Chapter 16 Another Breakthrough

"Yun Bai! You still refuse to repent in prison, gathering a mob to fight, and you even killed someone!"

Under Yun Bai's gaze, the head jailer instinctively took a step back, shouting with a fierce but cowardly tone.

"Oh? Is that so? Then how do you plan to deal with it?" Yun Bai revealed his white teeth.

The jailer shivered, thinking he had seen the fangs of a wild beast.

"What are you doing! What's going on!" Suddenly, a shout came from outside the crowd, and the crowd was pushed aside.

"The Master is here!"

"Magistrate Hu Qian is here!"

Magistrate Hu Qian had just received news from the State Religion this morning and had rushed to the Black Prison with his men without stopping.

...

...

...

A quarter of an hour ago.

When Magistrate Hu Qian learned that Yun Bai was already a First Realm Cultivator who had passed the State Religion's assessment, he nearly jumped out of his chair.

"Good heavens, how did you bring such a god to me?"

"Come here, hurry to the Black Prison." Magistrate Hu Qian roared.

"My lord, the sedan chair is being prepared," his subordinate said hurriedly.

Magistrate Hu Qian was furious when he heard this: "To hell with the sedan chair, prepare horses! Hurry!"

The subordinate shivered and hurriedly helped Magistrate Hu Qian out of the main hall to mount a horse.

When Magistrate Hu Qian arrived at the Black Prison, he found that the prisoners had all gathered in the cafeteria.

Just as he was about to approach, he noticed jailers swarming into the cafeteria. He confusedly pushed through the crowd and found everyone surrounding Yun Bai, with prisoners and blood lying all over the ground beside Yun Bai.

Yun Bai looked mocking. He did not bow, only saying indifferently: "Magistrate Hu Qian, hello."

"Uh, Young Master Yun, hello, hello." Magistrate Hu Qian wiped sweat from his forehead and smiled awkwardly, "Young Master Yun, I was ignorant and failed to recognize your brilliance. I didn't know you were already a Cultivator recorded by the State Religion. My subordinates were incompetent, and I did not supervise them strictly. I hope you can forgive me..."

"Incompetent? Heh, your subordinates were actually quite capable; I almost died at their hands. Attempting to murder a State Religion Cultivator—Magistrate Hu Qian, your men have such skills, how can that be called incompetent?" Yun Bai said with a sarcastic tone.

"Uh, ahem. What is going on?" Magistrate Hu Qian hurriedly asked the warden behind him in a low voice.

The warden's legs were also shaking, and he stammered: "Magistrate Hu Qian, this, I... I don't know how, but this Young Master Yun offended the leaders of the factions in the Black Prison, Lang San and Yuan Qiu, and these two sides joined forces to fight with Young Master Yun."

"Bullshit! Young Master Yun only arrived here this morning; how could he have offended people in the Black Prison? If you dare to spout nonsense again, I will hold you accountable! Go investigate immediately!" Magistrate Hu Qian shouted with a dark face.

"Yes, yes." The warden retreated without daring to lift his head.

Yun Bai narrowed his eyes. He couldn't tell if Magistrate Hu Qian was genuinely stupid or just pretending. Sending the warden away like this seemed like a reprimand, but in reality, it was protecting him.

Magistrate Hu Qian looked up again, full of smiles, and said to Yun Bai: "Young Master Yun, I learned of your identity from the National Temple this morning, and I didn't even have time to change my clothes before rushing here to apologize to you. To show my sincerity, I even specifically arranged some things. This is not a place for conversation; why don't we go to the tea room nearby? Rest assured, I will definitely get to the bottom of what happened in the Black Prison! I will vent your anger for you!"

Yun Bai didn't speak, quietly watching Magistrate Hu Qian.

He really couldn't read Magistrate Hu Qian. After experiencing the assassination attempt just now, he couldn't act rashly.

Magistrate Hu Qian looked a bit embarrassed and had to say: "Young Master Yun, I, Hu, truly have no intention of harming Your Excellency. If you don't believe me, you can look at the cloth bag in your hand when you entered the Black Prison. There are three Medicinal Pills inside; you will know once you see them."

"Are those three Medicinal Pills...?" Yun Bai finally spoke. He hadn't expected those three Medicinal Pills to be from Magistrate Hu Qian.

Seeing Yun Bai's expression soften, Magistrate Hu Qian breathed a sigh of relief. He was afraid his good intentions would be misunderstood; it seemed Yun Bai was not someone who couldn't recognize value.

"Yes," Magistrate Hu Qian smiled.

"Fine, I'll go with you," Yun Bai relented.

The situation couldn't remain deadlocked; both sides offered a step down and took it.

...

...

Yun Bai sank comfortably into the soft "sofa." Although the architecture and clothing of this world tended toward an ancient style, in terms of certain comforts, relying on mysterious Spells, it was even more comfortable and ingenious than some designs from his previous life on Blue Star.

"Young Master Yun, have you already taken those three Foundation Solidifying Pills?" Magistrate Hu Qian stroked his meticulously trimmed handlebar mustache and asked with a tentative smile.

"Foundation Solidifying Pills?" Yun Bai did not deny it, just asked calmly in return.

Magistrate Hu Qian carefully observed Yun Bai's expression, and seeing it didn't seem faked, he solemnly took out a warm Jade Slip and a small jade bottle from his sleeve, gently pushing them onto the table in front of Yun Bai.

Yun Bai picked up the Jade Slip and submerged his Divine Sense to investigate.

[Foundation Solidifying Pill: Refined primarily from the magic cores of beasts above the First Realm. Effects: Repairs hidden injuries, strengthens Meridians, nourishes the Dantian, and also has the effect of prolonging life. Market price: 10,000 Spirit Stones]

Ten thousand Spirit Stones each? Yun Bai was secretly shocked.

He recalled the tearing pain in his Meridians when he lost control not long ago and instinctively circulated the spiritual power in his Dantian—he felt a warm current flowing gently. His Meridians were tough and clear, and his spiritual power felt several times lighter and more agile when mobilized, with no sense of obstruction.

So that was it!

Those three Medicinal Pills actually had such miraculous effects; not only did they repair the damage from his forced outburst, but they also solidified his Foundation. The look in Yun Bai's eyes when he gazed at Magistrate Hu Qian softened significantly, even carrying a trace of imperceptible... satisfaction?

After all, who would dislike a "friend" who actively offered precious Medicinal Pills?

Magistrate Hu Qian had been secretly observing Yun Bai's reaction, but unfortunately, Yun Bai was very shrewd. Aside from that initial trace of surprise, there was no extra expression on his face, which made Magistrate Hu Qian feel somewhat frustrated.

"Young Master Yun, today's incident in the Black Prison was truly my dereliction of duty; I am deeply sorry! Such an accident was absolutely not my wish, nor was it arranged by me! Please, you must believe me! I will definitely investigate this matter to the end, root out the mastermind behind the scenes, and give you an explanation!" Magistrate Hu Qian promised solemnly again.

"The ones who just assassinated Your Excellency were people from three different factions in the Black Prison. These three factions have long been at odds, yet today they joined forces to ambush Your Excellency, which indicates that they must have been driven by common interests. The source of this interest must have come from outside the prison, and I presume Your Excellency... already has some guesses, right?" Magistrate Hu Qian reminded him.

Yun Bai nodded. If there was anyone who wanted him dead at this stage, it would be those two scumbags who sent him to prison, right?

They were certainly willing to pay a high price. Ambushing him and plotting against his sister wasn't enough; even after he was locked in prison, they still wanted his life.

Yun Bai did not continue to dwell on this topic and asked again: "Since the Foundation Solidifying Pills are such precious Medicinal Pills, why give them to me before my identity was confirmed? The State Religion's official document shouldn't have been formally transferred to you yet, right?"

"Haha, that is a coincidence..." Magistrate Hu Qian did not hide anything and recounted the entire process—his conversation with Constable Zhang Jing that day, how he struggled, how he finally decided to contact the State Religion, and how, by a stroke of luck, he discovered that Yun Bai was indeed a newcomer to the State Religion.

"To tell you the truth, I struggled for a whole day before finally deciding to take a gamble and contact the State Religion to verify. Unexpectedly, it was fate; you, Young Master Yun, really are from the State Religion! It seems my intuition and this small token of sincerity were not misplaced."

Magistrate Hu Qian looked sincere, keeping his posture very low. He knew well that when facing a young man like Yun Bai, who had formidable strength and a special background, honesty and showing goodwill were far more useful than flowery words.

"Young Master Yun, here are 50,000 Spirit Stones," Magistrate Hu Qian took out another heavy bag of Spirit Stones and pushed it in front of Yun Bai, "Let this be a small gesture from me and the government to express our apologies. I hope Young Master Yun can understand the difficulties of us local petty officials and be more forgiving!"

One does not hit a smiling face, especially when the other party is full of sincerity (at least the Spirit Stones and Medicinal Pills were real).

Yun Bai unceremoniously took the jade bottle and the Spirit Stone bag into his arms, and a faint smile finally appeared on his face: "Magistrate Hu Qian is thoughtful."

Next, the two of them sipped a few cups of Spiritual Tea, and the atmosphere became much more harmonious. Yun Bai was concerned about his sister's safety and did not want to stay long. Magistrate Hu Qian was also desperate to safely send away this "deity" he couldn't afford to offend.

Finally, under Magistrate Hu Qian's attentive escort, Yun Bai swaggered into the exquisitely decorated sedan chair that had been prepared long ago, and left this place of trouble in a leisurely and contented manner, amidst the awe-filled and complex gazes of the jailers.

Leaving behind only a mess and chaos in the Black Prison.

The sedan chair moved steadily and slowly along the street.

Yun Bai sat quietly in the sedan chair, closing his eyes and focusing his mind.

He carefully introspected, feeling the circulation of spiritual power within his Dantian. The thin Spiritual Qi in the surrounding world, at this moment, seemed to be under an invisible attraction, being absorbed into his body in continuous wisps, much smoother than before—several times over.

Just now, at the critical moment of life-and-death combat, not only did he break free from the desperate situation, but he also faintly felt that some subtle change had occurred deep in his Dantian, as if an invisible barrier had been broken.

A moment later, he suddenly opened his eyes!

His eyes shone with a brilliant light, like a dazzling meteor streaking through the night sky, captivating and soul-stirring!

Breakthrough!

It had only been two short days since he entered the First Realm, yet he had broken through again, entering the First Realm Mid-stage.

[Beep! Rank Breakthrough to First Realm Mid-stage detected!]

Xiao Liu's cold notification sound rang in Yun Bai's mind at the right time.

Not only that, the moment Yun Bai closed his eyes, the surrounding environment was still clearly audible, "playing" in his mind as if he hadn't closed his eyes at all.

During the fight just now, he was able to face several thugs attacking him alone precisely by relying on this "sensing" ability that had no dead angles in any direction.

Could this be the "Divine Sense sensing" that only First Realm Cultivators are rumored to be able to master?

Yun Bai vaguely guessed in his heart.