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

At dusk, the sky was a fiery red as meteors from outer space streaked across, creating a magnificent scene. As these meteors fell, a vast heavenly fire descended, giving all beings the feeling that the sky was collapsing.

"What is that?"

"How can there be such a huge fire in the sky?"

"Will it affect us?"

"Don't worry, we are within the Supreme Sect, protected by the Sect Protecting Formation."

"Could it be the demon cultivators from the Great Cold Demon Sect causing trouble?"

The disciples within the Third Medicine Valley engaged in a heated discussion, and the Great Cultivators, who had been playing chess, stood up and vanished from their spots.

The Nine-Finger Divine Lord looked up, frowning.

Sitting opposite him, Stealing the Five Elements remarked, "This divine power is no ordinary feat."

The Nine-Finger Divine Lord looked at Stealing the Five Elements and asked, "You've been traveling a lot these years, what exactly have you been searching for?"

Facing his inquiry, Stealing the Five Elements did not respond but simply pointed upwards towards the sky.

Meanwhile, at the entrance of the valley...

Gu An was riding on the back of the Blood Prison Great Saint, also looking at the sky. He could feel that the meteors and the sea of fire in the sky were transformations of mana, deployed by someone possessing Great Divine Power at the Heaven and Earth Flying Immortal level, affecting a vast area.

It seemed that the century-old agreement was merely an ultimatum; during this period, the Great Cold Demon Sect would continue to attack, forcing the common people to flee.

Of course, there was another possibility that they sought to force out a specific individual they were searching for.

Due to personal vengeance, the commoners suffered, giving Gu An a different understanding of the Holy Court.

The Holy Court overall had good intentions, but inevitably had its corrupt members.

Perhaps their way of thinking differed from Gu An's.

They could protect the common people but also ignore them.

Yang Jian glanced at Gu An, and seeing his calm demeanor, he felt reassured.

With his master around, even if the sky fell, he wouldn't be afraid!

Li Lingtian approached Yang Jian and discussed the strange phenomenon in the sky with him.

Gu An patted the back of the Blood Prison Great Saint, signaling him to move forward.

As the Blood Prison Great Saint took a step, a light curtain rose in the horizon, visible in all directions; it was the Supreme Sect's Sect Protecting Great Formation.

That was quick!

Gu An was secretly pleased; the Supreme Sect had not faced tribulations in many years, yet remaining vigilant indicated that the high ranks weren't overly dependent on Sword Venerable Fudao.

Soon, the entire Supreme Sect was enveloped by the light curtain of the Sect Protecting Great Formation, providing relief to all the cultivators within.

Various sects and cities across the world activated their large formations, but inevitably, there were places that remained unprotected, and many beings in those places were vulnerable.

In the North Sea Mountains...

At the Mountain God Temple...

Sage Xuan Miao sat on the ground, gazing at the strange phenomenon in the sky, furrowing his brows.

His concern was not for his safety, but rather for the well-being of the common people across the world.

How could mere mortals withstand this sweeping blaze?

Sage Xuan Miao turned to look at a stone statue in the courtyard, one he had carved himself depicting the Mountain God. Although he saw the Mountain God once a month, in his heart, he always felt a great distance from the divine.

He turned back and began to kowtow to the Divine Statue of the Mountain God.

As meteorites continued plunging towards the earth, the fire enveloping the sky drew closer, intensifying the fiery hue between heaven and earth.

Just then...

All the flowers, plants, and trees across the continent emitted flickers of green light, swiftly rising upward like sparks growing stronger rapidly.

A farmer clutching a hoe in the mountains was surrounded by the green light coming from all directions, causing him to panic.

In the cities, terrified civilians saw trees within their courtyards trembling and releasing green light orbs that floated up towards the sky.

Within the palace...

Li Xuandao stood at the entrance of the Imperial Study, observing the unusual appearance of the flora, his expression subtle.

At that moment, beings across the continent, including demons, were startled by the surrounding phenomena, as flowers, plants, and trees were ubiquitous.

In the Third Medicine Valley...

Gu An dismounted and looked around; the vegetation within the Supreme Sect hadn't emitted green light, so the disciples were all puzzled by the phenomenon in the sky, unaware of another spectacular sight beyond the Supreme Sect.

However, as the green light from plants everywhere rose to a certain height, even the cultivators inside the Supreme Sect could see it.

Various discussions erupted among them.

Gu An stood under a pavilion, watching this scenario unfold; Xiaoyu also emerged from the house and joined him.

"It seems someone is protecting this continent," Xiaoyu said, her eyes reflecting the green light rising to meet the massive inferno falling from the sky, as if two worlds were about to collide in a mesmerizing display.

The upper half of Gu An's face was illuminated by the fire, while the lower half was tinged with green. He asked in astonishment, "You mean to say a cultivator is behind this? How high must their cultivation level be?"

Xiaoyu gave Gu An a look, although she didn't think Gu An had a vast cultivation. But this guy couldn't be this clueless.

Gu An often brought Yang Jian out, who was growing rapidly, showing that Gu An was not simple. Regardless of what Gu An concealed, his knowledge was not something ordinary cultivators could match.

"Perhaps it was Sword Venerable Fudao who made a move," Xiaoyu said softly, her gaze returning to the horizon.

Good guess!

Gu An mentally gave Xiaoyu a thumbs up, his eyes still fixed on the sky.

Under the gaze of all beings on the continent, the vast green light collided with the sea of fire, and following a brief somber moment, the sky radiated intensely bright light, like endless fireworks exploding.

After the brief silence, the earth trembled, and strong winds fell from the sky, though not enough to threaten the land and mountains.

The creatures across the land all sighed in relief, now understanding that the mysterious green light was there to protect them, to block the descending heavenly fire.

However, they didn't know that not all continents and islands had protectors.

Gu An protected only the continent he was on, and while the beings there were excited and grateful, countless others perished in despair.

At the Soul Calming Pagoda, atop the pagoda...

A white-robed Daoist suddenly opened his eyes, expressing surprise with a grunt; he attempted to divine the situation but couldn't make any accurate predictions, his expression growing increasingly bizarre.

He suddenly became interested and then vanished from the spot.

Far away in the Supreme Sect, Gu An was chatting with Xiaoyu when he suddenly sensed a rapidly approaching presence, sighing involuntarily.

Why must someone always be looking for death?

"I'm going to check on Mystic Valley, we'll talk later," Gu An said, heading towards the Transmission Array Platform.

Xiaoyu was not puzzled and looked up at the sky alone, admiring the powerful divine skills of Sword Venerable Fudao.

Underneath a nearby tree, Stealing the Five Elements and the Nine-Finger Divine Lord, sitting opposite each other at a chessboard, also looked up at the sky, paying no attention to Gu An.

Stealing the Five Elements spoke, "The trouble has ultimately been drawn here; the guy has arrived."

The Nine-Finger Divine Lord turned to him, asking, "Who is this guy?"

"A pupil of Life-Seizing Immortal, the real person Bai Hong, a renowned genius from the Great Cold Demon Sect, with unfathomable cultivation," Stealing the Five Elements responded.

The Nine-Finger Divine Lord's face subtly changed, clearly, he had heard of Bai Hong's name.

Stealing the Five Elements chuckled, "There's going to be a show to watch. Geniuses all have one flaw: excess Confidence!"

Not far off, Shen Xinzi, while staring at the sky, was also listening to Stealing the Five Elements' conversation.

He couldn't help but think of the hand that had been placed on his shoulder that night and began to sympathize with Bai Hong.

There were many hidden great powers in the world, no matter the cultivation level, one should never underestimate this world!

This was the greatest realization Shen Xinzi had after leaving the Bitter Sea Buddha Sect.

In another place...

Under the Red Dawn Sky, Bai Hong rapidly flew through, unfazed by the sweeping fire, as he passed over vast expanses of water without looking down.

His gaze had fixed on a distant continent.

Within his divine range, many Great Cultivators were resisting his divine power to protect various beings. Yet, that particular continent was special, its methods piqued his interest, and moreover, he was unable to deduce the cause and effect of its mana.

Perhaps the individual behind it was related to the person his master sought.

Thinking of this, Bai Hong's eyes gleamed with anticipation.

He was acting not only on behalf of his master but also to seize an opportunity for himself.

Snap!

A hand suddenly pressed onto his shoulder, bringing his full-speed flight to an immediate halt, causing his mana and Qi-blood to surge chaotically, and he even felt a strong discomfort as if his primordial spirit was about to leave his body.

When he tried to break free, he was horrified to discover that he had lost control over his body and soul.

He couldn't even achieve Primordial Spirit Emergence, which made him widen his eyes and instinctively panic.

In an instant, Bai Hong theorized many possibilities.

Bai Hong, a 150,908-year-old Nine Layers of Heaven and Earth Flying Immortal, is lamentable to die here!

Gu An looked at Bai Hong's life span and thought so.

Gu An didn't employ his Soul Capturing Skill but prepared to directly annihilate Bai Hong.

He intentionally allowed Bai Hong to wait for a few moments to fully experience this despair, which also served as a punishment for his crimes.

Bai Hong felt the pressure on his shoulder lessen and was about to speak when the hand suddenly tightened.

With a squeeze from Gu An, Bai Hong instantly turned to ash, his soul dispersing without a sound.

He then disappeared from the spot.

Back in the forest around Mystic Valley, Gu An pretended to inspect medicinal herbs, and a notification popped up before his eyes.

He successfully seized 38,000 years of lifespan!

Not too bad!

Gu An wasn't worried about Life-Seizing Immortal coming for revenge, if he came, Gu An would kill him.

Could the Carefree Primordial Immortal threaten the Divine Immortal of Wondrous Dharma?

If a stronger presence appeared and he was uncertain of his chances, he would flee.

So far, it seemed unlikely that the Holy King would make a move, as it would hurt his image; otherwise, why wouldn't he personally search for his enemy's reincarnation?

Being able to summon the Great Cold Demon Sect showed that the Holy King had his reservations.

The sea of fire in the sky lasted for 30 minutes before completely dissipating. The green light enveloping the continent transformed into a sea of clouds, dispersing with the wind, and night fell.

Although the world had darkened, the spirits of all beings remained unsettled for a long time.

When Gu An returned to the Third Medicine Valley, Xiaoyu had already returned to her house. He could only join a group of disciples gathered in the chess-playing area, who were discussing the earlier phenomena. With Stealing the Five Elements and the Nine-Finger Divine Lord present, the disciples could greatly expand their knowledge and also learn about the incredible methods of Sword Venerable Fudao.