Docked Pay

Several days passed. The First-Order high-grade Demonic Beast to the east was jointly surrounded and killed by three Qi Refining Late Stage cultivators from the market.

After the news returned to the market, the tension that had been wound tight for several days finally loosened somewhat.

But only somewhat. The fact that a First-Order high-grade beast had appeared five or six li east of the market was itself a problem.

Li Yuan maintained his usual routine. He practiced the five forms of the Iron Ox Technique once each day, squeezed in the Nurturing Origin Technique whenever he could, and cultivated the Spirit Guiding Art at night. Outer patrols had been suspended, and the inspection range had shrunk back within the market.

Yet the work had not decreased.

Today was the day monthly stipends were issued. After becoming a vice-captain, he could be considered a minor official, so he no longer needed to queue up to collect his pay himself. However, he received it at the same time as the other vice-captains and captains, later than ordinary patrolmen.

Three Spirit Stones, two Vein-Clearing Pills, and fifteen Contribution Points—this was his monthly stipend.

Returning to his residence, Li Yuan slid the bolt into place, sat at the edge of the bed, and poured out the contents of the cloth pouch.

Three Spirit Stones rolled across the tabletop. Beside them, two dark-red medicinal pills gave off a faint medicinal fragrance. Their bodies were translucent, with red patterns faintly flowing across their surfaces.

Two Vein-Clearing Pills. Li Yuan picked one up and put it into his mouth.

The pill melted as soon as it entered his stomach. A warm medicinal force rose from his stomach and viscera, slowly spreading through his meridians.

Unlike the sensation of spiritual energy entering his body during cultivation, this medicinal force was gentler, like a warm current soaking into the inner walls of his meridians and gradually clearing the tiny blockages within.

The spiritual power in his Dantian stirred once, then returned to calm.

Vein-Clearing Pills could increase spiritual power and accelerate cultivation speed for a certain period.

But for Li Yuan, currently at Mid Qi Refinement, the effect of increasing spiritual power was limited.

What truly made them useful was their effect of speeding up cultivation.

The panel displayed a notification:

[Vein-Clearing Pill Permanence Progress: 1/10]

It took ten pills to make it permanent. Relying solely on the Vein-Clearing Pills issued each month, it would take at least five months. Still, there was no better way. He would save them up slowly.

Li Yuan put away the remaining Vein-Clearing Pill, gathered the Spirit Stones into his sleeve, then sat cross-legged and began cultivating.

The increase in cultivation speed was not great, but it was still thirty percent faster than before. Combined with the stacking traits, it became even quicker.

When Li Yuan finished cultivating and pushed open the door, Fang He next door was sitting on the threshold, wiping his short saber.

Seeing Li Yuan, Fang He stood and cupped his hands.

"I have something to tell you. I joined the Guard Squad."

"When?"

"The day before yesterday."

Fang He sheathed his short saber and patted his robe hem.

"I have to thank you for helping me inquire about it before. Then I went directly to sign up with the Guard Squad."

"They happened to be desperately short of people. When they saw I had experience with the Monster Hunting Squad and that my cultivation was sufficient, they approved me right away."

The Guard Squad truly was short-handed. The losses they had suffered previously had yet to be replenished.

There was no reason for the Guard Squad to reject a Rogue Cultivator like Fang He with actual combat experience.

"I officially report in tomorrow." Fang He rolled his neck, his tone calm.

Li Yuan nodded.

Fang He bared his teeth in a grin. "I've already been in the Monster Hunting Squad. At least the Guard Squad has people to cover your back, so I won't have to worry about getting stabbed in the back by my own people."

The conversation stopped there. Fang He turned and returned to his room.

Li Yuan did not press for more details and went out on patrol.

--

There were fewer people on East Street than in previous days.

Not by much, but the difference could be felt—several temporary sheds that had previously been crammed at alley entrances had been dismantled, leaving only marks on the ground where they had pressed down. Two or three stalls in the middle section of North Alley were also gone, making the passage a little wider.

After the news of the First-Order high-grade beast spread, a number of Rogue Cultivators had indeed chosen to leave.

But not many had gone. The reason was simple: outside the market was even less safe.

From Qinghe Market to the nearest Li Family Market was nearly a hundred li, with most of the route running through wilderness.

This stretch of road had once been relatively peaceful, but now the Demonic Beasts of the Yuanheng Mountains were spreading outward. One could encounter anything on the road.

Rather than risk traveling, it was better to remain in the market.

This was how most Rogue Cultivators saw it.

What truly caught Li Yuan's attention was something else.

When he patrolled to the end of East Street, a Talisman shop that usually did good business had closed its doors.

The wooden doors were bolted from the inside. Several packed crates were piled outside, and through a gap in the window, he could see that more than half the shelves inside had been emptied.

They were not temporarily closed. They were packing up to leave.

As Li Yuan walked the route, he found at least three shops packing their goods, while another had already posted a notice of transfer.

It did not matter much if a few Rogue Cultivators left. Vacant stalls would soon be filled by others. Shops were different.

The yearly rent paid by a successful shop equaled that of dozens of Rogue Cultivator stalls.

Once shops left, the market's income would clearly decline.

The Wang Family certainly would not want to see such a situation.

When he went to the station that afternoon to report in, Wang De sat behind his desk. Another pile of new documents was stacked on the tabletop, and his brows were tightly furrowed.

Li Yuan knocked and entered, first giving a brief report on the patrol situation.

After listening, Wang De did not respond immediately. He set aside the document in his hand and tapped the desk twice with his index finger.

"The matter of the Demonic Beasts in the Spirit Field District has been investigated."

Li Yuan stood before the desk without speaking.

"During the period when the South Line patrol went wrong, Zhou Dazhuang and two other guards were responsible for that area. During their rotation, the three neglected their patrol duties. One day, they withdrew early, leaving a gap in the south. The Demonic Beasts slipped in through that gap."

Wang De's tone was level.

"The three of them will each have two months of pay docked, and their service in the Guard Squad will be extended by three months apiece."

Two months of docked pay meant twenty Spirit Stones gone.

The three-month extension was even more fatal—the Guard Squad rotation had originally lasted only one month, but now it had become four.

Zhou Dazhuang's wife was still pregnant. He had mentioned last time that her morning sickness was severe and she had grown much thinner. With his pay docked and another three months of running about outside ahead of him, things would indeed be difficult.

But there was nothing to say about the punishment. Their negligence on patrol had allowed Demonic Beasts into the Spirit Field District. If they had injured Spirit Farmers or destroyed Spirit Fields, the consequences would not be something docked pay could offset.

"There is another matter."

Wang De pulled several records from the pile of papers and spread them across the desk.

"Recently, Demonic Beast sightings around the market have become increasingly frequent. From last month until now, the Guard Squad has reported seventeen sightings, six of them within five li of the market."

"Previously, there were only two or three in a month," Li Yuan said.

"It could be said that Demonic Beast activity has become frequent."

Wang De picked up his teacup, did not drink, then set it down again.

"But several instances do not seem right."

"While patrolling the north, the Guard Squad encountered different Demonic Beasts in the same place for three consecutive days. An Iron-Spine Hyena on the first day, two Horned Lizards on the second, and a Single-Horned Snake Badger on the third. The habits of these three beasts are completely different. Under normal circumstances, they would not appear in the same location."

Li Yuan frowned. "Were they driven there from elsewhere by something?"

Wang De glanced at him.

"Hard to say. But for it to happen by chance three days running, with the locations nearly identical, it does not look like a natural migration."

They still had not uncovered who stood behind Zhao Wu's spying on the market's defenses. If someone was secretly driving Demonic Beasts to harass the market's surroundings, Zhao Wu's intelligence gathering now had a new explanation.

Wang De said no more and waved his hand.

"The Guard Squad and the Wang Family are investigating this. Just handle your patrol duties properly, and prepare for the possibility of new assignments. Come find me if anything happens."

Li Yuan acknowledged the order and withdrew.

It was already evening when he returned to his residence.

Li Yuan slid the bolt into place, then first took a stance in the cleared space inside the room and practiced the Iron Ox Technique once.

With the enhancement of Viscera Strengthening, the five forms flowed together smoothly. When his qi and blood washed through his viscera, the force was solid, and the upward-downward opposing pull of the fifth form, Iron Ox Crosses the River, was extremely steady.

[Iron Ox Technique: Proficient (382/400)]

He was not far from Minor Accomplishment.

After finishing the technique, he practiced the Nurturing Origin Technique twice more. Once both techniques were complete, Li Yuan sat cross-legged and circulated the Spirit Guiding Art.

Spiritual energy surged into his meridians—pure and swift.

The spiritual power in his Dantian was far more abundant than it had been last month.

The hollow sensation from when he had just broken through to the fourth layer had long vanished, replaced by a heavy fullness. With every circulation, he could feel spiritual power settling firmly in his Dantian.

The Spirit Guiding Art also circulated more and more smoothly. The breathing rhythm that had required deliberate control several months ago was now nearly instinctive, and the proficiency on the panel was closing in on Major Accomplishment.

With the support of his traits, Li Yuan's cultivation speed far exceeded that of cultivators at the same stage.

Not only did he accumulate spiritual power quickly, but because that spiritual power was pure and flowed rapidly, Li Yuan had not encountered any bottlenecks along the way.

Bottlenecks did not arise only when breaking through realms. Ordinary cultivation also brought smaller bottlenecks. Time could wear them down, but it took a great deal of time.

Li Yuan closed his eyes and circulated his technique, his breathing long and even.