6: Crazy improvement, second level of bone training

After the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Jiang Lan sat on a wooden chair in his house...

Name: Jiang Lan

Cultivation: Skin Refinement Fifth Level

Cultivation Technique: Three Yuan True Nurturing Skill

Martial Skills: Yan Military Saber Technique (Accomplished), Wild Goose Step (Beginner)

Remaining Lifespan: Forty-one years

Can infuse Cultivation Techniques and Martial Skills with Lifespan to increase strength.

Can increase Lifespan by suppressing or slaying demons.

...

“Three Yuan True Nurturing Skill, thirty-five years.”

Fourth year: As time passed and true Yuan accumulated, you naturally achieved a Breakthrough to Skin Refinement Sixth Level.

Eighth year: Your Cultivation of the Three Yuan True Nurturing Skill progressed, and your Martial Dao Realm achieved a Breakthrough to Skin Refinement Seventh Level.

Thirteenth year: You Cultivated day and night without ceasing, finally gaining insight and achieving a Breakthrough to Skin Refinement Eighth Level.

Eighteenth year: You finally gained something, and your Martial Dao Realm achieved a Breakthrough to Skin Refinement Ninth Level.

Twenty-fourth year: You have been stuck at Skin Refinement Ninth Level for six years, and your strength has reached the Peak of Skin Refinement Ninth Level, but you have no clue how to achieve a Breakthrough.

Twenty-seventh year: A faint idea began to form in your mind.

Twenty-eighth year: You accumulated greatly and erupted, finally reaching the Bone Refinement First Level!

Thirty-fifth year: You diligently Cultivated, and your Realm achieved a Breakthrough to Bone Refinement Second Level.

Jiang Lan opened his eyes, a sharp glint bursting forth from them.

Inside his body, true Yuan surged like a Dragon, flowing powerfully throughout his entire being.

Jiang Lan could even hear the rushing sound of his blood flowing.

Bone Refinement Second Level!

The power contained within his body was so immense that it made Jiang Lan feel somewhat unreal.

He stood up, pushed open the door, and stepped out into the courtyard.

In the courtyard, a willow tree as thick as an adult's thigh swayed in the wind.

Jiang Lan glanced at the willow tree, then raised his hand, but did not choose to strike it. Instead, he walked out of the courtyard.

After a few steps, Jiang Lan stopped in front of a locust tree by the roadside, thick enough for a person to embrace.

“Boom!”

Jiang Lan raised his hand and struck with his palm, and immediately a loud explosion rang out.

The locust tree trembled violently, and its leaves fluttered everywhere.

“Crack!”

After a few tremors, the part of the locust tree that Jiang Lan’s palm had touched snapped directly, falling towards Jiang Lan.

Jiang Lan raised his hand, effortlessly supporting the tree trunk, then casually placed it on the ground and turned to leave.

Oil lamps lit up in the houses along the street. By the time someone came out to check, only the broken locust tree remained on the road; there was no sign of anyone.

“Old man, come quickly! The old locust tree at our doorstep has been ruined by some cursed person!”

...

At Jiang Lan’s home.

Lying on the wooden bed, Jiang Lan clenched his fists, his emotions still a little unsettled.

Bone Refinement Second Level.

Chen Heguang, as a captain, his strength was only at the Bone Refinement Third Level Realm.

In other words, Jiang Lan’s current strength level was already a core force of the Demon Suppression Division.

After a surge of emotion, Jiang Lan calmed down.

Although Bone Refinement Second Level was not weak, it was not enough!

Far from enough!

In this world, even a Dynasty could be destroyed by a powerful demon passing by by chance, let alone a Martial Artist at the Bone Refinement Second Level Realm like him.

Therefore, he still needed to become stronger.

Without aiming to directly become a powerful being of the Mortal Shedding Realm, he should at least first pass the Qi Gathering Realm after Bone Refinement, and step into Gathering Yuan, only then could he be said to barely possess the ability to protect himself.

The Martial Dao Realms Jiang Lan knew were divided into Skin Refinement, Bone Refinement, Qi Gathering, Gathering Yuan, and Mortal Shedding.

The Realm divisions for demons and monsters were basically the same as for Martial Artists.

After reaching the Mortal Shedding Realm, demons could choose to shed their demon form and become indistinguishable from humans.

However, most demons disdained doing so.

It's easy to imagine, who would be willing to become a race they considered food?

As for the Realms beyond that, there was no memory of them in the original body’s mind.

All sorts of thoughts flashed through Jiang Lan’s mind.

As he thought, a wave of drowsiness washed over him.

Having experienced many things this day, fatigue was inevitable.

If it weren't for the excitement of his recent Breakthrough, he probably would have been asleep by now.

Jiang Lan stopped overthinking, yawned, closed his eyes, and fell into a deep sleep...

The next day, at the Demon Suppression Division.

Just after clocking in, Jiang Lan saw Yu Zhi rushing towards him.

“Head… Head… It’s… It’s not good!”

Jiang Lan frowned.

“What’s wrong?”

“That Zhao Guisheng, he’s dead!”

Jiang Lan took a moment to react before remembering who Yu Zhi was referring to as Zhao Guisheng.

Wasn't it the Green Lantern Sect follower who was captured yesterday?

“I’ll go take a look,” Jiang Lan said, then took off towards the Interrogation Room.

After a few steps, Jiang Lan turned back and said, “Call the coroner. Both of you come find me.”

“Okay… Okay!”

Walking quickly to the Interrogation Room, Jiang Lan went directly to the door of Cell C4.

Unlocking the door and pulling open the bars, Jiang Lan entered the Interrogation Room.

Zhao Guisheng was still bound by iron chains to a large wooden stake, his head hanging low, already lifeless.

Jiang Lan stepped forward to examine him.

Zhao Guisheng’s cheeks were sunken, blood flowed from his seven orifices, his eyes bulged, and his expression was full of terror.

This manner of death did not seem like poisoning.

During yesterday’s interrogation, Jiang Lan had seen clearly.

Zhao Guisheng, as a Martial Artist at the Skin Refinement Seventh Level Realm, putting everything else aside, his body was very robust.

But looking at him now, with sunken cheeks and only a thin layer of skin remaining on his body, his originally strong muscles were completely gone. He had clearly been sucked dry, like a human jerky.

Did a fox spirit enter the Interrogation Room?

The moment the thought popped into his head, Jiang Lan chuckled at his own wild imagination.

Not to mention this was the Demon Suppression Division; no fox spirit would be so foolish as to come here.

Even if one did come, there were plenty of strong young men in the Demon Suppression Division; they wouldn't stoop to finding a half-dead prisoner, would they?

And with the blood flowing from his seven orifices… Jiang Lan was at a loss for a while and decided to wait for the coroner.

When it came to examining corpses, the coroner was clearly more professional.

In less than fifteen minutes, Yu Zhi, accompanied by the coroner, rushed to the Interrogation Room door in a flurry.

“Brother Zhang, this is it.”

The coroner, with dark skin and a canvas bag slung over his shoulder, followed Yu Zhi into the Interrogation Room.

“Little Jiang.”

“Coroner Zhang.”

Jiang Lan replied.

The coroner’s name was Zhang Qianshan. His relationship with the original body was not close, but they both worked at the Demon Suppression Division, seeing each other daily, so they were nodding acquaintances.

“I’ll get to work first.”

The coroner said, then walked in front of Zhao Guisheng and pulled at his drooping head.

With just one glance, the coroner was so startled he took half a step back.

“What’s wrong?”

Seeing this, Jiang Lan quickly asked.

“Gulp…” The coroner swallowed, “This… is a Tiger's Accomplice…”

A Tiger's Accomplice again?

Jiang Lan’s heart skipped a beat.

“Can you tell what strength the Tiger's Accomplice that killed Zhao Guisheng was?”

“Can’t tell.”

The coroner shook his head and continued:

“You know, whether it’s a prisoner or a demon in this jail, they’ve all been pricked with the Yuan Sealing Needle. Once a Martial Artist is pricked by that thing, no matter how powerful he is, he can’t use even a bit of it. So even a low-grade Tiger's Accomplice wouldn’t find it difficult to kill this person.”