Returning to Third Medicine Valley, Gu An’s face blossomed into a smile.
In just one night, he had transformed from the ninth layer of the Divine Thought True Immortal Realm to the ninth layer of the Free Immortal Realm, a groundbreaking change of strength.
Had it not already been daylight, he would have wanted to continue breaking through.
The breakthrough in cultivation level consumed nearly fifty million years of his life span barrier, leaving Gu An with over sixty-seven million years of life remaining.
He felt there was still hope for a successful breakthrough.
After reaching the Free Immortal Realm, his perception of the Great Heavenly Spirit Land became clearer. He could confirm that both the Immortal Dynasty and Holy Court were harboring Free Immortals. Once the Free Immortals go to war, it could very well involve the entire world. If he could transcend the Free Immortal Realm, Gu An would feel even more at ease.
Gu An stepped down from the Transmission Array Platform and looked up. In the vast cosmos above, he saw a gray river. Not being within the cosmos, he couldn’t reach it by flying upwards; he had to traverse it through the Tao Rules.
The River of Destiny!
The place where Lu Han perished!
Gu An just watched from a distance, with no immediate intention to step into the River of Destiny.
His gaze then shifted to Wu Jue, who rarely took the trouble to visit him, so he naturally went to greet him.
You Yingying was holding a rabbit as she saw the figure of Gu An. She subconsciously looked over and was taken aback for a moment, rubbing her eyes with one hand.
Gu An was dressed the same as the day before, with no change in his make-up or hairstyle, yet You Yingying felt a significant change in him.
This change was indescribable for her; looking at Gu An made her want to approach him, but after a longer gaze, she felt an urge to submit.
It was a complex emotion, difficult for her to describe.
Not only her, but other disciples also couldn’t help but take a second look at Gu An after seeing him.
Gu An arrived behind Wu Jue just in time to hear him listing the benevolent deeds of Liu Bei.
Wu Jue seemed to sense something and turned his head. Seeing Gu An, the anger on his face instantly vanished.
“You’re finally back! Come on, let’s go have a drink!” Wu Jue immediately pulled Gu An’s arm and walked to the side.
Gu An naturally wouldn’t refuse. He called out for An Xin to prepare wine and dishes.
The two settled in Gu An’s loft, sitting opposite each other.
“Gu An, I’ve reached the Unification Realm!” Wu Jue excitedly declared, his face brimming with pride.
Gu An was amused. You’re in the Unification Realm? I couldn’t even sense it until I approached you from behind.
He had suppressed his aura to Nascent Soul Realm levels without completely hiding it.
This showed that Wu Jue really got carried away easily. Gu An wondered if this would cause him trouble in the future.
“Really? That’s too…” Gu An feigned surprise, his eyes widening.
Wu Jue became even more smug at his expression, boastfully asking, “A Unification Realm at four hundred twenty-one years old, do you understand what kind of strength that represents?”
Gu An opened his mouth, then found himself at a loss for words.
He knew very well what strength a Unification Realm cultivator at four hundred twenty-one years old represented; isn’t it just the Unification Realm?
What he wanted to ask Wu Jue was whether he knew what the ninth layer of the Free Immortal Realm at four hundred nineteen years old constituted in terms of power.
An Xin, who had come upstairs to deliver the wine and dishes, found Wu Jue’s statement amusing. Showing off in front of my master?
She placed the wine and dishes on the table, then left.
Wu Jue had been speaking loudly on purpose and wondered why An Xin didn’t react.
Gu An noticed this and chided An Xin mentally for not maintaining the composure of an actor, too quick to relax!
“Never thought you’d make it this far, although I’ve always felt you were extraordinary, it turns out I still underestimated you…” Gu An said with feeling, immediately drawing Wu Jue’s attention back.
Wu Jue laughed and said, “If it weren’t for your constant encouragement in the past, I couldn’t have reached this point today. You too can comprehend the path. It’s not impossible for you to reach the Unification Realm in the future.”
Gu An shook his head, “That’s impossible.”
“How could it be? You have to believe in yourself.”
Yeah, it’s because of belief there’s no chance.
Gu An then asked, “You should be able to compare with An Hao and my Brother Li now, right?”
Upon hearing this, Wu Jue’s eyes shone, “I’m not sure, but I’ve always aimed to match them. Sadly, I don’t know how strong they really are. I’ll challenge them once I surpass their realms.”
Goodness!
You like to fight across realms as well?
Gu An was happy, but he was quite satisfied with Wu Jue’s mentality.
One can’t be arrogant, and one mustn’t act rashly!
Even the strongest can be vanquished!
The two began to talk about the future, mainly about Wu Jue’s future. Gu An was extremely supportive, hitting all the right notes for Wu Jue.
Third Medicine Valley was harmonious and lively, and the Supreme Sect was just the same. Everyone was unaware of the changes outside the heavens.
At the moment, the layer of light outside the heavens gathered many Great Cultivators, with the least of their realms being Heaven and Earth Flying Immortal, all gazing at the Silent Destruction Domain.
Fu Shenxiu and Bai Ziya from Mortal World Peak had also arrived, accompanied by more than a dozen Heaven and Earth Flying Immortals.
“The relationship between the Immortal Dynasty and the Holy Court is really tense,” Bai Ziya couldn’t help but mutter.
Immortal spirits from the Immortal Dynasty and cultivators from the Holy Court stood on opposite sides, the farthest apart, and the tension between them was palpable to all factions.
Fu Shenxiu looked into the distance and said, “I hope this phenomenon allows both sides to temporarily set aside their disputes.”
Bai Ziya looked up and commented with a sigh, “The Great Heavenly Spirit Land might be strong, but compared to the Silent Destruction Domain, it’s still too insignificant. If not for Shengtian, Heavenly Demons would have trampled the Great Heavenly Spirit Land long ago.”
Fu Shenxiu turned to him and asked, “You’ve been to the Silent Destruction Domain; is it really all Heavenly Demons there?”
“How could it be? The so-called Heavenly Demons are just our name for them. The Silent Destruction Domain does have a race of Heavenly Demons, but we consider all the beings born there as Heavenly Demons. The domain is boundless, and I don’t know just how vast it is. Perhaps there are other Great Heavens and Earths hidden there?”
Bai Ziya spoke wistfully, as if recalling something, his eyes growing dim.
While the two discussed the Silent Destruction Domain, other factions were doing the same, sharing their experiences within the domain.
Meanwhile, Gu An, the instigator behind the phenomena, was in the valley enjoying wine and good times with a friend.
This continued until late at night when Gu An began to act again.
The gap between the Free Immortal Realm and higher realms was immense, a significant leap in stages. Fearing that six hundred million years of life might not suffice, he wanted to surreptitiously gather ten billion years’ worth.
Yes, the last time!
This time, once he gathered ten billion years, he absolutely wouldn’t steal again. The act itself made him feel ashamed.
To avoid drawing connections to himself, he first went to Mortal World Peak to steal medicinal herbs, making it appear as if they too were victims.
To his surprise, he sensed a Divine Immortal of Wondrous Dharma cultivating in the main peak, encircled by the qi fortune of Mortal World Peak, likely an elder returned from Outer Heaven.
Gu An only stole from the main peak’s herbs and then quickly departed, ultimately alerting Mortal World Peak.
By dawn.
The Divine Immortal of Wondrous Dharma stood in front of a pile of harvested mature medicinal herbs, silent for a long time.
Only when the sunlight bathed him did he take a deep breath.
“This world remains unfathomably deep…” he sincerely remarked.
…
Ten days later, Gu An successfully accumulated a lifespan of ten billion years.
Next was the breakthrough!
Gu An looked towards Outer Heaven. The proximity of the Silent Destruction Domain had many powerful beings roaming it, which meant he couldn’t rashly choose a place for his breakthrough. He certainly couldn’t delve deep into the Silent Destruction Domain; what if an existence like the Black Profound Emperor was waiting?
Autumn winds whistled through the forest where Gu An sat on a rock, gazing at the sky through the gaps in the leaves.
The Blood Prison Great Saint lay beside him, while An Xin practiced the Stepping Path of Ages Step.
Her movements were smoother than before, each step full of grace, catching even the Blood Prison Great Saint’s eyes.
The Blood Prison Great Saint also wanted to learn, but simply watching An Xin couldn’t unravel the technique for him.
He guessed that to learn such divine skills, personal guidance from the master was necessary.
He didn’t ask, understanding his current form was unsuited for divine skill cultivation. If he behaved well, he would eventually learn once a thousand years passed.
Gu An’s eyes turned to the sea.
His covert action had still caused disturbances, with the factions from which he had stolen unable to find the true culprit, resorting to seeking help from the Holy Court. The Holy Court gathered the information and dispatched many of its cultivators for investigation.
Gu An heard some saying the affair might be related to the phenomena outside the heavens, even discussing the Heavenly Demons’ conspiracies.
It made him laugh and cry; the initial guesses were accurate, but later they veered off course.
Nevertheless, he wasn’t worried about being exposed. After all, he would no longer steal after this breakthrough, resuming his usual state to watch the world’s changes with a smile.
The only downside to a peaceful world is that with stable order, it’s hard for those at the bottom to climb, and breaking the rules would easily invite trouble.
The resources of the Great Heavenly Spirit Land had been divided among various factions. Any land nurturing heaven and earth treasures was always near a sect, with very few ownerless treasures left. Either they were guarded by a sect, or a Great Demon was watching them.
Of course, compared to the turmoil of unrest, Gu An preferred peace.
Peace may have less opportunity, but it’s not as dangerous.
If not for the Holy Court establishing order, the Seven Stars Spirit Realm would have trampled the Supreme Sect before Gu An could rise.
It was the world’s rules that kept the Seven Stars Spirit Realm from acting recklessly, their vile acts only able to be performed in the shadows.
Gu An’s divine thought suddenly fell on Zhu Xi of Moonfall Divine Lake.
In the vast world, only a handful of people he had physically seen could reach the peak longevity of 9999 years before the Nirvana Realm: An Hao, the Evil Emperor, Yang Jian, the Blood Prison Great Saint, Ji Xiaoyu, and Zhu Xi.
Among them, the Evil Emperor, the Sect Hierarch of the Ephemera Sect, was trapped under the Immortal King Crown and crushed by Gu An.
There surely were other individuals with the maximum longevity of 9999 years in this world; they just hadn’t appeared before Gu An yet.
Perception could not be used for life span detection.
Gu An saw Zhu Xi cultivating, her cultivation level the same as the last time he saw her, with no hint of change.
“What heights will the Tai Chu Swallowing Yuan Body reach here?” Gu An was filled with curiosity.
Within the Great Heavenly Spirit Land, Ancient Treasure Bodies were rare; above them were Taoist Bodies, and higher still were Holy Bodies. The Tai Chu Swallowing Yuan Body was comparable to the Primordial Karmic Body, exceeding even the Holy Bodies.
In terms of physique alone, Zhu Xi was much stronger than An Hao and Yang Jian.
Of course, physique was just one aspect of talent. Like An Hao, his intellect was equally remarkable.
9999 years is the limit of longevity for the Human Race beneath the Nirvana Realm, but it doesn’t necessarily mean the limit of their gifts.