be able to make another profit.
He was very disappointed that no one mentioned it at all.
After the cultivators had gone far away, He Tiannan deactivated the formation and stuffed the Qiankun bag filled with spiritual techniques into Xu Yan's hand.
Xu Yan grinned from ear to ear. This was two spiritual techniques, a huge sum of two million pearls!
He couldn't help but let out a not-so-serious whistle: "Not only did they give us the spiritual techniques, they also solved all the trouble. Tsk tsk, they're all good people!"
"Good people?" He Tiannan sneered. "So many good people, where were they all this time?"
Xu Yan was taken aback by the odd tone in his voice and was about to explain when He Tiannan added, "The news has already spread, so why did it come to Mu Cunshan and Jin Huanzi instead of these good people?"
Xu Yan's mind raced, and he immediately understood: "Using someone else to do the dirty work?"
"Excellent!" He Tiannan nodded approvingly. "Mu, Jin, and the others are just rogue cultivators who usually fawn over the major sects. If they were to obtain the demon core cultivation method, those sect cultivators hiding behind the scenes could simply sit back and reap the benefits. They wouldn't need to offer so many spiritual techniques; just give them some pills and magic treasures, and Mu, Jin, and the others would obediently hand over the demon core cultivation method... Only two spiritual techniques? If it were me, I would ask for at least ten more!"
More than twenty cultivators, which means more than twenty sects or forces, mean that on average, each sect only needs to contribute one thousand spirit techniques.
Even if it's ten directions, the average is only five thousand.
Xu Yan was struck dumb, feeling as if he had missed out on a huge prize of hundreds of millions.
Why didn't you say so sooner?
He Tiannan replied matter-of-factly, "This is a matter of cause and effect between you and them; I'm afraid I cannot interfere!"
Master Cheng said, "If it's unimportant, then it's fine. The Ten Directions Spiritual Technique..."
He shook his head and didn't say anything more, but the meaning was already very clear: this was a huge sum of money that could set off a karmic connection!
If Xu Yan himself has nothing to do with it, it's a matter of mutual consent; if Gu Shouxin and the others go back on their word, they will cause trouble for Xu Yan.
However, He Tiannan's intervention completely changed the situation.
Those who knew him thought he was standing up for Xu Yan, but those who didn't would have thought he wanted these spiritual techniques!
Xu Yan's cultivation was still shallow, and he didn't quite understand the concept of cause and effect, but he understood the meaning behind the words and couldn't help but sigh: "I just feel unwilling..."
"I think you're just greedy!" He Tiannan immediately exposed him. "You'd better be more careful in the future!"
Master Cheng was pleased to see this happen, and smiled without saying a word.
Xu Yan laughed too: "Sigh, in the end, it's still because our skills are too weak!"
"Good to know!" Master Cheng stroked his beard. "Seeing that your mind is in turmoil, I'll stop here for today."
Having said that, he took the lead and returned to the Taoist temple at a leisurely pace.
He Tiannan tapped his temple and followed.
Xu Yan twitched the corner of her mouth, feeling that the two of them seemed to have made a pact, it was too deliberate.
Instead of leaving, he flicked out a few lightning bolts with his fingers, constantly trying to understand and adjust them. Gradually, he found the knack and became more and more accurate. With a series of flicks, he riddled the old tree with holes and almost broke it on the spot.
If that old tree had a spirit, it would surely cry out on the spot: "I owed you something in my past life!"