When I Achieved Sainthood, the Immortal Official Actually Called Me to Raise Horses!
Chapter 16: Seventh Layer Foundation Establishment, Mystery in the Forest

After Gu An invited him, Wu Xin did not say a single word all the way out of the Servant Hall. From start to finish, he only nodded once.

Gu An began to suspect he had recruited a mute.

For Wu Xin, becoming a servant disciple as soon as possible was his top priority. Gu An made a good first impression, so Wu Xin agreed immediately.

The reason Wu Xin was in such a hurry to become a servant disciple was that he was actually a demonic spy.

He came from the demonic sect Thousand Autumn Pavilion and was the youngest son of one of the sect’s leaders. Due to his aptitude being inferior to his brothers, he volunteered to become a spy.

First, he could escape the oppressive environment at home, and second, he might even achieve some merit.

If not, well, no big deal.

As he looked at Gu An and Cheng Xuandan walking ahead, Wu Xin had already formed an initial assessment of them.

One was a kind and simple ordinary cultivator.

The other was an old man nearing the end of his life.

From their conversation, it seemed the atmosphere in Medicine Valley would be very peaceful and relaxed.

...

Snow was falling heavily, turning Xuan Valley into a white expanse where sky and earth became one.

Bang!

Wu Xin was kicked into the snow, the cold flakes splattering onto his face. Clutching his chest in pain, he winced.

"Lu Jiu Jia! Why are you being so serious?" scolded Ye Lan, standing nearby.

Lu Jiu Jia stood in the snow, slowly withdrawing his leg. He raised his chin and snorted, "You have to take sparring seriously if you want to improve."

His cultivation had already reached the fifth layer of the Qi Refining Realm, making him the strongest person in Medicine Valley on the surface. Ye Lan was at the fourth layer, while Xiao Chuan and Gu An were both at the third layer.

Wu Xin, at the second layer of Qi Refining, had no chance against Lu Jiu Jia.

“Damn it... How is a mere servant disciple this strong?” Wu Xin’s mental state was on the verge of collapse.

Seeing Lu Jiu Jia practicing his leg techniques, Wu Xin had wanted to give it a try, but he was defeated by two kicks.

What he didn’t know was that Lu Jiu Jia had a good senior brother. Over the years, Gu An had taken time each day to spar with him. No matter how hard Lu Jiu Jia tried, he could never win, but through these daily sessions, his leg techniques had become extremely refined, and his physical strength had grown substantially.

Unwilling to accept defeat, Wu Xin believed he had been careless. He stood up and charged at Lu Jiu Jia again.

Bang! Bang!

Two more kicks sent Wu Xin flying back into the snow.

Wu Xin felt as if his forearm was about to snap. The 15-year-old lay on the ground, tears of humiliation streaming down his face.

Why is this happening?

This wasn’t the spy life he had imagined. He didn’t expect to be scaling mountains or walking through fire, but even if he were to fail, shouldn’t it be while gathering intelligence? Ṙ

And yet, he had been defeated by an ordinary-looking servant disciple.

"If it weren’t for this cursed technique... With my talent... how could I suffer such humiliation?"

Wu Xin clenched his fists as the bickering voices of Ye Lan and Lu Jiu Jia rang in his ears, sounding unbearably harsh.

Looking at Ye Lan, Lu Jiu Jia retorted, "He’s a boy, not some delicate girl. You step aside. Don’t favor him. When Senior Brother kicked me to the ground, why didn’t you speak up then?"

Ye Lan glared at him. "I did speak up! I tried to defend you, but you yelled at me. Besides, Senior Brother didn’t go as hard as you. Think about it—when Senior Brother sparred with you, didn’t he wait until you’d exhausted all your leg techniques before gently defeating you? But look at you, going all out from the start. What can Wu Xin learn from that?"

Hearing her words, Lu Jiu Jia’s expression changed. Upon reflection, she was right.

It was because Senior Brother let him go all out every time that he was able to improve.

One-sided beatings certainly didn’t help anyone grow...

Lu Jiu Jia felt ashamed, and his gratitude toward Gu An deepened.

Senior Brother had been too kind to him.

Ye Lan helped Wu Xin to his feet. Seeing his tear-filled eyes, she quickly comforted him. "Don’t take it personally. He means well and just wants to help you improve through serious sparring. It’s just that he tends to be overly serious."

Lu Jiu Jia scratched his head awkwardly when he saw Wu Xin’s red eyes.

"Jiu Jia, your leg techniques have improved. Come spar with me," came a warm voice from behind. Lu Jiu Jia turned and saw Gu An approaching with a gentle smile.

Excited, Lu Jiu Jia nodded vigorously. Lately, his confidence had been swelling, and he believed he could finally defeat Senior Brother.

Ye Lan and Wu Xin also looked toward Gu An, with Wu Xin wondering just how strong this Senior Brother was.

Could he really defeat Lu Jiu Jia, who was two whole layers above him in cultivation?

Gu An stopped and beckoned to Lu Jiu Jia, who grinned and rushed toward him in a flash.

Bang!

Lu Jiu Jia was sent flying over ten meters, carving a long trench in the snow.

Seeing stars, he nearly passed out, feeling as if his internal organs had shifted, the pain overwhelming.

Wu Xin was stunned.

What speed!

He hadn’t even seen how Gu An had kicked.

Ye Lan giggled, her eyes curving with delight as she hurried over to Gu An, praising his increasingly swift leg techniques.

Gu An ruffled her hair and then turned to Wu Xin, asking, "Wu Xin, would you like to learn leg techniques?"

Wu Xin, with a lifespan greater than the others, had great potential. Gu An couldn’t let Lu Jiu Jia break him.

"Yes!" Wu Xin replied, his voice resolute, no longer as meek as usual.

From the distance came Lu Jiu Jia’s groans, drawing Gu An’s attention.

Gu An walked over to him, looking down with a smirk. "Stop pretending. Now tell me, do you enjoy this kind of sparring?"

Lu Jiu Jia, lying on the ground, peeked at Gu An with one eye. Seeing his Senior Brother’s stern expression, he closed his eyes again and groaned, "Senior Brother... I was wrong..."

Gu An pulled him up, brushing the snow off his clothes, and said softly, "True strength isn’t about defeating someone stronger than you. It’s about controlling your arrogance and not bullying those weaker than you."

Rubbing his chest, Lu Jiu Jia pondered Gu An’s words seriously.

Ye Lan and Wu Xin also heard, and Wu Xin, in particular, was deeply moved. He had never imagined such wisdom could be found in this small Medicine Valley.

In Thousand Autumn Pavilion, the strong always bullied the weak. Even his father and brothers looked down on him.

Exactly! They weren’t true strongmen!

Wu Xin thought to himself, his view of Gu An subtly shifting.

"You’ll teach Wu Xin the leg techniques from now on," Gu An said, patting Lu Jiu Jia on the shoulder. Lu Jiu Jia nodded quickly, not daring to refuse.

Then, Gu An and Ye Lan headed up the mountain to check on the recently planted seeds, where Xiao Chuan was tending.

As for Cheng Xuandan, he had remained shut in his house since returning, and when Gu An had visited, the elder had simply said he was recuperating. Since then, Gu An had refrained from disturbing him.

Time passed, and with Wu Xin’s arrival, Medicine Valley became livelier. Lu Jiu Jia and Xiao Chuan loved teasing him, and the sound of their playful banter often filled the valley.

...

The end of the year.

Night had fallen.

Gu An sat in his room reading, though he was no longer reading The Adventures of the Green Hero, but rather a different book titled The Secret History of Thousand Autumn Pavilion.

This book came from Medicine Valley’s library, and whether it was real or not, Gu An read it purely for amusement.

The faint flicker of the oil lamp wavered as a cold wind crept in through the window. Now at the sixth layer of the Foundation Establishment Realm, Gu An remained unmoved.

Finishing the current page, Gu An set the book down, preparing to carry out his daily cultivation routine.

Suddenly, he heard a faint noise from the next room—someone had quietly slipped out. The movement was subtle, but not beyond Gu An’s sharp hearing.

It’s Wu Xin!

Gu An was familiar with the aura of everyone in Medicine Valley and immediately identified the person.

He listened closely as Wu Xin’s footsteps led him to the library, where he began rummaging through the books.

"What is he looking for?" Gu An wondered, his curiosity piqued.

In his experience, Wu Xin had always been diligent. Any task Gu An gave him, he completed earnestly, unlike Lu Jiu Jia, who occasionally slacked off.

Besides his diligence, Wu Xin had a fierce determination, second only to Lu Jiu Jia. He often sought out his senior brothers for sparring, always losing but never giving up.

Could he be searching for a manual?

Feeling a bit of sympathy for his junior, Gu An thought to himself, starting tomorrow, I’ll personally teach him.

After searching for half an hour, Wu Xin quietly returned to his room.

A little while later, Gu An left his house and headed into the woods, ready for his nightly routine.

...

Another summer came.

Gu An had turned 22, and his lifespan now exceeded 4,000 years. He planned to keep accumulating until he reached 10,000 years before using it.

Over the past few months, following his nightly cultivation routine, Gu An successfully broke through to the seventh layer of the Foundation Establishment Realm, though he still outwardly maintained the appearance of being at the third layer of the Qi Refining Realm.

As time passed, Gu An grew increasingly curious about the seventh-grade spirit tree that Cheng Xuandan had mentioned. He had tried searching for it but could never replace an entrance leading underground.

Sometimes, Wu Xin also sneaked out at night to explore. Once, they almost ran into each other, but fortunately, Gu An’s sharp hearing had warned him in time.

Near noon, Gu An squatted beneath a tree, observing his white spirit mouse.

The little creature was spinning in circles before him, full of energy.

"Has it matured? But spring has already passed..." Gu An wondered in confusion.

He had raised the white spirit mouse for years, but its size had never changed. With Li Ya gone, there was no one to help him gauge its growth.

The little fellow had been running circles around him for half the day.

As if understanding Gu An’s thoughts, the mouse suddenly leaped up and bit his hand before dashing away.

Gu An didn’t feel any pain, so he wasn’t angry. Instead, he watched as the mouse stopped a short distance away, spinning in place again.

Wait!

Could it be...

Realizing something, Gu An quickly stood up and followed the mouse.

Seeing him approach, the white spirit mouse stopped spinning and ran into the forest. In no time, both master and pet disappeared into the woods.

Under a tree, Wu Xin stood, frowning as he watched Gu An’s departing figure. "The forest again? Lu Jiu Jia said Li Ya and Meng Lang used to train alone in the forest too. Senior Brother’s leg techniques are far stronger than his apparent cultivation. Could there be some secret hidden in the forest?"

The more he thought about it, the more convinced he became. However, instead of chasing after Gu An, he decided to wait until nightfall to investigate.

Meanwhile...

Gu An followed the white spirit mouse over hills and valleys, eventually leaving Medicine Valley altogether.

Wow, this little guy’s usual range is this large?

Gu An realized he had underestimated the mouse and became even more curious about where it was leading him.

Li Ya had mentioned that white spirit mice were also known as treasure-seeking mice.

Could it have found the seventh-grade spirit tree?