Demon Slaying, Gaining 60 Years of Cultivation From the Start

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Zhang Zining was extremely astute, for he deeply knew that with the strength of him and his sister, even with a sacred weapon in hand, they would absolutely be unable to hold onto it. Not only would it not bring them any benefits, but it would instead bring them a fatal disaster.

Therefore, Zhang Zining would say to give the Blood Shadow Sword as a gift to Gu Chen; by doing this, he would not only favor Gu Chen, but also rid himself and his sister of the potential danger to their lives they could face in the future.

In fact, in Zhang Zining's heart, he had another little scheme in mind, which was, by gifting the Blood Shadow Sword to Gu Chen, he also intended to take Gu Chen as his master.

Although Gu Chen was only twenty years old and merely four years older than him, Gu Chen's strength and talent were acknowledged by all. Moreover, he was a member of the Da Xia's Jing Tian Department, and his future was boundless. If he could take Gu Chen as his master, Zhang Zining felt that the safety of both himself and his sister would be guaranteed at least.

Indistinctly, Gu Chen also guessed Zhang Zining's purpose. To say that Gu Chen was uninterested in sacred weapons would be false; there wasn't a single martial artist in the world who dared claim to be uninterested in sacred weapons.

Even for martial arts masters, who were Grandmasters of the Gang Qi Stage, sacred weapons still played a significant role for them.

Even for the wealthy Jing Tian Department or Da Xia, the number of sacred weapons within was not high. Although they could be exchanged through merits within the Jing Tian Department, the merits required for a sacred weapon were astronomical, almost without exception—and even Gu Chen could not afford it.

Not to mention Gu Chen, even the commander of Jing Tian Department, Chen Yu, despite serving in the Jing Tian Department for so many years, still didn't possess a single sacred weapon; such was the preciousness of sacred weapons.

But Gu Chen did not immediately agree; instead, he planned to first escort Zhang Zining and his sister Zhang Yining back to Qiongtian City, and leave them in the care of Wen Ziyun.

He knew that Arsenal would definitely not let this brother and sister go easily.

...

The manager of Arsenal, Jiang Yong, was a chubby middle-aged man with quite the prosperous figure. Dressed in luxurious clothing, his face, not adorned with its usual smile, was instead grim as he paced back and forth within the exquisitely decorated room, seemingly waiting for some news.

The atmosphere in the room was also extremely solemn and tense; the reason for this was that Jiang Yong had personally set out to track down the Blood Shadow Sword, but had miscalculated its powers. Without any person wielding it, the Blood Shadow Sword burst forth with tremendous speed and disappeared from his sight.

With the sacred weapon slipping away right before his eyes, how could Jiang Yong possibly be in good spirits? No one in Qiongtian Mansion knew better than him the value of a sacred weapon.

Sacred weapons were incredibly hard to find, and even inside Arsenal's own ranks, not many were available. The majority of known sacred weapons in the martial world already had owners, and every emergence of an ownerless sacred weapon would lead to a bloody and ruthless struggle, sending ripples of turmoil throughout the entire martial community.

"There's still no news of the sacred weapon?" Jiang Yong asked with a stern face.

An aide by his side shook his head and replied in a low voice, "Nothing yet, sir. Our people are still searching."

Jiang Yong commanded in a deep voice, "Even if you have to turn Qiongtian Mansion upside down, find the whereabouts of that sacred weapon!"

"Yes, sir!" his subordinates hastily responded.

Jiang Yong had his own plans. He had been serving as the manager of Arsenal in Qiongtian Mansion for nearly twenty years. Unless something unexpected happened, it was highly unlikely he would ever have the chance to be promoted to the Arsenal headquarters in his lifetime.

Jiang Yong's family background was not particularly distinguished; he had clawed his way up through tremendous hardships and sacrifices to eventually reach the position of the manager of Arsenal in Qiongtian Mansion.

Now, throughout Qiongtian Mansion, he was considered one of the leading figures, so much so that even members of Sunset Sword Sect dared not to act too arrogantly before him and were obliged to refer to him as "Manager Jiang."

His childhood experiences made the present Jiang Yong obsessed with wealth and authority, to the point where he dreamt of climbing even higher, to serve at the headquarters of Arsenal.

Because that would not only mean greater power, but there was also a possibility that it would elevate his martial prowess further.

However, Jiang Yong saw no hope for this dream, as becoming an official at the headquarters of Arsenal was exceedingly difficult. Just when Jiang Yong was about to give in to despair, his subordinates suddenly informed him about a discovered sacred weapon: the Blood Shadow Sword of the Zhang family.

Upon hearing this news, Jiang Yong was instantly invigorated. He knew that his chance to be promoted to the Arsenal headquarters had finally arrived.

If he could seize the Blood Shadow Sword and present it to the Arsenal headquarters, he would surely be promoted, and there might even be a chance to serve at the headquarters, gaining greater power and wealth.

At the very least, he could be promoted to govern an entire province.

One could say that the Blood Shadow Sword was Jiang Yong's ladder to promotion. Just as he was excitedly imagining his imminent promotion, suddenly his subordinates reported that the sale had fallen through. Continue your adventure with empire

This drastic turn of events was naturally more than Jiang Yong could bear. Moreover, after investigating, he found out that the Zhang siblings had no backing and were completely vulnerable; hence, Jiang Yong decided to take the sword by force.

After all, this wouldn't be his first time doing such a thing.

But unexpectedly, even after thorough preparations, there was an accident. Indeed, the power of the sacred weapon was extraordinary, beyond Jiang Yong's expectations.

Just as Jiang Yong was waiting for news about the Blood Shadow Sword, the subordinate who had just left returned, approached Jiang Yong, and whispered, "Manager Jiang, there's been a problem with the pursuit of the Zhang siblings' group."

"What's the problem?" Jiang Yong's brows furrowed, his complexion growing even grimmer.

The subordinate glanced at Jiang Yong's expression and said quietly, "They failed."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yong instantly flew into a rage, cursing, "What a bunch of useless fools! Are all they good for eating their fill? After I've given them so much silver every year, they can't even catch a couple of wet-behind-the-ears brats. What use are they to me? Tell them all to go to hell!"

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Jiang Yong's mood was already extremely foul for not having obtained the Blood Shadow Sword, and now, hearing this news, he found an outlet for his frustration, unleashing a torrent of abuse on his subordinates.

Knowing full well Jiang Yong's temperament, his subordinates could do nothing but bear the brunt of his tirade until, after some time, seeing that Jiang Yong had worn himself out, one of them added, "Manager Jiang, the reason they failed this time was that they encountered someone from the imperial court."

"Someone from the imperial court? Who?" Jiang Yong frowned, his tone betraying impatience.

"The Jing Tian Department, Gu Chen."

"Gu Chen?"

Jiang Yong's gaze sharpened. Gu Chen's fame had been on the rise in Qiongtian Mansion lately; how could he not know of him? He had indeed heard of him before.

Immediately, his subordinate then recounted the details of the incident to Jiang Yong.

After listening to the whole story, Jiang Yong swore profusely again, feeling utterly jinxed—like a leaking roof during a night's relentless rain, unable to handle even such a trivial matter.

"Gu Chen, hmph!"

Jiang Yong gritted his teeth, yet he didn't order his men to deal with Gu Chen. He was aware of Gu Chen's strength; within Qiongtian Mansion, throughout the entire Arsenal, unless he took action personally, the rest would likely not be a match for Gu Chen.

But for now, tracking the Blood Shadow Sword was the most pressing matter; he could not afford to pick a fight with Gu Chen over a few underlings.

Consequently, Jiang Yong, with a stern face, commanded, "Put this matter aside for now; don't bother with that Gu Chen anymore. I want you to focus all efforts on tracking down the divine weapon. Find it for me in the shortest time possible!"

"Yes!"

The subordinate promptly obeyed and then said, "But Manager Jiang, the Zhang siblings mentioned they would report the incident to the authorities. If they talk to Gu Chen about this, and he gets involved, what then?"

On hearing this, Jiang Yong's eyes flashed menacingly, and he said fiercely, "Then they cannot blame me for not giving Jing Tian Department any face!"

As the Manager of the Arsenal in Qiongtian Mansion, Jiang Yong's cultivation was naturally not weak. He was a mid-stage Gang Qi Stage martial artist, with highly condensed Gangqi within his body, not far from reaching outer Gangqi, the later stage of the Gang Qi Stage.

After all, as the Manager of the Arsenal overseeing the entire Arsenal of Qiongtian Mansion, he was certainly not lacking in wealth. On his martial path, he had consumed various elixirs, and even at the mid-stage of the Gang Qi Stage, his cultivation was exceptionally solid, earning him a place on the Leaderboard of Heroes arranged by the Diancang Pavilion.

However, advancing from inner Gangqi to outer Gangqi was not something that could be achieved through ordinary elixirs alone; it would require either some rare natural treasures or miraculous panaceas rarely seen in the world.

Even though Jiang Yong, as the Manager of the Arsenal, had no opportunity to acquire such treasures, he could only hope that after accomplishing great feats, the headquarters would bestow such miraculous medicine upon him, aiding him in his breakthrough.

The subordinate's face showed a hint of worry upon hearing Jiang Yong's intention to move against Gu Chen; not because he doubted Jiang Yong's ability to defeat Gu Chen—as Jiang Yong's confidant, he was well aware of his boss's strength.

After all, Jiang Yong had many years of cultivation ahead of Gu Chen, to say nothing of the enhancement from various elixirs; their cultivation was simply not on the same level.

What this subordinate was really concerned about was whether the Jing Tian Department, with Gu Chen at its back, might cause trouble for Jiang Yong.

"Don't worry. As long as I can obtain that divine weapon and offer it to headquarters, even if Jing Tian Department takes issue with us, headquarters will undoubtedly keep me unharmed," he said.

Jiang Yong then let out a cold laugh and continued, "Others may fear the Jing Tian Department, but our Arsenal certainly doesn't!"

Hearing this, the subordinate recalled the might behind the Arsenal and immediately felt a sense of reassurance, free from any further worry.

What allowed the Arsenal to become world-renowned, the largest weapons dealer in all of the Nine Provinces, even beginning to monopolize the business?

It was because, standing behind the Arsenal, were the Six Great Holy Lands, which towered above the countless beings of the Nine Provinces!

The head of the Arsenal was the spokesperson for the Six Great Holy Lands in the Nine Provinces. It was precisely because of the support from the Six Great Holy Lands that the Arsenal had been able to expand to this extent in the Nine Provinces, with business spanning the whole world, even reaching beyond the borders of Da Xia.

Even at the height of Da Xia's power, before the current Emperor of Da Xia had entered seclusion, they had been unable to do anything against the Six Great Holy Lands, not to mention now, with the Emperor having been in seclusion for twenty-three years without any news.

This was a testament to the fact that in all the Nine Provinces, only the Six Great Holy Lands remained forever lofty, unchanging despite the shifting sands and tides, the alteration of worldly affairs, and the succession of dynasties, reigning supreme over the countless beings of the Nine Provinces.

From ancient times to the present, it had always been so; the Six Great Holy Lands were untouchably transcendent, like the great sun suspended in the firmament, overlooking the entire world, with no one capable of altering this truth.

With the Six Great Holy Lands as their pillar, the Arsenal naturally had ample confidence, and that was why Jiang Yong, as the Manager of the Arsenal in Qiongtian Mansion, dared to make such statements.

In fact, Jiang Yong even felt that Gu Chen should consider himself lucky for not being troubled by him after injuring his men. If Gu Chen dared to compete with him for the divine weapon, Jiang Yong wouldn't mind teaching him a lesson.

To Jiang Yong, the Zhang siblings' well-being was an inconsequential matter, as was Gu Chen's claim to the divine weapon.

At this moment, in Jiang Yong's eyes, only the divine weapon mattered most. If Gu Chen dared to stand against him and vie for the divine weapon, Jiang Yong wouldn't hesitate to make it clear to Gu Chen that with his current strength, he couldn't turn the Nine Provinces upside down, and even in this Qiongtian Mansion, who the true dignitary was!