Chapter 73: Chapter Sixty-Six: Gu Qingyi

Chen Yan looked and immediately groaned inwardly.

He knew this place—it was a wild lake nestled in a valley of Zijin Mountain, where locals loved to swim in summer—despite repeated government warnings and the lake’s treacherous currents, which claimed lives year after year; yet ignorant people kept coming here to drown themselves.

The lake wasn’t large, its surface barely a few mu, but the surrounding terrain was open, and to circle around it and re-enter the forest required at least several hundred meters.

Chen Yan quickened his pace, running along the lake’s edge, when he heard a roar behind him—the monster had burst out of the forest.

Seeing the monster a hundred meters behind, Chen Yan kept running forward, hoping to slip back into the forest and use the same trick to shake it off.

But just then, the lake water suddenly churned—with a loud THUD!

Water sprayed everywhere as a shadow leapt from the lake, landing squarely in the direction of the forest ahead of Chen Yan!

Chen Yan looked and sucked in a sharp breath.

Standing before him was another monster.

Its appearance resembled the one behind him by about 70 to 80 percent, but its size was nearly double.

If the previous monster had been roughly human-sized, the one blocking Chen Yan’s path now was like standing face-to-face with an O’Neal.

I fucking…

Chen Yan’s vision darkened; he cursed inwardly.

I used a Fengxionghuaji Talisman! I should’ve had better luck!

The giant monster roared at Chen Yan, its gaping maw filled with crooked, jagged fangs—Chen Yan needed only one glance to know: being bitten by that mouth would be agony.

The monster behind suddenly slowed its pace, growling low and continuous; the giant monster lifted its head, revealing a grotesque face beneath its wild hair—features twisted, as if stitched together.

It raised its head and roared repeatedly toward Chen Yan’s rear…

Chen Yan’s mind stirred… they’re communicating.

He took a deep breath and gently set the girl on his shoulder down onto the ground.

Sorry… I was going to save you just now.

Carrying one person didn’t hinder my Dunzi Jue or Qingshen Talisman, so I might as well help.

Now…

Chen Yan put the girl down.

When it didn’t affect him, Chen Yan had no objection to saving lives. But when his own safety was at stake, he wasn’t that noble.

Once the two monsters surrounded him, whether fighting or fleeing, he wouldn’t have time for her.

He rapidly ran through every spell he knew.

Liu Yang Zhengqi Talisman—proven effective against monsters—but already used up.

Jieyun Shu—useless!

Fengxionghuaji Talisman—useless!

Lüling·Dunzi Jue—somewhat useful, could dodge attacks or escape.

Lüling·Dingshen Shu—somewhat useful.

Lüling·Pozi Jue—useless; the monster clearly relied on physical attacks.

The rest… seemed to be nothing else.

Chen Yan instantly realized one thing: indeed, only real combat exposes your flaws and forces you to see yourself clearly.

After over a month of cultivation, he’d thought he’d learned much—but now, in combat, he saw a fatal flaw: he severely lacked offensive techniques.

Maintaining calm under pressure had always been Chen Yan’s greatest strength—he was the type who grew even more composed and resolute the bigger the crisis.

Chen Yan was afraid, of course, but it didn’t hinder his thinking; even his trembling hands steadied, thoughts flashing rapidly through his mind…

His fingers pinched Gu Qingyi’s talisman from his pocket; yuan qi flowed through his fingertips, and the paper instantly burned into golden flame.

Miss Gu, if you don’t show up now, I’m dead!

·

Finally, the giant monster roared a few times at the smaller one, and the smaller monster actually retreated a few steps, cowering to the side.

The giant monster slowly opened its claws and advanced toward Chen Yan.

Chen Yan’s gaze sharpened; he took a deep breath.

Lüling·Dunzi Jue!

He pushed his yuan qi to its limit and sprinted straight toward the giant monster!

Ten meters in a single dash!

The monster lifted its head, eyes wide, roaring as it swung its claws open.

In the blink of an eye, the monster was right before him; mid-air, Chen Yan roared: “Lüling·Ding!!”

The monster’s body stiffened violently, its claws frozen mid-swing.

Chen Yan landed, beside the monster, drew another breath, activated Dunzi Jue again, and dashed behind it!!

Man and monster passed each other.

Seeing himself now behind the giant monster, Chen Yan rejoiced!

The plan worked!

The forest ahead was close; he quickly calculated how many more steps to reach it…

Suddenly, a gust of wind came from behind—he sensed it instantly, rolled sideways without hesitation, tumbled on the ground, and barely stopped before seeing a rock smash into the exact spot he’d just run through.

In the distance, the smaller monster held two stones lifted from the lakeshore, roaring at him repeatedly.

Fuck! Unfair! You promised hand-to-hand combat, and now you’re using ranged attacks?!

Chen Yan rolled, scrambled to his feet—the giant monster shook itself, the Dingshen Shu’s effect gone.

It roared, leapt into the air like a Titan Kong, and slammed both fists down at Chen Yan…

Chen Yan couldn’t dodge; he rolled his eyes and cursed: Fuck!

Suddenly, a streak of golden light shot from afar—a meteor, striking the giant monster’s side; its momentum reversed instantly, and with a BOOM, it was flung mid-air into the lake, churning up massive waves…

Chen Yan stared wide-eyed as Gu Qingyi descended from the sky, standing beside him.

Gu Qingyi glanced down at Chen Yan: “Not bad. Can you stand on your own?”

“...” Chen Yan rose silently, spat out dirt: “You’ve been watching me the whole time, waiting until I was about to die before stepping in, right?”

“You guessed right.” Gu Qingyi nodded. “How else would you learn?”

Chen Yan rolled his eyes.

Miss Gu, don’t force me to curse you—cursing one’s mother violates filial piety!

Gu Qingyi seemed to sense his inner grumbling; she gave a faint cold laugh, then slowly walked toward the lake.

The smaller monster roared at her, baring its teeth, yet clearly terrified.

Gu Qingyi’s small frame advanced step by step; the monster retreated step by step.

After retreating a few steps, it suddenly roared, turned, and fled.

Gu Qingyi lowered her eyelids, stopped, and slowly extended her right hand into a fist—then slowly extended only her index finger.

Her voice, cold and clear, uttered one word: “Wu…”

As soon as the word left her lips, yuan qi surged violently!

The girl’s crisp voice slowly, deliberately, spoke each character:

“...Xiang…”

“...Po…”

“...Jie…”

…

The monster had reached the forest’s edge—just one more step and it would vanish inside.

Gu Qingyi’s clear voice delivered the final word:

“...Zhan!”

Chen Yan felt the monster at the forest’s edge shudder.

No golden light, no dazzling effects—the monster’s body twisted, then silently split into seventeen or eighteen pieces.

Black mist swirled across the ground; the shattered remains dissolved into ash within the darkness.

Chen Yan stared, eyes gleaming.

Holy shit, that technique…

Kinda cool.

·

“What’s the name of that technique you just used? Wu Xiang Po…?”

Gu Qingyi clasped her hands behind her back, calmly facing Chen Yan: “Wuxiang Pojie Zhan.”

She paused, then added slowly: “It locks onto the enemy’s vital energy, then uses one’s own cultivation to summon heavenly yuan qi to strike them down.”

Chen Yan’s heart leapt at the description.

But Gu Qingyi spoke slowly: “This technique can be used singly—or against multiple targets.”

Multiple targets?

Chen Yan couldn’t help imagining a scene.

Facing a sea of thousands of enemy soldiers… Gu Qingyi standing alone atop a city wall, calm as wind and clouds, extending one finger.

One Wuxiang Pojie Zhan… and the entire army turns to ash…

“Is this your ultimate technique?”

“Mm. Sort of.” Gu Qingyi nodded.

Chen Yan frowned: “With your realm, you don’t need to use your ultimate technique against a creature like this?”

Gu Qingyi squinted at Chen Yan: “I did it on purpose for you—you’ve become increasingly disrespectful lately; I need you to finally recognize the gap in our strength.”

Chen Yan tugged at the corner of his mouth and walked over to Gu Qingyi’s side: “What about the one in the lake? Is it still alive?”

Gu Qingyi snorted and tilted her head toward the lakeside.

Chen Yan looked over and saw that only now did the lake’s water calm down; a massive monster’s body slowly floated up, its form riddled with holes, wisps of black qi seeping out.

“It’s not dead yet. I’m leaving it to you to kill.” Gu Qingyi stared quietly at Chen Yan.

Chen Yan raised an eyebrow.

Me?

He wasn’t afraid—but he had no real killing techniques to speak of.

Gu Qingyi stepped behind Chen Yan and gently placed a small hand on his right shoulder.

“I’ll teach you a simple attack technique now, also powered by primordial qi. Pay close attention.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Chen Yan felt a surge of primordial qi entering his body!

The qi was gentle yet profound; once inside, it traveled from his right shoulder along a specific path, gathering steadily at his fingertip.

“This technique is called Finger Sword. It concentrates primordial qi into a single point to pierce your enemy. The damage depends entirely on how well you control your qi.”

With that, Gu Qingyi withdrew her hand, stepped back, and stood still, watching Chen Yan.

Chen Yan narrowed his eyes and recalled the path the qi had taken through his body twice.

Slowly, he raised his right hand, extended his index and middle fingers into a sword gesture, pointing at the lake…

A few seconds later… a silent streak of primordial qi shot out!

It pierced straight through the giant monster floating in the lake!

The monster shuddered twice, then fell still; its body began to melt, more and more black qi spewing out and dissipating, its form slowly vanishing into the lake water…

Gu Qingyi stood behind Chen Yan, her eyes wide with astonishment as she stared at his back.

He…

Already mastered it?!

Of course… he’s truly that man’s son.

·

Chen Yan turned around, face alight with delight: “How was that? Did I use it correctly?”

Gu Qingyi’s expression stiffened; she turned her head away and said coolly: “It’s… acceptable.”

Chen Yan didn’t notice anything odd. He thought for a moment, then asked: “Before we came, you said we had to collect the evil qi and yin energy from these monsters? That it helps my cultivation?”

“Mm.”

Gu Qingyi straightened her posture, set aside her thoughts for now, and reached into the collar of her robe beneath her neck, pulling out an object.

Chen Yan saw it was a jade gourd, no larger than a thumb.

It must have been something she wore close to her body—Chen Yan had never seen it before.

Holding the gourd, Gu Qingyi raised it high; instantly, the thick black qi hanging in the air was sucked into the jade gourd.

Gu Qingyi glanced at Chen Yan; her eyes held something new, something she hadn’t shown before: “When we return, I’ll teach you how to use this yin-evil qi to strengthen your soul.”

Gu Qingyi glanced at the unconscious girl on the ground, walked over, picked her up, examined her closely to confirm she hadn’t woken, then gently blew a breath onto her face.

“Huh? You’re…”

“A trivial mind-altering spell—used only to avoid giving you trouble,” Gu Qingyi shook her head. “She’ll wake up on her own in a few minutes. Now, let’s go home…”

Before he could finish, Chen Yan felt a cold, slippery little hand slip into his palm; his expression changed, and he barely managed to say: “Wait—”

A violent wind surged, carrying Chen Yan’s cry of alarm as Gu Qingyi whisked him away at blinding speed…

·

By the lakeside, the forest fell utterly still, as if even the wind had ceased.

Slowly, a foot stepped over the grassy ground. A simple, thin training robe clung to the old man’s frame, yet seemed utterly unfazed by the cold night.

The old man glanced far off, then down at the lake just before him, and sighed.

“Youngsters are always so impulsive… someone’s got to clean up after them.”

With that, the old man sneered and pointed a finger at the lake’s surface: “Come out. No more hiding!”

·