Grandpa, times have changed.

Grandmaster!
Even she had only seen it in the portrait in the bamboo house in the bamboo forest halfway up the mountain when she became an apprentice.

And I've only met him once.

A faint golden light appeared in Chi Jiuyu's eyes.

Early stage of Golden Core...

wrong!

According to the terminology of this era, it should be the early stage of Ningyi.

She stared intently as the thin old man walked to the bedside and helped the unconscious Xu Xing up.

"How is he?"

"It's nothing, he just fainted from weakness," the thin old man said in a deep voice.

Then he fed the bowl of shimmering, colorful liquid into Xu Xing's mouth and laid it flat.

"Drink this and you'll be fine."

emm...

It was probably a liquid made from some mild medicinal herbs, but the processing method was very crude, and probably less than one-tenth of the medicinal properties were retained.

However, in today's era, this approach is already quite good.

Because he wasn't very knowledgeable in this area, Chi Jiuyu didn't think about it in detail.

After all, her limited knowledge of alchemy came from casual conversations with Ye Zhiwei and Lin Xuanxuan.

Fishermen are self-aware.

As soon as the shimmering, colorful liquid entered his mouth, Xu Xing's skin and flesh gradually became transparent from top to bottom.

Gradually, one could even see streams of light flowing within the crystalline bones.

After a while, the strange phenomena on his body subsided, and his previously tightly closed eyes slowly opened.

"You're awake?" Bie Xuening leaned closer, her eyes full of curiosity.

La?
Is this really the master I know?!
Chi Jiuyu looked bewildered.

Compared to Bie Xuening's curiosity and Chi Jiuyu's astonishment, Xu Xing's eyes still held a lingering fear.

But after he struggled to sit up and saw his surroundings, his fear turned into confusion and helplessness.

"here it is……?"

"Xue Ning, you go out first," the thin old man said.

"Oh."

Although she was still very curious, she obediently left the room.

This scene left Chi Jiuyu somewhat conflicted.

I should follow my master now...

Should we stay here and wait and see what happens next?

After a slight hesitation, she extended her divine sense, covering the entire bamboo forest.

Only children make choices; she is the Nine Fishermen Ancestor, of course she wants them all!
Just after Bie Xuening left, Xu Xing, vaguely aware of the current situation, looked at the thin old man and spoke hesitantly.

"Did you... save me?"

"Hmm." The thin old man nodded slightly. "I am Wu Shi, and this is where my apprentice and I live."

Wu Shi?

Is this the name of my grandmaster?

"I am Xu Xing."

Xu Xing first introduced himself, then paused.

"Thank you for saving me."

Now he has nothing left to offer, and besides this "thank you," he has nothing else to repay him with.

"We're all of the same race, it's alright."

"..."

silence.

Wu Shi seemed to be not very good at socializing, while Xu Xing had just woken up and was not yet clear about the situation, let alone what to say, so they could only look at each other.

For a moment, the room was unusually quiet.

“Your aptitude is quite good. Would you like to cultivate with me?” Wu Shi suddenly asked.

Ok?
Is it that sudden?
This is a bit hasty!
Not only Xu Xing, but even Chi Jiuyu, who was observing the situation from the sidelines, was stunned.

"Cultivation?"

Although he encountered some strange beasts with extraordinary powers during his escape, 'cultivation' and such...

"Is it the kind of cultivation that can lead to immortality?"

"Xian?"

Wu Shi pondered the strange word, somewhat puzzled.

"what is that?"

"Immortals... are very powerful beings who can fly and escape into the earth, and live forever."

"Flying and escaping are possible, but immortality is probably impossible," Wu Shi said seriously.

Humans are too weak now, so weak that they can be bullied by any other race.

He wants to change this situation!

This was his biggest wish after escaping from there!

To achieve this, his individual efforts are far from sufficient; he must involve more people in spiritual practice!
"Come and cultivate with me, as a way of repaying me."

Xu Xing paused.

No!

Isn't this development a bit off? Shouldn't it be that I'm begging him to teach me how to cultivate?
Without much hesitation, Xu Xing agreed.

As for whether this could be a conspiracy...

If Wu Shi hadn't saved him, he might already be dead. Moreover, he would have a hard time surviving in this world, so what would he have to do with anyone else?

After Xu Xing agreed, the scene in Chi Jiuyu's eyes changed again.

Ok?
It's starting again?!
Just as I realized something was wrong, everything in front of me seemed to be in a previous point in time. The perspective inexplicably rose, and the scenery changed rapidly, just like a movie that had been fast-forwarded many times.

However, this time the area was limited to the bamboo forest; everything else was shrouded in mist, and even her best efforts to expand her divine sense were in vain.

Five days passed quickly.

By the third day, the uncle had recovered enough and gradually lowered his guard during those three days. He then formally became a disciple of the grandmaster and became the master's junior brother.

During this time, besides practicing swordsmanship...

Even just repeatedly pointing, flicking, and stabbing with a sharpened iron rod can barely be considered sword practice.

In short, besides practicing swordsmanship, her favorite thing to do was visit her martial uncle.

Initially it was out of curiosity, but later it was because the stories were interesting.

Not to mention her, even the grandmaster would secretly listen... And in the following two days, the junior uncle began to cultivate with the grandmaster, using a very simple Qi refining method.

It simply involves introducing spiritual energy into the body, allowing the body to retain a portion of it.

It didn't feel like guiding spirits into the Dao, but rather like roughly using spiritual energy to cleanse the ingredients, making them purer.

Therefore, the process of spiritual practice is very painful.

……

……

late at night.

The stars twinkled, and the full moon hung high in the sky.

By the small pond in the bamboo forest clearing, Xu Xing lay on the ground without any regard for his image, holding a double-edged iron sword with a sharpened tip.

Although it is still somewhat rough, it already has the basic shape of a sword.

This is an improvement by Wu Shi based on the 'sword' in Xu Xing's stories.

Yes.

Before this, there wasn't even a concept of a 'sword'.

What Bie Xuening practiced were merely some simple combat techniques that involved imbuing weapon energy with spiritual power.

Looking at the sky, Xu Xing's eyes were somewhat vacant.

The practice was painful, so painful that he didn't want to continue.

Practicing swordsmanship was exhausting, so exhausting that he wanted to give up.

why?
Why did I end up in this world just because I tripped and fell?
Why me of all people?

"Junior brother, why are you lying down?"

Deep in the bamboo forest, Bie Xuening held two freshly dug bamboo shoots, her hands covered in yellow mud, and even her fair face was smeared with some dirt.

She jogged over to Xu Xing's side, putting on a stern face and adopting the 'dignity of a senior sister'.

"Get up and continue!"

"Ah."

Xu Xing used his sword to support himself on the ground, struggling to stand up despite his aching body.

He's figured it out these past few days.

Bie Xuening.

Actually, she is the daughter of her master's sister. Her parents passed away in an accident three years ago.

Deeply affected, she remained unconscious for a day and a night, and when she woke up, she had lost all her past memories.

To help her completely forget those painful memories, her master not only changed her name but also took her in as his master.

"Senior sister, you work so hard every day, don't you feel tired?"

This little girl, who was considered his 'senior sister,' spent almost half as much time cultivating and practicing swordsmanship as he did every day.

"Hard?"

Bie Xuening, who was squatting by the pool washing bamboo shoots, paused.

"But you must diligently cultivate!"

"why?"

"Because we need to survive."

Only by striving to cultivate oneself and become stronger can one survive.

This is the entire human race of this era...

It's even a consensus among all races except the Cang Clan!

Xu Xing didn't say anything more. He raised the heavy iron sword in his hand and, while channeling his spiritual power, repeated a few simple actions of pointing, flicking, and stabbing.

Just as Wu Shi said.

Perhaps due to some changes brought about by time travel, his aptitude was quite good. In just two days, he had already drawn spiritual energy into the Dao and cultivated a trace of spiritual power.

In the modern world, it might not even meet the standard of the first level of Qi Refining.

But in this day and age, having cultivated a trace of spiritual power, he is already a true Qi Refining Level 1 cultivator.

Incidentally, the concept of 'Qi Refining Level 1' was also something Xu Xing casually mentioned.

Wu Shi found it useful and started using it immediately.

Just as Xu Xing was practicing his swordsmanship, Bie Xuening was squatting to the side washing bamboo shoots.

A streak of light came from outside the bamboo forest and stopped above it.

Immediately, a huge shadow, as large as a small mountain, fell from the sky, or rather, was thrown down.

Boom!
The entire bamboo forest trembled.

It was clearly a terrifying and monstrous beast!
It is about the same size as a bamboo house.

Its golden fur, without a single blemish, gleamed in the moonlight, making it resemble a lion or tiger.

Even though life has ceased, it still exudes a wild and terrifying aura.

Drops of bright red blood, tinged with a hint of gold, dripped onto the ground from the gruesome wound, wisps of steam rising from it. Far from having any fishy smell, it had a refreshing fragrance.

Xu Xing paused, staring at the savage behemoth before him, and subconsciously took two steps back.

High above, a thin old man slowly descended and landed beside the giant beast.

It is indeed Wu Shi!

Bie Xuening's eyes lit up, and she quickly got up, carrying two washed bamboo shoots, to greet them.

"Master."

Xu Xing put down his sword and glanced at the dead giant beast.

"Master."

"Keep practicing. Xue Ning and I will call you when we've finished dealing with this."

Because Wu Shi was facing away from the moonlight, Xu Xing couldn't really see his expression clearly, let alone the fleeting complexity in his eyes.

This apprentice...

Actually, he only wanted to teach him cultivation at first, and had no intention of taking on any disciples.

But the apprentice misunderstood and performed the grand ceremony of three kneelings and nine kowtows on him.

Although Wu Shi still doesn't understand the meaning of kneeling and kowtowing.

But seeing the apprentice's solemn expression, he decided to accept him anyway.

Master...

Such a disciple with an obviously extraordinary background, and himself...

Can he really be a good mentor?

Wu Shi felt very uncertain. (End of Chapter)