At the start of the game, you have one equipment slot; the effects of unequipping the equipment rema

The next day, early in the morning.

Mu Yang arrived at the county government office on time, carrying a burlap sack containing the rat demon's head.

As soon as I entered the police station, I saw Lao Fang, Li Chuang, and others guarding the place.

After yesterday's battle at Lijia Village, the two were completely convinced of Mu Yang's abilities, especially Li Chuang, who now looked at Mu Yang as if he were a god.

After hearing about Mu Yang's achievements, Lao Ye, Lin Xiaoqi, and the others all had their eyes light up and were filled with admiration.

"Foreman, you've arrived!"

Good morning, class leader!

"Yes." Mu Yang nodded. "Has Li Shou Cai's matter been taken care of?"

"It's all taken care of. I've reported it truthfully as you instructed," Old Fang said hurriedly. "However, Clerk Liu heard that the Wang family was involved, so he specifically asked me to tell you to go see him today when you have time."

Mu Yang nodded, picked up the rat demon's head, and walked towards Liu the clerk's office.

Today, instead of hunched over his desk making annotations as usual, Liu, the clerk, was standing at the office door looking around.

Upon seeing Mu Yang carrying a burlap sack, he immediately smiled and quickly came over to greet him.

"Head Shepherd, you've slain another demon?"

"Yeah, I encountered a second-tier rat demon in Li Family Village yesterday and killed it on the spot." Mu Yang's tone was calm, as if he had killed a chick rather than a man-eating monster.

Seeing Mu Yang's nonchalant demeanor, Clerk Liu's smile widened even more: "Excellent! Excellent! Chief Mu is young and promising, with extraordinary abilities. He is truly a blessing to Qingxi County!"

As he spoke, he enthusiastically pulled Mu Yang into the house, and with a flourish of his pen, directly added 600 merit points to Mu Yang's account.

"According to the rules, killing a second-tier demon is rewarded with 500 merit points, but since you have done a good job protecting Li Family Village, I will give you an extra 100."

There's not much to say about the merit points for slaying monsters.

Mu Yang hadn't expected that protecting Li Family Village would earn him merit points.

However, he didn't hold back; the more merit points the better.

Six hundred points are enough for him to exchange for two high-grade martial arts techniques.

It solved two-thirds of the qi and blood needed for three bone-forging sessions in one go.

congratulations!

"Your achievements have already been recorded, Chief Clerk. Do you have time now? Yesterday, Lord Zhou Heng, who is also our county magistrate, wanted to meet you, this young talent," Liu the clerk said with a smile.

Zhou Heng? County Commandant?

Mu Yang raised an eyebrow.

The county magistrate, the county assistant magistrate, and the county commandant were the three highest-ranking officials in Qingxi County.

Among them, except for the county magistrate, who was an outsider, the county assistant and county lieutenant were both locals from Qingxi County.

For example, the position of county magistrate was held by the head of the Liu family, one of the three great families that were as famous as the Wang family.

As for County Lieutenant Zhou Heng, he was not one of the three major families, but he was still a powerful local figure.

But why did he come to me?

Is it simply a matter of having a good impression of him and trying to win him over?

Mu Yang didn't know, but he didn't pay much attention to it.

With his current strength, looking at the entire Qingxi County, he might still be a little far from not eating beef, but self-preservation is definitely not a problem.

"Before we go, may I exchange for some martial arts techniques?" Mu Yang asked after thinking for a moment.

If Zhou Heng harbors hostility towards him, he can simply take the martial arts he exchanged and leave, then return to seek revenge once he has mastered them.

If not, then it will save him the trouble of making another trip here.

"Exchange for martial arts techniques?"

Liu, the clerk, was taken aback.

Didn't you just exchange for several martial arts skills the day before yesterday and yesterday?

Why are you still exchanging them?

What kind of martial arts collecting obsession is this?

You can't expect someone to learn several martial arts techniques in one day and then have to learn a new one now.

That's outrageous!

"Of course."

Liu, the clerk, was puzzled but didn't think much of it. He simply smiled and handed the martial arts exchange catalog to Mu Yang.

Mu Yang took the catalog and skipped straight to the section on superior martial arts.

Even in Qingxi County's inventory, the quantity of top-grade martial arts techniques is not large.

Even including the "Dragon Subduing Tiger Saber Technique" that he had already redeemed, there were only five of them.

These are the superior spear technique "Snake Spear", the superior sword technique "Gentle Breeze Sword", the superior fist and foot technique "Iron Sand Palm", and a superior external martial art "Copper Skin Skill".

Each method has both techniques and the effect of enhancing qi and blood.

After thinking for a moment, Mu Yang directly exchanged for the most expensive "Copper Skin Kung Fu" and the cheapest "Iron Sand Palm".

The former costs 330 merit points, which is 30 more expensive than the "Dragon Subduing Tiger Blade Technique", while the latter only costs 260 merit points and is the cheapest.

The other two are similar to the "Dragon Subduing Tiger Saber Technique," both costing 300 merit points.

Seeing that Mu Yang had made his selection, Liu the clerk immediately turned around and went to the storeroom to fetch the book.

A moment later, he handed two yellowed, thread-bound books to Mu Yang.

Mu Yang carefully examined the information on the panels of the two martial arts manuals.

Iron Palm truly lives up to its reputation as the cheapest high-grade martial art. Its only two attributes are both white: one is "Perfect" and the other is "Increased training speed for palm-type martial arts."

The entry for "Copper Skin Kung Fu" is actually quite good.

In addition to the Perfection and Horizontal Training Affinity (increased martial arts training speed), it also has an additional force-dissipating effect.

[Copper Skin (Blue): Significantly improves impact reduction, decreasing the impact of attacks on internal organs]

It's a pity that the equipment slots are full right now, otherwise Mu Yang really wanted to see how effective the defensive enhancement of the superior-grade body-strengthening martial arts was, and whether it could withstand the attacks of second-tier or even third-tier demons.

"Shepherd, please come with me!"

After mastering the martial arts, Liu the clerk led Mu Yang deeper into the yamen.

The government office in Qingxi County was not very large, and the two soon arrived at the county magistrate's office.

Zhou Heng was a middle-aged man with a short beard, dressed in a dark blue official robe. His thick eyebrows were furrowed together, with deep furrows between them, and he had a faint look of worry and fatigue.

"Lord Zhou, this is Mu Yang, the head constable you wished to see," said Liu, the clerk, stepping forward.

Upon hearing Mu Yang's name, Zhou Heng's tightly furrowed brows immediately relaxed, and he looked up.

"Excellent! As expected of people from Qingxi County, you are truly heroic and exceptionally brave!"

Zhou Heng got up and walked over, praising as he went.

"You flatter me, Lord Zhou."

Mu Yang was quite modest.

After a few simple pleasantries, Zhou Heng warmly pulled Mu Yang to sit down and instructed Liu, the clerk, to serve tea, the best kind of tea.

When Liu, the clerk, brought over the tea tray, Mu Yang simply took it, placed it lightly on the table, and did not drink it.

Having been drugged several times, Mu Yang now refuses to touch anything belonging to strangers.

"Lord Zhou, please speak frankly if you have something to say."

Seeing this, Zhou Heng didn't seem to mind. After taking a sip of tea, he said:

"Since you're a straightforward person, I won't beat around the bush either. Do you know about the Demon-Slaying Division of our Great Jing?"

"I've heard about it."

"That's good. I've heard a lot about Chief Mu's deeds these past few days. He has exceptional martial arts talent, a strong sense of justice, and is dedicated to slaying demons for the people. He's truly a pillar of society. I wonder if Chief Mu has any interest in joining the Demon-Slaying Division?"

"Of course there are."

Mu Yang nodded.

Qingxi County is too small; the highest-grade martial arts techniques stored in the warehouse are only of superior quality.

In order to learn higher-level martial arts, he will definitely have to go out.

Given the circumstances of the Great Jing Dynasty, there weren't many ways for people to leave their small county towns.

The options were to study for the imperial examinations, join the government and wait for a superior's recommendation, or enlist in the army to guard the frontier, kill enemies, and get promoted.

Studying is too difficult, and joining the army makes it inconvenient to utilize one's equipment.

Therefore, a recommendation from his superior is one of the few options available to Mu Yang.

He originally planned to first kill demons to improve his cultivation and build up his reputation, then try to apply for a transfer to the county government office, and then look for an opportunity to apply to join the Demon Slaying Division.

Unexpectedly, there was still a chance to achieve it all in one step.

The Demon Slayer Division, a department named after slaying demons. Once you go there, you'll probably never lack demons to kill again.

"Excellent! Mu Bantou truly deserves to be called the pride of Qingxi County; his courage is extraordinary!" Zhou Heng exclaimed in admiration.

"Liu, the clerk, immediately write a letter in my name, truthfully describing the situation of the shepherd, and send it to the Demon-Slaying Division branch in the prefecture!"

He had previously asked Liu, the clerk, to write a letter of recommendation.

But back then, Mu Yang only killed first-tier demons, which couldn't compare to the shock of killing two second-tier demons now.

More importantly, the better the battle record, the more it demonstrates Mu Yang's high talent, the more likely he is to attract the attention of the Demon Slaying Division, and the faster they will arrive, thus resolving the hidden dangers of the three major families sooner.

"Yes, Lord Zhou!"

Liu, the clerk, bowed and withdrew.

Only Mu Yang and Zhou Heng remained in the room.

"Thank you for the recommendation, Lord Zhou."

Mu Yang didn't know why Zhou Heng wanted to help him, but it didn't matter. Being able to join the Demon Slayer Division directly in one step was much faster than struggling on his own.

Zhou Heng waved his hand, his smile fading and replaced by a solemn expression: "Chief Mu, there's no need to be so polite. What I did today was for my own sake."

As he spoke, Zhou Heng sighed.

Mu Yang raised an eyebrow; this posture looked somewhat familiar.

Isn't this a typical tactic of "giving benefits first and then complaining, making people willingly do the work"?

Zhou Heng was unaware that Mu Yang had already seen through his scheme; he simply continued speaking in a deep voice:

"Your actions yesterday in killing the village chief of Li Family Village were upright and righteous, but he had ultimately sided with the Wang family. If you had already joined the Demon Slayer Division, they would naturally not have dared to take action against you."

"But the letter is still on its way. You should be careful these days and it's best not to leave the city easily, just in case."

Upon hearing this, Mu Yang immediately understood.

Zhou Heng's actions were actually intended to incite hatred against the Wang family.

He didn't know what grudge Zhou Heng had against the Wang family, but coincidentally, he did too.

Perhaps, he could use Zhou Heng to take legitimate action against the Wang family.

After thinking for a moment, Mu Yang didn't spell it out. Instead, he remained silent for a moment, then suddenly looked up, his eyes sharp as knives: "Lord Zhou, if the Wang family attacks me within the city, can I retaliate?"

Zhou Heng was taken aback.

An attack from within the city?

Although constables do not hold official positions, they are still government officials.

Even if the Wang family were incredibly bold, they couldn't possibly act with such impunity.

As for a counterattack?

That's even more possible!

The best thing would be to just wipe out all those bastards from the Wang family!

Of course, Zhou Heng was just thinking about it.

The Wang family was a prominent family in Qingxi County. If they were wiped out overnight, it would be a major event that would alarm the entire county. At that time, the entire Qingxi County leadership would be implicated.

"Don't worry about taking action, Chief Shepherd. Even if one or two members of the Wang family are gone, I can still handle it!" Zhou Heng said with a smile.

He assumed that Mu Yang was just young and impetuous and couldn't stand the Wang family's domineering behavior.

Thinking about it carefully, it's actually a good thing that Mu Yang took action. If things get bigger, the Wang family will reveal more flaws, making it easier to attract the attention of the Demon Slayer Division.

"With Lord Zhou's words, I can rest assured." A barely perceptible smile appeared on Mu Yang's lips.

Now that the county magistrate has said so, things will be much easier.

He had originally planned to find a legitimate way to cause trouble for the Wang family.

Now things are much better. We have a reason to take action, and we also have a powerful backer to withstand the pressure.

The next step is to complete the third bone forging, ensuring that no one is overlooked when the work begins!