Arrogant

"Awesome!"

Ye Xiaofan stretched, feeling the surging blood and qi within him. He glanced at the status panel: [Realm: Body Refinement First Layer (30/200)], then casually popped a Blood Qi Pill into his mouth.

"At this rate, I'll break through to Body Refinement Second Layer in three days. Too bad I only have one Blood Qi Pill left. How am I supposed to get more money!"

After today, Ye Xiaofan didn't even have money for meat to cultivate, let alone Blood Qi Pills.

His great mood instantly halved. With a pained expression, he washed up, ate a simple breakfast, and then came to the courtyard to start his...

Uh, his simplified cultivation of the Wind God Steps.

With every step he took, the number behind Wind God Steps increased by 2.

With every jump, his mood improved by a little. Ye Xiaofan became so engrossed in his cultivation that he completely forgot about his poverty.

Meanwhile, Sun Chenyu, with a rosy complexion and his nose held high, walked into the Demon Suppression Division with an outward-toed gait. Just last night, he had managed to get the Basic Breathing Technique to the introductory level just before the three-day deadline.

He was the second reserve Demon Suppressor, besides Ye Xiaofan, to achieve an introductory level in the Basic Breathing Technique this year.

As a prominent cultivating family in Qingyang County, the Sun Family had no shortage of cultivation resources and low-grade cultivation techniques. They even possessed a mid-grade cultivation technique. However, who would refuse to gain even more resources from the Demon Suppression Division?

The Demon Suppression Division, as the Great Yue's enforcement agency, had collections of high-grade and top-grade cultivation techniques.

The Sun Family continuously sent their family disciples into the Demon Suppression Division precisely to obtain these high-grade and top-grade cultivation techniques to strengthen their family's power.

Sun Chenyu walked into the training room and casually scanned the area.

Ye Xiaofan wasn't there, which made his mood even better.

He thought to himself, Sun Jiu did a good job. I'll feed him more dog food when I get back.

When Li Yan saw Sun Chenyu enter, he showed his displeasure. He was particularly disgusted by the way Sun Chenyu looked down on him, as if he had just eaten a large piece of something foul.

Ever since the previous Vice Commander died in battle and Sun Wude took over as the new Vice Commander, the entire Demon Suppression Division had become a mess, filled with factionalism and intrigue instigated by the Sun family members. It no longer upheld its duty of slaying demonic creatures and protecting the peace of the populace.

What displeased Li Yan the most was Sun Wude's unauthorized adjustment of the reserve Demon Suppressors' benefits.

Originally, geniuses who could achieve an introductory level in the Basic Breathing Technique within three days were entitled to five Blood Qi Pills per month. Now, it had been reduced to three.

Although the Commander of the Qingyang County Demon Suppression Division, Xiao Qiaofeng, was a generous and magnanimous person, he was also a cultivation fanatic. He basically delegated all the major and minor affairs of the Demon Suppression Division to his subordinates, immersing himself in cultivation.

As long as no major chaos occurred in Qingyang Town, Xiao Qiaofeng would turn a blind eye.

Despite their grievances, those below could only complain in private.

"Sun Chenyu, hurry up and sit down to cultivate."

Despite his displeasure, Li Yan, as the instructor for the reserve team, said calmly.

"Heh, Captain Li, I've already reached the introductory level. Quickly issue me a certificate so I can collect my cultivation techniques and pills."

Sun Chenyu continued to look down his nose, as if his neck wouldn't tire, and sneered.

"Oh, right, Captain Li. Vice Commander Sun asked me to give you this letter."

Sun Chenyu seemed to remember something suddenly and took out a letter from his embrace, tossing it casually towards Li Yan.

Li Yan opened the letter and was immediately so enraged that his veins bulged. He stared at Sun Chenyu with ill intent.

The letter didn't contain much, but it spoke implicitly of Sun Chenyu being the strongest genius in Qingyang County in nearly fifty years. It granted him the treatment of choosing one mid-grade breathing technique, two high-grade blood qi circulation techniques, and five Blood Qi Pills per month.

Sun Chenyu met Li Yan's murderous gaze with disdain.

He enjoyed seeing the other man's impotent rage, wishing he could kill him but being unable to.

Originally, his father was just a Vice Commander, and he wouldn't dare to be so arrogant.

After he demonstrated achieving an introductory level in the Basic Breathing Technique within three days, his father told him some family secrets, which made him so arrogant.

His uncle was in the Jinyang Prefecture Demon Suppression Division, preparing to break through to the Qi Condensation stage. If he succeeded, and Xiao Qiaofeng was transferred away, his father might very well drop the "Vice" title, and the Qingyang County Demon Suppression Division would become the Sun Family's property.

But that wasn't the most important thing.

The Sun family's ultimate backing came from his elder brother, who had been missing for ten years, having joined the legendary, high-and-mighty Immortal Sect.

"Captain Li, please give me the certificate."

"Hmph."

Li Yan snorted and reluctantly handed Sun Chenyu the certificate for selecting cultivation techniques and pills.

Then, he impatiently waved his hand, urging Sun Chenyu to get lost. Out of sight, out of mind.

A sinister glint flashed in Sun Chenyu's eyes. You can be arrogant for a while longer. When the time comes, I'll make you grovel at my feet.

"Thank you, Captain Li."

Sun Chenyu said with a sarcastic smile and turned to leave.

The young men, upon hearing that Sun Chenyu had reached the introductory level, chatted in low voices in twos and threes, their eyes filled with envy.

Only through cultivation did they truly understand how difficult it was, and how monstrous Ye Xiaofan's talent was.

"Alright, everyone, continue cultivating and strive to enter the sect as soon as possible."

Li Yan, already in a bad mood, calmed himself slightly as he looked at the young disciples working hard.

He then left the training room, leaving the disciples to cultivate on their own.

A day passed, and Ye Xiaofan woke up from his cultivation.

A familiar voice came from outside the door.

A glint flashed in Ye Xiaofan's eyes as he opened the door.

Two familiar faces greeted him: Li Yan and Zhang Zhenzhong.

One was holding a jar of wine, and the other was carrying a bag of meat. Their eyes lit up the moment they saw Ye Xiaofan.

The main reason was that Ye Xiaofan had changed so much in the three days they hadn't seen him.

He had become more robust, and although his complexion was still a bit pale, it was no longer noticeable if you didn't look closely.

"Little Brother Ye, we came uninvited. We hope we haven't disturbed you."

"Haha, it's an honor for Captain Li and Captain Zhang to visit my humble abode. Please come in."

Ye Xiaofan led them to a small pavilion in the courtyard.

"Little Brother Ye, my brother and I are heading out on a mission tomorrow. We came tonight to see you, a genius, and say goodbye."

"Captain Zhang, Captain Li, you're in charge of the cultivation technique pavilion and the reserve team, respectively. You shouldn't have to go on missions, right?"

Ye Xiaofan asked, a little confused.

"Alas, it's a long story. Let's talk while we drink."

Zhang Zhenzhong sighed deeply. While explaining to Ye Xiaofan why they had to go on a mission, he opened the wine jar and poured three bowls of wine.

A moment later, Ye Xiaofan understood why they were going on a mission.

It turned out that the two of them couldn't stand the internal power struggles within the Demon Suppression Division anymore and had chosen to take on missions guarding towns.

He also recounted what Sun Wude had been doing since taking office as Vice Commander.

"Commander Xiao doesn't care about these things, letting Sun Wude run amok."

Ye Xiaofan was also very displeased upon learning that his medicinal pills had been withheld by Sun Wude.

Li Yan drank his wine in one gulp and gave a wry smile.

"Commander Xiao is solely focused on cultivation and doesn't want to deal with these matters. If it weren't for your father's death, he wouldn't have personally investigated."

"Your father cultivated to the Body Refinement Eighth Layer at just thirty-five years old. He had the potential to break through to the Qi Condensation stage in the future. He was a genius the Demon Suppression Division was focusing on nurturing. Now that he's died under unclear circumstances, Commander Xiao is only investigating under pressure."

After Li Yan finished speaking, Zhang Zhenzhong added.

A silence followed, with Li Yan and Zhang Zhenzhong continuously drinking, lost in their thoughts.

Ye Xiaofan, meanwhile, was contemplating his own situation.

He hadn't taken off yet and could face danger at any moment.

"I must get money and cultivation techniques as soon as possible!"

If he could cultivate a high-grade or even top-grade cultivation technique and simplify it, his cultivation speed would be even faster.

As long as he could secretly become stronger before his hidden enemies reacted, he would be able to defeat anyone who came at him with a single sword.

"Captains, do you know of any other places besides the cultivation technique pavilion where I can get cultivation techniques? You know I'm cultivating the Sword Drawing Technique, and I need some saber techniques."

"There are, but it's not very safe. You're not even at Body Refinement First Layer yet, so it would be very dangerous to go there."

The Withered Wood Meets Spring Technique that Ye Xiaofan was cultivating had the ability to conceal his blood qi fluctuations. Coupled with its perfect mastery, they couldn't tell that Ye Xiaofan had already broken through to Body Refinement First Layer.

"Please tell me, Captain Zhang."

Zhang Zhenzhong and Li Yan exchanged glances. Li Yan took over the conversation and said, "The Black Market in Qingyang County."

"The Black Market?"

"That's right. The person behind the Black Market in Qingyang County is the County Magistrate. Everything inside is genuine and safe, but once you leave the Black Market, robbery and murder are as common as eating and drinking."

Li Yan said to Ye Xiaofan, word by word. Seeing that Ye Xiaofan's expression remained unchanged, he nodded secretly and continued.

"They sell all sorts of things there. Sometimes, even mid-grade cultivation techniques appear. If you plan to go, you must wait until you break through to Body Refinement First Layer and disguise yourself well so no one recognizes you."

Ye Xiaofan nodded. He had already planned to go to the Black Market later to sell the Black Tiger Roaring Mountain Technique and the Black Tiger Saber Technique he had.

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