Back in the Third Medicine Valley, a smile spread across Gu Anâs face.
Just one night had passed, and he had already transformed from Ninth Level of the Divine Soul Immortal Realm to the Ninth Level of the Free Soaring Immortal Stageâa tremendous leap in power.
If it werenât already morning, he might have pushed for another breakthrough.
The breakthrough had cost him nearly fifty million years of lifespan, leaving him with just over six hundred million years.
Still, he felt confidentâthere was hope he could break through once more.
Now that heâd reached the Free Soaring Immortal Stage, his perception of the Heavenly Spirit Great Realm became even sharper. He could now sense that both the Immortal Dynasty and the Holy Court had Free Soaring Immortals hidden among them. If a war between Free Soaring Immortals broke out, it could easily sweep across the entire world.
If he could surpass that stage, Gu Anâs heart would be at ease.
Walking down from the Teleportation Platform, he looked up. Far above the universe, he saw a grey river in the void. He wasnât inside the cosmosâit couldnât be reached by flying upward but only by following the Dao laws.
The River of Destiny!
The place where Lu Han fell!
Gu An simply stared at it from afarâhe had no intention of stepping into the River of Destiny just yet.
His gaze shifted to Wu Jue, who had rarely come looking for him. Naturally, Gu An went to greet him.
You Yingying was holding a rabbit. When she spotted Gu An in the distance, she blinked, then instinctively rubbed her eyes.
His clothes were the same as yesterday, same hair, same styleâbut Gu An felt⊠different.
She couldnât describe the feeling. She just felt a strange urge to draw closer to him⊠but the longer she looked, the more she felt a pull to bow down.
The emotions were complexâimpossible to put into words.
And it wasnât just her. The other disciples who saw Gu An couldnât help but look twice.
Gu An walked up behind Wu Jue just as he was listing examples of Liu Beiâs righteousness.
Wu Jue mustâve sensed something. He turned to see Gu An and immediately dropped his scowl.
âYouâre finally back! Come, letâs drink!â Wu Jue grabbed his arm and pulled him aside.
Of course, Gu An didnât refuse. He called out, asking An Xin to prepare drinks and food.
The two of them sat across from each other in Gu Anâs pavilion.
âGu An, Iâve reached the Integration Stage!â Wu Jue exclaimed proudly.
Gu An chuckled inwardly. Integration Stage? I only noticed after standing right behind you.
Though heâd suppressed his aura, it was only pressed to the Nascent Soul Stage, not fully hidden. That Wu Jue didnât notice said a lotâthis guy was too easily carried away. Hopefully, he wouldnât cause trouble later on.
âFor real? Thatâs⊠thatâs amazing!â Gu An widened his eyes in exaggerated shock.
Seeing Gu Anâs expression, Wu Jue puffed up even more. âIntegration Stage at 421 years old, you know what that means?â
Gu An opened his mouth but said nothing. Sometimes silence says more than words.
He did know exactly what that meantâafter all, wasnât he a Free Soaring Immortal at 419?
He nearly asked, Do you even know what kind of power a 419-year-old Free Soaring Immortal has?
An Xin arrived just then, bringing the drinks and food upstairs. She overheard Wu Jueâs boasting and barely held back a laugh.
Showing off in front of my master? Seriously?
She set everything down and quietly left.
Wu Jue had purposely spoken loudly, yet An Xin didnât react at all. He found that odd.
Gu An noticed too and silently blamed her for having no professional integrityâhow could she break character that easily?
âI didnât expect you to come this far. I always knew you were special, but I still underestimated youâŠâ Gu An said sincerely, redirecting Wu Jueâs attention.
Wu Jue laughed. âIf you hadnât encouraged me back in the day, I wouldnât have made it this far. Youâll grasp enlightenment too one dayâyou might still reach the Integration Stage.â
Gu An shook his head. âNot possible anymore.â
âWhat? Donât say that. You gotta believe in yourself.â
Exactlyâbecause I believe, I know itâs not happening, Gu An thought wryly.
He asked instead, âYou think you can match An Hao or my Senior Brother Li now?â
Wu Jueâs eyes lit up. âIâm not sure, but theyâve always been my benchmark. I just donât know how strong they really are. Once I surpass them in realm, Iâll challenge them.â
Oh wow, Gu An laughed to himself. You like cross-realm battles too?
He was amused, but he appreciated Wu Jueâs spirit.
Arrogance kills. Recklessness kills faster.
No matter how strong you are, youâre still mortal.
The two continued chatting about the futureâmainly Wu Jueâs. Gu An played along like a pro, hitting every emotional chord just right.
The Third Medicine Valley bustled with lively energy, and so did the Taixuan Sect. No one realized what was happening far beyond the skies.
At that moment, beyond the celestial veil, many high-level cultivators had gathered. The weakest among them was at the Celestial Ascension Stage. All eyes were fixed on the Oblivion Domain.
Fu Shenxiu and Bai Ziyao of Mortal Peak were there too, along with a dozen other Celestial Ascension experts.
âThe tension between the Immortal Dynasty and the Holy Court is unreal,â Bai Ziyao muttered.
Immortal spirits from the Dynasty and cultivators of the Holy Court stood on opposite ends, glaring at each other with overt hostility.
Fu Shenxiu looked toward the distance. âLetâs hope this anomaly makes them reconsider fightingâat least for a while.â
Bai Ziyao gazed upward and sighed. âThe Heavenly Spirit Great Realm is vast, but compared to the Oblivion Domain, itâs still tiny. If not for Saint Heaven, the Heavenly Demons wouldâve overrun us long ago.â
Fu Shenxiu turned to him. âYouâve been to the Oblivion Domain. Is it really filled with Heavenly Demons?â
âHow could that be?â Bai Ziyao said softly. âWe just call them that. Sure, thereâs a Heavenly Demon Race, but we lump all life forms from that place under the same name. The Oblivion Domain is endlessâI donât even know how vast it truly is. Maybe it hides an entire Great RealmâŠâ
His voice trailed off, eyes dimming at the memory.
While they discussed the Oblivion Domain, other sects were talking too, each sharing what they knew or had heard about the place.
Meanwhile, the culprit behind the celestial anomalyâGu Anâwas just having drinks with a friend.
Late into the night, Gu An was on the move again.
The gap between Free Soaring Immortal and the next major realm was enormous. He worried that six hundred million years of lifespan still wasnât enough.
He had to steal his way to ten billion.
Yes⊠one last time.
After reaching ten billion, he promised himself heâd stop. Even he felt shameful doing this.
To throw others off, he targeted Mortal Peakâthis way, even they would be listed among the victims.
But then he sensed something.
A Mystic Celestial Immortal was cultivating on the main peak, wrapped in Mortal Peakâs fortune. Likely a returned elder from beyond the heavens.
Gu An only picked from the main peakâs herbs and then slipped away, but still ended up alerting the sect.
By dawnâ
The Mystic Celestial Immortal stood before a pile of harvested mature herbs, silent for a long time.
Only when the sunlight fell upon him did he finally take a deep breath.
âThis world⊠remains as unfathomable as everâŠâ he murmured.
Ten days later, Gu An successfully reached ten billion years of lifespan.
Now it was timeâbreakthrough!
He looked toward the heavens. Near the Heavenly Spirit Great Realm, countless powerful beings roamed the edges of the Oblivion Domain, making it hard to find a safe spot.
He couldnât just go deep into the Oblivion Domain eitherâwhat if someone like the Black Profound Emperor was lying in wait?
The autumn wind rustled through the trees. Gu An sat on a boulder, staring at the sky through the gaps in the leaves.
The Blood Prison Grand Sage was lying nearby. An Xin was practicing the Treading the Path of Years Step.
Her steps were smoother than ever, each one filled with rhythm and flow. Even the Blood Prison Grand Sage was mesmerized.
He wanted to learn it too, but no matter how hard he watched, he just couldnât grasp it.
He guessed this kind of divine ability had to be taught by his master directly.
Still, he didnât ask. His current body wasnât suited for divine abilities anyway. As long as he behaved, once his thousand-year mark came, he was sure heâd get his chance.
Gu An withdrew his gaze and looked overseas.
His herb-harvesting spree had indeed caused a stir. The sects whoâd lost their treasures couldnât find the culprit and had turned to the Holy Court.
The Holy Court compiled all the reports and sent out investigators.
Gu An overheard that some suspected it was tied to the celestial anomaly, and a few even linked it to a Heavenly Demon plot.
That made him laugh and cry at the same time.
The first part was accurate. The rest? Not so much.
Still, he wasnât worried about getting exposed. After this final breakthrough, heâd stop stealing entirelyâreturn to his old self and watch the worldâs chaos from a distance.
A peaceful world wasnât all good. Stability brought rigid rules, and those at the bottom found it nearly impossible to rise.
Breaking those rules attracted disaster.
The Heavenly Spirit Great Realm had long been carved up by major sects. Any place that nurtured Natural Treasures already had a sect camped nearby. There were very few truly unclaimed landsâeither guarded by sects or watched by powerful demons.
Still, Gu An preferred peace over chaos.
Peace meant fewer opportunities, yesâbut it also meant less danger.
If not for the Holy Court setting rules, the Seven Stars Spirit Realm wouldâve destroyed the Taixuan Sect before Gu An could grow strong.
Because of those rules, the Seven Stars Spirit Realm couldnât act too brazenly. Their dirty tactics had to remain in the shadows.
Suddenly, Gu Anâs divine sense locked onto Zhu Xi at Falling Moon Divine Lake.
The world was vast, but among those heâd personally seen, only a handful had a 9,999-year lifespan limit before the Nirvana StageâAn Hao, Evil Emperor, Yang Jian, Blood Prison Grand Sage, Ji Xuanyu, and Zhu Xi.
The Evil Emperor, once the Leader of the Nightshade Sect, had been sealed beneath the Immortal Kingâs Crown and later crushed by Gu An.
Surely, there were others with the same lifespan limit out thereâbut they hadnât appeared before Gu An yet.
Divine sense alone couldnât trigger Lifespan Perception.
Zhu Xi was cultivating. Her realm hadnât changed since he last saw her.
âWhat heights will this Primal Devouring Body reach?â Gu An wondered.
In the Heavenly Spirit Great Realm, Ancient Treasure Bodies were rare. Above them were Dao Bodies, then Sacred Bodies. The Primal Devouring Body was on par with the Primal Causal Body, standing even above the Sacred Body.
In terms of physique, Zhu Xi far surpassed An Hao and Yang Jian.
Of course, physique was just one part of talent. Take An Haoâhis comprehension was just as terrifying.
The 9,999-year limit applied only to humans under the Nirvana Stage, not to the limits of talent itself.