6: Marrow Cleansing Pill, Lu Qingya

Jiang Lan was unaware of Lin Zhaoye's inner thoughts. He hurried out the door, and after a moment's consideration, he hung a lock on the courtyard gate.

It wasn't that he was worried about Lin Zhaoye and Lin Qixing running away.

As half-demons, if they truly ran, there would be nowhere else for the two of them to go.

Whether they could survive would be a problem.

Moreover, Jiang Lan believed he treated the two of them well.

He locked the gate because he was somewhat concerned about the sisters' safety.

Although, according to his understanding, the Great Jing's common people had long held a deeply ingrained aversion to half-demons.

Even if they saw them, they would likely avoid them like the plague.

But it’s always better to be safe than sorry.

On the way, Jiang Lan reached into his in my arms.

Inside his embrace, two small porcelain bottles lay quietly.

These two porcelain bottles contained the Medicinal Pills rewarded by the System.

Halfway there, Jiang Lan turned into an empty alley, pulled out one of the porcelain bottles, poured the Medicinal Pill into his hand, and then tossed it into his mouth.

Before he could chew, the Medicinal Pill instantly transformed into a warm current that flowed into Jiang Lan's abdomen.

He felt a warmth spread, entering all his limbs and bones.

The pores all over Jiang Lan's body seemed to come alive, subtly opening and closing.

This sensation was truly wondrous, like soaking in a bathtub of perfectly warm water, comfortable and pleasant.

The Medicinal Pill's effects couldn't be fully digested in a short while, so Jiang Lan exited the alley and continued towards the Demon Suppression Division.

Although this Medicinal Pill was called a Marrow Cleansing Pill, it wouldn't cause the body to expel impurities as described in cultivation novels.

This was also why Jiang Lan dared to take the Medicinal Pill on the road.

If he ended up smelling foul, he couldn't go to work.

After the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, Jiang Lan arrived at the entrance of the Demon Suppression Division.

Inside the courtyard, several servants and Demon Suppression Guards gathered in small groups.

Upon entering the Demon Suppression Division, Demon Suppression Guards and servants gathered in twos and threes, chatting and laughing.

The Demon Suppression Division where Jiang Lan was located was the headquarters of the Demon Suppression Division in Anping County.

The area of the county town was almost comparable to a provincial capital in his previous life, so the Demon Suppression Division was not just established in one place.

The county town was divided into nine districts and thirty-six wards according to its regions, and there were as many as thirty-six branch offices of the Demon Suppression Division, each managed by its own Squad Leader.

A Demon Suppression Division branch in one ward typically consisted of one Squad Leader, one accountant, ten Demon Suppression Guards, and ten servants.

The district branches had more personnel: three Squad Leader, two accountants, one coroner, thirty Demon Suppression Guards, and thirty servants.

Beyond that was the headquarters where Jiang Lan was located.

The highest-ranking official in the headquarters was the Demon Suppression Envoy, followed by the Demon Hunter Banner Officer, the Night Patrol Captain, the chief coroner, and a records officer.

Below them were the Squad Leader and Demon Suppression Guards, as well as servants like Jiang Lan.

All the personnel at the headquarters, in total, numbered close to two hundred.

The one who sent Jiang Lan to the escort team yesterday was the Demon Hunter Banner Officer of the division, Lu Qingya.

At this moment, a thin man, seeing Jiang Lan enter, took three steps in two and approached him, winking and saying:

"Lan-geer, I heard you went with the escort team yesterday?"

The man's name was Chen Niqiu, the same person who spoke to Jiang Lan in the Dungeon yesterday.

Jiang Lan nodded.

Chen Niqiu, hearing this, looked regretful, slapping his thigh and saying, "I went back too early yesterday. If I had known, I would have gone with you to help you look around. By the way, how's your wife? Is she sturdy?"

Jiang Lan: "..."

He didn't know if she was sturdy, but she was quite soft.

Of course, he only needed to know such things himself; there was no need to tell Chen Niqiu.

Before Jiang Lan could speak, a robust voice rang out from in front of the crowd.

"Time for roll call, everyone come over."

Upon hearing this, the group stopped chatting and lined up obediently, waiting for their names to be called.

The servants and Demon Suppression Guards together numbered about one hundred seventy or eighty people.

The roll call process was very quick, taking less than half the time it takes to brew a cup of tea.

"You may disperse." The Squad Leader who took roll call waved the crowd away, then as if suddenly remembering something, "Oh, Jiang Lan, stay behind."

Jiang Lan's eyes flickered, and he remained in place.

When most of the surrounding people had dispersed, he took a few steps forward and approached the Squad Leader.

Before he could ask, the Squad Leader who had just called roll said:

"The Banner Officer is looking for you." The Squad Leader pointed to the Demon Subduing Hall behind him, "You can go directly."

"Alright."

Jiang Lan followed the direction of the Squad Leader's finger and arrived in front of the Demon Subduing Hall.

Before Jiang Lan was a magnificent building with upturned eaves and intricate dougong brackets, and in front of its gates stood two vivid Xuan Iron Qilin statues, looking as if they could come alive at any moment.

This Demon Subduing Hall was where the officials of the Demon Suppression Division primarily worked.

Entering the inner hall, Lu Qingya sat in the center.

Logically, the Demon Suppression Envoy held the highest position within the county's Demon Suppression Division.

Anping County was special; it had no Demon Suppression Envoy.

It was said that the previous one had mysteriously disappeared some time ago.

Coupled with Lu Qingya's sufficient strength, the higher-ups had not sent another Demon Suppression Envoy down.

Therefore, Lu Qingya was ostensibly the Demon Hunter Banner Officer, but he also held the position of Demon Suppression Envoy, making him the Peak of power within this Demon Suppression Division.

Seeing Jiang Lan enter, Lu Qingya gestured for him.

"Banner Officer," Jiang Lan bowed his head and saluted Lu Qingya.

"Hmm." Lu Qingya glanced at Jiang Lan, "I heard you married two half-demons?"

Jiang Lan was stunned for a moment, then slowly raised his head, meeting Lu Qingya's dark golden left eye.

That's right.

Lu Qingya was also a half-demon.

It was just that his strength was evident.

Ordinary half-demons would face discrimination.

But once one reached the realm, whether a half-demon or something else, they were not someone ordinary people could provoke.

The distance between common people and martial artists who had entered the realm was like an insurmountable chasm.

If an ordinary person dared to provoke a martial artist, even if they were killed in the street, they could only consider themselves unlucky.

Even if someone reported it to the county yamen, it would be useless.

The county magistrate wasn't foolish; how could he possibly offend a martial artist for an expendable common person?

"Yes..." Jiang Lan lowered his head again, no longer looking into Lu Qingya's eyes.

Lu Qingya was silent for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Why?"

"It's not for any particular reason..." Jiang Lan pondered for a while before saying, "It's the same for me no matter who I marry, but if I didn't marry them, they might not have survived."

Lu Qingya's eyes narrowed slightly: "So, you pity them?"

"If you put it that way, then yes," Jiang Lan was not nervous, instead saying with a relaxed expression, "It's just that I don't feel like I'm pitying anyone. On the contrary, I feel like I got a great deal. I married two beautiful girls at once."

Lu Qingya: "But they are half-demons. Don't you find it unlucky?"

Jiang Lan's eye twitched.

Not to mention he didn't feel that way at all.

Even if he genuinely felt it was unlucky, he wouldn't dare say it.

You, Lord Lu, are a half-demon. Who would dare to say that half-demons are unlucky in front of you?