27: Chapter 27 Seventy Years of Cultivation, Breaking Through to the Sixth Rank!

The day that followed was incredibly peaceful.

The prominent figures involved in the Official Silver Case had all covered their tracks, so it was not something that could be uncovered all at once.

The Hour of the Rat.

Deep within the Heavenly Prison, it was silent.

Chen Ran sat cross-legged on the hardwood bed in the Cell Block D jailer's room.

Within his Sea of Consciousness, the heavenly book of prison suppression opened to a brand new page, golden light rippling like water.

"The Hour of the Rat has arrived. Today, you have guarded the Heavenly Prison; reward: one year of Internal Energy."

"Accumulated Internal Energy: seventy years."

A dull roar emanated from within Chen Ran's body.

Seventy years of pure Internal Energy, like a bursting river, surged wildly through his limbs and bones.

The Seventh Realm Qi and blood, which had already been refined to the extreme, began to undergo a qualitative change under the pressure of this immense power.

Wisps of liquid energy formed at his Dantian.

Inner Breath.

Martial Dao Sixth Realm, Inner Breath Realm.

Crossing this threshold, a Martial Artist's power would no longer rely solely on physical Qi and blood, but could manifest Inner Breath externally to injure people from ten paces away.

The moment the Inner Breath formed.

The Red Lotus Karmic Fire Scripture circulating within Chen Ran was automatically triggered.

This top-tier Demonic Path Cultivation Technique was inherently tyrannical. Now, as his Sixth Realm Inner Breath spilled outwards, it unexpectedly resonated strongly with the cold Evil Qi that had accumulated beneath the Heavenly Prison for a hundred years.

Chen Ran was still unaware of this phenomenon.

Whoosh—

In the prison corridor, visible grey Evil Qi was being pulled wildly.

It formed a miniature vortex above the Cell Block D.

This pressure of Breakthrough, which originally belonged only to a Sixth Realm Martial Artist, surged exponentially with the aid of the Evil Qi vortex, reaching a level that was almost terrifying.

This pressure swept past.

This was definitely not the commotion that could be caused by advancing to the Sixth Realm!

In the Cell Block D and Section C cells, the prisoners who were originally asleep were directly startled awake by this aura.

...

The middle layer of the Heavenly Prison, the Captain's office.

Li Changfeng was draped in his clothes, sitting under a lamp, reviewing files.

Suddenly, his hand holding the brush paused abruptly.

Ink from the wolf-hair brush dripped onto the paper, staining a large black blot.

Li Changfeng stood up abruptly, his gaze fixed intensely in the direction of the bottom layer of the Heavenly Prison.

That aura carried the violent intent of the Demonic Path, as if it wanted to overturn the entire Heavenly Prison.

"This pressure..."

A layer of cold sweat seeped onto Li Changfeng's forehead.

He grabbed the saber from the wall and strode out of the room.

"Come here! Assemble! Go to the bottom layer!"

The Demon Suppression Division guards outside were already in chaos.

A dozen elite guards followed Li Changfeng, holding torches, rushing towards the lower layer of the Heavenly Prison with guarded expressions.

Li Changfeng's heart was in his throat.

The Jia Ward in the deepest part of the Heavenly Prison held old monsters from various dynasties. If any great Devil Head broke through the Seal, no one in the Heavenly Prison would survive tonight.

...

At the same time.

The center of the capital, headquarters of the Demon Suppression Division.

On a stargazing tower that pierced the clouds.

Several high-ranking officials dressed in gold-embroidered robes were gathered together drinking tea.

The sudden fluctuation of Evil Qi from the direction of the Heavenly Prison caused the lamps at the top of the tower to flicker violently.

A young man held a teacup, gazing from afar at the faintly distorted night sky above the Heavenly Prison.

"Such manic Evil Qi. Did something go wrong in the bottom layer of the Heavenly Prison?"

A man who looked like a commander beside him just smiled faintly and drank the tea in his cup in one gulp.

"No need to make a fuss."

The middle-aged man waved his hand, his tone revealing careless arrogance.

"That ghostly place, the Heavenly Prison, is filled with half-dead old things suppressed underneath. It's probably just one of them waking up and throwing a tantrum."

"The Formation is personally reinforced by the Imperial Preceptor; they cannot stir up any trouble."

"Drink, drink."

The high-ranking officials smiled at each other, none of them taking this anomaly to heart.

...

The bottom layer of the Heavenly Prison.

Chen Ran felt the powerful Inner Breath surging through his Meridians and frowned slightly.

The commotion was a bit too big.

This commotion could not be explained by an ordinary expert.

He did not hesitate, and with a shift of his mind, he fully activated the Tortoise Breathing Art.

The originally violent, outwardly manifesting Inner Breath, like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, instantly retracted back into the depths of his Dantian.

Not a shred of aura leaked out anymore.

The miniature Evil Qi vortex in the corridor lost its traction and collapsed with a roar, turning into ordinary cold wind that blew into the depths of the corridor.

Chen Ran straightened his clothes, picked up a windproof lamp, pushed open the door, and walked out.

Just as he reached the entrance of the corridor.

Li Changfeng, leading a large group of guards holding torches, rushed in hurriedly.

Seeing Chen Ran standing there safe and sound holding a lantern, Li Changfeng was stunned for a moment.

"Chen Ran? What happened down here?"

Li Changfeng walked up quickly, his gaze scanning the surroundings like a falcon.

Chen Ran bowed slightly, his expression calm, his tone normal.

"Reporting to you, my lord, a sudden, extremely cold wind blew just now, carrying heavy Evil Qi. When I came out to check, I found that all these prisoners had fainted."

Li Changfeng walked to the nearest cell.

He reached out to check the breathing of the bandit and then lifted the other person's eyelid.

"Their Qi and blood are stagnant; they were knocked unconscious directly by an overwhelmingly powerful aura."

Li Changfeng gasped, his expression becoming incomparably grave.

He did not suspect Chen Ran.

A low-level jailer who had only been on the job for a short time could never create such a commotion that even he, an Eighth Realm expert, felt terrified by.

Coupled with the fact that the terrifying aura had completely disappeared by now.

Li Changfeng drew his saber and looked towards the deeper direction of the Heavenly Prison.

"It seems that as mentioned above, it was some sleeping old Devil Head in the Jia Ward throwing a tantrum, accidentally leaking their aura."

Li Changfeng turned his head to look at Chen Ran.

"Increase the number of people on night patrol tonight, and do not go near the entrance to the deep layer."

After giving instructions, Li Changfeng left in a hurry with his men.

Chen Ran held the lantern, watching them leave. His mouth twitched slightly, and he turned back to his room to consolidate his Realm.

...

The next morning.

The Heavenly Prison jailer's cafeteria.

A large pot was boiling thick millet porridge, steaming hot.

Chen Ran held a bowl of porridge, sitting at a wooden table in the corner, drinking it slowly.

The jailers around were gathered in twos and threes, discussing the commotion from last night with great animation.

"That cold wind last night was really evil! Even while sleeping upstairs, I felt a chill seeping into my bones!" Jailer Old Wang took a bite of a coarse flour bun, still feeling lingering fear.

"Isn't that so? I heard that all the prisoners in Section C and the Cell Block D were knocked unconscious." Another young jailer lowered his voice. "Captain Li led people to investigate for half the night, saying it was the old Devil Head in the deepest part throwing a tantrum."

Old Wang sneered.

"Throwing a tantrum? I think it's just envy."

He tapped his chipped bowl with his chopsticks.

"Calculate the days; in half a month, it will be the capital's 'Lantern Festival'. That is the liveliest festival of the year in our Wei Dynasty."

"Those old monsters are locked in the sunless underground, unable to see the lanterns outside for decades or centuries, unable to smell the fragrance of wine and meat."

"With the festival approaching, how can they not feel stifled? It's perfectly normal for them to vent their evil fire."

The young jailer nodded in sudden realization.

"So that's it. Brother Wang is indeed knowledgeable."

Chen Ran sat nearby, quietly finishing the last mouthful of porridge in his bowl.

He put down the bowl and picked up the rag nearby to wipe his hands.

"Brother Wang is right."

Chen Ran agreed calmly and stood up.

"The festival is coming soon, it is indeed easy for chaos to arise in the Heavenly Prison. I will go to the Cell Block D to patrol first."

Amidst the admiring gazes of the jailers, Chen Ran carried his key ring and walked unhurriedly towards the dark depths of the Heavenly Prison.