Before arriving at the disciples' residence on Enlightenment Peak, Luo Qingyao had already thought up ways in her head to compliment Senior Brother Fan Wubing's place.
But the moment the dormitory door swung open, taking in the surroundings at a glance shattered her thoughts, and she let out an awkward laugh, saying,
"Senior Brother, your place really is... nothing to hide."
She originally wanted to say it was bare, but couldn't bring herself to say it out loud.
Seeing her like this, Fan Wubing laughed,
"That's the condition here on Enlightenment Peak. Regretted it, haven't you? It's your choice."
Luo Qingyao shook her head and said earnestly,
"Senior Brother, as the saying goes, a mountain doesn't need to be high; it's famous with an immortal. Water doesn't need to be deep; it has spirit with dragons. This humble abode holds the virtue of my Senior Brother."
"Don't go misquoting famous sayings on me!"
Interestingly, this cultivation world has quite a few people and things similar to the past life, like the Unparalleled Sword Immortal from the heavens, and the Great Daoist Immortal with the purple aura drifting three thousand miles... Fan Wubing thought it might be related to some references from "The Endless Immortal Path."
After helping Luo Qingyao tidy up her room, Fan Wubing went to cook. He was starving, but unfortunately, he couldn't bring out the ingredients collected in the Peach Branch Small Profound Realm. After getting used to immortal food made from beast meat, ordinary wild animal meat felt tasteless.
At the dining table, Luo Qingyao asked,
"Senior Brother, what kind of person is Senior Sister?"
Fan Wubing said,
"Senior Sister is a bit silly but very smart. She disregards herself entirely for others. Senior Sister is beautiful, sometimes playful, sometimes very serious. When she stands still, she's like a distant mountain in the clouds. When she moves, she might be a black lightning bolt."
"Wow, she's that great..."
Luo Qingyao pouted, saying nothing more.
This meal only added 2.1 health points to Fan Wubing. The progress in cultivating "Swallowing Stars and Chewing the Moon" increased by only 0.3%.
It was clear that the absorption from ordinary food was becoming less effective.
Upon careful thought, it made sense. As the body's vitality continued to grow, without an increase in food quality, the effect would naturally diminish.
Fan Wubing knew well that growth was a gradual process. It couldn't be achieved in one stroke, and one couldn't make progress standing still.
The next morning, in the practice room,
"Junior Sister Luo, you know my situation; I can't cultivate. So I can't teach you much in this regard. However, Senior Sister wrote many cultivation insights to help me. Maybe they'll benefit you."
Fan Wubing found the cultivation insights compiled by Fu Ming for him, piling them up like a small mountain of books.
Luo Qingyao looked at the pile with her mouth agape,
"Senior Brother, are all these prepared by Senior Sister?"
"Yes, but it's still no use."
Luo Qingyao lowered her head,
"Senior Sister is really wonderful... I haven't been able to help Senior Brother at all. I've only brought trouble."
"Don't worry about it. You're the junior sister, I'm the senior brother. It's expected for a junior sister to trouble her senior brother."
Luo Qingyao picked up a cultivation insight and started reading. Once she began, she became engrossed immediately.
Seeing her focused look, Fan Wubing chuckled lightly and quietly left without disturbing her.
The little girl, while a bit immature and often saying nonsensical things, was diligent and earnest in cultivation, never careless.
After leaving the practice room, Fan Wubing first fed the Flying Sword Peach Blossom.
The appetite of Peach Blossom was growing, and with it, each feeding made its growth progress more significant.
[An unnamed young unknown flying sword]
[Gender: Female]
[Too weak, abilities temporarily locked]
[Growth stage: 29/100]
"You little mother sword, hurry up and grow..."
While mumbling, he suddenly sensed footsteps.
Fan Wubing retracted Peach Blossom into the Purple Mansion and turned to look.
A woman with golden hair, blue eyes, and tan skin, dressed quite audaciously, was walking toward him. With shorts, a crop top, heavy eye bags, and an expression that seemed barely awake, frowning...
This image of a dark-skinned gyaru girl—if Fan Wubing hadn't looked at his own attire, he'd think he hadn't crossed over.
The woman approached, and when she opened her mouth, there was an immediate sense of discord. Bearing the sexy image of a dark-skinned gyaru girl, her voice was as crisp as a teenage girl's. Not only was her voice crisp and tender, but her tone was also weak,
"Excuse me, are you Junior Brother Fan Wubing?"
Junior Brother? So she's a Senior Sister.
"Senior Sister, who are you?"
The dark-skinned woman showed her white teeth, smiling,
"I'm the Head Senior Sister of the fifth class at Nourishing Spirit Peak, Gu Lan."
"Hello, Senior Sister Gu."
Gu Lan chuckled lightly,
"No need to be so formal. The Sect Leader has already informed me that you're in charge of the main cooking for the opening ceremony feast. The kitchen in Eternal Immortal Sect where immortal food is cooked is at Nourishing Spirit Peak. Today, I'll show you around. Come, follow me."
"Okay."
Gu Lan walked ahead.
Fan Wubing followed behind, and after a while, being particularly curious about her image, he couldn't help but ask,
"Senior Sister Gu, where are you from?"
"I'm from Shuiyong Country in Little South Continent. Oh, seeing my hair color, skin color, and eye color, you probably thought I'm not local."
"Pardon my rudeness."
Gu Lan was quite generous,
"It's alright, everyone who sees me for the first time gets it wrong. Actually, I used to look much like you guys. But after spending a long time farming and raising spirit pets at Nourishing Spirit Peak, I turned out this way. Years of sun and wind have made my skin darker and tougher.
"The hair became yellowed from frequently mixing and irrigating with solutions for medicinal herbs and fruits, and my eyes, well, they were black before. Later, to better observe the states of spirit pets, I cultivated an immortal technique, and over time, they turned blue."
"That's..."
Completely irrefutable indeed.
"Even your clothes, Senior Sister, are different from ours."
Gu Lan laughed,
"Yes. Due to maintaining incorrect posture habits over the years, I developed a bit of pelvic tilt, and my chest and back aren't flexible either. To adjust my posture, my Master tailor-made these more fitted clothes for me."
Fan Wubing twitched the corners of his mouth.
So the voluptuous figure was due to thoracic restriction and pelvic tilt!
The tight-fitting crop top and shorts were for posture correction!
All unreasonable things, once explained this way, became perfectly rational.
The filter of the dark-skinned beauty shattered into pieces.
"Senior Sister Gu, you've indeed worked hard."
Gu Lan kept a light smile,
"Compared to dealing with the intrigues along the Immortal Path, I prefer interacting with flora and fauna. Watching the seeds I plant take root, sprout, grow bit by bit, blossom, and bear fruit brings indescribable joy."
"The joy of a harvest?"
"Perhaps so. Ah—I pity my waist for the hardship it endures with me."
Gu Lan supported her waist, knitting her brows.
Given his experience with practicing the Unwarranted Qi Creation Skill, Fan Wubing observed her walking posture and breathing rhythm, deducing that her physical issues might not solely be due to incorrect posture.
After some thought, he said,
"Senior Sister Gu, try circulating celestial energy in a nine-light-one-heavy rhythm, through the four meridians between the sides of your spine and upper hip area."
Gu Lan glanced at him doubtfully,
"I'll give it a try."
She stood still and then moved a strand of celestial energy, drawing it from the dantian, gliding over the four back meridians as Fan Wubing described.
Initially, there was some ache, then heat, gradually transforming to a tingling sensation accompanied by itchiness.
Finally, when the celestial energy brushed heavily, it suddenly felt like opening a tightly shut door,
"Ah~"
The special sensation swept through her entire body, prompting her to cry out involuntarily.
She immediately felt much more relaxed all over and joyfully said,
"It really worked! Junior Brother Fan, is this some exclusive technique?"
Fan Wubing let out an awkward laugh,
"If Senior Sister wants to learn, I'll specially teach you another day."
This method of circulating energy was part of the Unwarranted Qi Creation Skill. Fan Wubing only recently realized that many cultivators tend to overlook the coordination between energy and meridians. Gu Lan was a prominent example of this.