Chapter 118: Goal: Marrow Cleansing

"Confidence is a virtue, but never underestimate the soldiers of the border army."

Feng Boyuan, fearing that Shang Lu might become arrogant, poured cold water on his enthusiasm. "The centurions of the border army all possess cultivation levels at the Great Completion of the Pulse-Opening stage or higher, and they have extensive combat experience. It will not be easy for you to force them into submission."

"I am not underestimating them," Shang Lu replied. He had some understanding of the Ba State military system and knew that for every hundred men, there was a centurion.

The centurions of the border army were mostly fierce and brave individuals who had to lead their men in charges through the thick of battle. Even if the cultivation levels were identical, they were far superior to the city constables or local centurions of the interior. At least in Feng Boyuan's view, although Shang Lu had reached the Great Completion of the Pulse-Opening stage, he would likely lose if he were to face a border army centurion. That was why Feng was puzzled as to where Shang Lu’s confidence came from.

Naturally, Feng Boyuan could not know that although Shang Lu was currently at the Great Completion of the Pulse-Opening stage, the process of opening acupoints and meridians was effortless for him. Within a few days, he would be able to clear the remaining extraordinary meridians and advance to the Perfection of the Pulse-Opening stage.

Furthermore, Shang Lu did not intend to stop at the Perfection of the Pulse-Opening stage. He had long harbored the intention to strike through in one go and enter the Marrow-Washing realm.

According to his knowledge, a human has three types of marrow: brain marrow, spinal marrow, and bone marrow. These three, originally formed from innate essence, serve to nourish the brain, strengthen the bones, and generate blood. After birth, they are affected by the postnatal environment, gradually weakening and decaying as a person ages. This decay, in turn, leads to a depletion of essence and blood, which negatively impacts health and cultivation. Constable Niu’s stagnation and decline in cultivation were largely due to the deficiency of his three marrows.

The Marrow-Washing realm requires one to "use blood to wash the marrow," cleansing away the weakened and decayed marrow to restore vitality, thus laying the foundation for drawing energy into the body and stepping into the Innate realm. The key to marrow-washing lies in having robust blood energy and sufficient vitality. Marrow can generate blood, but conversely, vigorous blood energy can be refined into marrow.

Shang Lu currently possessed not only surging blood energy within his meridians but also a vast amount of undigested blood energy stored within his Liver Deity statue. Additionally, the Taiji-shaped bead on the altar of the Spleen Deity statue had yet to be fully converted. He had enough blood energy to begin the process of refining, washing, and replacing his marrow the moment he reached the Perfection of the Pulse-Opening stage. Moreover, the cultivation notes left by that predecessor in the Qi-Refining realm contained detailed records and insights on marrow-washing. With the energy and the method, Shang Lu had a high chance of success.

Once he entered the Marrow-Washing realm—even if it were just the initial stage—his strength would see a massive leap. By then, no matter how fierce or skilled the border army centurions might be, Shang Lu would be able to use his absolute strength to force them to submit, one by one. In his eyes, the border army’s culture of respecting strength was actually a good thing; it would save him a lot of trouble.

Seeing his confidence, Feng Boyuan did not press the matter further, despite his lingering confusion.

The two soon arrived at the Office of Administration, which now displayed the plaque of the County Lieutenant’s Office. Next to it was the Armory, and further down the path lay the prison. Placing the Lieutenant’s Office here had clearly been a deliberate decision. The office was not large, but it was sufficient for official business.

The clerks assigned to assist Shang Lu with paperwork were busy organizing documents when they saw him and Feng Boyuan arrive. They hurriedly set aside their work to bow and pay their respects. Shang Lu waved them off, telling them to continue.

Feng Boyuan did not stay long. After a few words of advice to get settled in quickly, he left in a hurry. He had been overwhelmed with work lately, and the time he spent supporting Shang Lu had been carved out with great difficulty.

Once Feng was gone, Shang Lu began his work. He reviewed the documents to understand the situation regarding the local constables, the village militia, and the strange cases that had occurred in recent days. He then ordered the heads of the three divisions and the centurions of the village militia to be summoned.

Knowing that the new official would likely want to speak with them, the heads and centurions had not gone far and were waiting within the county office. They quickly arrived at the Lieutenant’s Office and bowed respectfully. Unlike the border army, the centurions of the Luoshui County militia only possessed beginner-level Pulse-Opening cultivation, much like the heads of the three divisions. The militia themselves were also different from the professional border soldiers; they had their own livelihoods and only needed to train a few times a month, gathering only when duty called.

Constable Niu also arrived. No longer daring to call Shang Lu "brother," he addressed him respectfully as "Lord Lieutenant." Since they were acquaintances, Shang Lu skipped the formalities and went straight to business. He first inquired about the patrol and defense situation at Mount Yunhua. After hearing the report, he shook his head repeatedly: "Not enough. It must be strengthened."

Hearing this, the heads and centurions looked troubled. Shang Lu knew what they were worried about and immediately said, "I know you are short-handed. I have already spoken with the Witch Official Feng, and you are permitted to expand your ranks. However, you must recruit honest, decent people. Do not bring in ruffians or scoundrels who are useless at work but first-class at being lazy and bullying the locals! Furthermore, be meticulous in your screening to ensure no spies are recruited. You all know that many people and entities are eyeing the Secret Realm. While the Witch Official will screen your recruits, if you let a spy slip through, you will be reprimanded—or worse, lose your posts!"

"Understood!" the men replied in unison. As long as they were allowed to recruit, the rest was manageable. The only problem was whether they could find enough martial practitioners in Luoshui County. They would have to hurry to the local martial arts schools before all the candidates were taken.

After giving a few more instructions, Shang Lu let them go to begin recruiting and strengthening the patrols. Once they left, Shang Lu did not stay long at his desk. He intended to visit Mount Yunhua himself to assess the defenses so that he would have a clear picture for future adjustments. He also planned to patrol the county to look for other potential threats.

The evil entities and spies who had previously broken into Mount Yunhua had all been captured by Qiu Haishan and fed to the dragons. Those who came later were unaware of the internal details, but they knew that many others had disappeared while coveting the Secret Realm. They would certainly take this as a lesson and not dare to storm the mountain blindly. Instead, they would likely lie low within Luoshui County, trying to find ways to spy on the Secret Realm and snatch a piece of the pie. Thus, he couldn't just guard the mountain; he had to keep an eye on the entire county. This was a point he and Feng Boyuan had agreed upon.

On his way, Shang Lu also wanted to return home. His promotion from a clerk to a County Lieutenant was a great honor. His parents didn't know yet, and he wanted to share the good news with them. He also wanted to experience the feeling of returning home in triumph.

Just as he was about to set off, Shang Lu remembered something. He stopped and asked the clerk, "Have the bereavement pensions for the constables and militia who died in Mount Yunhua been issued yet?"

"Not yet," the clerk replied.

Shang Lu’s eyebrows shot up. It had been so many days, and the pensions still hadn't been issued? Could it be that the Chief Clerk was embezzling the money? Daring to embezzle such funds—did he not fear a mutiny?

Shang Lu’s expression turned dark. He went straight to the Chief Clerk to demand an explanation. He did not go to the County Magistrate, for he knew that where money and grain were concerned, the Magistrate had no control.