Urban Immortal Cultivation Supreme

A sudden flash of silver light gleamed from Zhu Bufan's body, causing ripples across the lake. The fish at the lake's bottom fled towards the shore in fright from the unexpected glow. An elder was also awakened by the commotion in the lake and opened his eyes to look at Zhu Bufan, who was floating on the water's surface. Seeing the silver light emanating from Zhu Bufan, the elder stretched lazily, smacked his lips a few times, and said, "This kid has finally woken up. Oh dear, if he slept any longer, these old bones of mine wouldn't be able to take it." With that, he stood up, squinting slightly as he gazed at Zhu Bufan.

The silver light gradually receded, and Zhu Bufan twitched his finger, immediately causing a small ripple on the lake's surface. Abruptly, Zhu Bufan opened his eyes and was surprised to find himself floating on the water, suddenly feeling startled. Instantly, he sank with a splash into the lake's bottom. Everything happened so swiftly and unexpectedly that Zhu Bufan had swallowed a few mouthfuls of lake water before he could react. Fortunately, he had encountered similar situations in the mountains before, so he quickly held his breath, relaxed his body, and twisted himself towards the water's surface.

With a whoosh, Zhu Bufan emerged from the water's surface, gasping for air, and began swimming toward the shore with determination. He did not see the elder, instead choosing another direction to swim. Upon reaching the shore, Zhu Bufan felt somewhat exhausted, and his stomach timely grumbled. Lying on the grass, Zhu Bufan helplessly patted his stomach, and after catching his breath, he sat up. Only now did he have the time to examine his surroundings.

Surrounding him was a woodland encircling the lake, with only one path leading out. On his right, a little ways ahead, was a small wooden cabin. Seeing the cabin, Zhu Bufan felt delighted. A cabin might mean people, and where there are people, there might be food. This was Zhu Bufan's immediate thought; danger did not cross his mind.

Zhu Bufan stood up and strode towards the cabin. He moved quickly, practically running. When he reached the cabin, he discovered an elderly man sitting by the lake, fishing. Zhu Bufan approached politely and said, "Hello, elder. Could you tell me what place this is?"

The elder slowly turned his head towards Zhu Bufan and replied with a raspy voice, "You don't know where you are? Then how did you get here?"

Zhu Bufan was taken aback by the elder's response and stammered, "I don't know either. I just woke up here." No sooner had he spoken than his stomach grumbled again, causing Zhu Bufan to scratch the back of his head bashfully. He then said, "Elder, do you have anything to eat? Could you give me something?"

The elder, intrigued by Zhu Bufan's red face, pointed to a small wooden table in front of the cabin. On the table was a platter of fruit. Zhu Bufan understood the elder's gesture and quickly thanked him repeatedly, then seated himself at the small table, contemplating the oddly-shaped, strangely-colored fruit on the table. He wondered if the fruit was edible, but his hunger was too intense to care otherwise. He picked up a red, pear-like fruit and bit into it.

It was fragrant, refreshing, and exceptionally crisp. Zhu Bufan devoured the fist-sized fruit in a few big bites. Unsatisfied with just one, he grabbed another purple fruit and devoured it in the same manner. As he reached for the third fruit, the elder suddenly appeared beside him and grabbed his hand, stopping his actions.

"Two is enough," the elder said with a smile.

With the host's gentle prohibition, Zhu Bufan felt embarrassed to take more fruit. However, inwardly, he grumbled about the elder's overprotectiveness. It's just a few fruits, even if they're peculiar in appearance, they shouldn't be so precious, right? It's not like I wouldn't pay for them. Despite his thoughts, Zhu Bufan kept a smile on his face as he stood up and said, "Thank you, elder."

The elder glanced at Zhu Bufan with a smile and said, "You seem to have mixed thoughts. But never mind, you don't know the fruit's effects yet."

Caught by the elder's words, Zhu Bufan's face flushed again, wishing he could find a crack to hide in. After a brief silence, Zhu Bufan spoke up, "Elder, what place is this?"

The elder scrutinized Zhu Bufan up and down, then, instead of answering, said, "Quick, sit cross-legged and circulate your Qi."

Zhu Bufan did not understand why the elder suddenly said this, but as soon as the elder finished speaking, Zhu Bufan suddenly felt a burning sensation in his abdomen, and then an uncontrollable surge of Qi began to rush around wildly inside his body. Zhu Bufan hurriedly sat down cross-legged and followed the elder's advice to begin circulating his Qi. Balancing the raging Qi within, the burning sensation in his abdomen vanished without a trace. Zhu Bufan let out a breath and opened his eyes; the hunger was gone, replaced by a feeling of power throughout his body.

Standing up, Zhu Bufan looked at the elder, puzzled by the previous situation caused by the two fruits. He had never encountered such a situation before, which is why he could be so certain. Zhu Bufan bowed to the elder and said, "Thank you, elder!" It was a heartfelt gratitude.

The elder, smiling broadly, gestured for Zhu Bufan to sit, and he himself seated. The elder seemed cheerful; at least, his demeanor suggested so. "Kid, very good. You've absorbed the essence from those two fruits so quickly," the elder said.

Zhu Bufan did not know how to respond and merely stared at the elder, dumbfounded.

"Kid, where does your power come from?" The elder asked his first question.

Faced with this question, Zhu Bufan had no idea how to answer. After thinking for a moment, he said, "I learned it from my master." This was all he could come up with. He had indeed learned the art of Qi cultivation from Yichen, although later he modified the path of his own meridians.

"Oh, your master is also an ancient cultivator?" The elder was curious. If someone had cultivated ancient methods, they should know where they were. Moreover, judging by the aura Zhu Bufan emitted, he seemed to have reached the fifth level of the "Divine Void" Realm, the Real Realm. It was strange for someone at this level to know nothing about these things.

"What is an ancient cultivator?" Zhu Bufan did not understand the elder's meaning. He knew cultivators were beings distinct from superpower users, gaining power through self-strengthening. Xiao Ruo and Long Feiyun were cultivators.

"An ancient cultivator is one who has received ancient inheritance. You are one," the elder said, looking at Zhu Bufan. He couldn't understand why this ancient cultivator knew nothing.

"I'm just a beginner cultivator; I haven't received any ancient inheritance," Zhu Bufan seemed to understand finally. It turned out the elder was mistaken.

"You're not an ancient cultivator, then what about your power?" The elder was silent for a moment. "You should have received some strange memories, like meridian maps or mnemonics, right? Your master should have taught you those." The elder tried to prompt Zhu Bufan's memory.

"My master only taught me some simple mnemonics. As for meridian maps, I do have them," Zhu Bufan thought for a moment before responding. He was unsure what kind of meridian maps the elder referred to. Yichen had merely explained the meridian pathways to Zhu Bufan, and the rest was taught by Xiao Ruo.

"Is it such a meridian map?" The elder drew three simple meridian maps on the ground consecutively. These were the three meridian pathways he knew, all from ancient times.

Zhu Bufan scrutinized the three meridian maps and finally confirmed the last one was indeed the meridian map he cultivated. He pointed to the third map and asked, "How do you know the meridian map I cultivate with?"

"How did you acquire it?" The elder's face immediately lit up with excitement.

Zhu Bufan didn't understand why the elder was so thrilled but still truthfully said, "This map suddenly appeared in my mind." He pointed to his head.

"Your master didn't pass it to you?" The elder was a bit disappointed but still held out hope.

"No," Zhu Bufan shook his head, replying confidently.

The elder suddenly seemed very disappointed, sitting down in a chair and muttering, "I didn't expect them..." Whatever followed wasn't said, but his expression indicated it wasn't good.

Unexpectedly, the elder began to cry, leaving Zhu Bufan bewildered and frozen, staring at the elder.

As a person with deep cultivation, the elder quickly composed himself, then looked at Zhu Bufan and said, "Since you can obtain ancient inheritance and come here, it means there is fate between us. Stay here for now, and I will teach you how to use your power." The elder recalled when Zhu Bufan barged in, fleeing from that person. It was a significant trouble, after all, and he needed someone to help.

Overjoyed to hear the elder was willing to teach him, Zhu Bufan happily agreed, ignoring all else, and nodded repeatedly, saying yes. Thus, Zhu Bufan stayed on, beginning his first formal cultivation in the Virtual Realm with the elder.