Equipment! Tiger-Subduing! First Rank!

Equipment! Tiger-Subduing! First Rank! [Reader check-in spot for this book~~, type 1 to claim your exclusive golden finger~~]

The side room was stiflingly hot, lit by dim candlelight.

The redwood table laden with food and wine was a complete mess. Broken porcelain shards lay scattered across the floor, giving off a strong reek of alcohol.

Mu Yang leaned against the corner wall, his head feeling terribly heavy. He wanted to raise a hand to rub it, only to find his body weak, even lifting an arm taking considerable effort.

Drunk?

No, he had been drugged!

Muscle-Softening Powder. Any non-ranked martial artist who consumed it would feel dizzy and weak. Forget walking—even standing up would be a problem.

Though his mind was still somewhat muddled, Mu Yang forced himself to pull himself together and sort through the situation.

He had reincarnated into this ancient chaotic age, where demons ran rampant, exactly twenty years ago. After the old constable who had taken him in passed away, he had inherited his adoptive father's profession and put on this constable's uniform three months ago.

Today, as usual, he had come to patrol Huang Village.

During his previous two inspections, Village Chief Huang Changgui had slaughtered chickens and prepared wine, his hospitality boundless. This time was no different.

Who would have thought that shortly after he drank a single cup of wine, he would pass out cold?

Even hallucinations had appeared before his eyes...

[Equippable Item: Air-Dried Pork]

[Rank: Unranked]

[Equipment Effect: ① Muscle Growth (White): Strength receives a slight increase.]

[Permanent Solidification Requirement: Equip this item for one hour, or while this item is equipped, kill any unranked wild beast or ranked demon beast.]

[Current Empty Equipment Slots: 1]

This hallucination looked just like a game interface from his previous life.

Wait, a game interface!

Mu Yang suddenly jolted awake.

Could it be that his golden finger, twenty years overdue, had finally arrived?!

Mu Yang carefully examined the interface information, both shocked and delighted.

In a world where demons existed, if people wanted to live in peace, they naturally needed ways to deal with them.

That was martial arts!

For example, when he had just become a constable, he had received a low-grade martial art called the Tiger-Subduing Blade Technique.

Though it was merely low-grade, so long as one trained it to Minor Accomplishment, Blood Qi would arise within the body, making one a genuine First Rank martial artist.

The squad leader of the constable unit he belonged to was a ranked martial artist.

His monthly salary was a full five taels of silver, roughly equivalent to earning over ten thousand a month in a small county town in his previous life.

That was five times the income of an ordinary constable like him.

Unfortunately, after training for three whole months, aside from becoming more proficient at flourishing his blade and gaining a little more strength, he was still far from even getting started, let alone reaching Minor Accomplishment and cultivating Blood Qi.

"Lord Hui Jiu, I've already taken down that foolish brat. He won't wake up anytime soon. We're just waiting for you to come feast!"

At some point, one tall and one short figure had appeared beyond the papered window of the side room. A faintly fawning voice drifted in from outside.

In the dead of night, Mu Yang immediately recognized Huang Changgui's voice.

Feast?

Eating people?

A demon!!

In an instant, Mu Yang understood why Huang Changgui had attacked him.

That old bastard was actually in the business of colluding with evil demons!

"Not bad. You've been fairly punctual this month. Oh, and next month is our king's grand birthday. Remember to prepare more blood food as tribute. If you miss the deadline, I'll use your wife and daughters to make up the difference!"

A harsh, grating voice sounded immediately afterward.

That was not a sound a human could make. It was clearly the demon Huang Laodeng had been colluding with.

As the voice fell, two sets of footsteps, one light and one heavy, rapidly approached.

Mu Yang's expression shifted slightly, but his gaze remained calm as he swiftly swept his eyes around the room.

With the Muscle-Softening Powder in his system, let alone an unknown demon, even fat, weak Huang Laodeng could probably kill him with a single stroke.

The only thing he could rely on now was the golden finger that had just awakened.

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He scanned the room and first spotted the long blade lying on the wooden table.

[Equippable Item: Standard Long Blade]

[Rank: Unranked]

[Equipment Effect: ① Sharpness (White): When using a weapon, the blade's sharpness receives a slight increase.]

[Permanent Solidification Requirement: Equip this item for one hour, or while this item is equipped, kill any unranked wild beast or ranked demon beast.]

The blade was two chi long. Its scabbard bore neither patterns nor ornaments, while its hilt was wrapped in coarse cloth. It looked utterly ordinary.

This was the constable's blade issued to him by the yamen after he became a constable. It was sharp enough, but clearly not enough to resolve his current predicament.

Just then, a yellowed book with slightly curled edges beside the long blade caught Mu Yang's attention.

He was extremely familiar with that book. It was none other than the Tiger-Subduing Blade Technique he carried with him.

Since he had never managed to get started, he took it everywhere, thinking he could flip through it whenever he had time and perhaps find some inspiration.

He wondered whether this thing could be equipped too...

Mu Yang concentrated, and an interface suddenly surfaced over the book's cover.

[Equippable Item: Tiger-Subduing Blade Technique (Low-Grade Martial Art)]

[Rank: First Rank]

[Equipment Effect: ① Perfection (White): Tiger-Subduing Blade Technique proficiency reaches the level of Perfection.]

[② Blade Technique Affinity (White): Slightly increases affinity with blade-type martial arts, accelerating the cultivation speed of blade-type martial arts.]

[Permanent Solidification Requirement: Equip this item for ten hours, or while this item is equipped, kill any First Rank or higher-ranked demon beast.]

Perfection!

A sharp gleam flashed through Mu Yang's eyes.

At Minor Accomplishment, this blade technique could generate Blood Qi within the body, making one a First Rank martial artist.

Even among the vast number of constables in Qingxi County, there were likely no more than ten people who had trained the Tiger-Subduing Blade Technique to Minor Accomplishment.

As for Perfection, even his squad leader had never attained it.

It was decided—you!

With that thought, Mu Yang took a fierce breath, used all his strength to shove against the wall behind him, then borrowed the recoil to stagger over to the wooden table.

The familiar friction of paper brushed against his fingertips.

Tiger-Subduing Blade Technique, in hand!

"Bang!"

At that moment, the violent sound of a door being thrown open exploded inside the room.

A towering, brawny figure like a small mountain stepped over the threshold and strode into the room.

Its muscles were taut, and thick yellow fur covered its entire body. The head attached to its grinning jaws was unmistakably a huge rat's head.

The Rat Demon swept the room with green, vertical pupils. When it saw Mu Yang, its long nose twitched slightly, as though sniffing out the scent of food.

"Such abundant Blood Qi. He really is premium goods!"

Looking at Mu Yang, whose figure overlapped with the candle flame and dishes on the table, the Rat Demon extended its thick, long tongue to lick its lips. Viscous saliva hung down in strands, and a foul stench immediately spread through the room.

Before the wooden table, Mu Yang remained calm. One hand braced against the table, while the other quietly rested atop the book he had creased beneath his palm. He silently recited in his heart.

"Equip the Tiger-Subduing Blade Technique!"

[Ding! The Tiger-Subduing Blade Technique has been equipped!]

Tiger-Subduing Blade Technique: Entry... Minor Accomplishment... Major Accomplishment...

Perfection!!!

In an instant, countless experiences and insights regarding the Tiger-Subduing Blade Technique—its move breakdowns, methods of exerting force, and Blood Qi circulation paths—poured into his mind like a tidal wave. It was as if he had gripped a blade and practiced this technique for more than a decade, every move etched deep into his bones.

Beneath his constable's uniform, his muscles, previously far from robust, abruptly trembled and swelled.

A majestic force he had never felt before erupted from within him like a volcano. It was the special power possessed only by martial artists who had entered the ranks—

Blood Qi!!

His weak, powerless body was suddenly filled by that warm current.

The flesh-tempering method inherent to the perfected Tiger-Subduing Blade Technique drew his Blood Qi rapidly through the pathways of his flesh and skin. The strength locked away by the Muscle-Softening Powder was instantly scattered!

First Rank—achieved!

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