Wen Taiquan heard his words and looked a little awkward.
"Well, basically, to a certain extent, it shouldn't be wrong."
Hearing that, Li Qing's eyebrows jumped. "So it can still be wrong?"
Wen Taiquan nodded and said with a somewhat helpless expression,
"It can be wrong."
"Because Anomalies come in all kinds."
"Some are so powerful that ordinary intelligence officers sometimes can't analyze them properly."
"When the experts in the Demon Extermination Hall analyze the information, problems can arise, and high-ranking tasks may end up classified as low-ranking ones."
"How many people are killed or injured each year?" Li Qing quickly asked the sensitive question.
Wen Taiquan looked at Li Qing helplessly. "At least one in ten."
Li Qing's heart gave a slight jump. One in ten each year meant that in ten years, they would all have been replaced. The danger involved was astonishing.
As if he had seen Li Qing's concern, Wen Taiquan hurriedly said,
"Most of the losses happen because some people take on missions recklessly for cultivation resources."
"Most cautious cultivators are very careful when accepting missions."
"As long as you're cautious enough, the likelihood of casualties isn't that high."
Hearing this, Li Qing secretly shook his head.
I'll take a look first. If it's too dangerous here, I'll be ready to slip away at any moment.
"Anyway, there's still a very low chance of something going wrong on a Grade C mission."
"There are fewer than a hundred Demon Extermination Captains in total, so it's not as dangerous as you think."
Wen Taiquan explained, seemingly trying to cover up the risk.
He continued, "Anomalies are mainly divided into several categories. The first is the attack type."
"For example, those with great strength, speed, and physical prowess. The best way to deal with this kind of Anomaly is to attack from a distance and kill it with spells."
"The second is the uncanny type. These Anomalies possess strange abilities."
"For example, once they injure an enemy, the enemy's wound rapidly rots, and eventually their entire body collapses and dies."
"Some can also spread uncanny mist, creating an environment where you can't tell east from west. The mist is corrosive, too, and will eventually eat away at its target until they die."
"There's also the mental type."
"These Anomalies are even more dangerous. They can affect their targets' minds."
"After being affected, some targets completely forget their past and sink into an Anomaly's mental illusion."
"Others go mad under mental attacks and eventually meet their deaths."
"Anomalies are all formed from the countless streams of vital energy above our heads."
"These are the three main types of Anomalies."
"Most of them come into being when some event in the city, charged with powerful obsession, attracts the vital energy above our heads and gives rise to an Anomaly."
"You can earn merit by killing Anomalies: ten points for Grade A, five for Grade B, and one for Grade C."
"Everything you gain on a mission belongs to you."
"Besides these naturally occurring Anomalies, there are also cultivators who undergo Aberration."
"These cultivators usually lose their reason and slaughter every living thing they see."
"They're at least twice as powerful as they were before."
"Compared to Anomalies, these aberrated cultivators are the most dangerous."
"Although they're mad, that only applies in a general sense."
"They don't lose their combat instincts. On the contrary, their madness makes them even more fierce and savage in battle."
"So if you ever encounter an aberrated cultivator, you'll have to be even more careful."
As Li Qing listened to Wen Taiquan's explanation, his gaze swept over the bottom row of white jade tokens. There were about thirty of them.
He looked closely. A small slip of paper was attached beside each token, with a description written on it.
"The Peaceful Village Grave Robbing Incident..."
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"The Oil Cruller Seller Old Man Incident..."
"The Human Head Candle Incident..."
At a glance, none of them looked like easy cases.
His eyebrows twitching, he soon settled on a mission.
"The cries from the ruins of the Water Transport Councilor Mansion's Li Residence (no casualties). Cries ring out from the ruins at midnight, disturbing the people nearby..."
After reading the mission description, Li Qing smiled.
"I'll take this one."
Wen Taiquan looked at the mission he had chosen and furrowed his brow slightly. "This is about the Water Transport Counselor who died a month ago."
"His entire family was burned to death in a fire."
"They say robbers attacked them and were so ruthless that not one person escaped."
"Ever since then, cries have sounded every night."
"Some people accepted the mission and went to investigate, but none of them figured out what was going on."
"This mission isn't very dangerous, but it's troublesome."
Li Qing nodded. "I've never dealt with an Anomaly before, either. A mission without danger is just right for me."
Wen Taiquan opened his mouth. "Brother, you really are cautious."
Li Qing smiled. "I only have one life. I should feel things out first."
"Fine, then. Come on, let's go register!"
Having said that, he took down the jade token and went over to the registration desk.
Li Qing registered his name and received all the case files.
He read through them briefly and got a general idea of what had happened.
A Water Transport Counselor was an official specifically responsible for managing the docks outside the city.
He was a sixth-rank official, second only to the prefect in Jade City.
He had been wiped out along with his entire family half a year ago, according to the coroner's autopsy report.
They had been killed before the fire started. The whole family had been pierced through by sharp blades.
A month after the Water Transport Councilor Mansion had burned to ashes, cries began to ring out there. They sounded like a woman sobbing.
According to the case file, the cries were very likely the lingering resentment of a woman from the Councilor's household, which had merged with vital energy and become an Anomaly—the Ghost Sound.
This Ghost could make all kinds of uncanny noises, filling the living with fear.
If someone remained afraid for too long, they would eventually attract this Ghost-type Anomaly, have their vital energy drained, and die.
The Ghost Sound was an illusory monster. Ordinary physical attacks were useless against it.
Only spells with extreme properties could work, such as fire, lightning, or ice magic.
The more he read, the more astonished Li Qing became.
The case file was extremely detailed. It laid out all kinds of possible conclusions and even provided a way to resolve the situation.
Li Qing looked at Wen Taiquan in surprise. "Who put this case file together? They're amazing!"
Wen Taiquan burst out laughing. "You've met him, too."
Li Qing immediately understood. "You mean Elder Huang?"
"That's right. Elder Huang is the Demon Extermination Hall's Know-It-All."
"He's read countless accounts of Anomaly incidents. When it comes to understanding Anomalies, no one in all of Jade City would dare claim to know more than him."
Li Qing was a little surprised. "Elder Huang is that capable? What does he like?"
At this, a hint of amusement appeared in Wen Taiquan's eyes.
"Brother Qin, you've got an ulterior motive."
Li Qing smiled. "There's a living encyclopedia sitting right there. Of course I want to build a good relationship with him."
"If I run into trouble in the future, maybe I can ask the old gentleman to help me figure things out and find a way to survive."
"Only natural. I understand!" Wen Taiquan said meaningfully.