At the moment the words gathered before him, Qin An's two demonic essences and one pseudo-essence suddenly disappeared within his body.

A total of three essences, similar to the previous deduction, ultimately achieved the effect Qin An desired.

[You have fused the Blood-Burning Demon Hand and the Hidden Dragon Fist into one, finally creating a new cultivation technique, named Blood-Burning Dragon Demon Hand]

[Blood-Burning Dragon Demon Hand (Small Success)]

As the words dispersed, a flood of information surged into Qin An's mind.

Qin An closed his eyes and focused, absorbing it completely in a moment, and when he opened his eyes, a sharp gleam appeared.

At this moment, the Blood-Burning Dragon Demon Hand had reached the level of Small Success in the Gui Cang Realm.

Not only did it inherit the fury of blood-burning and the might of a mad demon, but it also pushed power to a new height.

Even without activating the Blood Burning Secret Skill, just with the power of a single punch, ordinary cultivators of the Gui Cang Realm would not dare block it directly.

Qin An swung his fist to test his strength, with True Qi surging like a tide and the power of ice and fire entwining the punch.

The roar of a dragon exploded with the punch wind, shaking the soul.

Retracting his fist, Qin An pondered briefly, then picked up the second book.

Since they've all been exchanged, naturally he would deduce them all; there are plenty of demonic essences, which are fully sufficient for deduction.

The second book is titled "Shadow Transformation Skill," a body technique.

When executed, it leaves behind trails of afterimages in place, which can confuse the enemy.

Qin An was already skilled in Dragon Roar Wind Step, as swift as lightning, moving freely.

If he could add the confusing ability of Shadow Transformation Skill, it would have an unexpected effect in battle.

Qin An skimmed through it briefly, and after the Gentleman's Study proficiency increased, True Qi penetrated his feet.

When Qin An performed the skill, an afterimage immediately appeared at its original position.

[You studied the Shadow Transformation Skill and triggered your talent; unfortunately, due to insufficient talent, the results were minimal]

[You chose to consume life force; after frantically depleting your life force, you eventually gained insight]

[Shadow Transformation Skill (Initial Understanding)]

Qin An suddenly paused his movements and continued to activate the power of deduction.

[You're proficient in Dragon Roar Wind Step, planning to merge Dragon Roar Wind Step into one]

[With insufficient talent, you began to burn the life force within your body]

[After consuming a large amount of life force, you finally gained insight, creating the cultivation technique Dragon Roar Wind Shadow Step]

[Dragon Roar Wind Shadow Step (Small Success)]

In the next moment, a large amount of information drilled into Qin An's mind.

Qin An absorbed it and then performed the Dragon Roar Wind Shadow Step.

When Qin An appeared in another corner of the room, a shadow identical to Qin An was left at the original position.

Afterwards, the shadow slowly faded.

If one didn't examine closely, they would think Qin An remained at the original spot.

"There is interference ability now, which isn't bad either."

Qin An rubbed his chin and picked up the third book.

The cover read "Armor Healing Art," a newly added cultivation technique in the Confidential Library.

This cultivation technique is extremely unconventional, actually emphasizing recovery over defense.

To put it plainly, even if slashed by swords, as long as the recovery is fast enough, it counts as unharmed.

Other patrol officers might avoid it, as it's rather unorthodox.

But for Qin An, it's just right.

The Xuan Gang Body has three layers of defense; if rapid healing is added, the defense will have no weaknesses.

Even if the three-layer defense can't hold, injuries will be quickly healed; it provides sufficient confidence in a war of attrition.

Qin An quickly read through the Armor Healing Art, waiting for the Gentleman's Study proficiency to slowly rise before he crossed his legs to circulate True Qi within his body.

Afterwards, a row of snake-like smoke appeared before his eyes.

[You studied the Armor Healing Art and triggered your occupational talent; unfortunately, due to insufficient talent, unable to advance]

[You began consuming life force; after consuming a large amount of life force, you finally gained insight]

[Armor Healing Art (Initial Understanding)]

Qin An did not linger, not even waiting for the smoke before him to dissipate, and began to continue using demonic essences for deduction.

[You possess the Xuan Gang Body, intending to merge the Xuan Gang Body and Armor Healing Art into one]

[With insufficient talent, after sitting for several years, you decided to consume life force within your body]

[After consuming a large amount of life force, a spark of inspiration flashed in your mind, and you finally gained insight]

[You named the new cultivation technique Xuan Gang Healing Body]

[Xuan Gang Healing Body (Small Success)]

The text dissipated, transforming into a large amount of information, drilling into Qin An's mind.

Qin An opened his eyes, stood up, and drew the cold star from his waist, lightly slicing his arm.

A small wound appeared, and blood seeped out.

True Qi circulated swiftly within his body, within less than a second, the wound on Qin An's arm completely healed, as if it had never been injured.

Qin An squinted his eyes, musing internally, "Just this recovery ability alone is sufficient."

No wonder it's an unconventional cultivation technique; when fused with the Xuan Gang Body, it actually enhances recovery ability to a higher level.

At this moment, Qin An has fully deduced all three cultivation techniques.

After pondering for a moment, Qin An summoned his attributes.

[Gentleman's Study lv.7 (200/1500): Your reading speed has greatly increased, and you possess photographic memory]

[Talent: Jade Bone Realm Heart Method Mastery, Jade Bone Realm Heart Method Mastery]

During the recent book reading, the Gentleman's Study occupation grew slightly.

Now all occupations have reached level seven, and Qin An shifted his focus to the Gentleman's Study occupation.

"First, train the Gentleman's Study occupation to level eight, then use merits to exchange for Heart Method, and break through to Great Success of Gui Cang Realm."

Qin An made up his mind.

Currently, all cultivation techniques have reached Small Success in the Gui Cang Realm.

The Heart Method is fundamental; enhancing the Heart Method to Great Success in the Gui Cang Realm comes first.

"The remaining twelve demonic essences are sufficient for my use, no need to worry in the short term."

Qin An stored ten demonic essences within himself and had two left on him, even though deduction and the Blood-Burning Dragon Demon Hand are heavy consumers of demonic essences, there is no worry about running out in the short term.

"The only problem is that the miscellaneous books in the Confidential Library are insufficient; it seems necessary to visit the Lingzhou Study to have a look."

The miscellaneous books in the Confidential Library were almost exhausted by Qin An while practicing the Gentleman's Study occupation.

Those confidential messages do not count toward proficiency in the Gentleman's Study occupation, so Qin An, to practice the Gentleman's Study occupation, has to visit the study in Lingzhou.

Thankfully, there's one located closest to the Evil Extermination Bureau, so it's not too troublesome.

Having decided, with time still early, Qin An exited the room and headed towards the nearest study.

...

Lingzhou Phoenix Street, bustling with crowds.

In Lingzhou, there are numerous bookstores, and the Gentleman's Study is one of them.

As the largest bookstore in Lingzhou, the Gentleman's Study is located on the busiest Phoenix Street.

Every day, scholars linger in the bookstore, keeping the business and popularity of the Gentleman's Study consistently high.

At this moment, in front of the Gentleman's Study, a figure dressed in black slowly approaches.

Qin An, with the Cold Star at his waist, exudes an aura as sharp as a blade, utterly out of place among the surrounding scholars.

Many scholars, seeing this, quickly step aside.

Some well-off scholars, upon seeing the badge at Qin An's waist, turned pale and hurriedly pulled their friends away.

"Why the rush?"

"Hurry up, this man is a Silver Guard who patrols the mountains."

"What about the Silver Guard? I haven't done anything wrong."

"The patrol Silver Guard only kills, doesn't let go..."

"Hiss, run, run, no more reading today."

A few scholars whispered among themselves and quietly left.

One led to another; more and more scholars followed suit.

The once bustling bookstore became deserted, with only a few scholars left inside reading.

The bookstore owner, with a stiff face, noticed the badge on Qin An's waist and hurriedly approached him with a flattering smile: "Greetings, sir. Your presence brings glory to my humble shop."

The Gentleman's Study is also a significant business in Lingzhou, and the owner naturally has an eye for recognizing Qin An's identity.

Qin An glanced around and said, "I will be coming here to read books recently. If it affects your business, I will take full responsibility and compensate you."

Patrol Silver Guards take on life-and-death tasks, and their pay is quite substantial.

This amount of silver coins is trivial to Qin An.

The bookstore owner obsequiously replied, "No need to be so formal, sir. Consider it my treat to you."

How could he dare ask for money from a member of the Evil Extermination Bureau, and one who is a patrol Silver Guard at that.

Qin An coldly said, "I will only say this once."

After speaking, he leisurely walked into the bookstore.

The bookstore owner, upon hearing this, had a stiff expression and could only reluctantly agree.

Seeing as Qin An didn't want to say more, he didn't dare to disturb him.

Qin An casually took out a book, found a quiet corner, and immersed himself in reading.

The proficiency of the scholar profession slowly increased.

The reading scholars quietly avoided Qin An, creating a sufficiently quiet space for him.

...

Time passed, and in the blink of an eye, the day was gone.

At sunset, after the sun went down, Qin An put the book back on the shelf.

By his estimation, in at most eight days, he would be able to advance the scholar profession to level eight.

At that point, he would push the Heart Method to Great Success and immediately use the Array Master to search for geomagnetic crystals.

With it being so late, it was time to head back.

The bookstore was empty, and the owner was drowsing at the counter.

When he sensed Qin An approaching, the bookstore owner slowly woke up.

Qin An placed some silver coins on the table.

As the bookstore owner was about to refuse, Qin An interrupted him.

"You should have closed, but you stayed open till now, and my presence also kept customers away."

Qin An calmly said, "This is what you deserve."

The bookstore owner carefully observed Qin An's expression, and upon confirming the sincerity, he accepted the silver coins, with a sigh in his heart.

"An official, yet so discerning. I too was once a scholar and won't take more."

With that, the bookstore owner returned some of the silver coins.

Qin An frowned and asked, "Why return it?"

He had just explained clearly and did not understand the owner's action.

The bookstore owner helplessly explained, "I've kept the shop open till now to wait for someone. She paid well and comes to read every day at this time."

Qin An raised an eyebrow: "Such a diligent scholar is rare."

He asked casually, without any other intention.

The bookstore owner shook his head: "Not a scholar, a lady. Not from Lingzhou, and she always reads Lingzhou's geography records."

"Geography records?"

Qin An rubbed the hilt of his sword: "And she's not from Lingzhou."

The bookstore owner continued: "Yes, I don't understand why someone would read geography records for no reason."

Qin An nodded, collecting his thoughts.

He planned to go back to rest, regain his energy, and return to practice the scholar profession's proficiency tomorrow.

After saying a few more words with the bookstore owner, Qin An left the bookstore.

Once Qin An's silhouette disappeared, footsteps sounded outside.

The bookstore owner, engrossed in reviewing his accounts, looked up upon hearing the sound, revealing a kind smile: "Miss, you have arrived."

Outside the door, a lady wearing a green dress gracefully stepped in.

The woman was extraordinarily beautiful with a curvaceous figure, yet an air of maturity beyond her years shone between her brows.

Upon hearing the bookstore owner's voice, the woman in the green dress twirled her skirt and walked closer.

"That man in black earlier, was he here reading today?"

The bookstore owner, puzzled, responded: "The gentleman came today. After arriving, he flipped through the books with apparent concentration. Does the lady know the gentleman?"

The woman in the green dress shook her head: "No, just asking. Will he come tomorrow as well?"

The bookstore owner nodded slightly, feeling a bit perplexed.

However, the woman in the green dress did not continue speaking and instead found a spot to read on her own, leaving the bookstore owner with nothing further to say.

As night approached, the woman in the green dress finally placed the book back on the shelf and left the bookstore.

...

The night was pitch black, and even a robust man might feel intimidated walking the streets.

But the woman in the green dress showed no sign of fear, instead walking leisurely as if she were exploring, with a hint of curiosity as she looked around.

Just then, two figures flashed past and landed in front of the woman in the green dress.

Once the figures became clear, they were revealed to be two ordinarily dressed men.

"Greetings, Sect Leader," the two men said in unison.

The woman in the green dress waved impatiently: "We'll talk once we're back."

"Zongzhou went to great lengths, even burning old favors, to bring me here. I can't just slip by quietly."

"Moreover, I also discovered someone here who seems proficient with arrays. Interesting."

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