Steadily becoming a saint, the immortal officials hired me to tend the horses

"What's the big matter?"

Gu An asked with a smile, having arrived in the Outer City today, he indeed felt that the atmosphere was off, with an indescribable sense of tension.

Ye Lan spoke up, "The Sect Leader and a certain elder are vying for power. Recently, the Emperor came to the Supreme Sect and selected the elder's direct disciple as the National Master, granting him a first-rank immortal official position and proclaiming it throughout the dynasty.

This has greatly boosted the morale of that elder's faction, who are also spreading unfavorable rumors about the Sect Leader."

Lu Jiujia, beaten to the punch, looked somewhat resentful. After she finished speaking, he hastily added, "The Sect Leader's domineering style has offended many elders. In recent years, there have been repeated incidents of disciple casualties and demon path invasions in the territories beyond the Outer Sect, which has caused dissatisfaction among many elders.

Now with the Emperor's support, the Sect Leader's rivals certainly won't hold back. How can this not lead to chaos?"

Gu An curiously asked, "Doesn't the Sect Leader have absolute power? Isn't he the strongest cultivator in the Supreme Sect?"

"Not necessarily, the Sect Leader is also elected by the collaboration of the elders. Moreover, within the Supreme Sect, the strongest in terms of cultivation level is not the Sect Leader but the True Inheritor. It is said that he is the most talented person in the Supreme Sect in a thousand years. He wanders outside and seldom returns.

I have heard a rumor that if he wishes to become the Sect Leader today, by tomorrow he will be the Sect Leader," Lu Jiujia replied, his tone becoming excited as he spoke of the True Inheritor.

"That impressive? What's his name?"

"Cough cough, I haven't found out yet."

Lu Jiujia coughed slightly, trying hard to cover his embarrassment.

Ye Lan gave him an annoyed look, then turned to Gu An and whispered, "I have indeed heard many secrets in the Law Enforcement Hall. The open and secret struggles within the Main City of the Sect have also spread to the Inner and Outer Sects. Elder brother, you must be careful in Mystic Valley. Those people will do anything for power."

Gu An laughed and said, "Surely not? Could someone really dare to slaughter Mystic Valley and then frame the other party?"

As soon as these words came out, Gu An himself felt uneasy.

Hadn't someone already bred the Demon of Greed right outside the Outer Sect? What else couldn't happen?

Seeing his worry, Ye Lan reached out and held his hand, reassuringly saying, "Elder brother, don't worry, I will try to convince the Law Enforcement Hall to increase patrols around the various Medicine Valleys in the Outer Sect."

Gu An naturally withdrew his hand; he was only distracted for a moment, and she had sneaked an attack on him.

Well, he had actually noticed, but he was afraid that reacting too quickly would arouse suspicions from his junior brother and sister.

Lu Jiujia secretly snickered, but was given a stern look by Ye Lan.

"Compared to me, you need to be more cautious. Such a power struggle is more dangerous than going out to slay demons," Gu An commented solemnly.

Lu Jiujia was very confident, claiming it was impossible for him to die.

Ye Lan then mentioned that she was in the Law Enforcement Hall, where others wouldn't dare to easily harm her.

The Law Enforcement Hall manages all divisions; joining the Law Enforcement Hall grants power above ordinary disciples, but disciples of the Law Enforcement Hall don't have as much cultivation time as ordinary disciples, as they must intervene whenever any division faces an issue.

Gu An looked at Ye Lan, feeling deeply inside.

Just a few years out of the valley, Ye Lan had metamorphosed, no longer the little girl who followed him around; she now appeared capable and striking.

The three of them chatted while drinking.

Most of the time, it was Lu Jiujia and Ye Lan talking, through which Gu An gained a lot of insight into the situation of the Supreme Sect.

He felt very gratified that the junior brother and sister he had trained were now looking after him in return, giving him a sense of achievement.

If disciples of Mystic Valley were dispersed across various divisions of the Outer Sect, and even entered the Inner Sect in the future, wouldn't he have connections everywhere?

Just thinking about it excited Gu An.

Two ancient hours later, Lu Jiujia left first. Gu An politely declined Ye Lan's invitation to visit her residence to taste some delicacies, then left the Outer City under her reluctant gaze.

Riding his flying sword, facing the wind, Gu An felt very pleased.

The skies gradually turned crimson; dusk was approaching.

Gu An's apparent cultivation level had reached the ninth layer of the Qi Cultivation Realm, so his flying speed was not slow; he admired the undulating forests along the way.

Suddenly, half an Ancient Hour later, while flying, Gu An saw a figure emerge from the forest ahead, quickly approaching him, causing him to slow down.

A white-robed elder appeared, flying on a sword and carrying a Wine Gourd, his nose red as a jujube, seemingly just having had a drink.

"Young friend, please wait!"

The voice of the white-robed elder reached him, and Gu An could sense the elder's cultivation aura was at the Foundation Establishment Realm, but to be safe, he still initiated a Life Span Detection.

[Lin Futian (Nascent Soul Realm Level 1): 603/800/840]

Good heavens!

Nascent Soul Realm!

Gu An inwardly cursed the other's deceit, who had evidently cultivated a Secret Technique to hide his cultivation level.

The two quickly met in midair, Lin Futian's face bearing a benign smile, said, "Young friend, I am a disciple of the Outer Law Enforcement Hall, Lin Kun, and I need to inquire about a matter with you. There have been frequent appearances of demon path spies recently. Shall we go to the woods to talk?"

Gu An nodded, knowing that it was probably futile to refuse at that moment. It would be better to see what happens.

The two quickly landed in the forest, and Gu An casually plucked two leaves.

Lin Futian stepped forward, his tone mysteriously asking, "Young friend, have you heard of Xu Ruye from the Wanyin Sect."

Xu Ruye?

That I know all too well!

That was the one I killed!

Xu Ruye and Chan Ji had once sought to stay in his Medicine Valley and even injured Li Ya; how could he forget.

Gu An feigned confusion and asked, "I've heard of the Wanyin Sect, but who is Xu Ruye?"

"Xu Ruye was a genius of the Wanyin Sect, and his father was even the Vice Sect Hierarch of the Wanyin Sect. He died in this area, and recently there have been quite a few spies from the Wanyin Sect investigating the cause of his death," Lin Futian stepped forward and said.

Gu An immediately stepped back to keep distance between them.

Seeing his cautious expression, Lin Futian grinned and said, "What? Young friend, you don't suspect that I am a spy from the Wanyin Sect, do you?"

Gu An shook his head and said, "The junior dares not, but the junior really has never heard of Xu Ruye. Since you are a member of the Law Enforcement Hall, why do you need to ask me?"

"Hahaha——"

Lin Futian burst into laughter. He suddenly waved his sleeve, and a surge of Spiritual Power spread out like mist, quickly covering an area of several miles.

Gu An panicked, raised his sword with his right hand, and looked tensely at him.

Lin Futian then opened his Wine Gourd, and an unpleasant smell of alcohol wafted out. He sneered, "Don't be afraid, there are fifteen of your fellow sect members accompanying you in here…"

Gu An gritted his teeth and asked, "Who exactly are you? What's your background? Even if I am to die, can you let me die understanding why?"

"Haven't you guessed it?" Lin Futian said with a cold laugh. He lifted his hand and made a grabbing motion from afar. A powerful Spiritual Power bound Gu An and forcefully pulled him toward himself.

Gu An's face showed despair as his body soared into the air, quickly flying towards Lin Futian.

Lin Futian reached out with his left hand towards him while pouring from the Wine Gourd into his mouth with his right hand.

Boom!

Gu An suddenly burst out with a terrifying aura, instantly dispersing Lin Futian's Spiritual Power.

Lin Futian's pupils suddenly dilated, a leaf reflecting in his eyes.

Encircled by sharp Sword Qi, the leaf moved as fast as lightning, directly piercing Lin Futian's forehead, blood splattering as the leaf continued on its path.

Boom, boom, boom——

Several large trees were smashed, raising a cloud of dust that lifted into the air like a long, gray wall extending for miles.

Lin Futian's body trembled, his face showing disbelief as he cried out in anger, "You… you hid your cultivation level… despicable…"

Gu An took a step forward right in front of him, his right hand's index and middle fingers together like a sword, placed against his chest.

Boom!

Sword Qi burst forth, instantly shattering Lin Futian's physical body and scattering the dust wave behind him, the surrounding trees falling outward, revealing a trench several miles long.

A figure suddenly flew out of the rolling dust, an old-faced infant that looked odd; it was Lin Futian's Nascent Soul.

He flew rapidly towards the horizon, when suddenly a swooshing sound approached his ears.

He instinctively turned his head just as a leaf sped forth, directly annihilating his Nascent Soul, with a mist of blood blossoming in the air.

Gu An reached out his hand to summon his Flying Sword, took a step forward, attaching Sword Qi to his body, and transformed into a sword shadow speeding away, quickly disappearing into the woods.

He did not head towards Mystic Valley but in a different direction. On the swiftly traversing path, a notification popped up:

[You successfully seized Lin Futian (Nascent Soul Realm level one) 25 years of lifespan]

It's a bit little, but there's nothing to be done about it. Although Lin Futian was at the Nascent Soul Realm, at six hundred three years old, he only had one hundred ninety-seven years left to live.

Gu An didn't dwell on it. He took a big detour and then returned to Mystic Valley at the fastest speed possible.

He climbed through the window into the attic hall, sat at the table, lifted his hand to summon a jar of wine from the wine cabinet, and started drinking heavily.

After drinking a gulp of wine, he gently set the jar down, his right hand trembling slightly, his heartbeat intense.

"Huff, huff…"

Gu An tried to calm his emotions.

That was terrifying!

Coming home to encounter a Demon Path spy!

Worried about making too much noise with his previous move, Gu An decided to not leave the valley for the next month and lay low for a while.

"No, it's too dangerous… Today a Nascent Soul Realm came after me, who knows when a Divinity Transformation or even higher realm might appear…"

Gu An quickly accessed his Attribute Panel, and seeing his 91,000 years of lifespan, he felt somewhat relieved.

The path of Immortal Cultivation is truly fraught with dangers. Even a regular Cultivator at the ninth layer of the Energy Cultivation Realm could be intercepted by a Nascent Soul Realm level one Great Cultivator. Isn't that scary?

Gu An thought about the fifteen souls in the Wine Gourd, feeling sympathy for them.

Next, he planned to forcefully harvest a batch of medicinal herbs, striving to reach 100,000 years of lifespan and see if he could unlock new features. Then, he would rejuvenate his lifespan at the first opportunity!

Gu An took a deep breath and pulled out the Green Hero Travelogue from his chest, diverting his attention.

Night fell, and cheers from fellow disciples echoed from outside the window. Gu An used his Divine Sense to check and found out it was Tang Yu and Su Han sparring again, with other disciples watching the excitement.

Ordinarily, he would have joined them, but he was not in the mood now.

He focused on reading the Green Hero Travelogue, his heart finally calming down, though he remained somewhat worried.

After a while.

Footsteps approached, then the door swung open as Zhen Qin rushed in and said, "Master, big brother and second brother are fighting!"

Her gaze fell on the cover of the Green Hero Travelogue, and she raised an eyebrow.