Chapter 316: Chapter 188: Slaying a Half-King

...

Now that he was back at the Demon Slayer Bureau headquarters, Gu Zheng took the opportunity to move the Spirit-Eating Ants from his residence into the Insect Tower.

The Insect Tower was the best place to keep Exotic Insects.

He didn’t linger in the State City.

Gu Zheng set out again, heading for the Yue Country.

He journeyed south.

But just as he left the borders of Fengzhou, he sensed someone tailing him.

SWISH~

WHOOSH!

In a single dive, Gu Zheng plummeted toward the ground, entering a dense mountain forest.

"Hmph~"

A cold snort suddenly rang out.

BUZZ!

The void abruptly shuddered. An invisible force enveloped him from all directions, disturbing the space and turning it into a quagmire. Just as he was trapped within it, with a deafening BOOM, the phantom of a Thunder Spear pierced the void, hurtling straight for Gu Zheng.

BANG~!

A dull thud was accompanied by arcs of electricity shooting out.

Gu Zheng released the Chaotic Heaven Shield, blocking the phantom Thunder Spear.

The resulting shockwave materialized, struggling to ripple through the quagmire-like air, humming and vibrating without end.

"The Chaotic Heaven Shield?"

The cold voice spoke again. The attacker’s tone was icy, and with a terrifying pressure, he shook a small bell, drawing the Power of Heaven and Earth from dozens of miles around and gathering it into himself.

VMMMM~!

The Reversed Soul Scale spun rapidly, vibrating ceaselessly to resist the invading Spiritual Attack.

Outside Gu Zheng’s Shadow, five Divine Seeds began to operate in unison.

SWISH SWISH SWISH~!

BANG! BANG! BANG~

Large ripples spread through space as the invisible forces collided and clashed.

In a matter of breaths, Gu Zheng gained the upper hand over the converging Power of Heaven and Earth, forcibly seizing and taking control of it.

"TSHH~!"

A blade’s light flared, tearing through the quagmire-like space like a silken thread as it slashed toward the newcomer.

"You..."

SWISH SWISH SWISH~

BOOM~!

An enraged cry, mingled with the strange sound of Powerful Qi whistling through the air, ended in a final explosion.

The quagmire-like space suddenly returned to normal.

VMMM~

Gu Zheng held up his Chaotic Heaven Shield, the Red Abyss Blade and Celestial Frost Blade in his hands, and unleashed streams of Sword Gang.

TSHH TSHH TSHH!

Space was like cloth, torn to pieces under the Sword Gang.

The attack covered a radius of hundreds of yards!

Wherever it passed, black storms of nothingness appeared alternately with the shattered space, ravaging the surroundings and throwing the airflow into even greater chaos.

Ten Thousand Blades Heaven Slaughter!

Ignoring the Half-King’s pressure, gathering the majority of the Power of Heaven and Earth to empower himself, and directly resisting the Divine Weapon Projection, Gu Zheng wielded a blade in each hand, unleashing streams of Sword Gang in a counter-attack against Xiao Xing!

The one who had tailed and ambushed him was none other than Xiao Xing.

The Xiao Family’s Half-King currently had an ashen face, his expression grave and ugly. Disbelief filled his eyes as he continuously dodged.

Gu Zheng’s Shattering Void Sword Intent had directly broken his ability to remain airborne.

The pressure of a Half-King seemed like a complete joke.

Furthermore, the operation of the five Divine Seeds had stolen the Power of Heaven and Earth from him.

The last time, at the exit of the Nine Heavens Shadow Realm, Gu Zheng had only revealed three Divine Seeds. Now, to his dismay, he was mobilizing five.

Xiao Xing had lost the contest for the Power of Heaven and Earth outright.

As a result, the projection of the Thunder Shock Spear was completely useless against Gu Zheng.

The Spiritual Attack produced by the vibrating bell was also blocked.

’Is this the third stage of the Heroic Body?’

’An ordinary peak Heroic Body is nothing compared to this!’

As Xiao Xing retreated and dodged, shocked and enraged, a hint of determination flashed in his eyes.

SWISH~

Suddenly, he shot forward, charging straight into Gu Zheng’s Shattering Void Blade Gang.

"TSHH TSHH TSHH~"

PFFT~ PFFT!

A series of strange noises was accompanied by a muffled groan.

Xiao Xing’s outer clothes were completely shredded, revealing a thin Golden Silk Armor underneath.

This Golden Silk Armor had actually blocked the slashes of the Shattering Void Blade Gang!

Amidst flashes of light, Xiao Xing charged right up to Gu Zheng. The Thunder Power around him surged madly as he spread his palms and violently struck out at Gu Zheng.

"Die..."

"SHLIIICK~!"

A flash of brilliant light vanished as quickly as it appeared.

Gu Zheng and Xiao Xing crossed paths.

"BOOOM!!"

The Palm Seal that Xiao Xing had launched—formed from concentrated Thunder Power—flew several hundred meters, pulverizing trees, boulders, and hilltops. Everything in its path was reduced to rubble.

But his body, as a line of blood spurted out, was split in two!

With the center of his brow as the dividing line, his entire body split into left and right halves.

"SPLAT~" "SPLAT~!"

Blood, organs, and the two halves of his corpse fell to the ground.

"Ah!"

A cry of alarm came from a distant hilltop.

The next moment, a Divine Wondrous phenomenon surged and quickly moved away.

SWISH!

Gu Zheng’s figure flickered and vanished, shooting off in pursuit.

WHOOSH~ WHOOSH!

FWOOSH~

FWOOSH-BOOM!

Moving like lightning across the sky, he crossed several mountain peaks and caught up to the fleeing figure.

VMMM~!

The five Divine Seeds operated in unison. The gathered Power of Heaven and Earth transformed into an invisible pressure that suppressed the fleeing man, who fell to the ground with a THUD, his face pale as he began to beg for his life.

"Spare me, spare me! Sir, spare my life! I was just passing by and saw by accident, but please rest assured, Sir, I guarantee I won’t leak a word of this! Spare me, Sir! Spare me~!"

The man knelt on the ground, begging ceaselessly.

Gu Zheng held the Heaven-piercing Halberd, his face expressionless. While maintaining the pressure, he sent out a Nether Heart Slave Seal straight into the man’s brain.

"Ngh~!"

The man’s body immediately began to tremble, his eyes filled with astonishment, horror, anger, and indignation.

"AHH~!!"

He suddenly opened his mouth and let out a furious roar as the aura around his body exploded outward.

The second stage of the Heroic Body, Heroic Body: Melting Furnace!

His entire body became like a furnace, releasing intense heatwaves to resist the pressure Gu Zheng was exerting on him.

SWISH~

Gu Zheng changed the direction of the Heaven-piercing Halberd in his hand, bringing it down in a horizontal sweep to strike the man on the head.

WHAP!

A dull thud.

The man grew dizzy, his Spirit scattered. The resistance from a moment ago vanished completely.

He lay prone on the ground, trembling uncontrollably, his eyes filled with struggle.

After a long moment, all resistance and struggle disappeared, and his eyes were filled with nothing but submission and clarity.

Gu Zheng opportunely dispersed the Power of Heaven and Earth and put away his Heaven-piercing Halberd.

"Xiao Dongxuan pays his respects to Master!"

The man half-knelt on the ground, facing Gu Zheng and bowing respectfully.

"Rise."

Gu Zheng turned away nonchalantly. "Let’s go back first, then we’ll talk."

"Yes, Master."

Xiao Dongxuan got up and followed behind Gu Zheng.

FWOOSH~

FWOOSH!

The two of them leaped into the air and returned to the mountain forest where Xiao Xing’s corpse lay.

The two halves of the sundered corpse were still lying on the ground, its viscous, gleaming blood seeping into the soil.

On each half of the face, one eye remained, filled with residual terror and horror.

Cleaved in two with a single strike!

Such was the power of the Heaven-piercing Halberd.

Xiao Xing had relied on his Golden Silk Armor, which could block the Shattering Void Blade Gang, to engage Gu Zheng in close-quarters combat.

But Gu Zheng had instantly slipped into the void and then emerged from it. The moment he reappeared, he swung the Heaven-piercing Halberd from behind Xiao Xing and split him in two.

Xiao Xing’s Golden Silk Armor could block the Shattering Void Blade Gang, but it couldn’t withstand the sharpness of a Divine Weapon!

In a battle between experts, victory and defeat are decided in an instant.

This was what had happened when Gu Zheng and Xiao Xing crossed paths just now.

To withstand the God-Hunting Arrow, Xiao Xing had worn the Golden Silk Armor for protection, which was comparable to a Pseudo-Divine Weapon.

But he never expected that Gu Zheng possessed the Heaven-piercing Halberd—a true Divine Weapon that, despite losing its Artifact Spirit and having a shattered core, remained physically intact!

The God-Hunting Arrow was merely one of Gu Zheng’s many methods of attack.

...

"Take the golden armor off him."

Gu Zheng said nonchalantly, sizing up the two halves of Xiao Xing’s corpse.

"Yes!"

Xiao Dongxuan walked over with a calm expression and removed the golden armor from Xiao Xing’s body.

"How many people from the Xiao Family came to kill me?" Gu Zheng asked casually.

"Reporting to Master, it was just the two of us."

Xiao Dongxuan replied as he stripped the golden armor from the corpse.

"Only two?"

Gu Zheng raised a brow, but then he understood.

Xiao Xing was a Half-King, and Xiao Dongxuan was in the second stage of the Heroic Body.

To kill Gu Zheng, who was at the third stage, that would indeed have been enough under normal circumstances.

Unfortunately for them, Gu Zheng had too many tricks up his sleeve.

"Tell me about the Xiao Family’s situation." After steadying his mind, Gu Zheng asked again, "Specifically, how many King’s Body experts does your family have?"

"Reporting to Master, the Xiao Family currently has only one King’s Body left."

Xiao Dongxuan had finished stripping the two halves of the Golden Silk Armor. He held them in his hands and respectfully presented them to Gu Zheng.

"And the only one remaining, our Third Grand-Uncle, is also on the verge of death."

Hm?

Gu Zheng was surprised. "The only one is also about to die? Is his lifespan at its end?"

"Yes!"