Seeing Gu Ningyun's confused expression, Yi Shu rubbed her head. “Since we can't find the cause for now, just try to avoid the Luan'an Mountain Range before dawn.
There are many inexplicable things in this world; how can we figure out every single one?”
Perhaps it was due to the herbal scent, or perhaps her gentle demeanor. Every move Daoist Lord Yi Shu made carried a comforting aura.
With her head rubbed, the confusion in Gu Ningyun's heart dissipated. She obediently tilted her head up and nudged Yi Shu's hand. “Martial Aunt, how long will my sea of consciousness be sealed?”
“Until your master returns.”
“What do you mean?” What did this have to do with her master?
Yí Shū didn't answer directly, only asking, “Do you know what kind of song you encountered?”
It wasn't a divine sense attack, yet it could suppress spirit energy and harm the sea of consciousness.
The 《Almanac of Heavenly Wonders》 slowly opened in her mind... Uh, the 《Almanac of Heavenly Wonders》 didn't mention any of this.
Gu Ningyun, who had only been in the cultivation world for just over six years, shook her head. Her apricot eyes blinked as she stared at Yi Shu, full of curiosity and trust.
“It was the great demon's remnant thoughts, and also the remnant thoughts of countless demons.”
Before Gu Ningyun could ask, Yi Shu looked out the window, her gaze distant and empty, her voice sounding somewhat ethereal.
“I don't know what happened back then, but that great demon's obsession was so profound that its remnant thoughts haven't dispersed even now.
It even gathered the obsessions of the demon race that died in ancient times, remaining as powerful as ever to this day.
The song that attacked you was sung by those remnant thoughts.
What imprisoned your spirit energy and damaged your bodies was the great demon's high-grade pressure.
What harmed your seas of consciousness was the great demon's resentment, and even the resentment accumulated over tens of millions of years by those ancient demon races.
If not for your melody, the consequences would have been unimaginable.”
“What consequences?”
“Lightly, your sea of consciousness would be damaged and your talent impaired. Even if spirit medicine were found to repair your sea of consciousness, future cultivation would be incredibly difficult.
Severely, your sea of consciousness would shatter into dust on the spot, leading to death and Dao dissipation.”
A chill crawled up her spine. Gu Ningyun shivered, filled with lingering fear. “It was that terrifying!
Even the protective shield of the identity jade token was useless?”
“The methods of ancient great demons are mysterious and unpredictable; they can bypass the defenses of many magic tools. Identity jade tokens are not omnipotent.”
Yí Shū withdrew her gaze from the window and turned to look at her seriously. “This is why Xiaoyao Immortal Sect, despite being the foremost sect in the cultivation world, still demands such strictness from its disciples.
No one is omnipotent, and no one can plan for everything.
In the cultivation world, there are countless ancient relics and forbidden lands.
Secret realms and ruins that have appeared can still be explored, but who could have predicted something like the Luan'an Mountain Range, which has never before manifested?
Even among Xiaoyao's inner sect disciples, many incidents and even deaths occur each year.
The dangers on the path of cultivation are endless and impossible to guard against. Only by enhancing your own strength can you gain an extra chance at survival when deeply entangled in peril.”
Whether in her previous life or this one, Gu Ningyun had always been an orphan.
No one had ever spoken to her with such earnestness and solemnity.
It was the caring and devoted instruction of an elder.
For some reason, Gu Ningyun felt a lump in her throat.
She tried hard to curve her lips into a smile, but her forehead was lightly tapped by a jade-like hand.
“We're talking serious matters here, don't give this old woman that cheeky grin.”
Gu Ningyun: “...”
That lump in her throat could no longer stay.
Martial Aunt using that tone was quite disillusioning!
Yí Shū looked at her with a half-smile. “Innate Star Body, creating your own technique.
You drained all the star power from your body, exhausted all the divine sense in your sea of consciousness, leading to its depletion.
If not for your wind spirit energy protecting your dantian and meridians, what you wouldn't be able to feel right now, besides your sea of consciousness, would be your dantian.”
It was normal for Martial Aunt Yi Shu, a Soul Transformation stage mid-stage expert and Alchemy Peak Master, to discern her physique and the state of her internal star power.
What's more, Martial Aunt had even refined Star Pills for her to replenish her star power.
It's just that...
“Martial Aunt, you can even tell I created my own technique?”
Even she herself was somewhat dazed.
Only by the movements of the 《Record of Primordial Stars》 before she fainted, and that inexplicable feeling in her heart, could she guess that she might have created a melody specifically for star power.
“Suddenly exhausting your divine sense, depleting your star power, and the state of your sea of consciousness, meridians, and dantian are extremely similar to what happened to that little girl from Music Peak after she created 《Guiyuan》.
If I couldn't even tell that, I wouldn't need to be the Alchemy Peak Master anymore.”
“So that's how it is.”
Gu Ningyun suddenly understood. “Does Martial Aunt often encounter situations like this?”
“Golden Core stage cultivators occasionally do, but someone like you, creating a technique at the Foundation Establishment stage, is the first I've seen.
Low-level cultivators who create their own techniques often experience depletion of their sea of consciousness, dantian, and meridians due to insufficient cultivation, divine sense, and spirit energy.
This is a very normal phenomenon; there's no need to worry about it.”
The two of them dismissed the matter of creating her own technique in a few words, not thinking much of it.
Yí Shū was used to it, having seen it many times.
Even if this little girl was a bit more prodigious, it was still quite normal.
Gu Ningyun wasn't surprised either, with Senior Sister Kong having created 《Guiyuan》 before, and Martial Aunt Yi Shu's calm demeanor now.
Their calm and natural reactions would be entirely different if this had happened in another sect.
If another sect encountered such a talented disciple, the entire sect leadership would likely be in an uproar, diverting all sect resources to cultivate them with full effort.
Let alone calmly saying it's a normal phenomenon and not to worry.
To reach such a conclusion, there would need to be a sufficient number of similar cases.
The Xiaoyao Immortal Sect was different.
Xiaoyao was the foremost sect in the cultivation world, and also the most unique.
Due to the sect's strength and reputation, even though it only recruited disciples once every ten years, countless geniuses flocked to it.
With such a large candidate pool, and after rigorous assessments by the immortal artifact Phantom Cloud Mirror and the Stairway to Immortality, only a select few disciples were chosen to enter the outer or inner sect.
Entering the sect was just the first step. Within the sect, there was a dedicated New Disciple Training Department that meticulously nurtured new disciples, ensuring none lacked a solid foundation.
It was precisely this meticulous nurturing that allowed disciples to accumulate strength for a breakthrough and freely display their talents.
Even the creation of one's own technique by a low-level cultivator, a rare event in other sects for centuries, happened regularly in Xiaoyao.
Unfortunately, other sects were unaware of this.
Gu Ningyun also didn't know how other sects might react.
She just hugged her head, pouting with lingering fear at her Martial Aunt. “I had a narrow escape from death, Martial Aunt.”
“It was a narrow escape from death, and also a blessing in disguise.”
“Huh? What does Martial Aunt mean by that?”
“Although the five of you had your seas of consciousness harmed by the great demon's pressure and resentment, due to your melody's timely damage control, the damage stopped precisely at the limit your seas of consciousness could endure.”
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