Demon Slaying, Gaining 60 Years of Cultivation From the Start

Chapter 117: Chapter 109: A Reward of One Hundred Thousand Taels _1

At dawn, in a courtyard of the Prefectural Magistrate's Mansion, Gu Chen and a group of others gathered here.

Including Gu Chen, Song Yu, and Wang Yan, this operation saw the Jing Tian Department dispatch a total of fifteen second-ranked Metropolitan Procurators and seven first-ranked ones.

In addition, there was Huang Xiu, a martial artist at the Gang Qi Stage, as well as three individuals from the martial arts hall, led by Cao Zhen.

Only Chen Yu and two first-ranked Metropolitan Procurators remained to defend the county city.

"Depart!"

At the command, Gu Chen and the others mounted their swift horses and set out for the Kunyuan Sect.

The Kunyuan Sect was located atop a mountain surrounding Yufeng City in Xu'an County, seven thousand li from the county city. Even traveling day and night, it would still take a full five days and nights to reach it.

By the third night on the road, Zhuo Zhibin was finding it increasingly hard to bear.

Although he possessed the cultivation of the External Qi Stage, he was usually pampered and indulged and was now feeling somewhat impatient from the constant travel.

Thus, he went directly to Huang Xiu to express his thoughts.

Hearing this, Huang Xiu nodded and lightly spurred his horse to approach the seven first-ranked Metropolitan Procurators, saying, "Traveling continuously for three days and nights, we are somewhat fatigued. Let's find an inn in the city ahead and rest a bit."

Hearing this, Xu Qing and the others frowned slightly. They took out a map and pointed at it, saying, "Lord Huang, the nearest city from here is three hundred li away, but it's a detour from our path. If we rest there, we will have to make a detour. Since we are tired, why don't we set up camp right here and rest for the night?"

Upon hearing this, Zhuo Zhibin immediately became displeased. He was now exhausted and simply wished to find a warm place to take a hot bath, eat and drink his fill, and preferably find a pretty girl to warm his bed for him.

In all his life, he had never slept outdoors and naturally was unwilling to agree.

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Huang Xiu glanced at Zhuo Zhibin and addressed Xu Qing and the others, "Three hundred li isn't far; let's make a detour then. With our speed, we should reach our destination in two or three days at most. Please give me this face."

Xu Qing and the others frowned even deeper. Success in battle relies on the swiftness of the troops; by striking the Kunyuan Sect with the force of thunder before they could detect the Jing Tian Department's movements, they could annihilate them.

Now, Huang Xiu was causing them to detour because of Zhuo Zhibin, and dissatisfaction arose in the hearts of Xu Qing and the others. Nonetheless, Huang Xiu was after all a warrior of the Gang Qi Stage. They needed his help to subdue the Kunyuan Sect, so in the present situation, it was quite difficult for them to refuse Huang Xiu's request.

Left with no choice, Xu Qing and the other seven first-ranked Metropolitan Procurators could only nod in agreement, leading the group on a detour to the city three hundred li away to rest and regroup briefly.

Among the second-ranked Metropolitan Procurators, Song Yu pursed his lips in disdain and muttered under his breath, "Blockhead!"

Huang Xiu's ears twitched slightly, his sense of hearing extremely sharp, and his gaze turned towards Song Yu amidst the crowd.

Feeling Huang Xiu's gaze, Song Yu's body involuntarily shuddered. In front of Huang Xiu, he felt like a harmless little rabbit, while Huang Xiu was the tiger.

The gaze of a tiger upon a rabbit would naturally cause the latter to tremble with fear and their legs to go weak.

At that moment, a slender figure seated atop a horse shielded Song Yu, smiling towards the observing Huang Xiu.

The person who came forward was Gu Chen.

Huang Xiu glanced over and didn't pay much attention. He knew that Gu Chen was currently favored by Chen Yu and should not be offended, or else Chen Yu would not hesitate to kill him.

Seeing Gu Chen blocking Huang Xiu's gaze, Song Yu breathed a sigh of relief.

Subsequently, the group found an inn in the small city to rest temporarily for the night.

After all, it was only a small city; the inn was not large and the environment was rather ordinary. Liang Xu and Zhuo Zhibin frowned slightly at the sight.

"Would you all like to go out and grab something to eat?" Huang Xiu asked Xu Qing and the others.

Xu Qing and the others shook their heads and returned to their rooms to refine their inner Qi.

After all, having reached the Vajra Stage, the next level would be the Gang Qi Stage. To break through to the Gang Qi Stage, they must refine their inner Qi to the utmost limit to convert it into the first thread of Gangqi.

This was a painstaking process, counted in years, and it would take a very long time to achieve. Each of the first-ranked Metropolitan Procurators, including Xu Qing, aimed for the Gang Qi Stage.

After all, only by reaching the Gang Qi Stage would they qualify to become a Commander.

Thus, they wouldn't waste a single moment, and whenever they had time, they would refine their inner Qi, striving to step into the Gang Qi Stage as soon as possible.

Seeing this, Huang Xiu led Cao Zhen, Liang Xu, and Zhuo Zhibin out of the inn to find pleasures at the restaurant.

Gu Chen returned to his room and started refining his inner Qi, nurturing his body's meridians and flesh with it.

After all, inner Qi was born from the flesh after the body had reached its limits; strong inner Qi, in turn, nourishes the body.

As the inner Qi in Gu Chen's body increased to three hundred and fifty-four years, his physique grew stronger by the day, and his senses became sharper as well.

At this moment, in a brothel within the city, Cao Zhen and Huang Xiu were sitting on the side, while Liang Xu and Zhuo Zhibin both had their arms around two women with ample snowy white flesh exposed through their thin veils.

Huang Xiu sat there with closed eyes, seemingly dozing off, while Cao Zhen sat silently drinking.

The private room was spacious, the ambiance sensuous, with several scantily clad women dancing gracefully on the side.

Zhuo Zhibin's eyes were hazy as he drank, saying, "Brother Cao, why are you drinking alone? What are you all waiting for? Go attend to Young Master Cao!"

Upon hearing this, several comely women moved their bodies towards Cao Zhen, their gestures gentle, their gazes sultry.

Seeing this, Cao Zhen immediately raised his hand to halt them, saying, "It's fine, just enjoy yourselves."

Liang Xu laughed, "Brother Cao disdains the ordinary here, having eyes only for one person. Am I right, Brother Cao?"

As he spoke, Liang Xu also winked at Cao Zhen playfully.

Cao Zhen remained silent at the implication, managing just a faint smile.

Zhuo Zhibin said carelessly, "Brother Cao, are you giving up so easily?"

Liang Xu added, "Brother Cao, you couldn't have really taken a liking to Gu Chen's cousin, could you?"

Cao Zhen still just smiled without speaking.

Actually, Gu Qingyan did mean something special to him, but in Cao Zhen's eyes, women were no different from commodities. He was willing to make sacrifices for Gu Qingyan, but only to a certain extent.

At this moment, Zhuo Zhibin cursed and said, "If you ask me, that Gu Chen really doesn't know what's good for him. Brother Cao, with your noble status, graciously lowered yourself, yet the Gu Family still has the nerve to refuse. It must be that Gu Chen causing trouble behind the scenes. If I were you, I'd just take her by force and see what Gu Chen could say about it!"

The mention of Gu Chen immediately darkened Liang Xu's expression. His hand, resting in a swath of voluptuous whiteness, slightly tightened, causing the brows of the woman in his arms to furrow instantly.

Seeing this, Zhuo Zhibin, even more intoxicated, laughed and said, "I forgot that Gu Chen also offended Brother Liang, snatching away the woman Brother Liang fancied. In my opinion, this Gu Chen really deserves to die. Why don't we find an opportunity to kill him?"

"Hmph!"

Hearing this, Liang Xu let out a cold snort, his eyes flickering with murderous intent as he remembered everything that had happened at the Duke of the Liang State's Mansion.

At that moment, Cao Zhen said indifferently, "Killing him wouldn't be difficult."

Liang Xu and Zhuo Zhibin's eyes lit up, and they looked at Cao Zhen, asking, "Do you have a way?"

Cao Zhen smiled faintly, "With Brother Liang and I both at the Vajra Stage of cultivation, dealing with a mere External Qi Stage martial artist is like capturing something in the palm of our hands, isn't it?"

"But if we act directly, what about the Jing Tian Department?" Zhuo Zhibin asked with a frown.

Cao Zhen spoke dispassionately, "Isn't it simple? During our fight with the Kunyuan Sect, we'll just find the right moment, kill him, and then pin the blame on the demon sect martial artists."

They didn't know that Gu Chen had slain a Vajra Stage martial artist from the Red Flame Demon Sect, otherwise, they wouldn't have thought the matter was so simple.

Liang Xu and Zhuo Zhibin's eyes brightened again when they heard this, saying, "This plan, it's not unworkable."

The Kunyuan Sect was not weak, and during the battle, they could indeed take advantage of the distraction of the Jing Tian Department's people, lure Gu Chen away, discreetly kill him, and later pin the blame on the demon sect martial artists.

In this case, without evidence, the people from the Jing Tian Department wouldn't be able to object.

Cao Zhen said, "Of course, we'll need to plan for this long term."

Afterward, the three men discussed how to silently eliminate Gu Chen during the battle, while Huang Xiu sat to one side, feigning sleep as if he hadn't heard anything, not uttering a single word and just letting them be.

Some time later, after their discussion was over, they looked at each other and burst into laughter.

A cold light flickered in Cao Zhen's eyes. Gu Chen had offended him time and again, incessantly obstructing him from Gu Qingyan, and had even made a fool of him before. Cao Zhen had long harbored murderous intentions towards Gu Chen, and they were premeditated.

This time, the reason he proposed to go out with the Jing Tian Department was precisely because he had this in mind.

After all, in Tiandu, it was really not easy for him to act, with many eyes watching him and scarce opportunities to find.

Now, this mission, Cao Zhen believed, was the perfect opportunity.

After killing Gu Chen, there would then be no more obstructions between him and Gu Qingyan. He would be able to do as he pleased, and Gu Qingyan would be within easy reach.

...

Late into the night, Huang Xiu returned with Cao Zhen and the others. Liang Xu and Zhuo Zhibin were clearly drunk, their eyes unfocused, being supported by Huang Xiu.

But Cao Zhen's eyes were clear, evidently, he hadn't drunk at all from the beginning to the end.

Needless to say, Huang Xiu, being the close guard to Cao Zhen and the others, naturally had to remain sober at all times.

Moreover, with his level of cultivation, ordinary alcohol could no longer intoxicate him.

Soon after, Liang Xu and Zhuo Zhibin returned to their rooms and fell into a deep sleep.

Cao Zhen returned to his room, stretched out his finger, and tapped the table lightly twice, producing a distinct knock.

"Lord Marquis!"

In an instant, a figure appeared in Cao Zhen's room, kneeling on the ground.

This was a personal guard assigned to Cao Zhen by the Marquis of Pingxi, possessing a complete Vajra Stage cultivation, tasked with ensuring Cao Zhen's safety.

Actually, when Cao Zhen left the Pingxi Marquis Mansion, the Marquis of Pingxi had intended to send a Gang Qi Stage martial artist to closely protect Cao Zhen, but given some disturbances on the borders at the time, after considering the whole picture, he only sent a few martial artists at the peak of the Vajra Stage to follow Cao Zhen's commands.

This time, accompanying the Jing Tian Department, Cao Zhen brought along a Vajra Stage guard for personal protection. Apart from Chen Yu and Huang Xiu, no one else was aware of this.

Cao Zhen said, "This is the contact method for Blood Robe Tower. Go to Blood Robe Tower now, find their person in charge, and issue a bounty. As for the bounty amount, one hundred thousand taels."

The guard, with his head bowed, asked, "Whom does Lord Marquis wish to put a bounty on?"

"Gu Chen!" Cao Zhen's eyes were filled with coldness and sternness.

Frankly, after discussing with Liang Xu and Zhuo Zhibin about dealing with Gu Chen, he pondered it over and felt that success was not guaranteed, so he came up with this plan.

"A mere External Qi Stage martial artist is not worth mentioning. I can help Lord Marquis kill him right now!" said the Vajra Stage martial artist with a full-circle cultivation in a deep voice.

Cao Zhen frowned and said, "Not possible, you would lose your life doing so."

"As long as Lord Marquis commands it, what is my life worth?"

Cao Zhen said, "There's no need for that. We don't need to act ourselves, the people from Blood Robe Tower will kill him. Moreover, in my view, your life is far more important than that of Gu Chen."

"Thank you, Lord Marquis!"

"There's no time to delay, you must leave immediately."

"Yes!"

In a flash, the Vajra Stage martial artist had disappeared from sight.