From Under One Person: Sincere Journey Through the Heavens

"Good and evil are determined by my heart."

As Jiang Liu breathed, he restrained his Qi. "That Bottle Mountain is tilted, about to topple. If we disrupt its balance, we can make it collapse."

With my cultivation level, it's not impossible for me to go all out and kill all those people.

But I'm unwilling to act recklessly according to my own whims...

Moreover, I couldn't withstand the relentless bombardment.

"This last sentence is the key."

The Grand Gu Master saw through Jiang Liu's thoughts, but he also sighed and said, "You are arrogant, it's your nature, I know that... Fine, I'll help you this once, but you absolutely cannot say that I helped you afterwards."

"We definitely won't make a sound!"

Jiang Liu was overjoyed.

"Don't be too happy yet."

The Grand Gu Master led Jiang Liu and his group into the earthen house, took out a Gu cup, opened it, and found a handful of golden incense ash inside.

This is the Golden Silkworm Gu.

During the refining process, twelve kinds of poisonous insects are placed in a Gu jar and secretly buried at a crossroads. After forty-nine days, they are secretly taken out and placed in an incense burner. They are offered tea and incense morning and evening, and fed with Qi, which eventually forms the Golden Silkworm Gu.

In fact, Jiang Liu had also learned about the refining principle of the Golden Silkworm Gu in his previous life. It involves putting various poisonous insects into a Gu jar to fight each other, leaving one that is shaped like a silkworm and is golden all over, hence the name Golden Silkworm. The main method of using it is to utilize its excrement.

But this golden "incense ash"—

It was completely different from the Golden Silkworm Gu he knew.

"There is indeed such a way, but letting poisonous insects kill each other is against nature. Our Qinghe Village practices Gu cultivation only to protect the village and to seek a way to live in harmony with nature."

Seeing that Jiang Liu had some understanding of Gu, the Grand Gu Master was not surprised. After all, there were all kinds of people in Quanxing. Although Wang Yaozu had left Quanxing, he had probably told this child, whose talent seemed to be naturally born, about some general information. "There are quite a few types of Golden Silkworm Gu. My Golden Silkworm Gu is specially made and has pine oil added. It is excellent food for most Gu worms, but after eating it, one will fall into a period of slumber."

However, the best way to use it is to light it and release smoke. When poisonous insects smell it, they will become disoriented, just like a drunkard.

At that time, you can sweep it with a broom or let the chickens graze on it, it doesn't matter.

The poisonous insects in the Ping Mountain area are not natural; they are a fusion of the poisons from metals and minerals left behind by emperors throughout history in their alchemy. Since the fall of the Yuan Dynasty, the area has been abandoned, and to this day, the poisons there have killed countless people. If you can eliminate them, it will be a great act of merit.”

Jiang Liu took the Gu jar and couldn't help but ask, "Great Gu Master, didn't you ever think of getting rid of that Earth Dragon King before?"

"Great Gu masters throughout history have all considered eliminating the Earth Dragon King, the Black Dragon Serpent, the Ink Pipa, and other demonic creatures from that Bottle Mountain, but they are all hidden inside the Bottle Mountain! The number of poisonous insects inside is more than ten million. Even those who have reached the pinnacle of Gu techniques dare not venture in rashly, lest they be devoured to death!"

Speaking of the poisonous creatures in Bottle Mountain, the Great Gu Master showed a hint of fear. "My late master told me that before Bottle Mountain tilted and the bottle cracked, if a person wanted to enter the mountain, they had to follow a specific direction, otherwise they would encounter misfortune, lose their past, become rootless duckweed, disconnected from the world, and suffer a series of bad luck, eventually dying a tragic death."

This is a matter of aura!

Jiang Liu confirmed his previous guess: the crack in the bottle mountain had changed the original energy pattern, just like a cultivator who had lost his vital energy.

A cultivator who has depleted their vital energy can replenish it through cultivation. However, if their energy structure is damaged and they lose their spiritual vitality, they cannot be repaired without the power to transform the terrain and landforms.

Lu Jin's focus, however, was on the "Black Dragon Serpent" and the "Ink Pipa": "Senior Gu Master, besides the Earth Dragon King, are there also the Black Dragon Serpent and the Ink Pipa, two poisonous creatures that have become powerful, in that Ping Mountain?"

"The Xuanjiao Serpent, judging from the name, should be a serpent, but what is the Mo Pipa?" Li Muxuan asked.

“Ping Mountain is not small, how could it be occupied by just one Earth Dragon King?”

That black dragon snake was indeed a snake, as thick as a water bucket and about three to five zhang long;

The Ink Pipa is a type of scorpion about the size of a small calf. There are two of them, a male and a female, both hiding in the shadows. If someone goes up the mountain to gather herbs and is unlucky enough to encounter them, they will either be swallowed whole by the Black Dragon Serpent or stung, turning into pus, which will be sucked clean by the Ink Pipa, leaving only a human skin.

In the eyes of the Great Gu Master, the Earth Dragon King, the Black Dragon Serpent, and the Ink Pipa were not spirits of nature, but rather harmful demons. If Jiang Liu and the others could eliminate them, the Miao region of western Hunan would live in peace for several hundred years! At least they would no longer have to worry about demons harming people!

"Thank you for informing us, Master Gu. If all goes well, we will surely eradicate all the poisonous creatures in that Bottle Mountain."

After thanking the Grand Gu Master, Jiang Liu made a promise and then led Lu Jin and Li Muxuan away with the Gu cup containing the Golden Silkworm Gu.

"Shuying, Shuning, what are you two still doing standing here? Go outside and practice." Seeing his second and third disciples still in the earthen house, the Great Gu Master asked.

"Master, did you give the Gu gu to that person?"

"It's just an ordinary Gu gu, not the sacred Gu gu of our Miao tribe." Understanding that this was what the two were worried about, the Grand Gu Master was both amused and exasperated.

Then she noticed that Wei Shufen was gone—

She followed behind Jiang Liu and the others, thinking she had hidden herself well, but once the three of them left Qinghe Village, they dragged her out.

What are you doing following us?

Jiang Liu squatted down and asked.

"Of course I'll go with you to catch the Earth Dragon King!"

Wei Shufen, though small in stature, is ambitious. She wants to refine the Earth Dragon King into her own natal Gu. Now that she knows Jiang Liu and the others are going to deal with the centipede in Ping Mountain, she naturally wants to get involved, seize the Earth Dragon King, and raise it to refine it into her own natal Heavenly Dragon Gu in the future!

"Shufen!"

Just as Jiang Liu was thinking about how to trick Wei Shufen back, Zhang Shuying, the second disciple of the Great Gu Master, and Luo Shuning, the third disciple, ran out of Qinghe Village and pulled her back to the village.

"Shuying, Shuning, what are you doing? I'm going to catch the Earth Dragon King! That should be my first Gu, and also my future natal Gu!"

Wei Shufen swung her arms, squatted on the ground, and made a fuss, but she was only a five or six-year-old child and not very strong. She was dragged by her two junior sisters and slid into the village. She couldn't resist at all and could only look at Jiang Liu with a face full of resentment, hoping that he would take her with him.

Jiang Liu waved to her, said "Goodbye," and turned to leave.

"You wait for me!"

Wei Shufen held a grudge against Jiang Liu, vowing to teach him a lesson he wouldn't forget, to avenge her failure to capture the "Earth Dragon King"...

# Chapter 136 The Theory of Qi (Part 1)

After leaving Qinghe South Village, the three went to a nearby village and spent money to buy a lot of chickens from the Miao and Tu people who had not yet retreated to the deep mountains.

There are both roosters and hens, about seventy in total.

It was only because Jiang Liu, Lu Jin, and Li Muxuan all possessed strength far exceeding that of ordinary people that they were able to carry the chicken coop, which was tied together and stood up like three small mountains.

Otherwise, even if the three of them had extraordinary abilities, it would be difficult for them to carry so many chickens at once.

only--

"That great Gu master said there are at least ten million poisonous insects in Ping Mountain. Can these seventy or so chickens really eat them all?" Li Muxuan's eyes revealed a hint of doubt.

"It will take more than a day to finish eating all of this."

Lu Jin thought of a possibility: "These seventy or so chickens, both male and female, Brother Jiang probably intends to put them all into Ping Mountain so that they can reproduce and thrive on their own, generation after generation. Eventually, the poisonous insects and centipedes there will be eaten up."

"exactly."

Without a doubt, Jiang Liu thought so too. Otherwise, how could he possibly eliminate all the poisonous insects in Ping Mountain with just the incense ash in that one cup and those seventy-odd chickens?

Even daydreaming shouldn't be done like this!

"It sounds simple, but why didn't the people of Beizhai, Nanzhai, and the other small villages think of this?" Li Muxuan asked curiously.

"Just think about what happened in Goose City and you'll understand."

Jiang Liu did not hesitate.

It's incredibly difficult to even get the people in a small town to unite. These guys even have to resort to "supernatural tricks" to give the townspeople something to look up to and something to rely on!

In this old bear ridge, although the village is inhabited by both Han and Yi people, it still adheres to the traditional customs of the Miao and Tu people, who are completely unaware of them.

Pretending to be a ghost or spirit will surely backfire.

Furthermore.

Human beings are inherently selfish. How can we talk about helping others and cooperating when our own safety is not guaranteed?

Although it may be a bit harsh to say this, most people do need a spiritual pillar to guide them in order to find their goals and move forward together.

Jiang Liu simply didn't understand the specific cultural traditions of the Miao people...

And among the Miao people living in the Laoxiongling area, there were no one or more highly respected figures.

The Grand Gu Master is indeed prestigious, but because she is an extraordinary person, she shouldn't interfere too much in the affairs of ordinary people. Moreover, judging from the situation in Nanzhai, ordinary Miao people have awe towards Gu Masters. Even though the Grand Gu Master is kind and virtuous, she is still kept at a distance by her compatriots. Except when they have to go to her for treatment, they probably don't dare to have too much contact with her normally.

"Hmph, they're all a bunch of muddle-headed fools!"

Li Muxuan was somewhat disappointed in him.

As the ancients said, "When the granaries are full, people know etiquette; when they are well-fed and clothed, they know shame."

Jiang Liu remained remarkably calm, saying, "This principle applies to people everywhere. If people can't even get enough to eat, it's very difficult for them to achieve genuine unity and cooperation."

"However, human will can overcome nature. The environment of Old Bear Ridge must have been much harsher a thousand years ago, but it is still habitable today."

"A thousand years is a long time, but for the world, it may be nothing more than a fleeting moment—"

"By the way, have you ever thought that if our world were also a living entity, wouldn't our instinctive pursuit of order be like opening up the nine orifices and eight meridians for its future 'cultivation'?"

This idea—

Li Muxuan didn't react much. He was a realist and wouldn't pay too much attention to vague speculations.

Lu Jin, deeply influenced by Jiang Liu, pondered seriously for a long time before softly saying, "The primordial energy of the universe cycles endlessly. Our cultivation as extraordinary beings is an imitation of this. Isn't the world itself a form of cultivation?"

"Perhaps."

Jiang Liu did not refute, "However, when we cultivate and refine Qi, we also need to actively open up the acupoints and circulate the Qi throughout the body, otherwise we will just breathe naturally like ordinary people."

In other words, cultivating Qi requires us to consciously circulate it throughout the body.

Does the world have consciousness?

Upon hearing this, Lu Jin fell silent again, his brows furrowed.

Does the world have consciousness?

Or, to put it another way, does the "Tao" or "Heavenly Way" in the minds of spiritual practitioners possess consciousness?

Why think so much?

Li Muxuan interrupted Lu Jin's thoughts and asked Jiang Liu, "Will this help your cultivation?"

"Maybe."

To their surprise, Jiang Liu nodded. "Do you know about the concept of Qi formation?"

"not sure."

Lu Jin shook his head, "The Trinity Sect's library doesn't contain any relevant theories. However, Senior Brother Zhuge from within the sect did mention that once Qimen Dunjia is activated, it's possible to construct a small, artificially controlled energy field, which is related to casting spells..."