Chapter 207: Like Pan An
Over the vast ocean, Divine Soul Lord sat cross-legged atop a massive gourd, arms folded across his chest as the sea breeze ruffled his hair.
His eyes remained shut, his brows tightly furrowed.
The more he thought about it, the more frustrated he became, and an increasing sense of unease gnawed at him.
After this battle, the prestige of the Holy Land would surely plummet—how could he not be furious?
Yet, he found it difficult to gauge the attitude of the Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path toward the Seven Star Spirit Realm.
From what he could tell, the Sword Sovereign didn't seem hostile to the Seven Star Spirit Realm. The ones he had killed, like Lin Jingtian, had all brought it upon themselves. Even Li Xuanling had gone to Taixuan Sect without any incident.
And this time was no different—the Sword Sovereign had merely forced him to retreat, without actually dealing a fatal blow.
He couldn't tell if the Sword Sovereign was wary of the Seven Star Spirit Realm or if he simply had no intention to kill.
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Truthfully, when the Sealed Demon attacked the Roving Immortal Stage, Divine Soul Lord had sensed it, yet he deliberately chose not to intervene.
He had allowed the Lin Family’s scattered immortals and disciples to be devoured by the Sealed Demon for two reasons. First, he wanted to shape the Sealed Demon into a terrifying threat—after all, the stronger the Sealed Demon, the greater the prestige he would gain when he eventually destroyed it. Second, he saw it as an opportunity to eradicate the Lin Family, thus erasing any lingering karmic ties with the Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path.
If his plan had worked, the Seven Star Spirit Realm would have maintained the Holy Land’s prestige while also resolving its grievances with the Sword Sovereign. A win-win situation.
But things had gone terribly wrong.
The Sword Sovereign had acted too soon.
“So, the Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path is connected to Xuantian Yi?” The more Divine Soul Lord thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.
Before Xuantian Yi joined the Starsea Sect Alliance, Taixuan Sect had never had such a formidable grandmaster.
He suspected that Xuantian Yi, having foreseen the coming Demonic Cataclysm, had reached out to the Sword Sovereign for aid in advance.
Yes! That must be it!
Divine Soul Lord had even learned that Xuantian Yi had written a book called The Sword Sovereign: A Myth.
Raising his right hand, he retrieved a command token. After hesitating for a moment, he probed it with his divine sense.
Soon, a surge of spiritual energy resonated from within the token, and he began to relay the recent events along with his own speculations.
Moments later, his expression turned grim—he was clearly being reprimanded.
Far away in the forests of Xuan Valley, Gu An watched in silence.
Ever since Divine Soul Lord had left, Gu An had kept his divine sense locked onto him, ensuring no unexpected incidents occurred.
When he saw Divine Soul Lord take out the command token, he immediately deduced that the man was contacting a superior within the Seven Star Spirit Realm.
As Divine Soul Lord finally stored the token back into his spatial ring, Gu An exhaled a deep breath, his gaze turning cold.
Watching his shifting expression, Gu An hesitated.
His Lifespan Perception ability could only sense hostility directed at his true body. However, his Nine Extremes Yin-Yang Body could perfectly conceal his true form and even obscure karmic divinations.
Unless someone linked the Sword Sovereign directly to his true identity and harbored ill intentions, he would remain undetected.
Previously, the Mountain God Puppet had resembled his true form too closely and lacked divine concealment, which allowed him to be noticed. Similarly, Hatred Heaven Ancestor had sensed his presence through sword intent alone.
After an incense stick’s worth of time, Divine Soul Lord descended onto a remote island. The moment he entered a cave, Gu An detected the presence of restrictive formations and chose not to follow any further.
Just remember the location of the island.
Gu An stood up and returned to Xuan Valley.
The disciples within the valley were still buzzing with excitement, fervently discussing the celestial illusion they had witnessed earlier. The image of the Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path had been deeply ingrained in their minds, and they, too, believed that the figure confronting Divine Soul Lord had been none other than the Sword Sovereign.
Gu An joined them for a while, casually chatting along.
This battle had an even greater impact than when the Sword Sovereign had slain the Demon Ancestor. Not only had it secured lasting peace by eliminating the Sealed Demon, but it had also shaken the Holy Land itself.
When Gu An returned to the Third Medicine Valley, the place was as lively as a bustling marketplace, filled with chattering disciples.
Lu Lingjun, who had been waiting for him, immediately pulled him into the loft, eager to discuss the Sword Sovereign.
Seeing how much she revered the Sword Sovereign, Gu An felt immensely satisfied. Of course, he had to act just as excited—after all, mutual admiration was key to social bonds.
For the next month, Taixuan Sect remained in an uproar. The entire sect was buzzing with excitement, and rumors spread like wildfire.
Gu An visited the Outer Sect City twice, each time lingering for two hours, listening to the streets filled with praise for the Sword Sovereign.
One noteworthy observation was that more and more cultivators were arriving from overseas. Among them were even experts at the Immortal Dao Realm. These individuals scattered across the cultivation world, trying to gather information on the Seven Star Spirit Realm and the Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path.
Gu An speculated that they might belong to another major faction.
He recalled that Hatred Heaven Ancestor’s enemies came from the Starsea Sect Alliance, a colossal force at sea. At least, in Hatred Heaven Ancestor’s eyes, the Starsea Sect Alliance and the Seven Star Spirit Realm were on equal footing.
Could it be that the Starsea Sect Alliance was preparing to make a move against the Seven Star Spirit Realm?
Though Gu An indulged in these idle speculations, he remained unfazed. After all, no one knew that the Sword Sovereign was him.
As winter snow fell, the Taixuan Sect cultivators who had battled the Sealed Demon gradually returned.
Notably, both Li Ya and Zhang Bukui had also come back.
Sensing their approach toward Xuan Valley, Gu An waited there in advance.
The two of them were still riding the Northern Sea Heavy Sword. Zhang Bukui, gazing at the snow-covered forest ahead, looked visibly nervous.
He was returning to the Medicine Valley where his father had once lived. He was about to meet Uncle Gu again.
The more he thought about it, the more anxious he became.
Li Ya, on the other hand, sternly warned him not to mention their injuries to Gu An. He was to follow Li Ya’s lead when speaking.
Zhang Bukui had no choice but to nod in agreement.
It wasn’t like he hadn’t hidden things from Li Ya before—now that Li Ya wanted to conceal something from Gu An, they were even.
Soon, Li Ya and Zhang Bukui descended into Xuan Valley.
Their arrival immediately caught the attention of the errand disciples.
“Senior Brother Li!” Lu Jiu Jia approached excitedly, his face filled with joy.
Among those who had left Xuan Valley, the strongest was undoubtedly Li Ya!
Even though Li Ya had lost his battle against An Hao and failed to make it onto the Golden Ranking, his strength had already been recognized by the entire Taixuan Sect. He was the pride of Xuan Valley.
Looking at Lu Jiu Jia, Li Ya, knowing he was Gu An’s junior, nodded slightly. “I’m here to see your senior brother.”
Before Lu Jiu Jia could respond, a voice drifted from the loft:
“Senior Brother Li, Bukui, come on up.”
Hearing Gu An’s voice, Zhang Bukui was instantly overwhelmed with excitement.
Li Ya shot him a warning glance before leading him upstairs.
Lu Jiu Jia watched Li Ya’s confident stride with envy. Li Ya was living the life he had always dreamed of.
Inside the room, the moment Zhang Bukui saw Gu An, he immediately knelt down.
Startled, Li Ya hurriedly shut the door.
His sworn brother kneeling before his junior? That would be a scandal if word got out!
“What are you doing? Get up already!” Gu An sighed in exasperation.
Li Ya quickly pulled Zhang Bukui up, shooting him a glare.
Zhang Bukui, however, simply grinned at Gu An like a fool.
Gu An motioned for them to sit while he poured them tea.
“Senior Brother Li, how have you been these years?” Gu An asked casually.
Li Ya immediately launched into a grand tale, boasting about his experiences and rapid progress in cultivation.
Meanwhile, Zhang Bukui repeatedly hesitated to speak.