Demon Slaying, Gaining 60 Years of Cultivation From the Start
Chapter 1297 - 248: First Encounter with the Successor of the Nine Heavens

Chapter 1297: Chapter 248: First Encounter with the Successor of the Nine Heavens

In the depths of the Valley of Ten Thousand Saints, a large, dark cloud approached with a piercing buzzing sound, enveloping the sky and plunging Gu Chen and his companions’ surroundings into darkness.

Gu Chen’s eyes shone brightly, and he could see clearly that the so-called "dark cloud" was actually a swarm of insects. Each insect was pitch black with a metallic luster, had a fearsome appearance approximately the size of an adult’s fingernail, and had transparent wings.

It was the infamous Black Gold Ants!

A single Black Gold Ant might not pose a major threat, but these creatures typically appeared in swarms and were extremely vicious and capable of devouring everything!

At this moment, the swarm of Black Gold Ants in front of Gu Chen and the others seemed to number in the thousands, densely clustered together—an utterly terrifying sight.

Monks who were slightly more timid, faced with such a scene, might just faint from fright.

Their mouthparts were incredibly sharp, and their bodies were tough. Even though they had no cultivation, these two traits, along with their astonishing numbers, were enough to discourage even the top fiends at the great perfection stage of the Unity Realm from facing them.

Led by a few insect kings, these Black Gold Ants’ compound eyes glowed red as they swarmed towards Gu Chen and his group.

"Fall back!" Long Yi of the Gemini Clan, a top fiend, changed color and was unwilling to provoke them.

Because the Black Gold Ants were highly vengeful—if you killed one, they would relentlessly pursue you to the death, tirelessly.

Therefore, Long Yi wanted everyone to retreat and temporarily avoid these Black Gold Ants.

"They’re clearly targeting us," Gu Chen spoke up, stating the obvious reality.

That meant unless they left the Valley of Ten Thousand Saints, no matter where they went, the swarm of Black Gold Ants would follow.

"Let me handle this."

At that moment, Gu Qingyan stepped forward, her icy blue eyes exceptionally clear. With a slight flick of her hand, she targeted the incoming Black Gold Ants, and instantly, a vast expanse of white fog emerged around her.

Crack, crack!

Instantly, the bodies of those Black Gold Ants were encased in ice, many frozen in place on the spot.

"So, it’s true what the ancient texts say—Black Gold Ants fear the cold," Long Yi said.

At the same time, he took another look at the woman named Gu Qingyan, appreciating her rare Yin-body constitution, which even in the previous era, would have been considered extraordinary.

Her potential for future achievements was boundless, poised to transcend into sainthood.

But then, a faint sound came, drawing everyone’s attention again.

"Not good, they haven’t been completely frozen!" Yun Zishu’s expression changed, ready to make a move.

"Let me do it."

Gu Chen spoke then stepped forward to the front of the group, stretching out his finger to release a burst of golden Sun True Fire that filled the sky.

Fierce flames engulfed everything around, and even with Gu Chen standing in front, Long Yi, Yun Zishu, and the others could not help but feel an intense heat, as if the whole world was about to be scorched.

However, Gu Chen controlled it perfectly; the intense Sun True Fire covered only the swarm of Black Gold Ants and did not spread to other areas.

Moments later, Gu Chen waved his sleeve, gathering up the Sun True Fire, and the extreme heat disappeared with it.

"Are they all reduced to ashes?" The group surveyed the now empty landscape, knowing that the Black Gold Ants had been completely incinerated by Gu Chen’s Sun True Fire.

"Black Gold Ants, creatures even top fiends at the great perfection of Unity Realm found dreadfully problematic, were they truly eradicated that easily?" Long Yi looked at Gu Chen with a complex expression.

He had realized, from this closed-door training session, Gu Chen had greatly advanced, no wonder he was prepared to challenge the successors of the Nine Heavens!

"Over ten thousand merit points?" At this moment, Gu Chen secretly checked his panel.

These Black Gold Ants, although numerous, did not possess any cultivation base—relying simply on their innate qualities and overwhelming numbers for victory.

In terms of strength, they were comparable to Qi Ling and Bu Feng, strong but limited. Earning over ten thousand merit points was a huge gain.

"Let’s move on," Gu Chen said.

Following that, they continued deeper into the valley, where Yun Zishu and others managed to gather several spiritual herbs aged up to 9000 years, especially Yun Zishu and Zhenyuan, whose expressions grew increasingly excited.

"We’ve reached the Sacred Medicine area!"

At that moment, a halo of light shone in front as they ventured deeper. They arrived at a new section where the air was thick with the scent of herbs, giving them an almost transcendent feeling just by being there.

"Not to mention other aspects, just cultivating here would yield twice the result with half the effort!" Yun Zishu excitedly said.

Zhenyuan nodded, pointing ahead somewhat excitedly, "Look, there are three Thousand Year Sacred Herbs not far from here!"

Sure enough, following Zhenyuan’s direction, three radiant Sacred Herbs were located not far from Gu Chen and the others.

Swoosh!

Gu Chen acted swiftly, securing the three elusive Thousand Year Sacred Herbs.

"Roar!"

Then, a fierce roar echoed, and several towering figures appeared, much like the Black Gold Ants, all of them natives of the saint realm, tasked with guarding this valley.

They too were beings of rocky constitution, possessing great strength, comparable to Qi Ling and Bu Feng, but still no match for Gu Chen, who easily exterminated them.