Facing Xiaochuan’s questioning, Gu An counter-questioned, “Is this matter very important to you?”
Xiaochuan caught the implied meaning in Gu An’s words and lamented, “Yes, it’s no longer important. In fact, three hundred years ago, I felt my life was drawing close to its end. Over the years, I have often fallen into an indescribable state of sudden enlightenment. It must have been you, Elder Brother, secretly helping me.”
“Thank you, elder brother.”
He looked at Gu An, his expression solemn.
Gu An’s mouth twitched upwards as he asked, “Just verbal thanks?”
Xiaochuan replied helplessly, “That’s all I can do. What else could I do for you now? If elder brother needs my soul, just take it.”
Gu An glanced at him and said dryly, “Making it sound like elder brother is some demon cultivator.”
“Wasn’t Sword Venerable Fudao initially considered a demon cultivator?”
“Coincidentally, I do have a soul device here. I could use you as the main soul, condemning you to never transcend.”
“Sure, sure, I would love that!”
Although Xiaochuan still looked elderly, his soul body was spirited, as if he had returned to his younger days.
The two bickered in this way as they drew closer to the Reincarnation Vortex.
The reason Xiaochuan could see Gu An was because Gu An had utilized the power of cause and effect; even a Free Immortal could not see Gu An if they were here.
After a long time.
Xiaochuan looked up at the imposing Reincarnation Vortex and curiously asked, “Does entering there mean I will be reincarnated?”
“Yes, that’s correct. I can only escort you here,” Gu An replied softly, also looking up.
Xiaochuan turned to Gu An and said, “Elder brother, go back now. I’m already satisfied that you could escort me here.”
Gu An gazed at him and with a smile said, “We’ll meet in the next life.”
“The next life?” Xiaochuan blinked his eyes. He didn’t question Gu An’s words but internally marveled, “How profound must Sword Venerable Fudao’s dao be to see through reincarnation?”
After pondering for a moment, he said, “If I remain mediocre in my next life, elder brother, don’t find me. Let me lead an ordinary life. However, if one day I possess exceptional cultivation talents, then come find me and I’ll still manage Medicine Valley for you.”
Gu An smiled and nodded, then raised his right hand and pointed two fingers toward Xiaochuan.
Xiaochuan was instantly immobilized, his eyes losing their sparkle.
Gu An used his own power of cause and effect to seal Xiaochuan’s memories, to prevent them from being erased by reincarnation, then left a Destruction Dao Seal within his soul body.
The Destruction Dao Seal would leave an eternal mark, making it easier for Gu An to find Xiaochuan’s reincarnated body later.
Having done all this, Gu An paused and watched as Xiaochuan headed towards the Reincarnation Vortex.
He also had a basic understanding of the Reincarnation Rules. Long Zhan’s Heavenly Dragon Reincarnation Dharma touched upon these rules, but it mainly relied on establishing connections through cause and effect with past lives; he still couldn’t fathom the essence of reincarnation.
In the Divine Origin Great Heaven and Earth, there also wasn’t a complete order of reincarnation. After death, a soul would ascend and fly to Outer Heaven, being devoured by Reincarnation Rules at a certain height, disappearing without a trace — how one naturally reincarnated was unknown to anyone and was difficult to trace. However, great beings of fortune would cause unusual phenomena in heaven and earth when reincarnated.
After Xiaochuan had disappeared into the Reincarnation Vortex, Gu An finally returned to the Third Medicine Valley.
Several days later.
Near midday, as Gu An was reading a book inside his house, An Xin came to find him.
“Master, Uncle Xiaochuan has passed away. He didn’t want to trouble you, so he had his descendants deliver this letter later,” An Xin handed over a letter to Gu An while carefully observing his expression.
In front of An Xin, Gu An did not need to pretend. He took the letter directly and opened it to read.
The content of the letter wasn’t much different from what Xiaochuan had said before he entered reincarnation, but after reading it, Gu An still felt somewhat melancholic.
He had tried his best to help Xiaochuan, but unfortunately, Xiaochuan did not possess the fighting spirit like Ye Lan, Zhen Qin, or An Xin.
To put it accurately, Xiaochuan’s talents were inferior and no different from most ordinary people, which was why it was hard for him to maintain his drive.
Gu An, however, wasn’t too saddened. After learning about the existence of Reincarnation Tribulation, his aversion to reincarnation wasn’t as strong.
When Cultivators reached the Free Immortal Realm, they ultimately had to face reincarnation. Not everyone could breakthrough by evolving their lifespan like Gu An, and he couldn’t use his lifespan to help others skip their Reincarnation Tribulation.
He was curious about Reincarnation Tribulation, wondering if it only counted after reaching the Free Immortal Realm or if previous reincarnations counted as well.
It was said that Reincarnation Tribulation had no pattern; reincarnation might not necessarily occur in the current era or world, which was why it was hard to trace Shengtian’s whereabouts.
Gu An put the letter down and looked at An Xin, asking, “Is there anything else?”
An Xin inquired, “Master, are you doing alright?”
Gu An smiled and said, “What, do I really need to drown my sorrows in alcohol? Hurry back to your cultivation; I don’t want to receive your last letter.”
Hearing this, An Xin stuck out her tongue and immediately bowed to take her leave.
Gu An thought for a moment, stood up, and walked over to a bookshelf to take down a brocade box, placing Xiaochuan’s last letter inside it.
Xiaochuan’s death hadn’t affected Gu An’s life, even though his descendants were still in the Third Medicine Valley.
His descendants weren’t too saddened, after all, there was a vast generational gap.
As autumn gave way to winter, the temperature between heaven and earth began to drop.
On this day, Gu An had finished picking the most recently matured medicinal herbs in the Third Medicine Valley.
He was in good spirits; nowadays, his average annual lifespan income exceeded three million five hundred thousand years. He wasn’t in a hurry to unlock the feature associated with a ten billion year lifespan; he wouldn’t wait anymore if his lifespan was sufficient for a breakthrough later.
After all, the figure of ten billion was really massive; he surely couldn’t start stealing medicinal herbs again, could he?
Returning under the attic, Gu An gave a few instructions to his disciple before heading towards the chess area.
More and more people were taking up chess, and as the birthplace of chess and Go, the Third Medicine Valley naturally attracted many enthusiasts.
Playing chess in the Third Medicine Valley always felt special for Cultivators.
At this moment, Nine-Finger Divine Lord was demolishing opponents left and right. Gu An approached from the back of the crowd and watched from a distance.
His attention was drawn to a man nearby. The man, who had only reached the Nascent Soul Realm, wore a blue Daoist robe and was not particularly handsome.
[Zhang Shi (Nascent Soul Realm Level 3): 681/1100/1800]
His maximum lifespan wasn’t high, yet for some reason, Gu An was inexplicably drawn to him from the first glance.
Zhang Shi felt Gu An’s gaze and turned his head, nodding slightly.
Gu An approached and asked with a smile, “Daoist Friend, you seem unfamiliar, is this your first time here?”
Zhang Shi answered, “I just arrived at Supreme Sect a few days ago. I came specifically for Go. This trip was worthwhile; the level of skill here is very high.”
While speaking, he turned his head to look forward fervently and said, “I estimate I only have a 30% chance of winning against this senior.”
His gaze was fixed on Nine-Finger Divine Lord, and his words irritated Nine-Finger Divine Lord.
Nine-Finger Divine Lord turned back to look at Zhang Shi and said, “30%? You cheeky boy, so arrogant. Take the next game, I’ll make sure you don’t leave a single piece on the board.”
Faced with the challenge from Nine-Finger Divine Lord, Zhang Shi was not intimidated but instead showed an eager expression.
Gu An watched Zhang Shi fervently, seemingly deep in thought, his eyes revealing a hint of fascination.