https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-212-The-Profound-and-Inscrutable-Gu-An/12578122/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-214-Arrival-of-the-Divine-Lord-A-Grand-Opportunity/12590105/
Chapter 213: Peculiar Aura
Chapter 213: Peculiar Aura
After his brief encounter with the Nine-Fingered Divine Lord, Gu An quickly left the island.
Although the Nine-Fingered Divine Lord didn't pose an immediate threat, his age of 170,000 years was enough to make Gu An want to avoid any association with him.
Gu An had no desire to associate with such powerful beings; he simply wanted to avoid trouble.
Upon returning to Tai Xuan Gate, he would occasionally observe the Heavenly Realm's number one cultivation tournament, finding it rather intriguing.
Tai Xuan Gate had created different treasures corresponding to different cultivation levels, with the materials supposedly sourced by Xuan Tian Yi from overseas. The heaviest was a Great Vehicle treasure, heavier than mountains.
For this reason, Tai Xuan Gate had specially prepared a venue and set up numerous restrictions to prevent the ground from caving in under the weight.
Without duels, the tournament concluded much faster than previous ones; in less than half a month, Qiao Dai emerged as the winner and was bestowed the title of 'Heavenly Peak Great Sage' by Tai Xuan Gate!
Subsequently, Qiao Dai announced his decision to join Tai Xuan Gate, becoming one of its elders—a development that took Gu An by surprise.
What was Seven Stars Spirit Realm up to?
Were they simply giving away a Great Vehicle realm cultivator to Tai Xuan Gate for free?
Or were they planting a spy?
Gu An didn't bother to ask Ly Batuo. Even if Qiao Dai had ill intentions, he wasn't worried.
It would only take one move from the Kill God Spirit Lord to take him down.
However, as autumn arrived, Ji Hantien brought Qiao Dai to visit Gu An, and he just so happened to be in, so he received them in the pavilion.
Qiao Dai sat at the table, surveying the room, and asked, "Are you Pan An?"
Gu An brought the tea over and replied, "I am Pan An. What brings you here, senior?"
With the Ji family having thrown their lot in with Seven Stars Spirit Realm, and now with Ji Hantien bringing Qiao Dai to see him, Gu An couldn't help but feel there was more to this visit.
"Have a seat and let's talk," Ji Hantien said with a gentle smile, even taking the initiative to pour tea for the two of them.
Gu An sat down, his gaze shifting to Qiao Dai.
Qiao Dai scrutinized him, his eyes carrying a sense of oppression.
"What are your impressions of the holy land, Seven Stars Spirit Realm?" Qiao Dai asked.
Gu An paused, then answered, "Seven Stars Spirit Realm is revered as a holy land, so naturally, I hold it in high regard. Why do you ask?"
Qiao Dai spoke up, "You wrote that Bodhi Patriarch is from the Three Star Cave of Slanting Moon, was that a tribute to Seven Stars Spirit Realm?"
Bodhi Patriarch was the master of Sun Wukong, the protagonist of Journey to the West. Ever since the novel became a massive hit, Bodhi Patriarch had also been frequently mentioned, and some even firmly believed that places like the Three Star Cave of Slanting Moon and Spirit Platform Square Inch Mountain truly existed in this world.
Gu An nodded.
With the Ji family having allied with Seven Stars Spirit Realm and Qiao Dai himself hailing from there, Gu An naturally had to go along with their beliefs.
If these two still harbored suspicions about him, then he would have no choice but to seek assistance from the Sword Venerable of the Dao Support.
Seeing Gu An nod, Qiao Dai didn't look pleased; instead, he frowned and said, "Actually, Seven Stars Spirit Realm isn't as wonderful as you might think."
Upon hearing this, Gu An couldn't help but look at him in surprise.
What did he mean?
Did Qiao Dai bear ill will towards Seven Stars Spirit Realm?
Ji Hantien continued, "The previous Demon Monster Calamity was related to Seven Stars Spirit Realm. We came to find you because we were afraid that you hold Seven Stars Spirit Realm in too high a regard. There are some things we need to tell you."
Without waiting for Gu An to respond, Ji Hantien proceeded to explain the origins of the Demon Ancestor and the Terrible Demon, leaving Gu An stunned.
In truth, Gu An had already guessed as much, but he had to play along, all the while pondering their intentions.
After Ji Hantien finished speaking, Qiao Dai said, "The actions of Seven Stars Spirit Realm fill me with disgust. Ever since I embarked on the path of cultivation, I've dreamed of becoming an immortal who saves the world. That was why I chose to join Seven Stars Spirit Realm. However, a close friend of mine exposed the evil deeds of Seven Stars Spirit Realm. He was from the Lin family, and his ancestor was the one who attacked Tai Xuan Gate and was slain by the Sword Venerable of the Dao Support. During the operation to hunt down the Terrible Demon, the Lin family suffered heavy losses."
"The Lin family's enemies within Seven Stars Spirit Realm took the opportunity to try and wipe them out. Before fleeing, my friend left me a letter revealing the Lin family's approximate misdeeds as high-ranking members of the Six Stars Cave. It took me several years to fully come to terms with this reality."
Gu An sighed upon hearing how the Lin family had been abandoned by Seven Stars Spirit Realm.
Of course, the Lin family's destruction was not unjust; it was simply a case of dogs biting dogs.
Frowning, Gu An said, "I'm just a small Foundation Establishment cultivator. Why are you telling me all this? I can't help you, and I won't risk offending the holy land by exposing them under the name of Pan An."
Ji Hantien smiled and said, "Rest assured, we're not that impulsive. Seven Stars Spirit Realm is too powerful right now; even if the cultivators of the Three Empires joined forces, they couldn't shake them. We just hope that from now on, you won't praise Seven Stars Spirit Realm in your books."
Qiao Dai nodded, "That's right. Your influence is indeed great. I used to be disdainful, but after reading your Investiture of the Gods and Journey to the West, I realized just how capable you are. However, my favorite work of yours is Tai Xuan Immortal Lord. The story of an underdog rising to the top is much more appealing to me."
So it was about that...
Gu An felt a mix of laughter and tears. It was all just a coincidence, and in reality, he had been alluding to Seven Stars Spirit Realm being the Western Buddhist Kingdom.
He pretended to ponder for a moment before reluctantly agreeing to their request.
Seeing that Gu An seemed hesitant, neither Ji Hantien nor Qiao Dai got angry. They, too, had needed a long time to come to terms with these revelations.
It wasn't just about exposing the dark side of Seven Stars Spirit Realm but also about facing the pressure of going up against the continent's strongest force.
There was no other power that could rival them!
Gu An couldn't help but ask, "If Seven Stars Spirit Realm wants to enslave all life under heaven, why go through all these detours?"
"The three of us together still wouldn't be a match for them, right?" Ji Hantien asked.
Qiao Dai replied, "The Seven Stars Spirit Realm is not entirely evil. In the ocean, the Seven Stars Spirit Realm is a sacred land of the righteous path. Our continent is just one of the regions under their jurisdiction, governed by the Six Stars Cave and the Seven Stars Cave. After countless millennia, the higher-ups of the Six Stars Cave, in their pursuit of transcending destiny, began to seek extreme methods, deceiving their superiors and hiding their actions, leading to the current situation."
"In the grand scheme of things, there are such things as destiny and spiritual influence. If the people of this continent despise the Seven Stars Spirit Realm, then the other Star Caves will surely take notice. If the people of this continent are wiped out, it will also attract the attention of the surrounding powers. Eventually, the truth will come to light, and within the Seven Stars Spirit Realm, the majority of cultivators are unaware of these matters, believing themselves to be righteous disciples."
Once again, it was the corrupt among the righteous who were causing trouble, but in this case, the corrupt within the Seven Stars Spirit Realm were beings that the people of the continent couldn't hope to oppose.
Gu An pretended to have a sudden realization, and then asked a few more questions, even bringing up the Ghost Lamp Sect.
The reason the Ghost Lamp Sect was able to traverse the Nine Abyssal Realms was that their sect leader, Jing Tuxian, had connections with one of the elders of the Six Stars Cave. The extent of their dealings was unimaginable. It seemed that they were allowing the Ghost Lamp Sect to create havoc, but in reality, that elder intended to devour the essence of the Ghost Lamp Mother Tree.
Once the disciples of the Three Empires made their sacrifices to the Ghost Lamp Mother Tree, that elder would make his move, reaping the benefits and gaining a reputation.
The continent of the Ghost Lamp Sect was also a subordinate continent of the Seven Stars Spirit Realm, located incredibly far away. It was so distant that Ghost Lamp Sect disciples could only travel through the Nine Abyssal Realms; if they attempted to cross the sea, they would perish along the way without at least a Great Vehicle realm cultivation.
The three of them chatted for another half an hour. Before leaving, Ji Hantien instructed Gu An to keep this matter a secret.
With Tai Xuan Gate's current strength, they were no match for the Seven Stars Spirit Realm, so they had to bide their time!
Gu An saw them out, watching Ji Hantien's retreating figure, and he couldn't help but wonder about the Ji family's true attitude towards the Seven Stars Spirit Realm.
Currently, there were very few members of the Ji family in Tai Xuan Gate, basically just Ji Hantien's lineage.
Speaking of which, during the breaking of Li Demon's seal, Ji Xiaoyu had given Gu An a jade pendant to keep temporarily. It recorded the crimes of the Seven Stars Spirit Realm, and after all these years, Ji Xiaoyu still hadn't come to retrieve it.
He reached out with his spiritual sense and saw that Ji Xiaoyu had gone to the Tian Wei Empire, heading towards the eastern ocean.
What was that about?
Running away from an arranged marriage?
...
Ji Hantien and Qiao Dai's visit didn't disrupt Gu An's life. In the following days, he made even more frequent trips to the outer sect's cities.
As winter arrived, snowflakes danced in the air.
In one of the outer sect's cities, in front of the Enforcement Hall, Gu An stood with Ye Lan next to a stone statue.
After receiving the pills from Gu An, Ye Lan said helplessly, "That's too many, Senior Brother. Don't you cultivate? Are you spending all your time refining pills for me?"
Gu An patted the snow off her shoulders and whispered with a smile, "Don't worry, what I gave you is just a small portion. I consumed most of the pills myself. In my heart, am I not more important than you?"
Ye Lan rolled her eyes at him, touched by his words.
She wasn't foolish; she knew that Gu An had given her all the pills to help her break through to the Innate Cycle Art.
She was puzzled because she felt that her body was still in good shape and that she could easily live for another two hundred years. Why was her senior brother so insistent on her making a breakthrough within the next twenty years?
Did her senior brother think that she could only live to be a hundred and twenty or a hundred and thirty years old?
She didn't ask further questions, choosing to trust her senior brother.
The two of them started chatting about Zhen Qin.
After a while...
Gu An bid Ye Lan farewell and turned to leave.
As he walked into the swirling snow, Ye Lan felt a strange sense of loss for some reason.
This feeling was odd; she felt like she and her senior brother were growing further and further apart.
After leaving the Enforcement Hall, Gu An started wandering the streets.
Even with the heavy snow, some streets remained bustling.
As he wandered into a busy area, a young disciple approached him and whispered, "The long-lost Tai Xuan secret manual, do you want to buy it? It has illustrations!"
Gu An gave him a disdainful look and walked past him, continuing on his way.
The young disciple persisted, and after a brief back and forth that lasted a dozen steps, he finally gave up.
"You pretentious jerk! Ugh!" The young disciple muttered under his breath as he watched Gu An's retreating figure.
As he walked, Gu An unknowingly found himself near the Library Pavilion and noticed someone sitting under an old tree next to the wall, reading a book.
It was Journey to the West again!
Gu An walked past him and asked curiously, "Why are you reading out here instead of inside? It's more comfortable inside."
A cultivator at the Foundation Establishment level, average.
His appearance was average as well.
But Gu An felt that there was something odd about his aura, so he probed with his lifespan.
You Yingying (Foundation Establishment, Eighth Layer): 124/400/5000
Hmm?
A maximum lifespan of five thousand years?
How was he only at this level of cultivation?
And it was a woman's name?
He didn't look like he was cross-dressing.
You Yingying looked up at Gu An and replied, "It's too noisy inside. It's more peaceful out here, and I can also feel the natural world."
Then she suddenly sized Gu An up and asked hesitantly, "Are you Gu An?"
Third update!
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
