n

n

n

nIn addition, these people’s skills were either crippled or had their shoulder bones sealed. There was no worry of them stirring up trouble.

n

nThey did a stock count of all the silver and gold. It was a total of 5 million taels.

n

nAfter deducting 20% for their base station, they handed over the remaining 80% to the higher-ups. They exchanged them for banknotes and sent them to the capital city.

n

nOf the remaining 20%, 10% was split equally between Xiao Ran and the other two.

n

nAs for the remaining 10%, those involved in the operation received 8%, and the remaining 2% were distributed to those who stayed behind.

n

nThe entire base station of the Divine Sword Guards benefited. Whether big or small, everyone received their share, and they were absolutely overjoyed.

n

nIn the hall,

n

nShen Yiming looked at Little Zhou worriedly. “Take it easy. Don’t spend this money carelessly. When you return to the capital city, buy some medicinal pills for skills evolution and raise your evolution level as soon as possible.”

n

n“What about Brother Xiao?”

n

n“Why are you dragging me into this?” Xiao Ran gave him a knock on his head.

n

nShen Yiming also glared at him sternly. “If you had one-tenth of Xiao Ran’s ability, I wouldn’t care if you spent this money in the Drunken Immortals Court every day.”

n

n“Where did a small Yellow Sand Sect get so much money?” Xiao Ran asked with a perplexed look.

n

nShen Yiming explained, “Don’t underestimate them. Over the years, Huang Feng has made a lot of money from the Sand River.”

n

nHe then turned to Little Zhou.

n

n“The guests who attended Huang Feng’s wedding this time will be escorted to the capital city together with the higher-ups of the Yellow Sand Sect.”

n

n“I’ll arrange it now,” Little Zhou acknowledged his order.

n

n“The case here is considered closed. I’ll write a report and send it to the capital city overnight. Once the higher-ups send new personnel over, we can go back. In the meantime, you guys can relax for a while.”

n

nThey then left the hall.

n

nAfter returning to his room, Xiao Ran sat on the bed.

n

nAs he checked his gains this time, the Golden Tome of Creation opened up to two pages. One for the Spectral Sovereign, one for the Yellow Sand Sect.

n

nWith the gains from the Yellow Sand Sect stacked together, it was still not comparable to the yields from the Spectral Sovereign.

n

nWith the two pages combined, he obtained a total of 6 items.

n

n2.5 million Mastery points, 200 years of Martial Arts Evolution, 200 years of soul evolution, a volume of the Clear Heart Sutra, one drop of Single Essence Heavy Water, Saber Intent.

n

nHe added the 2.5 million Mastery points on the Saber Intent.

n

nAfter the attributes were refreshed,

n

nSaber Intent: Minor Achievement

n

nHe was 360 years away from advancing another step in the Martial Arts Evolution.

n

nHe was still 680 years away from breaking through to Level 6 of the Earth Realm for Spiritual Master Evolution.

n

nClear Heart Sutra: Could calm the mind and help deceased souls achieve peace.

n

nSingle Essence Heavy Water: One drop weighed 150 tons.

n

n“If I want to be rich, I still need Profound Realm demons.” Xiao Ran lamented with a sigh.

n

nHe then extinguished the lights and went to bed.

n

nAt the base station of the Sacred Martial Bureau,

n

na Martial Emissary sat on the center pedestal seat. His name was Jiang Jingxiu, the person in charge of the base station in the Qing Province. There were other senior executives on either side of his seat.

n

nThe atmosphere was oppressive.

n

nSeeing his icy cold face, the people sitting around him kept their heads lowered.

n

nBang!

n

nJiang Jingxiu slammed his hand down on the table without warning. The thunderous sound from the impact sent a shiver down their spines. He cursed out loud in a foul mood,

n

n“A bunch of trash! It’s been so many days, but we still haven’t taken down the Dark Netherworld Sect. Now, see what happened? The Divine Sword Guards managed to destroy the Yellow Sand Sect first. Who knows, they may be laughing at us now for being so useless!”

n

nA Martial Marshal said indignantly, “If they can do it, so can we! After destroying the Dark Netherworld Sect, we can also reap handsome rewards and fill our money pouches to the brim!”

n

n“My lord, let’s do it! There’s no time to lose. We’ll destroy the Dark Netherworld Sect tonight.”

n

n“With our strength and the help of the provincial governor and the rest, it will be very easy to take down the Dark Netherworld Sect.”

n

nJiang Jingxiu sneered. “Now you guys are anxious, eh? I told you before to come up with a plan to destroy the Dark Netherworld Sect. It’s been so many days, but I haven’t even seen a shadow of an idea.”

n

nAfter discussing for a while,

n

nthey decided on a plan. Now that it was getting late, it would not be possible for Jiang Jingxiu to go visit the provincial governor. He would ask him for extra manpower the next day. Then, at nightfall, they would take action to destroy the Dark Netherworld Sect.

n

nThe next day,

n

nafter Xiao Ran washed up, Little Zhou walked over with a portion of food. He placed the breakfast on the table and kept chuckling without saying a word.

n

n“You are not one to do good for no reason. What are you up to now?” Xiao Ran glared at him sternly.

n

nAs he ate his breakfast,

n

nLittle Zhou pulled a chair over and sat opposite him.

n

n“It’s our first time in the Qing Province. Lord Shen said last night that we will have nothing to do for the next two or three days. Why don’t we go out for a walk?”

n

n“Are we really just going for a walk?”

n

nLittle Zhou smiled shyly and scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. “I heard from the others that the Ten Thousand Flowers Mansion is the best in the city! The girls inside are very gentle and multi-talented. As long as the money is right, they even have high-class courtesans.”

n

n“Not going.” Xiao Ran rejected him outright.

n

n“My treat! Good Brother Xiao, accompany me to go out and see the world!”

n

nXiao Ran could not be bothered with him.

n

nAfter dawdling for a while, seeing that Xiao Ran was unmoved, Little Zhou then went to look for Shen Yiming.

n

n“This fellow… ” Xiao Ran shook his head at him.

n

nHe took out the Clear Heart Sutra and began reading it.

n

nThis was a numinous treasure. The book cover was pure green in color and contained less than a thousand words inside. However, every word contained True Intent.

n

nIt was as if the Great Dao had been condensed and summarized in these few words.

n

nHe finished reading it once through.

n

nAs Xiao Ran closed the Clear Heart Sutra, he remarked, “The greatest gain this time is this item. It can resist mental demons.”

n

nAfter a while, on a whim, he thought to himself, “Why don’t I go out for a walk?”

n

nFrom the people stationed at the entrance, he learned that Shen Yiming and Little Zhou had already left.

n

nOnce outside the base station, he reached a bustling downtown area.

n

nIt could not compare to the capital city, of course, but it had its own attractions.

n

nAs he followed the fragrant aroma from the various snack stalls, Xiao Ran tried and tasted the food at each and every stall along the way.

n

nWithout realizing it, he arrived at the provincial government office and happened to see Jiang Jingxiu from the Sacred Martial Bureau emerging from there in a state of excitement. He was practically swaggering down the street.

n

nOne of the Martial Marshal couldn’t help asking, “What did his lordship say?”

n

n“It’s done! The provincial governor promised to send a battalion of Dragon Blood Warriors to attack the Dark Netherworld Sect with us. But after it’s done, they want 40% of the loot.”

n

nThe Dragon Blood Warriors were an army nurtured with the blood of Deluge Dragons and other spiritual herbs.

n

nTheir forte was the physical body and they were extremely powerful. They specialized in dealing with demons and evil sects.

n

nIn all the 18 provinces of the Great Xia kingdom, and some other special places, they not only stationed the regular troops there, every province had a troop of Dragon Blood Warriors stationed there as well.

n

nThe number of Dragon Blood Warriors stationed in the province varied from province to province.

n

nThe Qing Province was more prosperous and its location more strategically important. There were more than 10,000 Dragon Blood Warriors stationed there.

n

nA battalion meant five hundred warriors.

n

nAs they left, Xiao Ran happened to overhear their conversation.

n

n“Are they going to attack the Dark Netherworld Sect soon?”

n

nAfter pondering for a while, Xiao Ran understood their motive. The Divine Sword Guards had already destroyed the Yellow Sand Sect here.

n

nThe two government departments were at odds with each other. If they could not destroy the Dark Netherworld Sect in a short period of time and the higher-ups heard about it, the Sacred Martial Bureau would inevitably be held accountable for their incompetence.

n

n“They have to mobilize the Dragon Blood Warriors and prepare their setup. There is not much time left during the day. Looks like they are going to make their move at night,” Xiao Ran hazarded a guess.

n

nHe shook his mind clear.

n

nHe had no intention of getting involved in this matter, so he continued to stroll down the streets.

n

nSuddenly,

n

nin a large courtyard dwelling, a thick sinister aura condensed and did not dissipate, attracting his gaze.

n

n“What’s this?” Xiao Ran frowned in bafflement.

n