Chapter 56: Sudden Wealth, Transformation! Yan Yuqing of the Demon Suppression Division

While Zhang Lingshan was studying the map and committing it to memory.

Wang Yue said, "Because our Strength Squad has been short one deputy squad leader lately, Ma Hong and I have been taking turns pulling night watch, and it's been exhausting. I've been praying for your arrival like watching the stars and moon, and finally, you're here. I'll hand the night watch duties over to you for a while. Brother Shan, does that work for you?"

His tone was calm and conciliatory, rather than commanding; it was a suggestion.

Zhang Lingshan replied, "Fine. One must fulfill their duties in their position. Since I've come to be the deputy squad leader, I can't be a useless eater. I'll take on the night watch task."

"Good! Brother Shan is indeed a man of straight talk. Hao Yun, Hao Lei, Liu Feng—you three will be under Deputy Squad Leader Shan from now on. Follow closely behind him during the night watch and don't slack off, understood?"

Wang Yue pointed his right hand at the three men.

The three hurriedly replied, "Yes!"

"Alright, then Brother Shan, memorize this map now so you don't wander into the wrong place during patrol tonight. Ma Hong and I will head out for patrol. If there are any issues, just call for Liu Feng and the others."

After giving his instructions, Wang Yue departed.

Zhang Lingshan stayed in the room memorizing the map. The three men, Liu Feng and his companions, stood by, bored out of their minds. Soon, they were yawning and wanting to sleep. "Deputy Squad Leader Shan, we have to pull the night watch tonight, so we need to catch a nap in advance. We can't afford to be too tired."

"Mm, I understand. I won't finish this map in a short while. Go rest on your own; don't mind me."

"Thank you, Deputy Squad Leader Shan."

The three were overjoyed and immediately left the yamen to go out for drinks.

By the time evening arrived.

The three returned to find Zhang Lingshan fast asleep on a long bench. They woke him up, saying, "Deputy Squad Leader Shan, it's almost dark. It's time for our night watch patrol."

"Uh... alright. Where's the map? Should I bring it?" Zhang Lingshan asked, half-asleep.

Liu Feng said, "You can't bring it. The map must stay in the squad room. If it gets lost while we're out, it'll be a huge problem. But don't worry, Deputy Squad Leader Shan. With the three of us here, as long as we don't wander into remote paths or abandoned areas, we won't encounter any strange or evil entities."

"Alright, let's go."

Zhang Lingshan put on his official uniform, strapped on his standard-issue waist saber, and led the three men out of the yamen with large strides.

On the way, he saw the crowds in the streets hurrying home.

In less than a moment.

As dusk settled, not a single person remained on the streets.

The four of them moved forward.

By the time it was pitch black, the only thing visible on the street was the moonlight, and a chilling aura immediately enveloped the earth.

Zhang Lingshan couldn't help but shiver. "Don't you feel a bit cold?"

Liu Feng said, "A little. It looks like a new Blighted Zone might be forming ahead. Let's remember this spot and mark it on the map later. We can just take a detour for now."

"I see."

Zhang Lingshan nodded, indicating his understanding.

In his heart, he thought: *'Just marking a Blighted Zone so perfunctorily... no wonder there are so many white dots on the map. It turns out they're all just lazy or scared marks.'*

Despite his internal complaints, he followed the advice of Liu Feng and the others, immediately taking a detour onto another main street.

As they turned the corner, the view immediately brightened.

It turned out to be a brothel. Bright lanterns hung from the gatehouse, and a madam was downstairs soliciting customers. Seeing the three men approach, she immediately gave a charming laugh. "Four gentlemen, come in and play! We have new girls today; I guarantee you'll be satisfied."

Upon hearing this, the faces of Liu Feng and the other two showed a flicker of interest, but seeing that Zhang Lingshan showed no reaction, they acted as if they hadn't heard anything and followed obediently behind him.

"Don't go, gentlemen!" the madam called out.

Zhang Lingshan ignored her.

After walking through this street and turning through several more, Zhang Lingshan finally spoke, "The journey has been peaceful and quite boring. What exactly are we guarding during the night watch?"

Liu Feng gave a bitter smile. "Deputy Squad Leader Shan, the night watch is naturally this boring. Unless someone with no eyes decides to cause trouble at night, most of the time it's just for show. After all, even Flesh-Refining martial artists wouldn't recklessly come out at night; if they ran into a Blighted Zone and died, they wouldn't even have time to cry. Moreover, Flesh-Refining martial artists can find decent livelihoods; why would they risk themselves at night?"

Zhang Lingshan nodded upon hearing this.

That made sense.

A Flesh-Refining martial artist could join almost any faction and live well; there was no need to cause trouble at night.

According to Liu Feng, only a very small number of unknown outsiders from outside the city would pop up and cause trouble at night.

For example, when Li Ziming and Fang Qiuyue entered the city, they caused a stir at night.

Aside from that, accidents were basically impossible.

Therefore, boredom was inevitable.

"Since it's so boring, you guys should rest. I'll go wander around by myself," Zhang Lingshan said.

The three men exchanged glances, wondering if Zhang Lingshan was saying this because they hadn't performed well just now. They quickly shook their heads. "Not boring at all! Following Deputy Squad Leader Shan to learn is not boring at all."

"Haha!"

Zhang Lingshan laughed loudly and continued forward, ignoring them.

After a while.

Without realizing it, they had circled back to the same brothel.

It was the same madam, holding a red silk cloth, calling out with a tender voice, "The four gentlemen have returned! You must be tired; come and rest a while."

Liu Feng swallowed hard and said, "Deputy Squad Leader Shan, we have indeed become quite thirsty after walking so long. How about we take a break?"

"Alright."

Zhang Lingshan nodded and led the three men inside.

The madam welcomed them in, calling out, "Girls, come quickly and attend to our guests! This gentleman is heroic and spirited, a young hero and a paragon of this age. Please, to the second floor..."

As she spoke, eight young maidens came forward to escort them into a large private room on the second floor.

At first, Liu Feng and the others didn't know what Zhang Lingshan intended, so they acted reserved.

However, after a few cups of wine, everyone became debauched, enjoying themselves with women on both sides.

Zhang Lingshan followed local customs and had a few drinks himself. He didn't notice any flickering of energy points, which meant there was no poison; it was clearly a legitimate brothel that didn't play dirty tricks.

But he didn't drink much. He merely gave a few casual touches to show respect to the maidens, then stood up and said, "Master Hong warned me never to lose my primordial essence. I'm going out to cool off."

"Ah? Deputy Squad Leader Shan, you're leaving? Aren't you going to play a bit more?" Liu Feng and the others said with some disappointment.

Zhang Lingshan said, "You guys keep playing. I'm going out to catch some cold air. Don't worry, I'll settle the bill for today. Eat and drink to your heart's content. I'm new here, and I'll have to rely on you three at the yamen later."

"Oh, Deputy Squad Leader Shan, you're too kind!"

"If there's anything needed in the future, just call, and I, Hao Yun, will arrive immediately!"

"Me too!" Hao Lei shouted. In his excitement, he must have bumped into something, because a soft moan was heard, and several small, delicate fists began lightly pounding against his hairy chest.

The scene became a chaotic mess.

"Hahaha!"

Liu Feng and the others laughed heartily.

Zhang Lingshan shook his head and covered his face as he retreated. "I can't stand scenes like this; it's too easy to trigger a physiological response. If I lose my primordial essence, Master Hong will kill me."

"Sigh, Deputy Squad Leader Shan is still young; he doesn't understand the benefits of the land of tenderness," Liu Feng sighed.

Hao Yun added, "It's mainly because Deputy Squad Leader Shan is too much of a genius. He has to preserve his essence to cultivate and break through. Unlike us, who have no real prospects; if we don't play more, we're the ones losing out."

"That's exactly right!" Hao Lei laughed, biting the woman on his body, and added, "If others knew how easy-going Deputy Squad Leader Shan is, they'd surely fight to follow him. Hehe, we're the lucky ones."

"We can't tell them. If they get jealous and report us secretly, it'll be trouble."

"Right, right. Little girl, are we playing hide and seek? Hehehe, I'll chase you, and if I catch you..."

In the private room, the three were lost in the land of tenderness, having long forgotten anything about the night watch.

Meanwhile, having walked out of the brothel, Zhang Lingshan moved swiftly around a street. The flush and intoxication had long vanished from his face, replaced by extreme calmness.

*'The yamen is full of these useless, dead-weight types. No wonder no one noticed when I burned that house before. If I had known, I wouldn't have even bothered burning it.'*

Zhang Lingshan couldn't help but complain internally.

However, it was precisely because of these types that he was able to shake off those three idiots so easily.

Now, the hunting hour begins!

*Swish!*

Zhang Lingshan's footsteps were rapid. After darting through several streets and vanishing into a dark corner, he exerted full power with his Gale Leg technique. With a few leaps, he landed inside a courtyard.

*Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.*

A cold wind blew past.

Zhang Lingshan heard a whisper in his ear: "Stay... stay... let me change your clothes..."

An immediate sensation of numbness and tingling spread through his ears and temples, as if his entire body were turning soft, making him want to stay there and spend eternity with the owner of that voice.

Zhang Lingshan's body softened slightly, and he said softly, "Madam, I wish to see your face."

"Really? Does my gentleman truly wish to see my face?"

"Truly, absolutely."

"Then as you wish... giggle..."

The voice flew in front of Zhang Lingshan, and suddenly, an ugly, broken true form appeared, letting out a mocking, triumphant laugh, waiting to see Zhang Lingshan piss himself in terror.

But she was disappointed.

The sturdy young man before her showed no fear; instead, his eyes gleamed with excitement. He then opened his mouth wide, revealing two rows of white, orderly, yet ferocious teeth.

*Whoosh!*

An irresistible suction force rushed toward her. The evil female entity let out a shrill, mournful cry: "No—!"

The sound entered Zhang Lingshan's mouth and throat, sounding as if it were coming from his own mouth.

If anyone were here, they would find it incredibly terrifying. Could such a bone-chilling sound truly be made by a human?

*Thud.*

The sound of something falling inside his body echoed.

Zhang Lingshan's face lit up with joy!

As expected, the Nethery Mansion within his body had opened, and it truly possessed a massive attraction to evil entities, sucking it in in a single encounter.

Next, he only needed to trigger the fire of the Primordial Yang Stake to absorb and refine it.

However, before refining, Zhang Lingshan first ducked into the house and searched thoroughly.

Since there was an evil entity in a Blighted Zone, ordinary people wouldn't come here to seek death.

Therefore, there must be belongings left behind by the previous owner, or perhaps the assets of the entity itself.

Just as Zhang Lingshan suspected.

After a search, he indeed found some banknotes, silver fragments, and some books of unknown content. He packed them all up, thinking they might be useful.

Then, he left the place and rushed toward the next white dot.

Ma Hong had said earlier that white-dot-level Blighted Zones were trash, like the level of Li Fu.

He had been able to easily eliminate Li Fu back then; with his current strength, eliminating a dozen Li Fus a day shouldn't be a problem.

On the way, he activated the fire of the Primordial Yang Stake to burn and refine the female entity within him.

Before he even reached the next white dot, he heard a *pfft* sound, and the female entity successfully transformed into energy and dissipated.

Zhang Lingshan checked his panel.

He found that his energy points had increased by 80.

*'80 points! Not bad. Li Fu provided 40 points back then. If I had absorbed his wife and child too, it would have been about 80 points in total. It seems the level of evil entities in white-dot Blighted Zones is only worth this much.'*

Zhang Lingshan analyzed this and reached a conclusion.

Next, he worked without pause, clearing out all the nearby white dots, near or far. He found that the energy provided by these entities was around 100 points, which was close to his estimate.

By the end of the night.

His energy points had increased by about 500.

*'A massive profit!'*

Zhang Lingshan was overjoyed. The surge in energy points made him so excited he wanted to clear out every Blighted Zone in existence.

When had energy points ever come this fast?

Whether eating medicine or meat, it was never this quick; digestion alone took half a day.

The only pity was that these entities were being refined one by one, becoming fewer and fewer.

But that was a matter for later.

With the current number of white dots, he couldn't finish them all in one day. Excluding the ones the constables had marked randomly to avoid trouble, there were at least twenty more white dots for him to refine.

Calculated out, that was over two thousand points of energy.

*'Today was just the appetizer. I'm not yet familiar enough with the various districts of the Outer City, and my use of the Nethery Mansion isn't proficient enough. I'll stop here for now.'*

Zhang Lingshan checked the time; it was almost dawn.

Thus, he returned to the brothel, gathered Liu Feng and the others, and rushed back to the yamen to report at daybreak.

"Good work."

Wang Yue gave Zhang Lingshan a wink and a smile.

Sensing the subtext, Zhang Lingshan presented a twenty-tael banknote and said, "It is all thanks to the Deputy Squad Leader's guidance. I learned a lot from this night watch. The three men you assigned to me, Liu Feng and the others, are also very reliable. Thank you for your care, Deputy Squad Leader."

"We're brothers, no need for such politeness."

Wang Yue took the banknote and smiled. "Brother Shan has also been busy all night. Take your men back to rest."

"Yes, then Deputy Squad Leader Wang, we shall take our leave."

Zhang Lingshan cupped his hands.

The night had indeed been hard.

Liu Feng, Hao Yun, and Hao Lei had worked even harder; their waists felt as if they might break. They all hurriedly took their leave to rest.

Unlike them.

Zhang Lingshan felt more excitement than exhaustion.

After returning home, he didn't say a word and first drank several bowls of tonic medicine, then had his sister help brew Red River Soup before going to sleep to catch up on rest.

Red River Soup was a secret to outsiders, but for close disciples like Zhang Lingshan, it was openly available.

He had already applied for several packs from Xiao Ming in advance.

He brewed it immediately.

As time passed, it was around noon when Zhang Lingyu finished brewing and woke Zhang Lingshan.

Zhang Lingshan entered the cultivation room, stripped naked, and climbed into the bathing tub.

Then, he opened his panel.

*'Mountain-Splitting Axe Technique. The last time I reached the Entry level, it cost 40 energy points. This time it should be 400, which is more than enough. Let's add the points.'*

With a thought.

The "Entry" status after the Mountain-Splitting Axe Technique flickered and changed to "Small Success."

In an instant, the movements of himself practicing the second form of the Mountain-Splitting Axe Technique appeared before his eyes.

Compared to the first form, the vertical chop, the second form was a horizontal sweep.

If he were to practice it now, a single sweep would cause him to collapse to the ground, all his strength drained.

In the vision, Zhang Lingshan saw himself performing the horizontal sweep and falling thousands of times, then getting up and practicing again thousands of times.

He repeated this over and over, an unknown number of times.

Finally.

The muscles on his body bulged like mountain peaks, hard as rocks, with each muscle line clearly defined, as if carved by a knife and chisel.

*Whoosh!*

The muscular man in the vision suddenly dissipated.

Then, all the experience and gains from practicing the second form of the Mountain-Splitting Axe Technique flooded into Zhang Lingshan's body.

*Crackle, crackle.*

Zhang Lingshan saw the muscles on his body twitch and change. Large clumps of muscle seemed to be shredded by some force, turning into smaller muscle fibers.

In the gaps where they were "cut," blood flowed, and his skin cracked just as it had when he first entered the Mountain-Splitting Axe Technique.

The difference was that the pain was much lighter than the first time, indicating that his current Flesh-Refining strength was fully capable of enduring it.

*'Flesh-Refining is divided into three stages. After the three stages, once the bodily functions are thoroughly familiarized and adjusted to an optimal state, one reaches the peak of Flesh-Refining and can attempt Tendon-Changing,'* Zhang Lingshan thought to himself while recuperating in the Red River Soup. *'By my calculation, this counts as my third stage of Flesh-Refining. In terms of strength, Senior Brother Xiao Ming should no longer be my match.'*

It wasn't just Xiao Ming.

With his current strength, many at the peak of Flesh-Refining likely wouldn't be his match either.

After all, he was the man who had cultivated the Primordial Yang Stake to the point of producing fire; his body had undergone multiple upgrades and had long since been transformed.

Zhang Lingshan couldn't help but feel a sense of wonder.

If he had followed the standard path of consuming medicine and meat to accumulate energy, it would have taken him about a month to gather enough energy to break through the Mountain-Splitting Axe Technique.

Now, it had only taken one day, with energy to spare.

Enough said—tonight, he would keep working hard!

Coming out of the tub, Zhang Lingshan put on his undergarments and found they were much tighter. Fortunately, his outer clothing was loose, concealing his much more robust physique, so outsiders wouldn't notice much change.

By evening.

Zhang Lingshan rushed to the yamen to hand over duties to Wang Yue and Ma Hong. As expected, they didn't notice anything, merely smiling and telling Zhang Lingshan not to work too hard.

After all, this night watch was just for show.

If a truly powerful person appeared, they wouldn't be able to handle it with their strength.

And ordinary people didn't dare to wander around at night.

It was a light job; everyone just lived their lives, which was why so many people wanted to push their juniors into becoming constables.

Thus, just like yesterday, not long after Liu Feng and the others left, they dragged Zhang Lingshan into a den of vice to enjoy themselves.

This time it wasn't a brothel, but a gambling den.

Zhang Lingshan showed little interest in this, so he left the three men again and entered his hunting hour.

Unfortunately, his luck was poor this time. He rushed to several white dot locations only to find no evil entities; they were all just random marks left by previous constables to avoid trouble.

Consequently, by dawn, he had only managed to amass about 500 energy points.

*'I was more proficient this time, but my luck was bad and the harvest was small. I'll continue tomorrow.'*

Zhang Lingshan sighed, feeling unsatisfied.

Then came one day, two days, three days...

His energy points increased steadily. To accelerate his hunting speed, once his energy points exceeded 1,000, Zhang Lingshan broke through the Wind-Stabilizing Stake to the "Great Success" stage.

Later, when his energy points exceeded 1,000 again, he also broke through the Gale Leg to the "Great Success" stage.

His speed at this point was incomparable to what it had been before.

The moment he exerted force, the muscles in his calves would form concentric patterns like tree rings. The explosive power was so staggering that Zhang Lingshan occasionally struggled to adapt to his own speed.

Because of this, he even took a night off from hunting to specifically contemplate the transformation his body had undergone during this period.

*'The Wind-Stabilizing Stake has reached Great Success. The next step is to break through to Perfection to see what kind of "Momentum" I can comprehend this time.'*

Zhang Lingshan was full of anticipation.

But just as he was preparing to deal with Gray-level evil entities, an emergency order suddenly arrived at noon one day.

"Quick! Someone from the Demon Suppression Division is here! Everyone assemble immediately! Anyone who delays will be executed without mercy!"

A sharp command jolted Zhang Lingshan from his sleep.

He rushed to the yamen immediately, only to find Liu Feng, Hao Yun, and Hao Lei arriving just in time.

"Greetings, Deputy Squad Leader Shan." The three hurriedly saluted.

Zhang Lingshan asked, "What is the background of the Demon Suppression Division? It sounds terrifying—executing anyone who delays?"

One had to know that the constables in the yamen were usually quite lazy; delaying for one or two people was common. Sometimes even when the County Magistrate arrived, everyone only showed superficial respect while continuing to slack off in private.

But today was different.

The entire yamen had become tense. Including the County Magistrate, the Registrar, and the Head Squad Leader, everyone stood nervously at the entrance, waiting to welcome the arrival of the dignitary from the Demon Suppression Division.

It was as if they feared that a single mistake would lead to their execution.

It was clear that the phrase "executed without mercy" was no joke; everyone believed it to be true.

Liu Feng whispered, "Deputy Squad Leader Shan, the Demon Suppression Division is a military branch dedicated to exterminating demons and protecting the imperial throne. They have special imperial authorization to execute first and report later. Anyone who comes out of there is a big deal; we need to be at our absolute best to serve them. However, the Demon Suppression Division doesn't appear often. Once they do, something major is definitely happening. I think we're in for some bad luck!"

Hao Yun added with a sigh, "Being a constable is fine, but if people from above come, it's no longer a good job. We'll be the ones taking the blame and dying while they reap the benefits. The previous deputy of our Strength Squad was called by Fengdu to lie in ambush at the Zhao residence and was killed by a powerful expert's strike."

"So, enjoy yourself while you can," Hao Lei concluded.

Zhang Lingshan asked in surprise, "And what is Fengdu?"

"They handle ghosts and evil entities. They are also a department from above. Their methods are miraculous; they can handle the evil entities in Jincheng like they're nothing," Liu Feng explained, adding somewhat sarcastically, "But the big shots are busy. They choose not to handle things, instead just giving us those marks and telling us to be careful, saying they'll handle it when they have time. Heh, heaven knows when they'll have time..."

"Silence!"

The Head Squad Leader, Pang Hu, suddenly barked a command.

Liu Feng shuddered and quickly lowered his head, not daring to speak again.

At that moment, three fast horses galloped from the distance and came to a halt before the crowd with a loud neigh.

The leader was a burly... woman?

Zhang Lingshan was somewhat surprised. If not for the fullness of her chest, no one would have realized she was a woman.

She was a full two meters tall, and the horse she rode was no ordinary breed.

Sitting on the horse, she seemed to be standing on the second floor of a building, looking down upon all living things with a high-and-mighty gaze.

"What are you all standing around for? Get inside! I have an announcement!" the woman shouted sternly.

She then flipped off her horse, landing with a heavy *thud* like a falling mountain. The County Magistrate at the front shuddered; had the Head Squad Leader not caught him, he likely would have collapsed to the ground.

"Useless!"

The woman snorted and strode into the yamen with a commanding gait.

Arriving at the main hall.

The woman stood in the superior position without sitting. Behind her stood two attendants: a middle-aged scholar and a seemingly delicate maid.

"My name is Yan Yuqing. I have come specifically to hunt down the demon rebels. Within three days, I want to see the rebels, otherwise, everyone will be executed without mercy!"

As soon as these words were spoken.

The air in the hall instantly froze.

Everyone gasped.

Three days? What kind of joke was this? Even if they all had three heads and six arms, they couldn't complete such a task.

The term "rebel" was already terrifying enough, but the fact that the target was a "demon rebel" made their methods even more inconceivable.

For constables like them, forget about catching them—they would likely be beaten to death the moment they came face-to-face.

What exactly had this Yan Yuqing come here for? If she wanted to kill people, she should just say so instead of going in circles to make a joke of it.