Demon Slaying, Gaining 60 Years of Cultivation From the Start

As for the array of civil officials in Da Xia, they stood to one side, silent.

Whether Gu Chen was ennobled or not did not greatly affect them, and Gu Chen had no deep relations with the many civil officials of Da Xia, so they chose neutrality regarding this matter.

Even though not long ago many among them had visited Gu Mansion, wanting to meet with Gu Chen and forge a connection, since nothing had come of it, these old foxes would naturally not stand out at such a time.

Each of them focused inwardly, appearing indifferent to the affair, silently standing there like spectators at a play.

Nowadays, Da Xia's powerful elite were divided into two factions, with the Duke of the Liang State leading one side, supporting the elevation of Gu Chen to the rank of an Earl.

The other side, including Uncle Dingyuan and a group of others, was firmly against it.

An argument between the two sides seemed imminent.

Seeing this, the Crown Prince immediately furrowed his brows, feeling irked. He pinched the bridge of his nose and looked towards King Huai.

But at this moment, King Huai had an expressionless face, eyes looking downcast, as if lost in thought, showing no intention of providing guidance.

The Crown Prince felt helpless. Seeing this, a nearby eunuch struck the ground with his whip, producing a resoundingly crisp snap.

"Silence!"

Hearing this command, the Duke of the Liang State and others all took a deep breath, noting the Crown Prince's displeased expression and ceased their quarreling.

The Crown Prince turned his gaze towards Uncle Dingyuan, Marquis of Wuwei, and the other Da Xia nobles, and with a frown, he asked, "According to you, what sort of reward should we give Gu Chen?"

"Silks, satins, gold and silver treasures, these should suffice," Dingyuan said lightly.

At these words, the Duke of the Liang State became furiously angry, saying, "Gu Chen shed blood and sacrificed his life for Da Xia. You want to dismiss him with mere material possessions? What would the people of the world, the countless citizens of Da Xia think? Aren't you afraid of chilling their hearts?"

"If we really use these gold and silver treasures as rewards without any substantial honors, who else would be willing to risk their lives for Da Xia in the future? What would the soldiers on the border think?"

Then Marquis of Wuwei scoffed coldly, saying, "If the Duke of the Liang State is going to put it that way, then I also have something to say. I too have established countless merits for Da Xia in my life, bearing numerous scars to prove it. Even the late emperor acknowledged my contributions. Now, just because a junior has fought one battle, you imply he can match the achievements of my entire life.

Tell me, is that fair, Duke of the Liang State?"

Uncle Dingyuan even said, "What you're saying is the greatest injustice. You and I have earned our positions through many merits for Da Xia. Gu Chen has merely made one contribution, and you say it's unfair and disheartening. In my view, if Gu Chen were to become an Earl, that would truly chill people's hearts!"

"Today, barbarians are restless, and the border environment of Yan State is extremely harsh. Still, countless Da Xia soldiers guard it without complaint, protecting our land and preventing the barbarians from advancing an inch. The Marquis of Pingxi has been stationed there for over twenty years. Has his merit been any less?

If Gu Chen is made an Earl, what would the border soldiers think, what would the Marquis of Pingxi think?"

Their words stood on grounds of righteousness, spoken with great force, leaving the Duke of the Liang State and others speechless.

Even the Crown Prince felt the same, but to only give Gu Chen some gold and silver treasures seemed truly indefensible.

The Crown Prince also felt a creeping sense of powerlessness in his heart. If the Emperor of Da Xia were here, who would dare to dispute his word?

At this moment, King Huai finally spoke up. The expression of this Da Xia royalty was calm, his gaze indifferent, as he said, "The person in question is not present. No matter how much you debate, it's futile. Call Gu Chen to attend the court tomorrow morning, and after hearing his thoughts, we'll make a decision then."

Having heard King Huai speak, Uncle Dingyuan and Marquis of Wuwei naturally did not dare say more, but simply nodded in agreement.

...

In this period, ever since his victory over Ananda, Gu Chen had been reflecting on the gains and losses from that battle.

Ananda's strength was actually very formidable, even stronger than the number one assassin on the Black List of the Blood-Cloaked Tower, Wujian, whom Gu Chen had encountered before.

Moreover, his cultivation was profoundly deep, having developed the anomalous Gangqi of the Dragon Elephant, with immense power, even surpassing Wujian's Blood Refinement Gangqi.

Not only that, his innate protective Buddha Light was also terrifyingly powerful, nearly converting Gu Chen into his most devout follower.

However, Ananda still lost. The reason he lost to Gu Chen was because Ananda had been too careless.

"That battle was truly a narrow victory," Gu Chen murmured, reflecting on himself.

Gu Chen knew himself best. His victory over Ananda was not because his strength truly surpassed Ananda by much, but because that day's battle had seen Gu Chen exerting his utmost effort.

And Ananda's defeat came from his carelessness!

"A lion still uses all its might to catch a rabbit," he thought. If Ananda hadn't been so sure of his own Dragon Elephant True Body, insisting on close-quarter combat with Gu Chen, the outcome of that battle would have been uncertain.

Even if he could win, Gu Chen knew it would be a bitterly earned victory.

In all honesty, Ananda, who was at the great completion of the Gang Qi Stage, surpassed Gu Chen significantly in cultivation and power. If it weren't for the severe injuries Ananda suffered in close combat with Gu Chen, such a decisive victory would have been impossible.

It must be said that Gu Chen's attainment of the Vajra body, combined with the fusion of two Superior Martial Skills, had brought his physical strength to an unimaginable peak at this stage.

Now, relying purely on physical prowess, Gu Chen would dare to challenge even a Returning to True Stage master.

In close-quarter combat, Gu Chen was confident that he could defeat or even kill masters of the Returning to True Stage; however, masters of that stage may not afford him the opportunity.

After all, by now everyone in the world knew he had achieved the indestructibility of the Vajra Stage, his physical body fearsome; everyone would be on guard against this.

And in a comparison of cultivation, Gu Chen would be utterly defeated, nowhere near the level of a Returning to True Stage master, who would thoroughly thrash him.

"Now, my primary goal is to enhance my cultivation, and then to develop a unique kind of Gangqi!" Gu Chen sat cross-legged on his bed, refining the Gangqi within his body over and over again. However, without points to spend, this kind of progress through diligent personal cultivation was painfully slow for Gu Chen.

At this time, in the evening, the Duke of the Liang State and Chen Yu paid another visit.

This time, upon seeing Gu Chen, the two got straight to the point, saying directly, "The Crown Prince and King Huai are preparing to reward you. Have you thought about what reward you would like to ask for?"

Upon hearing this, Gu Chen was immediately taken aback.

Hence, the Duke of the Liang State described to Gu Chen the scene that had previously taken place in the great hall.

As for Chen Yu, he had only just learned of this from the Duke of the Liang State, because members of the Jing Tian Department and Mingjing Department did not need to attend court unless summoned by the Emperor, the Crown Prince, or King Huai.

This was mainly because the Jing Tian Department and Mingjing Department already wielded considerable power and received abundant resources each year, making them feared by numerous officials and nobles of Da Xia.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Therefore, unless necessary, members of the Jing Tian Department and Mingjing Department did not attend the morning court or some other private court meetings.

As for the Qintian Monitor, its status was somewhat more detached; if there was an issue, the Crown Prince would send someone to consult the Qintian Monitor.

After hearing the Duke of the Liang State's description, Gu Chen had a moment of realization. Regarding the remarks made by Uncle Dingyuan and the Marquis of Wuwei, Gu Chen merely smiled faintly.

He had killed their heirs—it was only natural for them to target him. However, with Gu Chen's current fame and strength, they were not in a position to touch him.

Now, for those two, badmouthing was all they could do against Gu Chen; if speaking of taking any actual action, they wouldn't dare.

After all, Gu Chen was now the center of attention in the world, valued by the Crown Prince, King Huai, and the deputy commander of the Jing Tian Department.

If they dared to move against Gu Chen, they would indeed be looking for trouble. All they could do was to seek opportunities to verbally harass or disgust him in some matters.

Chen Yu said, "This is a rare opportunity; think carefully about what it is you want."

The Duke of the Liang State gave a slight sigh, saying, "You should probably not consider nobility; Uncle Dingyuan and the others would never agree. With the Crown Prince's power in court, although he wishes to help you, he is also helpless, unless you can persuade King Huai."

Upon hearing this, Gu Chen immediately shook his head. What kind of person was King Huai? Even if he valued Gu Chen, he was unlikely to personally intervene on Gu Chen's behalf.

To this point, Gu Chen had merely had a single encounter with King Huai.

In any case, it wasn't something significant enough to involve King Huai.

As for titles and nobility, Gu Chen truly did not care. He saw clearly now that troubled times were approaching the nine states, and in these troubled times, the only thing to rely on was strength!

Therefore, Gu Chen plainly said, "I've heard that there are many treasures in the Da Xia imperial family's secret vault. I desire to cultivate a unique kind of Gangqi; could the two masters possibly have a way?"

Find your next adventure on empire

"A unique kind of Gangqi?"

The Duke of the Liang State and Chen Yu exchanged a glance, both understanding. Now that Gu Chen had reached the Gang Qi Stage, it was only natural for him to set his sights on a unique kind of Gangqi.

After all, whether it was the opening channel stage or the Vajra Stage, Gu Chen had reached the limit. Thus, at the Gang Qi Stage, it was no surprise that someone of Gu Chen's unparalleled talent had aspirations toward cultivating a unique kind of Gangqi, the most powerful asset at that stage.

Regarding unique kinds of Gangqi, Chen Yu was clearly more authorized to speak than the Duke of the Liang State. Chen Yu said, "I know of an internal skill manual in the Da Xia imperial family's secret vault that would be most suitable for you."

Upon hearing this, Gu Chen's interest was piqued. His gaze flickered toward Chen Yu as he asked, "Please enlighten me, Master Chen."

"Great Sun True Skill!"

As soon as these four words were spoken, even the Duke of the Liang State's eyes flashed with a hint of astonishment; he, of course, knew of the Great Sun True Skill.

The Great Sun True Skill was an internal skill manual inherited from ancient times, ranked among the superior martial skills. Inherently firm and masculine, it was said to contain the method for cultivating a unique kind of Gangqi—the Great Sun Gangqi.

Should one succeed in cultivating it, paired with the Great Sun True Skill, a martial artist could move mountains and boil seas with terrifying might.

Gu Chen's martial arts were also incredibly fierce and overpowering, and the Pure Yang Wuji Gong was a yang-attribute internal skill manual. The Great Sun True Skill in the Da Xia imperial family's secret vault indeed appeared to be extremely suitable for Gu Chen.

Chen Yu explained to Gu Chen, "The cultivation of a unique kind of Gangqi requires not only talent but also opportunity. For example, the Five Thunder Gangqi I cultivated was actually a result of a fortuitous coincidence, and to speak of experience, there's not much to say."

Gu Chen nodded slightly, having heard of this before—that cultivating a unique kind of Gangqi wasn't wholly dependent on talent, though talent was nonetheless important.

After listening to Chen Yu's description of the might of the Great Sun True Skill, Gu Chen's eyes lit up, feeling that this internal skill was extremely suitable for himself.

Now that he had reached the Gang Qi Stage, Gu Chen felt that the Pure Yang Wuji Gong was somewhat inadequate. After all, with his panel, his cultivation would only grow higher, and no matter how powerful the Pure Yang Wuji Gong was, it was just a top-grade internal skill manual, unable to keep up with Gu Chen's pace.

Gu Chen had decided; at the next morning court, he would ask the Crown Prince and King Huai for the Great Sun True Skill, this superior internal skill!