NOVPUB
Chapter 137: 134
Taihe City.
Gu Jinlai had entered the city without any hindrance.
At that time, Ning Zhen decisively chose to disband and conceal themselves because he felt that with Gu Jinlai bringing over a hundred people and the threat of Purgatory Sect, it was impossible for them to take over Taihe City. He wasn’t worried about them being rooted out.
Thus, like water merging with the sea, they disguised themselves one by one, hiding among the population of more than four hundred thousand in Taihe City.
Unless Gu Jinlai had tens of thousands of troops to conduct a carpet search of the city or even decided to slaughter the entirety of Taihe City, finding a Refining God practitioner hidden among the several hundred thousand residents, with their intent to conceal their presence, would be like finding a needle in a haystack.
"Is that all?"
Gu Jinlai let out a cold laugh.
It had to be said that the people of the Taihe Sword Sect were quite imaginative.
Unfortunately...
They were too naive.
"Luo Chen, the four of you, each take a ’Thunder’ Gatling Gun and bring twenty Demon God Warriors to guard the four gates. For the following period, Taihe City is open for entry but not for departure."
Gu Jinlai instructed, "The rest of you, follow me to the Taihe Sword Sect."
"Yes!"
Gu Luochen and the others responded in unison.
Twenty-one people guarding a gate...
It might seem inconceivable, but what Gu Jinlai brought with him were all Demon God Warriors.
The weakest one among them had cultivated a Demon God Body, giving them the power to fight against those at the Gang Condensation level.
Their combat strength was equivalent to that of forty Qi Refinement practitioners or ten at the Gang Condensation level.
If compared to ordinary soldiers, they were equal to an army of three thousand.
Not to mention there was the formidable presence of Gu Luochen, who had cultivated an Upper Demon Body, wielded a "Thunder" Gatling Gun.
In terms of killing power, they were only stronger, not weaker, than the Refining God Immortals, especially against a large number of experts when they are surrounded, their effectiveness surpassed that of the Refining God Immortals.
...
Taihe Sword Sect.
Every man for himself when calamity strikes.
Almost all protectors above the Hugging Pill realm had fled; even most of the Gang Condensation stewards had left, leaving only a few Gang Condensation and several Qi Refining Realm experts who were reluctant to leave their hometown, upholding the situation in the Taihe Sword Sect.
After Gu Jinlai personally took action and Gu Xiliu opened fire and killed a dozen or so stubborn old men who seemed to prefer to die in battle rather than let invaders step into the Taihe Sword Sect, no one else could stop his advance.
Zhengyang Hall.
"We have come to plunder the city, search, and find all the valuables of the Taihe Sword Sect. Show no mercy to any who resist."
Gu Jinlai sat on the Sect Leader’s throne and waved his hand.
"Yes."
Dozens of people took the order and swiftly headed towards some key locations within the Taihe Sword Sect.
However, the area covered by the Taihe Sword Sect was not small.
As the ruler of Taihe City, their territory encompassed over ten square kilometers, nearly a quarter of Taihe City.
With just over twenty people, looting the entire Taihe Sword Sect was not an easy task.
Even though people like Gu Xiliu were not weak and could force the Taihe Sword Sect’s menial workers and disciples to transport resources, it still required a significant amount of time and effort.
"Although I carry two short-range defense cannons on every trip, which severely impacts my speed, the only ones who can keep up with my pace are those martial artists who have formed Demon God Physiques. And such warriors, from Lingxiao City, Yuanhua City, Changjun City, and Sunset City combined, add up to just over a hundred."
Gu Jinlai said.
Having cultivated a Great Demon Body, even carrying ten tons, he could still travel a thousand miles in a day.
This level of travel efficiency could only be endured by the Demon God Warriors.
"Recently, the number of Demon God Warriors in several cities has increased to three hundred, but due to the limited amount of Demon Blood Essence, out of the three hundred pre-selected Demon God Warriors, only twenty have managed to form a Demon God Body..."
Gu Jinlai couldn’t help but look towards the east of Taihe City.
There lay the largest mountain range within Star State, Yunqi Mountain.
This mountain range started six hundred miles outside of Taihe City and stretched over two thousand miles.
One third of it was within Star State, and the remaining two thirds extended into Jiangzhou State, occupied by Dragon Sparrow Manor.
Countless demons dwelt within the mountain range.
It is said that there were appearances of Middle Position and even Upper-level Demons.
Just like how the Yellow Sky Sect in Yellow State had to deal with the nuisance of the Champsosaurus Swamp, Yunqi Mountain Range was also a thorn in the side of Dragon Sparrow Manor.
It is rumored that at the foothills of Yunqi Mountain within Jiangzhou State, there is a fortress city built by Dragon Sparrow Manor, constantly guarded by a Primordial Spirit True Monarch Level Supreme Elder along with four Elders. Still, they can’t prevent the occasional demon from causing trouble in Jiangzhou.
"The demons to the south of Star State have been almost completely eradicated by our forces; the remaining ones either fled north of Star State or sought refuge in Yunqi Mountain to avoid our aggression. With Yellow Sky Sect, State Lord Mansion, and Dragon Sparrow Manor entrenched in complex interests to the north of Star State, Demon God Warriors could easily provoke conflicts if they venture carelessly. However, the demons to the south of Star State are becoming increasingly rare..."
Gu Jinlai looked eastward.
Perhaps it was time to take a group of Demon God Warriors into Yunqi Mountain Range for a large-scale extermination effort to cultivate a sizable force of true Demon God Warriors.
...
Gu Jinlai stayed in the Taihe Sword Sect for an entire day without leaving.
Relying on his notorious reputation, no one dared to make a sound during that day, and the Taihe Sword Sect seemed eerily peaceful.
The next day, Gu Xiliu and the others returned one by one, driving many disciples to bring a large amount of gold, silver, paintings, elixirs, spirit materials, weapons, armors, and treasures.
"Patriarch, everything is here, but... we haven’t found any high-end materials to speak of; it seems... someone has taken away the most valuable essence in advance."
Gu Xiliu said.
"Taken away? No! They couldn’t have taken it away."
Gu Jinlai calmly stated: "Take these items to the West City Gate, let Gu Luochen and his men guard them. You bring ten people with me."
Although Gu Xiliu didn’t understand, he didn’t hesitate to execute the Patriarch’s order.
Soon, ten people, along with many Taihe Sword Sect disciples, were escorting these resources towards the West City Gate.
It seemed that everyone in Taihe City wanted to send them away with some supplies as quickly as possible, so much so that this caravan worth millions and guarded by only ten people wasn’t ambushed or obstructed by anyone.
By the time the caravan and Gu Luochen’s group met up, Gu Jinlai had reached the entrance of the grand hall, his body swelling up and soon materializing into the more than three-meter-tall Great Sun True Demon Body.
This height was just perfect for manning the Short Range Defense Cannon that was more than one meter tall at the entrance.
With a few leaps, he made his way to the tallest tower of the Taihe Sword Sect.
He placed the Short Range Defense Cannon down, and spiritual fluctuations emerged.
True Spirit Possession.
The activated Short Range Defense Cannon, equipped with a powerful radar, began to scan in all directions.
Even though those Refining God Immortals had concealed their presences, their Divine Thought...
Was like the dispersing of human spirit fluctuations.
Their way of concealing, on Blue Star, was akin to a soldier covered head to toe in straw, hiding in the bushes.
When looked at, they were naturally excellently concealed without a trace, but in front of a thermal imager...
They were nothing but live targets.
Before long...
A series of Divine Thought fluctuations were marked.
"Follow me."
Gu Jinlai, carrying the Short Range Defense Cannon, leapt towards a direction.
But as he was about to reach his destination, he seemed to notice something.
In a small courtyard of over a hundred square meters, a middle-aged man clad in patchy clothes, his face full of worry and fear, was wood-working.
He seemed to be from an ordinary household.
But...
Which ordinary person has Karma that is bright red like blood?
The nozzle of the Short Range Defense Cannon on Gu Jinlai’s shoulder turned...
"Fizz! Fizz! Fizz!"
Sparks flew.
Casings scattered.
The middle-aged man had only just realized something, the Qi of the Hugging Pill Realm within him was about to burst out, when in the next moment...
A mist of blood scattered.
The man, who was inside the house, was directly blasted to nothingness by the rain of bullets, leaving no bones behind. 𝓷ℴ𝓿𝓅𝓊𝒷.𝓬𝓸𝓂
Having done all this, Gu Jinlai’s expression did not change, and he continued walking towards his objective.
Before long, he arrived in front of a small courtyard that belonged to a wealthy family in the city.
Upon seeing the over-three-meter-tall Gu Jinlai in Spirit Armor carrying the Giant Sword Cannon, the others in the courtyard ran away in terror.
Gu Jinlai was unperturbed, and after searching briefly, he quickly stopped in front of a storeroom.
He sensed carefully for a moment, and the next, power erupted from under his feet, and the storeroom’s floor shattered loudly, collapsing in on itself.
Clearly, there was a basement underneath this storeroom.
Almost at the same time as he smashed through to the basement, a violent Fist Force burst out from below, carrying the force of thunder and aiming a fierce assault at Gu Jinlai’s body.
Gu Jinlai did not dodge or evade, his left fist clenched, and he struck down thunderously.
"Boom!"
Violent and pure power exploded fiercely in the not-so-spacious basement, like ten kilograms of explosives detonating at once.
The scattering Gang Qi and Power shreds the surrounding floors and dirt into pieces, while the various debris struck the basement walls like bullets, kicking up countless dust clouds.
Gu Jinlai’s Fist Force crushed the exploding Gang Power with irresistible force, its momentum unabated as it struck his arm, and then further smashed into the head of this unknown Refining God Immortal.
"Ah!"
With a cry of unwillingness, the Refining God Immortal’s head was blasted to pieces, and his blood mist spread out.
Only then did Gu Jinlai finally land on the ground.
After landing, he leaped away from the basement again.
In front of him, Gu Xiliu and the others soon arrived.
"There are some decent things in the basement. Search it, and take whatever you can," Gu Jinlai instructed.
To ensure the one-punch kill of a Refining God Immortal, he couldn’t afford to hold back too much, and he wasn’t sure how much of the precious materials in the basement could be salvaged.
"Yes."
A Demon God Warrior quickly jumped in.
He glanced at the chaotic basement, startled for a moment, then quickly got busy.
After a while, he seemed to realize something and said, "Patriarch... This Refining God Immortal... seems to be Great Elder Ning Zhen of the Taihe Sword Sect, whose Cultivation has reached the Refining God Peak. He is said to be second only to Venerable Daoist Ye Yiren."
"Oh."
Gu Jinlai had no particular reaction.
Who was Ning Zhen?
It wasn’t important.
With his current level of Cultivation, killing a Refining God didn’t cause much of a ripple in his heart anymore.
"Continue searching for items here; everyone else will follow me..."
After giving some instructions and discerning something, Gu Jinlai set off again.
"We’re heading to the next location."
