At work, you should address people by their titles!

"I've finally been promoted to Jinyiwei Baihu Officer."

"And now I can slay demons alongside Chen Fan again!"

Lu Xuenning was delighted to hear this and said so.

"Ahem, ahem."

"Baihu Lu, watch your image."

Wang Teng cleared his throat twice, then glanced at Chen Fan and saw that he remained composed.

Perhaps he was only pretending to be calm.

Chen Fan had indeed rendered great service this time. His promotion to Jinyiwei Baihu Officer and transfer to Longyuan Prefecture for duty were already the best possible outcomes.

But he was a martial arts prodigy. He had ruined his future to save tens of thousands of people in Ping'an County by cultivating the Blood Sha Skill, and might never advance beyond the Spirit Aperture Realm Third Heaven.

To make it up to him, his master, Zuo Qianqiu, had overruled everyone's objections and promoted him two ranks at once, appointing him Deputy Commander at the Longyuan Prefecture Jinyiwei Commander's Office, where he would oversee logistics.

Logistics was comfortable work, and there were plenty of opportunities to line one's pockets.

His master had also taken into account that Chen Fan was still young, with his youthful fervor not yet cooled. He might long to go to the front lines and slay demons, so Zuo Qianqiu had also assigned him command of a Jinyiwei brigade.

It had to be said that his master had considered every angle to look after Chen Fan's feelings.

Still, Wang Teng felt that Chen Fan was a tragic case.

If not for this incident, Chen Fan might have been taken on as his master's disciple and received careful training.

With his talent, it wouldn't have been impossible for him to one day take over as Commander of the Longyuan Prefecture Jinyiwei Commander's Office, or even rise to become a Jinyiwei Myriad Commander in Yun Prefecture.

But now, he might spend the rest of his life at the Longyuan Prefecture Jinyiwei Commander's Office, serving as Deputy Commander until he died of old age.

And he was still so young.

Counting down the days, watching his peers leave him far behind while his own martial cultivation could only stand still—it was torment for a prodigy like him.

"What a poor soul!"

Wang Teng couldn't help sighing inwardly.

Chen Fan had no idea what Wang Teng was thinking. Besides, he had no need to take a martial artist at the peak of the Spirit Aperture Realm as his master. What he needed was a profound Cultivation Method to increase his strength.

If he really was going to take a master, he ought to find a genuine big shot!

After the matter in Ping'an County was settled, Chen Fan set out for Longyuan Prefecture with Wang Teng and the others.

The group was exceptionally strong. They rode hard, galloping for a day and a night before finally reaching Longyuan Prefecture City.

Longyuan Prefecture City nestled against mountains and water, built on a vast alluvial plain at the foot of Purple Mountain.

The prefectural city covered an immense area. Its walls were one zhang thick and ten zhang high, with the inner and outer cities nested together as one, able to withstand a beast tide.

The Longyuan Prefecture Jinyiwei Commander's Office stood in the northern district of the outer city, facing Purple Mountain. They entered through the north gate, and before long, they came upon the Commander's Office.

The compound covered a vast area and could house over a thousand people. It had a barracks, a Training Ground, a large dining hall, offices, and other facilities. It looked like an enlarged version of a Jinyiwei Baihu Office.

To Chen Fan, it felt both unfamiliar and strangely familiar.

Along the way, Lu Xuenning had told Chen Fan a great deal about Longyuan Prefecture. Overall, the situation there was grim.

Yun Prefecture lay in the north of the Great Zhou Dynasty, on its northern frontier. Farther north stretched a wilderness teeming with Demonic Creatures, so Yun Prefecture was often raided by them.

The Great Zhou Dynasty was separated from the lands of the Demonic Creatures by the Monster Beast Mountain Range. Purple Mountain, where Longyuan Prefecture stood, was actually an offshoot of that range.

It was clear, then, that Longyuan Prefecture had been built right at the foot of the Monster Beast Mountain Range, where it existed under the very noses of countless Demonic Creatures.

Demonic beasts surrounded Purple Mountain, and Zuo Qianqiu led the Longyuan Prefecture Jinyiwei Commander's Office in holding the mountain and confronting them!

Unlike Cao De, Zuo Qianqiu hated evil and was upright and incorruptible. He would never tolerate Demonic Creatures, let alone collude with them to harm the common people.

But countless clashes with the Demonic Creatures of Purple Mountain had left the Jinyiwei at the Longyuan Prefecture Jinyiwei Commander's Office suffering heavy losses. Those with ability rose quickly—and died just as quickly.

You might be an ordinary Jinyiwei today. Then, after an attack on Purple Mountain tomorrow, your immediate superior and his superior might both be dead, and the day after that, you could suddenly find yourself promoted to Zongqi Officer.

The Jinyiwei Baihu Officers on the front lines in Longyuan Prefecture were all martial artists of the Spirit Aperture Realm, so they were less likely to die. Even so, every year, one or two of the Baihu Officers commanding the ten frontline brigades were bound to be killed or wounded.

Take Lu Xuenning, for example. She had just been promoted to Baihu Officer at the Longyuan Prefecture Jinyiwei Commander's Office and placed in charge of the Tenth Brigade. So what had happened to the Baihu Officer who commanded it before her?

He had been gravely wounded not long ago while hunting down the Demonic Creatures of Purple Mountain, and had gone to the logistics department to recuperate. If he recovered and could return to the front lines, he could take command of another brigade. If his injuries left him with severe aftereffects and he could no longer fight, then he would spend his retirement in logistics.

That was already an exceptionally lucky outcome. Many Baihu Officers had died on Purple Mountain, their remains too mangled to piece together.

Longyuan Prefecture.

The Jinyiwei Commander's Office.

Zuo Qianqiu's office.

Zuo Qianqiu was lean, almost gaunt. A few silver strands were interwoven with his jet-black hair, and he wore a goatee. His eyes shone brightly, and he commanded respect without needing to show anger.

"Your disciples Wang Teng and Lu Xuenning pay their respects, Master!"

Wang Teng and Lu Xuenning had temporarily settled Chen Fan in the Deputy Commander's Separate Courtyard. The two of them went to report to Zuo Qianqiu first.

"Alas!"

"How many times have I told you? At work, you should address people by their titles!"

Zuo Qianqiu looked at his two disciples and sighed.

"Yes!"

"This subordinate pays his respects to Commander!"

Wang Teng and Lu Xuenning clasped their hands and bowed again, speaking in clear, resonant voices.

"Have you met Chen Fan?"

"What do you think of him?"

Zuo Qianqiu looked at his Senior Disciple, Wang Teng, and asked.

"He's young—two years younger than Xuenning—but very composed. Perhaps he comes from Ping'an County and hasn't seen much of the world, so he doesn't yet understand how serious this is."

"According to Xuenning, he cultivated the Blood Sha Skill without using Myriad Spirit Essence Blood. Instead, he used his own essence blood, and in a very short time, mastered the Blood Sha Skill, opening thirty-six acupoints throughout his body."

"By the looks of it, he's a true peerless genius!"

"What a pity he was brought low in a backwater place like Ping'an County!"

Wang Teng couldn't help saying that it was a pity.

"Did he show any signs of going mad?"

Zuo Qianqiu asked gravely.

He knew the Blood Sha Skill well. It was easy to cultivate and quick to master. Anyone with even a little talent could break through to the Spirit Aperture Realm before turning forty.

But after entering the Spirit Aperture Realm, the longer one practiced and the more acupoints one opened, the more easily Baleful Intent eroded one's mind, eventually driving one mad.

Chen Fan hadn't practiced the Blood Sha Skill for long, but he had opened far too many acupoints. He had already mastered it completely. By rights, he should have started losing his mind from time to time by now.

Could he be hiding it that well?

He had sent his eldest disciple, a master at the Spirit Aperture Realm Seventh Heaven, all the way to Ping'an County to bring Chen Fan back for two reasons.

First, to show how much he valued Chen Fan. Second, if Chen Fan showed signs of going mad, Wang Teng could immediately subdue him.

If Baleful Intent had already eroded Chen Fan's mind and driven him mad, Wang Teng would have to kill him himself!

The Jinyiwei kept watch over noble families and sects, and hunted Demonic Creatures and ghosts. Anyone who fell to demonic cultivation had to be executed!

Chen Fan's achievements could not excuse him if he turned demonic. And especially given that he was a monstrous genius, if he went mad and followed Blood Demon's Old Path, he would become a disaster for all of Longyuan Prefecture.