Slaying the Crimson Serpent Demon!

After talking with Wang Chao late into the night, Wang Chao finally confirmed that Chen Fan's body had no issues before he got up and went home.

He had joined the Brocade Guard at eighteen and had now been serving for twenty years. At his age, if he couldn't break through to the fourth level of the Divine Treasury Realm within two or three years, it would be very difficult for him to advance further.

However, he had come to terms with it. He had a wife, children, and a warm hearth. He was eating from the imperial granary, and his salary was substantial. Although hunting demons was dangerous, he had managed to avoid any serious trouble over the years. He no longer cared about promotions.

After seeing Wang Chao off, Chen Fan simply washed up, getting rid of the demon blood on his body. He also washed his clothes. He was busy until well past midnight before closing his door and preparing to fall into a deep sleep.

As soon as he lay down on the bed, he felt a cold, wriggling sensation. His hair stood on end, and he rolled off the bed almost instantly, grabbing the Hundred-Refined Embroidered Spring Blade from the table with his hand!

"Who's there?"

In the dim moonlight, he saw a giant, crimson snake with black spots crawling out of his bed.

The giant snake flicked its tongue, its eyes staring directly at Chen Fan.

The next second, the giant snake transformed, becoming a voluptuous woman with a curvaceous figure.

She was covered in crimson scales, as if she were wearing an impenetrable suit of armor.

"This humble one is Chi Lian. Greetings, Young Master."

The beautiful snake looked at Chen Fan and spoke in a very seductive voice.

"Audacious demon! How dare you intrude upon a Brocade Guard outpost!"

"Prepare to be slain!"

Chen Fan roared, then drew the Hundred-Refined Embroidered Spring Blade in his hand. He leaped forward, slashing directly at the Crimson Serpent Demon without the slightest hesitation, his actions decisive and ruthless!

He mobilized his Blood Essence, his bones and muscles roaring, his skin and flesh bulging. The Embroidered Spring Blade descended, carrying a biting gale, emitting a piercing roar!

"Damn it, why is he at the fourth level of the Divine Treasury Realm!"

"How is this possible?"

Chi Lian's expression changed drastically upon seeing this. She raised her right hand.

The scales on her right hand and arm multiplied, becoming denser and denser, eventually forming a thick, crimson armor that directly blocked Chen Fan's strike.

Unexpectedly, Chen Fan shifted his blade, using the "Blade Draw Slash" to cut along Chi Lian's arm and then slash towards her neck again!

Swoosh!

Chen Fan's blade descended, directly severing the Crimson Serpent Demon's head.

The Crimson Serpent Demon's eyes were wide open, her death unfulfilled.

She couldn't understand how she had died.

Someone had paid a hefty sum for her to kill a Brocade Guard at the first level of the Divine Treasury Realm who was already nearing his end, and to use her charm to interrogate the guard about some matters.

Yet, after merely announcing her name, she was met with a powerful roar from the other party, followed by two swift and decisive slashes that ended her life.

Her strength was comparable to a Bone Vajra at the second level of the Divine Treasury Realm. However, due to her proficient transformation and charm skills, she was assigned this simple assassination mission.

She never expected the information to be so wildly inaccurate. Her target was full of vigor and was a formidable individual at the fourth level of the Divine Treasury Realm!

[Killed the Crimson Serpent Demon at the second level of the Divine Treasury Realm, stole 66 years of lifespan!]

[Name: Chen Fan]

[Realm: Divine Treasury Realm (Fourth Level: Blood Martial Saint)]

[Cultivation Techniques: "Body Tempering Fist" (Perfection), "Blade Draw Slash" (Minor Accomplishment)]

[Current Remaining Lifespan: 50 years]

[Current Demon Lifespan: 66 years]

Chen Fan looked at the Attribute Panel. The Demon Lifespan had increased by another sixty-six years. It was truly a case of "just when you're sleepy, someone brings you a pillow."

He had been worrying about where to find demons to kill and steal their lifespan to further his martial arts, and now one had appeared.

During the day, the Brocade Guard outpost had people working or on duty. By night, some were on patrol, and others had gone home. There were hardly any people left.

It had to be said that the Crimson Serpent Demon had chosen a very opportune time.

The commotion from Chen Fan killing the Crimson Serpent Demon wasn't that significant, but the two shouts he let out before killing her had indeed woken up the few Brocade Guards in the outpost.

"What happened?"

"Where is the demon?"

"..."

Chen Fan pushed open the door, tossed the over ten-meter-long giant python out of his room, and then said loudly:

"Brothers, a snake demon entered my room tonight intending to kill me, but I killed it instead."

"I apologize for disturbing everyone!"

Upon hearing this, everyone walked towards Chen Fan's residence. At this moment, including Chen Fan, there were only seven Brocade Guards left in the outpost.

"Such a huge snake demon?"

"Isn't that Chen Fan? Didn't they say he was dying?"

"He looked half-dead at the Martial Arts Field this afternoon. How does he look so much better now? Is it a final burst of energy?"

"The Brocade Guard precinct is located near the outskirts of the county town, which isn't very safe to begin with. It's quite normal for a demon to smell human scent and wander in at midnight."

"Didn't a Wolf Demon break into the Martial Arts Field the year before last and bite two Brocade Guard brothers to death?"

"Night is the playground for demons and monsters. It seems I'll have to go home at night from now on; this precinct is too unsafe."

"We're treated so poorly. We are the Brocade Guard, tasked with monitoring aristocratic families and sects, and slaying demons and monsters, yet demons repeatedly intrude upon our headquarters."

"Ping An County is, after all, a border county with more demons, so it's normal for the Brocade Guard's influence to be weaker here."

"If this were a prefectural city, at a Brocade Guard Chiliarch's office, or a state capital, at a Brocade Guard Myriad Household Garrison, demons and monsters would steer clear on sight."

"It's getting late. Since the demon has been killed, everyone can disperse. It's late, so go back and get some sleep. We have to check in tomorrow!"

"..."

After greeting Chen Fan, these people returned to their own quarters to sleep.

"Was it really a coincidence?"

"Why do I feel like that Crimson Serpent Demon came for me specifically?"

"Never mind, since I have Demonkin Lifespan, I'll use it for deduction and enhance my strength. That's the way to go!"

"If I reach the peak of the Divine Treasury Realm, won't I be able to walk all over Ping An County?"

"Moreover, I just encountered a demon while sleeping. Who knows, maybe one day I'll run into a terrifyingly powerful great demon and be swallowed whole."

"In a world rampant with demons like this, only by continuously improving one's strength can one survive!"

"Next, I need to improve my martial skills. My current methods of dealing with enemies are too limited and not powerful enough."

Chen Fan pondered for a moment, then with a thought, he summoned his Attribute Panel and began to consume Demonkin Lifespan to deduce his martial skill, "Blade Draw Slash."

[You diligently practiced "Blade Draw Slash," drawing your blade ten thousand times a day, and finally achieved Minor Accomplishment in the fifth year!]

[You continued to practice "Blade Draw Slash," drawing your blade one hundred thousand times a day, and achieved Perfection in the tenth year. You feel that there is nothing in this world you cannot sever with a single slash. If one slash isn't enough, then two!]

[Blade Draw Slash (Perfection)]

After consuming ten years of Demonkin Lifespan, Chen Fan finally elevated his only martial skill, "Blade Draw Slash," to the Perfection level.

Instantly, countless insights flashed through his mind. He felt like a swordsman who had practiced the blade for ten years; when he didn't act, it was nothing, but when he struck, it was with the fury of thunder, a killing blow!

"If I were to face that Crimson Serpent Demon again now, I could separate its head from its body with a single strike, killing it instantly!"

Chen Fan's eyes gleamed as he said with full confidence.

However, looking at the cultivation of "Body Tempering Fist" and "Blade Draw Slash," he wasn't truly a peerless genius. For "Blade Draw Slash," a technique with only one killing move, it took him ten years to reach Perfection.

And for "Body Tempering Fist," it took him a full twenty years to reach Perfection. It was truly arduous.

His aptitude wasn't terrible, but it was at best Mediocre Talent, the kind that's not good enough to be the best but better than the worst.

Without the Attribute Panel, he would probably never break through to the peak of the Divine Treasury Realm before he died.

This was also the true state of the vast majority of Brocade Guards stationed in county towns.