"Kid, you're pretty strong. Killing a Sixth Order Golden Twin-Blade Demon at fifteen." The blonde woman appeared beside Jiang Feng again, a breathtaking smile on her face.
"Just showing off a little." There was no trace of modesty on Jiang Feng's face.
"Very impressive, though you're still a little behind me," the blonde woman said.
"Hm?" Jiang Feng doubted her claim. He believed that, with his current strength, no one at his tier should be stronger than him.
Besides, that Gold-Patterned Twin-Blade Demon had not pushed him to his limits. He considered the Undying Body's self-healing ability his greatest weapon. In a fight to the death, Jiang Feng could wear his opponent down until they died.
"What tier are you, Inspector?"
Now that the danger had passed, Jiang Feng began chatting with the blonde woman.
"Stronger than you, anyway," she said.
"True. You are older than me, after all." Jiang Feng glanced at her.
After spending several years with Jiang Xinran, he had become largely immune to the Inspector's beauty.
Of course, his heart still fluttered a little.
"If you know I'm older, why aren't you calling me big sister?" The blonde woman moved closer to Jiang Feng.
Jiang Feng looked at the Inspector in surprise. He had assumed age was a taboo subject for women and had deliberately brought it up to see her get angry or lose her composure.
Who knew she would not mind at all? If anything, she seemed to be flirting with him.
"Big sister?" Jiang Feng called.
"That's right. What a good boy." The blonde woman raised her hand and patted Jiang Feng's shoulder.
"Big sister, I'm out of money for equipment," Jiang Feng said.
The blonde woman burst out laughing.
"No wonder you were being so sweet. So that's what you were after. Unfortunately, your big sister has no money," she said with a lilting laugh.
Jiang Feng slapped the slender, soft hand off his shoulder. "No money? Then stay away from me."
"Haha, come on! Aren't you being a little too mercenary?" The blonde woman covered her mouth and chuckled.
"What's your name, big sister?" Jiang Feng suddenly asked.
"Yan," she said softly.
Jiang Feng nodded. He had not expected her to give him her surname as well.
"I'm a Demon Hunt Squad member," Yan said. "I returned from the Demon Territory not long ago after completing a mission. I took this assignment as your Inspector partly for a little extra income, and partly because it's easy work. It gives me a chance to relax."
"Oh." Jiang Feng looked surprised. "What's life like as a demon hunter?"
Although Jiang Feng already had a general idea, there was nothing wrong with finding something to talk about to pass the time on their way back to the Alliance.
"The rules forbid me from discussing certain core matters, but you'll become a demon hunter sooner or later, so there's no harm in giving you an early introduction..."
Yan spoke concisely, drawing on the experience she had gained throughout her Demon Hunt Squad career. It was a great help to Jiang Feng.
Soon, they returned to the Alliance Garrison, where Yan ended the conversation. She had told him so much only because she was certain of his strength. Besides, technically speaking, Jiang Feng was her junior fellow disciple.
Though Jiang Feng did not know that.
The Demon Hunt Squads were the Alliance's most vital force. Every member's identity was classified, and ordinary people had no right to know them.
The officer in charge of the Alliance Garrison had arranged a large tent for Jiang Feng and the others. Before Jiang Feng even entered, he heard voices inside.
"Xinran, don't worry. Jiang Feng is a Fifth Order Knight, after all. Even if he can't win, he can still escape," Chen Zhan reassured her gently.
But Jiang Xinran was deeply agitated. Hearing this, she replied coldly, "But the enemy is Sixth Order."
"No, I'm going back to find him." Jiang Xinran paced anxiously. Just as she was about to leave the tent, Jiang Feng pushed his way inside.
Three pairs of eyes immediately fixed on him.
"Jiang Feng, you're finally back! Are you all right?" Jiang Xinran hurried over with a worried expression, took his arm, and circled him to check for injuries.
"With the Inspector there, what could happen to me?" Jiang Feng said with a chuckle.
"As long as you're all right. We should have stayed." Jiang Xinran had clearly been worrying about Jiang Feng the whole time. Now, she finally let out a breath of relief.
"Stayed for what? They were only two Twin-Blade Demons. It's not as if I couldn't beat them. If you'd stayed, there wouldn't have been enough to go around," Jiang Feng said with a smile.
"Were those ordinary Twin-Blade Demons?" Jiang Xinran rolled her eyes at Jiang Feng. Then she suddenly realized something and hurriedly asked, "Does that mean you killed the Gold-Patterned Twin-Blade Demon?"
Chen Zhan and Wang Zhen both caught their breath, staring intently at Jiang Feng as they waited for his answer.
Jiang Feng gave a noncommittal nod.
"You're a real freak," Jiang Xinran marveled. Then, sounding a little deflated, she added, "My talent was clearly a little better than yours back then. But now you can kill sixth-tier demons, while I haven't even broken through to the fifth tier."
Jiang Xinran clearly remembered that two years ago, when she had reached the seventh level of the third tier, Jiang Feng had still been at the second level of the third tier. Yet now, both his cultivation and his strength had left her far behind.
"All right, all right. After all these years together, do we really need to compare things like that?" Jiang Feng said with a faint smile.
"Hmph, forget it. As long as you're safe." Jiang Xinran wrinkled her delicate nose.
Yan entered the tent after him. As soon as Jiang Xinran and the other two saw her, they greeted her in unison. "Inspector."
Yan nodded. "Now that you've all passed the qualification assessment and officially become contestants in the demon hunt squad selection tournament, I'll explain the tournament rules."
"The demon hunt squad selection tournament is divided into preliminaries and finals. The Preliminary Round begins with elimination matches, until each of the Six Great Temples selects its ten strongest contestants to enter the finals. Anyone who passes the preliminaries is already eligible to become a Demon Hunt Squad member. The finals determine the rankings, which are used for the subsequent team assignments through the Demon Hunt Roulette, as well as the rewards."
"Before the finals, the ten professionals selected by each of the Six Great Temples must also compete in ranking matches. Those who rank higher will have a relative advantage in the finals, because the top-ranked contestants from each temple will not face one another."
"Opponents in the finals are determined by drawing lots, until the top three are decided."
At this point, Yan asked, "Do you know what the rewards for the top three are?"
Jiang Feng remained silent, while Jiang Xinran and the others shook their heads.
"Spirit Furnaces." Yan smiled faintly. Her startling answer sent waves of shock through everyone's heart except Jiang Feng's.
Every professional knew what a Spirit Furnace meant.
Possessing a Spirit Furnace was tantamount to opening the door to becoming a true powerhouse. These treasures, which harnessed the wonders of heaven and earth, could change a person's entire life!
"Give it your all. The Spirit Furnaces are there for the taking, and everyone has an equal chance," Yan encouraged them.
Not only Jiang Xinran and the other two, but even Jiang Feng could not resist the allure of a Spirit Furnace.
As he remembered it, many of the outstanding contestants who emerged during this demon hunt squad selection tournament possessed Spirit Furnaces.
Long Haochen's Holy Guidance Spirit Furnace, Sheng Cai'er's Reincarnation Spiritual Furnace, Yang Wenzhao's Star Sea Spiritual Furnace, Huang Yi's Earth Element Spirit Furnace...
The thought filled Jiang Feng with envy. He wished he could be standing in the finals arena right now, winning the championship in a single battle and claiming his Spirit Furnace reward.
Jiang Feng placed great importance on the Spirit Furnace awarded to the champion. Before Yang Haoyu left half a year ago, he had told Jiang Feng that he had specifically prepared this tournament's championship Spirit Furnace for him. He had even paid a certain price to obtain it.
Yang Haoyu's exact words had been, "If you fail to win the championship, brat, don't blame your master for being ruthless."
Thus, Jiang Feng was very curious about what kind of Spirit Furnace Yang Haoyu had prepared for him, and he was determined to win the championship.
Before you continue