All Living Beings.
Aspirations.
Li Xuandao fell into deep thought, and Gu An did not offer his own opinion, since both choices had pros and cons for the common folk.
To remain content with the status quo would invite future crises; to be discontent would make life harder for the current and future generations.
Gu An’s protection of the continent’s beings already showed his benevolence, but he would not worry about the daily lives of all living beings every day.
In any case, when asked about worldly affairs, Gu An’s role was simply to provide options; the ultimate decision was up to Li Xuandao, with whom the consequences lay.
Li Xuandao was lost in contemplation, and Gu An did not disturb him; his gaze drifted outside the courtyard.
Lv Xian, who was instructing someone in their cultivation, glanced towards Gu An from time to time. When their eyes met, Gu An could tell he was excited.
Gu An was suspicious, but he was not in a hurry; he would discuss it with Li Xuandao later.
Usually, he did not need to spend much time on cultivation, so his pace of life was slow. He was not in a rush about most things; he could handle them one by one.
Li Xuandao was not forever lost in his own world; he came back to reality and started chatting with Gu An about Li Ya.
Li Ya was the link between the two, and speaking of him prompted more conversation.
After an hour, Li Xuandao suddenly said, “Lv Xian has been talking about you nonstop. He specifically came back from overseas to see you, but insisted I come along. He wants to meet you but also fears you; what’s that about?”
Gu An pretended to be puzzled and asked, “Why does he want to meet me? And why would he fear me? That shouldn’t be; have I treated him poorly?”
While speaking, he looked curiously at Lv Xian, who immediately smiled back at him.
Li Xuandao stared at Gu An meaningfully and said, “Gu An, what kind of relationship do we have? There’s no need to hide things from each other.”
Gu An’s expression alternated between clouds and sunshine; he took a deep breath and said, “To be honest, there are indeed hidden relationships behind me. If I reveal them, I will be punished, and those who know will die.”
Discover more content at empire
After saying this, he patted his shoulder.
Li Xuandao immediately squinted his eyes and chuckled, “Then let’s not talk about it anymore.”
Inside, however, his mind was in turmoil.
This boy…
Upon reflecting, Li Xuandao had an epiphany.
After Gu An joined the Supreme Sect, Sword Venerable Fudao appeared, primarily active around areas close to Gu An.
He recalled Li Ya’s sudden surge in strength over the years which he could never explain.
Now it all made sense; it seemed Gu An had arranged for Sword Venerable Fudao to look after Li Ya.
Li Xuandao’s gaze towards Gu An heated up, making Gu An quite uncomfortable.
Without guessing, Gu An knew what Li Xuandao might be planning.
He did not clarify; if Li Xuandao wanted to act under the name of Sword Venerable Fudao, he did not mind giving Li a pat on the shoulder.
It depended on whether Li Xuandao knew his limits.
“You go meet Lv Xian; I don’t have other matters here,” Li Xuandao said, waving his hand with a smile.
Gu An stood up, bowed to him, and then walked towards the courtyard gate.
Seeing him leave, Lv Xian immediately greeted him and pulled Gu An towards a corner of Tianya Valley.
“What’s so secretive?” asked Gu An.
Lv Xian whispered, “I have something great, and it won’t disappoint you!”
“Something great?”
Gu An’s interest was piqued, and he followed Lv Xian away.
Lv Xian led Gu An into a cave, his personal Cave; he had crafted it here in Tianya Valley for fear of being seen by others, setting up very advanced Restrictions.
After entering the Cave, Lv Xian activated the Restrictions, isolating it completely.
Gu An, feeling irritated, asked, “All this secrecy? Do we even have to hide it from His Majesty?”
“Of course we do. If he knew, he’d go mad!” Lv Xian replied, his face displaying excitement.
He then pulled Gu An into the deepest chamber of the cave, walked up to a stone table, and took out an irregularly shaped stone slab that seemed like a large fragment. At first glance, it appeared plain with no inscriptions or runes.
As he set down the slab, Gu An suddenly understood something significant; his expression turned peculiar.
The stone slab actually contained Heavenly Dao Destiny!
Moreover, it was purer and more unsettling than the Heavenly Dao inheritance obtained by An Hao from the Heaven Sect; its destiny emitted an indescribable oppressive force.
Even Gu An, the Taoist Hidden Immortal, felt an instinctive wariness and a glimmer of desire.
He wanted to possess this Heavenly Dao Destiny!
Yet, as this desire emerged, his wariness grew.
Something was off!
Gu An looked at Lv Xian and asked, “What is this?”
He couldn’t discern the cause and effect of this stone slab!
This indicated that the origin of the slab was even stronger than the Taoist Hidden Immortal himself!
At this realization, Gu An almost wished Lv Xian would take this item away and keep it far from him.
What kind of thing was this?
Trying to harm him?
Lv Xian, with an excited smile, said, “This is an inheritance I stumbled upon. You might not believe it, but this contains the legacy of a true Immortal, a real godlike Immortal, not something any Immortal Dynasty or Holy Court could compare to!”
Immortal legacy?
Gu An frowned. Neither Lu Han nor Long Zhan had encountered a real Immortal through the ages, although they’d met many who claimed to belong to the Immortal or Divine Race.
This had led Gu An to always believe that the so-called Immortals were merely more powerful beings.
Lv Xian continued, “The inheritance here only cares about talent, not cultivation level. I failed, but I think you should give it a try.”
“Why should it be me? There are so many geniuses,” Gu An hesitated to ask.
Lv Xian glared at him and said impatiently, “There are many geniuses, but the only one I have a good relationship with is you. I wouldn’t give it to An Hao. You have supreme talent, yet you can restrain your competitive spirit and live in seclusion here. I think you becoming an Immortal would be better, at least you wouldn’t threaten me, and you are indeed very good to your friends.”
Although Gu An was curious, he felt that this matter was very dangerous, so he said, “Actually, His Majesty’s talent is also very strong.”
After hearing this, Lv Xian’s eyes brightened as he said, “You noticed it too? I thought I was the only one who knew.”
“Um, but don’t tell him I know.”
“Hahaha, don’t worry. He still thinks he’s hidden himself well enough, not realizing that you are the deepest enigma. Think about it, it makes sense that Sword Venerable Fudao has always stayed at Supreme Sect, certainly to cultivate you. An Hao claims to be a disciple of Sword Venerable Fudao, but he left and Sword Venerable Fudao is still here. That must mean he’s just riding on your coattails.”
Lv Xian chuckled, truly believing that Gu An was stronger than An Hao.
He had sparred with both of them, and Gu An had given him the greatest sense of oppression and psychological shadow.
He even believed that Gu An was the number one genius under the heavens!
Hearing this, Gu An fell into silence, his gaze fixed on a stone slab.
Wait!
Should he use his lifespan to simulate this?
Gu An thought it feasible as touching the stone slab directly seemed too dangerous.
His mind made up, he immediately began to simulate.
[Simulating the inheritance, will consume 1,000,000 years of lifespan. Do you wish to continue?]
That much?
Gu An hesitated, but looking at the stone slab, he was really tempted.
Forget it!
Take the plunge!
While Lv Xian continued his incessant chatter, Gu An chose to continue, and then his consciousness entered a vast white space.
Everything was blank, and below his feet, grass first emerged, rapidly expanding, and mountains appeared in the distance in all directions.
The world was vast and the sky magnificent.
Gu An looked ahead and saw atop the mountains a dazzling orb of light, immensely gigantic, much larger than any mountain on earth.
Within the light orb, there stood a towering figure; ten thousand zhang in height, adorned in armor, wielding a divine weapon, exuding a domineering aura that overwhelmed all living beings!
Upon seeing this figure, Gu An felt threatened, and he couldn’t help but think of Black Profound Emperor, whom Lu Han encountered, and Annihilation God Emperor, whom Long Zhan encountered.
Their auras were similar!
What realms were they actually in?
“Mortal Spirit, having seen the Heavenly Dao, why not kneel?”
A majestic voice rang out, but Gu An did not kneel since it was just a simulation, and he asked, “What inheritance is this?”
“This is the Heavenly Dao Immortal Position inheritance. To gain my approval, you must defeat me.”
Defeat?
Gu An was surprised internally; facing this entity, Lv Xian surely had no chance at all, let alone even the desire to fight.
Wait, Lv Xian said that the inheritance only looked at talent—could it be that facing different inheritors, this entity’s cultivation level might also change?
Lv Xian failed against an existence a Great Realm higher than his own.
He was now facing an existence a realm higher than Taoist Hidden Immortal!
No wonder it felt dangerous, yet not hopeless.
“What is Heavenly Dao Immortal Position?” Gu An pressed on.
The other did not respond.
Gu An asked other questions, but no matter what he asked, there was no response.
Forget it!
Then fight to see if he had the strength to pass the inheritance test!
…
Inside the cave, Lv Xian gestured to Gu An, whose eyes suddenly became clear.
“What were you thinking about? I asked you several times, and you didn’t respond,” Lv Xian said with dissatisfaction.
Gu An smiled and replied, “Nothing much, I was just wondering whether there really are Immortals and Gods.”
He had passed the test.
It had to be said, that entity was indeed formidable; Gu An had to use dozens of moves to completely vanquish it.
Yet even after the victory, Gu An still hadn’t figured out what the Heavenly Dao Immortal Position was.
But one thing was certain; the stone slab inheritance could see through his true cultivation level. If there was an Immortal God power behind it, that power could also understand his true strength through this stone slab.
The last thing Gu An wanted was for his true cultivation level to be seen through.
“Forget it, I can’t accept it. But don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone,” Gu An shook his head.
Lv Xian’s eyes widened as he said, “This is an Immortal God inheritance; if you succeed, you will soar to great heights!”
Gu An replied, “I only trust the mana that I have cultivated myself, not that given by others. If so, I would certainly be controlled by others at the risk of my life and freedom.”
Hearing this, Lv Xian furrowed his brows.
He had to admit, Gu An made a good point.
With that statement from Gu An, the excitement in his heart began to subside.
He looked at the stone slab on the table and said in a low voice, “Well said, perhaps failing the inheritance was a blessing in disguise.”
