Shen Changqing stood up and said to him, "As for the matters of the Yamen, I do not plan to intervene too much. However you handled things after Zhao Fang died, continue to handle them in the same manner."
"Thank you for your trust, my lord!"
"But I do have one requirement: all things within the Yamen’s inner residence are to be replaced. During my time as the acting County Magistrate, I will reside here."
"Lord Shen, rest assured, I will immediately send someone to take care of it!"
Shi Qingsheng nodded and agreed to all of Shen Changqing’s requests. Since the other party was acting as the County Magistrate, living inside the Yamen was not an issue.
Afterward, Shi Qingsheng immediately dispatched people to replace everything inside the inner hall according to Shen Changqing’s request. In less than half a day, all the tasks were completed.
"Lord Shen, please take a look. Are there any other instructions?" Shi Qingsheng stood to the side, bowing his head as he asked.
Looking at the newly refurbished surroundings, Shen Changqing nodded slightly in approval.
"Does Lord Shen have any further instructions?"
"Not for now. You may go about your business."
"This humble one shall take his leave!"
Shi Qingsheng respectfully withdrew. Shen Changqing also rose from his seat and began to familiarize himself with the Yamen’s environment.
The Yamen was divided into an outer hall and an inner hall. The outer hall was where cases were handled, and a prison was set up underground to facilitate the imprisonment of criminals. The inner hall, on the other hand, was entirely residential.
The term ’inner hall’ was merely a superficial designation. In reality, the inner hall was comparable to a small estate, complete with a grand hall for receiving guests, numerous side rooms, and a study. However, because it was part of the Yamen, there were no servants or maids here.
This place is spacious enough, and living here is comfortable. The status of a city’s County Magistrate truly isn’t low! Shen Changqing mused after taking a stroll around.
By comparison, the place he lived in at the Demon-Subduing Division was utterly inferior.
Once Shen Changqing had familiarized himself with his surroundings, he came here. He also needed to properly digest the items he had received from the Demon-Subduing Division today.
The Pure Spirit Jade Pendant, for instance, was the proof of a Demon Hunter’s slaying of Demon Evils. With the Pure Spirit Jade Pendant in hand, all slain Demon Evils would be recorded within it. Similarly, with the recorded Pure Spirit Jade Pendant, one could offset some missions at the Demon-Subduing Division.
Once a Demon Hunter was promoted to the Yellow Rank, there were fixed mission requirements each year. Yellow Rank Demon Hunters were required to complete at least ten missions a year; in other words, they had to eliminate at least ten Demon Evils.
It was important to understand that the location for each mission was different. For instance, when Shen Changqing came to Lin’an City, he had spent a considerable amount of time just traveling. The yearly requirement of ten missions consumed no small amount of time. Therefore, the Demon-Subduing Division assigning him to be the Defender of Lin’an City, thereby offsetting his missions for the following year, was a significant convenience. Relatively speaking, however, the task of defending Lin’an City was many times more difficult than ordinary missions. The pros and cons varied from person to person.
Once promoted to Profound Rank Demon Hunter, the annual baseline mission requirement would be reduced to just five. Although the number of missions decreased, the difficulty increased. Indeed, for higher-ranking Demon Hunters, the yearly baseline mission requirements would correspondingly lessen, but the difficulty would continuously escalate.
I might as well accept the duty of Defender! Shen Changqing sighed, then turned his attention to the porcelain bottle. Inside was the Pulse Condensation Pill.
He hadn’t heard much about the Pulse Condensation Pill before, but Jiang Zuo’s letter had introduced it with great emphasis.
Pulse Condensation Pill! As the name implied, its primary function was to open meridians. The transformation from the Pulse Condensation stage to the Innate Realm required unblocking numerous meridians. Taking a Pulse Condensation Pill could expedite this process, shortening the time it took for a Martial Artist to advance to the Innate Realm.
Is the Demon-Subduing Division giving me the Pulse Condensation Pill because they’re worried my strength isn’t sufficient? Shen Changqing mused, his expression peculiar.
The Pulse Condensation Pill was indeed a treasure; at least, it was hard for any Pulse Condensation Warrior to refuse such an item. Not only those in Pulse Condensation, but even Innate Martial Artists could benefit from taking the Pulse Condensation Pill, though the effects would be somewhat diminished. This was because both Pulse Condensation and Innate cultivation required the opening of meridians and acupoints.
Finally, Shen Changqing turned his attention to a book that was neither thin nor thick.
Heavenly Martial Gang Qi!
Just the name alone sounds grand, he thought. At least it sounds much better than the Thirteen Grand Guardians’ Horizontal Training Technique or the Pure Yang Technique.
Heavenly Martial Gang Qi was indeed on a higher level than the other two, as it was a Martial Arts technique from the second floor of the Scripture Pavilion.
He flipped open Heavenly Martial Gang Qi. After a brief glance, Shen Changqing’s attention was immediately captivated.
Unknowingly, day had turned into night.
Shen Changqing, who had been sitting still, was still perusing Heavenly Martial Gang Qi. After a long while, he twisted his neck. With a single finger, he concentrated his Pure Yang True Qi to light the oil lamp on the table, and much of the dimness was instantly dispelled.
Heavenly Martial Gang Qi, truly worthy of being a second-floor Martial Arts technique! It’s much more profound than Pure Yang Technique and must be considered among the superior ones! Shen Changqing marveled.
Heavenly Martial Gang Qi was also a technique for refining True Qi and opening meridians, but what set it apart was that it was far more advanced than the Pure Yang Technique. The nine levels of Pure Yang Technique culminated at the peak of Pulse Condensation. However, the twelve levels of Heavenly Martial Gang Qi could lead directly to the Innate Outer Gang Realm.
Furthermore, there was a great difference between the cultivation methods of Heavenly Martial Gang Qi and Pure Yang Technique. The major difference was that the meridians opened by the two Martial Arts techniques were not entirely the same.
No one had ever been clear on precisely how many meridians and acupoints the human body possessed. Each Martial Arts technique could open different meridians. For example, advancing to the Innate Realm required opening the Eight Extraordinary Meridians and the governor and conception vessels, so all Martial Artists aiming for the Innate Realm would address this aspect. However, beyond these essential ones, some Martial Arts techniques would also involve other meridians.
The more meridians opened, the stronger a Martial Artist’s power became. The quality of a Martial Arts technique was judged by how many meridians it involved.
Clearly, Heavenly Martial Gang Qi targeted meridians far more comprehensively than Pure Yang Technique. Aside from a small portion that overlapped with those of Pure Yang Technique, most were quite different. In other words, Shen Changqing could cultivate Heavenly Martial Gang Qi on top of his Pure Yang Technique without any conflict. Not only would there be no conflict, but because more meridians would be opened, his strength would also be enhanced to some extent.
My Pure Yang Technique had reached its limit, leaving me with no other Martial Arts to practice. Now, Heavenly Martial Gang Qi happens to fill this void. A Martial Arts technique that leads directly to the Innate Realm will definitely be of significant use if I can cultivate it successfully, Shen Changqing thought.
Looking at the book on the table, he activated his True Qi, and flames immediately sprang forth, engulfing the Heavenly Martial Gang Qi manual. It had to be destroyed after reading; that was also a requirement of the Demon-Subduing Division.