CHAPTER 162: CHAPTER 114: NOW FIFTH GRADE, TIME TO BECOME ZHENREN

The other party had a respectful expression, bowing with clasped hands, "Greetings, Junior Martial Uncle Xu."

"By the order of the Sect Leader, the steward position in Chuannan Prefecture has been vacant for a long time. Please assume the post after the New Year."

Xu Guang squinted his eyes.

As expected, this was once again the handiwork of Lin Zushan.

Such a person truly instills fear—clearly possessing strength, yet deliberately exploiting the rules to deal with you.

Break through to the Fifth Grade as soon as possible, find a chance to take this one down.

His disgust for this person was at its peak.

"Please have Martial Nephew report back to Sword Seal Peak, Xu Mou will enter Southern Sichuan after the New Year."

...

Inside the wooden house.

Threads of Qi Force circulated, and halos formed around Xu Guang. It wasn’t Qi Force, but Spiritual Power compressed to the extreme, almost able to manifest in the real world.

On the panel, the level of the Martial Artist had already prominently turned to Level 17, having consumed 270,000 Experience Points.

Above Level 10, the experience required for upgrades is calculated in tens of thousands.

Such consumption even left Xu Guang somewhat strained.

However, it was all worth it.

He sensed the transformation in his body, a never-before-felt lightness emerged.

The aptitude of a Martial Artist is reflected in many aspects, but for the Innate, the most direct manifestation is the absorption of Heaven and Earth Spirit Charm.

Everyone who steps into the Innate is considered a genius by the world.

But the gap between geniuses can be terrifyingly large; some achieve the spiritual charm others gather through a year or even longer of cultivation and gathering in just one Spirit Crystal.

While some only need a month or even half a month for their natural cultivation to gather as much spirit charm as in one Spirit Crystal.

Of course, this is also related to the Cultivation Technique and the environment one is in.

Hence, many Jianghu experts seek out major forces just to gain Spirit Crystals, hoping for a breakthrough.

Xu Guang’s own aptitude was of the poor kind; even the most basic Entry Grade in Martial Dao was barely achieved. After condensing the Spirit Bone, it improved significantly. After breaking through the Innate, his aptitude improved greatly, barely considered below average.

Practicing the top-tier Cultivation Technique of Jiufeng Mountain, coupled with being in such a spirit-rich environment like Jiufeng Mountain, approximately three months of cultivation equaled absorbing a Spirit Crystal.

But now...

Feeling the spirit charm pouring into his body without needing to absorb it himself, a satisfied smile appeared on Xu Guang’s face.

Definitely not more than a month.

Or even faster?

He was filled with emotion; the improvement in Professional Level made one excited, even if temporarily no other functions emerged. The metamorphosis in Martial Artist aptitude was the same.

At the current progress, if the Martial Artist Profession were truly upgraded to around Level 20, ten days of cultivation would be equivalent to refining one Spirit Crystal at most.

With such aptitude, even in Jiufeng Mountain...

It should be considered one of the top few, right?

If he went through the Spirit Refining Pool once more...

He would become... a true genius!

Xu Guang suppressed his thoughts, his Spiritual Power nearly solidified, and the halo-like phenomena around him became more elusive and illusory.

He silently recited the Jade Cicada Shedding Divine Technique Middle Chapter.

With the foundation of practicing the upper Chapter, along with the changes in his aptitude and increasingly vast Spiritual Power, entry would be quick, at most half a month.

By then...

He would go to take the post in Chuannan Prefecture, and he was eager to see who were the fisherman and the fish—what monsters and demons were they!

...

In the dark world.

Hanshang and the mayor were leading a group of people in a run.

They encountered a calamity again.

This was a world full of ghosts and spirits.

The land seemed to have been corroded by some terrifying presence, making seeds unable to take root and sprout once planted.

In fact, most people here were in a constant state of migration, needing to find a place where food could be grown.

Hanshang and the others were outsiders.

As for that mayor, he was merely someone who had arrived at that abandoned town before them and self-proclaimed as mayor for the sake of authority.

In this wasteland-like world, even fellow humans were terrifying.

Since the last True Monarch descended, the final sanctuary in that town had been destroyed, and they could only search for a new one.

Stopping and going along the way, half a year had passed. Fortunately, the sanctuary in the last town was large enough, allowing them to store enough food.

Now they finally settled down in an abandoned village.

Here lay about an acre of sanctuary.

The sanctuary was extraordinary, capable of growing crops at different rates depending on its quality.

To their surprise, this sanctuary could yield double harvests in a month!

Unfortunately, it was less than an acre in size.

But they still cherished and carefully protected this sanctuary.

Hanshang sat in a small underground room, carefully inventorying all the grain seeds, which was her privilege as the Saintess for the True Monarch followers.

Apart from guarding the seeds, she now also had her own little underground room.

Though she didn’t enjoy being alone.

Outside, an unusual sound suddenly echoed.

Hanshang nervously hugged herself, holding her breath as she looked through the air vent above her head.

A sight of various colored smoke trails appeared on the village road, akin to living creatures, creeping slowly.

Heavy and powerless footsteps continually sounded.

Hanshang’s breath nearly stalled.

They came again...

This village was not an unclaimed land. Its owners were... a group of ghosts!

An entire village of Evil Ghosts!

Soon, Hanshang saw the entities within the ghost smoke, men and women dressed in peculiar clothing, each pair of eyes dull and lifeless, like puppets moving forward.