Becoming a Saint From the Iron Armor Skill

Chapter 490: Chapter 243: Meteoric Rise

Perhaps because Xia Lingfeng cultivated the Li Fire Realm, Chen Cheng could feel waves of scorching heat emanating from him, even from a dozen feet away.

The sensation was like facing a blazing furnace.

The two of them just stood there silently for about half an hour.

Xia Lingfeng suddenly whirled around. His eyes, wide and glaring, swept over Chen Cheng, radiating a terrifying might and an authority that needed no anger to be felt.

A more timid person would have trembled and instinctively backed away under such a gaze.

Chen Cheng was slightly surprised, but his expression remained perfectly calm, without the slightest ripple of emotion.

"Good kid!"

Xia Lingfeng suddenly roared, flicking his hand up. Ripples spread from his palm, instantly coalescing into rays of crimson light. Wrapped in the scorching Li Fire Aura, they shot toward Chen Cheng’s chest.

Chen Cheng had seen Xia Lingfeng in action before. A quick scan told him that Xia Lingfeng was using the First Layer of the Li Fire Realm to test his strength.

He immediately retreated several steps and waved his hand in a series of motions. Heavy ripples pulsed out to meet the scorching Li Fire Aura.

BOOM!

The Li Fire Aura and the Great Power Realm collided, erupting in a deafening roar!

The crimson light instantly dissipated, but Chen Cheng stood firm, unmoved.

Xia Lingfeng, however, burst into laughter. "Kid, you’ve truly received Zheng Hun’s legacy. You’re really something."

"Your mastery of the Great Power Realm is superb. Even the First Layer of my Li Fire Realm couldn’t do a thing to you!"

Chen Cheng replied humbly, "You flatter me, Lord Xia. I doubt you used even a tenth of your strength just now."

"Since I have cultivated the Great Power Realm, it was only natural that I could neutralize your attack with ease."

"Hmph!" Xia Lingfeng’s expression suddenly soured. "Kid, where did you learn all this nonsense about social etiquette?"

"When I say you’re strong, you should just accept it graciously! Where’s the slightest trace of Zheng Hun’s character in this false humility?!"

Chen Cheng was taken aback for a moment. ’So the Lord Director of the Demon Suppression Department has a fiery temper!’

’When dealing with someone like this, you have to stroke their fur the right way!’

’But I’m his subordinate, after all. I can’t overstep my bounds too much.’

"What Lord Xia says is true. If you were to rely solely on the First Layer of the Li Fire Realm, you would not be able to defeat me."

Chen Cheng said with a serious expression.

"That’s more like it!" Xia Lingfeng laughed heartily. He went to stroke his beard, but finding it too short for a satisfying tug, he clapped his hands instead and said,

"Back in the Great Wilderness Mountain Range, if you hadn’t used your Great Power Realm to restrain that Ghostly Wound Old Monster, he really would have pinned me to the ground and given me a thrashing."

"Even with Xue Huai’an and Shen Mingyuan rushing over, they wouldn’t have been able to turn the situation around."

Who on earth would admit their own failings in front of a subordinate?

Xia Lingfeng’s brazen attitude took Chen Cheng by surprise, leaving him speechless for a moment.

"As a Purple-clothed Guard of the Demon Suppression Department, it is my undeniable duty to suppress demons and slay them."

Chen Cheng said calmly after a moment of thought.

"Hah! No false modesty this time, I see!" Xia Lingfeng said, raising eyebrows that looked as if they’d been painted with thick ink.

"It is simply the truth," Chen Cheng stated plainly.

"Alright, then!" Xia Lingfeng wasn’t angry at all. Instead, he said,

"As Zheng Hun’s Closed-door Disciple, you are naturally considered part of the Great Dao Sect."

"Now that Zheng Hun has become a Great Dao Sect Steward, just like me, it’s only logical for you to be promoted to an Inner Sect Disciple, even though you have yet to formally enter the Great Dao Sect Gate."

Chen Cheng gave a slight nod. "Yes."

"Mm," Xia Lingfeng acknowledged with a nod. "As an Inner Sect Disciple of the Great Dao Sect, you must naturally contribute to the Sect."

"With your Martial Arts Power, you should naturally take on greater responsibilities. I have already reported to the Sect and appointed you as the Vice Director of the Linji City Demon Suppression Department."

Chen Cheng had earned a great deal of Merit for slaying demons outside the city this time, so he had long anticipated a promotion.

A promotion to Golden Pattern Purple-clothed Guard, or perhaps even a Chief Level Purple-clothed Guard, seemed possible.

But to jump three ranks at once, from an Ordinary Purple-clothed Guard to the Vice Director of the Demon Suppression Department, was a tremendous shock.

The speed of such a promotion was nothing short of staggering.

If this wasn’t a meteoric rise, what was?

"Thank you for your patronage, Lord Xia!" Chen Cheng said, bowing solemnly.

Regardless, a promotion was always a good thing.

Especially at the level of Vice Director of the Demon Suppression Department, the compensation was far beyond what an ordinary person could imagine.

In addition to a generous salary of silver coins, there was also an allotment of Marrow Cleansing Pills!

These were the legendary Marrow Cleansing Pills! Even the Four Great Clans of the Linji City Inner City received only an extremely limited allotment each year.

"Oh?" This time, it was Xia Lingfeng’s turn to be surprised. He let out a soft exclamation. "Aren’t you going to stop and think about whether you can even handle the position of Vice Director?"

"Or ask about the dangers that come with the job?"

Chen Cheng replied frankly, "Since Lord Xia has shown me such great favor, it would be pretentious of me to refuse."

"The only way to repay your patronage is to accept this position and do my utmost to fulfill my duties."

"Good kid!"

Xia Lingfeng grinned, took a few steps forward, and clapped Chen Cheng heavily on the shoulder.

"You really haven’t disappointed me!"

"It makes fighting for this position for you within the Sect all worthwhile!"

His expression suddenly softened. "Go on, now. Have Sang Lanzhi take you to handle the paperwork."

"Yes, sir." Chen Cheng bowed respectfully, then turned and strode out of the courtyard.

Watching his retreating figure, a rare, complex expression flickered across Xia Lingfeng’s rugged face. He murmured to himself,

"This kid... he’s truly worthy of his title as the number one martial artist of Linji City’s younger generation."

"Compared to Chen Cheng, that little brat from the Jiang Family isn’t even fit to carry his shoes!"

"A genius of his caliber will soon grow into someone that even I can only look up to in awe!"

At this, he suddenly gritted his teeth and said resentfully, "That bastard Zheng Hun... what kind of dumb luck did he stumble into to find such a breathtakingly talented Closed-door Disciple?!"

...

News of Chen Cheng’s promotion to Vice Director of the Linji City Demon Suppression Department spread like wildfire.

Chen Cheng had just finished the paperwork and returned to the Zheng Martial Arts Hall, dressed in the brand-new, black uniform of a Demon Suppression Department Vice Director.

Patriarch Shen of the Shen Family, Shen Mingyuan, was already waiting for him at the True Disciple’s residence, accompanied by a group of Shen Family Elders and the two sisters, Shen Qingyao and Shen Qingshuang.

"Lord Chen, congratulations!" Shen Mingyuan said with a cheerful laugh, offering a cupped-fist salute.

"You’re too kind, Patriarch Shen," Chen Cheng replied with a smile, returning the salute.

The Shen Family Elders also came forward one after another to offer their congratulations.

Chen Cheng returned each of their greetings and welcomed them into the main hall.

After the pleasantries were exchanged, the members of the Shen Family suddenly fell silent.

Shen Qingyao and Shen Qingshuang, meanwhile, were acting uncharacteristically coy and shy. After a brief greeting to Chen Cheng, they pulled Mu Xiaowan outside with them.

Shen Mingyuan glanced at Chen Cheng, unsure of how to begin.

He had long intended to betroth one of his daughters, either Shen Qingyao or Shen Qingshuang, to Chen Cheng, but he could never settle on which one.

Later, seeing that both Shen Qingyao and Shen Qingshuang had fallen for Chen Cheng, and as Chen Cheng’s displayed power shattered his expectations time and again, he had an idea. Previously, when Shen Qingyao and Shen Qingshuang were known as the peerless beauties of Linji City, the Shen Family had felt completely confident in offering one of them to Chen Cheng.

But as Chen Cheng became the number one martial artist of Linji City’s younger generation, that confidence had waned considerably.

So, Shen Mingyuan had come up with a new plan: to marry both Shen Qingyao and Shen Qingshuang to Chen Cheng.

Of course, the Shen Family couldn’t be the one to suggest it. Chen Cheng would have to be the one to come to their door and formally propose.

But Chen Cheng never made a move, and so the matter of the marriage had dragged on until now.

Chen Cheng’s sudden promotion to Vice Director of the Demon Suppression Department caught Shen Mingyuan completely off guard.

He knew exactly how much weight the title of Vice Director carried. Now, no matter how peerlessly beautiful Shen Qingyao and Shen Qingshuang were, a marriage alliance with Chen Cheng would be a case of the Shen Family marrying up!

It was no exaggeration to say that if the Shen Family didn’t act fast, the other three of the Four Great Clans of the Inner City would likely rush to offer all sorts of generous terms to secure a marriage alliance with Chen Cheng first.

Then, all the Shen Family’s efforts would have been for naught—like trying to carry water in a bamboo basket.

After all, what kind of woman couldn’t a genius like Chen Cheng marry?

If the other three clans made a sufficiently generous offer, Chen Cheng might very well change his mind.

The only thing Shen Mingyuan could do now was act quickly and propose the marriage to Chen Cheng first.

But for the bride’s family to propose—a "reverse proposal"—was unseemly. For a great clan like the Shen Family, which valued its reputation above all else, it was a particularly difficult move to make.

If word got out that the Shen Family had proposed to Chen Cheng, they would surely be ridiculed by many.

Shen Mingyuan racked his brains, desperately trying to find the right words—a way to secure the marriage alliance with Chen Cheng without becoming a public laughingstock.

But where could one possibly find such a perfect, face-saving solution?

Shen Mingyuan was truly at his wit’s end.

It wasn’t just Shen Mingyuan; every one of the Shen Family Elders wore a deep frown, wishing they could sprout an extra head to help them think.

Fortunately, just then, Chen Cheng spoke up. "Patriarch Shen, I wish to marry Senior Sister Qingyao and Senior Sister Qingshuang. I wonder if..."

Before Chen Cheng could even finish his sentence, Shen Mingyuan leaped to his feet, overjoyed. "Of course! The marriage is settled!"

"Yes, yes, the marriage is settled!" the Shen Family Elders all chimed in, echoing their agreement.

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