Eternal Life by Daily Divination

In the dream, Li Tai’an was deeply confused about the key.

’What was Daoist Mu’s intention in giving this to me? Did he want me to keep it safe for him? But I’m not a disciple of the Ancient Wood Sect.’

Unfortunately, Mu Hong was already dead and couldn’t answer his question.

So, Li Tai’an could only take this question with him back to the Profound Artifact Sect, where he placed the key in his private grotto.

「Soon after.」

He went to the medicine garden to get some healing Spirit Medicines.

He had also been seriously injured in that battle, nearly dying alongside Mu Hong.

The one guarding the medicine garden was his junior sister from the same lineage.

Seeing how badly he was hurt,

his junior sister asked, her face filled with worry, "Senior Brother, how did you get injured so badly?"

Li Tai’an replied, "I ran into a few Demon Beasts, but I’ve already slain them."

"Senior Brother, why don’t you guard the medicine garden with me? It’s very safe here. There’s an Array protecting it, and the location is hidden. Even if outsiders invaded, they’d have a hard time finding this place..."

His junior sister said a great deal more, full of concern.

But Li Tai’an wanted to do more for the Sect, so he declined her suggestion.

「After his wounds healed.」

He continued to patrol the surrounding areas for the Sect, clearing away any dangers near its borders.

Patrolling with him was the senior sister from his lineage.

「The years flew by.」

In the blink of an eye, more than a decade had passed.

Over the years, he and his senior sister often fought side-by-side. Their bond grew stronger, and a subtle affection began to blossom between them.

However, Li Tai’an noticed that his junior sister seemed to have feelings for him. She often gave him Treasures and found excuses to talk to him.

"Senior Brother, this is the Red Blood Bamboo our master had me cultivate. I secretly grew a few extra stalks. This Treasure Medicine is good for one’s Qi and blood. Please, take it."

"This..."

Li Tai’an hesitated, wanting to refuse.

But seeing the expectant look on his junior sister’s face, he couldn’t bring himself to say no and accepted the Red Blood Bamboo.

His junior sister’s face lit up with joy, her eyes curving into crescents as she smiled. "Senior Brother, someone needs to be at the medicine garden, so I’ll head back now."

Li Tai’an nodded. "Alright. You should get back, Junior Sister. Don’t delay our master’s work."

"Don’t worry, I’ve already finished all the tasks Master assigned me."

His junior sister left with a beaming smile.

Before she left, she sent him a quiet voice transmission: "Senior Brother, come to the medicine garden tomorrow. I have a secret to tell you."

"A secret?"

Li Tai’an watched his junior sister’s retreating figure, lost in thought.

「A moment later.」

He collected his patrol Token as usual and went out on patrol with his senior sister.

During the patrol, his senior sister suddenly asked him, "Junior Brother, the Immortal Path is long and arduous, and it is difficult to walk it alone. Have you ever considered finding a Dao companion?"

"A Dao companion..."

Li Tai’an fell silent for a moment, understanding his senior sister’s intentions.

He looked at his senior sister, and she looked back at him. Their eyes met, both filled with complex emotions.

Only a thin paper screen separated them.

All it would take was one more step.

And they could become Dao companions, walking the long Immortal Path together.

However, just at that moment, the entire Secret Realm suddenly trembled, and a massive explosion echoed from nearby.

BOOM!

In the world before them, a long, narrow rift suddenly tore open, as if slashed by the blade of some peerless expert.

Immediately after, countless murderous Cultivators poured out from the rift.

"The remnants of the Nine Great Sects are hiding in this Secret Realm, just as we thought!"

"Kill them! Kill every last person from the Nine Great Sects!"

"Leave no one alive!"

In an instant, the air filled with the stench of blood and an overwhelming killing intent.

Li Tai’an and his senior sister had been spotted.

Innumerable Cultivators charged toward them, their faces twisted with hatred and rage, as if they wanted nothing more than to tear the two apart on the spot.

"This is bad!"

"Junior Brother, hurry, follow me!"

His senior sister’s expression changed drastically. She grabbed Li Tai’an and fled deeper into the Secret Realm.

Li Tai’an asked anxiously, "Senior Sister, aren’t we going back to the Sect?"

"The Sect is surely their primary target! Going back would be walking right into a trap. Our only hope is to flee deeper into the Secret Realm!"

「In the days that followed.」

The two of them fled relentlessly, surviving countless near-death encounters, but they could never shake their pursuers.

The various Treasures in their Storage Pouches gradually ran out, and their hope of survival grew ever dimmer.

「Finally.」

On this day, the two of them reached an exit of the Secret Realm.

Li Tai’an glanced at the pursuers behind them, then turned and said, "Senior Sister, you leave first. I’ll hold them off."

The moment he finished speaking, his senior sister suddenly struck him with her palm.

She gave him one last, deep look, her face a mask of grim determination.

"Go, and don’t ever come back!"

The force of the palm strike was immense, sending him flying backward, out of the Ancient Wood Secret Realm.

The last thing he saw was his senior sister using her Magical Power to shatter the entire Secret Realm exit, blocking the pursuers for him.

That was the last time Li Tai’an ever saw her in his life.

「In the time that followed.」

He hid, moving from place to place across the Cultivation Realm.

A few years later, he encountered a senior from the Profound Artifact Sect who was also on the run.

The senior said to him, "Tai’an, we can’t keep running like this. Sooner or later, we’ll die at the hands of our pursuers. I have a Treasure that can let you survive into a later age, but it comes with a certain risk. Are you willing to try it?"

"Senior, what is this Treasure?"

"The Hermit Coffin!"

The senior lightly patted his Storage Pouch. A dark glimmer of light flew out, landing before them and transforming into an ordinary-looking coffin.

He lifted the coffin lid and continued, "All these years, I’ve been searching for a way to escape this calamity. What I really wanted to find was the legendary World-Crossing Ship, but I never could. Fortunately, I managed to obtain this Hermit Coffin."

Li Tai’an was a little confused.

"Senior, I’ve heard of the Hermit Coffin, but what is the World-Crossing Ship?"

"The World-Crossing Ship... This Treasure is similar to the Hermit Coffin and also has the effect of evading calamities. Legend has it that if you board the World-Crossing Ship, you can escape the great tribulation..."