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The three of them breathed a collective sigh of relief and walked down the stairs.

Once they returned to their courtyard, Meng Lang couldn\'t help but complain, "How can he talk for an entire hour about such a trivial thing? Why didn’t he just hand us the Herb Compendium and be done with it?"

Li Ya shook his head helplessly, then walked to a corner of the yard, picked up the sword stuck in the dirt, and began practicing his swordsmanship.

Although his spiritual root aptitude was mediocre, he hailed from the royal family and had a set of exquisite sword techniques. He planned to use this swordsmanship to make his comeback.

The Great Cang Dynasty revered the path of cultivation. All civil and military officials were cultivators, and the dynasty classified the populace of the thirteen provinces into four ranks: slave, commoner, official, and immortal.

Merchants were grouped among commoners, and only those who attained the rank of "immortal" were considered true nobility. Ordinary officials could only hold posts in towns, while the rulers of major cities and the governors of entire provinces held immortal status. As for the capital, Changluo, entry was restricted to those with immortal rank.

Many immortal families exiled members with poor spiritual root aptitudes to preserve the purity of their bloodlines, and the royal family was no exception.

Even though Li Ya was in decline, as someone of immortal rank, he was not someone Gu An could afford to provoke.

After all, Gu An was a slave.

During this past year, Gu An had mainly helped Li Ya and Meng Lang with harvesting herbs, especially during the summer and early morning hours. His efforts earned him their goodwill.

As for other chores, such as planting, watering, and fertilizing, Gu An didn’t assist, and they felt embarrassed to ask for more help, especially since Zhang Chunqiu would supervise those tasks from the pavilion.

Gu An listened to Meng Lang\'s endless complaints while watching Li Ya practice his swordsmanship.

All men dream of becoming swordsmen.

After a year of living together day and night, the three of them had built a good rapport. Li Ya didn’t mind them watching him practice. After all, he couldn’t hide while training, and besides, the Li family’s swordsmanship included a unique breathing technique. Learning just the sword moves would be useless.

Meng Lang talked for a long while before finally wrapping up his rant. He patted Gu An on the shoulder and said with a laugh, "You never practice martial arts, so why are you so interested in swordsmanship?"

Gu An replied casually, "My aptitude is mediocre, so I’m too lazy to train. Watching him practice is just a way to pass the time. Don’t you think life in the Medicine Valley is quite dull?"

"Yeah, it\'s incredibly boring. Back at home, I had four maidservants to keep me entertained. You have no idea..." Meng Lang sighed and launched into another boastful story.

Gu An had long since gotten used to Meng Lang’s habit of bragging and didn’t bother to call him out.

As evening fell, Li Ya finally finished his sword practice. He stabbed his sword into the ground, wiped the sweat from his brow, and said, "I\'m going to take a walk in the grove."

Before Gu An and Meng Lang could respond, he headed for the courtyard gate.

After he left, Meng Lang muttered, "What do you think he’s always doing in that grove?"

Gu An shrugged. "How would I know? He’s a royal, so it’s normal for him to have a few secrets. Who knows, maybe one day he’ll return to the capital as a prince."

"No way. He’s been sent here to be a servant."

"But think about it, there are countless sects in the world. Why did he come to Tai Xuan Sect to be a servant?"

Gu An’s words left Meng Lang stunned.

After a moment of silence, Gu An walked over to the well, scooped a ladle of water from the bucket, drank it all in one go, then set the ladle down and walked toward the courtyard gate.

Meng Lang didn’t follow him. He knew what Gu An was going to do and muttered to himself before returning to his room to practice.

Gu An arrived at a different section of the garden, where Second-Tier Spiritual Heart Grass was being cultivated.

Throughout the past year, Gu An had only harvested first-tier medicinal herbs. The herbs in the Medicine Valley were not ordinary plants; they took a long time to mature, with some needing several years before they could be harvested. As a result, Gu An hadn’t harvested many herbs over the course of the year.

Zhang Chunqiu had said that in another month, they would be able to harvest the Spiritual Heart Grass in this section. It would be their first time harvesting second-tier herbs, and Gu An had been looking forward to it.

In his eyes, those deep blue Spiritual Heart Grass plants weren’t just herbs—they were units of lifespan.

Suddenly—

Gu An noticed one of the Spiritual Heart Grass plants trembling. His expression changed instantly. He arched over the wooden fence and rushed forward.

He saw a white-furred mouse the size of a palm digging at the dirt beneath the Spiritual Heart Grass, seemingly trying to uproot it.

When the white-furred mouse saw Gu An charging over, it darted away in fear, moving as fast as lightning. It vanished beneath the wooden fence at the edge of the garden, disappearing without a trace.

Gu An wanted to chase after it, but when he saw that the Spiritual Heart Grass had been gnawed at, its stem broken, he immediately squatted down and pulled a strip of protective spirit paper from his waist.

Quickly, he snipped the damaged Spiritual Heart Grass with his left hand and wrapped its roots with the protective paper in his right hand to prevent the spiritual energy from dissipating.

After bandaging the herb, Gu An stood up.

[You have successfully seized 4 years of lifespan from the Spiritual Heart Grass (Second-Tier).]

Before Gu An could smile, another line of text appeared before his eyes:

[Your lifespan has surpassed 1,000 years for the first time. The Lifespan Investigation feature has been unlocked.]

Lifespan Investigation?

Gu An was curious. He looked down at one of the nearby Spiritual Heart Grass plants and thought to himself, ‘Check lifespan.’

[Spiritual Heart Grass (Second-Tier): 4/25/102 years (Age/Lifespan/Lifespan Limit)]

This Spiritual Heart Grass could live up to 102 years?

The lifespan that could be seized differed from the plant\'s total lifespan. It seemed he couldn’t completely take all of a target’s lifespan—most of it dissipated upon the target’s death.

Gu An wasn’t sure what the difference was between lifespan and lifespan limit. It might have something to do with cultivation techniques.

He picked up the wrapped Spiritual Heart Grass and walked toward Zhang Chunqiu’s pavilion.

All the medicinal herbs in the Medicine Valley were to be handed over to Zhang Chunqiu for safekeeping. Every six months, Gu An and the others would receive their wages as menial disciples of the Tai Xuan Sect, which consisted of spirit stones and spirit pills for cultivation. Zhang Chunqiu would also reward them with herb seeds based on their performance.

Gu An had three Spiritual Heart Grass plants growing in his room—one more than Meng Lang and Li Ya. However, neither Meng Lang nor Li Ya were envious.

As Gu An was leaving the garden, he saw someone walking up the stairs toward Zhang Chunqiu’s pavilion. It was an old man dressed in black, carrying a book box on his back and wearing a black cloth hat. He gave off a mysterious aura.

From a distance, Gu An’s curiosity was piqued, and he decided to use his newly unlocked Lifespan Investigation ability on the old man.

Two lines of text immediately appeared before him:

[Cheng Xuandan (Qi Refining Stage 8): 104/120/180]

Cheng Xuandan!

The master of the Medicine Valley and Gu An’s nominal teacher. Gu An had only heard about him from Zhang Chunqiu, as he had been traveling outside for many years. Today was Gu An’s first time seeing him in person.

Cheng Xuandan was 104 years old, with a natural lifespan of 120 years and a maximum lifespan of 180 years. In other words, unless something unexpected happened, he had only 16 years left to live.

Gu An found the Lifespan Investigation feature fascinating. It allowed him to not only gauge others\' lifespans but also discern their cultivation levels and talents.

He guessed that a person’s maximum lifespan might be related to their potential, but he’d need more experience with the feature to confirm this.

Cheng Xuandan entered Zhang Chunqiu’s room and closed the door behind him.

Gu An placed the bandaged Spiritual Heart Grass on a long table in Zhang Chunqiu’s courtyard before turning to leave.

He returned to his courtyard and first visited Meng Lang, who was inside his room, cultivating.

[Meng Lang (Qi Refining Stage 2): 17/90/190]

Hmm, just as he thought—useless.

After noting Meng Lang\'s lifespan, Gu An didn’t linger and quickly returned to his own room.

It wasn’t until nightfall that Gu An heard Li Ya’s footsteps. He got up and stepped outside.

Li Ya was about to head into his room when he saw Gu An coming out and asked, "What’s up?"

While investigating Li Ya’s lifespan, Gu An replied, "Our master is back. How about we visit him together tomorrow?"

[Li Ya (Qi Refining Stage 6): 18/210/1550]

Hiss—

A maximum lifespan of 1,550 years!

So this was the potential of someone from the royal family?

But wasn’t Li Ya supposed to have mediocre spiritual roots?

Gu An’s gaze toward Li Ya changed. Perhaps Li Ya was a hidden genius, destined to shine one day.

Moreover, Li Ya’s cultivation had already reached the sixth level of the Qi Refining Stage!

What did this mean?

Was he hiding his strength?

The cultivation realms Gu An knew, ranked from low to high, were Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul, and Spirit Transformation. Each major realm was divided into nine minor stages. At the age of eighteen, Li Ya had already reached the sixth stage of Qi Refining. It wouldn’t take him long to build his foundation and become a formal disciple of the Tai Xuan Sect.

This was a fellow disciple Gu An absolutely needed to maintain good relations with!

Li Ya raised an eyebrow and nodded in agreement. "Sure. You’re quite thoughtful. Call me when you\'re ready tomorrow."

With that, he turned and entered his room.

Gu An watched him close the door, his heart full of emotions.

Indeed, class differences existed in every world. The gap in their statuses meant that it would be difficult for him and Li Ya to become true friends.

Gu An didn’t hold any resentment. Having been a servant since childhood, he was accustomed to cold stares and neglect. He didn’t blame Li Ya. After all, Gu An did appear quite mediocre.

No matter. With his ability to seize lifespan, Gu An believed he would eventually become an immortal. Until then, he just needed to stay low-key and steadily accumulate lifespan.

To stay safe, it was best to avoid conflicts and trouble, the quieter the better!

A smile appeared on Gu An’s face as he turned and closed the door behind him.

The moon was full that night, its light spilling over the stone steps of the courtyard like flowing water.

…

The next morning, in the main hall.

Gu An, Meng Lang, and Li Ya stood side by side. In front of them sat Cheng Xuandan, holding a cup of hot tea. Zhang Chunqiu stood respectfully by his side.

[Zhang Chunqiu (Qi Refining Stage 5): 54/110/175]

Gu An thought that Senior Brother’s potential was rather low, but then again, it made sense. After all, there were many Medicine Valleys in the Tai Xuan Sect, and for one to produce someone like Li Ya was already rare.

Besides, compared to them, Gu An had started out as the most worthless of the lot.

Cheng Xuandan raised his murky eyes and sized up the three of them. He said, "I’ve heard about your performances from your Senior Brother. Since this is our first meeting, I should give you some gifts."

"You may choose one of three options: Herb Compendium, Nurturing Qi Art, or the spell Toxic Wood Vine. You can only choose one, and you may not share it with others. If I find out, you will be severely punished."

As soon as he finished speaking, Meng Lang immediately said, "Master, I want Toxic Wood Vine!"

Gu An thought to himself that no one would want the Herb Compendium, so he decided to let Li Ya choose first as a favor.

To his surprise, Li Ya said, "Disciple chooses the Herb Compendium."

Gu An was shocked and turned to look at him.

Brother, you’re not playing by the rules!