"So that's how it is."
Shen Yi savored the newly acquired Blood Slaughter Saber Technique in his mind.
Each move was filled with a fierce and ruthless aura, clearly tainted by the cruelty of demons and monsters.
It was hard to believe that this technique had evolved from the more conventional Demon-Subduing Saber Technique.
Violence against violence!
This was a complete martial art truly suited for the Initial Realm, a far cry from the forced cross-realm techniques like the Righteous Sun Saber.
Combined with his Initial Realm Perfection cultivation, Shen Yi was confident that if he were to face the Yellow-Skinned Demon again, he could defeat it within three moves.
He glanced at his status panel.
The demon lifespan he had left was only 130 years.
The excess had been used on two other martial arts, but the gains were minimal.
All he got was a talent similar to Fist and Palm Mastery.
**[Light as a Swallow: Years of practicing lightness skills have made you more adept at controlling your body.
Your movements have become lighter.]**
It was better than nothing.
Shen Yi wasn’t disappointed.
He had finally figured out how the panel worked.
To deduce new martial arts, it wasn’t just about time—what mattered more was the accumulation of "materials."
Relying solely on lifespan was like hoping for a stroke of luck.
Only by learning more martial arts could he truly integrate and innovate, creating something new.
This wasn’t something that could be achieved by sitting around with an empty mind, daydreaming.
For example, the Blood Slaughter Saber Technique was born from combining the blood-slaughtering power of the Beast Core, and the Wind Thunder Scroll only evolved into an Initial Realm path because of the existence of the Righteous Sun Saber.
"One must learn to be content."
The progress he had made in one night would take an ordinary person a lifetime to achieve, and that was only if they were lucky enough to stumble upon rare treasures or opportunities.
This was already a tremendous stroke of fortune.
Shen Yi got up and looked at the cabinet, where Lin Baiwei had washed and dried his clothes for him.
He reached out, took them, and changed out of his inner robe, revealing a near-perfect muscular physique.
The only flaw was his pale, unhealthy-looking skin, a result of his laziness—he hadn’t even bothered to walk the streets during patrols.
But that wasn’t a big issue.
A bit more sun would fix it.
After quickly changing, he turned and saw Lin Baiwei standing quietly by the back door, holding her breath.
"Something wrong?"
"Just wandering around."
Lin Baiwei reluctantly pulled her gaze away and rubbed her stomach expectantly.
"Is there breakfast today?"
"Wait for me."
Shen Yi stepped out and bought two pancakes from a street vendor.
Remembering the two martial arts manuals he hadn’t yet obtained, he hesitated.
"Add an egg... how much?"
Logically speaking, as a patrol captain with no bad habits, he shouldn’t be short on money.
His previous self had plenty of ways to make money.
If he really wanted to...
"Master Shen, two pancakes? No charge! Please, take as many as you like."
The vendor bowed and handed over the pancakes, wrapped neatly.
"Thanks, but no need."
Shen Yi shook his head and placed ten copper coins on the table.
He brought the breakfast back home.
As Shen Yi bit into his pancake and headed toward the yamen, he noticed something unusual.
Along the way, whether it was the bun sellers or the vegetable vendors, everyone was casting curious glances his way.
But when he looked back, they quickly lowered their heads, pretending to be busy with their work.
"From now on, any demon or evil spirit matters in Baiyun County will be handled by him."
"Him? Master Shen?"
"Stop talking nonsense early in the morning. If you’re worried about your daughters or wives being too pure, or if you have too much silver to spend, he might be able to help. But demons? Really?"
"Keep your voice down! Do you know what happened yesterday? The demons in the western outskirts are gone. Two villagers said it themselves—mountains of demons, all beheaded and sent to our county. And the one leading it? Master Shen."
Now an Initial Realm martial artist, Shen Yi caught every whisper, no matter how faint.
He quickened his pace and entered the yamen’s duty room.
The scene inside was no different from usual, except it felt a bit emptier.
In the large courtyard, only four people were present.
Chen Ji was expressionlessly sweeping the floor with a broom, while the Niu brothers and Zhang Dahu squatted by the doorway, looking dazed and exchanging blank stares.
When Shen Yi entered, Zhang Dahu jumped up from the ground and shouted, "Master Shen, you’re finally here! You have to stand up for us!"
He rushed over, looking utterly aggrieved.
"Why won’t they let us patrol the streets anymore? They’re making us deal with demons instead! The three streets in the west are full of opportunities—that’s the hard-earned livelihood of our brothers! And with one word, Captain Song just wiped it all out!"
"Master Shen, you’re the favorite in front of Magistrate Liu. How dare Captain Song act so arrogantly? He’s not just slapping us in the face—he’s slapping you!"
Chen Ji silently pushed Zhang Dahu aside and approached Shen Yi, speaking softly, "This is the magistrate’s intention."
The four people left in the duty room were exactly the ones who had been at the scene of the Liu family tragedy the day before.
Magistrate Liu’s intentions were clear.
He not only wanted to marginalize these people but also wanted them dead, to show others the consequences of siding with Shen Yi.
You’re good at killing demons, huh?
Then go ahead and kill them all.
Post notices, make it public, raise you to the highest point, and then watch you fall.
If you don’t dare, then behave yourself and stop causing trouble.
"He knows you killed the Yellow-Skinned Demon. He came in the middle of the night, threw a tantrum, and left before dawn, afraid of running into you."
Chen Ji forced a bitter smile.
Clearly, Shen Yi’s sudden display of strength had deeply shaken Magistrate Liu, even to the point of fear.
But it still wasn’t enough...
Even the expert Magistrate Liu had brought back from Qingzhou, who was also capable of fighting the Yellow-Skinned Demon, only earned a monthly salary of 600 taels of silver.
600 taels of silver could crush an ordinary person, but in the murky waters of Baiyun County, it wouldn’t even make a ripple.
Besides the dog demon, there were even more terrifying man-eating demons outside the county.
If things went wrong, even if the Demon-Suppression Bureau were called in, they would first need to take control of the entire county, evacuate the citizens, and then proceed step by step.
It would take at least three to five years to resolve the demon threat.
Three to five years might not sound like much.
But for the magistrate and other officials, it meant ten years of hard work down the drain, their futures darkened, with little chance of advancement.
Even if the court dealt with the demons and reinstated him, he would only be left with a depopulated, impoverished county—something utterly unacceptable.
If it weren’t for the fact that obstructing demon extermination was a crime punishable by the extermination of one’s entire clan, and Shen Yi’s extraordinary martial skills, the higher-ups wouldn’t even bother with such a dirty scheme.
They’d just strip him of his position or have someone take his head.
"Master Shen."
Chen Ji’s expression was complicated.
He had a younger sister to take care of, but now he had suddenly been labeled as Shen Yi’s "accomplice" by the higher-ups.
His heart was heavy.
If even he felt this way, Shen Yi, as the primary target, must be under even greater pressure.
Thinking of this, a hint of sympathy appeared in Chen Ji’s eyes.
"Before Magistrate Liu left, he left me a message. He said, if you come to your senses, bring a jug of wine and visit him... He said the magistrate can give others 600 taels, so surely he won’t shortchange you..."
(End of Chapter)