"Senior!" Upon seeing this scene, Qin Wentian's heart trembled as he exclaimed in shock. Squatting down, he wanted to check on the condition of Gùng Hong's injuries.
However, he only saw Gùng Hong waving his hands, his eyes still staring at the empty space. His empty eyes were filled with despair, grief, regret, pain, and all sorts of other negative emotions. Anyone who looked at him would be able to feel the deep sorrow in his heart.
"Senior, please take care of yourself." Qin Wentian sighed in his heart when he saw the expression in Gùng Hong's eyes. He knew that Senior Gùng must have had an extraordinary past.
"Living and dying together, living and dying together … twenty plus years, everything was wrong. I wholeheartedly wanted to comprehend the Divine Inscriptions within the four paintings, and because of this, I started to study Divine Inscriptions. But sadly, I was wrong from the start." Gùng Hong's voice was filled with helplessness and sorrow, as though he was mumbling to himself.
"If I knew that she didn't want me to comprehend the Divine Inscriptions, and only wanted me to unravel the four innate techniques within the four paintings, I believed that I would at most need half a year's time to unravel them. After all, I've seen and recognized these four innate techniques before. In fact, I might even be able to unravel them within two to three months. Time was more than enough, but I still spent over twenty years."
Gùng Hong continued. Qin Wentian knew that Gùng Hong was right. If Gùng Hong knew that the four innate techniques contained within the four paintings, based on his experience and comprehension, half a year would be more than enough. After all, he was familiar with the four innate techniques, and was even able to unleash them. However, Gùng Hong's direction was completely wrong.
"I've always claimed to be carefree and unrestrained, but in reality, I'm inferior, cowardly, and cold-blooded. I've let you down." A teardrop rolled down from the corner of Gùng Hong's eyes. He laid there like a dead man.
There was nothing more sorrowful than a dead heart. His heart, at this moment, was as cold as ice.
At this moment, Qin Wentian saw Gùng Hong's disheveled hair slowly turning white, causing his heart to tremble.
"Senior, it's already been over twenty years. Why must you do this?"
Qin Wentian persuaded. What kind of despair and agony could cause one's hair to turn white in an instant? In an instant, the black hair on Gongsun Hong's head turned silver. Gongsun Hong seemed to have aged tens of years in an instant.
With his eyes closed, Qin Wentian sat beside him, not knowing what to say.
The 'she' he was talking about should be a woman. Otherwise, why would he leave behind the words' we'll stick together in life and death '?
However, what Qin Wentian didn't understand was that since the woman had such deep feelings for him, why didn't she tell Gùng Hong to his face, leaving behind decades of regret and misunderstanding?
Gùng Hong closed his eyes, as though he had lost all signs of life. Qin Wentian sighed, but didn't disturb him. He sat down not far away from Gùng Hong and didn't leave, as he was worried that something might have happened to Gùng Hong.
Very swiftly, another night arrived as Astral Light cascaded down from the Heavens, landing on Qin Wentian's body. In his dreams, he was currently cultivating. His entire person was bathed in the Astral Light, tranquil and peaceful. Bits of Astral Energy unceasingly flowed into his body, circulating through his Arterial Pathways and acupoints, circulating through the Heavenly Cycle.
At this moment, Gùng Hong opened his eyes. He inclined his head and stared at the starlight in the sky, as an intense sense of disappointment could be seen in his eyes.
"Everything is your own doing." Gùng Hong stared at the empty space as he murmured in his heart.
"Back then, she was extremely talented and had countless pursuers. Although you appeared to be confident and at ease, didn't you feel inferior in your heart? If you didn't feel inferior, why didn't you feel that way after spending so much time with her, could it be that you couldn't sense her feelings for you?"
"Back then, she rejected eighteen marriage proposals, and those she rejected were all demon-level geniuses from the various great sects. None of them were inferior to you, so why did she reject them? Why did she tell you all these? But, you felt inferior, useless, and didn't even dare to open your mouth to express your feelings. "
"Back then, everyone was jealous of you. Why were they jealous? Because she was only close to you, and because of jealousy, she heavily injured you. Because of this, she begged her father for medicine for you. But on the nineteenth marriage proposal, she maintained her silence. Could it be that you really couldn't see the reason behind it?"
"Even when she came to see you for the last time, you still didn't open your mouth to express anything. You didn't say anything at all. She left behind four paintings, and gave you a year's time. Even if you didn't comprehend the paintings in this one year, as long as you opened your mouth, she would still choose to leave with you regardless of the price. Because of these four words, together in life and death."
"But, you still didn't. You personally witnessed her getting married to someone else, and even stared at her with indifference in your eyes, watching everything unfold. Could it be that you couldn't see the despair and coldness in her eyes when she looked at you? Gùng Hong, you truly deserve to die."
Gùng Hong thought back to the events that happened over twenty years ago. In his heart, there was only pain. He stared at the night sky in a daze, lonely and desolate.
The morning air was slightly damp. In the bamboo forest ahead, sparkling and translucent dewdrops could be seen.
Qin Wentian opened his eyes, only to see Gùng Hong sitting there. Gùng Hong's silvery hair draped over his shoulders, causing him to appear exceptionally old. Qin Wentian called out, "Senior."
"You're awake." Gùng Hong turned his gaze over, as he smiled at Qin Wentian, as though he had just woken up from the madness he experienced yesterday. This caused Qin Wentian to silently heave a sigh of relief.
"Mhm." Qin Wentian nodded his head.
"How did you manage to link Divine Imprints and innate techniques together?" Gùng Hong curiously asked. Back then, she was also a heaven-defying genius, and was proficient in Divine Imprints. Twenty years ago, she was able to inscribe four paintings for him. This was the best proof. Not only that, she was the same as Qin Wentian, and had long since discovered the connection between Divine Imprints and innate techniques.
"It was also a stroke of inspiration. I cultivated a type of innate technique before, and I needed to borrow the power of Divine Imprints. After that, I gained some insights into Divine Imprints, and unknowingly, I managed to link the two together." Qin Wentian smiled as he replied.
Gùng Hong stared at the clean smile on the young man's face, and involuntarily thought back to the time when he was young. Sadly, he had wasted over twenty years of his life, and the only thing left behind was regret.
"If you meet a girl that can move your heart, don't miss this opportunity. You must take the initiative to speak to her."
Gùng Hong abruptly spoke to Qin Wentian, causing Qin Wentian to be stunned. Wasn't this sudden change a little too great?
Smiling foolishly, Qin Wentian nodded his head, "Okay."
However, up until now, he had yet to meet a girl that could truly move his heart. If he wanted to talk about his heart being moved, it would be the scene of that day in the snow.
Snowflakes drifted down from the sky, and the young girl sitting on the ground with him, calling him a dumbo, before leaving with a smile on her face. That scene was truly beautiful.
"What am I thinking about?" Qin Wentian bitterly smiled as he shook his head.
"Remember, don't miss this opportunity. If not, you will regret it for the rest of your life." Gùng Hong sighed deeply, as he continued, "You are able to link Divine Imprints and innate techniques together, but have you ever tried to link your Astral Souls with your innate techniques?"
"Senior, the attacks of innate techniques all contain a strand of energy from the Astral Souls within. Different Astral Souls can imbue different amounts of Astral Energy into the innate techniques you cultivate. As for a deeper connection, this junior has yet to unravel it." Qin Wentian replied.
Although this was what he said, in reality, Qin Wentian already had this feeling. Back then when he fought against Yanaro and Luo Qianqiu, he had already faintly sensed that he wanted to infuse Dream Force into his attacks.
"You should know that above Yuanfu is the Heavenly Dipper Realm, right? But do you know what the symbol of a Heavenly Dipper Realm is?" Gùng Hong asked Qin Wentian.
"Junior doesn't know." Qin Wentian replied. Currently, he was only at the Arterial Circulation Realm. How could he possibly come into contact with someone at the Heavenly Dipper Realm? Heavenly Dipper Realm was already enough to stand at the pinnacle of Chu.
"When you condense your Astral Nova, your Astral Nova is also known as your Astral Soul. At that time, your Astral Soul would be the most direct form of combat prowess. A powerful Astral Nova is even more tyrannical compared to divine weapons." Gùng Hong explained to Qin Wentian, "Sooner or later, your Astral Soul will be transformed into an innate technique. However, the amount of resources required to condense an Astral Nova is simply too great. From the Yuanfu Realm to the Heavenly Dipper Realm, there's a huge gap."
"Many people have no way to cross this Heavenly Boundary in their entire lives. This includes those with outstanding talent. If you can infuse your Astral Soul into your combat prowess earlier, in the future when you condense your Astral Nova, you would have a deeper comprehension and would have an easier time compared to others."
Gùng Hong guided Qin Wentian, as Qin Wentian listened seriously. This was the insights of a senior, an extremely valuable experience.
"Look into my eyes." Gùng Hong spoke to Qin Wentian. Qin Wentian stared into Gùng Hong's eyes, only to see a pair of eyes of death staring into his eyes. It was as though an intent of death rushed into his mind. Luckily, that intent of death instantly vanished, but in that instant, it still caused Qin Wentian's heart to palpitate wildly.
Just a single gaze was already so terrifying.
"This is the fusion of my Astral Soul and my innate technique, the Eyes of Death. This innate technique can only be cultivated by those with a similar level of Astral Soul." Gùng Hong continued, "Hence, you must always remember to use your Astral Soul. In the future, it will be your strongest weapon, and also the crux to raising your cultivation base."
"Many thanks for Senior's guidance." Qin Wentian bowed.
"Just some words of experience, how can it be considered as guidance? If it wasn't for you, I'm afraid that I would still be unable to decipher these four paintings." Gùng Hong sighed, "Qin Wentian, the direction you've comprehended is correct. Astral Souls, Divine Imprints, innate techniques, all of these are for the sake of cultivation. As the saying goes, all rivers flow into the sea, the Great Dao originates from the same source. Work hard in your cultivation, live your life well, and don't have any regrets."
"You, go ahead. These four paintings were solved by you, so I'll gift them to you." Gùng Hong treated Qin Wentian as a junior.
Qin Wentian glanced at the silver-haired Gùng Hong, as he received the paintings in his hands. Standing up, he bowed once more before retreating!
"Senior, take care. In the future, this junior will come and visit Senior often." Qin Wentian left behind these words, as he stepped into the bamboo forest. Little Rascal scuttled out from the side, following behind him!
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