Demon Slaying, Gaining 60 Years of Cultivation From the Start

But her complexion was incredibly poor, pale as paper, devoid of all color.

Seeing her like this, Gu Chen knew that as the demon within her had been completely eradicated, and with the loss of the demon's power, the life of Yin Yin, the courtesan, had also reached its end.

Although she was different from the others contaminated by the demon and still retained her consciousness, she had been a mere ordinary person before, and her body had been completely corroded during the merging with the demon. With the demon's death, she too would die.

The power of a demon, to any living being, is like a deadly poison, inherently antagonistic. Even if a warrior is corrupted by a demon, they too cannot survive.

"Do you have anything else you'd like to say?" Gu Chen asked softly, looking at Yin Yin in his arms.

The courtesan's mouth was stained with fresh blood. Upon hearing the question, she smiled wistfully and said, "I hate... I hate everything here. I was sold here at the age of eight and lived here for ten years. In this place, I was forced to smile day after day, living an inhuman life for a decade. I've lost everything!"

As she became emotional, she began to vomit blood incessantly. No matter how Gu Chen tried to channel his internal energy into her, it was futile. Soon, her chest was covered in bloodstains, which also smeared onto Gu Chen's clothes.

"I... had sworn... if given the chance... I would... certainly... destroy this place...

destroy... everything..."

As she spoke, her breath grew fainter, like a candle flickering in the wind, and her voice softened until it disappeared entirely.

Gu Chen's hand gently caressed her face, just as Wu Qian arrived with numerous constables from the county yamen.

It turned out that the Yi Xiang Building's servant, having witnessed the earlier scene, thought Gu Chen was causing trouble and had reported it to the authorities.

Seeing Gu Chen there, Wu Qian was visibly startled and hurried over, bowing with a cupped fist greeting, "Master Gu.

He had, of course, seen the blood on Gu Chen and the mess on the floor, as well as the courtesan in his arms. However, Wu Qian, who had been a constable for so long, was certainly not foolish enough to ask unnecessary questions. He would not utter a word more than needed, acting as if he had seen nothing.

Gu Chen, holding the courtesan's body, stood up and said to Wu Qian, "A demon was hiding in the Yi Xiang Building and has been eradicated by me. I command you to immediately seal off this place."

"Yes!" Wu Qian responded respectfully, his head bowed.

"Also, see that she is properly buried," Gu Chen said, handing over the courtesan's body to Wu Qian.

"Understood," replied Wu Qian, carefully taking the body from Gu Chen.

Afterward, Gu Chen turned to leave.

"Lord Gu, please wait."

Wu Qian suddenly called out to Gu Chen, walking up to him and saying, "Lord Gu, Metropolitan Procurator Fang Yong is waiting for you at the county yamen. I was on my way to find you when I encountered the servant here and detoured to this place."

Hearing this, Gu Chen's eyebrows lifted slightly. What could Fang Yong want with him so late at night?

However, he did not voice his question. Wu Qian was just a constable and probably did not know anyway. Nodding his head, Gu Chen turned and walked away.

Only after Gu Chen's figure had completely vanished did Wu Qian lift his head, glanced at the courtesan's body in his hands, and then in the direction Gu Chen had left, heaving a soft sigh.

In a mere moment, Wu Qian had conjured up a dramatic tale in his mind, silently lamenting that heroes struggle to cross the hurdles of love, believing that the death of a beloved woman by a demon must be weighing heavily on Gu Chen's heart.

Then, noticing his subordinates watching him, Wu Qian's expression darkened as he barked, "What are you looking at? Didn't you hear what Master Gu just said? Get moving, lock this place down!"

"Yes!" the constables hurriedly complied.

Meanwhile, the influential figures of Ning City, who had been hiding on the sidelines, saw that Gu Chen left without troubling them and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Although they were considered big fish in Ning City, they were still small fry in the face of the Jing Tian Department. If Gu Chen insisted on settling scores with them, they would have no recourse but to endure.

Now that Gu Chen had departed directly, they naturally felt overjoyed.

...

After leaving the Yi Xiang Building, Gu Chen directly made his way to the Ning City county yamen.

At the same time, he was somewhat perplexed. Why would Fang Yong not be sleeping and instead summon him, a grown man, in the middle of the night?

Upon entering the county yamen, Gu Chen's brow furrowed slightly. Tonight, the yamen was unusually quiet, without even a guard at the gate.

Gu Chen entered the dark courthouse, pitch-black with not a hint of light, eerily silent.

Following the path ingrained in his memory, he made his way to the inner hall where, in the darkness, he saw Fang Yong with his head lowered, sitting on the mentor's chair, as if asleep.

Gu Chen's expression remained calm as he spoke, "It's quite late, may I inquire the reason Master Fang has summoned me here?"

In the vast courthouse, only Gu Chen's voice could be heard. Fang Yong sat in the mentor's chair, head down, not uttering a word.

Frowning, Gu Chen approached and placed his hand on the shoulder of the magistrate of Ning City, giving it a gentle shake, "Master Fang?"

Whoosh!

Suddenly, a swooshing sound pierced the darkness. Gu Chen instantly turned and struck out with his hand, but hit nothing but air; the sound seemed like an illusion.

Then, with a bang, Gu Chen's body shook as he turned his head to see Fang Yong, who had been motionless in the chair, suddenly open his eyes with a fierce glare, looking somewhat terrifying in the dark.

The sound had come from his palm striking Gu Chen's body.

"Lord Gu, how does it feel?"

Seeing Gu Chen's gaze turn his way, a smug smile crept up on Fang Yong's face. His voice was unnaturally hoarse, and his appearance, demeanor, and the aura he gave off seemed like those of a different person.

"Master Fang, I didn't expect even you to be compromised," sighed Gu Chen softly.

"Hmm?"

Upon hearing this, Fang Yong was momentarily taken aback before he realized what was happening. His palm surged with power, intent on shattering Gu Chen's internal organs.

Bang!

At that moment, Gu Chen's robes billowed without any wind and quickly puffed up. Simultaneously, he spun around, striking back at Fang Yong with his hand.

Whoosh!

Gu Chen was quick, but Fang Yong's reaction was equally swift. He dodged, evading the spot just in time as Gu Chen's palm strike caused the mentor's chair to splinter into pieces, exploding on the spot.

Fang Yong moved a distance away and, eyeing the unscathed Gu Chen, his gaze darkened, "Impossible, how could you be completely unharmed after taking my palm strike?"

Instead of answering, Gu Chen said, "So, you too have been tainted by a demon."

In fact, right from his first meeting with Fang Yong, Gu Chen had felt something amiss. During their contact, he detected a dormant power within Fang Yong, which was why he had asked Wu Qian whether Fang Yong was also a martial artist.

After receiving Wu Qian's response, Gu Chen didn't think much of it, but what he didn't expect was that Fang Yong, just like Yin Yin, the courtesan of Yi Xiang Building, had been contaminated and assimilated by a demon.

The difference was that the courtesan Yin Yin still retained her own consciousness and was relatively lucid, whereas Fang Yong, at this moment, seemed to have completely become a puppet of the demon, his mind thoroughly corrupted.

Of course, even Yin Yin was to some extent influenced by the demon inside her previously, which was inevitable.

Without answering, Fang Yong just sneered coldly, his figure a blur, ghost-like as he darted toward Gu Chen.

Gu Chen watched calmly, standing still until Fang Yong suddenly appeared before him, launching an attack, only then did Gu Chen fiercely strike out with his hand, his palm glowing red-hot, the Red Flame Palm!

Demons are the epitome of yin and evil, while Gu Chen's Pure Yang Technique and Red Flame Palm were both fierce martial arts, belonging to the yang category, capable of suppressing demons. Therefore, feeling Gu Chen's strike, Fang Yong's expression darkened instantly, choosing not to confront it head-on, but instead, moved to behind Gu Chen.

Bang!

Fang Yong struck out with his palm, but Gu Chen didn't even bother to dodge, allowing the strike to land on his body.

"How is this possible?!"

Seeing that Gu Chen was unharmed, Fang Yong was startled. The next second, he felt a terrifying rebound force emanating from Gu Chen's body, which sent him flying backward, his whole body trembling.

"Puh!"

After landing on the ground, Fang Yong spat out a mouthful of blood. He paid no attention to it and stared at Gu Chen in horror.

"Your strength... you're not a patrol envoy, you've reached the Channeling Realm, you're the Metropolitan Procurator of Jing Tian Department, you deceived me!"