When I Achieved Sainthood, the Immortal Official Actually Called Me to Raise Horses!

Zuo Lin’s words made Di Xie’s expression momentarily stiffen, but what he said next left Di Xie at a loss for words.

”You must be a genius. I never misjudge when it comes to talent and destiny.”

Zuo Lin wore a smug expression, raising his chin and motioning toward Gu An. ”Don’t be fooled by this kid’s mere Foundation Establishment cultivation. He’s not ordinary either. I’ve got an eye for talent, and it turns out I was right—he’s now a Golden Ranking genius.”

Gu An walked over with a helpless smile. ”What kind of genius am I? Getting on the Golden Ranking was just luck.”

Zuo Lin pulled Gu An down to sit beside him, then introduced him and Di Xie to each other.

Di Xie remained calm and composed, treating Gu An with respect and showing none of the airs of an Outer Sect Guest Elder.

Zuo Lin was quite intrigued by Di Xie. Upon hearing that Di Xie was interested in learning about the Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path, he didn’t hold back and started recounting the legendary deeds of the sovereign.

Di Xie listened intently.

Before coming here, he had already heard that the strongest cultivator in the Nine Dynasties was either the Longevity Daoist of Three Pure Mountains or the Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path from Taixuan Sect.

The latter was the more mysterious figure. Though he had acted multiple times on behalf of Taixuan Sect, no one knew his true identity.

Gu An listened to Zuo Lin boasting about his ”other identity” and found it amusing.

At the same time, he kept a close eye on Di Xie.

For the next half hour, Gu An sensed no hostility from him. He temporarily set aside his suspicions.

With the impending Demonic Cataclysm, a Profound Mind Realm grand demon sneaking into Taixuan Sect certainly had an agenda.

Not wanting to arouse Di Xie’s suspicions, Gu An found an excuse to slip away.

There was plenty of time—he could observe Di Xie slowly. After all, Di Xie planned to comprehend the Sword Intent of the Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path at the Heavenly Mending Platform.

As the days passed, Gu An monitored Di Xie with his divine sense daily.

The more he observed, the more he felt that Di Xie might genuinely have no malicious intent—he simply wanted to learn swordsmanship.

Earlier, when Di Xie had scanned the area with his divine sense, he had likely been searching for the Sword Sovereign.

Spring passed, and autumn arrived. Two years went by in the blink of an eye.

During this time, Gu An’s lifespan increased dramatically. The Star-Seizing Celestial Realm provided him with a vast amount of lifespan, pushing him past 650,000 years—drawing ever closer to the million-year mark.

On this day, Gu An visited the Outer Sect Library Hall and, under the name Pan An, released a new book—Shattering the Void.

The elder who had once welcomed Pan An, Elder Liu Chang, had long passed away. Gu An was now received by the Grand Elder of the Library Hall, Feng Shang.

This was Feng Shang’s first time meeting Pan An. He was thrilled and bombarded Gu An with flattering words, even personally assuring him that he would handle the book’s distribution with utmost care. ṙＡƝȰʙÈṧ

Gu An spent a full hour at the Library Hall before managing to extricate himself.

Feng Shang was just too enthusiastic!

To him, Pan An represented a monumental opportunity—if he properly managed this new book, his career prospects would skyrocket.

After leaving the Library Hall, Gu An wandered the city.

As Taixuan Sect grew stronger year after year, the Outer Sect City had become increasingly bustling. Every street was packed with people, and roadside stalls had appeared, selling all kinds of rare and peculiar items.

Lately, Gu An had taken to roaming the city in his free time.

As he strolled, he spotted a familiar face.

”Du Ye.”

Gu An stepped forward to greet him.

Though both had once served as attendants for the Ji Family before joining Taixuan Sect, they weren’t particularly close. However, whenever they ran into each other in the Outer Sect, they would chat briefly.

Du Ye was examining a small gourd at a street stall. Upon hearing Gu An’s voice, he set it down and looked up.

When Gu An approached, Du Ye smiled and asked, ”Here to hunt for treasures too?”

Gu An chuckled. ”As if there are that many treasures lying around. I’m just here to look around and enjoy the atmosphere. How have you been?”

At ninety-two years old, Du Ye looked to be in his early forties. In his youth, he hadn’t taken Youth Retention Pills, unlike Gu An, who still appeared youthful.

In the cultivation world, not all cultivators pursued eternal youth—some believed that a more mature appearance commanded greater presence.

”Ugh, don’t even mention it. I tried breaking through to Foundation Establishment recently, but I failed and wasted a Foundation Establishment Pill.” Du Ye sighed, visibly frustrated.

He was a true bottom-tier cultivator—lacking talent and forced to run errands for noble disciples just to secure cultivation resources.

Gu An comforted him before taking out a small vial containing two Foundation Establishment Pills.

”This…” Du Ye hesitated, reluctant to accept charity but also unable to refuse.

For a low-level cultivator like him, reaching Foundation Establishment was a lifelong goal.

Gu An smiled. ”Don’t be so formal. We grew up together. I want you to live a long life, so we can reminisce about our youth when we’re old.”

Du Ye felt a warmth in his heart. He recalled how, years ago, he had told Gu An to seek him out if he ever needed help.

Yet after half a lifetime, Gu An had never asked him for anything. Instead, he was the one constantly receiving favors from Gu An.

Du Ye gently punched Gu An’s shoulder and, no longer resisting, placed the pill bottle in his storage bag.

”Oh, right,” Du Ye suddenly remembered something. ”I heard some news recently—our Third Young Miss is engaged.”

Gu An paused, surprised. ”Engaged? To whom?”

Hearing that Ji Xuanyu was engaged stirred something within him.

Perhaps it was because she had once saved him in their youth.

Even after they grew up, Ji Xuanyu had treated him kindly—not like a mere servant. She had gifted him many resources and aided his cultivation.

Even a proud daughter of heaven like her couldn’t escape a political marriage?

Gu An sighed at the thought.

Du Ye shook his head. ”I have no idea. It seems the engagement is only set in name—there’s no fixed wedding date yet. But the Ji Family seems quite pleased, so the groom must be someone of great stature.”

”Of course. Anyone who can marry into the Ji Family isn’t someone we can even begin to imagine,” Gu An remarked with a smile.

After a few more exchanges, Gu An bid Du Ye farewell.

Instead of returning to Medicine Valley, he continued wandering the city.

The Library Hall moved quickly.

Within a month, Shattering the Void had appeared in the Library Halls of various cities.

Thanks to the reputation built by Romance of the Gods and Taixuan Immortal Venerable, Pan An’s new book caused an immediate sensation, sweeping across Taixuan Sect.

A month later, Shattering the Void had spread throughout the Taicang cultivation world and was making its way to the other Eight Dynasties.

Lu Lingjun also bought a copy.

After reading it, she immediately sought out Gu An.

”It’s well written. The protagonist has a grand demon sealed inside him and, despite his mediocre talent, embarks on a cultivation journey…” She paused and raised an eyebrow.

Gu An asked, ”But?”

”Why is it called Shattering the Void?” She stared at him as if trying to see through him.

Gu An raised a brow. ”Isn’t ascension the ultimate goal in your homeland? Doesn’t ‘shattering the void’ sound enticing?”

Lu Lingjun nodded. ”It does. Fine, keep writing.”

She chuckled to herself.

How could this kid possibly guess that she was an Ascended One?

The two continued discussing the book. Lu Lingjun made several demands, which Gu An initially refused—until she took out a pile of rare treasures, at which point he immediately changed his tune, saying he would ”consider” her suggestions.

Lu Lingjun laughed at his greed.

After she left, Gu An pulled out Daoist Xunchun and began reading.

Shattering the Void had been a commissioned work, but a true classic? That would be Daoist Xunchun!