Saint Who Lay Low

Once his cultivation was completely stabilized, Gu An deactivated the Lifespan Barrier.

This time, the barrier consumed over eight thousand years of his lifespan. At this rate, maintaining the barrier would eventually become an enormous burden on his lifespan.

He had to work harder to earn more lifespan. Though he seemed rich in lifespan now, if he wanted to enhance all aspects of his power, his current supply wouldn't be enough!

Gu An stood up, stretched, and placed his hand on his chest.

The Body Fusion Realm seemed like a transitional stage—unlike earlier realms, it didn't have clear phases, but the accumulation of power required in this stage was immense.

He could feel that the next realm would be connected to the heart, and something seemed to be condensing within his heart—a sign of what was to come, although he couldn't quite discern what it was yet.

He began moving forward.

Still using the Infinite Vanishing Celestial Step, he continuously flickered, each step covering hundreds of miles. At the same time, he expanded his spiritual sense, carefully feeling the difference in the ninth layer of the Body Fusion Realm.

Suddenly.

Gu An stopped in his tracks, his gaze turning toward a specific direction, his brow furrowed.

After hesitating for a moment, he decided to head in that direction.

By the riverside, a boy covered in blood and dirt stood before a cliff, clutching a large stone in his hands. Behind him was a girl, equally disheveled, staring ahead in terror.

Across the river, the trees parted as a two-zhang tall wolf demon emerged from the forest. It stood upright, covered in dark fur, and despite it being morning, its eyes gleamed with menacing light.

The wolf demon opened its mouth, exhaling a foul breath, and stared hungrily at the two children.

The boy's arm trembled with fear, but he still bravely stepped forward.

Neither of them noticed the figure standing atop the cliff—it was Gu An.

He had changed into a set of white robes and was wearing a specially crafted mask, something he had made in his free time. The mask had a built-in restriction to prevent spiritual sense detection.

A gentle breeze rustled Gu An's robe as he looked down at the two children and cast a Lifespan Investigation.

[Goudan (Mortal, Not Ranked): 12/99/9999]

[Xiaohua (Mortal, Not Ranked): 12/78/230]

9,999 years of lifespan?

Gu An blinked, doubting his own eyes. This exceeded even Ji Xiaoya's human lifespan record.

Could this boy also have an innate Dao talisman within him?

Just then, the wolf demon lunged at the boy named Goudan. Gu An casually waved his hand, and a streak of sword energy landed between the wolf demon and Goudan, sending rocks flying and water splashing. The wolf demon, terrified, immediately turned tail and fled.

Dust blew in Goudan's face, causing him to close his eyes and cough.

When the dust settled, he opened his eyes and saw a half-zhang wide, hundred-zhang long fissure near the riverbank, as if it had been cleaved by a giant sword.

Hearing footsteps behind him, Goudan shuddered and quickly turned around, only to see Gu An.

Although Gu An looked like an ordinary person, the mask he wore made Goudan keep his grip on the stone in his hand.

"Are you... human... or a demon?" Goudan asked cautiously, his voice weak and trembling.

Gu An spoke, his voice altered to sound much older, "Naturally, I'm human. Otherwise, why would I save you?"

His voice now sounded as though it came from someone in their fifties.

Hearing this, Goudan let out a sigh of relief, but he still didn't let go of the stone. This cautiousness earned Gu An's silent admiration.

"Where is your home? I'll take you back," Gu An continued.

Upon hearing this, Goudan fell silent.

At that moment, the girl behind him, Xiaohua, suddenly burst into sobs.

"My parents... were eaten by monsters..."

Her voice was choked with emotion, and her outburst brought tears to Goudan's eyes.

Eventually, Goudan explained their situation.

A group of demons had attacked their village, devouring the adults and taking the children to this area. Every day, they witnessed their companions being boiled into soup. Last night, it should have been their turn, but the earth suddenly trembled, and the demons fled.

At dawn, they escaped from the cave but were soon spotted by a traveling wolf demon.

Gu An listened in silence, witnessing the true suffering of the mortal world for the first time.

He had been born into the Ji Family, never threatened by demons or monsters. Later, he joined the Tai Xuan Sect, and with his ability to extend his lifespan, his journey had been relatively smooth.

Compared to these two children, he had lived a life of comfort.

Gu An felt a surge of pity, but Goudan's astonishing lifespan made him hesitant to bring them back to the sect.

With such a lifespan, if Goudan started cultivating, it would undoubtedly draw immense attention.

Gu An even suspected that Goudan was blessed with great destiny. After all, he was the only one in his family to survive. Just when he was about to be eaten, Gu An happened to be breaking through nearby. And when the wolf demon was about to catch him, Gu An saved him.

So many coincidences added up to something more—it was no mere chance!

A child of destiny?

Yet, seeing that these two had no family left and nowhere to go, Gu An couldn't abandon them.

After some thought, he decided to take them to a safe place first.

In one step, Gu An appeared behind Goudan, lifted him up, then did the same with Xiaohua. With one child in each hand, he swiftly moved through the air.

Frightened by his speed, the children stopped crying, their bodies tense.

Ten breaths later.

Deep within a forest, Gu An set them gently on the ground.

He took out a bottle of pills from his storage pouch and poured half into each child's mouth.

Startled, the children coughed as they were force-fed, but as the pills slid down their throats, they felt a warm current spreading through their bodies, filling their limbs with a strange sensation.

Wide-eyed, they stared at Gu An, disbelief etched on their faces.

Gu An sat down in front of them and asked, "Do you want to cultivate?"

He didn't dare bring Goudan directly back to the sect, but he could teach them the basics of cultivation. Later, they could join the Tai Xuan Sect on their own, which would remove any direct association with him.

After all, gifting the sect a top-tier genius would help make up for the many times he had drawn on the sect's spiritual energy.

"You're an immortal?" Goudan exclaimed, his face lighting up with excitement.

"I'm not an immortal. I'm just striving to become one. Since you no longer have a home, I will teach you the way of cultivation. Someday, you can join the Tai Xuan Sect and find your place there," Gu An replied, his voice still altered to avoid future recognition.

Goudan quickly nodded, even bowing to Gu An and calling him "Master."

He turned to Xiaohua, who was still in shock, and pushed her to follow suit. "Quick, call him Master!"

Xiaohua reflexively said, "Master!"

Gu An had initially planned to refuse, but seeing their hopeful faces, he found himself unable to turn them down.

Damn it!

Was this the influence of destiny?

Gu An doubted that his soft heart was the reason—he felt that Goudan's destiny was affecting him.

Cultivation was all about fate and karma, after all, believing in those ethereal forces.

"Very well. Now, I will teach you the first mantra. Listen carefully and memorize it," Gu An said seriously.

The two children immediately sat upright, their full attention on him, afraid of angering him.

Gu An passed on the first layer of the Yang Wood Mixed Essence Art. He wasn't concerned that Goudan might fully master it. By the time Gu An had accumulated a million years of lifespan, he would still need to improve this technique further.

In fact, he was curious to see how far Goudan could progress with this cultivation technique.

So far, Gu An wasn't entirely sure where his techniques stood in the grand scale of the cultivation world.

Time flew by quickly.

Gu An spent half a day teaching them, mostly focusing on Xiaohua. Goudan had memorized the entire mantra after hearing it only once.

Extreme lifespans don't lie!

Gu An sent Goudan to practice while he spent more time explaining things to Xiaohua.

"Master! I feel something in my body! Is it spiritual energy?" Goudan suddenly exclaimed, excitedly interrupting their lesson.

Xiaohua stared at him in disbelief, then her face fell, her mood darkening.

Gu An remained calm. "Shouting like that—do you want to attract monsters? Be quiet."

Goudan immediately shut his mouth.

By dusk, Xiaohua had finally memorized the first layer of the Yang Wood Mixed Essence Art.

A night passed.

By the next morning, Goudan had successfully taken his first steps on the path of cultivation, while Xiaohua had yet to generate spiritual energy.

It was normal for someone with five elemental spiritual roots to take a month to produce spiritual energy, so Gu An wasn't disappointed.

At dawn, Gu An prepared to leave.

"Goudan, I have some matters to attend to. I'll be back tonight. Look after your junior sister," Gu An instructed.

Goudan immediately stood, nervous, "Master, will you really come back? Please don't leave us behind. I promise I won't shout again."

Xiaohua also stood, rushing over to hug Gu An's waist, refusing to let him leave.

Gu An smiled, though he maintained a serious tone. "I'm going to hunt demons. Do you want to be a burden to me?"

At that, Xiaohua quickly let go.

Goudan's eyes shifted, and he asked, "Master, since we're cultivators now, could you give us new names?"

He felt that having a name chosen by his master would strengthen their bond.

Gu An hesitated for a moment, then raised his right hand and used his finger to carve characters into the ground with his sword energy.

Goudan quickly rushed over to watch, standing at Gu An's side.

Although they were from a village, their village had a teacher, so Goudan could recognize a few characters.

When Gu An finished writing, Goudan stared at the characters in confusion. "An… An what? Master, what's the last character?"

"Your name is An Hao. 'Hao' represents the sky. I hope you will become the sky for your junior sister, and also carve out your own place under the heavens."

"As for Xiaohua, her name will be An Xin. I hope you can live your life peacefully, content and joyful," Gu An said calmly. After speaking, he vanished on the spot.

Goudan—now An Hao—gazed at the ground, where his new name was etched, softly murmuring, "An Hao... Hao..."

He seemed determined to memorize the character.

An Xin crouched beside him, quietly accompanying him as they stared at the newly carved names.

Meanwhile, Gu An sped toward the Tai Xuan Sect. By the time he reached Xuan Valley, Wu Xin was still leading the disciples in their exercises.

As he approached the valley's entrance, he noticed numerous cultivators flying overhead—clearly, last night's commotion had attracted the sect's attention.