Heart Blood Count, One Hundred and Fifteen

As the last ray of light in the far west was swallowed by darkness, Jiang Yan and his group smoothly arrived at Qingshan Village.

There were no patrols at the village boundary.

Entering the village, they didn't see anyone on the crisscrossing paths.

"Things aren't looking good."

Jiang Yan felt a heavy heart seeing that Qingshan Village hadn't even maintained basic defenses.

Qingshan Village had already abandoned defenses around the village. Judging by the situation, their patrol team was likely understaffed, no longer sufficient to protect the entire village, forcing them to concentrate everyone inside.

They were tightening their defensive perimeter, passively defending and waiting for rescue.

"Did something else happen?"

He speculated inwardly, his body on high alert.

As the group entered the village, they finally encountered personnel from the Qingshan Village patrol team.

Taking a step forward, Ren Yuan shouted, "We're from the Yuyang Village patrol team. Is anyone from the hall here?"

By "the hall," he meant the Patrol Mountain Hall. If a high-level monster appeared in Qingshan Village, the hall would definitely send experts to deal with it.

However, the mining area was even farther from Qingshan Village. It was already dark, and if the experts sent by the Patrol Mountain Hall hadn't arrived yet, tonight would be dangerous.

A bald man, who knew that patrol teams from both villages would send people to support them today, stepped forward. Hearing Ren Yuan's words, he quickly replied, "The experts from the hall have already arrived, and people from Xiaoqiu Village are here too. Yuyang Village members, please follow me..."

"Huh? Ren... Chief Ren?"

The bald man hadn't seen clearly who was leading the Yuyang Village patrol team from a distance. Now that he got closer, he actually recognized Ren Yuan.

"Hm?"

Ren Yuan saw the bald man's distinctive bald head and pursed his lips. "Hu Xing?"

The bald man responded with a wry smile, "Chief, why are you leading the Yuyang Village patrol team this time?"

"The previous chief had an accident, so I'm temporarily guarding Yuyang Village for a few days. I didn't expect this to happen."

Hu Xing gestured with his hand, leading them forward, and said to Ren Yuan, "Chief, please come this way. Lord Ning and the people from Xiaoqiu Village are all in the square. I'll take you there now."

Jiang Yan silently glanced at Hu Xing's shiny bald head, surprised that this guy actually knew Ren Yuan.

Ren Yuan clearly had some connection with Hu Xing. As they chatted casually, he asked Hu Xing, "You're about to break through, aren't you?"

"I've already touched the sensation of Qi. I think I can become a martial artist in at most two months."

Hu Xing earnestly told Ren Yuan about his martial arts progress. "It's a pity that the Blood Qi Pill you gifted me, Chief, I have average talent and have failed your expectations."

Ren Yuan shook his head. "It's good to have a solid foundation."

As they spoke, they arrived at the square.

The two could no longer chat. Hu Xing invited some members of the Yuyang Village patrol team to eat, while Jiang Yan and Tang Long followed Ren Yuan to pay their respects to the experts sent by the Patrol Mountain Hall.

An ordinary brick house, brightly lit.

Jiang Yan stepped into the room with Ren Yuan.

Swish!

A gaze swept over him, sharp as a sword, causing the hairs on his body to stand on end instantly.

An expert!

He was absolutely certain in his heart that this gaze was casually cast by an expert from the Patrol Mountain Hall.

Jiang Yan suppressed the strong instinct to retreat from the room and followed Ren Yuan with his head down.

Cupping his fists, Ren Yuan loudly announced, "Patrol Mountain Hall Chief, greetings, Lord Ning."

Huh? Hearing Ren Yuan's address, Jiang Yan was stunned for a moment, then realized that this Lord Ning might not be an expert from the Patrol Mountain Hall, but someone temporarily sent from another hall for rescue.

Otherwise, he wouldn't be addressed this way.

Ning Gongdao sat on a large chair and casually pointed to a few chairs below, motioning for Ren Yuan and the other two to sit.

"Ren Yuan, is Sheng Fuwu really missing?"

"Yes, I didn't see Sheng Fuwu's body in the wilderness, but I also haven't received any news of him returning to any of Dahe Gang's strongholds."

Ren Yuan's words were watertight. In short, it was impossible to determine Sheng Fuwu's life or death, but Sheng Fuwu was indeed missing.

"Mm."

Ning Gongdao merely asked casually and didn't delve deeper into the matter. He looked at the people in the room. Among them were people he brought from the True Martial Hall, and more were the leaders of the three villages' patrol teams.

Suddenly, he pointed at Jiang Yan and asked, "Who are you? I don't seem to have seen you before."

He was in charge of the True Martial Hall, and he had basically seen all the martial artists in the entire mining area, including the five villages below the mountain. Some he couldn't recall by name, but he had an impression.

He had no impression of Jiang Yan at all.

Before Ren Yuan could introduce him, as everyone's gaze turned towards him, Jiang Yan stood up and respectfully cupped his fists. "Newly promoted junior leader Jiang Yan pays his respects to Hall Master Ning."

His voice was neither hurried nor slow, full of energy, clear and concise. He introduced himself simply.

He felt completely at ease in his heart. It was obvious that this Lord Ning was just asking casually because he looked unfamiliar.

"A newly promoted martial artist." Ning Gongdao nodded, no longer paying attention to Jiang Yan.

He swept his gaze over everyone and began to explain the situation with the monster they needed to deal with.

"This time, our luck is average. The monster we encountered is a Severe Sha level monster."

"But this monster has the ability to conceal itself."

Ren Yuan, who arrived the latest, was unclear about some of the details. He looked at Ning Gongdao and asked, "Lord Ning, how did you determine that this monster isn't a Blood Sha yet? Did you engage it?"

Ning Gongdao shook his head slightly, denying it.

At this moment, a middle-aged man opposite Ren Yuan cupped his fists towards him and said, "Ren Yuan, you might not guess this, but this afternoon, two people came to the village seeking shelter. One of them was actually a Body Refining Realm martial artist. Lord Ning subdued him with some method."

"Then Lord Ning used a 'Spirit Sensing Talisman' to locate the monster, and had that martial artist probe it. As a result, the martial artist was injured, and the monster took the opportunity to hide."

"Since the monster couldn't kill a Body Refining Realm martial artist, it means it hasn't advanced to Blood Sha yet."

Hearing this explanation, Ren Yuan nodded. It was indeed a Severe Sha level monster if it could only injure a Body Refining Realm martial artist but not kill them.

"By the way, where is that Body Refining Realm martial artist?"

Ren Yuan asked casually.

The person opposite him smirked, "He's recuperating. It doesn't matter if he comes or not. Actually, he's already crippled."

Hmm?

Ren Yuan looked over. The person continued, "That Body Refining Realm martial artist not only sustained injuries but also fell victim to the monster's curse."

Jiang Yan listened to the conversations in the hall without interjecting. He was only at the Martial Apprentice realm, while there were several Body Refining realm martial artists present. He was diligently recording key information.

He had just frowned slightly at the middle-aged man's words. Since Ning Gongdao only confirmed the monster's strength after his arrival, how did Qingshan Village determine the monster lurking in the village was potentially a Blood Sha when they sent the message to the Patrol Mountain Hall earlier?

As he was pondering this, Ren Yuan had already voiced the same thought. He wasn't the only one who had considered this.

At this moment, someone sitting in the corner slowly stood up. He was Tan Xinghe, the leader of the Qingshan Village patrol team.

Tan Xinghe's face was as dark as storm clouds. He said fiercely, "Because I fought that beast before. In the end, I couldn't even last four moves."

"I thought I would die immediately, but it didn't kill me. Instead, it left and continued to lurk in Qingshan Village."

He took off his shirt, revealing his sturdy upper body.

Jiang Yan looked up, his pupils contracting. On Tan Xinghe's chest, there was a vivid red number.

One hundred and fifteen!

PS: Requesting recommendation votes!