Fantasy: Starting with a bowl, you can exchange it for endless cultivation.

It can enable an ordinary person to achieve this in just over two years.

He grew from zero cultivation to a level of combat power comparable to the mid-stage of the Sea Transformation Realm.

If he were to obtain the opportunity that Gu Chen possessed...

It's hard to imagine how high he will go in the future.

Meanwhile, Shangguan Wuqing and Qin Ming were on their side.

At Li Xianghe's welcoming banquet.

After the news of those two matches.

They were also incredibly shocked.

As for Luo Tianxing, it's no surprise that receiving two rewards in a row would allow his cultivation to advance by a small realm.

But Gu Chen's combat strength was truly beyond their expectations.

Gu Chen was actually able to defeat Qiu Jiu, who was at the early stage of the Transformation Sea Realm.

They now possess the combat strength of someone in the mid-stage of the Transformation Sea Realm.

This is simply too absurd.

Even if he really did break through to the Perfect True Essence Realm, it's still puzzling.

Even if you reach the peak of the True Essence Realm, you're still still in the True Essence Realm. Without opening up the acupoints in your body, your True Essence reserves are limited.

How could they possibly defeat Qiu Jiu, who had already opened up a spiritual sea in his dantian?

Even if Gu Chen had cultivated the Four Beasts Celestial Phenomenon Technique, it wouldn't work.

The increased True Essence reserves from the Four Beasts Celestial Phenomenon Technique are several times greater, making it impossible for a True Essence Realm cultivator to unleash a martial arts technique capable of defeating an early-stage Transformation Sea Realm cultivator.

Shangguan Wuqing became worried.

Now, he's worried that Gu Chen might be hiding his true cultivation level from them.

If Gu Chen hadn't concealed his true cultivation level from them.

Gu Chen possesses a powerful physique that allows him to have comprehension, pill absorption speed, and internal true essence reserves that are ten times higher than those of ordinary cultivators.

In this way, through the amplification of the Four Beasts Celestial Phenomenon Technique, one can reach dozens of times the level of cultivators at the same realm.

Only then can this effect be achieved.

Now, he hopes it's the latter, that Gu Chen really does have some kind of special physique.

Rather than having obtained some kind of fortuitous opportunity that allowed his cultivation to improve so quickly that he had to hide it from the outside world.

It wasn't that he coveted Gu Chen's opportunity.

He simply didn't want to see Gu Chen become the target of public criticism.

It is possible that Gu Chen broke through to such a level in just two years because of some kind of opportunity he had.

The opportunities he possesses are so great that even a terrestrial deity might be alarmed.

Even if he wanted to protect Gu Chen, he wouldn't be able to by then.

In this battle, it can be said that Gu Chen was careless.

In any case, he should not have revealed his true combat strength.

"I'm going to the desolate state myself," Shangguan Wuqing said.

Upon hearing this, Qin Ming nodded in agreement.

They didn't say much.

That's what Shangguan Wuqing could think of.

He could naturally have thought of that too.

Even the Crown Prince and the Second Prince could think of it.

Therefore, he understood Shangguan Wuqing's urgency and his desire to personally go to the desolate state.

Hopefully, things aren't as they imagine.

Gu Chen truly possesses a powerful physique, rather than having obtained some fortuitous opportunity or harboring a great secret.

Otherwise, this genius might perish before he even has a chance to fully develop.

Shangguan Wuqing set off directly for the desolate state.

Meanwhile, in the desolate state...

Gu Chen and Luo Tianxing traveled back to Yuehai County together. After arriving at the county seat, they returned to their own Li Huo Mansion.

After arriving at Li Huo Mansion.

Gu Chen immediately instructed Wei Zhong to inform the Cheng family to send over the medicinal materials for refining the Divine Cleansing Pill and the Tendon-Changing Pill.

For a long time afterward, he focused on refining the Divine Elixir and the Tendon-Changing Elixir.

I will strive to earn silver as soon as possible so that I can break through to the mid-stage of Core Formation.

The duel at the welcoming banquet at Li Xianghe's residence might make some people doubt him.

He should focus on improving his skills.

In that situation, it was impossible for him not to intervene.

Moreover, there's a prize of over 200,000 taels of silver.

To acquire resources quickly, one must take risks.

of course.

After this, he'll have to keep a low profile for a while.

I've made quite a few enemies lately.

He can't afford to offend any of them.

We can't keep drifting like this.

Otherwise, they will be targeted by multiple parties.

Even though he had powerful figures sent by his master's faction to protect him.

There's also the possibility of things going wrong unexpectedly.

Wei Zhong quickly went to the Cheng family stronghold and retrieved dozens of refining materials for the Divine Cleansing Pill and the Tendon Changing Pill, enough for Gu Chen to refine the Divine Cleansing Pill for a period of time.

The materials were retrieved.

Gu Chen immediately began refining pills.

It's still early today.

Try to refine two batches of each of these two elixirs.

Meanwhile, at the same time, in a secret stronghold of the Yamamoto family outside the city of Lihuo Prefecture.

The Yamamoto family's spies were stationed in the capital city of Lihufu.

After learning that Gu Chen had returned to Li Huo Mansion from Huangzhou.

He immediately returned to report.

At the outpost.

After Yamamoto Ryuichi and several experts from the Yamamoto family learned that Gu Chen had returned to Li Huo Mansion.

We took immediate action.

Today, we will make our move against Gu Chen.

To this day, they have not received any news from Yamamoto Rinji, and do not know whether he is dead or alive.

They couldn't wait any longer.

We must find out Gu Chen's true colors today.

They dared not go to Zhongzhou to kill Gu Chen.

But in this Li Huo Mansion.

If Gu Chen hadn't been secretly protected by the experts sent by his master, he would have surely died today.

After Gu Chen died.

He could easily have taken everyone from the Yamamoto family and temporarily evacuated from Etsukyo County.

Let the Night Watchmen go on a rampage here, and then wait for the storm to pass.

They can then bring their experts and re-establish their stronghold.

That afternoon.

Cheng Mengling then rushed over with a group of Cheng family members to report: "Brother Gu, something terrible has happened. Today, one of our Cheng family's cargo ships was hijacked by a group of pirates shortly after setting sail. Among these pirates are experts at the Breaking Aperture Realm. The Cheng family's guards were no match for them and most of them were killed. Only a few escaped back."

at this time.

Gu Chen had just finished refining two batches of sacrificial pills.

Gu Chen was startled upon seeing Cheng Mengling's report.

Pirates have actually hijacked the Cheng family's cargo ship.

There are still pirates who are at the Breakthrough Realm.

Gu Chen narrowed his eyes and began to ponder.

When Gu Chen first arrived at Li Huo Mansion, he remembered that Qian Fu had told him this.

Because the salt-making industry in Lihuo Prefecture was very developed.

Many salt merchants often joined forces with powerful families and government officials to suppress pirates.

To ensure the safety of trade routes.

It is safe to say that pirates are unlikely to appear in the waters near Li Huo Fu.

Now, it has actually appeared, and coincidentally, it has hijacked the Cheng family's cargo ship.

Furthermore, there were pirates at the Breakthrough Realm who seized upon the Cheng family's lack of Breakthrough Realm combat power.

Whenever the Cheng family's cargo ship is attacked, the Cheng family will definitely come to him for help and ask him to take action.

It's hard not to suspect that someone deliberately set him up to get him out of there.

"Tell me in detail what happened today," Gu Chen asked Cheng Mengling.

"According to the description of the Cheng family guards who survived, this group of pirates were all masked, and one of them was a sixth-grade Qi Refining Realm expert. He immediately took control of the cargo ship and started killing people. If it weren't for the Cheng family guards who were good at swimming and ran fast, they might have died like the others," Cheng Mengling explained.

"Is that so?" Gu Chen scoffed inwardly upon hearing this.

It seems that someone definitely set a trap to lure him there.

On the vast ocean.

If those pirates don't want to release the prisoners alive.

With a powerful expert at the Breaking Aperture Realm on the opposing side, how could a few guards skilled in water possibly escape?

This is clearly a deliberate act of sending someone back to deliver a message, luring him over.

That being the case.

Then he went over there.

He wanted to see whether the people who had secretly plotted to lure him there were from the Yamamoto family or the Miten Cult.

This is also a good opportunity.

They lured out the powerful guards secretly sent by the Second Prince to protect him.

That person is now protecting him in secret, keeping his every move under surveillance.

This is detrimental to his actions.

It would be better to lure the other party out directly.

Let the other party follow him openly.

This will also make it easier for him to take some actions in the future.

"Lead the way." Gu Chen looked at Cheng Mengling and said, "I want to see which pirates dare to hijack my forces."

"Yes." Cheng Mengling accepted the order.

Cheng Meng and her group of guards immediately led the way.

He took Gu Chen out of his mansion.

Heading towards the dock of Lihuo Prefecture.

Go to the dock.

The Cheng family has prepared a new cargo ship, ready to take Gu Chen to the scene of the incident.

Those pirates hijacked the cargo ship; if it was for the cargo, they wouldn't have gone far.

Seeing this, Gu Chen shook his head.

That's too slow.

When will we catch up with that shipment?

Gu Chen grabbed one of the guards who had escaped from the cargo ship that had been hijacked earlier that day.

He said, "I'll take you flying; let's fly directly there to find those pirates."

"Yes, sir." The guard replied.

that's it.

He was lifted off the ground by Gu Chen as if he were a monkey, and flew towards the sea.

Gu Chen had just left not long ago.

The second-rank sage whom the second prince had secretly sent to protect him also followed him from an inconspicuous corner along the coast of Li Huo Mansion's dock, flying towards the distant sea.