Demon Slaying, Gaining 60 Years of Cultivation From the Start

Upon hearing this, Gu Chen was momentarily stunned and said, "A problem? What kind of problem could possibly arise in Tiandu?"

During his previous retreat, with the help of the panel, Gu Chen had been transforming his qi into Gangqi. During that period, he had entered a deep meditative state, his mind completely empty, hence he was unaware of the matter involving the emperor's tribulation.

"The Emperor has left seclusion!" Wen Ziyun said gravely.

"The Emperor left seclusion?!"

Upon hearing this, Gu Chen was immediately shocked; he had not expected the Emperor, who had been in closed-door cultivation for twenty-three years, to have come out.

At this thought, Gu Chen harbored the idea of returning to Tiandu, eager to meet this legendary Emperor of Da Xia.

After all, there were far too many legends about the Xia Emperor, and deep down, Gu Chen truly wanted to meet the sovereign known as the once-in-an-eternity Emperor of the nine provinces.

"Shouldn't the Emperor leaving seclusion be a cause for universal celebration? Why do you look so troubled, Lord Wen?" Gu Chen asked, puzzled.

Wen Ziyun said gravely, "Lord Gu, you really aren't aware of what happened during this time?"

Gu Chen shook his head and replied, "I truly had no idea. At that time, I was in the deepest state of meditation for my breakthrough to the Gang Qi Stage and couldn't perceive anything outside."

"What, Lord Gu, you've broken through to the Gang Qi Stage?!"

Hearing that Gu Chen had achieved a breakthrough to the Gang Qi Stage, Wen Ziyun was suddenly overwhelmed with astonishment. He was acutely aware that this Lord Gu had only reached the Vajra Stage a few months ago, and such a short time had passed, yet he had already broken through again?

Wen Ziyun silently took a sharp breath; such a rate of breakthrough was rare in the world, saying that breaking through stages was as easy as drinking water for him wasn't an overstatement!

However, recalling the events that occurred in Tiandu, Gu Chen's breakthrough no longer seemed so shocking.

Wen Ziyun, with a solemn face, said, "Lord Gu, the Emperor left his seclusion wishing to become a Celestial Being and, before the eyes of the entire world, he faced a terrifying heavenly tribulation.

"Heavenly tribulation?"

At these words, Gu Chen's eyebrows furrowed. He had only come across the term "heavenly tribulation" in tales from his previous life and hadn't expected it to be real in this world.

"So breaking through to the Celestial Stage requires overcoming a tribulation!" Gu Chen suddenly realized.

At that moment, as if he thought of something, his expression changed, and a conjecture formed in his mind. He looked at the master of Qiongtian Mansion, Wen Ziyun, and said, "Could it be that the Xia Emperor failed the tribulation?!"

If the Xia Emperor had indeed failed the tribulation, the entirety of the nine provinces would likely fall into chaos.

Seeing Wen Ziyun shake his head, Gu Chen immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

But Wen Ziyun's next sentence made Gu Chen's heart tighten once again.

"After the Emperor faced the tribulation, he completely vanished. Now the whole world is discussing where the Emperor might be!"

Gu Chen's brows knitted tightly. The disappearance of the Emperor was certainly not good news for Da Xia.

"Not only that, after the Emperor's disappearance, the Da Yuan envoy announced plans to enter the capital. Judging by the time, it's possible that the people from Da Yuan have already arrived in Tiandu," Wen Ziyun said.

"The Emperor disappears, and the Da Yuan envoy enters the capital?" Gu Chen's expression turned solemn; he immediately perceived the intentions behind the Da Yuan envoy's visit to the capital.

This was indeed a critical issue for Da Xia.

If not handled properly, it could lead to a war between the two countries, and the peaceful realm of the past twenty-three years would become turbulent once more.

Wen Ziyun sighed and said, "Now, everyone wants to know the whereabouts of the Xia Emperor and whether he has successfully ascended to the Celestial Stage, but there has been no word from the imperial palace. Without the Xia Emperor, this world..."

Wen Ziyun didn't finish his sentence, but Gu Chen understood his concern.

The importance of the Xia Emperor for Da Xia didn't need to be stated; his disappearance would be an unprecedented blow to Da Xia.

Perhaps all the major powers in the world would take this opportunity to rise against Da Xia.

There was no other reason except that the other forces of the world had been suppressed by the Xia Emperor for too long. Emotions that had been repressed for so long would explode the moment they could, and the result was predictable.

"What do the Crown Prince and King Huai say about this? Has there been any news from them?" Gu Chen inquired.

Wen Ziyun hesitated for a moment before replying, "The imperial palace has been very quiet, and both the Crown Prince and King Huai have been conducting themselves as usual, with no change."

Hearing this, Gu Chen nodded slightly. As he saw it, there were only two possibilities: either the Emperor was still in closed-door cultivation in Tiandu, or the Emperor had already disappeared.

If it was the former, it would be manageable; but if it was the latter...

Gu Chen said, "Lord Wen need not worry so much. If an outstanding figure like the Xia Emperor is involved, he must be alright. Perhaps the Emperor is currently in seclusion, consolidating his realm."

At his words, Wen Ziyun also nodded. He, too, could hardly believe that anything untoward would happen to a figure like the Xia Emperor.

After all, over the years, the Xia Emperor's prestige had become deeply rooted in the hearts of all Da Xia's people. His might was witnessed by everyone throughout the nine provinces.

Moreover, if something really had happened to the Da Xia Emperor, in Wen Ziyun's view, the palace would likely not remain so calm.

Gu Chen's eyes were deep; he too had not expected that after he reached the limit of his physical body, became indestructible as Vajra, and even broke through to the Gang Qi Stage, such a drastic change would occur in Da Xia.

Gu Chen had a vague premonition that the Emperor of Da Xia had probably encountered disaster, and the reason for the peace in Tiandu might also be that something was being concealed.

But he also knew very well that the situation couldn't be stalled, no matter what excuses Da Xia made, as long as the Emperor did not make an appearance for one day, the rest of the world would still not believe it.

Gu Chen raised his head, gazing at the sky; he already foresaw that this world was likely to change soon, and the time left for Gu Chen was likely not much.

Fortunately, Gu Chen had already reached the Vajra Stage and broken through to the Gang Qi Stage. With his own strength and the help of divine weapons, throughout the vast nine provinces, he may not be able to come and go as he pleases, but he now possessed a certain ability to protect himself.

Despite this, facing the imminent outbreak of war in the nine provinces, Gu Chen couldn't help but feel a trace of worry in his heart.

For Gu Chen, right now, the most crucial thing was to quickly improve his cultivation and then cultivate an exceptional kind of Gangqi!

Characters like the Da Xia Emperor were too far removed for Gu Chen; even if Da Xia truly underwent some changes due to the Emperor's disappearance, it wasn't something he could manage.

The pressing matter at hand was still to rapidly enhance his strength.

Gu Chen sighed lightly; he had thought that after reaching the Vajra Stage and the Gang Qi Stage, he could relax a little, not needing to be as tensely wound as before, constantly in midst of slaughter. But unexpectedly, after all the twists and turns, it was still back to the old ways.

At that moment, Wen Ziyun said, "By the way, Lord Gu, there's one more thing I forgot to mention, the Jing Tian Department is urging your return to the capital!"

...

Tiandu.

Dressed in black, Gu Chen rode a fast horse, and after several days' journey, he finally hurried back to Tiandu.

Gazing at the grand and majestic city before him, Gu Chen entered Tiandu's main gate after showing his token.

After returning to Tiandu, Gu Chen first visited the Jing Tian Department in the outer city, but did not see Chen Yu. After completing the check-in with a junior official, Gu Chen prepared to return to the Gu Mansion.

As Gu Chen was heading back to the Gu Mansion, he passed by a long street and suddenly saw not far away a stage where a young monk with delicate features, bronze skin, and clad in a red kasaya stood on top.

Opposite the young monk, more than a dozen warriors joined forces to attack him. Each of their focused strikes made a clanging sound like iron hitting gold when they landed on the monk's body.

Such a formidable physique caused Gu Chen's eyes to narrow slightly upon seeing it.

"Such a terrifying body," he murmured to himself.

For Gu Chen, now at the Vajra Stage, to admit that someone has a formidable physique, there would not be many such people in the whole world.

Within the body of this young monk, Gu Chen felt a robust vitality, vigorous like a wild dragon.

Even before Gu Chen broke through to the Vajra Stage, compared to this young monk, he was still somewhat inferior, which showed how powerful the monk's physique was!n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Gu Chen shook his head slightly; although those on the stage were all at the Vajra Stage or even at the Gang Qi Stage of cultivation, they were definitely no match for the young monk.

As expected, the next moment, the young monk brought his hands together, bowed his head slightly, and murmured something—a beam of golden light then projected outwards, causing the warriors to spit blood and fly away.

"Which monastery's monk is this from the Da Yuan?" Gu Chen surveyed Ananda for a few moments. Da Yuan had been low-key for twenty-three years, and the Jing Tian Department didn't have much contact with Da Yuan, so Gu Chen's understanding of Da Yuan was not very rich.

However, he also knew that being able to train such a strong physique, even in Da Yuan, the other party would definitely not be obscure.

At this time, Ananda, on top of the platform, after defeating his opponents, appeared to sense something. He turned his head slightly, his peaceful and clear eyes looking towards Gu Chen.

Gu Chen did not retreat but looked straight back at him. Their gazes met in mid-air, the Qi inside their bodies surged, and at that moment, it was as if lightning was born in the void. The invisible aura collided, and the surrounding air seemed to almost solidify.

At this point, Ananda on the stage had been there for several days, and the number of his followers had grown close to a thousand. Every morning, he would chant scriptures here, blessing the faith of Tiandu's people.

Seeing Ananda's victory, his followers around cheered loudly, and at this sight, Gu Chen raised his brows in surprise, puzzled why the people of Tiandu would cheer for a foreigner.

On the platform, Ananda's gaze stayed on Gu Chen. Through the collision of Qi just now, he had also perceived the horror of Gu Chen's physique.

This revelation made Ananda's eyes brighten. In the whole of Da Yuan, at the same realm, he was invincible in terms of physical body and could easily steamroll over others. Even those of a higher realm, many still did not have a physique to match his.

It could be said that in Da Yuan, relying only on physical strength, there was not a single adversary for Ananda below the martial arts grandmaster level.

As for martial arts grandmasters, given that they have undergone both blood exchange and marrow cleansing, their bodies have undergone several transformations. Compared to such a level of body, Ananda was still somewhat inferior. Continue reading stories on empire

What he did not expect was to encounter in the Central Plains someone whose physique was not weaker than his and that someone was a young and promising talent.

Ananda felt that Gu Chen, even in Da Xia among his peers, must surely be an outstanding figure. Therefore, Ananda harbored the idea of wanting to recruit him.

He believed that given Gu Chen's strength and talent, if he grew in the future, he would be capable enough to serve as the protector of the Dharma King for the Great Snow Mountain Dragon Elephant Buddhist Sect. That way, when Ananda was not around, Gu Chen could help protect the sect.

Secondly, to recruit Gu Chen in the presence of the public in Tiandu would certainly be an enormous blow to Da Xia, as losing such a talented individual would be of great impact.

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