Chapter Thirty-Nine: Tempering the Spiritual Root

"Ugh—"
Gu Weiyu lay slumped over a stone bench in the bamboo grove of Emerald Bamboo Court, utterly drained, her head spinning and nausea rising. It took her a long while to recover, and with trembling fingers, she raised her middle finger at the green dumpling sitting on the stone table.

"Wasn't it you who complained I was too slow?" The dumpling, quietly nurturing itself in her dantian, sounded wholly innocent as it echoed in Gu Weiyu's mind.

"You!" Gu Weiyu wished she could slap herself—her own reckless words had brought this upon her.

All because of a single careless remark, the wretched dumpling had spun her around like a top for a full hour!

An hour! It felt as though an entire century had passed.

Slowly, she steadied herself with the bamboo, wobbling like a drunken cat toward the bamboo house. She needed to lie down in her bedroom, at once!

"Miss, are you..." Crescent, who had been waiting outside the meditation room, looked as if she'd seen a ghost when Gu Weiyu came up from downstairs. She’d been standing guard the whole time—when had her mistress left?

"I just practiced the Lightfoot Technique and went out through the window," Gu Weiyu explained to Crescent, her steps unsteady as she headed for her bedroom.

"Miss, are you all right?" Crescent’s worried voice followed from behind—her mistress looked oddly out of sorts.

"I'm fine," Gu Weiyu waved her hand dismissively, shut the bedroom door, and collapsed onto the bed, sinking into sleep.

———

Since acquiring the dumpling, Gu Weiyu spent her days in Emerald Bamboo Court, with no intention of accepting any new missions for the time being.

Every day, she faithfully cultivated and practiced her spells in the courtyard, only occasionally stepping out to meet with Gu Qingyun and the others.

Of course, sometimes she let the dumpling take her out for a stroll, but she no longer dared provoke its speed.

One day, as she sat cross-legged in the bamboo grove, cultivating, a pale green paper crane fluttered down and circled endlessly above her head.

Gu Weiyu opened her eyes in resignation, sent a stream of spiritual energy into the crane, and immediately, Ancestor’s lazy voice sounded, "Ah Yu, come here."

After delivering its message, the crane flew back along its original path.

Gu Weiyu rose to her feet, cast a Dust-cleansing Spell on herself, and walked out of the bamboo grove to the front of the bamboo house. "Sister Crescent, I’m going to South Mountain Residence."

Crescent was tidying inside the bamboo house. Hearing this, she poked her head out, "Miss, shall I go with you?"

"No need," Gu Weiyu shook her head and walked out of the courtyard alone.

South Mountain Residence was as it always had been. As soon as Gu Weiyu reached the front, the gate swung open by itself.

She knew now that only those who mastered the Art of Object Control could achieve this, and she was still far from that level.

Entering the courtyard, she instinctively glanced around; the elder Clearwind, whom she’d met once before, was absent—he seldom showed himself.

Unlike her previous visits, Ancestor Gu Qingzhou stood upright beneath the locust tree.

Seeing her, he beckoned and turned toward the house, "Ah Yu, come with me!"

Gu Weiyu was surprised; aside from the time she’d injured her meridians after a breakthrough, she’d never entered Ancestor’s house before.

Seeing him already inside, she hurried her steps to follow.

"What is this?" Gu Weiyu followed Ancestor into a room shaped like a basement—airtight on all sides, empty except for a few scattered meditation mats.

"Ah Yu, this is where I usually practice spells. There are wards set here; it’s very safe," Gu Qingzhou turned and shut the door, his expression solemn.

Gu Weiyu was even more bewildered. Why was Ancestor behaving so oddly today, bringing her here, and emphasizing safety?

She was still puzzled when she saw a fruit glowing faintly purple appear in his palm. The fruit looked vaguely familiar.

"This is... a Spirit-tempering Fruit?" Gu Weiyu moved closer, her face alight with surprise.

So Ancestor had already visited Qilin Mountain and successfully picked a Spirit-tempering Fruit. She suddenly wondered how that wretched white tiger was faring now.

"Yes. That tree bore nine fruits, each suited to a different spiritual root. This purple fruit is perfect for you," Gu Qingzhou handed it to her.

"Ancestor..." Gu Weiyu stared in awe at the fruit. Was he giving it to her?

But wasn’t this fruit extremely precious?

"This fruit can enhance your spiritual root. Among your three roots, your lightning root is the weakest. Eat it and sit on the mat—I’ll guard you," Gu Qingzhou pressed the purple fruit firmly into her hands.

Gu Weiyu understood Ancestor was acting for her own good. Obediently, she put the fruit in her mouth and took a gentle bite—immediately, a surge of electricity burst forth, leaving her tongue numb.

"Taking this fruit will be painful, Ah Yu. You must endure!" Gu Qingzhou gently reminded her.

"Sit cross-legged and digest the lightning force within the fruit! It’s hard-won, Ah Yu—do not waste it!"

Gu Weiyu swallowed the fruit in one gulp, sat on the mat as instructed, focused inward, and began guiding the increasingly wild lightning force coursing through her body.

Though it was only the size of an infant’s fist, the fruit contained a torrent of lightning power. It surged down her throat, through her chest and abdomen, and rapidly spread to every limb, every bone, even down to the roots of her hair...

Gu Qingzhou quietly settled onto a nearby mat, watching her intently.

When he saw her skin and even her hair start to tremble, he knew the Spirit-tempering Fruit was refining her lightning root.

He’d worried her body might not withstand the violent surge, but seeing the girl’s hair stand on end, each strand crackling and twitching, he couldn’t help but laugh softly.

Gu Weiyu, oblivious to her own comical appearance, was utterly numb from the lightning force ravaging her body.

Inside her, it was as though a battlefield. The lightning force rampaged, destroying indiscriminately, while her body rapidly repaired itself.

Her body was caught in a cycle of destruction—repair—destruction—repair, again and again. The lightning force invaded, gradually becoming part of her being.

It was an agonizing ordeal—sweat poured from her like a waterfall, soaking her clothes and hair, only to be instantly evaporated by the lightning force, dissipating as steam.

"Thirsty..." Gu Weiyu’s throat felt aflame, unbearably dry. She instinctively licked her parched, peeling lips.

Suddenly, a stream of clear spring water slid into her mouth, and she swallowed instinctively.

The cool water flowed down her throat, dispelling the fever in her body and greatly alleviating her suffering...