A fierce wind roared, stirring up a sky full of yellow sand, dyeing the firmament a dusky hue.

Qin An stood with a cold, icy demeanor, clutching his blade.

Fox Qing collapsed onto the sand dune, eyes hollow, lips intermittently pleading, "Spare my life, spare my life, I beg you to spare my life…"

She was close to madness.

Though begging for mercy, deep down she wished for swift death.

Within this half-stick of incense time, she endured thousands of array explosions, and was furiously bombarded by the natural array of the sand dunes.

Even if it was just a remnant array, it was terrifying beyond compare for her.

Plus Qin An's occasional harassment, her body and spirit were doubly damaged, even contemplating suicide.

Qin An approached Fox Qing, face cold as he thrust his blade forward.

A cold gleam flashed by, like a full moon in the sky.

Fox Qing only felt pain at her chest, she looked down and saw Cold Star piercing halfway into her chest, protruding through her back.

Five-Colored True Essence spread through Fox Qing's body following the Cold Star.

Pain flashed across Fox Qing's eyes, and soon she felt her consciousness gradually detach, after a few twitches, she became motionless.

Qin An dug out the demon consciousness, put it in his embrace, and gazed around.

All around was wreckage, over a dozen corpses of fox girls lay sprawled on the sand dune.

Yellow sand rolled, silently burying the remnants.

"The Five Elements Divine Sense... finally in hand." He slightly clenched his five fingers, pondering in secret: "Now that this mission is over, it's time to return."

The ultimate goal this time has been achieved.

Now with the supreme foundation, only the promotion to the Inner God Realm is missing, then he can firmly establish himself in Xunyang Prefecture,

"Upon return, first elevate the scholar profession to level 13, and then deduce the Heart Method to the Inner God Realm."

Qin An spun his thoughts rapidly, secretly planning: "By then, seize missions, advance to Mountain Patrol Silver General, other professions can be pursued gradually."

Now, achievements are no longer sufficient, those in the Inner God Realm use demon consciousness, Qin An feels he's been idle too long, it's time to take on some missions.

Thinking of this, Qin An didn't pause, he activated the Dragon's Roar Phantom Moon Shadow Step, disappeared in the boundless desert, and rushed towards the exit of the Ancient Battlefield ruins.

The yellow sand continued to fly, covering the bodies here, making it seem ordinary, as if no battle had ever occurred.

...

Carefree Mountain, flower garden.

Fox Girl strolled in the garden, sometimes bending to kiss the enchanting flowers, sometimes picking one up to gently smell at the nose.

Suddenly, Fox Girl's heart stirred, she raised her fair hand, activating True Essence.

A jade stone floated above her palm, flickering bright and dim.

Within just a few breaths, the light gradually dimmed, finally fading into nothing.

"Fox Qing... is dead?" Fox Girl's pupils shrank slightly, her five fingers clenched, jade stone crumbled into powder, falling softly: "How can this be? That desert neither has geysers nor is it frequented, the secret of the Five Elements Divine Sense known to no one, why did she perish there?"

This task was extremely important, so Fox Girl utilized Fox Race's secret technique to retain Fox Qing's essence blood.

If the essence blood disappeared, then it meant Fox Qing had died.

At this moment, the essence blood was gone without a trace, the result speaks for itself.

"Absolutely impossible!" Fox Girl paced back and forth, stepping on flowers unconsciously.

The Inner God Realm fox girl standing by lowered her head in silence, feeling Fox Girl's terrifying Evil Qi, fearing she would bear the brunt.

After a while.

Fox Girl halted, her eyes murderous like blood: "Send someone into the Ancient Battlefield ruins, find out who dared to kill someone from Carefree Mountain!"

The fox girl bowed and prepared to leave.

But at that moment, a light footstep echoed.

Fox Girl turned, seeing the visitor, the murderous intent vanished, replaced by a tender, boneless charm: "Why does the envoy honor us with your presence?"

The visitor was cloaked in black, face obscured, but his stature suggested a male.

The fox girl slightly bowed and quietly withdrew, daring not to overhear more.

The envoy, clad in black, tread upon crushed flowers, approached Fox Girl coldly: "No need to investigate."

Fox Girl paused, puzzled: "Why not investigate?"

The envoy stated coldly: "Those who killed your subordinate fox girls are Qin An of the Evil Extermination Bureau, I happened to witness the battle in the Ancient Battlefield ruins."

"Qin An?" Fox Girl tightened her fingers, nails dug into palms, eyes flashed with murderous intent: "That little bastard again!"

Changing the topic, she raised her eyes and asked: "Since the envoy was in the Ancient Battlefield ruins, why didn't he kill Qin An?"

The envoy chuckled coldly: "That dune has a natural array, combined with Qin An's array ability, dangerous in the extreme, that's one. The second reason is I'm hunted by the Evil Extermination Bureau, fleeing without room to intervene."

Fox Girl heard and stayed silent a moment, then grimly said: "Rest assured, envoy, I will surely kill that little bastard, he won't be arrogant for long."

The envoy nodded: "Remember, to enter the upper echelon, achieve breakthrough opportunities, Qin An must die, or Carefree Mountain's prestige will crumble, even if we intend to support, it's difficult to convince the masses."

Fox Girl heard "promotion," greed flashed in her eyes, but upon thinking of Qin An, greed vanished, replaced by heavy murderous intent.

"I understand."

The envoy sensing Fox Girl's murderous aura, patted her shoulder lightly: "Time is short, what I can contend for is very limited, if you cannot grasp this chance, leave it for those who can."

Fox Girl restrained her murderous aura, bowed: "I adhere to your command."

The envoy spoke no more, stepped into the flower garden, laying down, unfastening his belt.

Fox Girl laughed lightly, enchanting eyes swept over the envoy.

A decadent sound echoed through the garden.

Until an hour later, this sound gradually ceased.

The envoy dressed, swiftly departed the garden.

Fox Girl lounged among the flowers, reaching for a blossom, holding it to her nose, seemingly savoring the aftertaste.

Half a stick of incense later.

"Come here." Fox Girl pinched a flower petal, calling softly.

The Inner God Realm fox girl appeared quietly, bowed respectfully: "Greetings, Your Ladyship."

Fox Girl looked at the flower petals in her palm, coldly said: "Relay the order to Hu Long, Carefree Mountain is at its end, cooperate in slaying Qin An, great reward upon success, refuse and perish together!"

The fox girl bent to respond, exited the garden, proceeding with connecting Hu Long as instructed.

Fox Girl lay amidst the flowers, seductive gaze like silk, staring at the blazing sun in the sky, murmuring: "Succeed or perish, you've lived enough, it's time to taste the fear of death."

The flower garden fell silent once more, leaving only the Fox Girl feigning sleep among the blossoms.

...

Time passed, and in the blink of an eye, a month and a half had gone by.

During this period, Xunyang Prefecture remained as usual, calm with underlying turbulence.

Various forces stood in opposition to each other, while demons and Pseudo-Gods caused disturbances.

The members of the Evil Extermination Bureau traveled back and forth to slay demons and eliminate evils.

The only slightly unusual thing was Qin An, the master of both blades and fists.

Many Prefecture Generals who knew of Qin An's strength were puzzled as to why this master, upon returning to the Evil Extermination Bureau, shut himself away and spent each day wandering through the Confidential Library.

However, despite their curiosity, no one dared to ask him.

At that moment, within the Confidential Library, Qin An was holding a book, reading with patience.

The proficiency of the Scholar Profession was increasing visibly.

The Confidential Library was supposed to be sparsely populated, but aside from Qin An, many Prefecture Generals were also there, reading various books.

Murmurs echoed in the Confidential Library.

"Are you sure it's this one? Why doesn't it seem mysterious?"

"Perhaps he has other plans... Let's grab another book!"

"Strange! It's just ordinary ramblings, why is he so focused?"

"Keep watching, sooner or later something will emerge."

Numerous Prefecture Generals gathered in small groups, holding books and conversing in hushed tones.

During their exchanges, they occasionally lifted their eyes to glance at Qin An.

Each time Qin An put down a book, a Prefecture General would casually pick it up and find a corner to leaf through it.

These Prefecture Generals were aware of Qin An's strength, and they knew his character well enough to know he wouldn't engage in futile activities.

Thus, a small legend circulated throughout the Evil Extermination Bureau—that there might be treasures within the Confidential Library that could move Qin An, but Qin An had yet to find them.

Many Prefecture Generals would come to the Confidential Library in their spare time, to see what opportunities might be there.

Their method of reading was straightforward.

Qin An put down a book, and they would turn to it next.

Yet, they found nothing for their efforts.

Qin An remained silent, turning the pages attentively.

He had long heard the sounds around him, but he offered no explanations.

No explanation was necessary; since these fellows believed he was searching for opportunities, he would let them think so.

Before him, the smoke continued to gather, occasionally flickering, with the rate of proficiency increase extremely gradual.

When he finished the book in hand, Qin An put it down, closing his eyes in thought for a moment before suddenly opening them.

The smoke condensed into the proficiency of the Scholar Profession.

[Scholar lv.13 (0/16000): Your reading speed has greatly improved, with photographic memory, deeper understanding, and associative mastery.]

[Talent: Cultivation Technique of the Outer Elixir Realm Heart Method comprehended to perfection, enlightened to perfection, enhanced to perfection, resistant to perfection]

"Done!" Qin An's eyes flickered as he thought to himself.

The smoke dissipated, transforming into a torrent of information flooding into Qin An's mind.

After absorbing all the information, Qin An finally opened his eyes.

Through a month and a half of effort, the Scholar Profession had finally been raised to level thirteen.

Upon reaching level thirteen, all talents ascended to External Elixir Realm Perfection.

"16,000 proficiency points..." Qin An's eyes reflected contemplation: "If I spend two more months, it would suffice to advance to level fourteen, but there's no necessity."

Reaching level fourteen would elevate the talent to the Inner God Realm, but Qin An had no desire to continue cultivating it.

Currently beset by internal and external crises, dangers loomed around him like a tidal wave.

If there's an opportunity to elevate, he must seize it and advance to the Inner God Realm.

Although it might diminish some Qi Blood Power, for Qin An, safety was paramount.

After all, there's a fundamental difference between spending money when you're alive and when you're not.

With these thoughts, Qin An ceased pondering further. He searched for a Heart Method in the Confidential Library and went to redeem it at the Prefecture Officer's area.

The Prefecture Generals expressed puzzlement upon seeing Qin An exchanging for a Heart Method.

Many Prefecture Generals picked up the books that Qin An left behind, slowly leafing through them, only to furrow their brows deeper as they found no opportunities.

The Prefecture Officer was quick, handing a copy to Qin An after only a few breaths of time.

Without further ado, Qin An turned and left the Confidential Library, leaving a group of increasingly baffled Prefecture Generals behind.

...

In the room, the dim oil lamp cast shifting shadows, making Qin An's face appear even more resolute.

Qin An opened the book in his hands and examined it carefully.

Not until the Scholar Profession gained a slight increase did he close the book.

This Cultivation Technique was called the Wildwood Art, a wood-attribute Heart Method of the Outer Elixir Realm.

After cultivation, it could make True Essence extend like wood, continuous and unending, a must-have Heart Method for enduring battles.

The Bodhi Golden Dragon Five Elements Art, although it seemed to possess the power of the five elements, actually only had the attributes of gold, wind, water, fire, and earth, lacking the wood attribute.

Now, with Five Elements Divine Sense within, cultivating a wood-attribute Heart Method could make Qin An more attuned to it.

Qin An wasted no time, sitting cross-legged on the bed and channeling True Essence within.

Immediately before him, lines of smoke appeared, coalescing into words.

[You cultivate the Wildwood Art, triggering the Scholar Profession talent]

[Wildwood Art (Perfection)]

The level thirteen Scholar Profession instantly brought this Outer Elixir Realm Heart Method to perfection.

"I now have a Demon Sense, equivalent to a hundred Demon Pills, more than sufficient for deductions!"

Qin An's heart stirred, and he turned to cultivate the Bodhi Golden Dragon Five Elements Art.

In the next moment, True Essence surged like an ocean through his entire meridians.

The smoke suddenly scattered, consolidating into new words…

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