Furthermore, because he was obsessed with the Talisman Dao, he almost never left Talisman Peak except for unified sect arrangements, let alone left the sect for experience.
Under his full devotion to research, by the time he reached the Golden Core stage, he had learned all the talismans his current cultivation allowed him to master, and he even prepared to research and create his own.
However, his own cultivation was too low, and his understanding of heaven and earth was insufficient; creating new talismans at his current level was almost impossible to achieve.
At that point, his cultivation had reached the Golden Core stage. If he wanted to break through to the Nascent Soul stage, it was nearly impossible without leaving the sect for experience.
To increase his cultivation as quickly as possible and draw higher-level talismans, this senior took on a sect mission for the first time and left the sect for a trial.
It was that very trial that ultimately cost him his life.
At the end of his life, he looked back on his years and realized with a shock that the reason this trial led to his death lay within himself.
A century of life within the sect had allowed him to pull ahead of his peers in the Talisman Dao, but because he was so singularly focused on it, his disposition had remained as naive as a child's.
The cultivation world was fraught with danger, whether from rogue cultivators living on the edge or disciples from other sects with their own hidden agendas;
Whether from atrocious evil cultivators or ruthless demon cultivators.
He had the strength of the Golden Core stage, but he had too little experience and lacked mental tempering. How could he compete with those cultivators who were used to struggling and crawling through the cultivation world?
The first time he took a Golden Core sect mission and left the sect, he was swallowed whole by these people, plotted against until not even his scraps remained.
He could only rely on the life-saving protection of his identity jade token to barely escape. After leaving behind a jade slip to warn future generations, he died from injuries that could not be healed.
Gu Ningyun's heart was full of complex emotions after reading this personal account.
This account was likely found by a fellow disciple among the senior's belongings. After reading its contents, they had followed his last wishes and placed it in the library.
A century devoted to the Talisman Dao, a lifetime of regret from a single trial.
This senior's regret served as a wake-up call for her as well.
Since the end of the New Disciple Competition and the opening of the authority to leave the sect, had she not also been staying cooped up in the sect, never once leaving for a trial?
While increasing one's strength was important, the tempering of one's heart and mind was also essential.
After finishing the account, Gu Ningyun decisively took out blank jade slips and made five copies. She kept one for herself and sent the others to her four friends, including Wen Xuan.
After some thought, she made a few more copies and gave them to Ling Hanbai and the others.
When Ling Hanbai saw the jade slip, he was so moved that he didn't even stay at Fighting Peak. He grabbed his sword, took a mission, and left the sect for a trial.
Later, other disciples of the same year also learned of this account. Suddenly, the traces of new disciples across the various floating peaks vanished as they all took missions and left the sect.
Yellow-rank missions in the Mission Hall went from being in surplus to being in short supply.
Those at Ruiyu Pavilion were the first to see the account and acted early, snagging missions that suited their strength and could also temper their minds.
The mission Gu Ningyun took was—The Miao Family Murder Case.
The new disciples were busy with their trials, and Perfected Person Ye of the New Disciple Training Department was quite satisfied with this.
She took out a tablet and, after a few operations, opened an interface filled with various rules and regulations.
Her divine sense swept to a certain line in the middle, and she wrote three words at the end.
A Foundation Establishment disciple glanced over and saw that the first line of that interface read: New Disciple Training Mandatory Tasks.
The middle section showed, Item 12: Trial Warning | Completed.
Before it was Item 11: Evil Qi Warning | Completed.
The Foundation Establishment disciple chuckled. "Martial Aunt Ye, I did a good job with this, didn't I?"
It turned out that the account Gu Ningyun had seen was specifically dug out from the bottom of a pile of jade slips by this Foundation Establishment disciple responsible for the twelfth task. Seeing her frequenting the talisman section on the second floor of the library those few days, he had placed it in the most obvious spot.
Yunzhou was the territory under Xiaoyao's jurisdiction, and every city had a Xiaoyao outpost.
Yellow-rank missions were basically all within Yunzhou. Their danger and difficulty were not high, making them suitable for low-level Qi Refining disciples to gain experience.
"A job well done. I'll credit you for this." Perfected Person Ye recorded the Foundation Establishment disciple's name after the twelfth task, added a note with Gu Ningyun's name as the distributor of the account, and then put away the tablet.
Gu Ningyun knew nothing of the New Disciple Training Department's secret arrangements.
After taking stock of her strength and resources and confirming nothing was missing, she took out the hairband she had received as a reward for the evil qi test and tied it in her hair.
The hairband was mysterious-rank low-grade. It could store spirit energy equivalent to the dantian capacity of an ordinary early Foundation Establishment cultivator.
In the event of danger, the hairband would spontaneously draw upon the stored spirit energy to form a protective shield, which could block attacks up to the early Foundation Establishment stage.
By inputting spirit energy, she could also change the color of the hairband.
Gu Ningyun had already blood-bound the hairband and filled it with spirit energy the day she received it.
She looked at her green-belted sect disciple robes and adjusted the hairband to match the color of her belt. At a glance, it looked like part of a set with the disciple robes, not appearing out of place at all.
...
The next day, Ningchuan Town, Miao Manor.
Gu Ningyun stood before the gates of the Miao Manor, her footsteps pausing slightly as she looked at the funeral banners hanging from the eaves.
She instantly recalled the mission details: Miao Manor in Ningchuan Town. The Miao family head and two elders were mysteriously murdered overnight, leaving behind only a five-year-old only son and several servants.
Ningchuan Town was a small town where cultivators and mortals lived together. The Miao family was the only small cultivation family in town, located in Yunzhou and under the jurisdiction of Xiaoyao.
Her mission this time was to uncover the truth and find the murderer.
Since Gu Ningyun entered Ningchuan Town, she had seen every household with their doors tightly shut and the streets completely deserted.
The gates of the Miao Manor were wide open, and white spirit money was scattered across the ground, fluttering everywhere in the air.
A murder case had caused panic among the townspeople.
If the cause wasn't clarified and the true culprit found, there was no telling if more people would fall victim.
Her divine sense swept through the residence. The entire Miao Manor was empty, save for a five-year-old child and a wrinkled old man in the main hall.
Three coffins were placed in the hall, which was likely where the mourning took place.
She stepped up the stairs, entered the Miao Manor, and observed the scene in the courtyard.
The vegetation was withered and neglected, looking as though it hadn't been tended to for days.
The "several servants" mentioned in the mission description were nowhere to be seen.
Consistent with what her divine sense had detected, the place was empty.
Walking all the way near the mourning hall, Gu Ningyun saw from a distance the boy kneeling before the coffins and an old man lighting incense.
Judging by the boy's age, he was likely the only surviving son.
When Gu Ningyun turned past a pine tree and reached the entrance of the mourning hall, the old servant finally noticed her.
He immediately put down the incense and paper, stumbling over to kneel and bow. "I did not know an immortal master would descend upon the Miao Manor today. Please forgive my lack of welcome.
"I beg the immortal master to uncover the truth and apprehend the murderer!"
Gu Ningyun quickly helped him up. "Tell me about the situation first. Who reported the case? And it was said there were several servants; why are only the two of you left? Where are the others?"
"Replying to the immortal master, this old slave is the butler of the Miao Manor. Since the young master is young, it was this old slave who reported the case to your noble sect.
"Since the family head and the elders were murdered, there has been no adult master left in the Miao Manor. The other servants dispersed, and by the time the last servant left today, only the young master and this old slave remained."
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