Demon Slaying, Gaining 60 Years of Cultivation From the Start

But to actually do so, they lacked the courage, because now, without the protective talismans in effect, if they were to die here, they would truly die.

At this moment, the proud and arrogant Fu Ling, upon seeing Gu Chen leave, couldn't help but clench his fists tightly and whispered, "One day, I will surpass all of you and ascend to the highest peak!"

A few Cave Heaven Realm cultivators from the Vault of Sky Sword Sect glanced at Fu Ling; of course, they had heard what he said, and couldn't help but shake their heads in secret.

Being at the stage of cultivation they had reached, they naturally had a clearer recognition of Gu Chen's strength than Fu Ling, who had just broken through to the Cave Heaven Realm.

It could be said, among the younger generation in this secret realm, no one would be a match for this Gu Jiuge; their sect's holy son, Fu Ling, having just reached the Cave Heaven Realm, was far behind.

"The holy son is good in all aspects, it's just that his ambition is too high," the leading protector shook his head, "That is both a good and a bad thing."

"Does the 'Nine Thousand Years Old' really not exist?" Gu Chen pondered this issue as he walked.

There is no smoke without fire; since the rumors have spread, it naturally proves a certain degree of truth, Gu Chen believed in this.

At that moment, he turned to look at the elder beside him and asked, "Senior, when did the rumors about the 'Nine Thousand Years Old' begin to circulate?"

Upon hearing the question, the elder shook his head slightly and said, "Your cultivation surpasses mine greatly, there's no need to call me senior. My name is Ji Xuandao, I'm just some years older than you, if you don't mind, just call me Brother Ji."

After a pause, the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty's ruler added, "The rumors started spreading a few days ago. A few martial artists were the first to discover this place. It is said that they saw a streak of light flashing through this medicinal garden. At that time, it was still sealed by a formation, but still, a wisp of extremely astonishing fragrance leaked out. One of them, with keen eyesight, claimed to have seen the shape of the spiritual medicine clearly, and the news thus spread from there."

The Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty's ruler explained that after the news came out, it caused a huge sensation. Many people came to this place to observe, including Gu Yan, Jin Xu, and others. They used all sorts of methods to investigate, but all came up empty-handed.

In the end, all those people left disappointed, leaving only the protectors behind to help them search for that last glimmer of possibility.

And this event took place when Gu Chen had previously been in seclusion.

"Is it really just a rumor?" Gu Chen contemplated internally and used his Divine Eye ability; in the deepest part of his pupils, mysterious symbols flickered.

However, even though the medicinal garden was shrouded in a formation, and even though his Divine Eye ability had reached the eighth tier, he still could not see through the "fog" to discern the so-called "truth."

Ultimately, Gu Chen gave up, his eyebrows furrowing, still harboring a sliver of hope as he searched on.

"Perhaps, if the Divine Eye ability were to advance one more tier, reaching the seventh tier, I should be able to fully scrutinize this place," Gu Chen thought to himself.

However, enhancing a divine ability is extremely difficult, even for Gu Chen who would require a substantial Divine Power value.

Having just used the Divine Eye ability, in fact, was not entirely without gain; Gu Chen caught a whiff of an extraordinary aura from a spot underground within this medicinal garden.

This further convinced Gu Chen of the possible existence of the so-called 'Nine Thousand Years Old'.

At that moment, Gu Chen suddenly halted in his steps.

"What's wrong?" The elder from the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty looked at him quizzically.

Following Gu Chen's gaze, the elder looked over and saw several Cave Heaven Realm cultivators standing not too far away. Each of their cultivations was very strong; even the weakest among them was on par with the elder.

It should be noted that the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty's ruler had, at present, opened ninety-eight heavenly meridians in the Cave Heaven Realm. For him, a solitary cultivator, this was already quite remarkable.

Emperor Xia, with his talents, although not as incredible as Gu Chen's, was still quite remarkable; after all, he had ascended through the tribulation from the Nine States, so he certainly wasn't lacking.

Emperor Xia had heard of the grudge between Gu Chen and the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty. There was a time in Han State when he had been chased by a Huanxu Realm cultivator from the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty, and it was then that their vendetta had begun.

"Gu Jiuge?"

On the other side, the people from the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty also saw Gu Chen and Emperor Xia, and the leading war general frowned.

Among the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty's Cave Heaven Realm, this person ranked second in strength, much stronger than the captain of Gu Yan's guard whom Gu Chen had seen last time.

"It's not appropriate to conflict with him now. I came here to help His Highness search for medicinal herbs. Gu Jiuge must be left for His Highness to personally resolve and devour," the person thought secretly to himself.

Hence, in response to Gu Chen's glance, he took a look and then deliberately looked away.

Many onlookers saw Gu Chen encounter the people from the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty and couldn't help but feel a stir in their hearts, secretly watching to see if a conflict would arise.

To others, it might seem that Gu Chen was watching the people of the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty, but in truth, only he knew that what truly caught his eye were four stern-faced middle-aged men not far from them.

These four men radiated an aura of unapproachability, and everyone in the medicinal garden kept a distance from them.

"Demons!" Gu Chen's eyes moved slightly, immediately discerning the true identities of these four men.

Indeed, these four had demonic presences within them, and they had to be from the Holy Sect.

And with those people from the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty not far from them, Gu Chen would never believe there was no relationship between them.

"Soldier-level Demons should be able to provide a considerable amount of Divine Power value, right?" Gu Chen thought to himself.

The ranking of demons, unlike that of ghosts and goblins, lacks the multitude of grade distinctions but is rather divided into three levels, similar to the realm divisions of cultivation in the upper world.

The weakest demons are equivalent to the pinnacle of the Celestial Realm in martial arts. These demons are also known as Soldier-level Demons.

This implies that, in the world of demons and monsters, such demons, like ghosts and goblins, are endless and numberless, serving as the vanguard or as expendable troops, hence the term Soldier-level Demons.

Above the Soldier-level are the Earth-level Demons, corresponding to the Earth realm in the upper world's cultivation levels.

The weaker Earth-level Demons are comparable to the Cave Heaven Realm, while the stronger ones are on par with the God Transformation Realm or even the Huanxu Realm.

And Peak Earth-level Demons are equivalent to the Combined Realm within the Earth realm of the upper world, or even beyond!

Above Earth-level Demons come Heaven-level Demons, corresponding to the Celestial Realm. Such caliber of demons, apart from the Holy Sect, can exist only in the forbidden zones of creatures in the upper world.

Each Heaven-level Demon that appears in the world is capable of causing colossal misfortune, leading to bloodshed and destruction, powerful enough to obliterate dozens or even hundreds of states within a region, resulting in countless creatures being slaughtered.

Generally speaking, demons at the same realm are stronger than cultivators; only those with exceptional talents can fight against demons at the same realm, or even engage them in battle.

This is also why so many beings in the upper world, despite knowing the great harm that comes with fusing with demons, still willingly join the Holy Sect.

"Cave Heaven Realm Earth-level Demons, if I slay them, that should be enough to raise my Heavenly Eye skill to the seventh rank, right?" At this moment, looking at the "Divine Power value" walking close by, Gu Chen pondered secretly.