Training Room

Early the next morning.

Yang Wenqing woke at his usual time. This time, he did not take any White Dragon Ginseng. He simply sat cross-legged on the bed and meditated, guiding the abundant spiritual energy within him through three Greater Celestial Circuits to ensure he remained in peak condition.

When he opened the door and stepped out, he saw a woman holding a child sitting beside the open door across from his. She glanced at Yang Wenqing and said, "Good news, Wen Qing."

Yang Wenqing replied with a smile, "No, Sister Wang."

At that moment, a man poked his head out from inside and said with a grin, "The Public Security Office must be starting its rotational leave, right?"

"Yes!"

Yang Wenqing answered politely. By the time he reached the stairwell, he had already concealed the obvious delight on his face.

Today was the last day of the first lunar month. The festive air in the county town had gradually faded away, and starting today, the Public Security Office would also begin its rotational leave. Yang Wenqing had five days off, though the exact dates depended on the schedule.

During last year's holiday, Yang Wenqing had gone home to pay belated New Year respects to the elders of his clan. He had the same plan this year, but he wanted to first attempt a breakthrough. He could do it in the branch office's training room. It was a little expensive, but retired veterans from the bureau kept watch there, so if anything went wrong, he could receive treatment in time.

As all these thoughts surged into his mind at once, Yang Wenqing's long-quiet heart suddenly sprang to life. Without realizing it, his steps quickened, and he arrived at the Public Security Office ten minutes early.

Even so, Li Ming, who always arrived precisely on time, had gotten there before him today. He was clearly waiting for Yang Wenqing. The moment he saw him, he immediately came over from the entrance of the Public Security Office and hurriedly said as he drew close, "People from a research institute in the city came over. They're specifically here to collect the cultivator skeletons we got before the New Year."

As he spoke, he stared at Yang Wenqing. "You still have that skeleton, right?"

Yang Wenqing nodded.

Li Ming immediately pulled Yang Wenqing toward the Public Security Office, saying as they walked, "We're about to go on leave anyway. We might as well sell it for some cash, so I won't look too shabby when I visit my father-in-law's home."

When they reached the office area of the Second Patrol Squad, Yang Wenqing took out the skeleton. Li Ming accepted it and examined it twice in his hand, a faint smile appearing on his face. "This vacation will be a little more secure now."

"Did you find out how much it can sell for?"

Yang Wenqing asked.

Li Ming's smile deepened. "Ours is in excellent condition. It'll most likely sell for over ten thousand yuan. If we had other channels, it might even fetch a hundred thousand."

As he said that last sentence, he raised his brows at Yang Wenqing.

Yang Wenqing silently nodded. There were plenty of madmen in this world, people who did not mind taking unusual paths in cultivation. They were also prime targets for the City Defense Bureau, so naturally, the two of them could not trade with such people.

As for whether that so-called research institute had dealings of that sort, it was not something small fries like them could worry about.

"I already went to the captain's house to request leave. I'm going to the branch office to exchange this for money now. I'll be back within an hour at the latest." Li Ming wrapped up the skeleton as he spoke to Yang Wenqing. Without waiting for a reply, he headed for the door and nearly collided with Liu-jie, who was entering.

"What's so urgent? Is your wife about to give birth?"

"My wife gave birth before the New Year."

"The baby's already a month old? How come I haven't seen you hand out candy?"

"Another day!"

After hurriedly exchanging a few words with Liu-jie, Li Ming rushed out the door.

When Liu-jie entered the room and saw Yang Wenqing, her eyes visibly lit up. She immediately walked over and said, "Wen Qing, come here. Let me show you a photograph."

As she spoke, she pulled a color photograph from her jacket pocket and handed it to Yang Wenqing.

Yang Wenqing's gaze shifted instinctively. He saw a delicate-looking girl wearing a light purple collared coat over a simple white cotton shirt. Her long hair fell softly over her shoulders, with no excessive adornment. Her looks were not breathtaking, but she possessed a clean, refined beauty.

"What do you think?" Liu-jie watched Yang Wenqing's expression and asked with a hint of anticipation.

"She's a very refined-looking girl," Yang Wenqing commented.

"She's my niece, my cousin's eldest daughter. She turned eighteen last year and was assigned to the General Affairs Division of the County Administrative Office. I think you two are a good match. Do you want to meet her?" Liu-jie smiled.

"This..." Yang Wenqing truly did not know how to respond. He did not want to start dating so early, but Liu-jie usually took very good care of him, and it would not be right to refuse her outright.

"You young people should spend some time together. My cousin's family is in about the same circumstances as yours. If you get along, then date. If not, just consider it making a new friend." Seeing Yang Wenqing hesitate, Liu-jie made the decision for him, deliberately mentioning the girl's family background.

Yang Wenqing knew that this was the sort of thing he could not refuse, so he nodded in agreement. But whether they would actually meet was another matter. After all, with blind dates, at least five out of ten ended at the stage of merely looking at each other's photographs.

Satisfied, Liu-jie returned to her desk.

At that moment, Captain Xiao Liang finally entered the room. Yang Wenqing stepped forward and said quietly, "Captain, I want to talk to you about something."

Xiao Liang glanced at the wall clock and nodded lightly. He then walked to the corner on the left side of the room, activated the Soundproof Formation set up there, and said to Yang Wenqing, "Go ahead. What is it?"

Yang Wenqing said directly, "I want to rent a training room at the county bureau for three days."

Xiao Liang studied Yang Wenqing carefully, then smiled faintly. "Before the New Year, I noticed that whenever you cultivated, you could precisely control the intensity of your spiritual energy's circulation. Your Qi Sea also refined spiritual energy faster than an ordinary person's. You remind me of someone."

"He is Wang Jianchao, now the deputy leader of the Major Crimes Unit at the county bureau. His aptitude was ordinary back then, but he had unique insights into seal formulas. He derived a unique Spirit-Gathering Seal and successfully advanced to the Qi Refinement Realm at the age of twenty. Some time ago, I heard he had also derived a Thunder-Calling Seal. Unfortunately, these seals are profound and difficult to understand, and cannot be memorized."

The image of a frail middle-aged man surfaced in Yang Wenqing's mind. Wang Jianchao had once taught them a seal formula course at the city's Security Academy. Seal formulas were in fact a profound art, like scientific formulas that could be analyzed and deduced on a deeper level. But if one could not grasp it, then one simply could not grasp it.

"Team Leader Wang and I were from the same class. Back then, I even..." Xiao Liang abruptly stopped there. He shook his head, then looked at Yang Wenqing and said, "Your situation is different. Your consciousness is powerful. There was a corresponding note in your Security Academy file, personally approved by the academy director."

"A powerful consciousness can let you refine spiritual energy faster and sense the state of the Spirit Veins inside your body. That was precisely why I agreed to let you gather energy and cultivate using a cultivator skeleton."

Yang Wenqing froze. He truly had not known that his file contained such an annotation. Hearing Xiao Liang's words now, he immediately recalled a meditative cultivation session shortly after enrolling. At the time, he had carefully gathered a portion of the Golden Core's energy, and it seemed the academy director had noticed him.

Over the years, he had cautiously conducted some experiments and could already confirm that outsiders could not sense the Golden Core in his mind. Yet it turned out that what they sensed was his powerful consciousness.

"What realm is the academy director in?" Yang Wenqing asked quietly.

"At least the Entry Realm!" Xiao Liang's tone carried unmistakable longing as he answered.

Yang Wenqing understood. To reach the Entry Realm, one had to pass through Qi Refining, Marrow Cleansing, and Foundation Establishment. Every step required the accumulation of time; it was not something he needed to consider right now.

Xiao Liang patted Yang Wenqing's shoulder and said, "After we wrap up the patrol this afternoon, I'll take you to the county bureau. One of my former classmates happens to manage the training rooms."