Demon Slaying, Gaining 60 Years of Cultivation From the Start

This area is somewhat remote, a place rarely visited by people, and the trees are dense, making the environment relatively dim, or one could say, gloomy.

Gu Chen had not heard of such a place before, quite obscure indeed, but he didn't find it troubling.

After all, not to mention the higher realms, the East Profound Region itself was incredibly vast. The state where Qingyun Academy was located was huge, far exceeding the combined size of the nine provinces of the lower realms; it was natural that he couldn't know everything.

"Very few people come to this place indeed, otherwise, the spot where a Great Power is suspected to have fallen wouldn't have waited until now to be discovered by our Chu Family," Chu Liufeng explained.

"Let's go, Brother Gu, we should enter," he added soon after.

"Alright."

Gu Chen nodded, a flash in his eyes as he surveyed the dense forest before him, and then proceeded to walk in alongside Chu Liufeng.

After the two had entered, the dark forest seemed imperceptibly to shimmer with a kind of black air that flashed and vanished.

The place mysteriously felt as if it were suffused with an undercurrent of cold air, as if coming to life, resembling a prehistoric beast with its mouth wide open, ready to devour people.

On the other hand, as Gu Chen drew closer to this area, towering trees reached into the sky, their branches and leaves lush, interwoven together, blocking out the light from the great sun above, causing the surroundings to become even darker as one approached.

Even, one could vaguely feel threads of coldness in the air, somewhat uncomfortable.

"Brother Chu, this doesn't seem to be a very nice place," Gu Chen said with a raise of his brow.

Chu Liufeng paused for a moment upon hearing this and hurriedly replied with a smile, "Indeed, when I first came here, I had the same thought. It might be because the spiritual energy around here is all being absorbed by that place deep inside."

Gu Chen nodded slightly, saying, "That might be the case. The cultivation method practiced by the Great Power who fell here might also have some issues."

"Perhaps," said Chu Liufeng, his tone somewhat indifferent.

"Brother Chu, have you noticed that the deeper we go, the colder the environment becomes?" At this moment, halfway there, Gu Chen suddenly furrowed his brow and spoke.

Chu Liufeng's heart skipped a beat, and he pretended to be puzzled, saying, "Really? I think it's not too bad, but it doesn't matter, Brother Gu, we'll arrive soon."

However, this time, Gu Chen chose not to continue forward. He shook his head and said, "No, Brother Chu, I have a sense of crisis about the deepest part; we should go no further, there might be something wrong with that place!"

At this, Chu Liufeng, for some reason, seemed to become anxious. He quickly said, "Brother Gu, how can that be? I've been to this place no less than ten times, and nothing unexpected has ever happened. Please trust me!"

But no matter what he said next, Gu Chen shook his head, refusing to proceed any further.

"Forget it, why waste words on this youngster? Just kill him and be done with it!"

At that moment, a chilling voice resounded through heaven and earth. Following that, three men in black appeared, each with an aura incredibly powerful, as if they could shatter the heavens and fracture the earth with a mere strike.

These were actually three Great Powers from the Heavenly Realm!

Moreover, not only that, but they were also suffused with streaks of black air around them, clearly harboring the power of evil demons within.

"Holy Sect!" Seeing these three, Gu Chen's expression turned stern and he stepped back several paces.

Among these three men, one of them was the grand commander of the Devil Cloud Thirty-Six Knights who had attacked Gu Chen and his companions not long ago.

"Boy, didn't expect to see us again, did you?" the grand commander of the Devil Cloud Thirty-Six Knights said grimly, his voice sinister, "This time, I want your life!"

At this moment, Chu Liufeng stood by the side, his previously sincere expression quickly vanishing, his gaze towards Gu Chen turning impassive.

"So it turns out, you are the Holy Sect's mole," Gu Chen said to Chu Liufeng, sighing softly.

When Gu Chen was attacked on his way back to the academy, he had suspected that Qingyun Academy might have had a traitor who secretly tipped off the Saint Sect.

Otherwise, it made no sense for the Saint Sect to be able to precisely pinpoint which teleportation formation they were going to use and set up an ambush on their path.

Given Chu Liufeng's status in the academy, if he willed it, he could indeed find out about it through the power of the Chu Family standing behind him.

At that moment, Gu Chen thought of a problem and, frowning, he looked towards Chu Liufeng and asked, "I have a question. When one enters Qingyun Academy, they must go through the 'Trial of Conscience', where the deeply wicked cannot enter and will be detected. How did you manage to deceive it?"

Before Chu Liufeng could speak, the Grand Commander of the Devil Cloud Thirty-Six Knights let out a cold laugh and said, "Our Saint Sect has numerous means at its disposal. Is it not easy to plant a spy? Let alone a mere Qingyun Academy, even the so-called immortal sects that shake the upper realms are nothing but a trifle in the eyes of our Saint Sect!"

Chu Liufeng, expressionless and emanating a cold aura, stood there as if he had become a different person and looked icily at Gu Chen.

The only difference between him and the three Great Powers among the Devil Cloud Thirty-Six Knights' leaders before Gu Chen's eyes was that Chu Liufeng had not fused with a demonic fiend.

If there were a demonic fiend within him, he would absolutely not have been able to elude the scrutiny of Qingyun Academy.

"So, when you initially planted him in the academy, were you aiming for Princess Xidie?" Gu Chen asked.

"Correct." At that moment, Chu Liufeng finally spoke. He looked indifferently at Gu Chen and said, "At first, it was just to capture Princess Xidie to bring Holy Brilliance Dynasty to heel, but what we never imagined was that the ultimate target would shift to you."

Upon hearing this, Gu Chen's heart stirred, guessing something, and his expression darkened as he spoke directly, "Did Gu Yan send you here?"

Linking the clues that the Saint Sect's target was himself, Gu Chen immediately figured out the truth.

The Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty must hold an important position within the Saint Sect. Thus, they naturally had the authority to command the leaders of the Devil Cloud Thirty-Six Knights.

"Why bother with idle talk? Just kill him straight away, or cripple him and bring him back to extract all his secrets!" At this moment, one of the Saint Sect's Great Powers, showing impatience, interrupted Gu Chen, not wanting him to continue speculating.

"Indeed, Gu Yan has discovered my identity." Gu Chen frowned, not expecting the Saint Sect to truly be as pervasive and potent as the legends suggested.

This realization elevated the terror of the Saint Sect several notches in Gu Chen's mind.

"In that case, could it be that the Chu Family has also, like the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty, thrown in their lot with the Saint Sect?" At this moment, Gu Chen's gaze shifted, looking again at Chu Liufeng.

Seeing this, the Grand Commander of the Devil Cloud Thirty-Six Knights couldn't help but let out a cold laugh, saying, "Boy, how does it feel to be betrayed by someone you trusted? This is the power of our Saint Sect. Now that you've fallen into my hands, I will not let you off easily—I will first shatter every bone in your body!"

Chu Liufeng stood emotionless at the side, ever since he had first made contact with Gu Chen, he had been on a mission, all for this very day.

Had there been no unexpected developments, with Gu Chen going to the Spirit Realm, the matter would have been concluded long ago, not dragged out until now.

"Trust?"

But at that moment, even though he was surrounded by three potent individuals of Great Power, Gu Chen remained calm and composed, even unflappable, his tone even, saying, "How do you know I ever trusted him?"

At these words, Chu Liufeng's expression suddenly changed.

The Grand Commander of the Devil Cloud Thirty-Six Knights frowned and said, "At this critical moment, what is this nonsense you're spouting, boy? Do you really think we've come unprepared?"

Chu Liufeng also spoke coldly, "Do you think you can escape death, or that someone will come to rescue you? Do you know that this forest has long been sealed with a formation, one that can confound those of Heavenly prowess. Even a formidable figure would need some time to break it!"

"And during this time, we'll have enough to capture you and manipulate you as we please!" the Grand Commander of the Devil Cloud Thirty-Six Knights chimed in coldly.

Nonetheless, Gu Chen maintained his composure and said, "To use myself as bait to take you few down, for three Great Powers, it's not a loss."

"What did you say?!" As soon as these words came out, Chu Liufeng and the others' complexions changed instantly, a chill rising in their hearts!