Longevity: Starting as a menial servant in the Green Wood Sect

The continuous rain lasted for two whole days, washing away the lingering burnt smell outside No. 13 Courtyard.

Xun Yin is dead, but unfortunately his death is like a bubble rising in the gutter outside the gate; once it bursts, no one remembers it.

The people from the Enforcement Hall came once, made a few cursory notes on the pile of charred remains and the so-called corpse-refining furnace, and then left, holding their noses. After all, a rogue cultivator at the fourth level of Qi Refining had few friends and no one cared about him; his death saved the surrounding neighbors a lot of trouble.

Gu An, on the other hand, hung up a wooden sign indicating that he was in seclusion and activated all the restrictions in the courtyard, appearing to be cultivating in seclusion. The people around him, however, seemed indifferent to the situation.

That's how it is in the cultivation world. Everyone has their own path. Occasional small talk is just politeness. When it comes to competing for opportunities, no one necessarily thinks anyone else is better than themselves.

Human nature is prone to jealousy, and cultivators are no exception. In their eyes, if you have no value, no one will come to befriend you; even if they do, it's because they have ulterior motives. For example, Xun Yin, who approached them earlier, was such a person, but unfortunately, he is now a corpse.

Inside the room, on the stone bed, Gu An sat cross-legged, shirtless. The black spot on his chest, scorched by the corpse fire, writhed slightly as if alive, emitting a nauseating stench. This was the fire poison left behind by Xun Yin's dying counterattack; if his body hadn't been nourished by the Green Wood Everlasting Spring Technique and protected by the Golden Light Technique, this fire poison would have long since seeped into his heart.

"call……"

Gu An exhaled a breath of stale air and pressed several acupoints around the wound with his fingertips.

Then, he grabbed a handful of freshly crushed medicinal herb paste and pressed it hard onto the charred flesh.

"Sizzle—"

A plume of white smoke rose, and the excruciating pain caused Gu An's face to twitch, cold sweat instantly beading on his forehead. But he didn't utter a sound, only staring intently at the data flashing on the panel.

[Detoxification in progress...]

The coolness of the herbs and the heat of the fire clashed beneath his skin. About half an hour later, Gu An's body suddenly shuddered, and he spat out a lump of dark, stagnant blood. The blood clot landed on the ground, still emitting green smoke, and corroded a small pit in the bluestone slab.

Gu An gasped for breath, his face pale, but his eyes brightened slightly.

The dark spots on his chest faded at a visible rate, replaced by new, tender flesh.

[Healed from injuries. Life expectancy: 19/91]

"I've finally recovered my health."

Gu An wiped away the sweat and put on a light shirt. Now that his injuries had healed, it was time to digest his spoils.

He laid the book "True Explanation of a Hundred Poisons (Fragment)" that he had obtained from Xun Yin on the stone table, and placed various poisonous herbs and fruits that he had collected from Youying Valley next to it.

Although Xun Yin is a despicable old devil, he is indeed quite skilled at making poisons. The "blood-dissolving" and "throat-sealing powder" recorded in the book are both powerful tools of cunning people.

Gu An possesses an affinity for spiritual plants, giving him a perception of their medicinal properties far beyond that of ordinary people. While Xun Yin would need repeated experiments to master a formula, Gu An could grasp seven or eight tenths of it simply by weighing it in his hand.

"Three qian of Ghost Face Vine juice, two sections of Bone Rot Grass root, and a little... Xuan Yin Silkworm excrement."

Gu An moved with practiced ease, like a seasoned pharmacist who had immersed himself in this art for many years. In the stone bowl, several seemingly ordinary poisons were mixed together, but instead of reacting violently, they gradually merged and turned into a colorless and odorless transparent powder.

This is the improved version of Fenghou San.

Gu An picked up a bit of powder and flicked it with his finger.

The powder scattered into the air and disappeared instantly. A moth that had strayed into the house had just flown over that area when its wings suddenly stiffened, and it fell straight down, lifeless upon landing. Moreover, its body did not turn black, showing no signs of poisoning whatsoever.

"Killing without leaving a trace, that's what poison should be like. It would be even better if it could be colorless and odorless."

Gu An wasn't too demanding. With his current poison-making skills and knowledge, he was able to produce a poison sufficient for self-defense, which gave him more means of self-defense. As for other methods not found in the book, he would have to figure them out himself.

Gu An satisfiedly filled the powder into a specially made jade bottle, weighed it briefly, and estimated that it was about half full, enough to drug two or three cultivators of the same realm.

[Poison Making Techniques: Beginner (1/100)]

After finishing these tasks, Gu An turned his gaze to the pile of waste silk in the corner, which looked like a small mountain.

That was the top-grade Xuan Yin Silk that he had intercepted over the past few months under the guise of losses, weighing a full thirty catties.

Selling this thing directly would be suicidal. It gleams silver and exudes a chilling aura; even a blind man could tell it's a specialty of the Green Wood Sect. If it enters the market and is discovered by the Zhao family, who will trace it back to him, Zhao Feng will be the first to have him skinned alive.

Therefore, it must be disguised as other goods.

Gu An pondered for a moment, then rummaged through his storage bag and pulled out a jar of dark, greasy oil. This was "gutter oil" dug up from the depths of Youying Valley, a mixture of rotten tree roots and minerals. Besides being dirty and smelly, it had another characteristic—it could obscure spiritual light.

He immersed the Xuan Yin Silk into the oil vat, then channeled his spiritual power, his hands fluttering like butterflies among flowers.

It did not use the usual weaving method, but a technique called the Spirit-Gathering Knot mentioned in Xun Yin's Miscellaneous Notes.

Sharp, knife-like threads danced, intertwined, and tangled between his fingertips. The originally silvery and smooth threads, after being soaked in oil and woven in a special way, became rough, dull, and even developed a layer of grayish, frayed edges.

Three hours later.

The once dazzling and top-grade spiritual material has been turned into a bundle of dirty-looking gray hemp rope that looks like it's used to tie firewood.

Gu An picked up a piece of "hemp rope" and pulled hard.

collapse!

A loud popping sound filled the air. The rope remained completely still, its strength unwavering.

He then casually tied a knot on the corner of the stone table. Where the knot passed, it cut a sharp line as easily as slicing tofu, and the hard granite corner slid away silently, leaving a smooth, mirror-like cut.

"It looks like worthless grass, but it hides deadly danger inside." Gu An's lips curled into a cold smile. Its appearance might be lacking, but in the hands of a discerning expert, its value would only increase. After all, who would be wary of a rotten hemp rope?

After carefully storing the thirty jin of processed "gray hemp rope," Gu An glanced out the window.

The night was deep, and the moon was high in the sky.

He pulled out the broken purple bamboo pipe from his pocket, stroking its warm, smooth patina with his fingertips.

"The Treasure Pavilion... Manager Li."

Gu An muttered to himself.

The thread left by Old Zhang is currently his only channel to access the opportunity for Foundation Establishment.

He's currently stuck at the peak of the third level of Qi Refining, just one step away from the fourth. But the spiritual energy in the outer sect is scarce, and relying solely on arduous cultivation, it will probably take him another six months to grind through.

He couldn't wait any longer; the battle reports from the front lines were getting increasingly urgent, and he'd heard that two more spirit fields had been breached by demonic cultivators. The outer sect appeared calm on the surface, but undercurrents were surging beneath. The way Zhao Lingjue, that young master, looked at him was becoming increasingly strange; his gaze was greedy, as if he were looking at a fattened pig waiting to be slaughtered.

I must break through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining as soon as possible.

Only when one reaches the fourth level of Qi Refining, where spiritual energy liquefies, can one wield magical artifacts and gain more self-protection in this chaotic world.

Therefore, he absolutely had to go to the ghost market tonight.