If I become a saint, a celestial official will summon me to raise horses.

Chapter 2 A Thousand Years of Life
Spring came and autumn went, and the medicine valley of the Tai Xuan Sect spent a year without anyone visiting it as the seasons changed.

The door to an attic opened, and sixteen-year-old Gu An, along with Meng Lang and Li Ya, walked out of the house. They turned around and bowed to the people inside, and then Meng Lang closed the door.

All three of them breathed a sigh of relief and then walked down the stairs.

Once they arrived at their own courtyard, Meng Lang couldn't help but complain, "He can talk about this for an hour? Why doesn't he just hand over the Hundred Herbs Record to us?"

Li Ya shook his head helplessly, then walked to the corner of the yard, picked up the sword stuck in the soil, and began to practice swordsmanship.

Although his spiritual talent was mediocre, he was still from the royal family and possessed a set of exquisite sword techniques, which he planned to use to turn his life around.

The Tai Cang Dynasty reveres the path of immortal cultivation, and all civil and military officials in the court cultivate immortality. At the same time, the dynasty divides the people of the thirteen provinces into ranks, from lowest to highest: slave, commoner, official, and immortal.

Among them, merchants are also commoners. Only those who have reached the celestial rank can be considered true nobles. Ordinary officials can only serve in towns. The lords of prefectures and governors of states are all celestials, not to mention the imperial city of Changluo. To enter Changluo, one must be a celestial.

Many aristocratic families with immortal status would exile their offspring with poor spiritual roots to ensure the quality of their bloodline, and the royal family was no exception.

Even if Li Ya, who possessed immortal status, was down on his luck, he was still someone Gu An could not afford to offend.

Because he was a slave.

Throughout the year, Gu An specially helped Li Ya and Meng Lang pick medicinal herbs, mostly during the summer or early morning. As a result, his efforts made the two of them feel very fond of him.

At other times, such as planting, watering, fertilizing and other miscellaneous tasks, Gu An did not help them, and they were too embarrassed to ask again. Moreover, when planting, Zhang Chunqiu would stand on the attic and watch over them.

While listening to Meng Lang's incessant chatter, Gu An kept an eye on Li Ya practicing his sword.

Every man dreams of being a swordsman.

The three of them had spent a year together, day and night, and had developed a good relationship. Li Ya did not stop them from watching him practice swordsmanship. After all, he could not hide away to practice swordsmanship. Moreover, the Li family's swordsmanship also had a unique method of circulating qi. Simply knowing the sword moves was not enough.

Meng Lang talked for a while, finally ending with a sense of unease. He patted Gu An on the shoulder and laughed, "You never practice martial arts, so why are you so interested in swordsmanship?"

Gu An casually replied, "I'm just mediocre, that's why I'm too lazy to practice. I only watch him practice swordsmanship because I'm bored. Don't you think life in Medicine Valley is boring?"

"Yes, it's so boring. You know, I have four maids at home to entertain me. Do you know that..." Meng Lang sighed, and then began to talk on and on.

Gu An was used to his boastful nature and was too lazy to call him out.

Li Ya didn't finish practicing his sword until dusk. He stuck his sword in the courtyard, wiped his sweat, and said, "I'm going to take a walk in the grove."

After saying that, without waiting for Gu An and Meng Lang to reply, he walked towards the gate of the courtyard.

After he left the courtyard, Meng Lang muttered to himself, "Why do you say that kid always goes to the grove?"

Gu An shrugged and said, "How would I know? He's a member of the royal family, it's normal for him to have some secrets. What if he goes back to be a prince someday?"

"How could that be? He's been sent out to work as a handyman."

"But you have to think about it, there are many other sects in this world besides Tai Xuan Sect, so why would you come to Tai Xuan Sect to be a menial servant?"

Gu An shook his head, which stunned Meng Lang.

Immediately, Gu An walked to the well, scooped a ladle of water from the wooden bucket with a wooden ladle, drank it all in one gulp, then put down the ladle and walked out of the courtyard.

Meng Lang didn't follow Gu An. He knew what Gu An was going to do. He muttered something to himself and then went back to his room to practice his skills.

Gu An arrived at a park where second-tier spiritual herbs, the Tranquilizing Grass, were grown.

Throughout the year, Gu An only picked first-tier medicinal herbs. Moreover, the herbs here were not ordinary plants; they required a longer time to mature, and many herbs could only be harvested after several years. Therefore, he did not pick many herbs in a year.

Zhang Chunqiu said that in another month, they could harvest the Tranquilizing Grass from this park. That would be their first time harvesting a second-tier medicinal herb, something Gu An had been eagerly anticipating.

In his eyes, those deep blue calming herbs were not medicinal herbs, but rather lifespan values.

Sudden.

Gu An noticed a calming herb swaying. Upon closer inspection, his expression changed drastically. He immediately jumped over the wooden fence and rushed over.

He saw a small white mouse, about the size of a palm, poking at the soil under the calming grass, as if trying to uproot it.

Upon seeing Gu An rushing towards it, the white-haired rat was so frightened that it immediately darted away, as fast as lightning, and quickly disappeared beneath the wooden fence at the edge of the spot, vanishing without a trace.

Gu An wanted to chase after it, but when he saw that the calming grass had been bitten and the stem was broken, he quickly squatted down and took out a spirit-protecting paper from his waist.

He quickly plucked the calming grass with his left hand, then wrapped the roots with protective paper with his right hand to prevent the spiritual energy from dissipating.

After the bandage was finished, Gu An stood up.

You have successfully stolen 4 years of the Tranquil Grass (Tier 2)'s lifespan.

Before Gu An could even smile, another line of text appeared before his eyes:
[Your lifespan has surpassed a thousand years for the first time; lifespan detection function now available]

Lifespan detection?

Gu An was secretly curious. He couldn't help but look at a kind of calming grass on the ground and silently thought, "Check lifespan."

【Tranquil Grass (Tier 2): 4/25/102 years (Age/Lifespan/Lifespan Limit)】

The lifespan of this calming herb can reach 102 years.

The lifespan that is taken away is different from the original lifespan. It seems that the target's entire lifespan cannot be completely taken away, and most of the lifespan dissipates with the target's death.

Gu An was unclear about the difference between lifespan and lifespan limit; perhaps it was related to cultivation.

He picked up the wrapped calming herb, got up and left, heading towards Zhang Chunqiu's pavilion. All the herbs in the Medicine Valley were to be handed over to Zhang Chunqiu for safekeeping, and Gu An and the other two would receive the stipends of miscellaneous disciples of the Tai Xuan Sect every six months, all of which were used for cultivation spirit stones and elixirs. Zhang Chunqiu would also bestow upon them herb seeds based on their performance.

Gu An had three calming herbs planted in his room, one more than Meng Lang and Li Ya, but Meng Lang and Li Ya were not jealous of this.

As soon as Gu An stepped out of the park, he saw a man climbing the stairs of the pavilion where Zhang Chunqiu was. It was an old man in black, carrying a book box on his back and wearing a black cloth hat. He looked very mysterious.

Looking at the old man in black from afar, Gu An's mind stirred, and he checked the man's lifespan. Immediately afterward, two lines of prompts appeared before his eyes:
【Cheng Xuandan (Qi Refining Realm Level 8): 104/120/180】

Cheng Xuandan!
The master of Medicine Valley, who is also Gu An's nominal master, was someone Gu An had only heard Zhang Chunqiu mention. He had been traveling around for years, and this was the first time he had met him.

Cheng Xuandan, who is 104 years old, has a lifespan of 120 years and a maximum lifespan of 180 years. In other words, barring any unforeseen circumstances, he can only live for another 16 years.

Gu An found lifespan detection very interesting, as it could help him identify other people's cultivation level and aptitude.

He speculated that the maximum lifespan might represent the height of one's own aptitude, but this speculation would need to be tested repeatedly to be confirmed.

Cheng Xuandan entered Zhang Chunqiu's room and closed the door.

Gu Anze walked into Zhang Chunqiu's courtyard, placed the wrapped calming herbs on a long table, and then turned and left.

He returned to his courtyard and first visited Meng Lang, who was cultivating inside the house.

Meng Lang (Qi Refining Realm Level 2): ​​17/90/190

Yeah, he really is a good-for-nothing.

After learning about Meng Lang's lifespan, Gu An didn't talk much and quickly returned to his room.

He waited until nightfall, and when he heard Li Ya's footsteps, he got up and went out of the room.

Just as Li Ya was about to walk towards his house, he saw him open the door and couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"

While checking his lifespan, Gu An replied, "Master is back. How about we go visit him together tomorrow?"

[Li Ya (Qi Refining Realm Level 6): 18/210/1550]

Hiss——

The maximum lifespan is 1,550 years!

Is this the natural talent of royal children?

Isn't Li Ya also a mixed spiritual root?
Gu An's gaze towards Li Ya changed instantly. Perhaps Li Ya was a hidden genius who would shine brightly sooner or later.

Moreover, this guy's cultivation level has actually reached the sixth level of Qi Refining!

What do you mean?
Play pig eat tiger?

The cultivation realms that Gu An encountered, from low to high, were Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul, and Deity Transformation. Each major realm was further subdivided into nine minor realms. Li Ya was able to reach the sixth level of Qi Refining at the age of eighteen, so it was estimated that he would be able to reach Foundation Establishment in a few years and become a formal disciple of the Tai Xuan Sect.

We must be on good terms with such a talented fellow student!

Upon hearing this, Li Ya raised an eyebrow slightly and nodded, saying, "Okay, you've thought of everything. Wake me up tomorrow."

After saying that, he turned and walked towards his house.

Gu An watched him close the door, feeling deeply moved.

Indeed, class distinctions exist in every world, and the difference in their social status meant that it would be difficult for him and Li Ya to become true friends.

Gu An wasn't angry. Having been a servant since childhood, he had suffered countless scornful looks and neglect. He didn't blame Li Ya, since Li Ya looked so ordinary.

No problem. With the cheat ability to steal lifespan, Gu An felt he would become an immortal sooner or later. Before that, he wanted to keep a low profile and peacefully pass through the stage of accumulating lifespan.

If you want peace and quiet, you must avoid conflicts with others, avoid causing trouble, and keep a low profile!
Gu An smiled, then turned and closed the door.

The moon is very round tonight, and its light spills onto the stone steps in the courtyard like water.

……

Early morning, inside the lobby.

Gu An, Meng Lang, and Li Ya stood side by side. In front of them, Cheng Xuandan sat in a chair, holding a cup of hot tea. Zhang Chunqiu stood beside her, and the senior brother appeared very respectful.

Zhang Chunqiu (Qi Refining Realm Level 5): 54/110/175

Gu An felt that his senior brother's aptitude was too low, but then he thought about it again and realized that it was true. There were more than one such medicine valley in the Tai Xuan Sect, and it was already quite rare for someone like Li Ya to emerge from there.

Moreover, compared to these people, Gu An was the most useless one at the beginning.

Cheng Xuandan raised her cloudy eyes and looked at Gu An and the other two, saying, "I have learned about your performance from your senior brother. Since this is our first meeting, I must give you a gift."

"You may choose one of the Hundred Herbs Record, Qi Cultivation Technique, or the Poisonous Vine of Magic. You may only choose one, and you may not teach it to each other. If I find out, I will punish you severely."

Upon hearing this, Meng Lang spoke first: "Master, I want the poisonous vine!"

Gu An thought that no one would want the Hundred Herbs Record, so he might as well let Li Ya choose first and do him a favor.

Li Ya then said, "This disciple wishes to obtain the Hundred Herbs Record."

Gu An looked at him in surprise.

Bro, you're not playing by the rules?
(End of this chapter)