The voice of the man in the Daoist robe echoed above the sea of clouds, his gaze fixed on the Qinghong Sword.
He couldn’t discern the true form of the sword, as his Divine Sense failed to penetrate the Sword Qi on its surface, which alarmed him greatly.
The achievement in the Sword Dao of this person was undoubtedly the strongest he had encountered!
However, he received no response.
It seemed that the whole world consisted only of him and the sword; there was no second person present.
Yet, he could feel a trace of Divine Sense fluctuation on the Qinghong Sword, indicating that the sword was being controlled, which tightened his mind and made him prepare for battle.
At that moment, the Qinghong Sword burst out with a powerful Sword Intent. Instantly, rolling thunderclouds surged from all directions, darkening the entire world.
The terrifying Sword Intent locked onto the man in the Daoist robe, causing him to be visibly moved.
Thousands of lightning bolts interlaced in the cloud above, while bolts of pale lightning, like a group of dragons, tumbled through the sea of clouds. The Sword Qi on the Qinghong Sword surged wildly, burning fiercely like a roaring flame.
The man in the Daoist robe immediately waved his horsetail whisk, casting out strands of Gang Qi, which gathered around him forming a huge Golden Light Mountain. Divine Statues rose atop the mountain, as if silently screaming.
A sudden downpour fell, and fierce winds howled through the clouds.
Under the flashing lightning, the Qinghong Sword, enveloped by Sword Qi, seemed like a supreme demon sword, exerting immense pressure on the man in the Daoist robe.
The Qinghong Sword soared into the air, its tip pointing at the man in the Daoist robe.
The man in the Daoist robe immediately struck with his palm. The Golden Light Mountain on his body burst forth with dazzling light, all the Divine Statues simultaneously swung their palms, turning Spiritual Power into a majestic group of light that attacked the Qinghong Sword, sweeping across the sky like a galaxy.
The Qinghong Sword moved!
Boom!
The sword struck towards the man in the Daoist robe!
As the sword moved, winds and thunder howled, and the heavens and earth trembled!
Cold light dazzled the sky; the Qinghong Sword appeared like the fastest light in the world, the fiercest thunder, unstoppable as it blasted all obstructions away!
The golden river of light was directly dispersed, the Golden Light Mountain on the man’s body instantly shattered, shocking him into hopping away; but in the next second, the Qinghong Sword had already reached him, relentlessly pursuing.
He struck out with a palm, and the space in front of him seemed to solidify, an invisible barrier forcibly brought the Qinghong Sword to a halt, stirring up waves of qi around the barrier, giving it form.
Suddenly!
The man in the Daoist robe’s expression changed, cursing inwardly.
Clang—
The sound of shattering glass rang out, and the man instinctively retreated. Time seemed to slow, and in his pupils, the tip of the Qinghong Sword drew closer and closer, its Sword Qi blooming like a dazzling, beautiful flower.
Boom!
A strong gust of wind attacked the face of the man in the Daoist robe, blowing off his hair ornament, his black hair danced wildly, his Daoist robe was pulled violently backward, and the sea of clouds behind him was scattered. The thunderclouds above tore open, sunlight poured down, seemingly splitting the heavens with a giant gap stretching to the horizon.
The man in the Daoist robe widened his eyes, staring at the sword hanging in front of him, unable to calm his emotions.
This sword was fully capable of injuring him, but it had stopped when he was defenseless.
Under his gaze, he saw the Qinghong Sword slowly descending.
He seemed to understand something, neither dodging nor striking.
The Qinghong Sword gently tapped his chest three times, then turned and left, moving faster than it had when he had been pursuing it.
The man in the Daoist robe didn’t chase after it this time, knowing it was pointless to do so, as he was no match for his opponent.
His expression gradually darkened; the sunlight falling on him felt piercingly harsh.
…
Inside the house, Gu An was writing. Simultaneously, he lifted his other hand to catch the Qinghong Sword flying in from the window.
He had let the Qinghong Sword circle around a few times, retrieving it only when the disciples in the valley were not paying attention.
After the previous encounter, Gu An had suddenly gained confidence in his Sword Dao.
Killing Chu Xian in the Void Crossing Realm granted him ninety-three years of life span. The man in the Daoist robe he had encountered afterward was also in the Unification Realm. Judging by his aura, he had just entered the Unification Realm, at most not beyond the Second Layer, but he was no match for his Taicang Divine-Shocking Sword.
He had always thought his actual combat ability in the same realm was weak, but now, it seemed, he might have underestimated himself.
Even without much combat experience, his cultivation in spells and ultimate skills was tangible, not fabricated from thin air.
Not everyone could spend thousands of years cultivating spells, as most cultivators spent most of their time on Energy Absorption.
Of course, it’s always safer in combat to fight from a higher realm against a lower one!
Gu An placed the Qinghong Sword back into its sheath, then set it on the table. He turned his head toward the Outer City, where many Great Cultivators from the Supreme Sect had already rushed there.
With tens of thousands of Outer Disciples alive, Chu Xian’s sins could not be hidden. Ye Lan and others were now safe.
It was likely that the Supreme Sect wouldn’t practice that Demon Skill for a while.
The two characters that Gu An had carved at the Heavenly Repair Platform became the focus of the cultivators’ gathering. Great Cultivators marveled at his Sword Intent, while the Outer Disciples were indignant, cursing Chu Xian and demanding that the higher-ups must thoroughly investigate the matter.
Because Chu Xian had isolated the Outer City with a formation in advance, the Servant Disciples in Mystic Valley heard nothing, only the sea of clouds stirring above, which drew a few more glances from some disciples outside.
An hour later, more and more cultivators swept over Mystic Valley, causing a buzz among the disciples in the valley.
Gu An did not come downstairs, pretending to be unaware of the matter.
Today, the Supreme Sect was destined not to be peaceful.
…
After one night, in the early morning, Ye Lan, Su Han, and Zhen Qin returned.
Gu An received them in the attic, and Wuxin and Xiaochuan insisted on joining the excitement. Gu An let them enter the room together.
Zhen Qin began to recount the experiences of the previous day, startling and astonishing Wuxin and Xiaochuan, making their emotions fluctuate with the story.
Ye Lan was unusually silent and did not keep staring at Gu An; Gu An guessed the reason, so he pretended not to notice her abnormality.
When Zhen Qin and Su Han finished speaking, Wuxin sarcastically said, “I had long seen that the Supreme Sect was not as righteous as the outside world claimed, but I never expected them to be so shameless as to sacrifice more than a hundred thousand fellow disciples. Even the Thousand-Autumn Pavilion has never seen such a heartless act!”
Xiaochuan was also very upset, thinking about the Demon Cultivators Mystic Valley had encountered over the years, he gritted his teeth and said, “Senior Brother, why don’t we switch to another sect? Cultivating plants somewhere else is also cultivation!”
Gu An gave him a glance and said, “Nonsense, speak less of such things in the future. Anyway, at least the matter was interrupted, and there are still righteous people within the Supreme Sect.”
He could not bear to part with his foundation, especially the Eight Scenic Caves.
“There have already been Great Cultivators from the Main City of the Sect who have come to administer justice, and they said they would definitely give an explanation to the Outer Disciples. Let’s see how the Sect handles it from now on.
The incident yesterday was too big; it will inevitably spread to the Immortal Cultivation World and cannot possibly be concealed,” Ye Lan said, without looking at Gu An as she spoke.
Su Han suddenly remembered something and quickly said, “Master, Martial Uncle Lu has been seriously injured. Even if he survives, I’m afraid…”
Gu An had actually seen Lu Jiujia’s dreadful condition yesterday, but he was powerless to help. Lu Jiujia’s cultivation level had been drained, and even if he survived, he would become disabled and would likely find it very difficult to cultivate further.
He did not know if Wuxin’s Daoist Expansion Skill could help him.
“Tell him, if he doesn’t mind, he can come to Mystic Valley to find me, and we can plant flowers and live a peaceful life together,” Gu An sighed.
The mention of Lu Jiujia’s fate made the atmosphere in the room extremely oppressive.
“Alright, you all may leave now, I will have a talk with Junior Sister Ye,” Gu An said, waving his sleeve.
Everyone hurriedly paid their respects, then turned and left.
Zhen Qin thoughtfully closed the door, and just as the door was about to shut, she gave Gu An a playful look, making him somewhat smile wryly.
The room fell into silence.
Gu An could feel that Ye Lan’s breath was not calm. He showed a smile and said, “Junior Sister, you were frightened, weren’t you? How about resting for a few days in Mystic Valley?”
Ye Lan took a deep breath, turned to face him, and said, “It was indeed a shock, but not from fear. Brother, I suddenly understand what you said before; I have been foolish. The path of immortal cultivation should focus on cultivation. If we hid in the mountains and met such evil people as yesterday, being utterly powerless to fight back would be the most tragic thing for us both.”
Hearing her say this, Gu An instead worried that she was putting too much pressure on herself.
“Junior Sister, don’t think too much. It’s right to work hard at cultivating, but dangers like yesterday are rare,” Gu An earnestly advised.
Ye Lan nodded and said, “Although I don’t know who the Great Cultivator was who intervened yesterday, I will learn from him. When I’m as powerful as he is, I’ll stand by your side, Brother.”
She smiled and even raised her eyebrows at Gu An.
Seeing her return to her usual self, Gu An smiled as well.
Later, Ye Lan talked about the Demon Extermination Hall; almost all of its disciples had been ruined, but the Main City of the Sect was preparing to thoroughly investigate the Demon Extermination Hall. According to the information she received, this incident might impact the Hall of Elders of the Main City of the Sect.
Within the Supreme Sect, there was never a monopoly of opinion. Everyone had their own adversaries, and Chu Xian had many. Those people would surely exploit this incident to make a move.
Gu An was also looking forward to changes within the Supreme Sect. If it continued to be so vile, and if one day he grew tired of it and became strong enough, he would let the Supreme Sect hear a different voice.
…
Two days later.
In the Third Medicine Valley,
Gu An was checking the herbs when he suddenly sensed two presences. His eyebrows twitched, but he did not turn around.
Before long, Gu Zong arrived with a man, who was none other than the Daoist robe man who had fought with the Qinghong Sword before.
“Gu An, come here,” Gu Zong called from afar.
Gu An immediately turned and walked over, while casting a Life Span Detection at the Daoist robe man.
Divine Sense can detect a person, but Life Span Detection must be done through the eyes.
[Ji Hantian (Unification Realm First Layer): 780/3300/3500]
Indeed, a Unification Realm First Layer!
And he even has the surname Ji?
Recently, he had seen a Ji-surnamed Void Crossing Realm Great Cultivator; surprisingly, there was also a Ji-surnamed Unification Realm Great Cultivator hidden within the Supreme Sect.
The Ji Family’s foundation was truly terrifying.
Gu An walked up to Gu Zong and raised his hand in greeting.
Gu Zong smiled and said, “Gu An, this is the Vice Sect Leader, and he’s from the Ji Family.”
Hearing this, Gu An immediately greeted Ji Hantian.
Ji Hantian nodded his head and showed a smile, saying, “No need for such formality, especially since you are also from the Ji Family. Come, let’s go upstairs and talk.”
Gu An immediately led the way.
Once they were upstairs in the room, Gu An closed the door, and Gu Zong followed by setting up a Restriction.
Suddenly, Ji Hantian slammed the table and shouted angrily, “This is preposterous! Utter lawlessness! Pan An, you must write this down and expose the sins of the Supreme Sect to the entire world!”