CH 6

"Have you found anything different?"

"No!"

At the exit of the first layer of the Demon Suppression Prison. The one who intercepted Shen Changqing when he first came, asked.

After the simple inquiry, Shen Changqing then handed over the Demon Suppression Prison Manual to the person.

The manual was the credential to enter the Demon Suppression Prison.

Any Slayer who leaves after their business in the Demon Suppression Prison, would need to give the manual back to the person guarding the Demon Suppression Prison. 

This was to ensure that the Demon Suppression Prison Manual will not be lost. 

It was also to prevent people from entering the Demon Suppression Prison privately and possibly do bad things.

After he departed from the Demon Suppression Division, Shen Changqing returned home.

This trip to the Demon Suppression Prison had given him a great harvest.

Just by going to the Demon Suppression Prison once, he upgraded his [Thirteen Cross Practice] from Level 3 to Level 15.

He also broke through from the Body Forging Realm to the Qi Circulation Realm.

The so-called "Qi Circulation" was the Cultivation of True Qi, which allowed a Cultivator to possess transcendent power.

If we say that the Body Forging Realm was still within the realm of ordinary people.

Then, the Qi Circulation Realm was the transformation of Cultivators towards shedding their mortal skin.

Shen Changqing was sure that among all the Apprentice Slayers, there was absolutely no one whose realm could be comparable to his own.

That's because all those who had achieved the Qi Circulation Realm were Official Slayers.

"My current Killing Value has been temporarily consumed clean. The Killing Value that may exist in the second and third layer of the Demon Suppression Prison have already been collected by me, but more Killing Value exist in the fourth and fifth layer–"

Thinking about the fourth layer, Shen Changqing shook his head helplessly.

With his current strength, he was not qualified to go to the fourth layer to collect Killing Value.

He just barely stepped into the fourth layer and he had almost died.

From this, one can assume that the Qi Circulation Realm isn't really considered powerful either, in the larger scale of things.

Shen Changqing couldn't help but wonder, what kind of powerful demons and monsters were imprisoned in the fourth layer?

"I need to touch up on my knowledge about demons and monsters, or else I wouldn't even know how I died later." Shen Changqing secretly made a decision.

Joining the Demon Suppression Division means inevitably dealing with the demons and monsters.

His current understanding of those things can only be described as shallow.

Back at his courtyard.

Shen Changqing looked at the stone lock in the courtyard. His heart moved as he grabbed it with his hands.

[T/N: Stone lock picture]

In the past, the stone lock was very heavy and he could not lift even half of it.

But now, although it was not as light as a feather, he could easily lift it.

"I can now easily lift a stone lock weighing about three to four hundred jin (1 jin is around 1.1 pounds). My strength has significantly increased."

Shen Changqing secretly estimated.

His current strength should be around eight hundred jin up to a thousand.

That was without using True Qi.

Once he used his True Qi, then his strength would increase even more.

He put down the stone lock and then closed the door. Two days later, he opened the courtyard door and walked towards the canteen.

The Slayer Court was the residence of all Slayers, so it also had a canteen.

The canteen of the Demon Suppression Division was only for Slayers.

No Slayer will waste their time cooking his own food. Moreover, the Demon Suppression Division does not have such conditions.

Therefore, it was necessary to set up a canteen.

Showing his identity token, Shen Changqing easily walked into the canteen.

At this time, there were already quite a few people in the canteen.

He ordered his meal and picked an empty seat.

It was worth mentioning that the treatment regarding food here was not bad. Even for Apprentice Slayers, they were able to enjoy some big fish and meat at every meal, coupled with the bones of unknown animals in a soup.

Shen Changqing then proceeded to gobble all of the food.

Shen Changqing just had a breakthrough in his [Thirteen Cross Practice], which subsequently led to a big increase in his appetite.

"Only after eating and drinking enough can one have enough energy to Cultivate."

"The canteen set up by the Demon Suppression Division has all the food fit for Cultivators, enough to supplement daily consumption."

After eating enough, Shen Changqing left with a satisfied heart.

Using the memory of his predecessor, he knew that if he ate a similar meal outside the Demon Suppression Division, he would need to spend not a small amount of silver. The average civilian would not be able to afford it.

But in the Demon Suppression Division, you can eat at will.

Not to mention that what he ate was for Apprentice Slayers. If it were for Official Slayers, the quality would be even better.

Back at his residence, Shen Changqing basically lived in seclusion.

Except for the daily necessities like eating in the canteen, he stayed at his place and was constantly familiarizing himself with his newfound strength.

Using Killing Value to upgrade his Martial Arts does not mean that his body can immediately adapt to it.

Shen Changqing's guess was that if it was an offensive technique that got upgraded by Killing Value, then it should bring complete familiarity.

An Apprentice Slayer would need to complete a mission every five days.

Likewise, the time for Apprentice Slayers being able to enter the Library was also in five-day intervals.

On the fifth day, Liu Chang arrived as scheduled.

"You made another breakthrough in your [Thirteen Cross Practice]?"

The first instant he saw Shen Changqing, Liu Chang noticed something was different.

Compared to five days ago, the current Shen Changqing’s aura was looming. It was obvious that he had made a considerable achievement in the [Thirteen Cross Practice].

Of course, Liu Chang did not suspect nor think that the other party had broken through to Level 15.

Since the peak of the [Thirteen Cross Practice] was Level 13. Once Level 13 was achieved, the body would be balanced and there would be no leak of aura.

However, Shen Changqing's upgrade had broken past the perfection of this martial art, which also broke the balance of his body, which was why Liu Chang detected the leakage of some aura.

If it was at the beginning, the aura leaking out of Shen Changqing's body would definitely not be this simple.

But because of a few days of closed Cultivation, he was much more familiar with himself and the original leakage was also suppressed.

By the time Liu Chang looked again, it was already maintained at a normal level.

Hearing the other party's inquiry.

Shen Changqing smiled: "I have gained some benefits after seclusion, however, in front of Steward Liu, it is nothing."

"The Body Forging Realm is just the beginning. When you have built a good foundation, you can consider going to the Library and exchange it for a Martial Art of the Qi Circulation Realm.”

“Although it was said that after the [Thirteen Cross Practice] had been completed, Cultivators can naturally be promoted to the Qi Circulation Realm, but doing that would take too long.”

“The Beginner Martial Arts were just for polishing one's foundation.”

“When you switch to an Advanced Martial Art, you can advance to the Qi Circulation Realm more quickly.”

“As long as you enter the Qi Circulation Realm, your probability of becoming an Official Slayer will be much higher."

Liu Chang patiently explained.

The first time he saw Shen Changqing, the latter piqued his interest and he thought that the other party was a genius.

Seeing him again today, the other party really did not disappoint him. In just five days' time, Shen Changqing had, one again, made a remarkable attainment in the [Thirteen Cross Practice].

As long as there was no accident, Shen Changqing will definitely be able to become an Official Slayer.

As a steward of the Demon Suppression Division, Liu Chang will be able to get some benefits if an Apprentice Slayer grows into an Official Slayer. 

It's just that the success rate in advancing from Apprentice Slayer to Official Slayer was generally not high and very few people can take this step.

Therefore, Liu Chang does not want to pay too much attention to the general Apprentice Slayers, following the rules and regulations.

"Thank you Steward Liu for your guidance, I will definitely not forget your kindness if I achieve something in the future!"

"Haha, it's good that you have a heart."

A rare smile appeared on Liu Chang's face.

Immediately after that, he took out the Demon Suppression Prison Manual again.

"You have been through the Demon Suppression Prison several times, so you must be quite familiar with it already. This time you will still be patrolling the Demon Suppression Prison!"

"Yes!"

Shen Changqing did not refuse, reaching out to take the Demon Suppression Prison Manual and put it away.

Anyways, Shen Changqing also did not have the qualification to ask for a change of mission.

If Liu Chang had given this mission, then Shen Changqing had to carry out that mission.

It could also be seen from Liu Chang giving him the same mission, which was relatively low in difficulty, that there was the intention of selling himself a favor.

Regarding this, Shen Changqing understood it in his heart.

After getting the Demon Suppression Prison Manual and saying goodbye to Liu Chang, he went straight to the Demon Suppression Prison.

Since he had no idea where to find Killing Value, this visit in the Demon Suppression Prison was very fast.

In less than an hour, Shen Changqing walked out of the Demon Suppression Prison, and then headed towards the Library.

Liu Chang's words made him realize one thing.

That was, the Martial Arts in his arsenal was still too little.

[Thirteen Cross Practice] was good, but as the other party said, this Martial Art was only a Beginners Martial Art.　　

With the same amount of Killing Value used to upgrade, with more profound Martial Arts, he could get more value/power.

"Yellow Court Apprentice Slayer Shen Changqing, requesting access to the Library!"

Shen Changqing directly handed over his identity token, lest the other party ask for it.

The old man sitting in the Library opened his eyes, and the familiar feeling flashed.

But compared to last time, Shen Changqing's fear had diminished a lot when meeting the gaze of the old man.

"Hmm..."

The old man returned the token, then casually said a cautionary note and closed his eyes again.

Shen Changqing put away the token, said thank you, and walked towards the pile of bookshelves.

The first floor of the Library.

Not only were there Martial Arts books, but there were also many strange and unusual stories, as well as the deeds of demons and monsters.

But different books were divided into different areas.

Although he had the intention to know more about the demons and monsters, after Liu Chang's reminder, Shen Changqing still decided to improve his Martial Arts first. As for other things, when he had the opportunity later, he would take his time to learn more.

He stood in front of the bookshelf in the Martial Arts area.

He casually took a book out.

There were big words written on it: [Iron Crotch Kung Fu]!

The corners of his mouth twitched slightly, and Shen Changqing put the book back.

[Iron Crotch Kung Fu] was also a Beginner Martial Art, almost the same nature as the [Thirteen Cross Practice].

But if the two were really compared, the former was inferior to the latter by an unknown amount.