Situbei's words.
Made Shen Changqing instantly take note.
As expected.
The Demon-Subduing Division is well aware of the matter concerning the Demon's Essence Blood.
After all, if even Situbei as a Heavenly Inspection Guard knows about the Demon's Essence Blood, there's no reason for the Demon-Subduing Division to have no information at all.
Having confirmed his suspicion,
Shen Changqing said, "Since the Demon-Subduing Division is aware of the Demon's Essence Blood, why hasn't there been any follow-up action? Are you just letting the Essence Blood emerge on its own?"
To be honest,
He was utterly baffled.
If the Demon-Subduing Division is so clear about the Essence Blood, why not reinforce the seal right from the start, or simply take the Essence Blood away? Instead, they let it remain here, watching as the seal grows weaker and weaker.
But Situbei's following words resolved Shen Changqing's doubts.
"Lord Shen may not know this, but the location of that Demon's Essence Blood is extremely hidden. Unless a heavy price is paid, it's nearly impossible to find where it is.
But according to the information, the Grade of the Demon's Essence Blood there is not high—hardly worth the Demon-Subduing Division making such a costly move.
Of course,
the Essence Blood may not be much to the Demon-Subduing Division, but to the average person, it's still quite the treasure!"
Situbei replied honestly.
Shen Changqing nodded, "Can you determine what Rank the emerging Demon's Essence Blood is at?"
"The demon that died there should have been a Middle Stage Demon, but after the Essence Blood has been weakened for hundreds of years, it's definitely lost its original power—it'll probably have dropped in rank, to the level of a low-level demon at best."
Situbei thought for a moment, then spoke up.
Originally a middle stage demon.
Weakened over several centuries, down to low-level demon strength.
That explanation makes sense.
After speaking,
Situbei cautiously glanced at Shen Changqing, "Could it be Lord Shen wants to contend for the Essence Blood as well? If you do, the Lin'an City Heavenly Inspection Guard will cooperate fully!"
"The Demon's Essence Blood is of little use to me—for now."
Shen Changqing shook his head.
He understood what Situbei meant—the other simply thought he wanted to fight over the Demon's Essence Blood.
In reality,
Demon's Essence Blood is, indeed, a precious thing.
No matter how fearful the demon evil, that doesn't mean there's nothing valuable about their bodies.
Among them—
The Essence Blood of demons is a rare treasure.
Some people can use special means to extract the power within the Demon's Essence Blood, eventually making it their own.
If he didn't have the panel,
Shen Changqing might also have tried to compete for it.
But now, with the panel in hand, he only needs to steadily hunt some not-so-strong demon evils to boost his own strength directly. Compared to fighting for the Essence Blood, this method is much better.
Moreover—
Shen Changqing suspected,
That refining the Demon's Essence Blood surely has its downsides.
But as for what exactly the drawbacks are, he couldn't be too sure—the records in the first floor of the Scripture Pavilion are ultimately limited.
Once he returns to the Demon-Subduing Division,
Shen Changqing had already decided to set aside some time to properly catch up on this world's essential knowledge.
Suddenly,
A young man came in, then leaned beside Situbei and whispered a few words to him.
The two spoke so quietly,
Even Shen Changqing, listening intently, could barely catch a word.
Soon,
After the young man finished speaking, he took out a letter from his breast and handed it to Situbei, then respectfully withdrew.
After he left,
Situbei took two steps forward and respectfully handed the letter to Shen Changqing.
"Lord Shen, a letter has arrived for you from the Capital Demon Suppression Division!"
"Hmm?"
Shen Changqing couldn't help but frown as he reached out and took the letter.
He had an instinctive sense of foreboding.
He'd only come out for an assessment mission, and once it was complete he should have returned. For a letter to arrive at this very moment—there was no way it spelled good news.
He took a deep breath.
Shen Changqing opened the letter in Situbei's presence and checked the contents inside.
Shen Changqing:
According to reports, there is Demon's Essence Blood emerging in the Lin'an City area. This news is bound to draw the attention of many powerful figures as well as demon evils.
To prevent the common people of Lin'an from being caught in the crossfire, we hope you can remain stationed in Lin'an City for now. Don't let the various factions' struggles spill over to the city's populace.
Also, you needn't worry overly much. Your strength may not be great, but with the name of the Demon-Subduing Division to back you, all parties will have to give some face. As long as you don't go too far, they'll maintain restraint for appearance's sake.
As long as you can ensure Lin'an City's safety, you'll be credited for this, and for the next year you won't have to do any more assignments. You'll be free to focus on your cultivation within the Demon-Subduing Division.
In just a few breaths, Shen Changqing finished reading the letter. The signature at the end read: Jiang Zuo.
After reading,
There was something odd about the look on his face.
Clearly,
The Demon-Subduing Division had only just gotten news that the Demon's Essence Blood's seal was about to break.
But—
Jiang Zuo wanted him to guard Lin'an City, and Shen Changqing couldn't help but ridicule inwardly.
The Demon-Subduing Division really hadn't a spare hand to dispatch if they were letting someone like him—openly just a newly advanced Pulse Condensation martial artist—hold the line.
As for the rest, that was pure nonsense.
The idea that all parties would give him "face" just because he held the Demon-Subduing Division's banner—true, that carries a lot of weight at times.
But you must realize—
The ones fighting over the Essence Blood aren't just various factions, but also the greatest threat—demon evil!
Other factions might give the Demon-Subduing Division some respect, but demon evil absolutely will not.
If demon evil learns of his presence, they'll likely want him dead as soon as possible.
"This is pure desperation medicine, huh!"
Shen Changqing let out a sigh.
As expected, there really is no simple mission within the Demon-Subduing Division.
Eliminating Guyue Village's Strange Monster was already a dangerous affair. Now guarding Lin'an City means he's risking his life with every move.
But there was no helping it.
Jiang Zuo's word was final here. Besides, a mere Huang Department Demon Hunting Court steward couldn't possibly have the authority to entrust a whole city's safety to a probationary Demon Hunter.
Therefore,
This clearly bore the mark of high-level decision-making.
Just from this one letter,
Shen Changqing could see how dire the situation really was for the Demon-Subduing Division.
Situbei, standing beside him, noticed his shifting expression, but dared not ask anything lightly.
After a long while,
Shen Changqing finally emerged from his pondering.
At this point, there was no refusing—the only thing left was to hold Lin'an City and suppress all manner of demons and ghosts.
With that thought,
He glanced at Situbei, took out the items he'd written up and meant to deliver personally to the Demon-Subduing Division, plus one Pure Spirit Jade Pendant, and handed them all over.
"Take this letter and the Pure Spirit Jade Pendant, and send them to the Capital Demon Suppression Division as quickly as possible. Also, mobilize every member of the Lin'an City Heavenly Inspection Guard. I want, in the shortest time possible, information on every faction currently in Lin'an City, as well as every expert above Pulse Condensation."