Immortality: Grinding Experience Starting as a Paper Craftsman

Chapter 104 The tea boils, the dream of the mortal world ends.

In the backyard of the Demon Suppression Bureau, the canopy of the old locust tree, like a giant open umbrella, cuts apart the scorching midday sun, scattering dappled golden light and shadows across the ground.

The courtyard was unusually quiet, with a roaring fire in the stove and steam rising from the purple clay teapot.

Gu Yan lay on the rattan chair, holding a palm-leaf fan and idly fanning himself, his eyes peering through the gaps in the leaves at the occasional birds flying across the sky.

Xiao Chen held onto the Sword of Severing Karma, standing guard by the Moon Gate like a guardian deity. The sword aura that had originally carried a chill was now completely concealed, and he looked like an ancient sword that had been sheathed, simple and unadorned.

"Lord Gu, these are the accounts for this quarter, as well as the details of the resettlement allowances for the thirty newly recruited brothers."

A fragrant breeze wafted over, and Song Hong walked over carrying a thick stack of account books.

Today she wore a neat red dress with tightly cinched cuffs and a wide black belt around her waist, outlining her slender figure. Several willow-leaf throwing knives, which she never parted with, hung from her waist.

That face, which usually carried a bit of a fiery spirit, now showed signs of exhaustion, with faint dark circles under its eyes.

Ever since Gu Yan became a hands-off manager, and Xiao Chen only cared about practicing swordsmanship and killing people, the entire responsibility of the vast Demon Suppression Division, from expansion and repair to daily necessities, fell on her shoulders alone.

Gu Yan did not take the account book, but straightened up and pointed to the stone bench opposite him.

"Senior sister, please sit down."

"Why are you sitting? There's a ton of stuff waiting for us."

Song Hong rolled her eyes at him and pretended to shove the account book into his hands. "You're so carefree, leaving a weak woman like me to show my face in public."

"It's precisely because you've worked so hard, senior sister, that we need to reward you."

Gu Yan smiled, pressed her down onto the stone bench without saying a word, and then magically pulled out the antique wooden box from his pocket.

"Senior brother, seal the gate," Gu Yan said softly.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Chen did not ask any further questions. He simply turned around and closed the courtyard gate. Then, with a flick of his finger, an invisible barrier of sword energy enveloped the entire backyard, isolating it from all the noise and prying from the outside world.

Seeing this, Song Hong's heart skipped a beat, and her gaze fell on the wooden box. "This is..."

"These are local specialties that my senior brother and I brought back from the Burial Dragon Mountains."

Gu Yan opened the wooden box, pinched out a dark red, dried tea leaf, and put it into the purple clay teapot.

Pour boiling water over it.

"Splash!"

A strange fragrance wafted out.

The fragrance is neither as rich as floral scents nor as dignified as sandalwood.

It carries a sense of fleeting time, and when inhaled, it creates the illusion of time flowing backward.

The steam rising from the pot conjured up all sorts of bizarre and fantastical scenes, as if the vast mortal world were rising and falling from the pot's spout.

"This tea is called San Sheng (Three Lives)."

Gu Yan picked up the teapot, filled a cup, and pushed it in front of Song Hong. "My senior brother and I have both drunk from it. My senior brother used it to reforge his sword heart, and I also saw some of the path more clearly. This last cup is for you."

Song Hong looked at the amber-colored tea, her slightly haggard face reflected in the tea.

"Give me?"

Song Hong hesitated. Although she did not know the specific origin of the tea, she knew from the overflowing Daoist charm that it was a treasure that would make even Golden Core cultivators fight tooth and nail.

"This is too valuable. My aptitude is mediocre, and I've been stuck at the Qi Refining stage for many years. Using it would be a waste. I'd rather leave it to you..."

"Senior sister."

Gu Yan interrupted her, his smile fading, and his eyes fixed intently on her.

"Eight years ago, on the Liuyun Sect's martial arts stage, that little girl who dared to point her finger at the Grand Elder and curse him never said that her life was worthless."

"Besides, this tea is only effective for first-time users, so don't refuse."

Song Hong trembled and suddenly looked up.

Xiao Chen, who was standing to the side, also turned around and looked at her with gentle eyes.

"Changning County is both a pit of fire and a cusp of opportunity. My senior brother and I have both taken a step forward. If we leave you behind, who will help me manage the Demon Suppression Division in the future?"

Gu Yan picked up the teacup and placed it in her cold palm, saying solemnly, "Drink it. In this Changning County, the three of us are indispensable."

Song Hong held the warm teacup, her knuckles turning white.

She glanced at Gu Yan, then at Xiao Chen.

These two men represent the light she once looked up to and the mountain she now trusts.

She took a deep breath, no longer refusing, a resolute glint in her eyes.

"it is good."

He raised his head and drank it all in one gulp.

……

The tea soup, once it entered my throat, tasted as bitter as gall.

Immediately afterwards, a wave of dizziness and vertigo washed over me.

The surrounding scenery began to distort, stretch, and break.

When Song Hong opened her eyes again, she found herself not in the backyard of the Demon Suppression Division, but standing at the foot of the towering Baiyun Peak.

She was sixteen years old that year.

He was wearing a faded gray outer disciple's robe.

In the distance, the martial arts arena shone with dazzling light.

The young man Xiao Chen, dressed in a snow-white brocade robe and looking like an immortal, defeated the arrogant Zhao Lingfeng with a single sword strike.

At that moment, he was the most dazzling star in the entire Flowing Cloud Sect.

She was just a speck of dust hiding in a corner of the crowd, someone who needed courage even to look up at.

She likes him.

But this affection was too cheap, so cheap that she only dared to secretly whisper that name to the moon in the dead of night.

The scene changes.

Zhao Wuji descended from the sky, and that slap shattered the young girl's pride, as well as the last vestige of reverence she held for the sect.

Everyone fell silent.

Those inner disciples who used to call each other brothers, those kind-faced elders, all became mute and blind.

She saw Xiao Chen lying in a pool of blood, the light in his eyes slowly fading away.

At that moment, she didn't know where the courage came from.

Perhaps it was because of that so-called justice, or perhaps it was simply because she didn't want to see that star fall.

She rushed forward.

"Snapped!"

With just one glance, Zhao Wuji shattered three of her ribs.

The pain of displaced internal organs pales in comparison to the subsequent verdict.

That was exile.

A word that is more cruel than the death penalty for monks.

"Junior Sister Song, you don't need to come with me."

On the stone steps leading down the mountain, the former genius, carrying a tattered bag, his back hunched, dared not look at her, his voice dejected: "I'm a useless person now. Following me will only ruin you."

"I'm not afraid."

In the illusion, Song Hong heard her own young and resolute voice: "Wherever you go, I will go. Even if it's hell, I will go with you."

The scene then changes.

It is the endless rain in Changning County, the moldy bedding, and the demons that can never be killed.

Eight years.

Over the past eight years, the spirited young man has become a taciturn alcoholic.

She took off the Taoist robe she once longed for, put on a coarse red dress, learned to be thrifty, learned to bargain with the old ladies at the market, and learned to use the throwing knife technique that was originally meant for self-defense to peel potatoes.

She has never regretted it.

But she was afraid.

This is a deep-seated fear called the fear of separation from loved ones.

She feared that she would ultimately be just an ordinary woman, that as the years passed, she would become a haggard old woman and a burden to them.

Especially recently.

The commander arrived, bringing with him uncertainty, hope, and immense danger.

Xiao Chen reforged his sword heart, and his cultivation advanced by leaps and bounds.

Gu Changsheng is even more mysterious and unpredictable, with extraordinary abilities.

They flew higher and higher, faster and faster.

But she remained stagnant.

The fear of being abandoned was like a venomous snake, gnawing at her heart day and night.

"Is this your inner demon?"

A voice rang out from the void.

Song Hong looked up and saw a mirror.

In the mirror was a woman dressed in red, holding a throwing knife, and covered in blood.

The woman had sharp eyes, and her body was engulfed in flames, like a phoenix rising from the ashes.

"You are not a burden."

The woman in the mirror spoke, her voice clear and strong: "You are a blazing fire in Changning County."

"Eight years of drinking ice, yet your blood has not grown cold."

"They charge into battle on the front lines, while you mend the mess in the rear."

"Without you, they won't go far."

"Song Hong, ask yourself, do you really just want to be a housekeeper hiding behind a man?"

"No!"

In real life, Song Hong suddenly let out a shout.

"I am Song Hong!"

"I cultivate the Blazing Fire Technique! I want to be the raging fire, I want to be the protective shield, I want to be worthy to stand upright beside them!"

Cracks began to appear in the mirror, and the woman smiled and vanished into the illusion.

A scorching heatwave erupted from Song Hong's body.

in the real world.

In the backyard of the Demon Suppression Division, the originally peaceful spiritual energy became turbulent.

Centered on Song Hong, red spiritual energy rose up like flames, enveloping her entire body.

The six willow-leaf throwing knives at her waist seemed to be summoned, automatically unsheathing themselves and spinning rapidly around her, emitting a clear, ringing sound, like joyful firebirds.

"We're about to break through."

A hint of joy flashed in Xiao Chen's eyes, and the Severing Karma Sword in his hand trembled slightly, ready to shield her from any possible inner demon tribulation at any moment.

"This tea is quite strong. It seems that my senior sister has been suppressing her emotions too much all these years."

Gu Yan joked, but his expression was extremely serious.

With a wave of his sleeve, hundreds of mid-grade spirit stones appeared, which Song Hong was allowed to absorb.

The divine and demonic aura within her surged, transforming into an even stronger barrier that firmly locked the leaking spiritual fire within the courtyard, preventing her from failing at the last moment.

Song Hong closed her eyes tightly, her face was flushed, and her forehead was covered with beads of sweat.

The Qi Sea within her body is undergoing tremendous changes.

The originally sparse spiritual energy was rapidly compressed and purified under the medicinal power of the Three Lives Tea.

The foundational barrier that had troubled her for years proved utterly insignificant in the face of that resolute will.

Song Hong suddenly opened her eyes.

Within his pupils, it was as if two raging flames were burning.

"Boom!"

A muffled thud exploded from inside her body.

The surrounding spiritual energy formed a huge vortex, surging wildly into her body.

The red spiritual flames were no longer ethereal, but became solid and heavy, carrying a domineering power that could burn everything.

Her aura grew stronger and stronger.

Her aura grew stronger and stronger.

Early Foundation Establishment stage... peak of early Foundation Establishment stage... until it stabilized at the edge of mid Foundation Establishment stage before finally stopping.

After being tempered by the spiritual fire, the six throwing knives turned a translucent red, as if they were carved from red crystal, radiating a heart-palpitating high temperature.

After a long while, the red light faded away.

Song Hong exhaled a long breath of stale air, which turned into a wisp of white smoke that lingered in the air for a long time.

She stood up, all her fatigue gone, replaced by an unprecedented confidence and radiance.

Her skin was as smooth as jade, the fine lines at the corners of her eyes had disappeared, and she looked ten years younger, as if she had returned to the girlhood when she was standing under the martial arts stage, her eyes filled with light.

This time, however, she herself became the light.

"How does it feel?"

Gu Yan asked with a smile, then sat back down in the rattan chair.

Song Hong stretched out her hand, and with a thought, a throwing knife flew through her fingers like a red fish, incredibly agile.

"Feel……"

Song Hong smiled slightly and waved her hand casually.

"call out!"

The red light flashed and disappeared in an instant.

Dozens of meters away, a huge rock used for practicing martial arts was silently pierced through, and the wound showed glass-like melting marks.

"Feels good."

Song Hong turned around, looked at Gu Yan and Xiao Chen, her eyes red-rimmed, and smiled radiantly.

"Junior Brother Gu, Senior Brother Xiao, thank you."

"We're all family, so let's not speak like strangers."

Gu Yan waved his hand, "Now that Senior Sister has reached the Foundation Establishment stage, I can confidently entrust the array center of Changning County to you."

He took out a jade talisman from his pocket; it was the Flowing Cloud Sword Talisman left behind by Mo Qianji before he left.

Despite some shady dealings, Gu Yan had already removed the surveillance and restrictions, leaving only control.

"This is the Flowing Cloud Sword Talisman. Combined with the upcoming city-protecting formation, even if a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator comes, Senior Sister, you will have the strength to fight them."

Song Hong accepted the jade slip and bowed respectfully.

This is not just about power; it means entrusting the safety of half of Changning County to her.

"rest assured."

Song Hong put away the jade slip, a murderous glint flashing in her eyes, and said menacingly, "From now on, anyone who dares to run wild in Changning County will have to ask my sword if it will allow it."

"good!"

Gu Yan slammed his hand on the table and stood up. "Now, our Demon Suppression Division has three Foundation Establishment cultivators from one family. Looking at the entire Yong'an Prefecture, apart from those few major sects, who dares to underestimate us?"

Xiao Chen nodded, a rare occurrence: "If we add Junior Brother Gu's methods, we will be invincible below the Core Formation stage."

Gu Yan looked towards the western horizon, where the clouds were thick and faintly tinged with blood.

"Senior sister, I'm afraid you'll have to work hard these next few days."

Gu Yan's voice lowered, carrying a calm and strategic air.

Gu Yan pointed to the pile of account books, "The newly recruited rogue cultivators need to be organized as soon as possible. I want them to know every tree and blade of grass around Changning County within three days. They need to mark on the map where people can hide and where ambushes can be set up."

"clear."

Song Hong was full of energy at this moment. "There are a few clever guys among those rogue cultivators. They used to be scouts. I'll go and make arrangements right away."

"Senior brother."

Gu Yan turned to look at Xiao Chen.

"I am here."

"Your sword still needs some sharpening."

Gu Yan took out a black stone from his storage bag. It was a piece of bone that he had knocked off from the skeleton of the Candle Dragon in the underground palace. Although the essence had been lost, it was still extremely hard.

"In these three days, I want you to split this bone open. Without using spiritual power, only with sword intent."

Xiao Chen took the black bone and noticed the faint dragon's might remaining on it, his eyes shining even brighter.

"it is good."

After arranging everything, Gu Yan lay back down in the rattan chair and closed his eyes.

The courtyard returned to silence, with only the rustling of leaves in the wind.

Song Hong went to the front yard to busy herself, while Xiao Chen went to the corner to sharpen his sword.

Gu Yan, on the other hand, leisurely refined the dragon ball.

In this cannibalistic world of cultivation, having two partners with whom one can entrust one's back is perhaps more tangible than the elusive prospect of immortality.

"A demonic calamity?"

Gu Yan muttered to himself.

"Then let me see whether the devil is one foot taller or the righteous are ten feet taller."

Night falls.

The lights in Changning County are being lit one by one.

In that distant, great rift valley, a pair of eyes wearing bronze masks were slowly opening in the darkness, echoing Gu Yan's gaze.

The game is set; all that remains is to make a move.