35. The True Face of the Divine King Gu
Revealing her identity, she didn’t know if it was a good or bad move.
But Gong Yiling felt… from a strategic standpoint, if the real Gong Yiling were here, she would have probably done the same.
And as for this cooperation, she didn’t know what the Saintess was thinking, but she considered it all just a means to an end.
She just wanted to get her hands on the real Divine King Gu and figure out what it was.
After that, she didn’t know how long this plastic partnership would last. As long as the Saintess didn’t provoke her…
Thinking of this, Gong Yiling had already taken off her black robe and arrived at the entrance of the practice room, her gaze quickly locking onto the two girls sparring.
Watching their figures interweave, a gentle warmth spread through Gong Yiling’s eyes.
Although she was reluctant to admit it, this so-called master-disciple system was indeed the only decent thing the system had ever done.
Just watching them grow into independent and capable individuals, this should be the most gratifying thing for a master.
If this path was filled with countless difficulties and obstacles, then she, as their master, would shield them from all storms.
No matter the cost.
“Master?”
Qiu Shui, taking a break, saw Gong Yiling leaning against the door. She immediately pulled Xinyao over and asked with a pleasant surprise, “What are you doing here?”
“What?” Gong Yiling smiled and rubbed both their heads. “Can’t I, as your master, come and see how you’re doing?”
“Of course you can!” Xinyao’s little head wagged happily. “With Big Sister here, I’m even more motivated!”
“So you were slacking off when I wasn’t here?”
“No, that’s not what I meant!”
As Lu Xinyao pouted, Qiu Shui gently squeezed her hand and chuckled. “Silly girl, Master is teasing you, trying to cheer you up.”
“Eh!?” Lu Xinyao’s mouth dropped open, her eyes filled with confusion as she looked at Gong Yiling.
Being stared at like this, Gong Yiling felt a bit awkward and quickly coughed. “Maybe. I neither confirmed nor denied it.”
Then, she quickly changed the subject. “Oh, right, it’s getting late. Can I check your progress now?”
They exchanged glances and replied confidently, “Yes!”
—
—
It was no exaggeration to say that this entire sect, including her, was a group of cultivation geniuses.
In just one afternoon, the three of them had mastered martial and spiritual techniques that would greatly enhance their strength in battle.
All that was left was to integrate these techniques into their habits and continue to improve their cultivation.
After dinner, Gong Yiling went out again.
She found the stone she had mentioned earlier that afternoon and, feeling behind it, found a small medicine jar.
Gong Yiling didn’t open it right away, but used her Shadow Deception and disappeared with the jar.
“What!?”
As expected, the moment she vanished, a few people who had been pretending to be passersby appeared, exchanging confused glances.
“No wonder the Saintess said to follow if we could, and to return if we couldn’t.”
“So who is this person?”
This question had no answer. Seeing no other clues, they quickly left.
After they were gone, Gong Yiling reappeared, tossing the special medicine jar in her hand, then catching it firmly.
Divine King Gu, I’ll soon know your true face.
When she returned to the dormitory, she went straight to the room next door and found Yan Chuyue writing a prescription.
“This thing is called Divine King Gu. Have you heard of it?”
“Divine King Gu?” Yan Chuyue took the medicine bottle and frowned. “What’s that?”
“It might have other names. Such a cringy name must have been made up by someone later.” Gong Yiling said, “I have no knowledge of Gu poison, so I can only show it to you.”
“Did you get this from Ye Ao Daoist Mountain too?”
“To be precise,” Gong Yiling stroked her chin, “they call themselves the Divine King’s Court, and their influence has spread throughout half of Qian Yue Academy.”
“What…?”
The author was once again bewildered.
Who came up with such a ridiculous name? She would never write such a cringy name in her novel. It didn’t fit her aesthetic at all!
And what was this plot? She had never written such a script.
Yan Chuyue frowned, her curiosity piqued by the bottle in her hand.
She quickly unscrewed the cap and looked inside, muttering, puzzled, “What is this?”
She had expected to see insects, but there was nothing, just a clear, watery liquid.
“No insects?”
“No, just some venom or extract, not the actual insects.”
Well… it seemed the Saintess had been cautious.
If she had given her the poisonous insects, she could have researched them and found out all sorts of information. But with just the venom, although the effect was the same, the information was concealed.
To identify it, one would have to test it on themselves. The Saintess must have planned this.
However… there was another term called “information asymmetry.”
“Can you identify this?”
“I can try.”
Although neither of them said it, they both knew.
As long as she had the original liquid, she could just compare it to the Gu poison database in her Divine Physician’s space.
Soon, Yan Chuyue said, “Got it. I know what this is.”
“What is it?”
Yan Chuyue looked at her, a thoughtful frown on her face. After a moment of hesitation, she said, “This is… Soul Abyss Gu.”
“Soul Abyss Gu?” Gong Yiling had never heard of this either.
“Let me tell you its effects first.” Yan Chuyue said, “This Gu can greatly overdraft the user’s potential, talent, and life force, allowing them to achieve an incredibly fast cultivation speed in a short period of time.”
So that was it… that was why those cultivators improved so quickly.
“And the side effects?”
“If you’ve met anyone who has used this Gu, you should have noticed.” Yan Chuyue said grimly, “Once this Gu is used, besides the gradual exhaustion from overdrawing their power, their minds will also become simpler, and they will be easily susceptible to implanted ideas, gradually turning into puppets.”
