Cultivating Immortality Through a Hundred Lifetimes: I Possess the Heavenly Book of Merit

"What, is that not right? I've heard that your benefactor is the young master of the Lin family, right, Brother Zhou Yan?"

Gu Cheng smiled, as if he had Yu Yan completely under his control, and was very pleased with his intelligence.

Ha, Gu Cheng is quite well-informed. Yu Yan had only just come down from the upper three floors when the other party already received the news.

However, this guy seems to have misunderstood something.

Zhou Yan?

Excuse me, his name is Yu Yan.

The source is quite well-informed, but it doesn't seem very reliable.

To be honest, he's currently being hunted down by Lin Shi from the Lin family.

Perhaps it was only because he was temporarily vying with Lin Jiu for the position of young clan leader that he was unable to spare the time to hunt down Yu Yan.

Yu Yan remained silent for a moment, but did not correct Gu Cheng's idea. After all, having this identity would make things easier in the future.

The more Gu Cheng is concerned about his own status, the better it is for Yu Yan.

After all, he probably didn't want to offend a cultivator who was related to the Lin family.

Gu Cheng is a businessman, and he is naturally good at weighing pros and cons, so he should understand this principle.

Yu Yan put the miasma-repelling talisman into his storage bag and cupped his hands in greeting:

"Thank you for your trust, Brother Gu."

Gu Cheng waved his hand and stood up:

"Alright, it's getting late, I need to get back to the city. I've marked the location of the miasma swamp on the map for you. Just follow this road south, cross three mountains, and you'll see a hazy gray fog."

He took out a jade slip from his pocket, infused it with spiritual power, and handed it to Yu Yan a moment later.

Yu Yan took it and probed it with his divine sense. Sure enough, he saw a detailed map with the location of the miasma swamp clearly marked.

"Oh, right," Gu Cheng added before leaving.

"The miasma is lighter at the outer edge of the miasma field, but it gets thicker as you go in. Since this is your first time going, don't rush to go deeper. First, use a miasma-repelling talisman on the outer edge to get a feel for the situation. If the talisman doesn't work, retreat immediately; saving your life is the most important thing."

Yu Yan nodded: "I understand."

Gu Cheng dusted himself off and bowed to Yu Yan:

"Then see you in three months. I wish you a successful seclusion and great progress in your cultivation!"

After saying that, he turned and disappeared into the woods, his small figure quickly vanishing into the depths of the dense forest.

Yu Yan stood there, looking in the direction Gu Cheng had left, remaining silent for a long time.

This Gu Cheng is quite an interesting person.

Shrewd, yet sincere. In business, she understands the importance of mutual benefit and avoids being greedy for small gains. What kind of person will she become if she continues down this path?

Cooperating early might bring future benefits.

Or, if what Gu Cheng said is true, Yu Yan has already benefited.

He looked down at the jade slip in his hand, then probed the miasma-repelling talisman in his storage bag, a slight smile playing on his lips.

For Yu Yan, replicating ancient talismans was not difficult.

Don't forget, his comprehension level of 100 is no joke.

Almost the instant he saw the miasma-removing talisman, Yu Yan had a variety of thoughts in his mind, and various runes were imprinted in his mind, constantly being arranged and rearranged.

He was confident that he could master the talisman in a short time.

In this way, the threat of miasma is eliminated.

Miasma.

That place might actually become my retreat.

In the mountains and forests.

The sun was still shining brightly, and the birds were still singing sweetly.

Yu Yan took a deep breath, determined his direction, and started walking south.

Following the route given by Gu Cheng, he first walked along the mountain path for about an hour before crossing the first mountain.

The mountain became steeper and the path more difficult to traverse, filled with thorns and vines. Yu Yan had no choice but to draw his short sword and clear a path as he moved forward.

After walking for another half hour, a stream appeared ahead, its water crystal clear. Yu Yan squatted down to wash his face and drank some water.

The stream water was icy cold, with a hint of sweetness.

He raised his head and looked into the distance.

Beyond the ridge of the second mountain, a hazy gray mist can be seen on the horizon, like a giant curtain stretching across the sky.

That's the direction of the miasma swamp.

Yu Yan stood up and continued on his way.

By the time they crossed the second mountain, it was already getting dark. The setting sun painted the entire forest a golden-red hue. Yu Yan found a sheltered mountain hollow, set up the Xuan Turtle Formation, and planned to spend the night there.

Traveling at night is unsafe, especially in these desolate mountains and wilderness; who knows what kind of monsters might be lurking there.

He sat cross-legged in the center of the formation, closed his eyes to rest, and at the same time sent out a wisp of his divine sense to keep an eye on the surrounding movements.

Nothing happened that night.

The next morning, Yu Yan continued on his journey.

He stopped when he crossed the third mountain.

Ahead, there was a gray-green mist.

The fog was so thick it seemed almost tangible, churning and writhing, enveloping everything in front of it. Through the fog, one could vaguely see some dead trees, their twisted branches resembling hands reaching towards the sky.

A pungent smell hit him, and Yu Yan felt his throat tighten and his head spin after just one small inhalation.

He quickly held his breath and took out a talisman to dispel miasma from his storage bag.

The talisman remained dull and lifeless upon his arrival. Following Gu Cheng's instructions, Yu Yan slowly infused it with spiritual power.

The talisman trembled slightly, and the runes on it gradually lit up, emitting a soft blue light.

The light spread out, forming a three-foot square light shield around Yu Yan.

The pungent smell vanished instantly, and all the miasma around him was absorbed into the talisman. A faint green light flickered on the talisman above, and the air became much fresher.

Yes, just as Gu Cheng said, the spiritual energy here is very rich, far exceeding the concentration of spiritual energy in the lower three levels of the Immortal City. Cultivating here will definitely be twice as effective with half the effort.

However, before entering, you must first master the runes of the miasma-removing talisman.

Yu Yan stepped back to make sure he was completely out of the miasma area before stopping the infusion of spiritual energy into the talisman. As the light barrier dissipated, the pungent smell returned. He quickly held his breath and retreated another dozen feet until he could no longer smell the miasma, at which point he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He sat down on a blue stone and took out a talisman for dispelling miasma, talisman paper, talisman brush, and cinnabar from his storage bag.

The talisman for dispelling miasma lay flat on his lap, its dim runes almost invisible in the sunlight. Yu Yan closed his eyes, channeling his spiritual energy into the talisman, carefully sensing every turn and every stroke of the runes.

After his comprehension was increased to 100, his perception of runes reached an astonishing level.

In the past, when looking at a talisman, you could only see its surface.

Now, when you look at a talisman, you can "see" the flow of spiritual energy when the talisman was drawn, and you can "see" the subtle changes in the talisman paper when each stroke was made.

With each stroke of the pen, a flood of insights would well up in my mind, one after another.

An hour passed.

Two hours passed.

Three hours passed.

Yu Yan remained motionless, as if in a meditative state. Only his brows furrowed occasionally, then slowly relaxed.

As dusk settled and night fell, countless stars twinkled across the mountains and forests.

Yu Yan opened his eyes.

He picked up the talisman brush, dipped it in cinnabar, took a deep breath, and began to write on the first talisman paper.

With a flourish of the brush, spiritual energy flowed from the tip of the brush into the talisman paper. The runes gradually took shape, emitting a faint spiritual light.

However, when the final turn was drawn, the talisman paper suddenly trembled, the spiritual light dissipated, and the entire talisman paper turned to ashes.

First attempt, failed.