Ji Xiaoyu grasped the handle of the Heaven-Cutting Axe, and she immediately felt its weight—a weight that struck her soul and filled her with an involuntary sense of reverence.
The reason was Gu An’s mana at work.
Realizing she couldn’t lift the Heaven-Cutting Axe, she immediately channeled the power of the Primordial Daoist Talisman.
This was the result of her training in the Seven Stars Spirit Realm. Previously, she could only draw on a tiny bit of the talisman’s power, but now she could channel it at will.
As the power of the Primordial Daoist Talisman flooded her bones and muscles, her aura suddenly changed.
Zuo Yijian looked at her in surprise, and the surrounding great cultivators, too, were startled, their gazes focusing on her.
Gu An silently took a step back, avoiding being noticed by the others.
Even if Ji Xiaoyu channeled the power of the Primordial Daoist Talisman, she still couldn’t lift the Heaven-Cutting Axe.
Before the annihilation of the Seven Stars Spirit Realm, the Heaven-Cutting Axe could not be lifted by anyone!
After a while.
Ji Xiaoyu released her right hand. Although she failed, throughout the process, she didn’t seem as strained as Xuan Tianyi, even when channeling the power of the Primordial Daoist Talisman. Her stance was steady, as if she hadn’t exerted much effort at all.
No one was surprised by her failure, only curious about the aura she had exuded moments ago.
She turned and walked over to Gu An, whispering, “As expected, I failed. Do you want to give it a try?”
Gu An shook his head and said, “If you can’t do it, there’s no need for me to embarrass myself with my cultivation level.”
“Perhaps this inheritance tests not cultivation but a certain trait,” Ji Xiaoyu speculated.
Gu An inwardly felt helpless. She had guessed correctly again.
To avoid suspicion, Gu An stepped forward to try anyway. He even gripped with both hands and lifted a few times, his face turning red.
Zuo Yijian laughed and said, “Nephew Gu, don’t be discouraged. As long as the Heaven-Cutting Axe is here, you’ll have another chance. Just keep cultivating diligently.”
Gu An quickly raised his hand in salute to him before leaving.
Zuo Yijian then picked up the Investiture of the Gods again and continued to savor it.
After leaving the Heavenly Repair Platform, Ji Xiaoyu and Gu An parted ways. Gu An didn’t return to the valley but wandered around the city to relax.
The world was still in chaos, yet the Outer Gate City seemed unaffected, remaining bustling due to the protection of Sword Venerable Fudao!
An ancient hour later, Gu An finally left the Outer Gate City, once again disguising himself as the Green Hero and acting chivalrously.
…
Winter passed, spring passed, and another summer arrived.
The death of the Demon Master didn’t change the world’s grand trend; the demonic calamity continued, with great demon kings ceaselessly emerging. Yet the Demon Emperor and the Demon Ancestor remained unseen.
Gu An’s days became very busy. Besides picking flowers and herbs, he also had to descend the mountain to slay demons, although busy, his life span increased rapidly.
On this day, Gu An had just cleared demons from a town and came to a small river in the mountains, preparing to wash the demon blood off his blade.
At that moment, he suddenly sensed something and looked into the distance.
At the edge of the North Sea Mountains, a group of cultivators were in fierce battle.
Su Han, holding a bone sword, was fighting Wu Jue. The two exchanged blows in the sky above the forest, while in the distance, other Nine Nether Thirteen Evil were battling the great cultivators of the Zhou Family.
Su Han swung his sword rapidly; his murderous aura soared to the sky, and his brows knitted tightly.
The opponent was just at the first layer of the Nascent Soul Realm. Why was he so difficult to deal with?
Now that Su Han already possessed cultivation in the Divinity Transformation Realm, armed with the Hateful Heaven Divine Sword and the Defying Fate Divine Skill, he confidently faced any Divinity Transformation Realm cultivator without feeling pressured.
But this time was different!
He couldn’t take down this low-realm cultivator in a short time!
Wu Jue’s punches and kicks were like the wind. With each punch, it was like the midday sun, unstoppable; his strength energy was domineering, even Su Han could not withstand it head-on.
Unlike Su Han’s surprise, Wu Jue was very excited, even letting out loud shouts.
In the distance, Zhou Yu, watching the battle, looked satisfied. With a Unification Realm ninth layer cultivation, he alone held off six of the Nine Nether Thirteen Evil.
The Zhou Family specialized in physical cultivation, using their bodies as weapons. Zhou Yu wielded a knife single-handedly, his black robe billowing, each move grand and powerful, full of the spirit of splitting mountains and cutting rivers.
“Focus on the elixir, use qi to control the god, the body is the weapon, and the weapon is the momentum!”
Zhou Yu’s voice suddenly echoed through the heavens and earth, like a rumbling thunder.
Hearing this, Wu Jue immediately closed his eyes. His fists became slow but brought an even stronger sense of oppression to Su Han.
Su Han dodged the fist wind, landing before a tree. He swung his sword quickly, sending tens of thousands of black sword qi rushing madly, lifting countless fallen leaves, attempting to drown Wu Jue.
Wu Jue, suspended in mid-air, raised his right leg. The gusty, rain-like leg wind suddenly arose, countless leg shadows clashing with his sword qi.
Boom—
The air waves expanded violently; Wu Jue was forced back. He flipped in the air and landed steadily on a cliff.
Su Han raised his sword to defend, without retreating, but his eyes widened involuntarily, and he couldn’t help but ask, “Residual Wind Leg, who taught you?”
Wu Jue opened his eyes, looked at him, and said, “Not Residual Wind Leg, this is Gale Shadowless Leg, taught by my brother.”
“Who is your brother?”
Thinking that Su Han was from the Supreme Sect, Wu Jue said, “My brother, Gu An, do you know him?”
Su Han’s face changed slightly upon hearing this, and he involuntarily lowered his sword.
Seeing this, Wu Jue realized that the other might have a connection with Gu An, and he said in a deep voice, “No matter what your relationship with Gu An is, never target him again. Otherwise, I won’t spare you!”
Hearing Wu Jue’s words, Su Han didn’t get angry. The days in Mystic Valley and the Third Medicine Valley were the times he cherished the most, even though Gu An had once advised him to give up his cultivation. He didn’t resent him, knowing the master meant well. But he couldn’t let go of his hatred and didn’t trust the Supreme Sect.
“Ghost Mother, let’s go, find other Golden List geniuses!”
Su Han shouted loudly, taking a deep look at Wu Jue, thinking this person possessed talent not inferior to An Hao.
Such a genius being friends with Gu An truly made Gu An fortunate.
“Let’s go.”
The voice of the Ghost Mother of Ephemera sounded, and Zhou Yu suddenly descended, disrupting their plans, making further fighting pointless.
Hearing this, the Nine Nether Thirteen Evil immediately retreated.
Zhou Yu raised his hand, signaling the other Zhou Family cultivators not to pursue.
Wu Jue watched Su Han’s departing figure and couldn’t help but shout, “What’s your relationship with Gu An?”
Su Han did not answer and did not look back.
Elsewhere.
Gu An retrieved his divine sense; he could sense that the Ghost Mother of Ephemera was about to act against Su Han. Over the past two years, Su Han’s cultivation level rose swiftly, but his aura grew increasingly unstable, potentially deviating at any moment.
Now, Su Han no longer only attacked those hunting him but also hunted innocent Golden List geniuses, completely stepping into the demon path.
Gu An didn’t dwell on it; after washing his sword, he continued his journey.
The world was chaotic, some saving, some killing. He only wanted to extend his life span without violating his principles.
…
In a dimly lit underground palace, firelight flickered, casting shadows on the stone walls.
Huge stone pillars stood on either side of the great hall. A red-scaled little snake quickly slithered, arriving at the steps before it stopped. It raised its body, looking at the burly figure reclining atop the stone chair at the top of the steps.
“Your Majesty, King Mingjiang has already breached the Tianwei Dynasty. It won’t be long before the Great Jiang Dynasty falls too!”
The red-scaled little snake spoke human words, its voice soft and charming like a woman’s.
The burly figure reclining on the stone chair was the Demon Emperor, dressed in a loose purple robe, draped in some demon beast’s fur, with a necklace of skulls around his neck. His face resembled a human’s, with red fur on his cheeks, eyes like an eagle’s, thick black hair, and two sharp horns.
He reclined on the chair like a small mountain, his form exuding a sense of terrifying power.
The Demon Emperor gazed down at the red-scaled little snake and slowly asked, “Has the Demon Ancestor emerged from seclusion?”
The red-scaled little snake replied, “Not yet. His demands have been increasing lately, even devouring the demons waiting on him…”
The Demon Emperor squinted his eyes, deep in thought.
The red-scaled little snake continued, “Your Majesty, I think we don’t need the Demon Ancestor’s power to flatten the three human dynasties. If you can kill Sword Venerable Fudao, Xuan Tianyi, Daoist Lord, and Taoist of Immortality are no threats at all. The Demon Ancestor is too strange, I have a feeling…”
“What feeling?”
“A feeling that the Demon Ancestor is also a calamity to us…”
With that, it flicked its tongue, closely watching the Demon Emperor.
The Demon Emperor remained expressionless and said, “Whether it is a calamity, we’ll know when the Demon Ancestor emerges.”
The red-scaled little snake thought of something and hurriedly asked, “Are you planning to let him fight the humans first?”
The Demon Emperor did not answer but instead asked, “Have you found out who is helping those demon kings break through?”
“No, those demon kings won’t talk. Your Majesty, you know these guys each have their own agendas, but I discovered something else.”
“What is it?”
“The Evil Demon that has been sealed for fifty thousand years is about to break free.”
Upon hearing this, the Demon Emperor immediately sat up, leaning forward, squinting his eyes, and asked, “Is that true?”
The red-scaled little snake replied, “More and more demonic qi is surging from the ground; it’s highly likely true. But we can’t trace the Evil Demon’s exact location.”
The Demon Emperor seemed to think of something and sneered, saying, “The Demon Ancestor revives, the Evil Demon breaks free, and many coincidences converge. This is no coincidence. It’s a pity the Demon Master died too early; otherwise, we could have tested him further.”
“Speaking of which, he’s also pathetic. Even after death, no one sought vengeance for him. It seems his so-called master only used him as a pawn.”
The red-scaled little snake remained silent, seemingly unwilling to comment on this topic.
“You go to the Supreme Sect and find a way to send a message to Sword Venerable Fudao.” The Demon Emperor commanded.
The red-scaled little snake trembled upon hearing this, hastily saying, “Your Majesty, I…”
“Hmm?”
The Demon Emperor interrupted it and stood up, his terrifying demonic presence enveloping it.
The red-scaled little snake had no choice but to lower itself, crawling on the ground in submission.
…
At dusk.
Gu An arrived at the Third Medicine Valley through the teleportation array; his face slightly grim. Today’s encounters and revelations once again refreshed his understanding of human nature, putting him in a foul mood.
Since the outbreak of the demonic calamity, his disdain for certain people had gradually surpassed his disdain for demons.
The war between humans and demons was a struggle for survival of a race, where morals and ethics didn’t apply.
But in times of crisis, inner strife among one’s own kind was even more odious.
Gu An walked towards his loft, where someone was already waiting for him inside.
