Chapter 17: Qi-Nurturing
At the same time Li Pin made it home, a sedan hurriedly arrived at the location where he had killed the demonic cat.
Many cars were parked at the incident scene. There were vehicles from both the Security Affairs Department and the martial society.
As the vehicle stopped, a man with a badge from the Security Affairs Department called out, "Director…."
"Mr. Guardian headed back when he learned that the demonic cat had been dealt with."
The man who got out of the car was Zhang Youping, the Deputy Director of the Liuchuan County Security Affairs Department.
He knew what the captain wanted to ask, so he promptly explained the situation.
Afterwards, he asked, "Captain Liu, how are things?"
"There're six dead and three wounded in Zhou Village. There're also four dead in Wang Village, with two wounded who have been sent to the hospital. It is uncertain whether they can be saved," Captain Liu replied.
Zhang Youping's heart sank. "Ten people dead…."
It was hard to be on guard against ordinary ferocious beasts like demonic cats, dogs, rats, and alike. These animals might suddenly sense the Astral God out of nowhere, bathe in starlight, and evolve into ferocious beasts within an extremely short period.
Moreover, even if these animals were innately weak and not comparable to ferocious beasts like demonic wolves, bears, tigers, and leopards, they still posed a great threat to ordinary people after they evolved.
"When I was on my way here, I heard that someone had already killed the demonic cat. Compared to demonic dogs and rats, demonic cats have a greater advantage in terms of agility. Core Force martial artists may not be able to kill it even in a life-and-death battle. Is there an expert in Sanshun Town?" Zhang Youping asked, surprised.
"A captain has located the driver and is inquiring about the situation from him. We will know the details soon," Captain Liu said.
Zhang Youping nodded and quickly headed for the demonic cat's corpse.
There were a few members of the Public Security Affairs Department's enforcement team on watch, and they had already drawn a cordon around the area.
There were also dozens of neighboring villagers outside who were looking in their direction with lingering fear, gossiping amongst themselves.
There was a middle-aged man squatting beside the demonic cat's corpse and examining something intently.
"President Meng," Zhang Youping called out to the man.
"Director Zhang." The middle-aged man known as President Meng nodded, stood up, and said with a sigh, "What a powerful Core Force, it's no wonder that the person was able to kill this demonic cat."
"Did a Core Force martial artist do this? On the way here, I heard reports that the person who struck it was a local. Are there Core Force Masters in Liuchuan County other than you and the hall masters of the various martial halls, President Meng?" Zhang Youping asked.
At that moment, a team member quickly came up to Captain Liu and told him something. Captain Liu quickly stepped forward and said, "The investigation is done. The person who killed the demonic cat is from Sanshun Town. His name is Li Pin. We checked up on his information … Oddly, he's only a level-two martial artist."
"A level-two martial artist?" President Meng found it hard to believe. "That's impossible! Judging from that demonic cat's injuries, it was definitely hit by a Core Force eruption!"
"That Li Pin… is only twenty two years old…." Captain Liu added.
"Twenty-two years old?" President Meng was slightly stunned. He immediately said, "I'll make a call."
"A twenty-two-year-old level-two martial artist is considered young and talented," Zhang Youping said.
The ratings of the martial arts world were similar to that of the academic world. People often like to compare the martial arts world to the academic world.
However, since the martial arts world carried a heavier weight than the academic world, a level-two martial artist was comparable to a lecturer in a major university.
He would be the most important person in the village or town.
"How could a level-two martial artist … kill a demonic cat?" Captain Liu was puzzled. "According to the driver and passengers, he had taken advantage of the fact that the demonic cat was midway trying to make its way into the bus. Despite so, the difference between them is still too drastic."
"You guys have underestimated this level-two martial artist, Li Pin," said President Meng, returning from his phone call. In an uplifting manner, he continued, "I found out that he didn't take the level-one martial artist examination, but had taken the level-two martial artist examination directly. He also signed up to participate in the 16th Jiang Province Martial Competition which will be held next year!"
Zhang Youping was stunned. Recalling that there would inevitably be a few dark horses that would appear and rise above the rest in martial arts competitions, he quickly understood what President Meng was driving at.
"You're saying…."
"That's right, I reckon that he has been practicing hard and keeping himself away from the affairs of the outside world. He is probably planning to take the opportunity of the Jiang Province Martial Competition to make his name known."
President Meng said, "Regarding him being just a level-two martial artist, it's likely because of the set restriction that the highest level a martial artist can take is the level-two examination for their first attempt. His real strength is probably at the Transformative Force phase. He had likely relied on some kind of secret technique to unleash Core Force.
"With that kind of strength, If he had been a descendant of a reputable family, the members of the provincial martial society would surely have given the leeway to let him through to be assessed for the Deputy title."
Zhang Youping and Captain Liu immediately gasped in shock.
"The Deputy title!"
A level-two martial artist would be comparable to a top university lecturer from top universities.
A Deputy title martial artist…would be comparable to a professor.
If he were willing to join the Liuchuan County Martial Society, he would take one or two years at most to establish himself before being designated as the vice president.
Martial societies were only half a rank lower than the local government offices, so this person had what it took to be on par with Zhang Youping, the Deputy Director of the Security Affairs Department.
However, the key point was…
"Li Pin is only twenty-two?" Zhang Youping asked.
President Meng smiled and nodded.
"Congratulations, President Meng. There is such a good seed in the precinct! If he ever obtains the Deputy title in the future, it'll surely be a brilliant addition to your resume!" Zhang Youping immediately said, beaming.
"We have to see him in person before we discuss anything further."
"Then what are you waiting for? Let's go together. I can't wait to see to meet this dark horse in Sanshun Town."
"He's probably spent and has already gone to take a rest. We'll visit tomorrow afternoon," President Meng said.
Zhang Youping's heart stirred when he heard that.
A twenty-two-year-old with Transformative Force….
This person would likely be able to condense his qi to form a Core in the future. There was even hope that he'd be able to master Aura Force.
With such capabilities, his future was unlimited. He had to have worn himself out after this battle with the demonic cat, so he naturally needed nourishment.
Zhang Youping couldn't help but think of the hundred-year-old wild ginseng his nephew had sent him recently….
***
In Sanshun Town.
Li Pin greeted Mrs. Li, changed his clothes, and went to rest.
It was already the next morning when he finally regained his energy. He didn't get up immediately but concentrated on his right hand. He felt the damage to his bones, muscles, and nerves in his arm.
Even with the physique of a martial artist and aided by specialized healing medicines, he would still require more than a month to recover.
The pain was like little knives cutting into him, stimulating his mind and soul.
Luckily, he had become accustomed to such injuries in his past life, unlike regular individuals who might hesitate to use their arms in such a state.
How could one not get injured when practicing martial arts?
He tried to mobilize the vitality he had nurtured through the Innate Qi-Nurturing Technique in his body to his arm to nourish these damaged areas.
The result was… not that effective.
After pondering for a moment, Li Pin circulated the Innate Qi-Nurturing Technique, slightly altering the rhythm of his breathing.
At the same time, he focused his mind to the extreme, paying attention to the flow of every ounce of primordial qi in his body.
Whenever the primordial qi was about to pass through his arm, he slowed down the speed so that the primordial qi could linger for a longer time.
That way, although the primordial qi would not be strengthened since the circulation was halted, it indirectly produced the effect of "circulating qi" in healing the injuries.
Li Pin smiled. "It does work."
It was the right decision to pick the Innate Qi-Nurturing Technique as a supplementing cultivation technique.
Moreover, the Innate Qi-Nurturing Technique involved the nurturing technique of primordial qi, so there should still be a lot of potential to be uncovered.
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