Gu Zong had sought out Gu An to ask him to write a book about his deeds. Naturally, Gu An did not refuse; after all, Gu Zong was not asking him to make him the protagonist of Investiture of the Gods.
In exchange, Gu Zong would raise Gu An's status to that of an Outer Sect disciple and grant him a Medicine Valley twice the size of Mystic Valley.
In half a year, Gu Yu would bring the necessary things to Gu An.
A Medicine Valley in exchange for writing a book—Gu An felt he was not losing out. He had nothing much to do in his daily life anyway.
That night, after Du Ye returned to their room, he pressed Gu An about why Gu Zong had summoned him.
"It's a sect secret. Are you sure you want to pry?" Gu An asked meaningfully, frightening Du Ye so badly that his whole body trembled. He did not dare ask again.
Early the next morning, the guests of Ji Mansion departed. A cultivator came to find Gu An and handed him a Storage Bag, saying it was from Third Young Miss. Gu An swept it with his divine sense and found Formation materials inside, remarkably abundant ones.
Gu An hesitated over whether to warn Ji Xiaoyu, but when he saw that the number of Ji Family cultivators in Ji Mansion had increased rather than decreased today, with quite a few even meditating atop the eaves, he knew the Ji Family had already sensed the approaching crisis.
Since that was the case, there was no need for him to worry about it.
At noon, Gu An left with Du Ye, once again returning to Outer Sect City through the Teleportation Array.
After bidding Du Ye farewell, Gu An hurried toward Mystic Valley.
He had already begun planning the planting arrangements for his second Medicine Valley.
Together with Li Xuandao's Medicine Valley, he would possess three Medicine Valleys. His future lifespan income was bound to soar.
Even though he had already reached the first layer of the Void Crossing Realm, Gu An would never think he had too much lifespan. There were surely many more realms above the Void Crossing Realm, and the higher he climbed, the more lifespan he would need to consume.
His goal was immortality, to stand upon the summit of the path of cultivation!
Standing upon his Flying Sword and roaming between heaven and earth, Gu An faced the wind, carrying within his heart a Spring and Autumn Longevity Dream.
When he returned to Mystic Valley, his brows furrowed.
He landed on his Flying Sword, which followed him into his Storage Bag. Ye Yan, who was weeding not far away, spotted him and immediately ran over.
"Master, you're finally back. Yesterday, a senior came to stay temporarily in our Medicine Valley," Ye Yan reported at once.
Gu An nodded. "I understand. Go on with your work."
He noticed banners planted throughout the forests surrounding Mystic Valley, hidden amid the weeds. Clearly, this was some kind of Formation.
He first sensed the other party's aura, then pretended not to notice the Formation as he walked toward the cultivator's aura. Along the way, he swiftly inspected his medicinal herbs.
Good heavens!
Six fourth-grade medicinal herbs were missing!
Gu An's gaze immediately turned cold.
The other party's cultivation was no simple matter—he was a Spirit Transformation Realm cultivator. But even a Spirit Transformation Realm cultivator would have to pay the price for daring to steal his medicinal herbs!
Gu An made his way to Xiao Chuan's courtyard. There, he saw someone refining pills. The pill furnace looked ancient and simple, standing as high as half a person, with wisps of green smoke rising from within.
The pill refiner was an old man with a hunched back and a short, plump build. His grizzled hair was tied behind his head with a straw rope.
[Qiu Qianli (Second Layer Spirit Transformation Realm): 486/930/1050]
After confirming that Qiu Qianli had not concealed stronger cultivation, Gu An immediately stepped forward and asked, "May I ask this senior's name and origins?"
His tone was aggressive, utterly unlike his usual manner toward others.
Qiu Qianli rose to his feet, turned to look at Gu An, and said with a chuckle, "This old man is Qiu Qianli. I passed by this Medicine Valley and wished to stay here for a few days."
Gu An asked, "Are you from the Taixuan Sect, Senior?"
Since Ji Xiaoyu was about to form her Golden Core, he could not help suspecting Qiu Qianli's identity.
Spirit Transformation Realm cultivators did not usually come to his Medicine Valley.
The disciples at work also cast their gazes toward the courtyard. They could all sense that Qiu Qianli was no ordinary person, so when they saw Gu An return, they secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
"And you? You are the master of this Medicine Valley?" Qiu Qianli asked with a smile.
Gu An replied, "That's right. Why will you not answer my question, Senior?"
Qiu Qianli shook his head and laughed. He muttered to himself, "A miscellaneous Qi Refining cultivator actually dares speak to this old man in such a tone."
He suddenly crouched down and slapped the ground with his palm.
In an instant, the earth trembled. Great banners hidden within the forests in every direction shuddered, erupting with streams of Demonic Qi. The Demonic Qi swiftly rose and formed a demonic net that enveloped all of Mystic Valley. Then the net turned transparent, as though everything just now had been an illusion.
"What are you trying to do?"
Gu An asked, feigning panic.
The disciples in the distance sensed that something was wrong, and someone immediately rushed over.
Xiao Chuan and Ye Yan arrived first, followed by Wuxin, Zhen Qin, and Su Han. Though the others also rushed over, they did not dare approach rashly. They could only stand outside the courtyard and watch nervously.
Su Han stood at the very front with a sword in hand, though his trembling legs showed just how nervous he was.
Zhen Qin's face had gone deathly pale with fright, yet she still stood in front of Gu An, making him want to laugh.
This foolish girl!
Dense Demonic Qi curled around Qiu Qianli's right palm. He slowly stood up, a savage smile spreading over his face. "Now that the valley master has returned, this old man need not keep pretending. If you want to live, obediently listen to this old man. Otherwise, this old man will skin you alive, extract your souls, and leave you begging for life but unable to live, begging for death but unable to die!"
Feeling his terrifying aura, every disciple was filled with fear.
Wuxin gathered his courage and asked, "We are all Handyman Disciples. Even if you refined our souls, it would do you no good. Let's talk this over properly. What do you want us to do?"
He feared Gu An might not see through Qiu Qianli's cultivation, so he spoke first.
Qiu Qianli sneered. "At least you know what is good for you. From now on, stay in this valley and await this old man's orders. This old man needs to use your Medicine Valley to refine pills. Do not even think of escaping. This old man's Formation is invisible and colorless; even Golden Core Realm cultivators would instantly turn into a pool of blood upon touching it."
Everyone had seen the Formation take shape just now, so they naturally believed him.
Qiu Qianli looked at Gu An and smiled mockingly. "Valley Master, this old man will tell you now: this old man comes from the Ten Thousand Yin Sect. What will you do about it?"
The Ten Thousand Yin Sect!
They truly clung on like restless ghosts...
Gu An had killed only a handful of people in this life. Aside from Fu Xiong, every one of them had been from the Ten Thousand Yin Sect.
Gu An pretended to be terrified and gritted his teeth. "Please forgive this junior's earlier offense, Senior. So long as you do not harm my disciples, command me as you wish. Even if you wish to refine souls, please refine mine first!"
The moment those words came out, the disciples grew anxious, yet none of them dared make a sound for fear of angering Qiu Qianli.
Wuxin clenched his hands within his sleeves, regretting bitterly. If only I had cultivated diligently in ordinary times—if my cultivation technique had reached completion, how could I let Senior Brother suffer like this...
Zhen Qin, Xiao Chuan, Su Han, and Ye Yan had much the same thoughts.
Qiu Qianli smiled, his smile filled with disdain.
Gu An hurriedly said, "Senior, I have fifth-grade medicinal herbs in my room, especially suitable as medicinal catalysts. Do you need them?"
"Not bad. You know how to read the situation. Go quickly!" Qiu Qianli said with a sweep of his sleeve.
Gu An immediately turned and ran toward his pavilion.
The others, meanwhile, watched Qiu Qianli warily, afraid he would do something reckless.
Qiu Qianli dug at his ear and turned his gaze toward Zhen Qin. Smiling, he said, "Little girl, come here and assist this old man."
Seeing his ill-intentioned smile, Zhen Qin felt sickened, but there was even more fear in her heart.
What was she supposed to do?
Judging from the Formation's display just now, no one in this valley could possibly be a match for this Demonic Cultivator.
Just as Zhen Qin was panicking, a purple-black figure appeared out of thin air beside Qiu Qianli.
Qiu Qianli's pupils abruptly contracted as he instinctively turned his head to look.
So fast!
How was that possible?!
Qiu Qianli had just wanted to strike when the other party's right hand shot out like a sword, piercing straight through his chest and lifting him into the air.
His eyes widened as he stared in disbelief at the person below him.
The figure was shrouded in dark-purple blazing aura, its true appearance impossible to see, as though it had emerged from the Nine Abyss Yellow Springs.
Wuxin, Zhen Qin, and the others were also frightened by the sudden appearance of the mysterious figure and retreated together.
"Thousand Autumn... Pavilion... Demonic Shadow Divine Technique..." Qiu Qianli said in a trembling voice, terror filling his tone.
To his despair, he discovered that he could not mobilize the spiritual power within his body at all. That strike had directly shattered his Golden Pill, while the tyrannical spiritual power had firmly suppressed his Primordial Spirit inside his body, making it unable to leave.
The other party was surely above the Spirit Transformation Realm!
Gu An, who had used the Great Yin-Yang Transformation, glanced back at Wuxin.
Wuxin seemed to think of something, and his expression changed drastically.
Then Gu An's right hand, which had pierced through Qiu Qianli, suddenly clenched into a fist. Terrifying Sword Qi erupted, instantly shattering Qiu Qianli's body. Only his Primordial Spirit remained hanging from Gu An's arm, while Qiu Qianli's Storage Bag fell into Gu An's other hand.
Blood and flesh splattered everywhere!
Wuxin and the others were splashed as well, but they had already been scared witless. They had no time to react and could only stand there blankly.
"Sen..."
Qiu Qianli's Primordial Spirit trembled out, but before he could finish, Gu An's tyrannical spiritual power crushed it into nothingness.
Gu An's figure vanished into thin air.
The next moment, the sound of a door being slammed open came from the distance. Gu An, holding a fifth-grade Tiger Blood Flower, vaulted down from the balcony of his pavilion.
He rushed toward the courtyard where Wuxin and the others stood, shouting loudly, "Senior! Don't act recklessly!"
He leaped over the courtyard wall and arrived beside Zhen Qin. Looking at the bloodstains filling the courtyard, he quickly turned back toward the disciples. Only after seeing that not a single person was missing did he breathe a sigh of relief.
He asked nervously, "That demon... where did he go?"
His voice was low, as though he feared Qiu Qianli might hear him.
As if waking from a dream, Zhen Qin let out a scream. Then she grabbed Gu An's robe and said tremblingly, "Master, he's dead... He was..."
The other disciples also snapped back to their senses and turned to look in every direction, afraid that the Mysterious Demon Shadow might appear again.
It took Gu An quite a while to piece together from their words what had just happened.
Acting really was exhausting.
Gu An called on the disciples to remain on high alert and not relax.
At the same time, he secretly exerted force through his right foot. Spiritual power spread through the ground, destroying the invisible Formation.
A curtain of Demonic Qi suddenly appeared above Mystic Valley. Then this mysterious Demonic Path Formation began to collapse, the Demonic Qi vanishing like smoke in the wind, as though it had never existed. Autumn leaves from the mountaintops drifted down after it.
"The Formation has been lifted?" Ye Yan asked cautiously.
Wuxin drew a deep breath, looked at Gu An, and said, "Senior Brother, let's speak somewhere else!"
Killing Qiu Qianli had earned him sixty-six years of lifespan. Not bad at all.
In high spirits, Gu An deliberately put on a puzzled expression. He hesitated for a moment before choosing to nod.
The two walked into Gu An's pavilion, while the other disciples gathered together and discussed what had just happened.
After entering the pavilion, Wuxin shut the door, turned toward Gu An, and gritted his teeth. "The one who acted just now should have been a Great Cultivator from Thousand Autumn Pavilion. He may have been sent by my father to protect me..."
Thanks to Fleeting Time Like a Grave for the 500 Qidian Coins, Xue Rengui for the 500 Reading Coins, and Seeking Great Freedom for the 253 Qidian Coins~~
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