Chapter 387: The truth is revealed

Zu An's heart skipped a beat. He quickly said, "Of course, Senior has been very good to me; you've shown me an immense kindness, almost like a life-giver." After all, if it weren't for the Phoenix Nirvana Sutra he provided, Zu An wouldn't have had the foundation for cultivation, nor would he have been able to activate the keyboard system.

"You're a grateful young man. My efforts weren't wasted," Old Mi said, nodding with satisfaction.

Zu An couldn't help but feel curious. What exactly was Old Mi trying to do by saying all this?

Old Mi continued, "You heard our conversation just now. I've never had a sworn son or a disciple in my life. In a way, you are both my sworn son and my successor."

Seeing Old Mi barely clinging to life, his voice growing faint, Zu An's heart softened. "Senior, your immense kindness is something I'll never forget. If you don't mind, I can take care of you in your old age and see you off."

"It's rare to find such filial piety in a young man," Old Mi chuckled, "but unfortunately, I won't have that fortune."

"Is your injury really that severe, Senior? With your cultivation, you should be able to recover after a period of rest, right?" Zu An even considered offering him healing medicine. He had the instant-recovery red potions and Ji Dengtu's sacred healing medicine, the "Jade Marrow Rejuvenation Pill," which should be able to cure Old Mi's injuries. However, recalling the scene where Old Mi and Wei Dan schemed against each other, combined with some recent suspicions, Zu An decided to wait a bit longer. Anyway, as long as Old Mi still had a breath left, Zu An was confident he could save him.

"It's no use. I know my injuries best," Old Mi immediately continued. "Don't waste time. I need to use these last moments to impart all my knowledge to you. That way, even if I die, someone will remember my existence through you in the future."

Zu An frowned. "Senior, you should rest and recover first. We can talk about the teachings later."

"Good, good, you're a cautious young man. I didn't misjudge you," Old Mi said, his smile suddenly becoming stern. "But this is not the time to decline. If heaven offers, and you refuse, you'll suffer for it."

Zu An had no choice but to say, "Thank you, Senior!"

"Listen carefully," Old Mi said, sitting on the ground and gasping for breath. "I've already taught you my most prized skill, the Sunflower Mirage. Now, there's also the Sunflower One-Finger; remember the incantation well. 'When the Yang energy of heaven and earth arises, calm your mind and spirit, cast aside all distracting thoughts, imagine a celestial maiden arriving with incense, and primal energy will emerge from your Qi Sea, passing through...'"

Seeing that Old Mi was genuinely imparting a cultivation technique, Zu An quickly cast aside all distracting thoughts, meticulously memorizing the incantation. At the same time, he secretly pondered and savored it, realizing it was indeed profound and extensive.

After Old Mi finished speaking, he asked, "The incantation is complete. How much of it did you remember?"

"I remembered all of it," Zu An replied instinctively.

"All of it?" Old Mi frowned. "How is that possible? Young man, don't lie. While I still have breath, hurry and ask if there's anything you don't remember."

Zu An's heart jumped. He knew his transcendent talent allowed him to learn things quickly, but Old Mi was unaware of this. Recalling Jiang Luofu's warning, he dared not reveal this. He quickly said, "Actually, I only remembered half of it."

"Fifty percent?" Old Mi snorted. "If you only remembered that much, why were you boasting just now!" Perhaps realizing his words were a bit harsh, his voice softened a few shades. "Actually, with your aptitude, comprehending fifty percent is already quite good. Pay attention, I'll repeat it a few more times. You must remember it thoroughly."

"Okay," Zu An said, revealing a sheepish smile. Yet, he wondered inwardly, if Old Mi believed he was dying, did he really have so much time to explain and repeat it over and over?

Next, Old Mi repeated the incantation for "Sunflower One-Finger" several times, while also explaining some of the difficult points. After hearing it several times, Zu An had already committed it to memory. He even felt that if he were to use it now, even if its power was far inferior to Old Mi's, he would likely be able to perform "Sunflower One-Finger."

His eyes suddenly darted, and he said with a fawning smile, "Senior, that move you used to escape Wei Dan's Heaven-Net-Earth-Snare formation just now was really cool! Every single one of your footprints even created a lotus flower."

Old Mi chuckled reproachfully, "You little rascal, trying every trick to hint that I should teach you that technique! Hmph, it's not that I won't teach it, but your cultivation level is too low. That skill is too far beyond you; even if I taught you, you wouldn't be able to learn it."

"How would you know if I don't try? Maybe I'm a prodigy and could learn it?" Thinking of how flashy that move was, Zu An practically drooled. If he learned it and used it in front of many girls, even a frosty snow maiden would have hearts in her eyes. Of course, with his handsome and dashing appearance, he didn't really need this to impress everyone, but having an extra skill wouldn't hurt.

Seeing Old Mi still hesitating, Zu An quickly said, "Senior, don't you want me to inherit all your unique skills? How can you leave out this most powerful 'Step-by-Step Lotus'?"

"What you said makes sense," Old Mi sighed. "Alright, I'll pass on this Step-by-Step Lotus to you. However, this skill is beyond your current comprehension. How about this: I'll imprint it onto a wisp of spiritual consciousness, a seed, and then embed it into your body. That way, once your cultivation reaches a certain level, this skill will automatically appear in your mind."

Zu An was taken aback. "It needs to be that complicated?" The thought of Old Mi's spiritual consciousness entering his body always made him subconsciously resistant, but the allure of the Step-by-Step Lotus made it hard for him to refuse.

At this moment, Old Mi slowly stood up and tottered over to him. A purple glow emanated from his fingertip, as if holding a seed, and a faint outline of a small sunflower could be seen on the seed. Although this sunflower was smaller than any other sunflower he had seen before, it was crystal clear and shimmered with iridescent light. It felt more powerful than any sunflower technique Old Mi had displayed previously.

"Relax your mind and body. Do not resist in the slightest, or the transmission will fail. In my current state, I cannot condense a second seed," Old Mi said solemnly.

Zu An uttered a soft sound, feeling a faint sense of unease in his heart, though he couldn't pinpoint what exactly was wrong.

Old Mi's finger slowly moved towards Zu An's glabella. As the distance grew shorter, a hint of a triumphant smile gradually appeared at the corner of his mouth. From the very beginning, he had deliberately pretended to be on his deathbed, looking for a successor. He even went as far as to impart his signature skill, "Sunflower One-Finger," all to gradually lower Zu An's guard. Through their interactions over these past days, he knew that while Zu An's strength wasn't impressive, he was as cunning as a ghost. Therefore, Old Mi dared not be careless in the slightest. It was well known that the method of spiritual possession was extremely perilous and had a chance of failure. The stronger the target's will to resist, the higher the chance of failure. Conversely, if the target had no defenses, the probability of success approached one. That was why he had gone to such great lengths.

Noticing the smile at the corner of Old Mi's lips, the unease in Zu An's heart intensified. When the sunflower was just an inch from his forehead, he didn't know why, but he felt every hair on his body stand on end. It was as if every single cell in his body was screaming "extreme danger" at him. He didn't need to think; his body instinctively executed the Sunflower Mirage, retreating tens of feet away.

Old Mi trembled. He hadn't expected such a turn of events. He abruptly looked up at Zu An. "You've already unsealed it?"

Zu An chuckled awkwardly. "Perhaps the restrictions in my body loosened quite a bit when I fell from the tree just now. I recovered without realizing it, instinctively tried it out, and unexpectedly ended up here."

Old Mi's face darkened. "Come over quickly! It wasn't easy for me to condense this seed, and it will disappear soon. Then you won't be able to learn the Step-by-Step Lotus."

Zu An waved his hand. "Uh, Senior, I suddenly don't want to learn it anymore. Perhaps you should teach this unique skill to someone else with excellent aptitude."

Old Mi snorted. "At this point, who else can I find? Come here!"

Hearing the grimness and urgency in his tone, Zu An was even more hesitant to let Old Mi teach him. He chuckled, "No, really, it's fine."

Old Mi's face turned cold. "You don't have a choice in this!" With that, he flickered, extending his hand to grab Zu An.