Longevity Martial Arts: Grinding Experience in the Chaotic World

Chapter 242: Chapter 142: The Tiering of Elixirs, The Door to a New World

After waiting for fifteen minutes and confirming that Qian Jin had left, Gu Sheng finally removed the Hundred Refined Heavy Armor.

He didn’t put away the Bloody Axe but instead thrust it forcefully into the ground nearby, within arm’s reach.

The Black Sand Gang had brought twenty men earlier, but now they were completely annihilated. Aside from a handful of heavily damaged iron armors, most of the others just needed some repairs to be functional again.

Gu Sheng glanced at the heavy armors on the bodies of the Black Sand Gang members, a hint of regret flashing across his face, and couldn’t help but sigh.

”Ah! If only I could take all of them with me; this could amount to quite a fortune.”

Unfortunately, human strength has its limits. Not only did Gu Sheng have to carry his own iron armor and the Bloody Axe, but he also had to take the corpse of the Fanged Blood Tiger. He simply couldn’t spare the effort to take those armors.

Still, Gu Sheng didn’t completely give up. After all, these people were all Blood Refining Realm experts and core members of the Black Sand Gang, and they must have something valuable on them.

Upon searching their bodies, Gu Sheng’s findings turned out to be rather decent.

Among the twenty corpses, he collected silver notes amounting to over ten thousand taels, and even found thirteen Boiling Blood Pills.

This time, it seemed he’d struck a small fortune.

”Hmm? What’s this thing?”

Curious, Gu Sheng pried a fingernail-sized black stone from Niu Zidong’s hand.

As soon as the stone touched his hand, it felt cold as jade. After fiddling with it for a while, Gu Sheng still couldn’t discern anything special about it.

However, Gu Sheng didn’t discard it. He reckoned that since Niu Zidong had clung tightly to it even at the brink of death, this thing must have some significance.

The fact that he couldn’t figure it out was simply due to his limited knowledge.

Gu Sheng stored the stone and silver notes close to his body, while piling everything else into a wooden box.

To avoid drawing attention, Gu Sheng waited until sunset before heading back to Gu’s Manor with his equipment and the Fanged Blood Tiger.

Gu’s Manor had enhanced its patrols, building multiple traps and defensive fortifications, but these were nothing to Gu Sheng. Under the cover of darkness, he easily made his way back to his house.

Once home, Gu Sheng bolted the door and began working on processing the Fanged Blood Tiger.

Having long mastered the art of dissection, Gu Sheng cleaned the tiger up in just half an hour.

Laid neatly before him were thirty-two square chunks of tiger meat, a nearly intact blood-red tiger skin, disassembled tiger bones, and three large jars of tiger blood!

There was also a tray in front of Gu Sheng, upon which rested a heart larger than a human head.

This was the heart of the Fanged Blood Tiger.

The tiger’s heart was quite peculiar. Even after being dead for so long, it still faintly pulsated on the tray, and under the candlelight, one could even see blood circulating within.

That was the coveted heart blood! Even without cutting it open, Gu Sheng could sense that its energy far surpassed the blood stored in the jars.

Gu Sheng had never dealt with the blood of demonic beasts before, and he dared not rashly cut the heart open. Should he accidentally ruin the heart blood or diminish its efficacy, he would surely regret it.

”These are troubled times, with even the Cult of the Blazing Fire showing signs of entering the fray. It seems I must quicken my pace!”

Although the words of storytelling masters often contain exaggerations, there is occasionally truth in them.

From their tales, Gu Sheng learned that the Cult of the Blazing Fire was immensely powerful, with influence spanning across the nation. The chaos in Yun Province, and indeed the turmoil brought by rebel forces across the country, could be traced back to them.

Gu Sheng harbored deep hatred for such corrupting cults, and having already killed members of the Cult of the Blazing Fire, he knew there was no turning back in their enmity.

Whether or not the storytelling masters had embellished their accounts, any faction capable of stirring such widespread chaos could hardly be weak. Gu Sheng had to prepare regardless.

Though the Fanged Blood Tiger had been thoroughly processed, its body still took up significant space, forcing Gu Sheng to empty his armor chest.

After packing all the bones and blood, Gu Sheng grabbed two pieces of tiger meat and knocked on the door of Gu Erniu’s house.

Gu Erniu’s family were ordinary village folk. In these perilous times, they tread carefully and lived in constant dread.

The sudden knock on their door in the dead of night gave Gu Erniu and his wife quite a scare.

Gu Erniu quietly dressed, grabbing the Bone Cutting Knife lying on his bedside.

The knife was specifically bought by Gu Erniu from the county for chopping large prey’s bones.

Its thick blade and sharp edge were polished to a gleaming shine. With a single strike, even a tiger’s bones would snap.

Holding the knife, Gu Erniu crept toward the door, holding his breath and raising the blade high, demanding, ”Who is it?”

As a martial artist, Gu Sheng had senses far sharper than others. He had already noticed Gu Erniu by the door and chuckled, responding in a low voice, ”Brother Erniu, don’t worry, it’s me, Asheng.”

Upon hearing Gu Sheng’s familiar voice, Gu Erniu exhaled a sigh of relief, unbolted the door, and let him in.

”Ah Sheng, what are you doing here at this late hour instead of sleeping? You scared me half to death,” Gu Erniu said, putting down the Bone Cutting Knife and wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.

Gu Sheng couldn’t help but burst into laughter. He laid the two pieces of tiger meat on the table.

Though the Fanged Blood Tiger was dead, its aura lingered.

Having participated in the previous hunt for demonic beasts at Gu’s Manor, Gu Erniu was deeply impressed by such an aura.

Immediately, Gu Erniu closed the door and secured it with all three latches.

Even after doing so, he still felt uneasy and laboriously pushed a cabinet used for storing tools to block the door before looking at Gu Sheng with a tense expression and asking: