At midnight, beneath the earth of Mystic Valley, within the Eight Scenic Caves.
Gu An was sitting under a Green Vine Tree reading a book, his back against the main trunk, while two vine tendrils rested on his shoulders, gently kneading.
Suddenly, he put down the book in his hands and sat upright.
“What’s wrong, Master? Is the pressure too much?” The Green Vine Tree spoke in a weak female voice, sounding pitiful.
Gu An replied, “No, I have something to attend to and must go now.”
The Green Vine Tree trembled, quickly saying, “Master, don’t forget to bring some mutton next time!”
Gu An waved his hand and then disappeared on the spot.
With one step, he moved beyond the boundaries of the Supreme Sect and arrived atop a mountain, near the end of autumn. The chilly night wind blew, fluttering his robes as he gazed into the distance.
He sensed that Sky Dragon was in trouble.
Although he had not formed a pact with Sky Dragon, they had established a subtle connection since Sky Dragon’s birth, similar to the feeling he got when Sage Xuan Miao called out to him.
Following this subtle sensation, he extended his Divine Sense.
Soon, he locked onto a certain sect. His Divine Sense penetrated layer upon layer of Restriction and entered a Minor Heaven and Earth similar to the Star-Master Cave.
Oh?
The Ghost Mother of Ephemera and the Nine Nether Thirteen Evil!
These beings were battling with the Great Cultivators of the Ancient Sky Sect!
Gu An’s Divine Sense pinpointed Sky Dragon, and his facial expression turned strange.
The person battling Sky Dragon turned out to be Su Han!
Su Han’s aura had approached the Nascent Soul Realm, but it was wildly erratic, giving off the impression that he could deviate at any moment.
Though Sky Dragon was lazy, rarely cultivated, and loved to eat, it relied on its powerful innate abilities, so Su Han could not subdue it easily for the time being.
The twenty-zhang-long Sky Dragon writhed, occasionally spouting intense flames from its mouth. Su Han’s movements were ghost-like, deftly dodging while occasionally swinging his sword. The Sword Qi slashed across Sky Dragon’s body, causing its dragon blood to spurt continuously.
With his other hand, Su Han held a cloth bag, surprisingly collecting the blood of Sky Dragon.
After hesitating for a moment, Gu An decided to take action.
…
In the dim and turbid environment, Sky Dragon fled through the mountain wilderness while Su Han, wielding a bone sword, relentlessly pursued.
“Damn it… Who exactly are you? I’ll never let you off in the future!”
Sky Dragon bellowed, the vibrations shaking the forest. Its voice still youthful, reminiscent of a young boy.
A cold voice came from behind, “Hateful Heaven Divine Sword, Su Han.”
Sky Dragon’s dragon eyes constricted, obviously recognizing the name of the Hateful Heaven Divine Sword. Fear flashed in its eyes as it sped up, its body twisting like an eel.
Su Han soared into the air, flying up high before slashing down with his sword. The Sword Qi was vast, forming seven sword shadows that charged at Sky Dragon, each tail end adorned with several ghostly spirits, pushing the sword like terrifying ghosts under the night sky.
A dark purple demonic shadow suddenly appeared above Sky Dragon’s head, raised a hand and pinched, dispersing Su Han’s Sword Qi in mid-air.
Su Han’s eyes widened in shock.
It was him!
Su Han couldn’t forget the mysterious demonic shadow that had killed his master, Zhong Liang, recognizing it at a glance.
Boom!
A terrifying Divine Sense instantly struck his mind, causing him to faint and fall into the forest below.
Sky Dragon was also hit by the Divine Sense, falling unconscious instantly. Its massive dragon body followed, crashing to the ground and stirring up billowing dust.
Gu An approached Su Han, who lay on the grass, his life hanging by a thread.
At that moment, the Ghost Mother of Ephemera materialized in front of Su Han, knelt halfway, and said with a fist salute, “Please forgive us, Sect Hierarch. We didn’t know Sky Dragon was related to you!”
Her ghostly aura dissipated, revealing the pale face of a woman. Her gaze towards Gu An was filled with surprise.
Gu An coolly asked, “Are you the Ghost Mother of Ephemera?”
Although he had seen the Ghost Mother of Ephemera before, Sword Venerable Fudao had not, so he had to ask.
“I am indeed the Ghost Mother of Ephemera!” the Ghost Mother of Ephemera replied respectfully.
Gu An then said, “The Ancient Sky Sect is also under my protection. Sky Dragon is a Holy Beast of the Ancient Sky Sect, and I will not allow you to plunder it.”
By saying this, he made it clear he intervened because of the Ancient Sky Sect, not just for Sky Dragon.
The Ghost Mother of Ephemera cautiously asked, “Why do you protect both sects?”
Gu An retorted, “The Ephemera Sect has perished, why haven’t you returned to the Nine Nether Road?”
The Ghost Mother of Ephemera responded helplessly, “We indeed wish to return, but the path back through the Nine Nether Road has been blocked by cultivators of the Seven Stars Spirit Realm. We had no choice but to flee back here.”
Seven Stars Spirit Realm?
Hearing this, Gu An became more certain that the Seven Stars Spirit Realm was pushing behind the Demon catastrophe.
“Is this young man your disciple?” Gu An asked.
Ghost Mother of Ephemera looked at Gu An, surrounded by Demonic Qi, and hesitated for a moment before saying, “He is not my disciple, just a chess piece of mine. The great calamity of demons is imminent, and a huge disaster is about to befall the common people. I want to use this opportunity to cultivate him to become the strength that breaks through the Nine Nether Road.”
To use Su Han to combat the cultivators of the Seven Stars Spirit Realm within the Nine Nether Road?
Gu An couldn’t help but feel pity for Su Han, but he had no intention of rescuing him.
Su Han’s craving for power had become an obsession. Even without the Ghost Mother of Ephemera, he would still have taken the wrong path. In Su Han’s eyes, he hadn’t committed evil; he was merely striving to grow stronger.
The reason Gu An did not personally eliminate Su Han was that he had not heard of Su Han slaughtering ordinary people. True, many had died at Su Han’s hands, but they mostly had grievances with him, and most were people who sought to eliminate the Hateful Heaven Divine Sword, only to be counter-killed by him.
The Hateful Heaven Divine Sword was indeed a family sword technique passed down to Su Han, so he wasn’t truly a disciple of Gu An. Gu An had only provided him with some elixirs.
The past bond of master and disciple had been severed, and Su Han’s life and death were no longer of concern to Gu An.
Now, Gu An mainly wanted to see how Su Han’s fate would unfold.
Su Han, who possessed the Defying Fate Divine Skill, could absorb other cultivators’ Spiritual Power, which, in some ways, was similar to Gu An’s ability to take life spans.
However, the path Su Han took was starkly different from Gu An’s. Wherever this young man went, he fought, and his name for killing spread far and wide.
The Ghost Mother of Ephemera spoke of the effects of the Defying Fate Divine Skill, matching exactly what Gu An possessed. There was not a shred of falsehood in her words.
From the Ghost Mother of Ephemera’s perspective, naturally unaware that Sword Venerable Fudao would defy fate, she was able to speak the truth. Perhaps she genuinely wished to establish Gu An as the Hierarch of the Ephemera Sect.
“In the land we come from, the Ephemera Sect has stood for tens of thousands of years. The Spiritual Energy there far exceeds that of the Nine Dynasties. Although the Ephemera Sect has been destroyed by the Mountain God, those destroyed were the traitors who sided with Butcher Immortal Jing. The orthodox disciples of my Sect still exist.
As long as you follow me back, within a thousand years at most, the Ephemera Sect could regain its former glory,” said the Ghost Mother of Ephemera earnestly.
Gu An asked, “Just because I know the Taicang Divine-Shocking Sword? Aren’t you afraid that I will sacrifice you all like what the Ephemera Sect did?”
“Knowing the Taicang Divine-Shocking Sword is only one reason. I have been in the Supreme Sect for many years and have learned about your deeds. You were able to carve the words ‘Righteous Path’ on the Heavenly Repair Platform, which speaks to your character. If you are willing to take charge of the Ephemera Sect, you will definitely lead it back to the righteous path.
The Ephemera Tree might be a malevolent entity, but the founding of the Ephemera Sect was based on subduing the Ephemera Tree to save the people, thus establishing our Daoist tradition,” she said.
As the Ghost Mother of Ephemera spoke, she raised her right hand, and a token appeared in her hand.
“This is the Sect Hierarch token of Ephemera Sect. The deceased Hierarch had been searching for this token, unaware that it was in my possession. This token can locate all members of the Ephemera Sect and also find the hidden heritage sites of the orthodox disciples.”
Gu An stretched out his hand to summon the token, his Divine Sense rushing into it.
He sensed a powerful Restriction that could not be broken except by those in the Mahayana Realm. Of course, this Restriction was strong only to others; in front of him, it was as if it did not exist.
As his Divine Sense entered the token, he felt as if his consciousness could overview the land. He saw a chaotic, dim world, just terrains without flora or fauna.
Through the scenes within the token, he could see the locations of other Ephemera Sect cultivators.
Beyond that, this token had other functions, many of which Gu An found novel.
He withdrew his Divine Sense and said, “This token, I will temporarily keep. From now on, seeing the token is as good as seeing me.”
Hearing this, the Ghost Mother of Ephemera was overjoyed and quickly thanked Gu An.
Following that, Gu An disappeared on the spot.
The Ghost Mother of Ephemera immediately got up and left with Su Han, not daring to meddle with Sky Dragon any further.
…
At the end of autumn, Mystic Valley.
Gu An watched his disciples sweeping the fallen leaves in various gardens, while his Divine Sense landed far away, watching the decisive battle between the Taicang Dynasty and the Hanlu Dynasty.
Lv Xian and Wu Jue also participated in the battle, each showing their capabilities, and they were about to reach the capital of Hanlu Dynasty.
Gu An’s gaze primarily rested on Ye Yan, who also came from Mystic Valley and had been guided by Luo Hun and Zhou Tongyou in Spear Technique and Body Tempering Technique before joining the army after the Foundation Establishment.
Decades had passed, and Ye Yan had become a general of the Taicang Dynasty, with illustrious military achievements. Although he hadn’t yet reached the Core Formation, his strength on the battlefield was considerable.
After all, those who joined the army were mostly below the Core Formation Realm. Those who had achieved Core Formation generally transcended the constraints of the dynasties and pursued their own Immortal Path.
Gu An looked at the battlefield and felt it quite resembled the scenes from Investiture of the Gods.
Both sides had sect cultivators charging into the fray and dueling each other. The side that lost faced the military charge and was forced to retreat.
Just as he was engrossed, Zhen Qin flew to him riding a Divine Sword, landing beside him and quietly said, “Master, brother Su Han has been wanted by Ancient Sky Sect.”
Gu An carelessly said, “I’ve already said, he’s not your brother.”
Zhen Qin pouted and said, “Officially, he might not be my brother, but after all, we grew up together. How could I completely cut him off?”
“Talking to me about it won’t help, what can I do?”
“Master! I’m just feeling restless and wanted to chat with you!” Zhen Qin replied sharply.
Gu An glanced at her and smiled, “Don’t worry about him. He’s been hunted for so many years and is still fine. Instead of worrying about him, you should worry about yourself. I sense you’re in greater danger than he is.”
He was referring to the previous time the Disciples of the Law Enforcement Hall were rescued by Sage Xuan Miao. Although Zhen Qin hadn’t mentioned the existence of the Mountain God, Ye Lan knew about her peril and had informed Gu An.
Just as Zhen Qin was about to retort, she suddenly sensed something and took out her Disciple Token from her Storage Bag.
Gu An did the same, taking out his Valley Master Token, and plunged his Divine Sense into it. Then he heard the voice from the Gu Sect:
“Supreme Elder Kusong ventured into the Demon Land and has unfortunately perished. In three days, all disciples shall enter the affiliated cities to mourn the ancestor!”