Once Gu Ningyun finished arranging the ten circles, Martial Aunt Yang said, “Not bad, Ningyun. You’ve already exceeded the goal for the threading the needle exercise.”
Hearing Martial Aunt Yang’s words, Wen Xuan and the others stopped their practice, their gazes falling onto Gu Ningyun’s table.
The companions who attended classes with her and knew her progress weren't surprised at all by this scene.
They only wondered in their hearts whether they should put in some extra practice when they returned tonight.
Seeing that everyone had stopped practicing, Martial Aunt Yang said, “All of your progress is quite good. You should basically be able to reach the standard after another two days of practice.
In two days, we will move our classes to the small plaza for new training content.
It doesn't matter if you haven't reached the standard in two days. You can practice on your own after class, as long as you meet the requirement before the stage assessment.”
Gu Ningyun recalled her companions' progress.
Jun Luo’s progress was actually similar to hers; he should have no problem reaching the standard before the end of this class.
Although Wen Xuan had burned through a box of needles at the start, she had quickly gotten the hang of it after trying the method Gu Ningyun shared. Reaching the standard within two days wouldn't be an issue for her.
Mu Chenze’s progress was about the same as Wen Xuan’s.
Only Jiang Yao was different. His metal spirit energy seemed to contain a very sharp aura, capable of slicing the needles apart even from a distance.
The few of them had exchanged experiences back then, but even with their methods, Jiang Yao still couldn't control the intensity of his spirit energy.
After Martial Aunt Yang sensed her spirit energy, she took him to Preaching Peak to consult an elder. Only then did they learn it was due to a special constitution.
Gu Ningyun and the others didn't ask further about what specific constitution it was.
Deliberately prying into someone’s constitution was not polite behavior.
After the elder’s guidance, Jiang Yao had a method of control, but his progress still lagged far behind them. His road to reaching the standard was long.
When Gu Ningyun had previously checked her Innate Star Body, she had roughly looked over other constitutions.
She felt that Jiang Yao’s spirit energy state was quite similar to the description of a Sharp Metal Body.
Jiang Yao’s seat was to her left. Seeing the worried expression on his face after hearing Martial Aunt Yang’s words, Gu Ningyun spoke up to comfort him. “There are still twenty days left. There’s plenty of time, so don't worry.
Besides, you can already control that aura now. If you just use the method we talked about from here on, you’ll definitely reach the standard.”
“Exactly. It’s just a bit of spirit energy control, nothing to worry about.”
Mu Chenze also poked his head over from behind. “And if you think long-term, your spirit energy is so sharp that its destructive power will definitely be immense during combat.
In the future, if we go out for experience together, you’ll be able to split a demon beast in half with a single spell. How cool is that?”
Wen Xuan and Jun Luo nodded in agreement.
...
Once they returned to their training, Martial Aunt Yang called Gu Ningyun and Jun Luo over.
“Ningyun, threading the needle no longer serves any training purpose for you.
Jun Luo, the same will apply to you after you finish this class.”
She handed a small jade slip to each of them. “I’ll teach you two a minor spell. You can practice it for fun over the next two days, and you don’t need to come to the schoolroom. Just show up at the small plaza in two days for class.”
Gu Ningyun took it and swept it with her divine sense. “Cleaning Technique!”
“Yes. The jade slip contains detailed cultivation methods for you to consult at any time. For now, I’ll give you a demonstration.”
With that, she performed hand seals and cast the spell toward the floor. Spirit energy spread over the area like a wave, and in the blink of an eye, the dirt was removed, revealing a clean floor.
After the demonstration, she explained the principles, incantations, and hand seals of the Cleaning Technique in detail.
Seeing that they had no questions, she sent Jun Luo back to practice threading the needle.
Gu Ningyun could have left immediately to practice the Cleaning Technique back at Cloud Residence.
However, after some thought, she returned to her seat to practice.
She was still learning the incantations and hand seals. By practicing in class, she could ask Martial Aunt Yang for help if there was anything she didn't understand.
...
The Cleaning Technique was a minor spell that wasn't restricted by spirit roots and was very practical in daily life.
Through the corresponding incantations and finger seals, one covered the object to be cleaned with spirit energy. By consuming spirit energy, that object could be annihilated.
The cleaning effect was related to spirit energy consumption. The more spirit energy used, the larger the cleaning range and the cleaner the result.
When Gu Ningyun was listening to the lecture, she felt this minor spell was...
A bit terrifying.
Since it annihilated the selected target, if she threw a Cleaning Technique at an opponent’s head during a fight, would it be able to annihilate their noggin?
When they heard Gu Ningyun’s doubt, both Jun Luo and Martial Aunt Yang were startled by her.
Jun Luo hadn't expected the Cleaning Technique to be used that way. He immediately gripped his jade slip and began to ponder the feasibility of the idea.
Martial Aunt Yang was surprised by her sensitivity toward spells—that she could think so deeply upon her first contact with the Cleaning Technique.
Back when they had learned this spell, they only thought of such things after becoming proficient with it.
Most people didn't think that much at all; if a spell was available, they just used it as intended.
Martial Aunt Yang quickly answered Gu Ningyun’s doubt.
The power of annihilation was actually a type of law, not something people at their cultivation level could touch.
The genius patriarch who created the Cleaning Technique had only gained a sliver of insight before ascending. Only then did he use incantations and finger seals to barely borrow a tiny fraction of the power of annihilation.
That tiny fraction could only eliminate small, non-living things.
According to that patriarch, annihilating non-living things and annihilating living beings were two completely different concepts.
He simply refined the incantations and finger seals again to create the minor spell known as the Cleaning Technique.
People in later generations had also researched the Cleaning Technique to see if they could unleash a more powerful version of the power of annihilation.
However, not a single person had succeeded in ten thousand years, so no one researched the spell anymore.
Gu Ningyun used the remainder of the class to master the incantations and finger seals. Once she had time back home, she would try invoking her spirit energy.
She was afraid of accidental damage if she used it now—for instance, stripping a layer of skin off the table.
...
Tingfeng was a Cloud Residence with a courtyard.
Gu Ningyun moved a stone slab from the riverbank into the courtyard and sprinkled a layer of soil over it.
After setting up her training target, Gu Ningyun reviewed the incantations and finger seals several times.
Once she found the right feel, she channeled a tiny bit of spirit energy and performed her first Cleaning Technique.
Perhaps due to the effectiveness of her spirit energy application training during this period, performing the spell wasn't as difficult as Gu Ningyun had imagined.
As the final finger seal was completed, the spirit energy obediently covered the soil, which annihilated and vanished in an instant.
Gu Ningyun leaned in to look. The stone slab was as clean and bright as if it had been washed and dried; it was exceptionally spotless.
No new scratches had appeared on the surface of the slab either.
Huh? Is it this simple? I actually succeeded on the first try.
Gu Ningyun spread more soil and practiced several more times, quickly becoming familiar with the use of the Cleaning Technique.
Looking at the room behind her, which hadn't been cleaned in the ten or so days she’d lived there, Gu Ningyun twitched her fingers, feeling an itch to get to work.
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