Who Let Him Cultivate?!

“Ancestor, what is it?” Emperor Xia arrived at the forbidden area and respectfully saluted his ancestor.

After waiting for a long half-day, Emperor Xia did not receive a response from his ancestor, so he cautiously raised his head.

As he looked up and saw the sardonic smile on his ancestor’s face, he retreated a few steps subconsciously.

“I heard you were encouraging Yun Zhi earlier to give me a lesson?”

Emperor Xia was shocked. The palace was enveloped in an Immortal Array, and only he and Yun Zhi were present. How did his ancestor know?!

“Nonsense, the Immortal Array was set up by me. Of course, I can listen to whatever I want!”

“Darn kid, I must not have hit you enough when you were little!” His ancestor reached out a large hand and dragged Emperor Xia into the forbidden area.

“Ancestor, please be gentle. I was raised under your watchful eye. Hurting me is like hurting yourself!”

“Don’t worry, my heart is as solid as steel!”

Soon, mournful cries came from the forbidden area.

No wonder there were rumors in the palace of an immortal omen suppressed within the forbidden area, its agonized wails echoing out whenever subjected to the Array Method.

Of course, some eunuchs and maidservants speculated that it might be Emperor Xia crying out. However, such speculation was highly disrespectful and not widely spread.

Even if it was spread around, people would most likely treat it as a false rumour.

…

“Brother Lu, would you like to learn a new magic skill? Senior Brother Ji Hongwen is offering to teach.” Lu Yang was practising his sword arts in a neat white outfit when Man Gu approached him, accompanied by Meng Jingzhou.

“I too was invited by Man Gu,” explained Meng Jingzhou, smiling. Who wouldn’t be happy to learn an additional magic skill?

“Why would Senior Brother Ji Hongwen suddenly want to teach us magic skills?” asked Lu Yang, puzzled.

Ji Hongwen is the head disciple of the Confucian Fourth Elder, an expert in painting and is on par with Elder Dai Bufan in terms of cultivation level.

“Ah, like this,” Man Gu explained, “I think the way Confucian Cultivators fight should be more elegant. My way of fighting with a large hammer isn’t a proper Confucian method, so I wanted to learn some elegant skills.”

Lu Yang stared at Man Gu in amazement and awe.

Could it be that Man Gu was challenging the curse set by Fairy Eternity on the Barbarian tribe? This was something to be celebrated!

“Moreover, I sent my hammer to Li Haoran for upgrades and can’t practice my hammer methods for a while, so I might as well do something else.”

“Then I approached Senior Brother Ji and asked if he could teach me a few Confucian magic skills. He said he could, so I asked if you two could also join, and he agreed. Here I am, coming to find you and Brother Meng.”

Lu Yang nodded in appreciation: “Thank you.”

Man Gu immediately responded, “Brother Lu, there’s no need for that. From following you and Brother Meng, I’ve learned many teachings. This is just me taking advantage of the situation, asking Senior Brother Ji to teach you while teaching me.”

Meng Jingzhou slapped Man Gu on the shoulder: “That’s called ‘going with the flow’.”

“Brother Meng is indeed knowledgeable.”

Meng Jingzhou: “…”

The three arrived at a bamboo grove where Senior Brother Ji Hongwen was taking a nap in a gazebo. The moment they stepped into the grove, he woke up.

Lu Yang shook his head, this sleep quality was far inferior to Fairy Eternity’s.

Even now, Fairy Eternity was still asleep, sleeping very soundly indeed.

“You’re here?” Senior Brother Ji greeted them with a smile.

“Greetings, Senior Brother Ji!” The trio saluted and spoke in unison.

Senior Brother Ji put on a serious expression: “Man Gu asked me to teach him a Confucian magic skill, and I see no problem with it. However, learning these skills is notoriously difficult and you may not manage to master them. You three are all geniuses, and I hope that even if you fail to learn, you will not be disheartened.”

Man Gu looked at Lu Yang confidently: “Brother Lu’s talent in magic far surpasses mine, he’ll definitely be able to learn it!”

Senior Brother Ji shook his head and smiled, thinking that Man Gu had exaggerated his words.

Other than Eldest Senior Sister, who could guarantee they can definitely learn when they study magic skills?

“The magic skill I’m going to teach you is called ‘Draw the Ground into a Prison.'”

“You all should have heard of this magic skill. All you need to do is draw a circle on the ground, and your opponent can be confined within it. Combine this with a fierce offensive, they have nowhere to run and must endure your attack!”

Their eyes brightened. They hadn’t expected this magic skill, known as Draw the Ground into a Prison, to be so well-known.

Simply drawing a circle to confine the opponent was incredibly elegant, a truly first-rate Immortal Technique!

“Let me show you.”

Senior Brother Ji extended a finger, using his hand as a brush, he lightly drew a circle around Lu Yang and the others. They found themselves blocked by an invisible barrier, unable to leave.

Man Gu and Meng Jingzhou tried to burst through the barrier using brute strength, but to no avail.

Lu Yang wanted to use a technique to escape underground, but he was solidly knocked to the ground and also failed.

“Haha, that’s Draw the Ground into a Prison.” Senior Brother Ji casually erased the circle.

“To master Draw the Ground into a Prison, you must first be able to draw a circle freehand, and secondly, memorize the incantation.”

Senior Brother Ji asked the three to draw circles. The circles they drew were crooked and meandering, like circles made by a few caterpillars.

“Look at what you’ve drawn, it’s like an egg.” Meng Jingzhou mocked Lu Yang.

Lu Yang glanced at Meng Jingzhou’s drawing: “Yours is worse than mine, it’s like a tea egg.”

“Tea eggs are worth more than your egg.”

“They’re more trouble to make.”

The point of their argument gradually veered away from the drawing.

“Practice more, it’s not hard for a cultivator to control their body to draw.” Senior Brother Ji instructed the three, and Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou finally stopped their pointless squabble.

Sure enough, as Senior Brother Ji said, as long as they consciously controlled their bodies, they could draw circles freehand very quickly.

“Next, I’ll teach you an incantation. Listen carefully, not only do you need to remember the words, but also the tones of each word!”

“The power cannot enter, the argument cannot counter…”

The three listened carefully, trying hard to remember each word and its tone. After a few stumbles and falls, they finally memorized it all.

“In the end, the most difficult part is to utterly comprehend the incantation. The natural circulation of the spiritual essence within your body can cast the spell successfully!”

Ji Hongwen warned the three that they could not afford to slack off when learning to Draw the Ground into a Prison.

Man Gu silently recited the mantra, trying to cast Draw the Ground into a Prison. He circled himself round and round, but never succeeded.

Meng Jingzhou was a bit better than Man Gu, probably because he was more insightful. After many attempts, a few circles occasionally formed an invisible cage. But the success rate was too low, it could certainly not be used in actual combat.

“Don’t worry if you can’t get it yet. When I was learning this magic skill, I was at the Golden Core stage. Even then, I still needed five days to master it.” Ji Hongwen, fearful of demoralizing them, did not tell them he had actually learned it in two days.

“Let’s see how Lu Yang is doing?”

At the moment, Lu Yang’s eyes were closed, and the mantra repeated itself in his mind over and over. He imagined himself to be the creator of the spell, picturing the mindset he would have when creating it.

Lu Yang opened his eyes, which shone brightly.

“I’ve got it!” Lu Yang’s voice was full of confidence, both composed and unrestrained, like a master with fifty years of martial arts training, defeating a strong enemy with ease on the arena.

Lu Yang’s voice caught the attention of Meng Jingzhou and Man Gu, who stopped their practice to observe Lu Yang’s progress.

Could Lu Yang actually succeed in one go?

Even Man Gu, who was immensely impressed by Lu Yang’s talent for magic skills, did not think that Lu Yang could be successful.

At least practice a few more times.

Following Senior Brother Ji’s method, Lu Yang extended his forefinger and drew a perfect circle around himself.

“Draw the Ground into a Prison!”

Then, Lu Yang noticed a change in the scenery around him.

Dark and lifeless, completely silent, he was trapped by pillars, with heavy soil overhead.

This was dungeon.

Lu Yang: “….So what I’ve learned is how to ‘draw a dungeon’?”