After the Gathering Flower Sect disciple left, Gu An sat in the room, feeling a rare sense of boredom.
Should he try another round of reincarnation evolution?
This time, perhaps choosing a different location might bring new opportunities!
His lifespan had already surpassed five hundred million years, and in a few more years, the World Beyond Heaven would bring another wave of lifespan growth.
This was a rare chance for entertainment.
The primary motivation, however, wasn't simply amusement. Through reincarnation and lifespan evolution, Gu An deepened his understanding of the Dao's rules, especially the Dao of Karma.
It wasn't that he wanted to play; it was all for cultivation.
Yes, let's do it!
Having convinced himself, Gu An sat down, poured himself a cup of tea, and, while refilling the cup, initiated the cycle of lifespan reincarnation.
The exhilarating and nerve-wracking process of reincarnation evolution began!
[You have consumed ten million years of lifespan to initiate a cycle of reincarnation evolution.]
[Connecting to the Dao's rules...]
[Searching for reincarnation worlds...]
[You have the following options for reincarnation worlds. Please choose one:]
[1. The Dark World]
[2. The Divine Origin World]
[3. The Primordial World]
Gu An's attention was immediately drawn to the Primordial World.
His physique, the Tai Chu Supreme Dao Body, had long made him suspect that "Primordial" referred to either a realm or a world. Seeing the word here ignited his curiosity.
Let's pick this one. Besides, he'd already experienced the other two worlds.
Gu An made his choice without hesitation.
[You have chosen to reincarnate into the Primordial World.]
[Due to the immense power of the Dao's rules in this world, you temporarily cannot activate lifespan-harvesting abilities or stage-specific functions.]
[Reincarnation evolution begins.]
Excellent, another world on par with the Divine Origin World. This meant it housed beings beyond the Nine Heavens of Immortal Dao!
Gu An's anticipation grew.
[Year 1: You were born on Earth in Huaxia's Jiangcheng. Your parents named you Lu Han.]
Earth?
Gu An's expression shifted subtly upon reading this.
[Age 6: You entered first grade in elementary school. Due to your mischievous behavior, you injured a classmate and were severely punished by your father.]
[Age 12: You began middle school and demonstrated exceptional intelligence. Your academic performance ranked among the best.]
[Age 15: You were admitted to Jiangcheng High School, becoming a first-year student. A classmate introduced you to online novels, and you became deeply engrossed. Your grades started to decline as a result.]
[Age 18: After the Lunar New Year, you resolved to change your ways, put down your phone, and vowed to reclaim your honor as a top student. However, the day before the college entrance exam, a cataclysm struck the world. Earthquakes and tsunamis heralded humanity's descent into an apocalyptic era. Following seven days of chaos, global governments restored order, but enormous, eerie black gates appeared within cities. From afar, you saw one of these gates and hesitated. Would you choose to approach it?]
At first, Gu An thought he was destined for a mundane life.
Thankfully, the apocalypse arrived!
It wasn't that he had an issue with a peaceful existence, but spending ten million years of lifespan for just a few decades of mediocrity was unacceptable.
Taking a deep breath, Gu An made his decision.
[You chose to approach the black gate. As you stood before it, the gate trembled violently, startling everyone nearby into fleeing. You couldn't escape in time and were sucked into the gate. Your consciousness plunged into darkness. When you awoke, you found yourself in a desolate wilderness with only a dozen others nearby. Some of them had already regained consciousness, and together, you began to explore and survive.]
[Age 19: After six months, your group finally emerged from the wilderness and spotted the silhouette of a city. Only four of you remained. Upon entering the city, you discovered it was an ancient town where everyone wore traditional attire. To survive, you began working within the city. Eventually, you confirmed that you had crossed into another world.]
[At age 20, an immortal appeared in the city recruiting disciples. Many flocked to the event out of curiosity, and you joined them. When tested, it was discovered that you possessed a spiritual root, allowing you to follow the immortal to train in the outer sect of the Dao Court. Coincidentally, your three remaining companions were also found to have spiritual roots. Reunited, you embraced each other, crying tears of joy, thinking that a glorious new life awaited. However, upon arriving at the Dao Court's outer sect, you discovered that you all had to start as servant disciples.]
[At age 21, you discovered that your girlfriend, Cheng Qianqian, had attached herself to an outer sect disciple. After a heated argument, your relationship ended bitterly. Two of your companions sided with Cheng Qianqian, leaving you alone and friendless.]
[At age 24, you heard of Cheng Qianqian's tragic death. Upon inquiring with your former companions, you learned that she perished during an outer sect trial. She was pushed into the jaws of a demonic beast by a fellow disciple named Zhou Xuankun, the very man she had aligned herself with. You erected a gravestone for Cheng Qianqian and vowed to ascend to immortality.]
[At age 25, while gathering herbs in the mountains, you accidentally fell into a gorge and landed by a riverbank. With your bones shattered, you waited in agony for death to claim you. Suddenly, a voice spoke to you, offering salvation on the condition that you become its servant. Do you accept the offer?]
What hesitation? Accept it!
Gu An immediately chose. This life was proving exceedingly difficult.
[You accepted the offer. Darkness enveloped you, and when you awoke, you found yourself in a cave. Your savior introduced himself as the Mad Demon Lord. From that day onward, you began cultivating under his guidance.]
[At age 27, your cultivation reached the fifth level of the Qi Refining Realm. One day, the Mad Demon Lord forced you to consume a pill he had concocted. Your cultivation surged to the seventh level of the Qi Refining Realm.]
[At age 28, the Mad Demon Lord experimented on you again. This time, your body festered and bled profusely, leaving you unconscious. When you awoke, your face was covered in scars, and your right leg was crippled.]
[At age 29, with the Mad Demon Lord's assistance, you successfully reached the Foundation Establishment Realm. However, the scars on your face remained. The Mad Demon Lord sent you back to the Dao Court's outer sect. There, you were met with ridicule and scorn. Unable to endure the mockery, you returned to the Mad Demon Lord's domain.]
[At age 30, the Mad Demon Lord concluded your trials and taught you a demonic technique: the Heaven-Devouring Art.]
[At age 40, you mastered the Heaven-Devouring Art and a set of palm techniques.]
[At age 42, the Mad Demon Lord left, leaving you to cultivate alone.]
[At age 44, the Mad Demon Lord's enemies found you, seeking the elixir of immortality he had created. You narrowly escaped with your life by falling into a river and floating downstream.]
[At age 45, you, now masked, rescued a young woman named Yuan Ling'er. Her retainers had been slain by demonic beasts, leaving her the sole survivor. In gratitude, she offered to marry you, insisting on seeing your true face. Do you remove your mask?]
Take it off! Women only distract me from cultivation. Let's scare her away!
Gu An eagerly anticipated a turning point in Lu Han's life.
[You removed your mask, expecting to frighten Yuan Ling'er. To your surprise, after a brief moment of shock, she embraced you with determination. You reciprocated her embrace.]
[At age 46, you followed Yuan Ling'er back to her family estate. Her father hesitated over the marriage upon seeing your face but ultimately relented under Yuan Ling'er's insistence. You and Yuan Ling'er were wed.]
[At age 47, Yuan Ling'er bore you a son named Lu Qiuxian. However, because your son did not take the Yuan family name, Yuan Ling'er's father grew increasingly dissatisfied with you.]
[At age 56, demonic forces invaded the city, massacring its inhabitants. You barely managed to save your wife and child but were powerless to protect others. The three of you embarked on a journey as wanderers.]
[At age 58, you returned with Yuan Ling'er and your eleven-year-old son, Lu Qiuxian, to the Dao Court's outer sect. Lu Qiuxian was found to possess a rare Heavenly Spiritual Root and was accepted as a disciple by a Mahayana Realm elder. The three of you stayed awake all night in celebration.]
Gu An couldn't help but smile at this turn of events.
He had nearly fallen into despair. Lu Han's life seemed constantly teetering on the brink of death, and Gu An barely had a chance to intervene.
What a bitter existence! Finally, some light in the darkness.