187: Chapter 187 The Difference Between Immortals and Mortals, A Gift of Poverty

At this moment, a young Disciple stood before the gate of his home, looking at his white-haired father. It took him a long time to squeeze out a complete sentence, "Father, I am going to the Immortal Realm for Ascension. I came back to see you this time, and I do not know when I will be able to return again."

His father fell silent for a moment, then raised his hand and patted his shoulder, "Go on. The Immortal Realm is a grander stage. Cultivate well, and just make sure not to bring shame upon the Gu Family."

After saying this, the Disciple simply bowed his head and knocked it against the ground three times in silence!

Another Disciple returned to his Family. His mother was sitting in the courtyard mending an old garment. Seeing him return, she stood up and said with a choked voice, "When you reach the Immortal Realm, take good care of yourself."

"If you cannot come back, that is alright. Do not worry about home; everything at home is fine."

There were also Disciples who returned to their homes in remote little towns. One father was sitting on the threshold smoking a dry pipe, "I heard you are going to the Immortal Realm?"

The Disciple nodded.

"Then live well, and do not die on the road."

After saying this, he took a deep drag of his pipe and continued, "I do not know if the two of us will ever have a chance to meet again!"

This departure might be their last chance to meet in this lifetime!

The path to immortality is a distinct journey; they knew this day would come when they first stepped onto this path!

Those Disciples also knew this was the path they had to take, and that they would inevitably experience these things!

Some Disciples, all alone, looked at the places where they used to play, now abandoned and cold!

They came here just to take a few more looks, leaving behind those lingering memories.

Meanwhile!

A Gu Family Disciple hurried over to Gu Qingshan, "Young Master Qingshan, there is a young woman who has been waiting for you in the East Room. She will not eat or drink, insisting only on waiting for you. We have no idea what to do!"

Gu Qingshan thought for a moment before remembering who they were talking about—the girl he had casually brought back from outside the Mountain Gate.

It seemed her name was Su Nian.

Gu Qingshan asked, "How long has it been?"

"Since she was settled in yesterday until now, she has not caused any trouble; she just sits in the room."

Gu Qingshan waved his hand to show he understood, and the Disciple quickly retreated.

Then, he decided to go and see what was going on.

When he reached the door of the East Room, he did not push it open immediately.

He stood by the door for a moment and took a look from the outside.

At this moment, Su Nian was sitting on a chair by the window, wearing a new set of clothes, and her hair had been restyled; she looked much cleaner than she did outside the Mountain Gate.

She was not crying, nor was she dazed; she was simply sitting there quietly.

Such a young woman was quite rare; Gu Qingshan had seen too many people who, upon entering the Gu Family Mountain Gate, would gawk at everything in sight!

They acted as if the entire Gu Family was filled with treasures!

Although it was indeed filled with treasures, those people lacked even a shred of restraint!

In contrast, Su Nian was just sitting quietly.

Perhaps it was because she did not understand the value of these things!

Gu Qingshan pushed the door open and walked in.

Su Nian heard the sound and looked up. Recognizing Gu Qingshan, she did not hesitate to stand up, walk over to him, and kneel down immediately.

"Young Master Qingshan, thank you for saving me. If not for you, I do not know what would have happened to me. Thank you!" Her voice was a bit hoarse.

After saying this, she lowered her head, intending to kowtow to express her gratitude.

Gu Qingshan immediately pulled her up, "No need to kneel, no need to kneel."

He was inwardly puzzled as to why these people always wanted to kowtow whenever they thanked someone.

He had simply been unable to bear seeing such a young girl being dragged around by an old person!

He let go of her hand and then asked, "I heard you are not eating? Are you not used to the food in the Gu Family?"

Su Nian was stunned for a moment; she had not expected him to ask about that first.

She shook her head, "No, I just wanted to see my benefactor and thank you in person."

Gu Qingshan looked at her for a moment, "You still need to eat. You have not eaten for the past two days; your body will not be able to hold up."

Su Nian was silent for a moment, then nodded gently, "Okay."

Gu Qingshan did not say anything else. He turned around and walked two steps toward the door, stopping at the edge of the doorway,

"Eat your meal first. If you need anything, have someone come find me."

...

"What the hell? You brought her back and didn't touch her?"

"Yes! Young Master Qingshan has not seen that Su Nian for these past few days."

Elder Gu Kong's eyelid twitched upon hearing the report from his spy!

A bad thought sprouted in his mind!

Could it be that Qingshan is...

Holy crap?!

That is impossible!

How could his son be like that? Besides, he is at the age where he should be full of vigor!

He knew his own son best; it was absolutely impossible for him to be that way. Could it be that the brat is just too shy?

That is possible!

In that case, Father will give you a hand!!

Elder Gu Kong let his imagination run wild for a moment, then immediately ordered a Disciple to have that young girl come see him!

"Go, call that young girl over and tell her I have something to say to her."

The Disciple hurried off to find Su Nian.

At this moment, Su Nian was standing in front of the kitchen stove, with several dishes of freshly cooked side dishes laid out in front of her!

Steam was still rising from the pot, mixed with the unique, delicate fragrance of spiritual plants, drifting up from the bottom of the pot and slowly spreading throughout the kitchen!

She had only been brought to the kitchen this morning.

After eating the food, she felt that she could not just keep idling, so she asked a passing Utility Disciple if the kitchen needed any help.

The Disciple saw that she was a young woman and thought she should be nimble-handed, so he took her to the kitchen.

As it turned out, she had not stopped since!

Washing vegetables, chopping, seasoning, stir-frying—her movements were agile, and she was proficient in everything!

It was dazzling to watch!

The stove was not unfamiliar to her; she had been standing by the stove since she was eight years old.

Back then, she was not even as tall as the stove and had to stand on a small stool to see what was in the pot.

Now she was 20 years old, and her culinary skills were quite superb!

Perhaps this was the gift that poverty had given her!

Several Gu Family Disciples nearby had originally just been passing by, but upon smelling the fragrance, they could not help but stop in their tracks!

A Disciple holding an empty bowl leaned in to take a look and could not help himself, "Miss Su, what is this you are making? Why does it smell so good?"

Su Nian looked up at him without stopping what she was doing, "Just ordinary home-cooked food, minced meat soup with spiritual plants, with a bit of homemade sauce added."

She scooped a bowl and handed it over, "Would you like to taste it?"

The Disciple took it, lowered his head, and took a sip, and then he went completely silent!

This was simply too delicious!

Although Cultivators could practice inedia and not eat, many Cultivators still enjoyed eating such things.

Inedia pills were indeed useful for seclusion, but in the Gu Family, they were completely unnecessary!

A Breakthrough would happen in two or three days; there was simply no need for such seclusion!

Outside, one had to race against time to Cultivate, fearing that even a second would be wasted,

but in the Gu Family, there was absolutely no need for that!

"Is this really home-cooked food?" He took another sip and then looked up at Su Nian, "Did you used to run a restaurant? How did you make it so delicious!"

Su Nian shook her head, "No, I am just used to cooking."

Several other Disciples nearby also gathered around, each taking a bowl. Even after finishing, they were in no rush to put their bowls down!