Position Confirmed

Yang Wenqing was exhilarated. He took out another ten grams of Stone Marrow Liquid and, following the same procedure, continued his efficient cultivation.

With the Golden Core World's precise guidance and the stabilizing support of the Origin-Stabilizing Meridian-Nourishing Formation, he had no need to worry about residual medicinal effects and could absorb the essence of the Stone Marrow Liquid to the fullest.

Repeating this cycle, Yang Wenqing used Stone Marrow Liquid three more times over the next three hours, each dose following the secret method's recorded amount of ten grams. Only after the medicinal power of the final dose had been completely absorbed and the faint yellow glow around his body had withdrawn did he stop, still wanting more.

This cultivation session consumed forty grams of Stone Marrow Liquid. Combined with the roughly one hundred grams he had previously used to draw the "Stabilize" rune, the five hundred grams of Centennial Stone Marrow Liquid he had on hand were enough to sustain this kind of intensive cultivation for more than ten days.

This extravagant cultivation method produced remarkably obvious results. He could clearly feel that the toughness of the skin and fascia throughout his body had undergone a qualitative leap.

Suppressing his excitement, Yang Wenqing did not continue cultivating. As usual, he nurtured the Azure Edge short sword, then inscribed the day's batch of talisman papers. By the time he finished everything and entered meditation to rest, it was already late at night outside.

Time passed swiftly, and more than ten days went by in a flash. Yang Wenqing's life settled into a regular yet fulfilling rhythm.

During the day, he reported to the Third Squad office at the branch bureau on time. Most of his time was spent reading documents and handling cases involving internal coordination. Occasionally, he checked on Wu Yan's covert investigation into Zhenyuan Mining or listened to Liu Rong's scattered reports on the warehouse sweep in the Port District.

Zhao Qin, Qian You, and the two-person team of Li Yue and Sun Yi also gradually took over some cases within their jurisdiction, easing the burden on him as squad leader considerably.

Lin Wan also began working night shifts three days after reporting in, thanks to her strong ability to learn the work. Li Yue and Sun Yi's team accompanied her.

With the annual assessment of the city defense system about to begin, every sergeant in the branch bureau who qualified became tense. Wang Jianchao stopped going out to handle cases, while Liu Xin began overseeing the First Squad's case files, though she showed no intention of relinquishing control of the Second Squad.

Yang Wenqing was in no hurry and was happy to enjoy the leisure. He even wanted to remain with the Third Squad like this, but that was clearly impossible. He would inevitably have to go out and handle cases in the future, so these past days, he had been thinking of ways to inscribe the Origin-Stabilizing Meridian-Nourishing Formation onto an array base, preparing for cultivation while away from home.

After more than ten days of cultivation, Yang Wenqing sensed through the Golden Core World's projection that he had completed roughly ten percent of the Second Refinement. This pace was already astonishingly fast, beyond anything ordinary cultivators could imagine.

At the same time, his connection with the Azure Edge short sword grew closer by the day. The responses it gave during nurturing became increasingly clear. He expected that he would soon be able to formally practice the Sword-Controlling Art.

That afternoon, he found time to visit Listening Rain Pavilion in the eastern part of the city again.

The shopkeeper was as warm and respectful as ever when he saw him. However, when Yang Wenqing asked to purchase another five hundred grams of Centennial Stone Marrow Liquid, the shopkeeper showed an apologetic expression.

"Captain Yang, unfortunately, we don't have any Centennial Stone Marrow Liquid in stock at the moment. Production of this stuff is unstable, and demand is high. The last batch was just reserved. If you need it urgently, I can place an order through our channels in the prefectural city immediately, but the earliest it can arrive will be seven or eight days from now."

Though somewhat disappointed, Yang Wenqing smiled. "Then I'll trouble you to order five hundred grams for me. Notify me the moment it arrives."

"Of course. I'll make sure your order is given priority."

The shopkeeper hurriedly wrote it down.

Having settled the matter of the Stone Marrow Liquid, Yang Wenqing remembered something else and asked, "By the way, shopkeeper, did you hear anything about the array base I asked you to inquire about earlier?"

An array base was the foundation upon which an array was inscribed. He would soon take over as captain of the Second Squad and would inevitably need to travel for extended periods, so he needed a portable Origin-Stabilizing Meridian-Nourishing Formation for cultivation.

"I was just about to tell you about that!"

A smile appeared on the shopkeeper's face. He turned and retrieved a flat metal case from beneath the counter. Inside was a circular metal plate about an inch thick and roughly two meters in diameter. The plate was dark silver, its surface polished smooth, with dense rune circuits faintly visible within.

"This is an alloy base custom-made by a rune workshop according to your requirements. It is more than capable of bearing and stabilizing the rune structure of your Origin-Stabilizing Meridian-Nourishing Formation."

"How much?"

"Five thousand!"

It was very cheap. This was because the technology for such alloys was already mature, and many factories could mass-produce them. Their defining traits were structural stability, hardness, and resistance to damage.

Yang Wenqing picked up the metal plate. It was slightly heavy in his hand and icy to the touch. He paid without hesitation and stored the metal base in his storage pouch.

After leaving Listening Rain Pavilion, Yang Wenqing made another trip to the warehouse of the branch bureau's logistics department. Upon asking, he learned that the warehouse likewise had no Centennial Stone Marrow Liquid in stock. The guard responsible for managing it told him that cultivation materials of this kind generally had to be reserved in advance.

Somewhat regretful, he headed toward the main building's offices. Just as he reached the entrance to the Third Squad office, his badge emitted a distinctive pulse of spiritual power—it was Deputy Director Gao's exclusive communication frequency.

"Wenqing, come to my office now."

"Yes, Director Gao. I'll be right there."

Yang Wenqing paused, then turned and headed for the deputy director's office upstairs.

After knocking and entering, he found Deputy Director Gao sitting behind his desk with a freshly unsealed red-headed document in hand. Seeing Yang Wenqing, he broke into an obvious smile and pointed at the chair opposite him.

"Sit."

Deputy Director Gao handed the document to Yang Wenqing. "Take a look at this."

Yang Wenqing accepted it and quickly scanned the title: <Notice Regarding Yang Wenqing's Appointment as a Guard>. Then Deputy Director Gao said, "Congratulations, Wenqing. From today onward, your position as squad leader is officially confirmed."

Though he had long been mentally prepared, when Yang Wenqing truly saw the formal appointment document, a wave of reassurance and excitement still rose in his heart.

"Thank you for your support, Director Gao!" Yang Wenqing rose to his feet and gave Deputy Director Gao a solemn salute.

"This is because your abilities are up to standard." Deputy Director Gao waved a hand, motioning for him to sit. His tone became more casual. "Work hard. Once the matter on Jian Chao's end is settled, an even heavier burden will be waiting for you."

Those words were practically an explicit indication that, after Wang Jianchao was transferred out, Yang Wenqing would take over the Second Squad.

"I will not disappoint you, Director Gao!" Yang Wenqing replied.

"Alright, get back to work." Deputy Director Gao lifted his teacup, ending the brief conversation.

Yang Wenqing rose and left the deputy director's office. As he closed the door behind him, he let out a breath. He had no backing whatsoever in the branch bureau, and reaching this point had truly not been easy. His benefits would certainly improve once his cultivation rose, but advancing his cultivation required a vast amount of resources. He was already struggling somewhat at the Qi Refining Stage. What about when he advanced to the Marrow Cleansing Stage and the Foundation Establishment Stage?

Therefore, authority was also indispensable. Only with enough authority could he obtain more resources!

When he returned to his office, he had already concealed all his thoughts. To his surprise, Wu Yan and Liu Rong, who had been busy outside these past days, were both there as well. Wu Yan was even holding the case file for Zhenyuan Mining's smuggling case. Clearly, the case had progressed.