He had to report to the Major Crimes Unit before the 20th, but Deputy Section Chief Li's words had made the message clear: the Major Crimes Unit was badly understaffed. In other words, he had to report there as soon as possible.
It was now the 17th, February 17th. This world's calendar followed the moon's trajectory directly, and Spring Festival was the final day of the year.
Theoretically, Yang Wenqing still had three days of vacation left, but he intended to heed Deputy Section Chief Li's reminder and report to the Major Crimes Unit early. From what Deputy Section Chief Li had implied, reporting early should bring some benefits, most likely a difference in position.
After parting ways with Song Yu and Wu Qi, he immediately returned to his home in Dongning Community. After locking the door behind him, he eagerly took out his badge, pressed it to his brow, and sank his Divine Sense into it.
The first thing that came into view was the general outline of the Ninefold Refinement Method.
Its opening explained that this method was intended to temper one's foundation and refine the physique, laying down the Dao foundation for the road of future cultivation. Those with outstanding talent could advance a thousand miles in a day through this method, their potential multiplying; even those of mediocre aptitude could use it to make up for innate deficiencies, significantly raising their cultivation efficiency and limits. Thus, this method also possessed the effect of "changing one's tendons and forging one's bones, defying heaven and changing one's fate."
Yang Wenqing had long heard of this Secret Art at the academy. Those with talent already possessed the qualifications to cultivate immortality, so their cultivation speed naturally advanced a thousand miles in a day. Those with poor aptitude, however, had to polish their cultivation foundation during the Qi Refining Stage. If they succeeded, a bright future lay ahead; if they failed, they could only stop there.
The First Refinement of Qi Refining was called "Bones and Muscles Resonance."
The core of its method was to guide the pure spiritual energy within the Qi Sea through, soak, and temper all 206 bones and 639 muscles in the body, causing them to undergo an essential transformation and become tougher, more capable of bearing and circulating vast amounts of spiritual energy. The cultivation process also required a specific stabilizing formation to prevent the spiritual energy's fluctuations from going out of control and harming oneself.
The Secret Art provided a detailed route map for the circulation of spiritual energy, involving many tiny meridians he had never touched before. It also included the complete formation diagram for the "Foundation-Stabilizing Formation."
This formation required one's own blood essence mixed with a small amount of silver or gold powder to draw specific runes across the floor of a quiet room. Its foundation consisted of inner and outer rings. The inner ring bore the rune for "stability," used to steady the mind and anchor one's blood and qi; the outer ring consisted of eight "suppression" runes, used to suppress earthly qi and isolate external demons. At the same time, it gathered heaven-and-earth spiritual energy to form a stable pressure field, restraining the turbulent spiritual energy within the body from leaking out or running wild. It could also suppress pain.
Once activated, the formation would emit a soft earthen-yellow glow. Standing within it, one could clearly feel the space around one's body becoming viscous and stable, as though one had been placed deep within the earth.
The notes at the end of the method specifically mentioned: "If one supplements this refinement with the medicinal power of Dragon Tendon Tiger Bone Grass, one may achieve twice the result with half the effort, greatly shortening the days of tempering and carrying a certain chance of awakening the potential of one's tendons and bones."
"Dragon Tendon Tiger Bone Grass..." Yang Wenqing knew about the stuff. An ordinary specimen cost fifteen thousand, and judging by the circumstances, it was probably consumed just like White Dragon Ginseng.
He suppressed the thoughts in his heart and first carefully memorized and considered the spiritual energy circulation route for "Bones and Muscles Resonance," as well as every rune of the "Foundation-Stabilizing Formation," repeatedly reviewing every node until he was certain there was not the slightest omission. He then simulated them several times within the Golden Core World in the depths of his consciousness.
Then he sighed. Silver and gold were the best materials for inscribing formation runes, allowing spiritual energy to pass through without obstruction. But both were expensive. Five hundred dollars could be exchanged for one gram of gold, while twenty dollars could be exchanged for one gram of silver. A gold formation would certainly be better than a silver one, and these materials were consumables too.
"I'll buy two hundred grams of silver and try it first."
Yang Wenqing wore a bitter smile. Later, he would still need to refine a better Spirit-Gathering Formation. Having experienced the benefits of gathering spiritual energy, he now felt uncomfortable all over whenever he cultivated without a large amount of gathered spiritual energy. Compared to before the Qi Refining Stage, the new house gathered a decent amount of spiritual energy, but it was utterly useless during the Qi Refining Stage. Then there was also the Dragon Tendon Tiger Bone Grass he had to buy. All of a sudden, even his current salary felt insufficient.
But there was no helping it. If he wanted his cultivation to advance further, some money had to be spent. Once he made up his mind, he got up and headed out, going to the nearest bank to exchange for two hundred grams of silver—silver already ground into powder.
He then spent another two hundred dollars on a bottle of spiritual ink specially used for drawing formation runes. After returning home, he followed the methods taught at the academy, mixing the silver powder with the spiritual ink. He simulated drawing the formation runes once more in the Golden Core World before holding his breath and focusing his mind, carefully beginning to inscribe the "Foundation-Stabilizing Formation" across the living room floor.
As time passed, fine sweat gradually seeped from Yang Wenqing's forehead. Half an hour later, a "Foundation-Stabilizing Formation" roughly three meters in diameter, radiating a calm and steady aura, was finally complete.
These formations also contained fixed laws, much like the universal principles in Wang Ping's memories.
Yang Wenqing sat cross-legged at the formation's core. After adjusting his emotions, he activated the formation with his blood essence.
Bzzz—
An earthen-yellow halo rose up, forming a semi-transparent barrier that enveloped him. At once, he felt his body sink, as though he were carrying an invisible weight, yet the circulation of spiritual energy within him remained unaffected.
He hesitated no longer. Following the First Refinement method of the Ninefold Refinement Method, he cautiously guided the spiritual energy in his Qi Sea, sending it through that complex, unfamiliar route and gradually giving it a special vibrational frequency.
At first, as the spiritual energy passed through certain minute tendons, bones, and muscles, it brought waves of stabbing pain and soreness. But as the spiritual energy's vibrations spread, every bone and muscle in his body began to tremble faintly, producing a rustling sound like countless silkworms gnawing mulberry leaves. This was the initial sign of "Bones and Muscles Resonance."
Then intense soreness, numbness, itchiness, and pain crashed over him in wave after wave. If not for the "Foundation-Stabilizing Formation" suppressing his blood and qi, he would almost have been unable to maintain precise control over the spiritual energy.
Yang Wenqing guarded his mind tightly, enduring the fierce soreness and numbness flooding his tendons and bones, as well as the itching pain that sank into his marrow, while maintaining the spiritual energy's vibrating circulation along the route of the Ninefold Refinement Method with all his strength.
When the second cycle was complete, he observed some damage within his muscles and bones through the projection of the Golden Core World.
"I have to stop!"
Yang Wenqing made the decision without hesitation and stopped running the Ninefold Refinement Method. The unbearable soreness, numbness, and pain weakened accordingly, then slowly faded away.
He then changed his technique, guiding the remaining spiritual energy in his Qi Sea to nourish those damaged bones and muscles.
When the injuries had been successfully repaired, Yang Wenqing felt a burst of emptiness in his Qi Sea. More than half of the spiritual energy that had originally filled it had already been consumed!
"This consumption... is far too terrifying." He opened his eyes, a trace of helplessness appearing on his face.
Without the support of a powerful Spirit-Gathering Formation, relying only on the community and his own basic breathing exercises to restore spiritual energy, the cultivation progress of the Ninefold Refinement Method would be slow enough to drive one to despair.
Yang Wenqing cast a Dust-Cleansing Technique on himself to remove the sweat stains, then sat down cross-legged and circulated the Basic Qi Refining Formula to recover spiritual energy.
After several cycles, a small amount of spiritual energy gathered in his Qi Sea again, and the soreness in his body eased considerably, but he was still far from fully recovered.
Knowing that it was not suitable to forcibly cultivate the Ninefold Refinement Method again today, Yang Wenqing turned his attention to spells. He chose the "Tracking Technique" and the "Demon-Breaking Spell."
The "Tracking Technique" could extract all traces of aura at a crime scene and search for matching sources, similar to the function of a police dog. He chose this spell because he was about to enter the Major Crimes Unit.
The "Demon-Breaking Spell" had an impressive name, but it was actually a fire spell. Its greatest use was enchanting bullets, making it the best offensive method available at this stage.
As for the "Sword-Controlling Art" Captain Xiao Liang had mentioned, it was more complicated. He first needed to nurture a short sword, allowing it to achieve a certain degree of compatibility with the spiritual energy in a cultivator's Qi Sea. Otherwise, it would be extremely awkward to wield.
Yang Wenqing planned to cultivate that art once he obtained a good short sword. Having made up his mind, a thought stirred, and his consciousness completely sank into the Golden Core World.
He simulated constructing the spell seal for the "Tracking Technique." It was certainly not smooth at first, but he did not lose heart. He failed again and again, then started over again and again. Only after nearly twenty failures did the first complete and stable "Tracking Technique" spell seal successfully condense.
He tried casting it in reality. After succeeding, he saw the auras of ordinary objects. It was an indescribably mysterious sensation, something seen within consciousness itself, like intangible particles of energy linking similar auras together—for example, his own aura.
After trying several times, he began simulating the "Demon-Breaking Spell." This spell seal demanded greater instantaneous output and control of spiritual energy, and during his attempts to construct it, the spell seal's energy even clashed.
This time, he succeeded in fewer than ten attempts, because the construction of this spell seal was actually quite simple. He merely had to take care to control the effectiveness of the spiritual energy output. This time, he only tried enchanting bullets and did not fire one to test its power.
Afterward, Yang Wenqing returned to his dormitory and meditated to restore the spiritual energy in his Qi Sea. That meditation lasted more than ten hours. At four-thirty the next day, he awoke from his trance precisely on time, then slept for another hour and a half before getting up. After casting a Dust-Cleansing Technique on himself, he changed into a crisp police uniform, carefully put on the insignia of a Veteran Police Sergeant, checked his service pistol, and fastened it at his waist.
Looking at the young police sergeant in the mirror, Yang Wenqing took a deep breath, pushed open his door, and headed toward the county branch bureau with steady steps. Today, he was reporting to the Major Crimes Unit.
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