"Sacred Heart Sword Dao?"
Long Jun murmured the name, his eyes flickering as if recalling something.
Sword Annihilation Patriarch pulled Li Ya behind him, then faced Long Jun. An overwhelming sword intent erupted from him, turning the sky dark.
Billowing storm clouds surged at an alarming speed, casting an oppressive shadow over the land.
Long Jun regained his composure and glanced at Sword Annihilation Patriarch. "Your swordsmanship is strong, but… you do not seem to be your true self."
Sword Annihilation Patriarch's expression subtly shifted.
Clang—
Long Jun drew his sword, the blade flashing as it stopped just short of Sword Annihilation Patriarch's neck.
His speed was so fast that even Sword Annihilation Patriarch had no time to react.
Li Ya was startled as well. He immediately raised the Nine Absolute Sacred Heart Sword, standing ready.
Long Jun's voice remained calm but carried an undeniable weight.
"I never thought that after so many eons, the Demonic Realm would still be barely clinging to life. Do you believe that my sword intent alone could reach your true form?"
His words made Sword Annihilation Patriarch's face turn even darker.
Gritting his teeth, Li Ya demanded, "Who exactly are you? What do you want? Are you here for my sword technique?"
Long Jun glanced at him, his expression indifferent.
"I am also a sword cultivator," he said. "I was merely drawn by your sword dao. But from what I see now, you are merely thieves of the way. No matter what schemes you have, remember this—do not attempt to bring calamity to the world, or you will face eternal damnation."
With that, Long Jun sheathed his sword and turned to leave.
Li Ya still had many questions, but Sword Annihilation Patriarch stopped him.
Just then—
A cold laugh echoed through the sky, causing the temperature of the world to plummet.
"How amusing—such arrogance from a mere Free Immortal of the Vast Heaven Realm."
Long Jun narrowed his eyes, looking upward, his gaze filled with killing intent.
Deep beneath the ocean, Submerged Spirit Palace.
Reclining in a wooden chair, Gu An flipped lazily through a book. Nearby, Deep Sea Dragon Koi, Chen Luo, and Xu Ling were seated in meditation, training their divine abilities.
Gu An suddenly chuckled.
"This kid…"
He had just witnessed Long Jun clashing with one of Annihilation God Emperor's subordinates.
Was this kid out of his mind?
Knowing that Annihilation God Emperor was tied to the War Court, Long Jun still dared to expose himself?
Gu An had originally assumed that Long Jun was merely passing down divine abilities—waiting for Long Qing to master them before departing.
But now, it seemed…
This kid was reckless.
Unless…
He had other plans?
Gu An's interest was piqued.
He wanted to see how Long Jun would deal with this situation.
After all, the subordinate Long Jun was facing was one of Annihilation God Emperor's strongest, a Free Immortal of the Vast Heaven Realm. Their battle took place within their respective domains, ensuring that it would not affect Heavenly Spirit World.
To Li Ya, it seemed like the two men were merely standing there, locked in a silent confrontation.
But in truth—
Within their domains, they had already exchanged millions of blows in the blink of an eye.
Neither Long Jun nor his opponent wanted to go all out.
Not because they feared each other—
But because they feared the supreme entities watching over Heavenly Spirit World.
In the end—
Annihilation God Emperor's subordinate retreated in defeat, and Long Jun vanished as well.
This battle would undoubtedly reach the ears of Annihilation God Emperor.
Gu An was curious to see how he would react.
For now, Gu An was in no rush.
He planned to reach a lifespan of one hundred billion years before making his next move against Annihilation God Emperor.
Until then—
He wanted Annihilation God Emperor to remain cautious and restrained.
And clearly, Annihilation God Emperor had concerns of his own—
Otherwise, he would have already acted against Long Qing.
Gu An decided to stay on the sidelines and observe.
A few months later—
Annihilation God Emperor made his move.
Disguising himself as a wandering Daoist, he approached Sword Annihilation Patriarch and Li Ya.
It seemed that he, too, was interested in Sacred Heart Sword Dao.
Could it be that Long Jun was doing this on purpose?
Was he trying to divert Annihilation God Emperor's attention toward Li Ya?
With Long Jun's cultivation and understanding of the Dao, he must have been able to calculate Li Ya's past. Even if he couldn't trace it back to Gu An, he could at least discern Li Ya's experiences. By further deducing information from various rumors, he would eventually realize that Li Ya had inherited Gu An's legacy.
Gu An, who was currently picking spirit herbs, pondered this in silence.
"So, he wants to use me as a tool to counter Annihilation God Emperor?"
He wasn't particularly angry about it.
After all, Long Jun was technically his descendant. If Long Jun was scheming like this, it was ultimately for the sake of protecting Long Qing.
However—
If Long Jun could see through Li Ya's karma, then Annihilation God Emperor could too.
Yet, instead of directly attacking Li Ya, Annihilation God Emperor offered divine abilities in exchange.
The abilities he revealed even tempted Sword Annihilation Patriarch, and in the end, Annihilation God Emperor chose to follow Li Ya in comprehending the Sacred Heart Sword Dao.
Gu An found this incredibly ironic.
He and Annihilation God Emperor were sworn enemies, locked in a battle of life and death.
And yet—
Annihilation God Emperor had ties to both An Hao and Li Ya.
And those ties were favorable, not hostile.
The karma of the world was truly unfathomable.
No matter how high one's cultivation was, they could never truly escape the entanglement of karma.
Beneath the boundless expanse of the cosmos, the Heavenly Dao Golden Core continued to burn brilliantly, its light seemingly eternal and unquenchable.
Before the Heavenly Dao Golden Core—
Sun Immortal Emperor slowly stood up.
Seated nearby, An Hao opened his eyes, gazing up at him.
"We can't wait any longer," Sun Immortal Emperor muttered.
"The fortune of heaven and earth is already being divided up.
"If this continues, the fortune of the Immortal Dynasty will eventually be devoured."
The battle between the Immortal Dynasty and the Sacred Court had persisted for so long that both factions had grown stronger.
Yet, Sun Immortal Emperor could sense it—
An outside force was infiltrating both the Immortal Dynasty and the Sacred Court.
All it needed was a single opportunity.
Then, the fortunes of both factions would be stolen away and replaced.
And in reality—
That was already happening.
He had been in seclusion for thousands of years, but someone had to take charge of the Immortal Dynasty.
And in his absence—
Countless outside forces had begun to seize the opportunity.
He could sense that within the Immortal Dynasty, there existed a presence stronger than himself.
This made him hesitate to reveal himself, fearing that his actions might expose the location of the Heavenly Dao Golden Core.
An Hao frowned as he stared at him.
"With your current cultivation… attempting something like this… I fear that—"
Before he could finish, Sun Immortal Emperor looked toward the Heavenly Dao Golden Core.
"In the era before the Great Tribulation," he said, "the highest realm achievable in this world was the Free Immortal Realm.
"This proves that heaven and earth were only capable of creating Free Immortals."
"But now—"
"I have already surpassed the Free Immortal Realm."
"That means… it is not impossible for me to succeed."
An Hao's gaze remained serious.
"And if you fail?"
Sun Immortal Emperor glanced at him.
"Then you will have to do it."
An Hao's expression remained calm.
"If it were up to me," he said, "and I succeeded…
"Then the Immortal Dynasty could never become the dominant power of this world."
Sun Immortal Emperor was unfazed.
"I already understand that.
"But if I fail, it would mean that the Immortal Dynasty's fate has already run its course.
"And your role will be to protect all living beings of this world."
Having said this, Sun Immortal Emperor stepped forward, approaching the Heavenly Dao Golden Core.
An Hao rose to his feet, watching in silence as Sun Immortal Emperor disappeared into the core.
The golden flames of the Heavenly Dao Golden Core rapidly consumed him.
For the first time, anticipation flickered in An Hao's eyes.
He was curious.
Could Sun Immortal Emperor, at his level, truly accomplish something so unprecedented—
To split heaven and earth apart once more?
As Sun Immortal Emperor's figure completely vanished within the Heavenly Dao Golden Core,
the golden flames suddenly stopped moving.
Elsewhere—
Inside the Wushi Dao Field.
By the edge of a towering waterfall—
Gu An was sitting with Shen Zhen, painting together.
But suddenly, he sensed something.
His head lifted, his brows furrowing.
Shen Zhen noticed his reaction and turned to look at him.
Seeing him staring at the sky, she also raised her gaze.
Just as she was about to ask—
Her pupils suddenly constricted.
In the vast blue sky above,
a second sun appeared out of nowhere, growing larger and larger at an unimaginable speed.
And it wasn't just them.
All across the world, countless beings witnessed the phenomenon.
The sight of it sent shockwaves through the world, igniting endless speculation and discussion.
Then—
A vast and terrifying pressure descended upon the entire world, suffocating all living things.
For a moment, everything fell silent.
Shen Zhen couldn't hold back her curiosity.
"What is that?"
Gu An answered softly.
"The ruler of the Immortal Dynasty… Sun Immortal Emperor."
"And more importantly—"
"The Heavenly Dao Golden Core."
Shen Zhen's expression shifted.
"Sun Immortal Emperor?" she repeated. "What is he trying to do?"
Gu An did not keep it from her.
"He wants to restore the Great World to its original form."