At dawn, in a courtyard of the Prefectural Magistrate's Mansion, Gu Chen and a group of others gathered here.
Including Gu Chen, Song Yu, and Wang Yan, this operation saw the Jing Tian Department dispatch a total of fifteen second-ranked Metropolitan Procurators and seven first-ranked ones.
In addition, there was Huang Xiu, a martial artist at the Gang Qi Stage, as well as three individuals from the martial arts hall, led by Cao Zhen.
Only Chen Yu and two first-ranked Metropolitan Procurators remained to defend the county city.
"Depart!"
At the command, Gu Chen and the others mounted their swift horses and set out for the Kunyuan Sect.
The Kunyuan Sect was located atop a mountain surrounding Yufeng City in Xu'an County, seven thousand li from the county city. Even traveling day and night, it would still take a full five days and nights to reach it.
By the third night on the road, Zhuo Zhibin was finding it increasingly hard to bear.
Although he possessed the cultivation of the External Qi Stage, he was usually pampered and indulged and was now feeling somewhat impatient from the constant travel.
Thus, he went directly to Huang Xiu to express his thoughts.
Hearing this, Huang Xiu nodded and lightly spurred his horse to approach the seven first-ranked Metropolitan Procurators, saying, "Traveling continuously for three days and nights, we are somewhat fatigued. Let's find an inn in the city ahead and rest a bit."
Hearing this, Xu Qing and the others frowned slightly. They took out a map and pointed at it, saying, "Lord Huang, the nearest city from here is three hundred li away, but it's a detour from our path. If we rest there, we will have to make a detour. Since we are tired, why don't we set up camp right here and rest for the night?"
Upon hearing this, Zhuo Zhibin immediately became displeased. He was now exhausted and simply wished to find a warm place to take a hot bath, eat and drink his fill, and preferably find a pretty girl to warm his bed for him.
In all his life, he had never slept outdoors and naturally was unwilling to agree.
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Huang Xiu glanced at Zhuo Zhibin and addressed Xu Qing and the others, "Three hundred li isn't far; let's make a detour then. With our speed, we should reach our destination in two or three days at most. Please give me this face."
Xu Qing and the others frowned even deeper. Success in battle relies on the swiftness of the troops; by striking the Kunyuan Sect with the force of thunder before they could detect the Jing Tian Department's movements, they could annihilate them.
Now, Huang Xiu was causing them to detour because of Zhuo Zhibin, and dissatisfaction arose in the hearts of Xu Qing and the others. Nonetheless, Huang Xiu was after all a warrior of the Gang Qi Stage. They needed his help to subdue the Kunyuan Sect, so in the present situation, it was quite difficult for them to refuse Huang Xiu's request.
Left with no choice, Xu Qing and the other seven first-ranked Metropolitan Procurators could only nod in agreement, leading the group on a detour to the city three hundred li away to rest and regroup briefly.
Among the second-ranked Metropolitan Procurators, Song Yu pursed his lips in disdain and muttered under his breath, "Blockhead!"
Huang Xiu's ears twitched slightly, his sense of hearing extremely sharp, and his gaze turned towards Song Yu amidst the crowd.
Feeling Huang Xiu's gaze, Song Yu's body involuntarily shuddered. In front of Huang Xiu, he felt like a harmless little rabbit, while Huang Xiu was the tiger.
The gaze of a tiger upon a rabbit would naturally cause the latter to tremble with fear and their legs to go weak.
At that moment, a slender figure seated atop a horse shielded Song Yu, smiling towards the observing Huang Xiu.
The person who came forward was Gu Chen.
Huang Xiu glanced over and didn't pay much attention. He knew that Gu Chen was currently favored by Chen Yu and should not be offended, or else Chen Yu would not hesitate to kill him.
Seeing Gu Chen blocking Huang Xiu's gaze, Song Yu breathed a sigh of relief.
Subsequently, the group found an inn in the small city to rest temporarily for the night.
After all, it was only a small city; the inn was not large and the environment was rather ordinary. Liang Xu and Zhuo Zhibin frowned slightly at the sight.
"Would you all like to go out and grab something to eat?" Huang Xiu asked Xu Qing and the others.
Xu Qing and the others shook their heads and returned to their rooms to refine their inner Qi.
After all, having reached the Vajra Stage, the next level would be the Gang Qi Stage. To break through to the Gang Qi Stage, they must refine their inner Qi to the utmost limit to convert it into the first thread of Gangqi.
In this case, without evidence, the people from the Jing Tian Department wouldn't be able to object.
Cao Zhen said, "Of course, we'll need to plan for this long term."
Afterward, the three men discussed how to silently eliminate Gu Chen during the battle, while Huang Xiu sat to one side, feigning sleep as if he hadn't heard anything, not uttering a single word and just letting them be.
Some time later, after their discussion was over, they looked at each other and burst into laughter.
A cold light flickered in Cao Zhen's eyes. Gu Chen had offended him time and again, incessantly obstructing him from Gu Qingyan, and had even made a fool of him before. Cao Zhen had long harbored murderous intentions towards Gu Chen, and they were premeditated.
This time, the reason he proposed to go out with the Jing Tian Department was precisely because he had this in mind.
After all, in Tiandu, it was really not easy for him to act, with many eyes watching him and scarce opportunities to find.
Now, this mission, Cao Zhen believed, was the perfect opportunity.
After killing Gu Chen, there would then be no more obstructions between him and Gu Qingyan. He would be able to do as he pleased, and Gu Qingyan would be within easy reach.
...
Late into the night, Huang Xiu returned with Cao Zhen and the others. Liang Xu and Zhuo Zhibin were clearly drunk, their eyes unfocused, being supported by Huang Xiu.
But Cao Zhen's eyes were clear, evidently, he hadn't drunk at all from the beginning to the end.
Needless to say, Huang Xiu, being the close guard to Cao Zhen and the others, naturally had to remain sober at all times.
Moreover, with his level of cultivation, ordinary alcohol could no longer intoxicate him.
Soon after, Liang Xu and Zhuo Zhibin returned to their rooms and fell into a deep sleep.
Cao Zhen returned to his room, stretched out his finger, and tapped the table lightly twice, producing a distinct knock.
"Lord Marquis!"
In an instant, a figure appeared in Cao Zhen's room, kneeling on the ground.
This was a personal guard assigned to Cao Zhen by the Marquis of Pingxi, possessing a complete Vajra Stage cultivation, tasked with ensuring Cao Zhen's safety.
Actually, when Cao Zhen left the Pingxi Marquis Mansion, the Marquis of Pingxi had intended to send a Gang Qi Stage martial artist to closely protect Cao Zhen, but given some disturbances on the borders at the time, after considering the whole picture, he only sent a few martial artists at the peak of the Vajra Stage to follow Cao Zhen's commands.
This time, accompanying the Jing Tian Department, Cao Zhen brought along a Vajra Stage guard for personal protection. Apart from Chen Yu and Huang Xiu, no one else was aware of this.
Cao Zhen said, "This is the contact method for Blood Robe Tower. Go to Blood Robe Tower now, find their person in charge, and issue a bounty. As for the bounty amount, one hundred thousand taels."
The guard, with his head bowed, asked, "Whom does Lord Marquis wish to put a bounty on?"
"Gu Chen!" Cao Zhen's eyes were filled with coldness and sternness.
Frankly, after discussing with Liang Xu and Zhuo Zhibin about dealing with Gu Chen, he pondered it over and felt that success was not guaranteed, so he came up with this plan.
"A mere External Qi Stage martial artist is not worth mentioning. I can help Lord Marquis kill him right now!" said the Vajra Stage martial artist with a full-circle cultivation in a deep voice.
Cao Zhen frowned and said, "Not possible, you would lose your life doing so."
"As long as Lord Marquis commands it, what is my life worth?"
Cao Zhen said, "There's no need for that. We don't need to act ourselves, the people from Blood Robe Tower will kill him. Moreover, in my view, your life is far more important than that of Gu Chen."
"Thank you, Lord Marquis!"
"There's no time to delay, you must leave immediately."
"Yes!"
In a flash, the Vajra Stage martial artist had disappeared from sight.