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Fruit was considered a luxury commodity in Pingjiang.

After all, this world had no ordinary fruit in the true sense.

Even an orange was a spirit fruit containing spiritual qi.

A pound of oranges cost 150 yuan, nearly as much as a vial of Kehua No. 3 Potion.

Jiang Ran normally could not bear to buy fruit. Although selling the Vermilion Dense Iron had raised his savings into the ten-thousand-yuan range, every penny was still extremely precious to him.

"Officer Su, this is freshly squeezed orange juice from fresh oranges."

"Thank you for bringing me so many things, and thank the leaders of Pingjiang Third Police Bureau for their concern as well..."

"Hmph..." Su Xue was slightly amused. She lifted the glass and chuckled softly.

She had not expected this young student Jiang Ran to be so humorous.

Jiang Ran quickly sorted through the gift boxes, answering Officer Su's questions from time to time with a grin that would not fade.

Pingjiang Third Police Bureau was truly generous!

The gifts they had sent this time were indeed plentiful, even more than what the ladies from the Women's Federation had brought. They had clearly put considerable thought into them.

Medicine, supplements, spirit stones, and even practice books for spells and ancient languages...

By rough estimate, these items were worth at least ten thousand yuan.

Having accepted their gifts, Jiang Ran naturally stopped holding back and answered everything he knew.

When demonic cultivators were mentioned, Su Xue said with a smile:

"Jiang Ran, since you hate demonic cultivators so much, you could take the entrance exams for Immortal Police University in the future. Perhaps someday..."

Every victim of demonic calamities carried a seed of justice in their heart.

That seed of justice often grew into a towering tree of justice in the future.

But Su Xue abruptly stopped speaking. She suddenly remembered that this student Jiang Ran seemed to be a poor student...

The Heavenly Lu Kingdom had three Immortal Police Universities. One was among the nation's ten most prestigious schools, while the other two were both ranked among the top hundred universities.

Naturally, such outstanding universities had extremely high admission scores.

A poor student with bottom-ranking grades like Jiang Ran probably had little hope.

"Officer Su, my grades have improved a lot recently," Jiang Ran said proactively.

"My teacher said I've had an awakening. I'll have a chance to get into university in the future!"

He had deliberately said those words.

It was not that he did not understand the value of hiding his abilities, but that there was simply nothing left for him to hide.

Reaching the pinnacle of Qi Cultivation was inevitable, and entering the Dao through qi absorption was within reach. He could no longer maintain the identity of a poor student.

Showing an appropriate amount of his talent was the correct choice.

"Really? That's wonderful." Su Xue's eyes lit up. Just moments ago, she had been worried that she might have said something wrong and hurt a high school student's fragile heart.

Once the conversation got going, Su Xue told Jiang Ran quite a bit more about universities.

For example, the admission requirements for the ten most prestigious schools and the top hundred universities, as well as the fact that applying to Immortal Police University required passing a heart-demon level test.

"By the way, Jiang Ran..."

"There's something I still need to ask you."

"Did your parents leave behind any belongings?" Su Xue asked solemnly.

Jiang Ran kept smiling, though his heart tightened slightly.

He knew that this might have been Officer Su's true purpose for coming today.

"Belongings?"

"I don't think so."

"None?" Su Xue frowned.

If all she had to report to the bureau chief were the two words "none," it would probably be difficult to account for the assignment.

Jiang Ran thought carefully. He truly could not find any trace of such things in his memories, so he answered earnestly again, "There really weren't any."

"Officer Su, there's no reason for me to lie to you."

"I was still young when my parents died. The Women's Federation handled their belongings, and in the end, all they left me was an old house and a few old books."

The records stated that Jiang Ran's mother had worked for a pharmaceutical company, while his father had been a first-rank police officer in a local precinct.

When a police officer died, all their connections would naturally have already undergone an official investigation.

It was also because his father had been part of the system that Jiang Ran had received additional care, including admission to Pingjiang No. 1 High School without an exam, subsidized housing, and extra subsistence allowances. They were the last care his father had left him.

"That makes sense..." Su Xue nodded in acknowledgment.

In truth, Pingjiang Third Police Bureau had long since reviewed Jiang Ran's complete files and records. They already knew all about these circumstances.

"Where are those old books? Can you take me to see them?"

Although Su Xue did not believe Jiang Ran was hiding anything, she had been assigned a task. She still had to do what needed to be done.

"Sure." Jiang Ran agreed readily.

Based on everything that had happened over the past few days, as well as the police bureau's various official inquiries,

the root cause of the demonic cultivator case was likely connected to some kind of treasure or information. The demonic cultivators were searching for something, and the police bureau seemed to be looking for the same thing.

If possible, Jiang Ran was more than willing to hand over his parents' belongings to the police bureau.

Even if they really contained some hidden treasure, he would gladly turn it all in.

After all, no matter how good a treasure was, one needed to be alive to use it.

Jiang Ran only wanted to cultivate steadily, step by step, under the protection of the state. He had no desire to experience another incident of demonic cultivators raiding and kidnapping him.

"There, that's all of them."

Jiang Ran opened the wooden cabinet and carried out every book inside.

More than a hundred books were arranged neatly. Their exteriors were wrapped in a special layer of yellow paper, and though it was covered in dust, the books within had not been affected.

"Officer Su, look through them as much as you like."

"If necessary, you can take them all away. I don't like reading these old books anyway." Jiang Ran looked utterly unconcerned.

He could not wait to send these troublesome things away and eliminate the danger.

"There's no need to take them away." Su Xue shook her head.

She took a small mirror from her robe. Its surface was dark blue-green and faintly luminous.

"Go!"

With a sharp shout, the small mirror erupted with intense azure light.

The azure light enveloped the entire room, then rapidly swept across the books.

A moment later, the radiance gradually faded.

No reaction... Su Xue reached her conclusion.

"Well, Officer Su? Did you find what you were looking for?"

Jiang Ran appeared even more excited than Su Xue.

"No." Su Xue smiled.

"Don't be nervous. This was only a routine inspection. We won't harm you."

The whole farce came to an end.

Jiang Ran had once again passed an "inspection."

"Jiang Ran, the demonic cultivator has not yet been apprehended. We must ensure your safety."

Officer Su promised that no more police officers would come to conduct similar evidence searches in the future. This would be the end of it.

"Keep this spirit talisman. If you encounter danger, tear it apart immediately."

Several days later.

Jiang Ran took a breath.

He closed his eyes, gripped the pale-purple jade pendant, and chaos reappeared before him.

Grand Ruins Realm, Black Dragon Mountain.

Hundred Yue Sect's Vermilion Dense Iron Vein.

Thank goodness...

Jiang Ran examined his surroundings and found nothing unusual, letting out a breath of relief.

The mining vein covered a vast area, and its underground passages extended in every direction. The Hundred Yue Sect could not possibly monitor every corner.

After all, Vermilion Dense Iron was merely a Qi Cultivation mineral. It did not warrant such strict oversight.

Half of the fifteen-day ore submission period had already passed.

Most miners were working hard to dig for ore, while Jiang Ran did not have even a single fragment of ore in his hands.

Looking at the dark-red raw ore exposed all around him, he suddenly smiled from the bottom of his heart.

He reached out.

A red Dexi-brand impact drill worth 5,500 yuan fell into his hand.