Demon Slaying, Gaining 60 Years of Cultivation From the Start-Chapter 863 - 603 The Heavenly Path Has Been Severed

863: Chapter 603: The Heavenly Path Has Been Severed

863 -603: The Heavenly Path Has Been Severed

On the morning of the second day, Gu Chen woke up silently in a sleeping chamber.

At yesterday’s banquet, everyone insisted that no one should use their cultivation to expel the effects of the alcohol.

Knowing Gu Chen’s deep cultivation, as the night wore on, everyone joined forces to ply him with drinks, but to no avail.

In the end, everyone had drunk too much, the women especially, their faces flushed and radiant, all except for Gu Chen, who remained unaffected.

Nevertheless, it was the first time he had truly relaxed and slept soundly in his history.

Now awake, Gu Chen could sense that many were still asleep.

Though his heart was heavy with reluctance, he knew his path inevitably lay in the upper realm.

No matter how many thoughts tugged at him, he knew he must leave in the end.

Thus, with a flash, Gu Chen left without disturbing anyone, quietly leaving the imperial palace and even Tiandu.

“Upper realm, here I come!”

Gu Chen took a deep breath, the morning sun shining brilliantly, the vibrant dawn casting its glow upon him.

His body shimmered with splendor, his hair glittering as if he were a deity.

Afterward, Gu Chen set out in search of various places capable of inter-realm transmission, according to the records he had found in ancient texts within the Da Xia royal family and in the sacred lands.

Now that the celestial passages were sealed, many transmission arrays lost their function and were utterly destroyed.

The difficulty of reaching the upper realm was indeed significant.

But Gu Chen refused to believe that none could succeed.

His first stop was a visit to the sites of the three sacred lands he had eradicated.

As expected, their transmission arrays were ruined.

Of course, even if they had been intact, he wouldn’t have chosen their arrays for ascension—it would be akin to courting death, delivering himself into their hands.

“Sure enough, some traces remain.” Gu Chen observed closely, visiting only to verify some details.

He then proceeded to the former sites of the pure sects of the Taoxu Road, Cloud Heaven Palace, and the Five Elements Sect.

These places were not damaged, and all buildings were well preserved, but everything else had been cleared out.

“The transmission array here is also damaged,” Gu Chen furrowed his brows, realizing that the sealing of the celestial passages was no trivial matter; many traces of inter-realm transmission had been erased.

Coming here made Gu Chen think of the holy sons like Fu Ling and He Lianying from rival sects, who had descended from the upper realm only to be slain by him.

If they knew Gu Chen was ascending, they would certainly not let things rest.

Not to mention the Vault of Sky Sword Sect, Mount Tianzhu, Pure Yang Martial Sect, Burning Heaven Valley, and Five Elements Sect—these five major sacred lands.

Furthermore, having recently slain a spiritual body of Gu Yan, he could be said to have also made an enemy of the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty.

Most critically, the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty might be colluding with evil demons, undoubtedly the greatest foe he had!

“Counting all this, I do have quite a few enemies awaiting me in the upper realm.” Upon this thought, Gu Chen fell silent for a moment.

If a common rogue cultivator offended so many sacred lands in the upper realm, not to mention a colossal power without any backup, they would be utterly doomed.

“It seems my identity is somewhat sensitive.

Once I reach the upper realm, I might need to conceal it,” Gu Chen contemplated.

Of course, it wasn’t just enemies he had in the upper realm; there were also friends like Zhen Yuan, the holy son of the Taoxu Road, and Chu Yue Ling, the holy maiden of the Pure Yang Martial Sect.

Most importantly, there were his second uncle Gu Chengfeng, his aunt Xu Qinge, and his sister Gu Qingyan, all waiting for him in the upper realm.

“Given this, it seems I won’t be entirely alone when I get to the upper realm,” Gu Chen shook his head with a self-deprecating smile, indulging in a bit of self-entertainment.

At the same time, he was making preparations for any contingency, contemplating how to conduct himself once he reached the upper realm.

“However, the most urgent task is to find a path to the upper realm,” Gu Chen frowned.

Next, he left the sacred lands and wandered in Jiangzhou, visiting many places recorded in ancient texts as possible locations of the transmission arrays.

These sites were remnants of top sects in ancient times but had become dilapidated or different as ages passed.

“Have all the transmission arrays in Jiangzhou been obliterated?” Gu Chen sighed.

Was fate really determined to block his path?

“Huh?”

But at the next moment, Gu Chen made a new discovery.

He came upon an ancient sect’s remains where the transmission array was fairly intact.

“A familiar aura, this is…” Gu Chen’s eyebrows lifted.

This aura was the same he had battled recently, none other than Gu Yan, the ninth prince of the Heavenly Mysterious Imperial Dynasty.

“So, he descended to this realm through here.” Gu Chen looked at this inter-realm transmission array without stepping in rashly.

Using his ‘Heaven’s Eye,’ he discerned, based on previously noted clues, that the array, though seemingly well-preserved, was in fact damaged, just less obviously so compared to the others.

Should Gu Chen dare to enter, whether the array would become active at all was another matter.

Even if it did light up, there was no guarantee it wouldn’t transport him to some obscure corner of existence.

That was a risk Gu Chen could not afford to take; losing that gamble would cost him his life.

“Thank goodness I didn’t overlook those previous arrays in vain.” Gu Chen exhaled in relief.

Though not skilled in array formations, his ‘Heaven’s Eye’ helped recognize the hints from older arrays.

Otherwise, had he been too reckless, he would have been in real danger.

“The celestial path is severed.” Ultimately, Gu Chen reached this conclusion: the inter-realm transmission arrays of Jiangzhou were all in ruins.

It’s worth noting that with the ascension of holy lands and Gu Chen stabilizing the world, the people of Jiangzhou had also become more compliant, under the supervision of Da Xia.

All was calm across the lands.

Gu Chen then left Jiangzhou to explore other locations, as those ancient sects were not all situated in one place.

“Although the celestial path is severed, I believe there is an ancient pathway suitable for me to ascend to the upper realm!” Gu Chen’s expression was resolute, his will to ascend to the upper realm unwavering.

Afterward, he found an ancient ruin in Jiangzhou, which he might have missed if not for his God’s Eye, hinting at the notion that divine objects tend to be elusive.

Swish!

The moment Gu Chen approached, lights flared around him—it was an ancient formation.

Despite the long passage of time, when it should have degraded, the restoration of the natural laws of heaven and earth after the channels of space disappeared and the demon spirits vanished from Jiuzhou made certain ancient formations come to life again.

This was a bewitching formation, primarily designed to trap people, capable of inverting the five senses, making it difficult to leave, unable to distinguish north, south, east, or west, even affecting one’s divine consciousness.

This was the first time Gu Chen had encountered such a formation, and he was indeed trapped for quite a while.

Even he felt distressed, which demonstrated the power of formations.

In the end, he used his God’s Eye, instantly saw through the formation, and saw everything clearly, leaving no secrets hidden.

Gu Chen walked straight through the formation.

“How interesting,” a smile appeared on the corner of Gu Chen’s mouth.

It was just an illusion, altering the magnetic field of the surroundings and distorting the warriors’ senses, without using any overly precious materials.

But even so, Gu Chen, with his strength, was trapped for a good while, showing the profound mystery of formations.

It’s just a pity that not only in this lower realm but even in the upper realm, those who are proficient in formations are few and far between.

The art of formations is so mystical that it is difficult for people to understand.

Those symbols, densely packed like tadpoles, could make one dizzy and cross-eyed just by looking at them.

When he left the formation, Gu Chen found a valley, tranquil and remote, with a blue lake, a very picturesque scene, in a great environment.

“This place is indeed suitable for seclusion,” Gu Chen said helplessly, as there was indeed a transmission array here as well, but it too had self-destructed after the laws of Jiuzhou were restored.

“Severing the connection of heaven and earth, this is truly severing the connection of heaven and earth,” Gu Chen sighed, never having expected that all the transmission arrays he found had self-destructed.

“Could it be that I really have to ‘create’ a heavenly path myself?” Gu Chen’s brows furrowed.

The current situation was very bleak; he couldn’t find any heavenly paths to ascend, not to mention traveling to the upper realm.

This was forcing Gu Chen to create a transmission array himself.

However, the art of formations is extremely difficult; understanding an ordinary formation could take several years, let alone such a massive project as a cross-realm transmission array.

Transmission across realms cannot be arranged unless by a master of formation art, and even for such a master, it would require various precious materials and take a long time to complete—it’s not something that can be successfully accomplished just like that.

“Could it be that I’m really going to be trapped and die in this lower realm?” Gu Chen’s eyes flickered, filled with reluctance.

“God’s Eye!”

At that moment, Gu Chen used his divine ability, looking across Jiuzhou to find all the places with cross-realm transmission arrays and to carefully observe them.

Soon, he discovered several locations, some recorded in ancient texts and some not.

And, like the valley he had just visited, some places had revived formations that required Gu Chen to break through.

Boom!

Flames spread, turning into one phoenix after another.

With wings flapping and cries shaking heaven and earth, they charged toward Gu Chen, accompanied by blinding flames.

Boom!

Gu Chen remained expressionless as he lightly stomped his foot, and the intense flames immediately dissipated like smoke.

But the next moment, light flashed, waves crashed, endless spray splashed, with azure waves reaching for the sky.

Yet, it was still in vain as Gu Chen flicked his fingers and spread the true fire of the sun, immediately burning these waves clean, turning them into a vast mist evaporating into the air.

Then, vines emerged, attempting to bind Gu Chen.

“Metal, wood, water, fire, earth—the cycle of the five elements?” Gu Chen’s eyes narrowed, and he had begun to guess where he had arrived.

By this point, Gu Chen’s strength had long since surpassed the limit that Jiuzhou could reach.

If his way of achieving the Heaven Man Realm hadn’t been so unique, with his vital breath and energy concealed within the divine seed, he would have found it extremely difficult to return to Jiuzhou.

In other words, Gu Chen could now bulldoze through everything in Jiuzhou; nothing could stop him.

The formations here were the same; regardless of the cycle of the five elements, it was useless against him, and he broke through in a few moves.

“Indeed, it’s the mountain gate of the Five Elements Sect,” Gu Chen concluded after observing, his brow slightly furrowing.

The transmission array here was relatively well-preserved, although damaged, it should be usable.

However, Gu Chen could not use it.

Because, if he used the transmission array here to go to the upper realm, wouldn’t he be caught red-handed by the Five Elements Sect?

His divine seed, the mysterious gauntlets, the Nine Cauldrons—all were things countless people in the upper realm coveted.

Besides, he also had a grudge with the Five Elements Sect, having killed their holy son, Xu Ziqing’s spirit body—going there would be tantamount to delivering himself to death, causing the mouths of the Five Elements Sect to split with joy.

Gu Chen’s identity was very sensitive to the upper realm and could not be easily exposed.

Hence, he couldn’t travel to the upper realm using this transmission array, unless he didn’t want to live.

Next, Gu Chen searched all over Jiuzhou but always came up with nothing, and for a while, he was in a deadlock.

“Could it be that I’m really going to be trapped and die in this lower realm?” His expression became a bit more solemn.

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck his mind, as he recalled Gu Yan had once said he would take him to the upper realm.

“He knows where there’s a cross-realm transmission array that can lead to the upper realm!” Gu Chen’s expression sharpened as he said, “So, where exactly is that cross-realm transmission array?”

“Huh?!” Suddenly, Gu Chen was startled.

He slapped his forehead and said, “How could I have forgotten that place!”