Who Let Him Cultivate?! (WX)-Chapter 700: The Mindset of the Strong

Meng Jingzhou was gnashing his teeth when he heard Lu Yang’s words. He calmed down, straightening his tidy collar.

“Nonsense. Who’s jealous of this kid? I’m just concerned that his excessive romantic peach blossom luck could easily turn into romantic peach blossom tribulation.”

Lu Yang nodded, pretending to believe Meng Jingzhou’s nonsense.

“But you said he’s cursed? What’s going on?”

Meng Jingzhou had once suffered from a curse backlash and traveled far to Wilderness Province to seek a solution. He knew how troublesome it was to deal with curses.

Lu Yang turned and tossed the question to the Everlasting Immortal Fairy. “Immortal Fairy, care to elaborate?”

“It’s a rather simple minor curse. It doesn’t even work on cultivators. It merely causes the young women around him to experience accelerated heartbeats. Over time, this will lead to heart conditions.

“Right now, it’s not a big issue, as it hasn’t reached the stage of causing illness yet. But given time, problems will definitely arise.”

“Can we find out who cast it?”

“Not sure.”

“Is there a way to break the curse?”

“That’s easy. I remember your identity jade tablet contains Xirang Soil, Wood Essence, and Thousand-Illusion Bamboo... As long as these ingredients are refined into a pill according to proper ratios, the curse can be lifted.”

It was unlike the curse backlash Meng Jingzhou encountered last time. That was too high-level and something the Everlasting Immortal Fairy wasn’t proficient in, so she could only think of the Play-Dead Technique. It was different this time. This was a beginner-level minor curse. She had encountered it multiple times in the ancient era and could handle it with ease.

“Refining it into a pill... looks like we need to find a pill-concocting master.” Neither Lu Yang nor Meng Jingzhou knew how to concoct pills.

As long as the curse was removed, the caster would notice the anomaly and naturally surface.

The two tailed Gu Junye back home. The Gu Family was a locally renowned Golden Core clan. He was the family head’s second son and had his own independent courtyard.

Returning to his courtyard, he completed the academy’s assigned homework as usual. By then, it was already night.

He stood in the courtyard with his arms spread wide and slowly closed his eyes, bathing in the moonlight.

After a long while, he opened his eyes and looked up at the bright argent moon in the sky. His eyes flickered with reminiscence, as if he was remembering someone from the distant past.

He withdrew his gaze and sighed softly. “To think even the power of moonlight is so sparse now. The day my cultivation is restored seems so far away. I wonder when all my cultivation will recover. Could this be the Age of Declining Dharma,[1] where everything is in decline and headed toward destruction?

“How I miss the days when I roamed freely between heaven and earth. I wonder if the world still remembers the name of this esteemed one—the Myriad Spells Daoist Lord. I fear it has been lost to time.

“The ancients are gone; the past cannot be pursued.”

He felt a sharp pain in his right eye and covered it, grimacing. “Fellow Daoist Heaven-Swallowing, I’m afraid you’re the only one in this world who still remembers this esteemed one.” 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

“Young Master, dinner is ready,” the steward announced respectfully from the door.

Gu Junye ceased his nostalgic thoughts. “To think that this esteemed one can’t even achieve fasting now. If the Xuanyuan[2] Sword Master and the Unbreakable Saint were to learn of this, they would surely laugh until their teeth drop out.”

“There’s your favorite ginseng old duck soup,” the steward added.

“Got it. I’ll go over now.”

~~~

After eating dinner with his family, Gu Junye returned to his room. He took out a brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, then pinched his sleeve and ground the ink, beginning to paint.

He concentrated on the tip of the brush, holding his breath. Two hours later, a painting titled The Myriad Spells Daoist Lord Attains the Dao appeared on the paper. In the blank spaces, he wrote about his previous life’s experiences.

He stepped onto the path of cultivation at sixteen, established his foundation at seventeen, condensed his golden core at eighteen, and formed his nascent soul at nineteen, breaking the record for the fastest cultivation speed and becoming the youngest Nascent Soul cultivator. Countless Nascent Soul old monsters were wary of him and addressed him as a fellow Daoist.

Gu Junye set down the brush and looked at the painting with satisfaction. In his previous lifetime, he had been known as the “Painting Sage.” Although he had lost most of his power and skill, painting something like this was still not difficult for him.

He tidied up the Four Treasures of the Study and went to sleep peacefully.

~~~

Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou hid on the roof, awkwardly looking around. They really didn’t want to continue surveilling Gu Junye.

“Old Lu, you stay here and watch this kid. I’m going out for a stroll.”

Lu Yang grabbed Meng Jingzhou, who was about to flee. “Don’t dream of running! Did you forget the oath we swore when we became sworn brothers? We should share blessings and hardship alike, for better or for worse!”

Meng Jingzhou retorted furiously, “Bullshit! When did I ever become your sworn brother?!”

“I think this kid is very suited for cultivation,” the Everlasting Immortal Fairy declared arbitrarily after observing for a long while.

“Why?” Lu Yang was bemused.

“The Heaven Mandate Immortal and the others often used to talk like this. They said it was the mindset of the strong and told me to learn it too. Although I didn’t really understand their thinking, I believed there must be some merit to it. Who knows, it might actually aid in cultivation.”

Lu Yang, “...”

~~~

In the early morning, Gu Junye washed his face and freshened up before running to the academy.

“The Great Era is approaching. Although I haven’t reached the age for cultivation yet, I can prepare in advance. Running strengthens the body and builds physical fitness.”

Gu Junye assumed a posture, his eyes cold and determined, and quickly ran toward the academy.

He loved running in the early morning best. The streets were sparse with people, and he wouldn’t have to worry about colliding with pedestrians while running.

As he ran around a corner of the street, a figure suddenly dashed out.

It was the pitiful-looking Mu Xi.

It was well-known that Gu Junye had the habit of running to the academy. Mu Xi had been waiting here early to bump into him!

Success!

Mu Xi watched Gu Junye get increasingly closer, unable to stop his footsteps. Delight surged through her heart. She pretended to be frightened and screamed, not knowing where to put her hands. That way, it would be convenient for Gu Junye to catch her with a hug.

Soon, Mu Xi couldn’t laugh anymore. Gu Junye directly sent her flying two meters away. She fell to the ground, utterly disoriented.

“Junior Sister Mu Xi, are you alright?” Gu Junye looked at Mu Xi vigilantly. Through his observation as the Myriad Spells Daoist Lord, he discerned that the girl before him seemed to possess a Charming Immortal Physique and would certainly bring calamity upon the nation in the future. I must not have too much contact with her.

“I’m...I’m fine.” Mu Xi felt that when Gu Junye had hit her, it was like being struck by a carriage. Even now, she was still dizzy.

Although she will bring calamity upon the nation in the future, I’m the one who knocked her over after all. Gu Junye kindly helped Mu Xi up.

“Thank you, Senior Brother Junye.”

Gu Junye’s brows were knitted as he corrected her. “Men and women are different and should keep a distance. There is hardly any relationship between us; you cannot address me so intimately.

“Moreover, your academic performance is too poor. My mother taught me since childhood not to associate with those who have poor academic results.”

Mu Xi, “...”

Out of guilt, Gu Junye accompanied Mu Xi to the academy. When the male students at the academy saw Mu Xi’s slightly flushed face, they felt jealous.

The female students felt the same.

However, some students felt they were a perfect match made in heaven.

Mu Xi secretly glanced up to observe Gu Junye’s reaction.

Gu Junye noticed Mu Xi looking at him and frowned inwardly. Could Mu Xi have detected the Heaven-Swallowing Beast sealed within my eyes?

The teacher came onto the platform with a metal ruler and textbooks, beginning the day’s lessons.

The academy advocated not just rigid studying but also physical fitness. After two hours of lecture, the students were made to run laps around the academy.

After the run, Mu Xi’s expression changed.

“Junior Sister Mu Xi, what’s wrong?”

“The jade bracelet my father gave me is missing! I had it tucked in my book while I was running just now, but I can’t find it now!”

“What? What should we do?”

Her classmates became somewhat panicked. Everyone knew Mu Xi had a bracelet that was quite valuable.

“Search! It must be hidden in this room!”

“That’s right, it must be here!”

It was unclear who had proposed it, but other classmates concurred.

Soon, the jade bracelet was found.

“Mu Yu, it was indeed you who stole it!”

1. You could read up more here if you’re interested. ☜

2. Xuanyuan is the name of the Yellow Emperor. ☜