Black Iron Demon Slayer

Inside the gray tent sat a young man wearing a blue uniform.

Hu Lianfeng whispered an explanation to Ye Wudao, "Everyone wearing these blue uniforms is staff stationed here. You can ask them any questions you have at any time."

After speaking, he walked up to a staff member and said, "New recruit reporting in, here to collect a recorder."

The staff member glanced at Hu Lianfeng, then at Ye Wudao behind him, and asked, "Name and federal ID number."

Hu Lianfeng looked back at Ye Wudao, who immediately understood and said, "Ye Wudao, ID number LXHC652021545."

As he spoke, the staff member operated the computer in front of him.

After a moment, he looked at Ye Wudao with curiosity and said in a deep voice, "You're a commoner?"

Ye Wudao nodded.

At this point, Hu Lianfeng spoke up, "This is my apprentice; I'm bringing him along."

The staff member looked at Hu Lianfeng again and asked, "Where is your Demon Slayer badge?"

Hearing this, Hu Lianfeng immediately pulled a silver badge from his pocket and handed it to the staff member.

The staff member scanned the badge on an instrument, pursed his lips, and said, "Silver Demon Slayer, Houtian Realm peak. You're capable enough to lead someone to hunt demonic beasts."

"But I'll warn you: don't go toward the canyon. That area is full of Tier 2 demonic beasts, and it would be very dangerous for you two there."

Hu Lianfeng laughed, "Don't worry, we have a Gold Demon Slayer in our team."

The staff member glanced at Ye Wudao again and said, "Fine! Wait a moment!"

With that, he began typing away on his computer with a flurry of clicks.

A short while later, he pulled a black badge from under the drawer and scanned it on the machine next to the computer.

After finishing, he placed the black badge on the table and said softly, "Ye Wudao, congratulations on becoming a Black Iron Demon Slayer."

"Demon Slayers earn one point for killing a Tier 1 demonic beast, two points for a Tier 2, and so on."

"Once you earn ten thousand points, you can come to me to exchange for a Bronze Demon Slayer badge."

"You are a prisoner of Haicheng First Prison with fifteen years remaining on your sentence. Once you accumulate 5,475 points, your sentence will be automatically cleared, and your points will remain."

"The Demon Slayer badge contains a recorder; every demonic beast you kill will be logged, and you will receive the corresponding rewards."

"If you lose your Demon Slayer badge, you can come here to have it replaced."

"You will not receive any rewards for killing demonic beasts without wearing your Demon Slayer badge."

Ye Wudao nodded and stepped forward to pick up the Demon Slayer badge from the table.

If he wanted to rely on killing demonic beasts to get out of prison early, he would need over five thousand points—which meant killing over five thousand Tier 1 demonic beasts, or over two thousand Tier 2 ones.

According to Hu Lianfeng and Zhang Hankuang, killing demonic beasts was no simple task.

Being able to kill ten demonic beasts of one's own cultivation level in a single day was considered quite good.

After taking the black badge, he pinned it to his chest.

This item was the key to whether or not he could leave prison early.

Once his Demon Slayer status was processed, he followed Hu Lianfeng out of the tent.

The moment they stepped outside, he asked Hu Lianfeng, "Master, you have a sentence of over nine hundred years. Doesn't that mean you would need over three hundred thousand points to get out?"

Hu Lianfeng paused, sighed, and said, "I've been in Sea City Prison for six years, and I only have forty thousand points. I haven't even been promoted to a Gold Demon Slayer yet."

"At my current rate of killing demonic beasts, it will take fifty years before I can get out. I'm afraid I won't live that long."

"That's why I say I'll never get out in this lifetime, unless I can ascend to the Xiantian Realm and extend my lifespan."

Ye Wudao pursed his lips and continued, "Then how many years is Elder Qin's sentence? The Gold Demon Slayer you mentioned—you were talking about Elder Qin, right?"

Hu Lianfeng kept walking and shook his head, "Don't pry into Elder Qin's affairs. Even if I knew, I couldn't tell you much."

"If Elder Qin wants to tell you, then you listen."

"I can only tell you that Elder Qin's sentence is more than double the combined sentences of Zhang Hankuang and me."

"However, Elder Qin's speed at killing demonic beasts is also very fast. He should be close to being promoted to a Gold Demon Slayer."

Ye Wudao pursed his lips. It took ten thousand points to be promoted to a Bronze Demon Slayer and one hundred thousand to be promoted to a Silver Demon Slayer.

If Qin Tianlong was close to being promoted to a Gold Demon Slayer, didn't that mean he had eight or nine hundred thousand points?

Even with only eight hundred thousand points, that could offset over two thousand years of a sentence.

Yet, Qin Tianlong was still in prison; he couldn't even imagine what kind of monstrous crime Qin Tianlong had committed.

He looked at Hu Lianfeng and continued, "What about Senior Zhang Hankuang? He only has a sentence of over three hundred years; he should be getting out soon, right?"

Hu Lianfeng laughed, "He's actually only been here for about half a year, but he is at the peak of the Houtian Realm, and his speed at killing demonic beasts is faster than mine."

"He can kill about twenty Tier 2 demonic beasts a day, so he probably has over eight thousand points by now!"

"At his pace, he will definitely be able to get out. He'll be out in about ten years or so."

"Actually, there used to be several other people in Cell No. 1. Some got out early, and some died inside the Rift World."

"Elder Qin has likely been in Cell No. 1 the longest. I heard from people who were in Cell No. 1 before that Elder Qin has been there for at least ten years."

After finishing, he sighed and said, "Sigh! Let's not talk about this anymore. Hurry up and let's go meet up with Elder Qin and the others!"

"Actually, bringing you here today was just to let you see the world. With your current strength, it is impossible for you to kill any demonic beasts."

"When you reach the Great Perfection of the Body Tempering Realm, you can go kill some Tier 1 demonic beasts to gain some experience."

Ye Wudao listened to Hu Lianfeng's words, his heart filled with shock.

Elder Qin had only stayed in Cell No. 1 for ten years?

He could earn eight or nine hundred thousand points in ten years?

Doesn't that mean Elder Qin could earn at least two or three hundred points a day?

Is the Xiantian Realm really that strong?

Actually, although neither Hu Lianfeng nor Zhang Hankuang had stated what realm Qin Tianlong was in, one could tell from their attitude toward Elder Qin that he was at least a master of the Xiantian Realm.

He followed in Hu Lianfeng's footsteps while thinking about this in his mind.

Soon, the two arrived in front of the large tent.

Hu Lianfeng stood at the entrance of the tent, turned his head, and said to Ye Wudao, "This is the Weaponry. You can rent or buy weapons with points, but you cannot take them out of the Rift World."

"Don't go in. Even renting a mediocre weapon costs one point. You don't have any points right now, so going in is useless and will only disturb your state of mind."

"When you promote to the Body Tempering Realm, I will teach you a set of blade techniques."

"I'm going to retrieve the weapon I have stored inside. Wait for me here for a moment."

Ye Wudao nodded. What Hu Lianfeng said was the truth; he didn't have a single point, so going inside wouldn't be of any use.

Before long, Hu Lianfeng walked out of the tent with a large blade in his hand.

Ye Wudao pursed his lips and asked, "Master, why don't you borrow a gun?"

"Wouldn't it be faster to kill demonic beasts with a gun?"

He asked the biggest question in his heart. Even if they were demonic beasts, they were still made of flesh and blood; could they really withstand bullets and shells?

Hearing his words, Hu Lianfeng laughed out loud, "Haha! Look around the entire encampment, does anyone carry a gun?"

Ye Wudao frowned slightly, recalling the scenes he had seen along the way.

It seemed...

Indeed, no one was carrying a gun!

However, the guards on the watchtowers were holding guns.

He asked in confusion, "Master, what is going on?"

"Are only the guards allowed to use guns, and we Demon Slayer Guards cannot?"

"But isn't the original intention of the Demon Slayer Guard to eliminate demonic beasts?"

"Why must we use cold weapons when there are powerful firearms available?"

Hu Lianfeng shook his head and said, "It's not that we aren't allowed to use them; it's that using firearms is very dangerous."

"The gathering places of demonic beasts contain thousands upon thousands of them."

"Once you fire a shot, the sound will attract the demonic beasts."

"No matter what kind of gun it is, or how good the silencer is, it's useless."

"Back when the Blue Star Federation first discovered the Rift World, they used guns to kill demonic beasts, and as a result, the Blue Star Federation suffered heavy casualties."

After speaking, he paused, looked into the distance, and said softly, "Let's go! It's time to find Elder Qin and the others."

Ye Wudao nodded and obediently followed behind Hu Lianfeng.