In the end, about twenty Evil Suppression Guards remained in the center of the Martial Arts Arena, shuffling their feet with sly looks on their faces.
These men had terrible reputations within the department. They had no combat merits and were known for scheming and sucking up.
Seeing that Chu Bai and Pang Song had passed them over, the men’s faces turned exceedingly ugly.
Zhang Cheng stood on the high dais, coldly gazing down at the twenty-odd men left behind.
"The Department doesn’t support dead weight."
Zhang Cheng’s voice was as cold as a blade. "Since neither captain has any use for you, then effective immediately, you are to be stripped of your Evil Suppression Guard uniforms and assigned to the department’s [Miscellaneous Affairs Group]. You will be responsible for fetching water, chopping firewood, and repairing the jail cells. You are forbidden from participating in any field missions without an explicit order."
"Ah? Director, have mercy!"
"We’re old-timers in the department..."
Their cries rang out, but no one paid them any mind.
In the eyes of the now swift and decisive Zhang Cheng, the Evil Suppression Department had absolutely no need for rusty deadbeats who did nothing but coast and wait to die.
On the Martial Arts Arena, the new formations were already clear.
At Pang Song’s side stood over a hundred stoic veterans. Meanwhile, Hu Hao and Feng Qin flanked Chu Bai, with more than seventy elite guards radiating a fierce aura behind them.
"Although your ranks are not yet full, this is the basic framework."
Zhang Cheng looked at the two teams, each with a vastly different disposition, his eyes filled with ambition. "Chu Bai, Pang Song, Anping County has suffered from deep-rooted problems for far too long. Your seventy-odd and hundred-odd men are just the beginning."
"In a few days, I’ll have the County Yamen put up recruitment posters. We’ll be looking to hire Loose Cultivators and academy students. When you do, prioritize quality over quantity, and fill your remaining vacancies."
"As you command!"
Chu Bai tightened his grip on his Official Seal, feeling the auras of the seventy-plus men behind him subtly connecting with the General Star Fate Chart in his body.
’Slaughter at Hand... I wonder if leading a team to slay demons counts for that...’
「Winter gave way to spring, and in a flash, more than half a year had passed.」
After the bloodbath of the Sanmu River incident, the once-turbulent situation in Anping County gradually calmed, especially with the complete annihilation of the Luu Family.
A delicate balance had been struck between County Magistrate Qian Shen and County Captain Zhang Cheng. After witnessing Zhang Cheng’s iron fist, the local Noble Races all tucked their wings, and the entire county entered a rare period of peace.
Over the past half-year, Chu Bai had been both extremely busy and fulfilled.
As the Regular Ninth Grade captain of the Demon-slaying Team, he had practically built the squad from the ground up.
From an initial force of seventy-odd remnant soldiers, and after three large-scale recruitment drives and internal screenings, the Demon-slaying Team had now expanded to one hundred and ten members.
With the team’s roster filled out, Chu Bai no longer had to handle every matter personally.
Feng Qin, the Deputy Captain, handled external affairs.
He led the new and old Evil Suppression Guards on daily patrols throughout the county, dealing with the Little Demons and other minor monsters reported by the villages.
Feng Qin was a seasoned veteran with a real knack for field command. Under his guidance, the Demon-slaying Team’s execution improved by leaps and bounds.
Hu Hao, on the other hand, managed internal affairs.
From tallying supplies and disbursing wages to recording Demon-slaying Merits and organizing case files, Hu Hao managed everything with meticulous care, leaving Chu Bai with no worries on the home front.
At that moment, inside the Demon-slaying Team’s duty room at the Evil Suppression Department.
Chu Bai leaned back in his chair, looking over the monthly patrol summary Hu Hao had just submitted.
The Demon-slaying Team’s responsibilities were now extremely clear: Anping County was divided into four defense sectors, with two squads rotating on patrol each day.
Their efficiency had more than doubled compared to the previous three-team system.
"Captain, this is the inventory sheet for the Demon Pills and Spiritual Materials we’ve acquired this month. Please take a look."
Hu Hao said quietly, his eyes filled with respect for Chu Bai.
Chu Bai gave the sheet a cursory glance before handing it back to Hu Hao. "I trust your work. Go on, give the men some extra Pills. Just charge it to the team’s merit surplus."
"Thank you, Captain!" Hu Hao accepted the order with a grin and departed.
Once the duty room fell silent again, Chu Bai slowly closed his eyes, his mind sinking into the system panel that only he could see.
[Name: Chu Bai]
[Realm: Qi Cultivation Fifth Layer (7/100)]
[Cultivation Technique: Guiyuan Technique (Perfection 959/???)]
[Skills: ...]
[Mystic Curse (Mastery 169/500)]
Feeling the increasingly profound and pure Five Elements Spiritual Power within him, a slight smile touched the corners of Chu Bai’s lips.
Half a year. From the Early Stage of Qi Cultivation Fourth Layer to the Qi Cultivation Fifth Layer.
Such a speed was nothing short of astonishing.
Even students of the Daoist School, the cream of the crop and far stronger than ordinary Cultivators, would find it incredibly difficult to match.
By common standards, breaking through one layer per year during the Early-stage of Qi Cultivation was already considered exceptionally fast. Upon reaching the Middle Stage of Qi Cultivation, however, the difficulty of widening one’s meridians and condensing Spiritual Power increased dramatically. Most geniuses required a year and a half, or even two years, to break through a single layer.
Yet Chu Bai, despite being swamped with official duties and trivial matters, had stepped into the Qi Cultivation Fifth Layer in just over half a year.
’The higher my Cultivation, the less my progress seems to slow. Is this the effect of [Nourishing and Exquisite]?’
Chu Bai knew full well that his innate talent had only been average. The only reason he had stood out at the academy was through sheer, relentless grinding.
But over the past half-year, thanks to the cleansing from his Merit and multiple enhancements to his Fate Chart, his physical constitution and comprehension had been completely reborn.
In terms of talent, he was now absolutely a one-in-ten-thousand prodigy.
Not to mention, he had experienced no bottlenecks whatsoever during the Middle Stage of Qi Cultivation.
As long as he accumulated enough Spiritual Power, breakthroughs came as naturally as water carving a channel—effortlessly smooth and without the slightest resistance.
His gaze fell upon the Mystic Curse.
This Trapping Enemy Skill, once obscure and difficult to comprehend, had now been pushed to the Mastery realm.
Now when he cast it, not only did it consume less power, but the viscous, qi-locking sensation it produced was also far more difficult to escape.

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