Chapter 55: Four-Star Tier Emblem

Twenty-one people died in battle!

After a night of arrests, Jinshan Juncheng was still murderous, but inside the Jinshan Dao Academy, the atmosphere was incomparably heavy.

During breakfast, the cafeteria chef, who usually cracked a few jokes, didn't say a word.

After the meal, Xu Jin learned that the six teams sent by the Dao Academy to the six counties the day before yesterday, except for Xu Jin's team and Lu Xianbing's team that returned yesterday evening, the other four teams also returned one after another.

But the casualties were heavy.

Among them, Yu Guan's team had the heaviest casualties; the personal guards sent by Tian Zhang died in battle, Squad Leader Yu Guan was seriously injured, and another six disciples died in battle on the spot, only bringing back their corpses.

The reason was also very simple: they encountered an ambush by rogue cultivators who possessed multiple practitioners at the sixth or seventh layer of Meal of Mist.

This was still with the life-saving Star Emblems.

Not only did the accompanying personal guards have the two-star tier Star-Burst Emblems bestowed by Commandant Tian Zhang, but Yu Guan himself also held life-saving emblems bestowed by instructors and teachers; it is said that there was one three-star tier emblem and one two-star tier emblem, but the timing of their use was not very ideal.

The team with the second-highest number of casualties was Ren Xiaoxiang's team; five disciples died in battle, among whom Zhou Du, the third in this year's Star Lighting, died on the spot, and the accompanying personal guard died in battle.

The team of Yue Daqi, the first in this year's Star Lighting, had three disciples die in battle, the accompanying personal guard died in battle, and one was seriously injured.

Luo Geng's team had a total of three people die in battle, and the accompanying personal guard was seriously injured.

Lu Xianbing's team had one person die in battle.

A total of twenty-one people died in battle, and only Xu Jin's team returned intact.

As for mission completion, it was still Xu Jin and Lu Xianbing's teams that had the best completion; in other teams, except for Luo Geng's team, all the living prisoners brought back were killed.

This news received during breakfast left Xu Jin shocked for a long time.

But even more shocking was the twenty-one corpses covered with white cloth laid out in a row when passing by the Martial Arts Hall, which made Xu Jin's heart go numb.

This is the difference between life and death.

Two days ago, the seventy-two disciples of this year's Star Lighting set off in high spirits, but for twenty-one of them, what returned were corpses.

In this world, death is too common.

This was still for disciples who had joined the Star Patrol Guard and had some strength.

For ordinary people, it was even harder.

In the few days Xu Jin had been executing missions, just from what Xu Jin knew, in this so-called demon chaos, the number of innocent people implicated and killed exceeded a thousand, and those who lost legs or wealth were even more.

Strength!

One must have strength!

This shock made Xu Jin, who was originally going back to catch up on sleep, force himself to cultivate for another half an hour.

The Meal of Mist style receives starlight in four rounds, and each round can cultivate the Five-Battle Killing Fist ten times.

After forty times of the Five-Battle Killing Fist were finished, the body-tempering progress of Xu Jin's right leg surged by an inch and a half visibly to the naked eye.

After cultivating, the fatigue of consecutive days struck, making Xu Jin unable to hold on any longer and fall asleep.

But he didn't wake up naturally; he was woken up by the earth-shaking crying.

The sound came from the Martial Arts Hall.

It was the Dao Academy notifying the families of the disciples who died in battle to come and claim the corpses, while also distributing pensions.

Each family was issued a pension of one hundred taels of silver and could obtain a Dao Academy Pension Order. Within ten years, with the Pension Order, they could send an eligible person to the Dao Academy for two free Star Lightings, or ask the Dao Academy to solve a difficulty twice.

The pension was considered generous, but...

In chats with others, Xu Jin also roughly learned some of the truth hidden behind the battle record.

All personal guards had the life-saving two-star tier Star-Burst Emblems bestowed by Commandant Tian Zhang.

All squad leaders had life-saving emblems bestowed by the Dao Academy's instructors and teachers, but everyone else had one three-star tier and one two-star tier Star Emblems, except for Xu Jin's team, which had two three-star tier Star Emblems.

And they were Spinning-Blade Emblems personally crafted by Ning Yuchan.

According to Lei Guang, this Spinning-Blade Emblem could only be crafted by Ning Yuchan herself; although it was third-tier, its power actually exceeded that of an ordinary third-tier Star Emblem.

This was a super-sized human favor.

Calling it a life-saving grace was not an exaggeration.

Xu Jin had to remember this.

As for why Lu Xianbing's team had relatively light battle damage?

Because Lu Xianbing had more life-saving emblems in his hand; Lu Xianbing used up a total of three Star Emblems, two of which were third-tier emblems.

Luo Geng's team was about the same, but Luo Geng's team encountered Lin Lang, who was at the sixth layer of Refine Star. Fortunately, his uncle Luo Kexing arrived while tracking Lin Lang.

Yue Daqi should have had two third-tier emblems personally bestowed by the Academy Chief; after all, he was the first in this year's Star Lighting, so the treatment was different.

Yu Guan's team's luck was not too good; they encountered a long-range archer at the seventh layer of Meal of Mist and one at the sixth layer of Meal of Mist, plus the timing of using the Star Emblems was wrong, so the battle damage was heavy.

And Ren Xiaoxiang's team, it is said, was purely unlucky.

Besides encountering the ambush team, they also encountered Jin Chi, who was at the sixth layer of Refine Star, at the same time. Although instructor Cui Tianqi arrived, they were brought down by Zhou Du.

The first time they encountered the ambush, one disciple was slashed to death by the surprise attack of Jin Chi, but subsequently, Cui Tianqi appeared. Under normal circumstances, once Cui Tianqi appeared, relying on the personal guards and the life-saving emblems in Ren Xiaoxiang's hands, it would be more than enough to deal with it.

Four emblems, theoretically, could kill all four people at the fifth layer of Meal of Mist and above. And Ren Xiaoxiang and Zhou Du were both at the fifth layer of Meal of Mist, and there was a personal guard at the sixth layer of Meal of Mist. But this guy Zhou Du, the first instant Jin Chi at the sixth layer of Refine Star appeared, because he killed a disciple in one move, actually turned and fled.

Then, not only was he killed, but he also brought down the entire team.

Of course, the dead are the greatest; the Dao Academy should not pursue Zhou Du's behavior.

Set off like this, Xu Jin's team, which encountered two Refine Star Realm masters in succession and could still return intact, was a divine operation.

However, Xu Jin didn't need to explain this; Lei Guang had already reported it truthfully.

In the afternoon, the Star Patrol Guard disciples who could still act continued to search the entire Jinshan Juncheng, capturing fish that slipped through the net.

Inside the Tianhe Gang, there was no lack of cunning people who had discovered something was wrong long ago and hid.

On the list Xu Jin received, there was a rather familiar name—Deng Longshu!

Tianhe Gang incense master Deng Longshu.

The first major crime listed by the Spring Rain Department was the torture and killing of the five members of the river worker Wu Liu's family; kill without mercy upon seeing him!

Xu Jin didn't pay attention at first, but in the process of chasing and capturing in the afternoon, he searched Deng Hu's residence again, because Deng Hu was Deng Longshu's nephew and might be hiding in Deng Hu's residence.

But in the process of searching, Xu Jin suddenly discovered that the residence only separated by one warehouse from the house where Deng Hu lived actually had a government seal on it.

He specifically went up to check it.

Because when he killed Deng Hu, Xu Jin heard movement in this neighboring residence; it should have been startled by Deng Hu's screams.

Xu Jin didn't do anything at the time.

To make Xu Jin commit murder for this, Xu Jin couldn't do it.

But now, this residence was actually sealed.

Only after going up did he discover that the sealed residence was exactly the house of the river worker Wu Liu.

In other words, the river worker Wu Liu's family, who were tortured and killed by Deng Longshu, lived here.

In an instant, Xu Jin associated many things.

Xu Jin couldn't describe his feeling when he learned the truth.

At this very moment, Xu Jin only had one thought: as long as there is a chance, he must personally kill the Tianhe Gang incense master Deng Longshu who is on the run.

Too vicious; without finding the murderer, he actually tortured and killed the neighbor who heard some movement.

Vicious to this extent!

According to the intelligence of the Spring Rain Department: Deng Longshu, male, 44 years old; after the failure of Forge Star, his cultivation has been stagnant at the seventh layer of Meal of Mist!

In the search operation, Xu Jin also heard another name—Qi Shanye.

It is said that this is the real target of this major search for demons.

But what is terrifying is that this person only appeared once in Jinshan Prefecture, yet hundreds of demons appeared in Jinshan Prefecture.

After a day and a night of searching, eighty percent of the main fugitives on the list provided by the Spring Rain Department had been captured, the capture operation slowed down, and the Star Patrol Guard no longer searched the whole city with the prefecture guards.

But the entire Jinshan Juncheng was still only allowed to enter, not allowed to leave.

The Dao Academy even implemented a curfew; everyone, without an order, is not allowed to leave, and personnel without a waist token are not allowed to enter.

It is said that this is also to protect the Dao Academy disciples.

The Dao Academy's operation this time was too big; to prevent fish that slipped through the net from jumping over the wall in desperation, the Dao Academy was still under military control.

Xu Jin was not in a hurry.

Xu Jin now only had one goal: cultivate.

Must rapidly improve his cultivation.

The current cultivation at the third layer of Meal of Mist is too insecure.

If it weren't for the two Dawn Emblems given by the man in green, which brought Xu Jin a sense of security, Xu Jin would have been thick-skinned enough to ask Ning Yuchan for one or two Spinning-Blade Emblems to save his life.

And in the search operation this day, Xu Jin also learned another piece of news in chats.

Dawn—Fourth-tier Star Art.

Like the basic Star Arts learned before, they were all first-tier Star Arts.

Then the Dawn Emblem is a four-star tier emblem, even more powerful and precious than the three-star tier Spinning-Blade Emblem given by Ning Yuchan.

Four-star tier emblem, market price of one thousand taels of gold, priceless.

Xu Jin couldn't understand why that man in green was so good to him?

One shot was two four-star tier Dawn Emblems.

What is the identity of this man in green?

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 56 =====