Don't Rank Up Anymore, I'm Scared!

"Demons ate people. Human lives were as worthless as grass."

"A month ago, they were still lively, breathing people. Now they'd been reduced to pieces..."

Lin Guanhuo returned to his little courtyard, unable to suppress a sigh.

He'd been in this world for half a year. If he hadn't taken up martial arts and honed his skills,

his fate would probably have been even worse.

Lately, Lin Guanhuo had realized that he'd been living too comfortably, letting his guard down a little.

He'd almost forgotten: this world wasn't like the brainless web novels he'd read in his previous life, or the online games he'd played, where you could beat up stupid NPCs however you pleased, and if you died, you just spent a revive token to come back on the spot.

In this world, people really died.

Darkness and bloodshed lurked everywhere.

"I have to train harder if I want to keep disaster from striking me!"

Li Miaomiao's death had only strengthened Lin Guanhuo's resolve.

Back in his room, Lin Guanhuo sat cross-legged on the bed.

With a wave of his hand, a neat row of delicate little porcelain bottles appeared before him.

There were twenty bottles in all, and every one contained the First Rank pill, Qi Boosting Powder.

Lin Guanhuo picked up a bottle, twisted off the cap, and sniffed it.

A scorching sensation, like chili oil, wafted out. It was actually the rich qi and blood within the pill.

When I was Body Tempering third-grade, the qi and blood in one pill was enough to last me a week of refining.

Now that I'm Body Tempering sixth-grade, one pill only lasts two days... As my realm grows, so does my need for pills.

Let's start with one.

Lin Guanhuo opened his mouth and tipped a pill inside.

"Burp."

He burped.

"A little spicy..."

As the pill went down, a fiery sensation slipped along Lin Guanhuo's throat and into his body.

In the next instant, it transformed into pure qi and blood, nourishing every limb and bone.

Lin Guanhuo's skin gradually turned red, as if he'd overheated.

One hour.

Two hours.

One day.

Two days.

As time slowly passed, the redness on Lin Guanhuo's body began to fade.

At the same time, his aura had advanced a little compared to before.

That meant the qi and blood in the pill had been fully refined and absorbed by Lin Guanhuo, becoming part of his own strength.

"Another one..."

He'd refined one pill in just two days. Lin Guanhuo opened his eyes, took another pill, and popped it into his mouth.

Two more days passed.

"Already gone? This one only lasted a day and a half... Another one..."

"Another one!!"

"One more!"

"Again!"

"More!"

A week later, in the early morning, a pile of empty pill bottles lay before Lin Guanhuo.

On the bed, Lin Guanhuo breathed evenly, motionless, like an immortal who lived on wind and dew.

Still, a closer look would have made it obvious—

At that very moment, Lin Guanhuo's aura had grown by leaps and bounds compared to a week ago.

Eight distinct abdominal muscles showed on his lower torso, sharply defined, while qi and blood coursed through his entire body.

Haa...

At some point, Lin Guanhuo suddenly opened his eyes and let out a soft breath.

"I've reached Seventh Rank."

Lin Guanhuo tensed all his muscles. His once-smooth skin took on a faint bronze hue, gleaming with a fine sheen in the sunlight.

His Copper Skin had also reached the great completion stage.

The path of a Martial Artist was divided into nine ranks.

The first, second, and third were lower ranks; the fourth, fifth, and sixth were middle ranks; the seventh, eighth, and ninth were upper ranks.

He was now a genuine upper-rank Martial Artist.

What's more, Lin Guanhuo had discovered that as he kept comprehending and improving his various martial arts,

he effortlessly gained the Martial Dao insights that ordinary people could only acquire through decades of bitter cultivation.

It was as if he were a master of cultivation reborn to train all over again, with his innate comprehension boosted to the heavens. As long as he had enough cultivation resources, he didn't need to worry about talent or aptitude at all. He just had to keep leveling up.

"At this rate, I can become a Muscle-Tendon Realm Master within two months..."

"Ugh, I'm a little hungry..."

Lin Guanhuo patted his backside as he got up, washed up, and prepared to head to the cafeteria for a meal.

Once Martial Artists entered a state of cultivation, they could reduce their consumption to a minimum, a little like animals hibernating.

Even if they went several days without food or water, they wouldn't starve to death.

They said that the Human Immortals of the great Martial Dao realms could drink the spiritual qi of heaven and earth like wine, soar through the air, and go without food, water, or sleep.

That was true Martial Dao sorcery.

Lin Guanhuo arrived at the Demon Suppressing Division's plaza, which was bustling with activity. A crowd of Division Servants bustled about with their badges on.

Just then, Lin Guanhuo spotted a familiar face approaching.

The man was in his forties or fifties, with a saber at his waist and a stocky build.

It was Zhou Cang, the Instructor in charge of training newcomers at the Demon Suppressing Division.

"Instructor Zhou Cang."

Seeing him, Lin Guanhuo greeted him politely.

After all, Instructor Zhou Cang had looked after him at the Apprentice Plaza.

He'd given him a private room, special meals, and even let him sleep in.

Lin Guanhuo remembered the kindness.

Zhou Cang's usual stern frown had given way to an air of sorrow and dejection.

After they exchanged a few pleasantries, Instructor Zhou Cang sighed. "I went to the Heroic Spirit Garden to visit Miaomiao and offered incense for her."

"She was such a young girl, but too stubborn for her own good. Her family was well-off; she could've lived the comfortable life of a young lady. But she was so determined that she insisted on taking up martial arts."

"Her parents entrusted her to me and sent her to the Demon Suppressing Division."

"In the end, she didn't even have a whole body left... Her mother came on the day of the burial, too. She insisted on opening the coffin. No one could stop her... When she saw that pile of mangled flesh, the old lady wept until she fainted..."

"Out of consideration for her youth, the Division approved several hundred taels more in compensation. But she's gone. What good is any amount of money now..."

Instructor Zhou Cang glanced at the fallen leaves beside them. He picked one up and crushed it between his fingers.

He shook his head again and again, looking regretful. "Human life is fragile, like a leaf falling in the wind."

Lin Guanhuo was a little surprised to hear that.

He hadn't expected this musclebound man to be so sentimental.

After saying goodbye to Instructor Zhou Cang, Lin Guanhuo went to the cafeteria.

Li Miaomiao's death was a shame, of course.

But a meal was still a meal.

He ate several big bowls of beef, drank a bowl of soup, and polished off a few steamed buns.

"Burp..."

Lin Guanhuo belched in satisfaction and left the cafeteria.

It was morning, the sun was bright, and the weather was lovely.

Just as Lin Guanhuo was thinking of going for a stroll—

"You, come here!"

A clear female voice rang out not far away.

Lin Guanhuo looked around and only then realized she was calling to him.

Following the sound, he saw a woman standing on a stone-paved path some distance away.

She wore silver light armor and was strikingly beautiful. She stood with a sword in hand, her long hair tied back with a red ribbon for ease of training, giving her a bold, dashing air.

Though she was wrapped up from head to toe, one could still make out her perfect figure.

Several people stood beside her, treating her with great deference. Her status was clearly extraordinary.

When Lin Guanhuo came over, the woman drew a gleaming silver badge from her robes and said, "Demon Suppressing Division Silver Badge, Ye Yinyue."

"Lady Ye." Lin Guanhuo cupped his hands.

As a Silver Badge Agent, she had to be at least a ranked Martial Master.

Ye Yinyue glanced around and counted. "One, two, three, four, five... six people. That's enough."

"Let's go."

With that, Ye Yinyue waved for everyone to follow.

Lin Guanhuo was rather confused, but he had no choice but to join the group. It was then that—

He spotted a familiar face among them.

"Brother Lin, fancy meeting you again!"

The speaker was a handsome man in his thirties, holding a long sword. He was none other than Chen Jianxing, the Bronze Badge Walker who had written Lin Guanhuo a letter of recommendation.

"Brother Chen." Lin Guanhuo greeted him in return.

"Wait... Brother Lin..."

Chen Jianxing had been smiling. He'd only just broken through to Body Tempering sixth-grade and had planned to show off to Lin Guanhuo.

But then he noticed Lin Guanhuo's aura...

How the hell had he...

Gotten stronger again???

"Seventh Rank." Before Chen Jianxing could ask, Lin Guanhuo quietly told him.

"Damn."

Chen Jianxing couldn't even show off.

He remembered that the last time he'd seen Lin Guanhuo, Lin Guanhuo had been Fourth Rank.

In less than two months, he'd broken through to Seventh Rank??

What kind of freakish cultivation speed was that??

At this rate, wouldn't Lin Guanhuo have reached the Muscle-Tendon Realm by their next meeting??

Brother Lin, don't rank up anymore. I'm scared!