Chapter 430 - Return to Tianwu City!
The old blind man chuckled. “Back then, in the Huncheng Great Domain, there was also someone who cultivated the Indestructible Golden Physique. Once, when I went out traveling, I got into a conflict with him and fought a battle. Unexpectedly, we instead formed a bit of a friendship.”
Gu Han was curious. “Senior, did you win?”
The old blind man shook his head. “I can’t really call it a win. His Indestructible Golden Physique was already close to advanced mastery. Dealing with him was somewhat troublesome.”
Gu Han was taken aback. Even the old man struggled against him! Just how strong is the defense of this advanced mastery Indestructible Golden Physique?!
Fatty’s eyes lit up. “Old Master, where is that senior? Does he still lack a successor? Taking on a disciple would work too!”
The old blind man shook his head. “I don’t know. I only met him once. Later, I heard people say he seemed to have offended a demon lord and got captured...”
Gu Han was baffled. No way! What a coincidence! Could this Indestructible Golden Physique be the same one Qian Ye hung in the Demon Abyss for three thousand years?
Fatty showed deep regret, sighing endlessly. “What a pity. Having an adoptive father or something wouldn’t be so bad either...”
The old blind man smiled bitterly. “When I discussed the dao with him, he did tell me some insights about the Indestructible Golden Physique. In addition, there was also one divine power. Do you want to hear it?”
Fatty’s eyes lit up again and nodded like a pecking chicken. “Yes, yes, yes!”
Finally! This trip wasn’t for nothing!
Having agreed with him to head to the Central Continent in three days, Gu Han prepared to take his leave and depart.
Suddenly, he recalled the request of the Heavenly Demon valley master. “Senior, there’s one more thing...”
The old blind man hadn’t taken that little bit of old grievance to heart. “If I encounter him, then I’ll just save him. Although this valley master is of the demon clan, he does have some heroic spirit.”
Gu Han bowed again, then left. “Thank you!”
Afterward, he left with the others. Fatty was still listening to the old blind man’s recounted insights. Having experienced so many things, Li Xun and Yan Qi were still in a daze until now.
Along the way, Yan Qi transformed to three cun and cautiously lay on Gu Han’s head. “Senior, you wouldn’t mind me riding on your head, right?”
Gu Han was taken aback. Ride? This counts as riding?
“Of course I don’t mind.”
Yan Qi was moved. “Senior, rest assured. Fatty was right. You treat me as a companion! One of these days, I will also let you ride on my head!”
Gu Han felt that during these ten years, Fatty had trained Yan Qi very nicely.
Li Xun sighed inwardly. Poor, naive Yan Qi!
***
Inside the forbidden zone, Fatty sat cross-legged and practiced divine power. Golden light shone brightly on him, faintly taking the shape of a golden ancient bell.
Just then, he heard Chongming said, “He won’t refuse. If you ask, he wouldn’t even hesitate!”
“That’s exactly why I can’t tell him.”
Chongming rolled his eyes. “As far as I can recall, the Profound Heaven Sword Chief has always only acted as a dao guardian for his successor, and never for an outsider!”
The old blind man sighed. “Rules are dead. Besides, the Profound Heaven Sword Sect no longer exists.”
”You blockhead!”
The old blind man repeated Gu Han’s earlier words, “There are some matters that one cannot avoid. Master Rooster, this youngster’s sword is very hard, but his sword bone is even harder. Finding even a few talents like him in the entire world is difficult, not to mention that he’s also a natural-born sword cultivator. Being able to act as his guardian for a while, making his path a bit easier to walk, that’s enough.”
Chongming was frustrated and disappointed at his failure to improve. “He’s like that, but aren’t you the same? If you had left back then instead of protecting them, who in this world could have stopped you?”
The old blind man shook his head. “Master Rooster, I could never abandon fellow disciples!”
Chongming cursed again, ”Blockhead! How much longer do you have?”
The Little Yun he knew would have subtly guided Gu Han instead of directly demonstrating the fusion of the three swords. The fact that he did this meant he didn’t have much time left.
The old blind man gently stroked his wooden stick. “That’s not important anymore. For now, this sword still can’t kill him. Master Rooster, from now on, I will focus entirely on nurturing the sword!”
Chongming felt somewhat sorrowful. “If you die, what will I do?”
“You can continue to act as his guardian for him.”
Chongming refused decisively, “Dream on! He’s cut from the same cloth as Fatty! If I act as his guardian, he’ll definitely get me killed!”
The old blind man’s tone carried a rare hint of hesitation. “Master Rooster, after this sword, if the Red Dust is still there, give it back to Fei Yu.”
Chongming sighed inwardly. She’ll definitely be heartbroken to death.
***
After exiting the Wild Forest, Li Xun and Yan Qi parted ways with Gu Han. They would head to the Qixia Court to wait for him. As for Gu Han, he’d go to fulfill Liu Ying’s final request. Actually, their grievance wasn’t that serious. It was nothing more than a matter of personality clash. When two proud people meet, this kind of outcome easily occurs.
The ancient city remained mottled as it had in the past, but Gu Han was no longer the same youth he had been over a decade ago. Yet even though his appearance had changed, some people still recognized him.
The crowd secretly felt alarmed. Over a decade ago, he could stir up wind and clouds in Tianwu City. Now that his cultivation was presumably even higher, wasn’t his return bound to be disastrous? For a moment, countless people trembled, terrified that Gu Han would come looking for them.
***
Ever since being carved up by several families over a decade ago, the Gu family didn’t even count as a third-rate force. Most of their experts were either dead or injured, and clan members fled one after another. In the end, only less than one-fifth of the clan remained, guarding the last of their courtyard.
A group of Gu family members gathered in the courtyard of the Gu Estate. They were despairing over Gu Han’s return.
The leading middle-aged man, the family head, was only at the third stage of Meridian Opening. Gu Han recognized him. Back when he was crippled, this man had also said many unpleasant things.
The family head was terrified. “G-Gu Han. Our family has sunken so low! Are you still going to wipe us out?!”
Everyone believed that Gu Han had come to seek revenge. Why else? To reminisce about the past? After how the Gu family had treated him back then, could he possibly let go of that hatred?
Gu Han didn’t explain much. “It’s all in the past.”
With a flicker, he arrived in a dilapidated small courtyard. This place was also where he and Ah Sha had lived back then. He looked around, and his eyes lit up when he spotted a certain brick in the corner of the wall.
Gu Han proceeded to pull it out. Inside, there were three small, crooked clay figures with their hands linked. After more than a decade, they were already covered in cracks, their faces indistinct.
One was a middle-aged man, one was a youth carrying a sword, and one was a little girl with braided hair. She was faintly holding something in her hand, but it was impossible to tell what it was. Gu Han knew by instinct that it was a chicken leg.
He seemed to hazily recall Ah Sha, covered in mud, running up to him while carefully holding three crooked clay figures. Her expression was wooden, yet extremely serious. “Young Master, let’s always be together and never separate, okay?”
Smiling silently, Gu Han carefully used spirit qi to reshape the three clay figures and placed them together with that bodhi seed.
When he went outside, the family members greeted him with the same despairing expressions on their faces. The indifference and estrangement hidden beneath those looks also didn’t change. Everything had changed, yet also remained the same.
Not even looking at them, Gu Han stirred slightly and vanished. Having taken the clay figures, he had no more attachments here.