“Gu An!”
A woman’s voice came from downstairs, interrupting Gu An’s train of thought. He looked down to see You Yingying standing below, waving at him.
You Yingying’s maximum lifespan was five thousand years. Previously, because of the suppression by the Heavenly Demon’s karma, her cultivation level couldn’t grow. After Gu An helped her resolve the karma, she regained her inherent talent, and now her cultivation level had reached the 8th Floor of the Integration Realm.
Gu An looked down at her and asked, “What’s up?”
You Yingying looked at him and said, “I’m getting ready to go back to the Star Sea Congregations.”
“Just go, I’ve agreed,” Gu An replied with a smile.
Ever since Gu An’s identity had been exposed, various sects had been trying to curry favor with him, including the Star Sea Congregations, and particularly You Yingying’s family, who constantly sent her messages.
She was quite irritated by this, so she decided to leave the Supreme Sect and go out on her own to experience the world.
Returning to the Star Sea Congregations was just a pretext; she planned to wander the endless lands.
Gu An certainly wouldn’t stop her.
Hearing Gu An’s words, You Yingying hesitated.
Looking up at Gu An from downstairs, she felt that he was out of reach, and her heart found some relief.
Since she was already prepared, why hesitate now?
Gu An could hear her heart’s voice but didn’t say anything, just smiling as he watched her.
“When I attain the cultivation level of the Immortal Dao, I will come back!” You Yingying huffed, and with that, she bowed and left.
Next to them, Blood Prison Great Saint, who was meditating under a tree, just glanced over before closing his eyes again to continue his cultivation.
Gu An watched You Yingying leave, feeling somewhat sentimental.
No matter how much he behaved like before, the disparity in cultivation level always created an insurmountable barrier between him and the others. They were still as close as they had been, but compared to before, something was missing.
Perhaps that was the price of becoming strong.
Gu An shifted his gaze back to appreciate the snowy landscape of Medicine Valley.
It snowed every year, and if one observed carefully, they would realize that the snowscape was different every year, like the intricate, interwoven karma of all beings, constantly changing.
Gu An recently had been contemplating creating his own Divine Power, a Karma Divine Power.
To kill enemies across space and time, making them unable to deduce his actions!
Just like this winter snow, that would eventually melt, leaving no trace.
After saying farewell to An Xin, Long Qing, and the others, You Yingying left that very day. Her departure sparked some discussion among the disciples, but in the end, it didn’t cause much of a stir in the Third Medicine Valley.
Nowadays, the Third Medicine Valley had seven thousand disciples, along with many chess and painting enthusiasts, almost like a miniature Immortal Cultivation Realm on its own. People were always coming and going, and You Yingying, even in this small realm, couldn’t shine brightly. Her departure was destined to be forgotten quickly.
The winter snow fell heavier by the minute, as if aiming to bury the Vast Earth itself.
After the winter snow passed, spring arrived.
For this year’s Spring Festival, Gu An left the valley early. He went to the World-Excluding Cave Heaven to celebrate with the Celestial Demon Child and her companions. In the past, he hadn’t forgotten them, but celebrating with them had always happened after the Spring Festival.
Gu An sat under a tree, drinking, with the Celestial Demon Child peeling fruit for him. They laughed together, watching Celestial Cyan and Tian Bai perform, reenacting the battle between Sun Wukong and Er Lang God, complete with dialogue.
Watching their performance, Gu An felt they hadn’t changed at all, and now reflecting on it, perhaps not all experience was beneficial.
Of course, whether to gain experience or not was up to their choice.
After Celestial Cyan and Tian Bai finished their performance, the Celestial Demon Child took the stage, showing off her Divine Skills.
Even without Gu An speaking, the three women could keep chattering nonstop, keeping the atmosphere warm and engaged.
Gu An’s heart grew more serene as he watched the Celestial Demon Child, while contemplating his Way of Cause and Effect.
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The Way of Cause and Effect was something all Cultivators were involved with. It was the simplest yet the hardest, which is why many practitioners, as their realms advanced, would research other Great Daos.
The same Way of Cause and Effect, what made Gu An’s path different from other practitioners?
After so many lifespans and rebirths, Gu An’s accumulation of knowledge on the Way of Cause and Effect was deep; what he lacked was creation.
His Dao Fruit had nurtured a path unique to him, and he had created his own Great Divine Power exclusive to him, the Longevity True Words.
Longevity True Words, using language to determine fate, made use of the Way of Cause and Effect.
Gu An looked at the Fate Pen on the table.
He had a pen that could utter the words of karma; did he really need a book too?
Speaking of which, in his life, he had an inseparable destiny with writing books. He had written many books, some where he copied classical Huaxia texts, and some he created himself. If he could write the Way of Cause and Effect into the books, would it be feasible?
Gu An suddenly thought of the Book of Life and Death from “Journey to the West.” With one stroke in the Book of Life and Death, one could determine life and death.
His ideas began to burst forth, slowly entering meditation.
After a while, the merry Celestial Demon Child, Celestial Cyan, and Tian Bai suddenly sensed Gu An’s Dao Intent. They turned their heads to look at Gu An, their eyes filled with astonishment.
Not daring to disturb Gu An, they exchanged glances and then sat down to meditate, feeling Gu An’s Dao Intent.
The World-Excluding Cave Heaven followed suit and quieted down.
…
Under the dazzling starry sky, on the barren land, wavering shadows were moving forward.
Leading the group were two men, namely the Divine Exotic Realm Master and Zhang Buku.
Zhang Buku was dressed in a set of worn black clothes, which loosely revealed his robust muscles, quite striking to the eye. His black hair was carelessly draped down his back.
Looking up, his eyes bright and clear, he asked, “Master, how far are we from the Celestial Spirit Great World?”
The Divine Exotic Realm Master replied, “Very far, so far that I can no longer sense the power of Divine Exotic City. To have come to this place is our fortune, perhaps we should let go of the past.”
After leaving the Celestial Spirit Great World, they had been traversing the Great Heaven and Earth nonstop until a few years ago when they were swept into the darkness by a river filled with the rules of space and time, completely severing their connection with the Celestial Spirit Great World.
Upon hearing this, a look of sadness crossed Zhang Buku’s face.
He missed his Martial Uncle, longed for Li Ya.
But he was no longer that weak self. Wherever he went, he had to fight to become stronger.
Suddenly, he saw meteors streaking across the starry sky like torrential rain, sweeping across the entire starry sky, a magnificent sight. Immediately after, he was struck by an awe-inspiring scene—a colossal Celestial Horse flashing brilliant light emerged behind the countless meteors, stepping on auspicious clouds, crossing the land they were on.
Under this colossal Celestial Horse, no matter how high their Cultivation Level, all would feel extremely insignificant, and the dark land was lit up as if moving from nighttime to daylight.
The Divine Exotic Ghost King and the Divine Exotic Resentful Ghosts behind them were also startled, causing an uproar.
“What is that?” Zhang Buku couldn’t help asking the Divine Exotic Realm Master.
The Divine Exotic Realm Master, living the longest, could always solve his puzzles.
The Divine Exotic Realm Master looked at the cloud-striding, bright Celestial Horse with a complicated gaze and said, “That symbolizes the auspiciousness of the Heavenly Dao. You can call it a Celestial Horse. They are supreme, being able to cross Yin and Yang, across all Heavens and Myriad Realms. It is said that all beings who see the Celestial Horse will gain the blessing of destiny. It seems our luck isn’t bad.”
“Celestial Horse?”
Zhang Buku murmured to himself. Although he had seen many and was well-informed about Divine Beasts and Fierce Beasts, he had never seen an auspicious being like the Celestial Horse.
The Celestial Horse was so majestic that it seemed even larger than Heaven and Earth, radiating a holy light that made people yearn for it, as if it was the most perfect creation in the world.
Even after the Celestial Horse following the meteor swarm had disappeared, and the land had fallen back into darkness, the graceful figure still lingered in Zhang Buku’s mind.
What kind of existence could subdue such an auspicious being?
Zhang Buku had this thought, and immediately after, he felt ashamed. How could one defile such an auspicious being?
He shook his head and carried on.
The Divine Exotic Resentful Ghosts continued to discuss the Celestial Horse, feeling amazed and unforgettable.
The Divine Exotic Realm Master walked ahead, saying, “Perhaps there is an incredible fortune waiting for us ahead. The Celestial Horse is a sign.”
A smile appeared on his face; since coming to this universe, he had finally seen hope to shake off the role of a chess piece.
Zhang Buku didn’t think so much; he just wanted to become stronger.
“If Martial Uncle and Li Ya could see the Celestial Horse, how good that would be. Unfortunately, you’re not so lucky.”
Thinking to himself, Zhang Buku amused himself with the thought.
The starry sky was brilliant, unable to illuminate the land, but they pressed on through the darkness towards the dawn.
…
In the Third Medicine Valley, at the entrance of Medicine Valley,
Gu An strolled forward, toying with a black leather book in his hand. He flung the black leather book into the air, caught it again, and continued to playfully advance.
“Master!”
A voice full of surprise called out, and An Xin appeared out of nowhere in front of him.
Gu An smoothly caught the flying black leather book and tucked it into his bosom.
This was a book that governed life and death; it was not something others could touch.