End of Summer.
Mortal World Peak, Dingtian Peak.
Gu An was writing with his sleeves rolled up in the courtyard, and An Xin, wearing a mask, was cultivating beside him. A gentle breeze blew by, creating a picturesque scene.
An Xin suddenly opened her eyes and curiously asked, “Master, what cultivation levels have my fellow disciples attained now?”
Gu An casually replied, “Your senior brother has reached the fifth floor of the Mystic Heart Realm, and your junior brother is at the first level of the Unification Realm.”
“That high?”
An Xin couldn’t help but widen her eyes.
“Look at Dingtian Peak, do their cultivation levels seem high here?” Gu An’s words rendered An Xin silent.
An Xin cautiously asked, “Master, do you really think I can become an immortal?”
Her current actual cultivation level was only at the eighth floor of the Core Formation Realm, far behind An Hao and Yang Jian.
“Don’t think about that, but rather think about how you can achieve it. If even you don’t believe in yourself, then you’re truly finished.”
Gu An’s words seemed reasonable to An Xin, and she endeavored to adjust her mindset.
“By the way, Master, is Senior Shen Xinzi teaching Long Qing cultivation?”
“Yes.”
“Has Long Qing also practiced Energy Concealing Sorcery? I can’t even sense his Spiritual Power.”
“You’re overthinking it. He hasn’t yet cultivated any Spiritual Power.”
“What?”
An Xin was astonished and pressed on, “With the Dao Level of Senior Shen Xinzi, how could Long Qing possibly fail to cultivate Spiritual Power?”
“Some people are less talented than you.” Gu An offhandedly said.
He did not reveal Long Qing’s Nirvana Realm cultivation level, fearing it would demoralize Long Qing.
Moreover, Long Qing had a special identity. Both the Immortal Dynasty and the Holy Court might pursue him, and until Gu An was confident he could protect him, he was not prepared to unlock the Path of Returning Primordial Spirit within him.
After all, Long Qing now had a lifespan of over ten thousand years.
It was good to let the young lad first cultivate his Daoist Heart, to avoid treading the same path as Long Qing’s ancestral Great Ancestor Long Zhan.
An Xin fell silent, suddenly feeling sorry for Long Qing. Given that lad’s character, once he realized his limited talent, he would definitely be deeply affected.
Gu An didn’t say more and concentrated on practicing his calligraphy.
An Xin watched him, wanting to speak but hesitating.
On reflection, since the Master had already shown great kindness in sheltering Long Qing, how could she demand that the Master change his fate?
Moreover, the Master surely had his plans.
Realizing this, An Xin composed herself and continued cultivating.
…
Six years later.
The weather was clear, with white clouds adorning the blue sky, each assuming its unique posture.
In the mountain woods.
Twenty-year-old Long Qing had fully matured, dressed in tight green clothing, squatting in a horse stance, and continuously punching despite being drenched in sweat. His eyes remained determined, exhaling consistently.
His skin was flushed red, emitting steam, and his legs were trembling, ready to collapse at any moment.
Shen Xinzi stood beside him, holding a copy of Journey to the West, reading it and said, “Persist for another Ancient Hour to activate the medicinal effects.”
Long Qing gritted his teeth and asked, “Master, my strength has increased quite a bit. How many levels of Qi Cultivation cultivators can I now defeat?”
“You could defeat those at the third level of Qi Cultivation.”
“What? Only the third level?”
Long Qing showed a look of despair, but Shen Xinzi offered no comfort.
After mumbling a few words, Long Qing revitalized his spirits, his eyes regaining their firmness.
Shen Xinzi, glancing out of the corner of his eye at the change in Long Qing’s demeanour, was privately satisfied, “This lad has poor talent, but his temperament is decent.”
In his view, temperament was even more cultivable than cultivation, so he still held hope for Long Qing.
He was teaching Long Qing on a whim and naturally was not in a hurry.
Just then, Shen Xinzi suddenly sensed something and abruptly looked up.
Elsewhere.
Nine-Finger Divine Lord, who was playing chess with Gu An, also looked up.
Gu An looked up, urging, “What are you looking at? Hurry up and make your move.”
As he spoke, Gu An’s Divine Thought also locked onto Outer Heaven.
In the starry sky of Outer Heaven, a vast space rift appeared out of nowhere, hanging right above the Great Heavenly Spirit Land, startling the mysterious beings in the sun into opening their eyes.
“In a moment, there’s something going on in Outer Heaven. I need to watch for a while,” the Nine-Finger Divine Lord said impatiently.
Gu An looked up, feigning confusion.
Under the scrutiny of his Divine Thought, a figure appeared within the mysterious rift—a man in a black robe, tall and broad-shouldered, with a stern face wearing a long silver jade crown. Two brightly shining Magic Artifacts floated behind his head, resembling the sun and the moon, casting light on him, making him seem to radiate a brilliant glow.
The moment this person appeared, the surface of the Great Heavenly Spirit Land’s light layer fluctuated.
Upon seeing him, Gu An felt apprehensive.
Unfortunately, his Divine Thought could not perform a Life Span Detection.
The robed man suddenly disappeared.
The next second, Gu An’s Divine Thought shifted to the Holy Land where the Holy Court was located, its Qi Fortune was impacted, gathering there, and he felt strong fighting emanations coming from the direction of the Holy Court.
The Nine-Finger Divine Lord followed his gaze towards the direction of the Holy Land, frowning.
He stood up and said, “Today counts as a draw. We shall continue another day.”
With that, he disappeared in thin air.
Gu An couldn’t help muttering, “Always in a rush but still doesn’t forget to hedge his bets, really an animal.”
While collecting the chess pieces, he kept an eye towards the direction of the Holy Court.
Soon, the Qi Fortune of the Holy Court reassembled, making it difficult for him to forcefully probe, which piqued his curiosity about what was happening inside the Holy Court.
He waited until nightfall. The robed man did not appear, and the Holy Domain remained unusually calm, but Gu An saw many Great Cultivators heading toward the Holy Court like a shower of arrows.
Clearly, something had occurred within the Holy Court.
In the following days, there was still no activity in the Holy Court, and the space rifts in Outer Heaven had disappeared, nor was the robed man seen.
Gu An visited Immortal Seeking Island and Mortal World Peak and couldn’t gather any intelligence, but the Great Cultivators at Mortal World Peak also noticed the activities at the Holy Court. Their numerous speculations left Gu An feeling they were absurd.
Until a month later.
Gu An, who was alchemizing inside the building, suddenly sensed something and slightly raised his brow.
“Why has he come here…”
Gu An did not stand up, cautious not to startle the quarry.
A person entered the Third Medicine Valley, precisely the robed man who forcefully entered the Holy Court before.
His appearance made Gu An uneasy—regardless of whether he was a friend or foe of the Holy Court, his arrival could potentially attract the Holy Court’s attention.
Gu An did not wish to reveal himself.
After carefully sensing, Gu An’s mood slightly eased. The guy’s aura was very weak, suppressed to the Core Formation Realm level, completely different from when he stormed the Holy Court, almost like two different people.
After hesitating for a moment, Gu An stood up and walked downstairs.
As he walked down the stairs, he casually looked out, and when his gaze swept over the robed man, he quickly performed a Life Span Detection without lingering.
[Sun and Moon Netherworld Emperor (Divine Thought True Immortal Realm Eighth Floor): 15876308/40000000/60000000]
Divine Thought True Immortal Realm Eighth Floor!
Over fifteen million years old!
A maximum life span of sixty million years!
Gu An was astonished, looking at a true old monster!
What is this guy doing in the Third Medicine Valley?
Is he targeting him?
As Gu An continued downstairs, he puzzled over this.
At that moment, Ji Xiaoyu walked out of her room. She did not look towards Gu An but towards the approaching Sun and Moon Netherworld Emperor.