“For real, you think you can still beat Sword Venerable Fudao?”
Zhen Qin chuckled, teasingly responding to Gu An’s claim.
Gu An raised his right fist and declared, “My punch carries the power of tens of thousands of years. Could Sword Venerable Fudao withstand it?”
“Ptui, ptui, ptui! Don’t talk nonsense, be careful lest the old master hears you!” Zhen Qin suddenly became anxious. After saying that, she stood up, bowed towards the window with her hands pressed together, apologizing on behalf of Gu An.
Gu An watched with a desire to laugh but did not stop her, simply observing Zhen Qin’s performance with amusement.
Ye Lan, on the other hand, was not afraid. She had always felt that there was a connection between Gu An and Sword Venerable Fudao. Gu An’s words implied that his relationship with Sword Venerable Fudao was extremely good, so good that he could even joke with his superior. This made her quite happy.
The better Gu An’s relationship with Sword Venerable Fudao, the safer she would be in the days to come.
After Zhen Qin apologized for quite some time, under Gu An’s urging, she sat down again.
Gu An inquired about their experiences in the Hall of Elders, and the two women did not hide anything.
When they first joined the Hall of Elders, they faced much ostracism, and some even publicly humiliated them. However, the next morning, those people came to visit and apologized. After that, the Hall of Elders changed its attitude towards them, treating them very well.
Ye Lan took this opportunity to grow her influence, and to her surprise, rather than being suppressed, the Hall of Elders even paved the way for them. So, Ye Lan concluded that someone must be helping them from behind.
After much consideration, the only person they could think of who was capable of doing this was Gu An.
In the Supreme Sect, there were numerous women with more outstanding looks and higher cultivation levels than them; none of the great cultivators on the Immortal Path were interested in them, so it was easy to figure out the answer.
“From now on, perform your duties in the elder seats without worry, and don’t feel too much pressure. If you encounter something you can’t solve, come to me.”
Gu An spoke earnestly. This was something the old him would never have said; not because he had become more powerful, but because Ji Xiaoyu’s situation had made him realize that the time left for those around him was not long.
He had billions of years, even more, of lifespan, but others were different. A hundred years flew by in an instant, and how many centuries could a person live?
In times of great chaos, it was possible that while he was distracted, the people he cared about might be enduring hardship. Why not be more open-hearted?
Ye Lan responded, “Don’t worry, we’ll come to you.”
Zhen Qin nodded in agreement as well.
They began to talk about interesting stories from their sub-sect. Gu An listened intently, occasionally laughing genuinely.
As dusk approached, Zhen Qin left, while Ye Lan decided to stay one more night before leaving.
Night fell.
While watching Gu An read, Ye Lan casually asked, “Brother, what do you think of Miss Ji?”
Gu An’s gaze remained fixed on the Green Hero Travelogue he was holding as he countered, “Why ask so suddenly?”
The atmosphere downstairs had become unnatural again—Ji Xiaoyu was eavesdropping!
“Actually, I think you two are quite a match. With her talent, instead of enjoying fame and fortune, she stays in Medicine Valley, which is clearly for you.” Ye Lan spoke softly, her eyes fixed on Gu An, seemingly observing any change in his expression.
Gu An replied, “I know.”
Upon hearing his answer, Ye Lan’s gaze flickered.
Gu An looked up at her and said, “Her reasons for staying include me, but there are other reasons as well. In life, especially for a cultivator, there are more important things to pursue, right?”
Ye Lan smiled at his words, saying, “Yeah, in my forties all I was concerned about was you, enchained by emotions. Now I have more to pursue. Rather than some nominal reputation, what matters more to me is that we are both alive and can keep each other company.”
She paused, then added, “Actually, I brought her up because I hope you, Brother, would seriously consider her feelings. I can’t accompany you forever. It’s best if you don’t cling to the past and keep forming new relationships, whatever those may be. At the very least, this will make you less lonely in the future.”
Having caught the eye of Sword Venerable Fudao and possessing the Primordial Reincarnation Skill, Ye Lan believed Gu An would live a very long time, and she was destined to be just a passerby in his life. Rather than claiming possession, she hoped he would live freely in the future.
In her view, her brother deserved all the world’s beauty.
Gu An looked at her without offering comfort, instead smiling and asking, “What’s wrong with being alone? The terrible thing is being perpetually alone. Don’t worry, I have many friends, and have you ever seen me feeling down?”
“As for Ji Xiaoyu, she too can’t accompany me for long. Don’t think about how long you can be with me, but what I can do with you and for how long.”
Ye Lan instinctively wanted to ask what was wrong with Ji Xiaoyu, but she refrained, realizing that if even Gu An couldn’t solve the problem with Ji Xiaoyu, what could she do?
There was no need to spoil her brother’s mood.
“That’s true, I’m just a mortal whose life is blessed by association with you, Brother.” Ye Lan covered her mouth and laughed, her comment seemed jesting, but it was earnest.
Without Gu An, she would not have her current status and power, and might well have died hundreds of years earlier.
Every additional day she lived, she owed a bit more to Gu An—at least, that’s how she saw it.
Gu An gave her a glaring look and said, “What nonsensical talk. Since when has fate been hierarchical? Meeting you is my good fortune as well.”
“Really?”
Ye Lan’s eyes crinkled with laughter, making her look quite charming.
Gu An raised his hand, placing it on the table with his palm up.
Ye Lan hesitated for a moment, then reached out her hand, which Gu An took hold of readily.
“Focus on your cultivation, don’t worry about what might be or might not be. I will accompany you on the journey of immortal cultivation. If we don’t reach the Immortal Realm in this lifetime, I will find you in the next. Even if you’ve forgotten me, it’s enough that I remember you.” Gu An stared into Ye Lan’s eyes, speaking earnestly.
Ye Lan’s eyes widened; it was the first time she had heard Gu An make such a pledge.
“Brother…”
Ye Lan said emotionally, her gaze filled with tender affection for Gu An.
Gu An casually drew out a book, asking, “This is a book I’ve been working on recently, want to take a look?”
Ye Lan’s attention shifted to the book’s cover, and she saw three characters.
Dream of the Red Chamber.
…
As autumn was drawing to a close, one day, Gu An rode down from the Transmission Array Platform on the back of the Blood Prison Great Saint, with An Xin following by his side.
Suddenly, a figure charged over and blocked the way of the Blood Prison Great Saint.
It was Long Qing.
He looked at Gu An with a face full of anger, and in his eyes, there was also a sense of grievance.
Gu An sat on the Blood Prison Great Saint’s back, his gaze lazy, and said, “What do you really want?”
An Xin looked at Long Qing and found it amusing but held back her laughter. Your journey continues on empire
If it had been before, she might have spoken for Long Qing; however, she had experienced Long Qing’s swagger too, feeling that this youngster’s temperament indeed needed tempering.
Look how honest An Shengtian from Mystic Valley is!
“I…”
Facing Gu An’s gaze, Long Qing opened his mouth but didn’t know how to express his feelings.
The Blood Prison Great Saint wouldn’t indulge him and said, “Don’t get in the way. Someone has already taught you cultivation, yet you still want the master to teach you?”
Long Qing’s face turned entirely red, and he was at a loss for what to do.
After all, Gu An had raised him himself, and he didn’t make things difficult for him but said, “In fact, you harbor a starting point that others do not have, and one could even say that you are already strong; it’s just that you haven’t discovered it yet. Rather than blindly striving to get stronger, what you should do is take a deep breath and understand yourself.”
From a distance, Shen Xinzi was eavesdropping and pondered upon hearing these words.
He had long noticed that Long Qing was no ordinary individual. Without a trace of Spiritual Power, Long Qing’s physical strength and Qi-Blood surged rapidly. In terms of Spiritual Power, Long Qing was worthless, but when it came to the growth rate of true strength, he was definitely a rare talent in the world.
Could it be that Long Qing truly harbored a power even he hadn’t noticed?
After hearing Gu An’s words, Long Qing was shocked, unable to tell if what Gu An said was true or false.
An Xin and the Blood Prison Great Saint both looked at Long Qing with astonishment; they wouldn’t believe Gu An would lie.
“Do I really still have potential?” Long Qing couldn’t help but ask, his face showing both nervousness and anticipation.
Gu An dismounted and walked up to Long Qing, resting his right hand on Long Qing’s shoulder.
Instantly, Long Qing’s face turned pale, and his body began to tremble.
“How does it feel?” Gu An asked.
Long Qing clenched his teeth and said, “It hurts a bit…”
It was more than a bit; he felt like his body was about to fall apart, but he couldn’t show weakness in front of his master.
He was puzzled in his heart and didn’t know what his master was doing.
Testing him?
A smile appeared on Gu An’s face; as soon as he smiled, Long Qing’s complexion turned deathly pale, and his body trembled even more violently, even his lips quivering.
Large beads of cold sweat broke out on his forehead. At that moment, he felt his body no longer belonged to him.
He even felt his body had decayed, as he lost sensation, and his mind went blank, devoid of all thoughts.
An Xin saw something was amiss with him and took two steps forward, but she still restrained her concern. How could the master possibly harm Long Qing?
Gu An withdrew his hand, and Long Qing immediately collapsed to the ground like a lump of mud.
He instinctively looked up at Gu An, his eyes filled with fear.
Passing disciples gave them curious or puzzled looks, thinking that Gu An was disciplining Long Qing, unaware of what offense Long Qing had committed.
Gu An looked down at Long Qing and asked, “What did you just feel?”
Long Qing took deep breaths, struggling to raise his head, and said with an afraid look, “I… felt like I was about to die…”
“But you didn’t die.”
Gu An stared at him with an indifferent gaze that made him feel afraid, causing him to subconsciously lower his head.
“Just now if it were a Mahayana Cultivator, they’d have been reduced to ash.”
Gu An left these words behind and then walked past Long Qing.
Long Qing widened his eyes and twisted his head to look at Gu An’s retreating figure, his expression one of disbelief.
An Xin and the Blood Prison Great Saint were also stunned; for An Xin, the Mahayana Realm was still a far-off dream, while the Blood Prison Great Saint was itself a Mahayana Cultivator.
Was this youngster Long Qing already more formidable than a Mahayana Cultivator?
They both felt it was absurd in their hearts.
Shen Xinzi appeared out of thin air in front of Long Qing, crouching down to check his body, his face quickly revealing a look of shock.
“Impossible…”
Shen Xinzi murmured to himself, sensing his worldview collapsing.
Long Qing didn’t know what his master was thinking; his mind was echoing Gu An’s words.
If it had been a Mahayana Cultivator, they would have been reduced to ash…
He recalled the terrifying sensation from before and suddenly felt it may not have been so scary after all.
Meanwhile, Gu An’s image in his heart soared immensely.