Demon Slaying, Gaining 60 Years of Cultivation From the Start

Upon hearing this, a warrior beside him asked with a puzzled face, "Leader, what is an innate martial body?"

Qi Zhen's eyes were deep as he said, "As the name suggests, those born with an innate martial body are born for martial arts. They make extremely swift progress in martial cultivation, it can be said they advance a thousand miles a day. As for martial arts, they also possess a natural comprehension ability, and their physical constitution is far stronger than that of ordinary people.

Such individuals are rare, perhaps one in several hundred years."

The warrior, seemingly half-understanding, nodded and said, "Looking at it this way, Gu Chen indeed fits what you described as an innate martial body. His progress in martial arts is incredibly fast, saying he advances a thousand miles a day is not an exaggeration.

Moreover, in martial arts, it's very likely that he has mastered several mid-grade martial arts and even a high-grade martial art to a high level of proficiency!"

If Gu Chen were here, he would be greatly surprised, as the Diancang Pavilion had nearly figured him out completely.

Upon hearing this, Qi Zhen nodded slightly, but there was one thing he still couldn't understand. According to the intelligence, Gu Chen, before the age of twenty, had some talent but was definitely not this strong. Logically, someone with an innate martial body should have stood out from an early age.

"Perhaps it has something to do with his parents?" Qi Zhen thought to himself.

At that moment, the warrior beside Qi Zhen hesitated before asking, "Leader, Gu Chen killed Qin Mu of the Sunset Sword Sect. Surely the Sunset Sword Sect won't let him off easily, right?"

Qi Zhen gave a faint smile and said, "That depends on the Sunset Sword Sect itself. Given their nature, they definitely won't let this matter slide. But if they act brazenly, they would give the Jing Tian Department a reason to step through their gates."

The warrior nodded slightly then listened as Qi Zhen said, "Alright, go update the Star Rankings."

"Yes."

After the man left, Qi Zhen looked out the window. He knew that with the revival of the Six Union God Sect, the long-silent Jiuzhou would once again become turbulent. Regarding Gu Chen, Qi Zhen also had a bit of interest, but just a bit.

After all, a genius who hasn't grown up yet isn't really a genius.

To be in the Gang Qi Stage, after all, is still too naive. Even with the backing of the Jing Tian Department, it is very easy to be nipped in the bud.

Moreover, with the return of the Six Union God Sect to the rivers and lakes, the world will once again become chaotic, with the Jing Tian Department bearing the brunt.

Even becoming number one on the Star Rankings doesn't really prove anything. For the vast land of Jiuzhou, the Star Rankings are just a beginning; the rankings can hardly cover all the heroes of the world.

As the Star Rankings were updated with the warrior's name at the top, the crowd gathered around the rankings immediately erupted, while the intelligence agents from the Sunset Sword Sect turned ashen.

And soon after, the news spread, shocking the martial world.

If it wasn't for the return of the demonic cults to the rivers and lakes, Gu Chen's rise to the top of the Star Rankings would have been the latest headline.

...

In the eastern part of Qiongtian Mansion, there is a massive mountain range that is extremely expansive and primitive, with abundant spiritual energy and an excellent geographical location.

At the very center of the mountain range, there is a tall mountain that reaches into the clouds, the location of the Sunset Sword Sect's gate.

Above the peak, precious beasts dwell, rocky crags tower, waterfalls cascade, and exotic flowers and rare fruits are everywhere, making it a remarkably beautiful scene.

Clearly, this is an excellent feng shui location for cultivation, with the Sunset Sword Sect having stood here for over a thousand years.

When Qian Yuan and other disciples of the Sunset Sword Sect returned with the news of Qin Mu's death at the hands of Gu Chen, the entire sect was in an uproar and the news caused an earthquake within.

After all, leaving aside Qin Mu's reputation for a moment, the Sunset Sword Sect had only ten core disciples, and Qin Mu was one of them. Each core disciple was a pillar of the sect's future, and now one had died, dealing a huge blow to the Sunset Sword Sect.

It has been many years since someone dared to provoke the Sunset Sword Sect like this.

But unfortunately, the Sunset Sword Sect was absolutely powerless against the killer of their core disciple.

At this moment, inside a large hall at the top of the Sunset Sword Sect's mountain, it was a scene of utter chaos.

Among them was Master Mei, who had threatened Gu Chen that day.

"We must kill him, we must! Otherwise, how will the world view our Sunset Sword Sect?"

"We can't kill him. This child is from the Metropolitan Procurator of the Jing Tian Department. Killing him would be a blatant defiance of the imperial court!"

"We should defy the imperial court. Let them see that our Sunset Sword Sect is not to be trifled with!"

"Are you mad? Do you want the Sunset Sword Sect destroyed?"

In the great hall, the elders argued. Some believed they should execute Gu Chen on the spot to demonstrate the stance of the Sunset Sword Sect. Others felt this action was not feasible because killing Gu Chen would mean offending the Jing Tian Department, creating endless trouble.

"What is there to fear? The Six Union God Sect has resurfaced, Da Xia will be the first to face the brunt, and isn't the Jing Tian Department supposed to oversee the world? I see now with the emergence of the demonic sects, they'll have their hands full. Plus, over the years, dealing with demons has cost them a lot of manpower.

In my opinion, the Jing Tian Department is no longer as powerful as it once was."

"If you ask me, old Mei is just a coward. If I were him, I would have directly slaughtered that little bastard on the spot!"

Upon hearing this, Master Mei's face darkened, and he retorted angrily, "Nonsense, killing him is easy, but have you thought about the consequences? You're nothing but a thoughtless brute!"

An elder, with his beard and hair both bristling like an old lion, roared, "I think you're just afraid to die. You're afraid that if you kill that little bastard, you won't be able to escape either."

"Nonsense!"

The two of them immediately started quarreling, and the other elders tried to mediate the dispute, causing a scene of utter chaos in the great hall.

"Silence!"

Suddenly, an elder seated at the head of the table bellowed, and his profound cultivation caused the entire hall to tremble. The elders below shuddered, and the room immediately quieted down.

This elder had white hair and a beard, yet his skin was rosy and showed no signs of old age. He was the Seventh Master of the Sunset Sword Sect.

At this moment, both the Supreme Master and the Sect Master of the Sunset Sword Sect, as well as several of the top-ranking elders, were in seclusion. All matters of the sect were being managed by the Seventh Master.

His cultivation was also the highest in the room. He had already surpassed the Gang Qi Stage, otherwise, he wouldn't have such a powerful deterrent effect.

"To kill a Sunset Sword Sect disciple, and one who is ranked among the true inheritors no less, is tantamount to cutting flesh from the Sunset Sword Sect. This matter must not be left as it is," said the Seventh Master slowly.

"Exactly, I'm willing to take action. Before that little bastard returns to Tiandu, I will cut him down!" said the elder with bristling beard and hair, who was known for having the most fiery temper among all the elders present.

Master Mei became anxious and said, "Seventh Master, we must reconsider. Gu Chen is just a minor character at the circulation stage. Killing him would bring disaster upon our entire Sunset Sword Sect, and it's simply not worth it. Please, Seventh Master, think thrice."

"Nonsense, I think you're just afraid of death!"

"You!"

Seeing that the two were about to argue again, the Seventh Master immediately glared and shouted, "Shut up!"

Upon hearing this, both of them closed their mouths.

The Seventh Master pondered for a moment and then said slowly, "We can't just let this issue go. Offending the Sunset Sword Sect means that the Jing Tian Department must pay a price. The Emperor has been in isolation for many years, and in my opinion, it's very likely that something has happened. The current Da Xia is no longer as formidable as it was."

They were highly skilled in martial arts and had traveled far on the path. With their cultivation, they were considered among the top in the nine states, which was exactly why they knew how difficult the tasks the Da Xia Emperor wanted to accomplish were.

The Heaven Man Stage is not so easily achieved, otherwise, we wouldn't have gone so many millennia in the nine states without seeing a martial artist reach that realm.

Therefore, they all agreed with the Seventh Master's words. With no sightings or news for twenty-three years, they all believed that the Da Xia Emperor might already be dead.

"But even so, for us alone to go against the Jing Tian Department is quite difficult," said another elder.

After all, setting aside the Emperor of Xia, just looking at the Jing Tian Department, the number of enforcers alone is not small, and with twelve Guardians, breaking through the gates of the Sunset Sword Sect is, frankly, not difficult—at least, it can be said to be quite easy.

The Seventh Master nodded slightly and said, "Of course, we can't take action in this matter. It's not worth inviting big trouble over a minor character."

"What do you suggest?" asked Master Mei, furrowing his brows.

"Find an assassin from Blood Garment Tower and issue a bounty. Let Blood Garment Tower send someone to decapitate that boy named Gu Chen," said the Seventh Master coldly.

The rest were immediately taken aback. Blood Garment Tower was an enormous assassin organization in the nine states, infamous and fearsome. The strength of Blood Garment Tower was not less than that of the Sunset Sword Sect; in fact, it might even be stronger.

They operated in the shadows, their headquarters location unknown to all. Only very few methods could contact Blood Garment Tower assassins or locate their branches to assign bounties.

Blood Garment Tower took on all kinds of missions, claiming there was no one under heaven they dared not kill. Having remained concealed over the years, their headquarters had never been exposed; hence they were not as fearful of the imperial court as the Sunset Sword Sect was.

Moreover, Gu Chen was merely a minor character. It was very likely that Blood Garment Tower would accept the job.

"But Seventh Master, if Gu Chen dies, won't the Jing Tian Department suspect us?" Master Mei was still worried.

The Seventh Master replied indifferently, "No matter. Once some time has passed after the incident, we'll go to Blood Garment Tower to issue the bounty. By then, no one will suspect us. We can also have Blood Garment Tower disguise itself as the demonic cult to eliminate Gu Chen, blaming the matter on them."

He paused, then continued, "What's more, even if they do know, so what? The murder will have been carried out by Blood Garment Tower. The Jing Tian Department cannot retaliate against the Sunset Sword Sect alone; they would have to find Blood Garment Tower first. By then, we could ally with Blood Garment Tower.

For the Jing Tian Department to take action against both of us over a minor character, they would have to weigh their options carefully."

The Seventh Master cast his gaze towards Master Mei and said, "In a few days, you will go to Blood Garment Tower to issue the task. I will give you their contact details."

Master Mei immediately stood up, clasped his fist and said, "Understood!"