Chapter 328: Chapter 194: The Hacking Gu Zheng

Gu Zheng could feel it, and he was grateful.

But Xu Jianzhu didn’t know about his situation, the cheat-like abilities he possessed, or the most powerful treasure the world had seen in ten thousand years.

The Human Emperor’s Seal!

An Artifact Embryo forged by the peerlessly talented Emperor Yu—who else could have possibly imagined it?

...

...

Xu Jianzhu didn’t stay in Fengzhou for long.

After dealing with the Evil God’s avatar, "Zhong Zhengtang," he returned to the Royal Capital to report to Zhong Yi.

A Prince with true power had been possessed by an Evil God years ago and turned into its avatar.

If word of this got out, the impact would be enormous—and disastrous.

Gu Zheng, Xie Bisheng, and Meng Taiqi were all told by Xu Jianzhu to remain silent.

Even without Xu Jianzhu’s reminder, Gu Zheng knew the potential repercussions.

Zhong Zhengtang was dead, and his entire family had been wiped out by the Evil God. The grudge between Gu Zheng and them was finally settled.

It was safe to say a huge problem had been eliminated.

Gu Zheng couldn’t have been happier.

Xie Bisheng was responsible for handling the aftermath.

Gu Zheng bid farewell to his two teachers and returned to Qingshi County.

He didn’t go back to the county seat, heading straight for the depths of Great Dragon Mountain instead.

He still needed sixty thousand more Demon Points, and his comprehension of heaven and earth couldn’t be neglected either.

After killing third-rank Demon Fiends for the past few days, Gu Zheng had amassed a total of 21 Demon Pills.

Gu Zheng planned to comprehend all of them in one go.

In addition, he had the Earth Pill he had received as a reward, as well as the Giant’s Heart he had been saving.

All of these could help him comprehend heaven and earth.

Before leaving, Xu Jianzhu had mentioned a heaven-defying Treasure Pill.

It was an advanced version of the Earth Pill: the Celestial Pill!

This was a Ninth Transition Treasure Pill.

Consuming a single one could help refine a Divine Seed and gave a ninety percent chance of forming a Domain!

Unfortunately, the method for refining this Ninth Transition Treasure Pill had long been lost.

No one knew it anymore.

Even if they knew the Pill Formula, it would be impossible to gather the necessary Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures.

Gu Zheng just listened for the sake of interest.

Whether he had the Celestial Pill or not, he was confident he could complete his advancement to the King’s Body.

He comprehended and absorbed the energy from all 21 Demon Pills, the Earth Pill, and the Giant’s Heart.

Gu Zheng’s understanding of the natural laws of heaven and earth had reached a state where he could predict changes in the weather, the shifts in feng shui, and the gathering and dispersal of earth qi.

Looking at his status panel, the Demon Points required for a breakthrough had decreased from 250,000 to 240,000!

The increase in his Union power had consequently lowered the energy needed for a breakthrough.

In other words, he only needed another fifty thousand Demon Points.

As for a rare treasure like the Void Divine Stone, Gu Zheng had no leads for now, so he decided to set the matter aside.

...

Still not returning to the county seat, Gu Zheng left Fengzhou and continued toward Guangzhou to enter the Dahuashan passage.

The chances of acquiring Thunder Essence and Demon Points were greater in the Demon Realm territory on the other side of the Dahuashan passage.

Gu Zheng had visited these islands a few times before.

He had killed a large number of Electric Spirit Monsters.

This time, Gu Zheng chose a different island, sensed for the auras of Demon Fiends, and then unleashed his three hundred and sixty blades, slaughtering his way across.

Once he had cleared one island, he moved to the next.

He continued until he was spotted by a fourth-rank Thunderbird, forcing him to flee back into the passage ahead of time.

He had reaped a total of 18,900 Demon Points.

However, he hadn’t found any Thunder Essence.

He had been about to switch to another passage and continue killing Demon Fiends in the Demon Realm, but suddenly, the Demon-Slaying Seal on his person began to vibrate.

He took it out and read the message, only to discover that it was time to escort the Ninth Princess to the Western Celestial Dao.

A message had come from the Royal Capital, requiring Gu Zheng to head over and rendezvous in advance.

Since he had already agreed, Gu Zheng would not back out at the last minute.

He immediately ended his hunt for Demon Fiends and hurried toward the Royal Capital.

...

「Upon arriving at the Royal Capital」

He met everyone involved in the mission, including the Ninth Princess and Zhong Qishan.

The last time he had seen her, she was an arrogant and domineering princess. Now, her face was numb and she remained motionless, allowing others to manipulate her, dressing her, putting on her jewelry, and doing her makeup.

Gu Zheng glanced at her before turning to leave, going to meet another of the accompanying Guard Generals.

This general’s name was Cao Qingsong. He was under forty, with a refined and scholarly demeanor, and spoke in a gentle and amiable tone. He was extremely polite when he greeted and spoke with Gu Zheng.

Although it was their first meeting, Gu Zheng’s name was now well-known among the upper echelons of Jing Country.

He had followed the Qing King’s path, made a trip to the Nine Heavens Shadow Realm, and had actually advanced to the third stage of the Heroic Body Realm, even condensing three Divine Seeds!

There had been few geniuses as dazzling as him in the millennial upheavals of the past.

Gu Zheng had risen step by step right under everyone’s noses, leaving countless people wide-eyed with astonishment and envy.

At the third stage of the Heroic Body Realm, he no longer needed to fear any existence below the King’s Body.

Even a King’s Body wielder wouldn’t be one hundred percent confident in their ability to defeat him. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Because Gu Zheng possessed three God-Hunting Arrows!

The destructive power of this Ancient Treasure was absurdly strong—it could pierce through a Domain!

The fearsome reputation of the God-Hunting Arrow was built upon its ability to penetrate Domains and kill King’s Body experts, a legacy that had been passed down for ages.

Because of this, it wasn’t just the Guard General Cao Qingsong; even the Gunshan King, who was accompanying them as the Zhong Family’s representative, was quite amiable when he saw Gu Zheng again.

The last time Gu Zheng had come to retrieve *Ten Thousand Blades Heaven Slaughter*, the Gunshan King hadn’t yet known about Gu Zheng’s gains in the Nine Heavens Shadow Realm.

He only learned about it later from others.

...

The Gunshan King represented the Zhong Family, while Gu Zheng and Cao Qingsong served as Guard Generals.

「Three days later」

On a bright morning, the escort party for the Ninth Princess’s journey to the Western Celestial Dao entered a vast mountain range.

A ten-mile-long procession with gongs and drums was out of the question.

They had to guard against sabotage from the other Vassal States!

The political marriage between Jing Country and the Great Feng Country was being conducted in secret.

As a result, the entire entourage numbered just over three hundred people.

They were opting for an elite force, not a large one.

The chosen route was not the main official road, but a narrow jungle path.

The strength of these three hundred-plus individuals was quite impressive; the weakest among them was at the Alien Body Xianfeng level.

Consequently, they moved through the jungle path with great speed.

Even with the Ninth Princess and Zhong Qishan riding in a palanquin, their pace was not affected.

Of the three Heroic Body Realm experts, Cao Qingsong took the lead, the Gunshan King guarded the middle, and Gu Zheng brought up the rear.

Following the pre-planned route, the group traveled continuously for half a month and finally left the borders of Jing Country.

They had made such good time by resting during the day and traveling at night, with every person below the Super Body Realm consuming Treasure Pills.

If it weren’t for two Demon Fiend attacks along the way, their speed would have been even faster.

Afterward, Cao Qingsong released his Heroic Body Realm aura, and the Demon Fiends no longer dared to approach.

...

To the west of Jing Country lay Shang Country.

The two Vassal States were separated by a great river, the renowned Celestial Gate River.

When the escort party reached the riverbank, several large ships that had long been waiting immediately sailed over and docked.

The group boarded the ships and, under the cover of a dense fog, traveled diagonally upstream.

The Western Celestial Dao, where the Great Feng Country was located, was in the far west.

It was separated from Jing Country by Shang Country and Xin Country.

The route the escort party chose ran along the borders of these two countries.

In short, the goal was to avoid the Scouts from both countries and prevent any interception.

Therefore, the party did not go ashore, instead traveling directly up the Celestial Gate River.

Once they reached the border, they would abandon the ships and continue on foot.

The men once again took Treasure Pills to replenish their Divine Wondrous energy and stamina.

Gu Zheng, Cao Qingsong, and the Gunshan King, however, were largely unaffected.

The Ninth Princess and Zhong Qishan remained in their numb state, neither complaining nor crying out, as if they had already accepted their fate.

This continued until the party crossed the northern border of Shang Country and entered the bordering territory of the Great Xin Country. As they were crossing a mountain peak, the weather suddenly changed, and lightning flashed across the sky.

A Domain Wall materialized at a speed visible to the naked eye, enveloping the mountain peak the party was on, along with four other nearby peaks.

’A Domain!?’

"How could a Domain appear so suddenly?"

The party halted, and Cao Qingsong’s expression grew solemn.

"HAHAHA~!"

Zhong Qishan, who had been numb all this time, suddenly burst into laughter. "Good, good, this is great! A Domain has formed, so we’re trapped here. Let’s all take this chance to get some rest!"

Everyone else: "..."

Well, it seemed this young lady had finally come back to life.

The chance to delay the journey made her so happy she could jump for joy.

And so she did, charging right out of the palanquin and hopping on the ground.

"What are you all standing around for? Let’s rest!"

Zhong Qishan waved at the crowd.

While everyone was speechless...

"There’s something wrong with this Domain!"