Stronger by Killing

Ji Songlie, who has been through countless battles, was suddenly shocked at the first moment.

He is a Supreme Grandmaster at the Martial Arts Peak, with an overwhelming Martial Arts Will. Yet, the instant he saw Gu Zhan, he was completely overpowered by Gu Zhan’s Martial Arts Will. In that moment, he had no doubt about Gu Zhan’s identity,

For nowadays, in this Hu Ben Battalion, only Marquis Yun, Gu Zhan, the world’s number one, could so easily overpower him with Martial Arts Will.

Ji Songlie immediately stepped forward and cupped his hands, saying, "Ji Songlie greets Marquis Yun!"

Gu Zhan nodded slightly and said, "General Ji, there’s no need for formalities!"

Unlike when facing Li Anle, Gu Zhan did not deliberately hide his Martial Arts Will upon entering the military camp to avoid unnecessary troubles. No matter the era, one must first respect the garment, then the person.

Ji Songlie cupped his hands and asked, "May I ask what brings Marquis Yun here?"

Although he respected Gu Zhan as the world’s number one, given Gu Zhan’s status, he should not come to the Hu Ben Battalion. Therefore, after the greetings, Ji Songlie had to promptly ask.

"Royal Uncle, it was I who asked him to come," Li Anle said hurriedly, "My father has encountered an incident!"

Ji Songlie was suddenly startled.

Gu Zhan spoke up, "General Ji, Anle, your matters aren’t easy to explain in a short time. I need to make a trip to the Spirit Fox Cave. So, why not have General Ji arrange someone to take me to the Spirit Fox Cave?"

Ji Songlie hesitated and said, "Marquis Yun, the Spirit Fox Cave is not easy to enter; my Ji Family has ancestral instructions..."

Ji Anle hurriedly said, "Royal Uncle, the military token of the Hu Ben Battalion is in Marquis Yun’s hands by order of my father. Any of his requests can be fulfilled."

Gu Zhan took out the military token.

Ji Songlie inspected the military token and then returned it respectfully to Gu Zhan, bowing and saying, "Since Marquis Yun is entrusted with the command of the military token, he can mobilize the Hu Ben Battalion. I will arrange someone to take you to the Spirit Fox Cave right away!"

Immediately, Ji Songlie arranged for two Personal Guards to escort Gu Zhan to Qixia Mountain.

Watching Gu Zhan leave, Ji Songlie hurriedly looked at Ji Anle and asked, "Anle, what is going on?"

Ji Anle said, "Royal Uncle, where is the Third Ancestor? This is a serious matter; we must inform the Third Ancestor to make a proper decision!"

...

Qixia Mountain, located behind the Hu Ben Camp Military Office, is a vast mountain range. However, since the Capital City is situated on a plain, the mountain ranges here are relatively isolated, without many peaks, valleys, or ravines.

Gu Zhan rode a horse, led by several Hu Ben Battalion soldiers, and quickly arrived outside the Spirit Fox Cave.

A camp of soldiers guarded this Spirit Fox Cave area, and after some inspection, they allowed Gu Zhan and his group to proceed to the cave entrance.

"Marquis, the Spirit Fox Cave is just ahead. We have our orders and cannot approach; we can only escort you to this point," a Commander said.

Gu Zhan nodded slightly and headed alone towards the Spirit Fox Cave.

The exterior of the Spirit Fox Cave didn’t appear remarkable, surrounded by dense banana trees stretching endlessly as far as the eye could see.

However, as Gu Zhan entered the Bamboo Forest, he immediately sensed the immense power of an Array. Glancing around, he realized each banana tree was meticulously arranged, making it impossible for ordinary people to approach the Spirit Fox Cave even if they accidentally entered the Bamboo Forest.

For Gu Zhan, though, the Array posed no hindrance, and he soon reached the Spirit Fox Cave entrance.

The Spirit Fox Cave appeared as an ordinary large cave, but a colossal stone gate sealed the entrance, also covered with Arrays, any random attack could probably cause the Spirit Fox Cave to collapse.

Gu Zhan stood before the cave door,

This huge cave door towered before him, and Gu Zhan’s figure seemed diminutive.

Gu Zhan inserted the Hu Ben Camp Military Token into a small hole in the cave door. With a loud "boom," the two stone doors, five or six zhang tall, opened slowly, causing the ground to tremble slightly and the scene to be spectacular.

Inside was utter darkness, gloomy and oppressive, like a massive beast with its blood-red mouth wide open, waiting for prey to walk in.

The Spirit Fox Cave was peculiar,

With Gu Zhan’s current physique, there was virtually no difference between night and day, yet here in the Spirit Fox Cave, it was like he was an ordinary person walking in the dark, unable to see his hand in front of him.

A golden light flickered in Gu Zhan’s eyes, and his vision instantly became clear, though he was somewhat surprised. Inside, the cave was a world of its own, with an exceedingly vast internal space, reaching dozens of zhang high and nearly a hundred zhang wide.

This puzzled Gu Zhan,

Logically speaking, Qixia Mountain wasn’t so tall, let alone the Spirit Fox Cave, situated at the mountainside near the peak, should at most have been two or three zhang high and seven or eight zhang wide.

The cave contained many stalactites, diverse in form and exquisitely beautiful. Most notably, at the deepest part of the cave stood a nearly ten zhang tall fox stone statue, vivid and lifelike, its eyes seemingly alive, surrounded by nine tails in various postures.

Beside the fox statue was a tall stone stele engraved with four ancient characters. Gu Zhan recognized them as ancient text from around eight thousand years ago.

Having previously studied this world’s cultivation system, Gu Zhan intentionally learned about some of its evolutionary history. This script is among the earliest known, with a few words from the Sword King City’s legacy also in this style.