https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-160-The-Power-of-the-Demon-Clan-the-Dao-Monarch/12575528/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-162-The-Attack-of-the-Great-Demon-the-Only-Way-to-Survival-/12575532/
Chapter 161: You Are Not Strong Enough
Chapter 161: You Are Not Strong Enough
Move out of the Tai Xuan Gate?
Gu An was taken aback. He hadn't expected Du Ye to come looking for him regarding this matter.
How could he possibly leave the Tai Xuan Gate! His entire foundation was here!
Moreover, where could the Ji family go if they left the Tai Xuan Gate?
Gu An frowned and asked, "Why do they need to move out?"
Du Ye replied, "It seems to be related to the Demon Tribulation. The family has already found a refuge. Regardless, the family is willing to take you and me along, and we should be grateful. Get ready; the exact date of our departure hasn't been decided yet. When the time comes to leave, don't delay."
Gu An shook his head. "I can't go. Tell the family that I appreciate their kindness, but I intend to stand with the Tai Xuan Gate through thick and thin."
Upon hearing this, Du Ye froze, his eyebrows knitting together.
He said in a low voice, "Gu An, don't forget where you and I came from."
"I'm sorry. The Ji family has raised me all these years, and I've repaid them with medicinal herbs. But the debt of gratitude I owe the Tai Xuan Gate is something I can't repay yet. I can't leave; you go ahead, and I'll stay here," Gu An said sincerely.
Du Ye was furious and wanted to teach Gu An a lesson, but he was afraid of being heard by the other menial disciples.
"You still have time to think about it. When the demons invade the Great Cang Empire, you won't be able to hide even if you want to!" Du Ye left angrily after saying this.
He came and left in a hurry, but his face was devoid of its usual smile when he departed.
Seeing Du Ye's anger, Gu An felt a warmth in his heart. At the very least, it showed that Du Ye cared about him; otherwise, he wouldn't have bothered with his well-being.
However, he truly couldn't leave the Tai Xuan Gate.
If the Tai Xuan Gate couldn't withstand the Demon Tribulation, he could always escape later.
With Gu An's cultivation, if he really wanted to flee, who could stop him?
When night fell, Gu An arrived at the Eight Scenic Wonders.
Jiang Qiong was meditating under the Wisteria tree, with a large cauldron in front of her and the pill fire still burning beneath it.
Sensing Gu An's presence, Jiang Qiong asked casually, "Why are you here? Didn't you just come by a couple of days ago?"
Gu An walked up to the cauldron and looked at the concoction within while saying, "The Ji family came to find me today. They said they're preparing to evacuate from the Tai Xuan Gate, and they told me to get ready as well."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Qiong opened her eyes, her eyebrows furrowed in a frown. "Are you leaving?"
If Gu An left, there would definitely be a new Tai Xuan Gate disciple to take over the management of the valley, which wouldn't be a good thing for her.
There was also a faint, inexplicable annoyance in her heart.
"No, I refused," Gu An sighed. "I'm just confused about where the Ji family can go to escape the Demon Tribulation."
He had come this time hoping to get some information from Jiang Qiong, as she might know something about it.
Jiang Qiong scoffed, "They're probably going to hide in the Seven Star Spirit Realm. That place is a sacred site where even demons dare not invade. I heard before that the Ji family seemed to be planning to betroth Ji Xiao Yu to a genius from the Seven Star Spirit Realm. Looks like it's true. The Ji family has really climbed up the social ladder."
So it was the Seven Star Spirit Realm!
Gu An looked at Jiang Qiong, his eyebrows knitting together as he asked, "Is the Seven Star Spirit Realm very powerful?"
"Of course it is," Jiang Qiong said. "On this great earth, empires rise and fall, and races wage constant wars. Only the Seven Star Spirit Realm has endured through it all. You tell me, are they powerful or not? In a sense, the Seven Star Spirit Realm is the true ruler of this continent. The people chasing me were cultivators from the Seven Star Spirit Realm because I took an opportunity that they wanted first."
After listening to this, Gu An really wanted to say that since she, a Yuan Ying realm cultivator, could snatch an opportunity away from cultivators of the Seven Star Spirit Realm, then they couldn't be that powerful.
However, Jiang Qiong seemed to see through his thoughts and said, "The Seven Star Spirit Realm has a strong foundation and should possess a vast world that's not inferior to the Nine Empires. There are numerous aristocratic families within, and the number of their disciples is vast. The group I encountered on the Nine Abyss Road were young disciples who had gone out to gain experience. Those people were not even a hundred years old, yet they had already reached the Nascent Soul realm. The Seven Star Spirit Realm is truly fearsome."
A look of reverence appeared on her face, and even though she was being pursued by cultivators from the Seven Star Spirit Realm, she had no thoughts of revenge because the gap in strength between them was simply too vast.
A great world that's not inferior to the Nine Empires?
Gu An's curiosity about the Seven Star Spirit Realm grew.
No wonder the Seven Star Spirit Realm didn't interfere in the racial struggles on the continent. So, even if the human race on the surface was destroyed, the human race would still have a future.
Subsequently, Gu An asked a few more questions, and Jiang Qiong told him everything she knew. The more he learned, the more wary he became of the Seven Star Spirit Realm.
His intuition told him that after the Demon Tribulation, the Seven Star Spirit Realm might bring about the next calamity.
However, Gu An wasn't worried. His strategy was to only make a move when he had absolute confidence.
If he could fight, he would. If he couldn't, he would bide his time and wait for a better opportunity.
"Are you happy or unhappy about the betrothal between the third young miss of your family and the Seven Star Spirit Realm?" Jiang Qiong suddenly asked teasingly.
Gu An replied casually, "The third young miss is a proud daughter of heaven. Naturally, she will marry a proud son of heaven. I'm definitely happy for her."
"Really? Isn't there a hint of regret in your heart?" Jiang Qiong asked with a mischievous smile.
Gu An raised his eyebrows and spread his hands. "Of course, I regret it. To be honest, I admire the third young miss, but my talent is mediocre, and I'm not qualified to pursue her. Since I can't have her, I can only console myself and wish her happiness.
Jiang Qiong's smile faded, and she coldly hmphed, "You seem to have a good attitude about it. Indeed, if one's status and talent don't match, love will only bring you harm. Keep this in mind and don't fall in love easily in the future."
Gu An nodded. "I don't need to fall in love either. There are plenty of female disciples in the valley."
"Oh? So that's why you don't like cultivating?"
"What I mean is, if I wanted to find a Dao companion, it wouldn't be difficult, but I don't want to," Gu An clarified.
"That's more like it. Your Shizu has lived longer than you, and Dao companions are unreliable. Countless companions have abandoned each other in life-and-death situations, and even more have schemed against each other for their own benefit. Your Shizu hopes that you won't fall in love easily and will be more mindful of your surroundings. She has your best interests at heart," Jiang Qiong advised.
"Have you ever had a Dao companion?" Gu An asked curiously.
"If I had, your Shizu would have died long ago," Jiang Qiong replied.
Jiang Qiong began to instruct Gu An earnestly, and he took the opportunity to ask some questions of his own.
More than an hour later, Gu An finally took his leave.
As Gu An's figure disappeared into the distance, Jiang Qiong thought to herself, "This kid doesn't even call me Shizu. He's quite bold in his thoughts."
...
The tail end of summer slipped away, and autumn arrived once more.
Gu An arrived at Tianya Valley and noticed that there was one more person there than before.
Ever since Lu Xian and Yi Liuyun had left, only Luo Hun and the three monkey demons remained in the valley. For this reason, Gu An had brought many books for Luo Hun, and even a chess set.
In truth, even without these things, Luo Hun wouldn't have felt bored, as he was a cultivator.
But because Gu An had brought them, it was hard for Luo Hun to focus on his cultivation. He often secretly cursed Gu An for being malicious, but the novels written by Daoist Zhenchun were indeed excellent, and he really had no way to refuse them.
Gu An walked down the slope and gazed toward the figure standing by the wooden fence from afar.
[Ji Ruolai (Nascent Soul realm, 8th layer): 96/700/3900]
Ji Ruolai? Gu An raised an eyebrow. He had heard this name before; Ji Ruolai was Ji Xiaoyu's older brother. He had been taken away to the main family to cultivate at a young age, and Gu An had never met him, only hearing mentions of him from other servants.
Unexpectedly, Li Xuandao had even managed to rope in Ji Xiaoyu's older brother.
Luo Hun descended from the sky and landed beside Gu An, introducing him to Ji Ruolai and asking, "You've probably heard of him before, since you're also from the Ji family, right?"
Gu An nodded.
The two of them approached Ji Ruolai, who was staring at the flowers and plants in the garden with a dazed look in his eyes. It was only when Luo Hun called out to him that he snapped out of his trance.
He turned to look at Gu An and Luo Hun, asking, "Is this the Valley Master Gu An?"
Gu An raised his hand in greeting. "It's an honor to meet you, Second Young Master."
Ji Ruolai waved his hand. "Here, I should address you as Valley Master. His Majesty said that from now on, I'll be assisting you."
Although the geniuses who came to Tianya Valley had to assist Gu An, they were free to take any medicinal herbs they wanted from the valley. As a result, Ji Ruolai's attitude toward Gu An was very friendly.
However, Gu An didn't need them to assist him; it was better to do them a small favor instead.
"Second Young Master, please focus on your cultivation. The chores in the valley are taken care of by Sun Da and the others," Gu An said with a soft laugh.
Ji Ruolai nodded and then began to make small talk with him.
He noticed that Ji Ruolai's body had a strange cold aura, which surrounded his Golden Core.
After chatting for a while, Gu An bid farewell and left to gather herbs.
Ji Ruolai watched Gu An's departing figure, deep in thought.
Luo Hun caught up with Gu An and asked in a low voice, "Have you found the Tai Xuan Secret Records that I asked you about before?"
Gu An forcefully suppressed the urge to roll his eyes and quietly replied, "No, that book has disappeared without a trace. Forget it, aren't the novels written by Daoist Zhenchun and Qingxia Youji enough for you to read?"
Luo Hun could only sigh regretfully and then leave.
Gu An shook his head and chuckled.
He didn't know where Luo Hun had heard about the Tai Xuan Secret Records, but he had actually asked Gu An to buy it for him.
Gu An was afraid that Luo Hun would become addicted and affect his cultivation, so he hadn't helped him buy it.
It was all Shen Zhen's fault for corrupting the cultivation world's morals!
...
Late at night, in a dilapidated temple.
Thud!
A man in plain clothes fell to the ground, his right leg twitching a few times before he finally breathed his last.
Standing next to him was a man in black—Su Han.
Su Han had just finished absorbing the spiritual power from the man in plain clothes, and he was now circulating his qi to harmonize it. From the furrowed brows, it was clear that he was uncomfortable.
There were four other corpses nearby, both male and female, all dead.
A ghostly aura poured in through a hole in the roof, condensing into the figure of the Ghost Mother of Ephemeral Flowers.
Under the light of the full moon, the Ghost Mother's pale face was terrifying. She stood by and watched Su Han.
Time passed.
Su Han opened his eyes and exhaled a turbid breath.
The Ghost Mother spoke, "I have already revealed your whereabouts. Within seven days, a large number of cultivators will come to chase and kill you. I will have the Nine Abyssal Thirteen Fiends stop the powerful cultivators, so you must seize this opportunity and not let a single one of them escape."
Su Han nodded and then asked, "Ghost Mother, why do so many people seek death when I have no grudges against them?"
The Ghost Mother calmly replied, "Some want to kill you to make a name for themselves, and some want to kill you to claim the reward offered by the Sword Sect. The fundamental reason they chase you is that they think they can kill you because you are not strong enough."
(End of Chapter)
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