The summer sun shone brightly over Wushi Dao Field. By the lakeside, Gu An was giving a lecture to his disciples, his voice calm and steady. The disciples sat in rapt attention, listening with deep concentration, completely immersed in the profundities of the Dao.
Seeing that all of them had entered a state of enlightenment, Gu An reached into his robes and pulled out a jade flute, turning it over in his hands as he examined it closely.
"Gu An, your teachings are vast and profound. They bring countless images to mind. But I'm curious—have you ever truly seen the Dao?"
A soft voice broke the silence. Shen Zhen opened her eyes and looked at Gu An with curiosity. She was sitting closest to him, speaking in a quiet tone so as not to disturb the others.
Gu An glanced at her and replied, "The Dao is everywhere. What did you see? Where do you wish to go?"
Shen Zhen frowned slightly as she tried to recall. "I saw the vast cosmos, a white staircase leading up to a grand door."
"What kind of door?"
"I can't describe it. The more I think about it, the blurrier it becomes. But I'm sure—it was a door."
Shen Zhen's brows furrowed as she tried to grasp the fleeting vision. She paused for a moment before continuing, "Gu An, do you think the visions I saw could be some kind of scheme?"
Gu An smiled and said, "That's for you to determine yourself. It's good that you're thinking this way. Never lose your sense of caution toward the unknown. Staying vigilant will always be more beneficial than harmful."
Shen Zhen nodded. "I'll be careful. If the Dao tries to guide me somewhere, I definitely won't go."
She had listened to Gu An recount the experiences of An Hao and Zhu Xi before. Their stories had made her wary of so-called divine opportunities that appeared out of nowhere.
The images she saw during her enlightenment seemed too much like an attempt to lure her somewhere. She refused to fall into such a trap.
"If you ever encounter something you can't judge, you can always come and talk to me," Gu An said. With that, he stood up and began walking toward the distant forest.
Shen Zhen watched him go but did not follow. Over the years, she had grown used to Gu An's comings and goings. She no longer felt the need to chase after him.
Right now, her only desire was to comprehend the Dao. Within the boundless mysteries of the Dao, she could experience everything she sought. More than anything, she wanted to become a great cultivator like Gu An.
Gu An stepped into the forest, and with a single stride, he arrived in a completely different place.
It was a bustling mortal city. The streets were lively and filled with people, yet there were no cultivators among them. However, a few demon beasts in human form could be seen moving about. These demons were not causing trouble but were instead performing at a place called Xinghua Pavilion.
Gu An walked along the street without drawing any attention. No one could see him, not even the young boy who ran straight through his body without feeling a thing.
His gaze settled on a group of beggars crouched against the wall of a courtyard. Among them was a boy of around fourteen or fifteen years old. The boy kept his head lowered, and upon closer inspection, he was missing both legs. His right hand had only two fingers remaining. It was difficult to imagine the suffering he had endured.
This boy was the reincarnation of the Heavenly Spirit God. It was his thirty-ninth reincarnation.
He had been born in a small village, but before he was even a year old, his family had been attacked by bandits. Everyone was slaughtered, and he was sold into slavery. His life had been one of endless hardship, tossed from place to place until he finally ended up in this miserable state.
Gu An had no intention of interfering with the Heavenly Spirit God's suffering. But in every lifetime, he would observe him from a distance.
It wasn't to mock him but rather to restore fragments of his past memories at the moment of his death—to let him feel the difference between gods and mortals.
It was strange, in a way.
Gu An had never deliberately arranged for the Heavenly Spirit God to endure a life of suffering, yet almost all of his reincarnations had been tragic. Even in those few lifetimes where he was born into wealth, he often died young. The longest he had ever lived in a single reincarnation was seventy years.
Thinking about it, this was not surprising. Most mortals didn't live past seventy.
The summer sun was relentless.
This time, the Heavenly Spirit God would die on the streets of this bustling city. No one would mourn his passing. His body would be dragged away by the servants of a wealthy household, discarded in the wilderness, and devoured by wild beasts.
Gu An stood motionless on the street, watching in silence. People moved past him, oblivious to his presence, like figures in a fleeting dream.
This reincarnation, the Heavenly Spirit God was called Xiao Wu. He had been adopted by an old beggar, who had raised five children before him. That was how he got his name—he was the fifth.
Earlier this year, the old beggar had died, leaving Xiao Wu alone. Now, he followed the eldest of the beggar children, surviving day by day in this unforgiving world. But he was already gravely ill. His time was running out.
The eldest brother, in search of medicine, was on another street being beaten by the attendants of a medicine hall.
This city was bustling with prosperity—people indulging in drinks and laughter, knocking over tables full of wine and meat, couples reciting poetry under the trees, the world seemingly at peace. Some lay in bed on the verge of death, their families fighting over money for medicine, while others worked tirelessly like walking corpses, not thinking of the future but only wishing to finish their tasks as quickly as possible.
All these scenes reflected in Gu An's eyes, yet his expression remained unchanged as he quietly observed Xiao Wu.
Xiao Wu seemed to sense something. Slowly, he raised his head. In his vision, the streets were teeming with people and carriages, the bustling prosperity so close yet utterly out of reach.
In a daze, he saw an unfamiliar figure appear on the street. Strangely, passersby walked through the figure as if it weren't there at all.
His frail hand trembled as he rubbed his eyes, making sure he wasn't mistaken. There truly was someone standing there, someone only he could see.
"Could it be… an immortal…?" Xiao Wu murmured weakly.
The two beggars beside him were asleep and did not hear his words. None of the other beggars paid attention to him either. Everyone knew he was going to die.
Gu An was surprised—Xiao Wu could see him.
He hadn't deliberately allowed himself to be seen.
With a thought, Gu An concealed his presence even further, and in an instant, he vanished from Xiao Wu's sight.
Xiao Wu blinked in confusion, glancing around, but no matter how hard he looked, he couldn't see Gu An anymore.
"So, it was just my imagination… Someone like me could never meet an immortal…" He lowered his head again and continued to endure the torment of his illness.
By dusk, a frail figure stumbled over—it was Xiao Wu's eldest brother, known simply as Lao Da.
He crouched in front of Xiao Wu, placing a bundle of blood-stained herbs on the ground. He shook Xiao Wu gently, but there was no response.
Lao Da's eyes widened in horror, bloodshot from exhaustion. His trembling hand reached toward Xiao Wu's nose. The moment he felt nothing, he was so startled that he nearly dropped the herbs.
But instead of pushing Xiao Wu away, he hoisted him onto his back, grabbed the medicine bundle, and hurried away.
Lao Da carried Xiao Wu through every medicine shop in the city, yet no one was willing to help.
Desperate, he gritted his teeth and walked out of the city, carrying his brother on his back.
The night deepened. As he left the city behind, the sounds of the bustling streets faded into the distance. He didn't look back, pressing forward without hesitation.
He walked with no destination in mind. He had no idea where to go, but he refused to give up.
Only when he heard a wolf's howl in the distance did he snap back to his senses—he had lost his way.
"Xiao Wu, don't be afraid. Big brother will save you, no matter what…" Lao Da muttered, trying to convince himself as much as Xiao Wu.
There was a rumor among mortals that immortals resided deep in the mountains. Since human doctors refused to save his brother, he had no choice but to seek out an immortal.
Just then, three voices echoed in the darkness—feminine, seductive, yet eerie.
"He's already dead, and you're still carrying him?"
"Such deep brotherly love."
"If you want, we can save him… but you must pay a price."
Lao Da's heart pounded with fear. His dirty face paled as he swallowed hard. "What do I have to give in exchange for saving my brother?"
Were they demons?
Their voices didn't sound like those of immortals.
Lao Da had no choice. He could only ask, even as fear crept into his heart.
Suddenly, a cold wind swept through the forest, making him step back instinctively. In the dim moonlight, he saw three white foxes perched on a tree branch, their expressions sly and cunning. Their eyes glowed green in the dark, making them look terrifying.
Lao Da's legs trembled uncontrollably.
Seeing real demons—such fear could drown a man. But despite that, he did not throw Xiao Wu down and flee.
One of the white foxes giggled. "Serve us as a servant, and we will save him."
Lao Da gritted his teeth. "Just as a servant?"
"You will be our servant for life—until you grow old and die. And if you want your brother to live, he must borrow another's life. Before dawn, you must kill someone and bring them to us. If you fail, not even an immortal descending from the heavens will be able to save him."
The fox in the middle sneered, her words sending an icy chill through Lao Da's bones.
Kill… someone?