Rise to God with Life Skill Professions

The hazy sensation grew stronger, as if a bucket of paint had been poured over him.

Soon, Qin An’s vision transitioned from blurry to clear.

"Where am I now?"

He raised his hands, looked at them, and felt a sense of reality, immediately realizing that he seemed to have entered this place not in his physical form, but rather his spirit had been drawn here by some unknown force.

Qin An squinted and looked around, discovering an utterly terrifying scene, with ruins and scorched earth filling the sky.

Black smoke swirled around, forming the only melody.

Aside from the scorched earth and darkness, there were corpses lying everywhere. Every place his eyes landed on was filled with extremely terrifying corpses.

Each of these bodies was incomplete, stacked layer upon layer.

The further he went, the more corpses there were, and at the end, they piled up into a mountain.

The air was suffused with a frigid chill, as if it could pull Qin An into an endless abyss at any moment.

Looking down, Qin An noticed he didn’t even have the long knife at his waist, confirming that he had indeed entered this place in spirit form.

But besides feeling the chill and horror of this place, Qin An did not sense any malice.

In fact, every place he touched, even the corpses on the ground, were filled with benevolence towards him.

Qin An couldn’t figure out what was happening, but he didn’t act rashly, because in an unknown place, he worried that moving around might trigger drastic changes.

"But if I don’t move, what will happen next?" Qin An wondered.

While he was contemplating this, the void in front of him suddenly shook violently.

Then, from the void stepped out an old man covered in scars.

The old man’s body was riddled with horrifying wounds, and upon closer look, there wasn’t a single intact spot on him.

His eyes were as murky as a pool of dead water.

Despite leaning on a cane, even that cane was covered in cracks.

As the old man appeared, Qin An immediately felt a desolate yet terrifying aura emanating from him.

Qin An squinted and asked, "Who are you, elder? Why have you brought me here?"

No need to think much, just a little guesswork made it clear that him being here was the old man’s doing.

He was also puzzled about why the old man had brought him here.

Despite the old man’s terrifying aura, there was no malice towards him. On the contrary, there was benevolence.

Especially in those eyes, apart from benevolence, there was even a trace of gratification.

He didn’t understand where this sense of gratification came from, but he had seen it on many faces before.

The Defenders of the Forbidden Areas looked at him with the same expression.

The old man slowly approached, and with every step, his wounds gaped open, spilling fresh blood.

But the old man seemed oblivious to it, until he stopped just ten zhang away from Qin An.

Then, he bowed deeply towards Qin An.

"To witness the birth of someone like you in this world is truly my honor."

"This world..." Qin An’s eyes widened as he heard these words and asked, "Elder, does this mean you’re not from our world?"

Given the old man’s words, coupled with Qin An’s current experience, it was easy to guess the reason.

The old man immediately nodded as this was spoken.

"Correct, I’m not from this world. I come from a wrecked, decaying world—right where you stand now."

"Here is filled with death and solitude, all wrought by the Heavenly Demons."

Qin An immediately understood and asked, "Is this the world that was once destroyed by the Heavenly Demons?"

Hearing Qin An’s words, the old man’s face grew more pained, and he sighed, "Indeed, as you said, this is where the Heavenly Demons once wrought devastation."

"We once hoped for a Savior to come to our world, but unfortunately, we awaited only death and solitude."

"But seeing you today is more than enough for me."

"Why are you still alive, elder?" Qin An asked, "Perhaps my question is a bit presumptuous, but it is genuine."

Laughing heartily, the old man shook his head, "Not at all, not in the slightest. The questions you’re asking, I’ve grown accustomed to."

"I’m alive because the Heavenly Demons wanted to leave a seed in this world. There are many like me, but compared to those destroyed, we are less than one in ten thousand."

"Those the Heavenly Demons hoped to preserve would rather choose death than live in a place with no hope, leaving me as the sole survivor."

Qin An raised an eyebrow and asked, "What is your purpose then? The reason you’re still surviving and meeting me here?"

By now, Qin An already knew a lot, and didn’t need to pursue further; instead, he changed the subject.

After he had reached the Manifest Saint Realm, the old man had immediately summoned him here, suggesting significance to the matter at hand.

The old man nodded slightly, "You’re correct. I do have something to request, which is why I wanted to see you. Do you realize that the Heavenly Demons are not a singular entity?"

Qin An thought for a moment and nodded, "Yes, I’m aware of this. They are said to be a group, but where did they originally come from?"

The old man shook his head, "I don’t know either. If I did, I would certainly tell you. My purpose in bringing you here is not to reveal their identity, but to inform you how to delay their arrival."

Qin An rubbed his chin and asked, "How can we delay their arrival?"

If he could really slow down the Heavenly Demons’ descent, perhaps Qin An, Emperor Xuanwu, and others could find a chance to continue developing and gathering strength to confront them.

Therefore, Qin An naturally wanted to know.

The old man nodded, "According to my calculations, in your world, the Heavenly Demons may arrive in just about half a year."

"But if you can locate the Sea of Hope in your world, you might use its power to create a shackle that delays their arrival further."

"Half a year?" Qin An’s eyes widened at these words.

He could hardly believe it—only half a year until the Heavenly Demons arrived here.

If that’s true, the Daqian Kingdom wouldn’t stand a chance of developing in time.

The old man continued, "Yes, as more people die in the world, including the so-called anomalies, each death reduces the world’s barrier, hastening the Heavenly Demons’ arrival."

Hearing this, Qin An’s eyes widened in realization, "I see, but what exactly is the Sea of Hope?"

Having reached Qin An’s level, he was no novice. He had extensive knowledge of this world.

Qin An was especially well-read, his scholarly profession immersing him in countless books.

Yet, despite this wealth of knowledge, he still didn’t know the meaning of the Sea of Hope.

The old man shook his head, "It cannot be described or explained. But once someone reaches the Celestial Human Realm, they will know where the Sea of Hope is. You can find someone at that level in your world, and they might all understand."

Qin An nodded, "Alright, I understand."

In the Daqian Kingdom, only the Black Tortoise reached the Celestial Human Realm.

Once he leaves, he plans to ask Emperor Xuanwu about it.

Then, he will know what the so-called Sea of Hope is.

The old man paused briefly before continuing, "After finding the Sea of Hope, the next step will follow, and it is the most challenging."