Cultivating in Different Professions

Chapter 256: Chapter 166: Taiping Captain

"Lao Wan, you were right. Qi Wuyong planned to use our heads as a pledge of allegiance to the Inspection Bureau."

An old Captain spat on the ground and said resentfully,

"Those bastards from the Inspection Bureau are completely shameless. If they have so much time on their hands, why don’t they go kill some demons?"

The faces of the old Captains all showed their fury.

"This isn’t the first time we’ve dealt with something like this."

Wan Qing sneered. "These people don’t have what it takes to slay demons, but when it comes to infighting, they’re better than anyone."

"Take Qi Wuyong’s body back with us. We’ll send it to the Jingzhou Prefecture and let the Lord Commander demand an explanation from the Third-Grade Inspection Envoy of the Jingzhou Inspection Bureau!"

The Taiping Bureau wasn’t one to take abuse lying down. When someone brought the fight to their doorstep, they were damn well going to fight back.

But this had to be handled at the right level—soldiers against soldiers, generals against generals.

They just needed to deliver the evidence to the prefecture; the Lord Commander would naturally know how to proceed.

"If we can make the Jingzhou Inspection Bureau suffer a major loss from this, knowing our Lord Commander’s personality, Su Mu... there’ll be a handsome reward in it for you."

Wan Qing said, "It’s all thanks to you that Qi Wuyong and his men fell here."

"I was only doing my duty,"

Su Mu smiled. "I’m already very satisfied with my promotion to Taiping Captain. As for anything else, it doesn’t matter to me."

......

Wan Qing was even more anxious about Su Mu’s promotion than Su Mu himself.

He was genuinely worried that Su Mu might be poached by another faction, though Su Mu himself had no such intentions.

On the fifth day after returning to the city, the order for Su Mu’s promotion to Taiping Capital Captain was issued.

Along with the order, the official uniform of a Taiping Captain was also tailored and delivered to him.

When Su Mu summoned his system panel again, its contents had quietly changed.

[Name: Su Mu]

[Identity: Silver-faced Killer (Concurrent), Sixth-Grade Taiping Captain]

[Points: 3000]

[Realm: Rebirth Realm (Elevenfold Blood Transformation, Body Tempering Limit)]

[Divine Techniques: Indestructible Golden Body, Blood Body]

[Cultivation Technique: Four Symbols Rebirth Technique (Vermilion Bird Body - Great Success Realm)...]

[Martial Arts: Li Fire Realm (Great Success), Kan Water Realm (Great Success), Xun Wind Realm (Great Success), Gen Mountain Realm (Great Success), Archery (Perfection)]

On the system panel, his rank of Taiping Capital Captain had been replaced with Taiping Captain, Sixth-Grade!

Beyond that, his four realms at the Great Success stage were also quite conspicuous.

If anyone knew he had cultivated four different realms to the Great Success Realm, it would be utterly shocking.

Body Tempering Limit, elevenfold Blood Transformation, two Physical Divine Techniques, and four realms at Great Success.

Any Martial Artist who possessed even one of these would be called a genius.

Possessing two would make them an undeniable prodigy.

And to have four was simply unheard of.

Without even realizing it, Su Mu’s foundation had become unimaginably profound.

He was now on par with, if not superior to, the so-called prodigies of the Jingzhou Prefecture.

Considering he was only just past twenty, as long as he didn’t die prematurely, he was destined to become a major figure in the Da Xuan Dynasty.

’To raise all four realms to the Perfection Realm will cost a total of 400,000 Points.’

Su Mu couldn’t help but sigh.

Only by cultivating a realm to the Realm of Perfection could he hope to grasp the phenomena that lay beyond.

And one realm at Perfection wasn’t enough; he would need at least two.

The thought of the immense difficulty was daunting, even for Su Mu.

’Fortunately, I’m a Sixth-Grade Captain now. My base daily Points are four hundred, and including performance bonuses, my daily limit can reach eight hundred.’

Su Mu calculated silently.

It was the difference between a fixed salary and commission.

Back when he was temporary Commander-in-Chief during the Tier Five Demon Tide, there was no cap on performance bonuses. He had earned Points at a truly incredible rate then.

Now that the temporary title was gone, he was back to a "fixed salary."

Even with his sixth-grade status, he could only earn eight hundred Points a day.

But opportunities like that were rare. If the Governor and most of the Taiping Captains hadn’t been away from Wuling, the title of Outer City Commander would never have fallen to him.

A "fixed salary" might be less, but it was a slow and steady stream.

With enough patience, he could still accumulate the Points he needed.

’At this rate, it’ll take a little over a month to save up 30,000 Points. By then, my Vermilion Bird Body will reach Perfection, and the Four Symbols Rebirth Technique will advance to the Second Realm.’

The pace wasn’t fast, but it certainly wasn’t slow.

It was just that Su Mu was used to seeing his cultivation improve daily. Suddenly having to wait over a month for a tangible upgrade felt strange.

In reality, for most Martial Artists, seeing even the slightest progress after years of hard work was the norm.

Pushing the thoughts aside, Su Mu changed into his new official uniform.

He ran his fingers over the new embroidery on his chest, a wave of accomplishment washing over him.

’Not bad, Captain Su. Looking sharp!’

......

"Junior Sister Luo, what’s the meaning of this?"

Su Mu asked, confused. His gaze fell upon Luo Anning’s face, her skin so fair it seemed almost translucent.

"This is the proof of purchase."

Luo Anning said seriously, "I bought the Five Flames Heaven-Shaking Bow. From now on, it belongs completely to... Senior Brother Su."

She glanced at the new insignia on Su Mu’s chest and hesitated, but she stuck with the old address.

This was a rare breach of etiquette for the normally proper Luo Anning.

Technically, she should have started calling him Master Su.

But for some reason, she just couldn’t bring herself to do it.

"You bought the Five Flames Heaven-Shaking Bow? You can do that?"

Su Mu asked, surprised.

He loved the Five Flames Heaven-Shaking Bow, of course, but it was the property of the local Government Office. It had only been lent to him temporarily.

In fact, he should have returned it after the Tier Five Demon Tide ended.

But Su Mu never got around to returning it, and the City Lord’s Mansion never asked for it back, so the bow had remained in his possession.

As the great hero of the Tier Five Demon Tide, the Wuling City Government Office naturally wouldn’t sweat the small stuff.

Still, his keeping the bow was technically against the rules.

Su Mu had thought about acquiring the bow himself, but it was one of Wuling City’s Town Guard Profound Weapons, its value immeasurable.

He had a bit of money, but not enough to afford a Profound Weapon of that caliber.

And even if he could afford it, the Wuling City Government Office would be unlikely to sell.

"In principle, a Profound Weapon of this level would never be for sale."

Luo Anning explained, "However, my family has rendered great service to Wuling City, so—

Senior Brother Su, don’t worry. It’s all completely above board. There won’t be any trouble.

I would never break the laws of the dynasty."

"This is too valuable."

Su Mu believed her, smiling as he spoke.

"No matter how valuable, it can’t compare to the Blood Strengthening Pill."

Luo Anning shook her head. "Senior Brother Su, I’m already at the ninefold Blood Transformation stage.

In a year at most, I’ll definitely break through to the Rebirth Realm. Then, I can become a Taiping Captain, just like you, Senior Brother Su."

"Then, keep up the good work."

Su Mu stopped refusing. He raised his fist with a smile.

Luo Anning also raised her own delicate, jade-like fist and gently bumped it against his.

......

「Wuling City. The Inspection Bureau.」

The new Inspector, Wu Yiqi, sat in the main hall, his face an emotionless mask.

"Are you telling me that the same Taiping Capital Captain was present when Junior Brother Dai and Junior Brother Feng died? And he came back alive both times?"

he said in a low voice.

The only other person in the room was a deputy he had brought with him, who also served as his strategist.

The man was not a disciple of the Shennong Hundred Herbs Sect, but a member of the Wu Family, from which Wu Yiqi himself hailed.

Unlike Dai Jin, Wu Yiqi was from a noble house. A man of few words, he had an unapproachable air about him.

Since arriving in Wuling City, he hadn’t even bothered to summon Wang Guan.

"Yes."

The deputy, named Wu Qiuyuan, bowed. "And that man is no longer a Taiping Capital Captain. He was promoted to Taiping Captain several days ago.

While still in the Blood Transformation Realm, he used the Five Flames Heaven-Shaking Bow to kill a Tier Three Demon.

If he was determined to do so, he certainly had the ability to kill Lord Dai."

"The Five Flames Heaven-Shaking Bow..."

A thoughtful look crossed Wu Yiqi’s face. Even he might not be able to withstand an attack from that bow.

"My lord, I believe the first step to dealing with Su Mu is to take the Five Flames Heaven-Shaking Bow away from him.

I’ve already investigated the matter. The bow isn’t his—it’s one of Wuling City’s Town Guard Profound Weapons."

Wu Qiuyuan continued, "We can use this as our entry point. Frame it as the Taiping Bureau forcefully seizing a local Government Office’s Town Guard Profound Weapon. We can order Su Mu to return it and simultaneously hold him accountable for the crime.

Once we have him in the custody of the Inspection Bureau, we have more than enough ways to make him talk."

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