Chapter 30: I Want to Carry Out the Garrison Mission Early

After exchanging greetings, Jiang Qin got in the car and headed to Zhenling Academy.

Two days had passed, and the reporters outside the academy had thinned out a little, though some still stubbornly lurked in corners, scanning back and forth over the students walking out of the academy, shaking their heads in disappointment from time to time.

A breeze swept past, and they were utterly unaware that the very person they were looking for was walking right past their eyes in broad daylight.

It was just that their strength wasn't enough to sense it.

Jiang Qin entered the teaching building's elevator and pressed B3; the elevator doors slowly closed.

Zhenling Academy stored its cultivation techniques, secret arts, and Spirit Artifacts underground, so ordinary teachers and students had no clearance to enter below B1 — but clearly, Jiang Qin was no ordinary student.

The elevator arrived at B3.

The moment the doors opened, a thick, dense stench of blood rushed at him.

Three figures stood in the corridor outside an iron gate — it was Principal Qin, Lin Lao, and Chen Xiaohu.

Seeing Jiang Qin, Chen Xiaohu immediately crowded over, his face full of worship:

"Boss, I knew you were badass before, but I never expected you to be this badass! You actually wiped out an Otherworld Rift full of Third-tier Fierce Beasts — absolutely yyds!"

Lin Lao urged impatiently, "Enough, if you want to cling to his coattails you can do it outside later. Get into the Blood Pool now — the energy inside will weaken over time, so once the refinement is done you have to absorb it as fast as possible."

Principal Qin nodded as well and pushed open the iron gate.

An even more surging wave of blood qi poured out through the gap, as if inside wasn't a Blood Pool but raging flames burning fiercely.

A pool twenty meters in diameter was filled with Fierce Beast essence blood — a cultivation resource countless Body Tempering Martial Artists dreamed of.

Chen Xiaohu took two steps toward the edge of the pool and felt his face being scorched like it was being roasted over fire. He couldn't help shrinking his neck, retreating as he laughed sheepishly:

"Boss, you're the boss, you soak first."

Pushing the boss to the front whenever trouble came made Jiang Qin's mouth twitch. He gathered strength in one kick and sent the guy flying into the pool.

Instantly, blood splashed everywhere! Accompanied by a scream.

"Owowow! Hot hot hot! Damn it, Jiang Qin, you bastard are way too rotten!"

"Ssssh~ what kind of crappy Blood Pool is this, it's scorching me to death!"

"I'm done for, done for — Lord Hu hasn't even had three wives and four concubines yet and I'm about to get roasted…"

That miserable wailing made Jiang Qin's heart waver a little too. He'd already psyched himself up, but seeing Chen Xiaohu's state made him falter again.

"Lin Lao, Principal Qin, does our academy have any Numbing Pills? The kind that can paralyze a person's senses… ah!"

Before he finished speaking, Jiang Qin was also kicked into the Blood Pool, tumbling around inside it.

Lin Lao withdrew his foot and rolled his eyes: "Scared already from this little bit of pain? There'll be plenty more like this in the future — you'll get used to it."

Principal Qin laughed heartily while observing the condition of the two.

The Blood Pool's energy was ferociously violent — if someone's meridians couldn't bear it, they had to be pulled out immediately and nurtured with Spirit Energy, or there'd be a risk of the meridians shattering.

After entering the Blood Pool, Jiang Qin didn't shout or scream either — after all, he'd already gotten used to enduring pain from soaking in the Body Strengthening Liquid before.

Ordinary cloth couldn't withstand this energy and could be seen melting away with the naked eye.

Gradually, Jiang Qin grew accustomed to the pain, calmed his mind, and began absorbing the Spirit Energy in the pool…

This cultivation lasted a full two days.

Relying on the Spirit Energy in the pool, Chen Xiaohu successfully broke through to Yinling Jiuzhong, then smoothly stepped into the early stage of Spirit Sea Realm.

His talent was already famous for taking a beating, so he didn't need any special body tempering, nor did he need to build a solid foundation — after all, he simply couldn't control the Spirit Energy inside his body, so breaking through was his only option.

Only by breaking through to the Law Realm as soon as possible could he control Spirit Energy and learn martial techniques.

By the poolside.

Looking at the blood light emanating from Chen Xiaohu's body, Lin Lao sighed, "This kid can probably now take a direct hit from an Earth Martial Realm Martial Artist."

Principal Qin nodded in agreement, then looked toward Jiang Qin at the center of the pool.

Relying on 【Dao Foundation Heaven-Formed】, Jiang Qin had already smoothly broken through to mid Spirit Sea Realm, and combined with the foundation-solidifying effect of the Tianling Fruit he'd taken, there was no need for any special Spirit Energy tempering afterward.

The Tianling Fruit had forged him a flawless Dharma Image foundation.

When he broke through to Divine Image Realm Realm in the future, it would be of great benefit.

The Blood Pool's effect weakened and no longer provided any obvious improvement to their bodies. Jiang Qin opened his eyes first, casually waved his hand, and a suit of Dragon Pattern Black Clothing draped over his body — only then did he leap out of the pool.

"Lin Lao, Principal."

"Mm."

Principal Qin nodded and asked, "Now, even among the second-year students, there's no one who can match your strength, and your talent means you don't need to seek out academy teachers to cultivate martial techniques. Continuing to stay in the academy training rigidly is just a waste of time."

"What are your plans going forward?"

Teaching requires adaptability — with Jiang Qin's current strength, he was clearly no longer suited to stay in the academy cultivating.

Jiang Qin had long considered this question.

"I want to carry out garrison missions early, and I hope the Principal approves."

At Zhenling Academy, by third year, students would be assigned to various locations for garrison duty, carrying out the duties of an Investigator — punishing the wicked and eliminating the evil.

At the same time, the power that came with being an Investigator was also why Jiang Qin had chosen to enter Zhenling Academy.

Hearing this, Principal Qin furrowed his brow. "Have you thought it through? Garrison missions require more than just strength — they also test an Investigator's judgment and ability to handle situations."

"Mm! I believe my abilities are more than enough to handle it!"

"…No, I still feel it's not steady enough. How about you temper yourself for another half year, I'll…"

"Principal! Principal Deng of Modu Academy has been sending gifts my way quite a bit these past two days. I heard the Academy Grand Competition is less than half a year away, right? Tell me, among the Four Great Academies this year, who's going to take first place?"

"You… I still understand this child's disposition. The Principal believes you can complete garrison missions, but this isn't something I alone can decide — the rules are right there."

Principal Qin held back from cursing out loud, gave two light coughs, and changed his tack:

"As long as you complete ten B-level Tasks, I'll file an application with the Zhenling Bureau to make an exception and allow you to go out on garrison duty. How about it?"

"Deal." Jiang Qin nodded with a beaming smile.

This little fox…

Principal Qin shook his head helplessly, yet in his heart he was looking forward to this year's Academy Grand Competition more than ever — he feared that even if students from the other three major academies came at Jiang Qin together, they wouldn't be his match!

Lin Lao did not stop him, and reminded:

"According to the regulations, an Intern Investigator must have at least two people to carry out a mission. Given your brat's personality, you're bound to cause a huge commotion. You must choose your teammate very carefully! Otherwise you'll harm others and harm yourself."

Jiang Qin scooted over, took out a pot of fine Spirit Wine, and said with an apologetic smile: "Then I'll have to ask you, Lin Lao, to give me some advice. After all, I'm not that familiar with so many students."

"Hmph, quite the slippery one." Lin Lao laughed, took the wine pot, and glanced toward the blood pool.

"Look, isn't there one soaking in there? If you run into a Divine Image Realm Realm or Earth Martial Realm Martial Artist during a mission, just toss him out to tank the damage — it'll definitely work great."