bookbashuk Chapter 134 Tracking
Chapter 134 Tracking
Zhao Fan left the Refining Peak and walked along the stone steps towards the Pill Peak.
As darkness fell, the sacred trees on both sides of the mountain path cast long shadows in the twilight, and occasionally night birds would fly up from the forest, uttering a few clear calls.
Xiao Er emerged from the spirit beast pouch and followed at his feet, its four paws steady as it walked on the stone steps.
Zhao Fan suddenly had a brilliant idea. He jumped onto Xiao Er's back and let Xiao Er carry him.
Xiao Er visibly tensed up for a moment, turned his head to glance at Zhao Fan, and didn't struggle, but just obediently carried Zhao Fan on his back.
For it now, Zhao Fan's weight is nothing at all.
Zhao Fan didn't rush back, but had the waiter carry him slowly along the mountain path.
I haven't been down the mountain for half a year, and the air outside is fresher than the air behind Danfeng Mountain.
He took a deep breath, his chest filled with the fragrance of the spirit wood, and felt much refreshed.
At this moment, he wanted to see how Su Zixin was doing. They hadn't seen each other for a year and a half since they joined the sect.
Now that she's an inner disciple, it's unclear which peak she's been assigned to.
Zhao Fan hesitated for a moment, then gave up.
It's not appropriate for an outer disciple like him to enter the inner disciples' quarters. Besides, his cultivation level has plummeted to the fourth level of Qi Refining, so he shouldn't be too conspicuous. He should wait until his cultivation level recovers before making any moves.
He shook his head and continued walking forward.
Just as I rounded a corner, a figure appeared ahead, walking with his head down, counting something in his hands.
The man was dressed in a blue Taoist robe, with a jade pendant hanging from his waist. He had a handsome face and was none other than Wu Yuan.
"Junior Brother Zhao!"
Upon seeing him, Wu Yuan immediately strode forward to greet him with a smile on his face.
"have not seen you for a long time."
Zhao Fan immediately jumped off Xiao Er's back and clasped his hands in a fist salute.
"Senior Brother Wu, it's been a long time."
Wu Yuan walked up to him, looked him up and down, and the smile on his face suddenly froze.
His brows furrowed, and his gaze lingered on Zhao Fan for a while, as if trying to confirm something.
"Junior Brother Zhao, your cultivation level... how did it drop so much?"
His voice was clearly filled with surprise.
"I remember you were at the seventh level of Qi Refining when you started, how come you are now...?"
Zhao Fan gave a wry smile and didn't hide anything.
"Something went wrong, and I had to start over after my cultivation was disrupted."
Wu Yuan was stunned for a moment, then a hint of admiration flashed in his eyes.
He patted Zhao Fan on the shoulder, his tone becoming serious.
"It's easy to say 'discard your cultivation and start over,' but it's not easy to do. Many people are reluctant to give up their cultivation and end up ruining themselves. Junior Brother Zhao, you are truly decisive to make this decision."
Zhao Fan didn't expect Wu Yuan to say that, but Wu Yuan's words were so pleasant that they made Zhao Fan feel much better.
Wu Yuan continued.
"Moreover, there are benefits to starting over. Think about it, the first time you cultivate, your spiritual energy is built up step by step from nothing, so it is inevitably impure and mixed."
"Rebuilding is different. Your meridians and dantian are already at the seventh level of Qi Refining. Your spiritual power can be condensed from the beginning, and each step can be refined to be more pure."
"The spiritual power cultivated in this way is more solid than that cultivated the first time, which will be of great benefit to the future foundation building."
Zhao Fan was stunned; he had never heard of such a claim before.
The old man only told him that dispersing his power and starting over could get rid of the drawbacks of the Heavenly Origin Technique, but never mentioned any other benefits.
He hesitated for a moment before asking.
"Senior Brother Wu, are you telling the truth?"
Wu Yuan smiled.
"Of course it's true. Haven't you heard those Foundation Establishment seniors say that many cultivators who have no hope of reaching Foundation Establishment regret not their low cultivation level, but their unstable foundation?"
"Mixed spiritual energy, weak meridians, and insufficient spiritual sense are all obstacles to Foundation Establishment."
"Although retraining is a waste of time, it can rebuild your foundation and smooth out all the flaws. From this perspective, your loss of power this time may not be a bad thing."
Zhao Fan fell silent. Whether it was psychological or not, Wu Yuan's words made Zhao Fan feel that his spiritual power seemed to be more solid than before.
He suddenly felt less distressed about losing his martial arts skills, and even vaguely felt that perhaps this was a blessing in disguise.
"Thank you for your guidance, Senior Brother Wu."
Zhao Fan clasped his hands in a fist salute and said solemnly.
Wu Yuan waved his hand.
"What pointers? Just a casual chat. By the way, where do you live now? Still in the back mountains of Danfeng?"
Zhao Fan nodded.
"Yes, I will look after the spiritual fields at Danfeng."
Wu Yuan nodded without asking any further questions.
After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Wu Yuan said he had to go to the Internal Affairs Hall to hand in his mission and then left.
Zhao Fan stood by the roadside, watching his figure disappear into the twilight, and suddenly felt much more relaxed.
He continued walking towards Danfeng, his steps becoming much lighter.
The waiter followed at his feet, glancing up at him every now and then, seemingly wondering why he had suddenly become happy.
After walking for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Zhao Fan suddenly felt that something was wrong.
He couldn't quite put his finger on what was wrong, but he felt a faint, almost imperceptible gaze on his back, as if it were watching him.
He slowed his pace, pretending to look at the spiritual plants by the roadside, while secretly spreading his divine sense.
He scanned the mountain path behind him with his divine sense but found nothing unusual.
He walked a little further, but the feeling of being watched persisted.
Zhao Fan did not turn around and continued to walk forward, but his divine sense always covered an area of about ten feet behind him.
This time, he was even more careful, scanning every inch.
Finally, he caught a glimpse of something unusual behind a clump of bushes on the right.
There was a leaf that swayed erratically, as if it had been bumped by something. If he hadn't spent the last six months honing his divine sense seed, making its precision far greater than before, he would never have noticed it.
Using his ability to observe qi, Zhao Fan took a look and, sure enough, a human-shaped stream of qi appeared in the previously empty space.
Someone is following him!
Zhao Fan's heart tightened suddenly, but he did not show any abnormality.
He continued walking forward, his steps still steady, even deliberately slowing down as if he were taking a stroll.
His divine sense remained locked on that direction, and the stream of air followed him closely, neither too close nor too far, maintaining a distance of about ten feet.
He didn't know who was following him, nor what their purpose was.
But he knew very well that with his current cultivation level, he couldn't defeat anyone, no matter who they were.
However, Zhao Fan wasn't too nervous. After all, they were still within the sect, and no matter who was following him, they wouldn't dare to make a move in broad daylight.
After walking for a while, the gate of Danfeng appeared in front of him, and Zhao Fan naturally walked over.
The gatekeeper nodded slightly when he saw Zhao Fan and let him pass.
Although they didn't know much, they had heard that the peak master had been taking special care of Zhao Fan recently, so naturally they wouldn't cause trouble for Zhao Fan now.
Zhao Fan passed through the mountain gate and walked along the stone steps towards the back of the mountain. After walking for a while, he stopped and looked back.
As dusk fell, the area outside the mountain gate was deserted; there was nothing there. The stream of energy had vanished, and the person who had been following him had not entered.
Zhao Fan let out a long breath. Xiao Er squatted at his feet, looked up at him, and made a low whimper, as if asking him what was wrong.
Zhao Fan reached out and patted its head without saying a word.
He then continued walking forward, passing through the bamboo forest and the light curtain, until the spirit field appeared before him.
Zhao Fan glanced around and confirmed that everything around him was the same as when he left.
Zhao Fan entered the wooden house, closed the door, and continued meditating.
Zhao Fan didn't know who was following him, but the fact that someone was following him meant that someone was plotting against him.
"It seems I'll have to be more careful in the future."
Zhao Fan recalled what had just happened and muttered to himself.