I Have 10 Equipment Slots-Chapter 168 - 116: The Seventh Piece of Equipment?
The Weapon Foundry. π³π«ππ²π ππ―ππ¨πππΉ.π°πΌπΊ
CLANG CLANG CLANG!
The sound of metal striking metal echoed daily from one end of the street to the other.
Inside the forges, roaring flames burned at nearly every moment.
Countless weaponsβhundred-forged, several-hundred-forged, even thousand-temperedβwere born in the meeting of fire and ice-cold water.
"Old Ke! Old Ke!"
An excited shout cut through the sounds of hammering as a burly, bare-chested man in his fifties, his body covered in knots of muscle, rushed into Ke Juzhenβs forge as if his feet had wings.
"Old Ke, take a break! Iβve got some good news for you."
The burly man didnβt stop talking as he entered, shouting excitedly, "Gu ZhengβGu Pingβanβheβs back! Holy cow, I mean, holy cow! That Gu Pingβan is incredible! Do you know what he just did?"
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG~
Without looking up, Ke Juzhen replied, "I donβt."
"Youβll never guess!"
The burly man clapped his hands, stomped his feet, and continued with an excited expression, "In front of a whole crowd of people, Gu Pingβan broke through! Not to Super BodyΒ·Celestial Ladder, but to Super BodyΒ·Radiant! Thatβs the late stage of the Super Body realm!"
"Radiant, Radiant. When Gu Zheng activates his Life Aura now, itβs like your forgeβa blazing fire, like a great sun! You canβt even look at it with the naked eye!"
"Even if you close your eyes, ordinary people wouldnβt dare face him. The outward assault on a spiritual level from a Super BodyΒ·Radiant is just as terrifying. Anyone below the Shadow stageβif theyβre not a Super Bodyβcanβt even stand near him."
"To think you befriended an expert like that so early on, Old Ke, and even personally upgraded his weapon twice. Tell me the truth, Old Ke, did you see how extraordinary Gu Pingβan was from the very beginning?"
The burly man moved closer to Ke Juzhen, who had stopped hammering, and said with an envious look, "A Super BodyΒ·Radiant that young... as long as nothing unexpected happens, in a few years, heβs guaranteed to be a Demon-slaying Grand General!"
Ke Juzhen didnβt respond, his expression shifting.
There was shock, astonishment, relief, and even reverence.
"So, youβre saying Gu Pingβan has been promoted to Thousand Households now?" Ke Juzhen said with a sigh of emotion.
"Of course!"
The burly man waved his arm forcefully and said with excitement, "They say Gu Pingβanβs accumulated merits are over one hundred and fifty Great Merits, maybe even more. He had enough merits, his realm was high enough, so he was promoted to Thousand Households immediately!"
"I heard even Grand General Xie showed up in person to bestow the Full Moon Cloak upon Gu Pingβan!"
Before Ke Juzhen could speak, he added, "Grand General Meng and Grand General Xie obviously saw how extraordinary Gu Pingβan is, so they took him on as a student."
"But even though they call him a student, itβs basically the same as being a disciple. The two Grand Generals must have given him a lot of good stuff in private, which is why Gu Pingβanβs strength could increase so quickly!"
"Is that so?" Ke Juzhen was skeptical.
"Has to be!"
The burly man shot him a look that said βYouβve hammered yourself stupid.β "How else could Gu Pingβan have broken through so fast?"
...
The residential area for the families of Squad Leaders and Commanders.
Song Qingshan finished his work, stretched, and slowly walked out of the Public Office.
As soon as he stepped into the courtyard, he heard a discussion filled with envy and amazement.
Song Qingshan didnβt pay it much mind at first, but after hearing a few sentences, he suddenly froze and quickened his pace, rushing over.
"What did you just say? Gu Pingβan broke through to Super BodyΒ·Radiant and was promoted to Thousand Households?"
Song Qingshanβs eyes widened, his face full of disbelief.
"Yeah."
The person he asked was startled at first, but after recovering, he began to animatedly recount the events of how Gu Zheng had broken through to Super BodyΒ·Radiant and been promoted to Thousand Households in front of a crowd.
He spoke with such passion that spittle flew, as if he were the one who had been promoted, and said with inexplicable excitement, "The news has spread through every department in the Demon Slayer Bureau by now. Even the street sweepers at the front gate know about it!"
"A Thousand Households in his early twenties... Gu Zheng, Gu Pingβan, has completely made a name for himself!"
"Gu Zheng was already famous after the Demon Fiend incident at Jinshan Temple, but with this promotion to Thousand Households, his reputation is even greater. Iβm sure it wonβt be long before the news spreads throughout all of Fengzhou."
"Yeah, Super BodyΒ·Radiant... Dammit, I canβt even break through to Alien BodyΒ·Shadow."
"Can you even compare yourself to him? Heβs a once-in-a-generation genius!"
"..."
The group resumed their debating, marveling, and sighing with emotion.
Song Qingshan didnβt hear another word they said. At that moment, his mind felt dizzy, his vision blurred, and the world seemed to sway before his eyes.
βSuper BodyΒ·Radiant?β
βPromoted to Thousand Households!?β
βGu Zheng comes back from his third mission and really gets promoted another rank, jumping from Hundred Households to Thousand Households?!β
βAt this promotion speed, how is anyone else supposed to keep up...?β
...
News of Gu Zhengβs breakthrough and promotion to Thousand Households had everyone in the Demon Slayer Bureau, from top to bottom, sighing with emotion, marveling, and discussing it with excitement.
Outside, in the State City, the major households, prominent local families, and even the State Government Office had all heard the news.
All the powerful and influential figures were also inexplicably excited.
They schemed to build a relationship with Gu Zheng by sending money, gifts, weapons, and beautiful women.
The problem was, they couldnβt get in touch with Gu Zheng himself at all, leaving them at a loss once again.
It had been the same last time. Gu Zheng stayed within the Demon Slayer Bureau and didnβt go out, so they couldnβt see him.
It was the same this time; even pulling strings was useless.
If you canβt even meet the person, how can you build a relationship?
And so, their excitement and exhilaration quickly turned to sighs of helplessness.
...
In a restaurant with only three occupied tables.
"Ha, what did I just hear? Gu Zheng broke through to Super BodyΒ·Radiant and was promoted to Thousand Households?"
Ding Chunjing snapped his fan shut, pressed it to the table, and said with a strange expression, "Is that for real? What kind of treasure did that Gu Zheng find in some underground cavern to make him break through to Super BodyΒ·Radiant so quickly?"
"Isnβt the real point that Xie Bisheng took him as a disciple?" Ding Xitian said with a frown.
"Did he?" Ding Chunjing was skeptical. "Didnβt Xie Bisheng only take Gu Zheng on as an ordinary student?"
"And you believe that?" Ding Xitian shot him a look as if he were an idiot. "Without Xie Bishengβs help, could Gu Zheng have broken through so fast? A Source Fruit primarily enhances a single aspect of oneβs power. A direct breakthrough is only possible if youβre stuck at the peak of the Alien Body realm or the peak of the Super Body realm and consume a Source Fruit like a Divine Essence."
