The man in black ultimately chose to compromise, for he believed that Gu An should be trustworthy. After all, he was completely powerless to resist, and there was no point in Gu An deceiving him.
After dealing with the man in black, Gu An set down Qingtian Peak.
He lifted his gaze and saw through the walls that one-year-old Long Qing was chasing after the White Spirit Rat, which slowed down for fear that the child couldn’t keep up.
It was rare to see the White Spirit Rat so gentle, which brought a smile to Gu An’s face.
No longer contemplating what the Reincarnation Evolution truly entailed, Gu An’s focus was solely on becoming stronger.
These reincarnated identities wouldn’t help him survive better. In this world, there were Holy Courts and Immortal Dynasties. Outside the world, there were realms like the Silent Destruction Domain and beings like the Annihilation God Emperor and the Black Profound Emperor watching him, not to mention countless Great Heaven and Earth. His journey was still long.
Long Zhan had been too arrogant and was crushed to death by the Annihilation God Emperor.
Gu An planned to quietly surpass the Nine Heavens of Immortal Path in the universe where the Great Heavenly Spirit Land was located.
He deliberately overestimated the capabilities of the Black Profound Emperor and the Annihilation God Emperor to better confront and potentially defeat them if they became enemies in the future.
Gu An collected himself, even eliminating the animosity towards the Black Profound Emperor and keeping the past hidden deep within his heart.
He was Gu An—Gu An was the true him!
Gu An picked up a brush, intending to write and express his emotions.
…
Miles of clear skies stretched overhead, and a large gathering of cultivators crowded a barren plain. They surrounded a massive pit over a hundred miles in diameter, atop whose edge they constructed towering stages, each brandishing an imposing iron tower.
Bai Ziya stood on the edge of the massive pit, gazing at a deep red coffin from afar, a worried expression filling his eyes.
“Have you seen it in the Silent Destruction Domain?” a voice called out, and Fu Shenxiu stepped beside Bai Ziya.
After paying his respects, Bai Ziya turned and said, “I haven’t seen it, but its aura feels very dangerous.”
“I have seen it,” Fu Shenxiu said calmly, his gaze fixed on the deep red coffin.
Bai Ziya looked at him in surprise, only to hear him continue, “Wherever this Evil Coffin appears, Heavenly Demons retreat, leaving nothing but remains. Even the Heavenly Demons fear whatever resides within it. I’ve heard that beings surpassing the Carefree Primordial Immortal Realm would turn to ash just by approaching it.”
Beyond the Carefree Primordial Immortal?
This filled Bai Ziya with even more fear. As a Heaven and Earth Flying Immortal, he already regarded the Carefree Primordial Immortal as a symbol of freedom. How could beings even stronger than Carefree Primordials succumb to this Evil Coffin?
He instinctively thought of Meng Lang and shuddered at the thought of him turning to dust upon nearing the Evil Coffin.
As Fu Shenxiu continued his story, Bai Ziya listened intently, and they were not the only ones. Other sects had people recounting their experiences in the Silent Destruction Domain.
Atop a grand pavilion, a man in white robes stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze quietly fixed on the deep red coffin, his eyes deep with thought.
Suddenly, a man clad in golden armor appeared beside him, bowing and whispering, “Holy King, the higher-ups have instructed you not to take action and to wait for the Dark War Emperor to awaken.”
Hearing this, the man in white robes narrowed his eyes, lost in thought and not replying.
The man in golden armor spoke again in a low tone, “Holy King, something about this doesn’t feel right. While the Heavenly Demons bring trouble to the Mortal World from time to time, Shengtian never acted like this when he was here. Didn’t Shengtian always say that anything from Outer Heaven is an enemy? Since when do we ask enemies for help?”
He wasn’t concerned about being overheard—the many Restrictions within the pavilion would prevent high-level eavesdropping.
Remaining expressionless, the man in white replied, “It is now the era of the Holy Minister, and it will be for a long time. If you wish to have a foothold in the Holy Court, you must learn to feign ignorance.”
The man in golden armor appeared angry as he clenched his teeth and asked, “Where has Shengtian gone to, and why does he trust the Holy Minister so much?”
The man in white robes spoke calmly, “Reincarnation Tribulation is a path every mighty individual must tread. Shengtian has already delayed it for far too long. What might happen if we wait any longer, nobody knows.”
“Reincarnation Tribulation? Has Shengtian reincarnated?” The man in golden armor furrowed his brows.
Shaking his head, the man in white robes replied, “Your realm is not high enough to understand. Don’t ask too much. All you need to know is this: if the Holy Court truly faces an existential crisis, Shengtian will surely return. Until then, let the Holy Minister make a fuss. The greater the uproar, the better it might be for us. Don’t forget that the Holy God is also unsatisfied with the Holy Minister.”
The man in golden armor’s expression fluctuated before he bowed and took his leave.
The long hair of the man in white robes fluttered gently in the breeze as he continued to watch the deep red coffin silently.
…
The summer day was blisteringly hot.
Gu An, riding on the Blood Prison Great Saint, was heading towards the Third Medicine Valley, looking into the distance.
A Dao Void Mysterious Immortal had appeared near the deep red coffin!
This was the first time Gu An had sensed the aura of a Dao Void Mysterious Immortal.
He guessed the individual was from the Holy Court.
With so many forces converging but taking no action, Gu An didn’t know how to discern good from evil.
Regardless, the appearance of the deep red coffin caused the deaths of all beings on a continent. In his previous life, it would have been equivalent to destroying all life on Earth. Even so, the Holy Court remained motionless.
Perhaps to the Holy Court, the threat of the Heavenly Demon was greater, a consideration for the long term. But for the innocents involved, wasn’t it also a tragedy?
“Master, what do you think of that kid Long Qing? He seems pretty clever to me,” inquired the Blood Prison Great Saint, drawing Gu An’s thoughts back to reality.
It wasn’t foolish to think so. Why would the master casually take in an orphan unless the child was no ordinary one? Perhaps even more exceptional than Yang Jian.
Gu An replied, “Quite ordinary. He’ll hardly achieve anything significant in his lifetime.”
The Blood Prison Great Saint paused, then laughed, “Master, you’re kidding with me, right?”
“You’ll see in time,” Gu An said with a soft laugh.
Unable to resist, the Blood Prison Great Saint asked further, “Then why did you take him in?”
“Because I liked him. Do you think I need Yang Jian to repay me for anything?” Gu An said casually.
It made sense to the Blood Prison Great Saint. After all, Gu An wasn’t only good to Yang Jian; all the disciples in the valley received favorable treatment from him.
In Gu An’s own words: “Do good deeds without asking about the future.”
“That too. Leading a plain life isn’t necessarily bad,” agreed the Blood Prison Great Saint, though he secretly believed Long Qing would certainly make something of himself—it was only a matter of time.
As Gu An walked into the valley, he saw a group of female disciples surrounding Long Qing, passing him around happily until the atmosphere became even more cheerful.
When someone spotted the Blood Prison Great Saint, they exchanged a few words and quickly dispersed, leaving Long Qing in the arms of one of the girls, who hurried towards An Xin, looking lost.
“Gu An, come for a game of Go!”
The voice of the Nine-Finger Divine Lord suddenly rang out, and Gu An sent the Blood Prison Great Saint over.
After a while, when Gu An sat at the Go board, the Nine-Finger Divine Lord, with a chuckle, asked, “Gu An, what’s the backstory of that little guy called Long Qing?”
He had tried to discern Long Qing’s fate but came up with nothing. Considering what had happened with Yang Jian, he couldn’t help but feel that Long Qing had some significant background.
Gu An picked up a Go stone and replied with a smile, “How should I know? I truly found him in the mountains. Do you like him? Why don’t you take him as a disciple?”
After hearing this, the Nine-Finger Divine Lord laughed and said, “Let’s not. I’ve already taken away one of your disciples; I can’t be that greedy.”
Seeing him reluctant to make a move, Gu An played first, causing the Nine-Finger Divine Lord to twitch at the corner of his mouth and quickly pick up the white stones from the table, saying, “Our rules here, Black plays first. Don’t you know the rules?”
With that, he made his move.
Gu An smiled and followed suit, then asked about Chu Jingfeng’s situation.
The Nine-Finger Divine Lord had settled Chu Jingfeng overseas while staying at the Supreme Sect himself, making Gu An unsure of what to make of his actions.
Half an hour later, Gu An stood and departed.
The Nine-Finger Divine Lord stared at the Go board, frowning.
“Where exactly is the problem…” he muttered to himself.
No one offered him an answer. His loss didn’t surprise the surrounding players; his winning would have been the real shock.
Gu An was in a good mood, looking forward to harvesting high-rank medicinal herbs in the Outer World Cave the next day—a move that could increase his lifespan by tens of millions of years!
He decided not to initiate Lifespan Samsara before his next breakthrough.
Forget that—before filling up a lifespan of one billion years!
Otherwise, descendants might appear before his eyes again, and he couldn’t bear to ignore them.
The sun set, and the moon rose.
The next morning, Gu An left Long Qing with You Yingying and departed Medicine Valley alone.
You Yingying adored Long Qing, though she couldn’t explain why since she usually despised children.
By evening, Gu An returned.
He hummed a tune along the way, clearly delighted.
Today, he had harvested over sixty-five million years of lifespan—it was exhilarating!
The Outer World Cave was his key investment project. Periodically, he would inject more high-rank medicinal herbs into the grotto.
Along the path, Gu An greeted every passing disciple, leaving them pleasantly surprised.
He made his way to You Yingying’s courtyard and took away Long Qing.
“Hey, I want to ask you something,” You Yingying stopped Gu An.
He gave her a look, “I’m not ‘hey.'”
Rolling her eyes, she said, “Lately, I’ve been feeling restless, like I might bring trouble to Medicine Valley. Should I leave?”
Gu An looked at her, astonished, “If you want to leave, leave. Why ask me?”
You Yingying was livid, ready to pinch him, but he deftly dodged.
“I’m leaving tomorrow!”
She turned and walked toward her house.
Gu An called out, “Hey, if you’re really worried about causing trouble, why fret? Don’t forget who holds the fort at the Supreme Sect.”
You Yingying turned to look at Gu An, the anger in her eyes gradually fading. Hesitantly, she said, “Wouldn’t that be inappropriate?”
Gu An spoke righteously, “The entire Supreme Sect is under the protection of Sword Venerable Fudao. There’s nothing wrong with that. If you feel bad about it, later you can take care of Qing for me. He really likes you.”
Caught in hesitation, You Yingying lingered in thought, while Gu An said no more and turned to leave.
Taking advantage of Long Qing’s youth, he wanted to hold him more, as the child would be less cuddly when older.
As for You Yingying’s concerns, he paid them no mind.
Many Heavenly Demons roamed the world. They would deal with the Dark War Emperor when he emerged from the coffin.
From the current aura, the Dark War Emperor was still very distant from becoming a Divine Thought True Immortal.
Considering this rate of improvement, it would take him thousands of years to reach the level of a Divine Thought True Immortal, right?