Blind Spot
Chapter 713: Layout 655 Three

Chapter 713: Layout 655 Three

At the mouth of Mount Lu.

The carriage slowed down and stopped at the entrance of a narrow gorge leading into the mountain range.

Two people alighted from the carriage, namely Li Chengyi and Uncle Ning.

"From here, you can only look back once a year. Alone in the outside world, you must take good care of yourself," Uncle Ning said with some worry.

Although Gong Shanzhu had been mature and steady from a young age, Uncle Ning couldn’t help but worry when it actually came to letting him live and cultivate on his own.

"Uncle Ning, don’t worry. I dislike trouble the most. When facing issues, I always consider how to avoid them first. There won’t be any problems," Li Chengyi reassured him briefly.

"I know, but..." Uncle Ning sighed and looked over Li Chengyi’s shoulder.

A vague silhouette was already approaching the entrance.

"It seems that your escort has arrived. Take care."

"Hmm." Li Chengyi turned around, picked up his luggage, and walked towards the figure.

The person who came was a woman, clad in a black long skirt over black tight pants, with her long hair tied high and simply fixed with a jade ring. Although her makeup and attire were modest, as she approached, there was an inexplicable impact as if a wave of flower petals surged and struck one’s heart and spirit.

With sword-like eyebrows and watery eyes, and red lips on pale skin, although it was just a simple arrangement of features, her beauty was gentle and charming like water.

Li Chengyi narrowed his eyes for a moment, for he had felt a faint consciousness power unintentionally spreading from her body.

That consciousness power... if he had to describe it, it was very similar to a tickling sensation.

Countless consciousness powers were like myriad tickles, making everyone they touched extremely comfortable.

This was the first time Li Chengyi had encountered such a use of consciousness power.

However, this also caused anyone who saw this woman to develop a natural fondness for her involuntarily.

Because simply looking at her would bring a gentle sense of comfort and pleasure.

’Could this be the innate charm of a fox spirit?’ Li Chengyi speculated in his mind.

"I am Xu Suyuan, Lord Lushan’s eldest disciple, here to receive the new junior brother. You are Gong Shanzhu, right?"

The woman’s beautiful eyes fell on Li Chengyi.

It has to be said that Li Chengyi’s appearance this time was quite good; although it was similar to his original one, his skin and complexion had improved, which naturally beautified him somewhat.

Add to that a tall and sturdy build, which added a few more points to his appearance.

But compared to the woman in front of him, they were as different as heaven and earth.

Fortunately, Li Chengyi didn’t mind these things; from her, he seemed to get some inspiration.

"Indeed, Gong Shanzhu has seen his elder martial sister," he stepped forward and performed a bow with clasped fists.

"You are too kind. From now on, we are from the same lineage. We should support each other and watch each other’s back," Xu Suyuan seemed very good-natured and gentle, apparently a kind person.

"Yes," Li Chengyi responded earnestly.

What followed was the usual handover. Uncle Ning tried to step forward and give Xu Suyuan a welcoming gift, but she refused.

After several refusals, he was unable to give his gift.

The carriage turned around slowly, with Uncle Ning looking back three steps at a time, his expression faintly filled with worry. After all, it was a child he had raised for so many years.

Li Chengyi watched him until the carriage completely disappeared from sight, then followed Xu Suyuan up the mountain.

The two walked in silence, but Xu Suyuan kept turning back along the way to check if he could keep up.

Clearly, she was very kind.

Soon, after traversing more than ten miles of mountainous paths and climbing a slope, the two, who were martial artists, arrived swiftly at a massive cave surrounded by chaotic black rocks.

Inside the cave, inlaid white noctilucent gems emitted light as bright as daylight.

The entrance was concealed by dense creeping vines.

"Lord Lushan and the other junior brothers and sisters are inside. Follow me, and remember not to step wrong," Xu Suyuan cautioned.

"Yes."

Li Chengyi nodded.

They entered the cave and along the babbling brook on the cave floor, they quickly reached the deepest part, in front of a three-story stone building within the cave.

Lord Lushan and four other disciples were already waiting there.

It was clear that the gifts given by Gong Shanqinyang had been quite effective.

In front of the gray-black stone building, Li Chengyi caught sight of the other four people, besides Lord Lushan, at a glance.

’Not remarkable at all.’

Apart from Xu Suyuan, it was obvious from the spirit, energy, and mind of the others that the gap was too great.

Compared to him and Xu Suyuan, each of these four seemed to be common talents without remarkable bloodlines.

Although they also had fluctuations of internal strength and True Yuan in their bodies, it was too weak.

Li Chengyi knew from Uncle Ning that these individuals had cultivated here for at least a decade.

But still, they were only at this level. It seemed...

A thought flashed through his mind.

On the surface, Li Chengyi respectfully bowed to Lord Lushan and the others.

"Gong Shanzhu has seen his master, and his fellow senior brothers and sisters," he said.

"Come here, today will be your initiation ceremony. Since you’ve previously practiced the Emerald Sea Sword Technique, I presume your body forging should be decent, right?" Lord Lushan casually remarked from his armchair.

"Yes," Li Chengyi nodded.

"You young masters naturally have the support of top-notch resources and cultivate with excellent techniques. Your True Yuan accumulates far faster than the ordinary, and I believe your foundation in body forging is also quite good. This is a good starting point. But remember, do not be arrogant or impatient, as in the end, temperament and comprehension are things no one can help you with," Lord Lushan spoke with at least an appearance of kindness and gentleness.

"Yes, I thank Master for his teaching. I will certainly bear it in mind," Li Chengyi bowed deeply in respect.

The proper upbringing made Lord Lushan feel even more comfortable comparing him with his other disciples.

"Alright, now let’s see your level, Xue Ying."

"Here!" A girl standing at the very end stepped forward, bowed with clasped hands.

This girl looked ordinary and had a proportionate figure with nothing remarkable about it, and her hair was somewhat dry and yellowish, suggesting a hint of malnutrition. However, it seemed that this was her natural hair color.

"Go and have a sparring session with your junior brother, but remember to be careful," commanded Lord Lushan indifferently.

Although his motives were not purely for their benefit, he knew that the higher a disciple’s cultivation, the better the quality of their essence blood, so he truly took the cultivation of his disciples to heart.

"Yes!" The girl nodded earnestly, then turned to face Li Chengyi.

With a Flash Appearance, she suddenly materialized five meters opposite Li Chengyi.

"Junior Brother, I am Zhang Xueying, ranked fifth. Please advise."

"Please give me your guidance, Senior Sister Xueying," Li Chengyi replied with impeccable manners.

The two stood facing each other in the clearing, and simultaneously, a transparent, invisible membrane enveloped them in a hemispherical shape.

"Be careful, Junior Brother," said Zhang Xueying, without wasting words, her right palm hanging down, her body slightly bent.

Whoosh!

In the blink of an eye, she Flash Appeared at Li Chengyi’s side, aiming a palm at his shoulder.

This speed made Li Chengyi’s eyebrows furrow; he wasn’t able to perceive her movement trajectory at all.

It was as if she had suddenly popped up beside him.

’Spatial jump?’ His heart chilled at the thought. He knew the martial strength in this place was very high.

But to encounter such a level of martial arts right after leaving his family estate...

Interesting...

Even though his opponent had suddenly blinked next to him, her reaction speed itself wasn’t enough to keep up with that velocity of attack.

So...

Li Chengyi lightly side-stepped to dodge the palm strike, and simultaneously, True Yuan condensed into a blue longsword, the blade slashing diagonally.

Bang!!

The sword’s edge collided with her palm in midair, scattering spots of blue and black True Yuan light.

Zhang Xueying disappeared once more, reappearing behind him with another palm strike.

This time, the black True Yuan in her palm overflowed with a heavy presence, transforming into a shadowy mountain range more than a meter in diameter, crashing towards the back of Li Chengyi.

Thud.

The palm shadow hung in the air, arrested not by Zhang Xueying’s mercy, but because a sword-tip was poised at the center of her brow, its sharp end radiating a chilling coldness.

She had lost.

Clap clap clap clap.

Lord Lushan’s eyes brightened and he stood up, applauding with both hands.

"Very good, your True Yuan is close to reaching the Third Layer and your reactions are quite swift."

He walked over to Li Chengyi, signaling both to stop.

At the same time, he extended a finger, touching it to Li Chengyi’s chest.

A strand of golden True Yuan surged out instantly, circulating through Li Chengyi’s meridians for a round before dispersing of its own accord, merging into various parts of his body.

"Remember this circuit; this is the foundational first layer of the Lushan Hundred Transformations technique. You must practice diligently in the future."

"Yes." Li Chengyi had already spread out and concealed his Jiuchong Haiyuan in his meridians and blood before the other could probe him with the power transfer.

After all, he was a top-tier expert who had cultivated many martial arts; such a technique was within his grasp.

"You must be curious why your Senior Sister suddenly appeared next to you," said Lord Lushan with a smile.

"Yes," Li Chengyi showed a look of appropriate curiosity and confusion.

"That’s a unique ability of the Golden Jade Martial Arts, a divine skill," explained Lord Lushan with a smile. "Apart from True Yuan that can cut gold and jade, Golden Jade Martial Arts possesses four universally applicable divine abilities: Flash Appearance, Longevity, Life Extension, and Strength Solidification."

"Does every Golden Jade Martial Arts have them?" Li Chengyi was genuinely curious.

"The five divine abilities are not present in all Golden Jade Martial Arts; generally, poor ones have only one, common ones have two, better ones three, and the best, naturally, come with all four or even all five," clarified Lord Lushan.

"So no matter how long you practice a first-rate martial art, from the very beginning, the starting point is already far behind that of the Golden Jade Martial Arts."

Li Chengyi pondered this.

"Then, may I ask Master, the divine skills don’t only arise upon complete mastery of the technique, do they?"

"You are indeed insightful," Lord Lushan nodded, stroking his beard with a smile. "Divine skills are a matter of comprehension. The Lushan Hundred Transformations consist of nine layers, and Xueying has only practiced the second layer but was able to comprehend a divine skill."

"Does this mean that if one’s understanding isn’t sufficient, even with martial arts containing all five divine skills, there might be a situation where they cannot be comprehended?" Li Chengyi asked again.

"Exactly," Lord Lushan’s mood improved; the response of a scion from a great family was indeed much quicker than that of an ordinary genius, sparing the need for repetitive instruction, understanding at but a hint.

"Alright, who else wants to give it a try?" he looked at the other disciples, but failed to notice that the defeated Zhang Xueying, having retreated to one side, wore a sullen expression and remained still.

And on one side of her face, a faint violet-red flower mark emerged.

If someone paid close attention, they would realize that the mark was a pale violet-red Ziwei flower. Its size was only as large as a fingernail, and no sooner had it appeared than a flash of purple darted through the lowered eyes of Zhang Xueying.

This was a sign of the activation of the Ziwei Royal Flower Language.

On the other side, Lord Lushan and the rest were completely unaware. Seeing Li Chengyi demonstrating his strength right after entering the doors, they knew their master wanted to give him a tough first lesson.

Immediately, the second senior sister, Qiu Xueshan, stepped forward.

"I’ll do it. It’s just the right time to teach the junior brother the rules of entry." Qiu Xueshan had a bit more distinction compared to Zhang Xueying, with looks considered average, long legs, a slender waist, and a flat chest—typical of an athlete’s physique.

Now standing opposite Li Chengyi, her long black straight hair carelessly draped over her shoulders as she looked over with a trace of arrogance in her eyes.

"Fine. Go easy," Lord Lushan nodded. With a Flash Appearance, he returned directly to his throne-like chair.