In Emei, start by obtaining golden attributes.

Chapter 343 The Four Symbols of Heavenly Will

With a fluttering of his golden and white robes, Gu Shaoan rose up as lightly as a feather, and in just a dozen breaths, he had moved from the far west of Mount Da'e to the East Bamboo Forest.

His movements were noticeably faster than usual, clearly a result of the improved control he had over his own internal energy after the essence seed was condensed.

Once his Qi essence is purified, as the purity of his Qi essence increases, the effectiveness of his movement techniques, as well as the power of other martial arts, will rise accordingly.

Inside the East Bamboo Forest, one is surrounded by towering green bamboos as thick as a bowl, with distinct joints and lush foliage. When the wind blows, the bamboo rustles and the sound is melodious.

As they entered the depths of the bamboo forest and approached the location of Gu Santong, Gu Shaoan concealed his aura, slowed his movements, and quietly drifted down to the edge of the bamboo forest like a falling leaf.

Looking up, one could see that on the open ground a few feet away, Gu Santong was not practicing the "Invincible Vajra Divine Skill" as usual. Instead, he was holding a fresh green bamboo about four feet long and as thick as a thumb, using the bamboo as a sword, and practicing a set of sword techniques.

As he moved, his steps were slightly heavy, each step leaving clear footprints on the soft bamboo leaves, but the overall movement gave people a feeling of effortless mastery and skillful execution.

The sword techniques used appear simple, direct, and even somewhat crude at first glance. They are nothing more than repeated combinations of basic sword moves such as thrusting, chopping, parrying, hooking, pointing, and striking, and the speed is not particularly fast.

However, with Gu Shaoan's current level of martial arts and his keen eye, a closer look immediately reveals that his sword techniques, though seemingly domineering, aim to overwhelm others with brute force.

However, upon closer inspection of the flow of power, the connection of moves, and the transformation of intent, one can see that it is all about combining strength with gentleness, fierceness with skill, and domineering power with delicate control and endless potential.

That supple green bamboo, when in his hands, could split stone tablets and shatter rocks with its strength, and when in its gentleness, it could wrap around fingers and necks. The transformation between strength and gentleness was so natural that it left no trace.

What surprised Gu Shaoan even more was that when Gu Santong practiced this sword technique, there was no burst of qi or earth-shattering momentum around him.

However, the faint rumbling of his internal energy and blood surging within him formed an extremely harmonious and unified rhythm with the "bamboo sword" in his hand, the steps he took, and the environment of the bamboo forest.

This is not about cultivating some profound sword technique, but rather about using swordsmanship as a medium to organize, mobilize, and control one's vast and boundless blood and innate vital energy, achieving a highly coordinated state of "body, energy, intention, and state of mind".

This alone is enough to show that Gu Santong's mastery of "Qi" had reached an extremely profound level.

Compared to this, my previous simple and crude method of stimulating qi and blood and forcibly gathering it seemed so naive and clumsy.

Seemingly sensing Gu Shaoan's arrival, Gu Santong's "bamboo sword" moves gradually slowed down, finally stopping in a seemingly casual but actually infinitely varied defensive stance.

He casually stuck a bamboo stalk into the ground, and the bamboo stalk actually penetrated three-tenths of an inch into the soil and stood firmly.

Gu Santong turned around, his face now bearing the same slightly mocking smile.

"Oh! What a rare guest! Young Gu, instead of enjoying the bliss of having two women in your boudoir, you've come to this old man's quiet retreat early in the morning, and even sneakily watch me practice my martial arts?"

Gu Shaoan's lips curled into a mocking smile as he said, "My hands are itching; I want to find someone to spar with."

Gu Santong: "."

The next moment, in Gu Shaoan's gaze, Gu Santong's face broke into an exceptionally bright smile.

"Oh my, Young Master Gu is here. Please have a seat. I'll make you some tea."

Looking at Gu Santong, who had been arrogant at first but became obsequious later, Gu Shaoan's smile deepened.

This is what it means to "forget the good times but not the bad times".

Despite being beaten up and yelling every time they fought, Gu Santong always had a cocky, arrogant look on his face the next time they met.

After handing the brewed tea to Gu Shaoan with both hands, Gu Santong finally revealed a sullen expression.

"You just wait until I catch up in strength, then I'll see how I deal with you."

Gu Shaoan gently blew on the tea leaves floating on the surface, took a sip, and spoke slowly.

"Then don't keep me waiting too long."

Seeing Gu Shaoan's nonchalant attitude, Gu Santong's eyelids twitched, and he was instantly angered.

But after thinking about what happened to him three days ago after fighting with Gu Shaoan, he spent half a day lying in the house, and his anger dissipated.

"Forget it, fighting you is less worthwhile than fighting that old man Sun. At least he can fight back a few times out of ten moves. So, what is it?"

Gu Shaoan didn't waste any words and directly recounted how he had just condensed the essence seed and the qi seed.

Upon learning that Gu Shaoan had successfully condensed the essence seed, Gu Santong's expression changed.

"You opened up your middle dantian so quickly?"

Gu Shaoan nodded: "However, after I used Gang Yuan to guide the power of Qi and blood into my lower dantian, this power of Qi and blood gathered but did not condense. I don't know if it's because my body strength is not strong enough yet, or for some other reason. It just so happens that you have a lot of experience in body refining, Uncle Gu. You condensed your Qi seed a month ago, so I wanted to come and learn from you."

Having learned about Gu Shaoan's problem, Gu Santong's expression returned to its previous nonchalant state.

"I thought something terrible had happened."

Gu Shaoan raised an eyebrow: "Uncle Gu, do you understand the reason?"

Gu Santong replied, "More or less the same!"

As he spoke, Gu Santong chuckled, picked up his teacup and took a big gulp before slowly saying, "Kid, what do you think 'Qi Seed' is? Is it just about taking your bull-like blood and energy, kneading it into a ball like mud, and stuffing it into your dantian, and that's it?"

He shook his head, pointed his index finger at Gu Shaoan's dantian, and then pointed upwards to his heart and between his eyebrows: "Essence, Qi, and Spirit, although they complement each other, each has its own nature, and the methods of condensing them are naturally very different."

“Your ‘seed’ is made from your highly condensed natal energy, which you have painstakingly cultivated and which is completely under your control. It is sculpted using a specific cultivation method and your own martial will. To put it bluntly, the materials are ‘processed’ and the mold is ready. When the time is right, it will come to fruition naturally.”

“But the ‘Qi seed’ is different.” Gu Santong’s expression became slightly more serious. “What is ‘Qi’? It is innate primordial energy, the origin of life, the most fundamental ‘vitality’ and ‘power’ that propels your heartbeat and breathing, nourishes your muscles and bones, and even supports your mental vitality.”

"It permeates every part of your body, is almost inseparable from your flesh and soul, and is closer to your life essence than the Qi energy."

Gu Shaoan seemed to be deep in thought, as if he had vaguely grasped something.

Gu Santong continued, “Gathering Qi Seeds is not simply about moving Qi and blood together. It’s like trying to pump all the water from a great river into a small pond. Even if you manage to gather it, it’s not a seed; it’s just a stagnant pool that could collapse or even drown itself at any moment.”

"What you need to do is to find the purest and most fundamental energy of blood and qi in this vast 'river of life' and condense it."

"The purest and most fundamental energy and blood in the human body is none other than one's own essence and blood, which is kidney essence."

Gu Santong's eyes were sharp as he glanced at Gu Shaoan from head to toe, a mocking smile playing on his lips.

"On the contrary, you're just over twenty, the prime of your life, with the strongest Yang energy and the most vigorous Qi and blood. You've also practiced the 'Indestructible Vajra Divine Skill,' so your physical foundation is frighteningly solid. In terms of total Qi and blood volume and physical strength alone, you're comparable to many old guys who have dedicated decades to physical training. But..."

At this point, Gu San paused, pointed to Gu Shaoan's lower abdomen and kidney area, and chuckled, "Insufficient kidney essence." "The kidney is the foundation of innate constitution, storing essence, governing bones and producing marrow. It is one of the sources of qi and blood, and the root of human vitality. Essence can transform into qi, and qi can generate essence; the two are mutually fundamental."

“You forcefully stimulate and draw upon the Qi and blood throughout your body, which may seem powerful, but in reality it is like a tree without roots or water without a source. This is because your kidney essence is depleted, which results in the most core and fundamental ‘innate Qi,’ that is, the Qi of the kidney essence, being insufficient, not concentrated enough, and not ‘obedient’ enough.”

"Without sufficient high-quality essence and blood to generate and govern that vast 'qi,' it will naturally be like a pile of loose sand, gathering but not condensing, and may even backfire on itself because of your forced extraction, making you feel empty and cold."

"It's like having a mountain of gold, but not having a hard and pure 'gold core' to melt it into one piece. Instead, you might be crushed by the weight of the gold."

Upon hearing this, Gu Shaoan felt a sudden sense of relief, but a rare hint of embarrassment also appeared on his face.

Gu Santong put it bluntly, and Gu Shaoan understood the problem perfectly well.

Since their marriage over a month ago, he has been intimate with Zhou Zhiruo and Yang Yan every night. Although he has benefited from the unique constitution of the Nine Yang Divine Skill and has not felt tired, but rather full of energy, such sexual activity will eventually deplete his kidney essence.

With his master-level medical skills, Gu Shaoan was naturally aware of his physical condition.

Under normal circumstances, with his solid foundation and the restorative power of the Nine Yang Divine Skill, he would naturally be unharmed, and even the balance of Yin and Yang would benefit his body and mind.

However, it was precisely at this crucial juncture—when he was trying to condense the "seed of qi," which required extremely high levels of innate vital energy and kidney essence—that this consumption became the "straw" that broke the balance.

In other words, if Gu Shaoan wants to successfully condense the Qi Seed, he needs to purify his mind and reduce his desires for a period of time, and also take some medicine to nourish himself and strengthen his kidney Qi. Only in this way can he successfully condense the Qi Seed.

Taking in Gu Shaoan's expression, Gu Santong said, "Given your age and your medical skills, adjusting your condition is a piece of cake."

After a pause, Gu Santong coughed lightly, glanced at the room next door, and then transmitted his voice through his internal energy: "If you are preparing some medicine to replenish kidney qi, save some for me."

Gu Shaoan looked at Gu Santong with a puzzled expression: "Haven't you already been able to condense a Qi seed? Why do you still need to replenish your kidney Qi?"

Gu Santong said irritably, "Nonsense, we're only condensing the seed of qi now, not yet condensing it into a flower. After condensing the seed, it still needs a lot of qi and blood to nourish it before it can condense into a flower. As for tonics, the more the better."

Immediately afterward, Gu Santong changed the subject and continued to transmit his voice, "Besides, Su Xin is still young. At my age, what's wrong with taking precautions and getting some supplements?"

Upon hearing this, Gu Shaoan was speechless.

He immediately replied, "Okay! I'll save you a copy after these medications are prepared."

After leaving Gu Santong's place, Gu Shaoan went directly to the Emei Sect's medicine storehouse and selected some medicines based on his and Gu Santong's conditions.

As Gu Shaoan carried bags of medicinal herbs toward the western villa, a hint of gloom appeared on his face.

He originally thought that with his current physique and the nourishment of his kidney essence by the Nine Yang Manual over the past few years, his two kidneys had become incredibly strong.

Given his age, he could easily take on ten men, let alone two. He wouldn't be afraid of a single one.

There is absolutely no need to consider medications that warm the yang and tonify the kidneys.

Who would have thought that he would eventually embark on the irreversible path of sprinkling goji berries into his drinking water for no reason?

So, when it comes to kidney tonics, every man has to deal with them, right?
When he returned to the villa, he told the two women what had happened.

Upon learning what Gu Santong had told Gu Shaoan, not only Zhou Zhiruo, but even Yang Yan blushed deeply.

Zhou Zhiruo asked, "Junior Brother, how long will it take for your body to recover before you can successfully condense your Qi Seed?"

Gu Shaoan replied, "It will take at least a month, and at most three months!"

After all, while replenishing kidney essence is helpful, nourishing it is even better.

Having learned from previous failures, it's best to allow more time for recovery, just to be on the safe side.

This is because Gu Shaoan has a strong foundation.

If it were any other martial artist, the failure to condense the Qi seed alone might have resulted in a backlash of Qi and blood, or even a deficiency of Qi and blood, leading to serious injuries.

Upon learning that the incident would not last long and would not have a significant impact on Gu Shaoan, the two women were relieved.

After processing the collected medicines, Gu Shaoan boiled and prepared them into pills. After taking one dose, he returned to the nearby woods.

With a thought, the number of achievement points he had recently accumulated jumped out in front of Gu Shaoan.

【3139】

"Hopefully I'll pull something good!"

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, and with all his achievement points depleted, the achievement point roulette wheel in front of Gu Shaoan began to spin rapidly.

A few breaths later, when the roulette wheel stopped spinning, three notification messages popped up in front of Gu Shaoan.

[Received 1 Heavenly Fragrance Bean.]

[Drawn: 1 piece of Azure Jade Ore]

[Congratulations to the player for drawing the special martial art – "Heavenly Will Four Symbols Technique".]

As three notification messages popped up, Gu Shaoan's eyes narrowed.

The fragrance of cardamom needs no further explanation; Gu Shaoan is accumulating more and more of it.

Qingliu jade ore is a type of ore used for forging weapons.

However, what's peculiar is that once the weapon is infused with Qingliu jade ore, it becomes softer without losing its toughness.

It can be described as a top-grade material for making soft swords or hidden weapons.

But what truly moved Gu Shaoan was the martial art he drew at the end.

The Four Symbols of Heavenly Will.

Gu Shaoan raised an eyebrow as he looked at the last pop-up notification.