"Old Zhao, with things as they are, what first-rate forces are there in Tianshui Prefecture?"
Gu Cheng looked curious.
"Well..."
Zhao Yuanjie thought for a moment, held up four fingers, and said:
"By the strictest standards, there are currently four first-rate forces in Tianshui Prefecture."
"The first one is the one you're most familiar with: the Demon Suppression Bureau in Tianshui City.
There are currently four Spirit Sea Venerables stationed there, enough to suppress any troublemakers. At critical moments, they can even call in reinforcements from elsewhere. They're the strongest by far!"
Zhao Yuanjie lowered one finger and continued his rundown:
"The second is Famous Sword Villa of the Chen family on Dragon Head Mountain.
They're an ancient family of spirit refiners with a legacy stretching back nearly a thousand years. They're not only skilled at forging swords, but once made a name for themselves throughout Yunzhou with their Sword Control Technique."
"But several hundred years ago, when the Rebirth Sect ran rampant across Yunzhou, Famous Sword Villa was badly weakened and nearly lost its legacy.
It took them several centuries of recovery to gradually regain their strength and return to the ranks of the first-rate forces!"
As Zhao Yuanjie spoke, his tone grew a little excited.
As a swordsman, he must have long yearned for Famous Sword Villa, with its countless treasured swords.
Gu Cheng silently sighed to himself.
Both had been badly weakened by the catastrophe that swept across Yunzhou.
But the Xiao family of Chongshan County hadn't been nearly as lucky as Famous Sword Villa.
"The third is Puzhao Temple on Golden Cloud Mountain. Every warrior monk there is skilled in Body Refinement, and they're quite formidable.
Their temple's secret art, the 'Diamond Glazed Body,' is even hailed as the strongest Body Refinement technique in Tianshui Prefecture!"
"Oh? Is it really that impressive?"
At the mention of "the strongest," Gu Cheng immediately perked up.
He wondered whether his "Yin Yang Absolute Immortal Hand" could break through those monks' defenses.
Then he looked up at Old Zhao and continued:
"What about the fourth first-rate force?"
"Well, the fourth..."
Rather than answer at once, Zhao Yuanjie kept him in suspense and asked:
"Xiao Cheng, take a guess. Why do you think these Flood Dragon Horses pulling the carriages became a specialty of Tianshui Prefecture?"
"This..."
Looking at Old Zhao's solemn expression, Gu Cheng immediately understood.
"You mean Tianshui Prefecture is the Flood Dragons' lair?"
"Exactly!"
Zhao Yuanjie nodded slightly and said gravely:
"The last first-rate force in Tianshui Prefecture is the Flood Dragon Palace in the Tianshui River."
"Ever since the Rebirth Sect was destroyed, no especially powerful demonic organization has appeared in Tianshui Prefecture.
But those few long bugs in the Tianshui River have always been a thorn in the Demon Suppression Bureau's side!"
"No one knows how many years that old Flood Dragon has lived. Anyway, all eight of its children are great demons in the Spirit Sea Realm!
As for the old Flood Dragon itself, they say it has even brushed against an even higher realm."
"So... that means the Flood Dragon Palace has at least nine in the Spirit Sea Realm?"
Gu Cheng furrowed his brows.
Good grief, he hadn't even met many people in the Innate Realm yet, and Spirit Sea Realm experts were already popping up in packs?
"Exactly. The Flood Dragon Palace is so powerful that even across all of Yunzhou, it ranks among the very top forces!"
Zhao Yuanjie sighed and said mournfully:
"The four Spirit Sea Venerables in our Demon Suppression Bureau spend nearly all their time keeping an eye on those few long bugs in the water.
It's only because the Flood Dragon clan is always sleepy, sleeping in the river for years at a time, and isn't as cruel and bloodthirsty as ordinary demons.
Otherwise, with just the manpower we have in Tianshui Prefecture, there'd be no way to keep the situation under control."
As he spoke, Old Zhao suddenly thought of something else and turned to the handsome young man beside him:
"Xiao Cheng, when you go out on demon-slaying missions in the future, you must be careful.
The ordinary water demons are one thing, but you'd best not provoke those Dragon Princes and Dragon Grandsons with Flood Dragon bloodline.
If you anger the Flood Dragon Palace, you'll surely provoke a furious retaliation!"
"Mm, I understand."
Gu Cheng nodded on the surface, but couldn't have cared less.
As if!
What demon in this world was there that shouldn't be killed?
Ever since he began studying the spirit-refining method and learned how to refine demon servants, Gu Cheng hadn't found any suitable materials.
Now it seemed the Flood Dragon Palace would be an excellent source.
Just imagine: once Gu Cheng grew powerful enough, he could refine the entire family of nine from the Flood Dragon Palace into demon servants.
Then, whenever he went out, he wouldn't need Flood Dragon Horses to pull his carriage. He could simply have his Flood Dragon demon servants do it!
Nine Dragons Pulling a Carriage!
Wouldn't that be quite a sight?
Two days later.
After traveling day and night throughout this time,
the Demon Suppression Bureau's convoy finally reached its destination: Tianshui City.
Gu Cheng leaned out of the carriage window and looked ahead.
A towering city stood silently before him.
Its dark green-black walls rose high into the sky, at least twice as tall as the walls of Changle County. They stretched across his field of vision, with no end in sight.
The Demon Suppression Bureau's convoy gradually slowed and entered the city through a special passage.
It was midday,
and the avenue was wide enough for eight carriages to travel abreast. It was teeming with people, bustling with activity.
Travelers and peddlers came and went along the streets without end.
There were street vendors, performers, fortune-tellers—every kind of person imaginable.
As Gu Cheng gazed out the window at the noisy, lively scene, his expression grew slightly dazed.
If not for the lack of towering buildings and the overly old-fashioned clothes worn by the pedestrians,
he might have thought, for a moment, that he'd traveled back to his old world.
"Xiao Cheng, is this your first time in Tianshui City?"
Zhao Yuanjie watched Gu Cheng's reaction and chuckled:
"Tianshui City is six or seven times the size of Changle County, and its population is close to three million!
Even among the twelve prefectures of Yunzhou, Tianshui City ranks among the top three largest cities."
The carriage drawn by Flood Dragon Horses made its way slowly along a designated road, heading east.
Fewer and fewer pedestrians appeared along the streets, while patrols dressed in dark robes could be seen from time to time.
Another quarter of an hour passed.
The carriage came to a slow stop beneath a deep brown wall.
Gu Cheng jumped down first and looked around.
The two-zhang-high wall stretched on and on, with no end in sight, as if it had fenced off a small city within Tianshui City.
The fully armed dark-robed officers standing guard at the main gate made the place look rather like a military base.
Clearly, this was the Demon Suppression Bureau's headquarters in Tianshui City.
"Kid, keep this token safe. If you run into any trouble in the office, just give them my name: Xu Wenying."
"Who was it... Wang Lin, take him to collect his things, then show him around the place."
Commander Xu pulled a golden token from his robes and tossed it to Gu Cheng, then hurried off with Zhao Yuanjie.
The guard who had earlier told him about the Flood Dragon Horses stepped forward and smiled at the young man.
"Come on, Brother Gu."
"Mm."
Gu Cheng nodded and followed Wang Lin through a side gate into the Demon Suppression Bureau's compound.
Before you continue