I Can Devour Spirits

Chapter 176: Achieving the Third Level

"Shouzhi." Ximen Yong turned his head to look at Yuan Shouzhi, who was still sitting in the pavilion.

"Proprietor." Yuan Shouzhi’s eyes moved, and he immediately stood up, knowing Ximen Yong had something to instruct him.

"Go investigate this person named Duan Rong. Find out about his background. See what his purpose is in approaching Kankan."

"Yes."

An Escort Master, not a scion of a noble family, walking so closely with Kankan, and even having Kankan call him big brother, made him have to be cautious.

Even though Kankan is sharp, he hasn’t yet deeply experienced the dangers of the human heart.

"Yilin, rest assured. I will definitely take good care of Kankan. No one can harm him." Ximen Yong muttered to himself as he looked at the deeply darkened garden.

Lately, Duan Rong rarely went to the central courtyard cafeteria to eat, because his cultivation was too intense, and the food there was no longer sufficient to replenish his consumption.

Furthermore, during this time, Duan Rong had further compressed his sleep.

That evening, Duan Rong walked out of the Yuan Shun Escort Agency with heavy steps, preparing to eat at a shop by the street.

The moment Duan Rong left the Escort Agency, he suddenly expanded his Divine Sense, and everything within a hundred meters around him centered on him was displayed in his mind like a full scan...

This had become a habit of Duan Rong recently.

The security inside the Escort Agency was assured; after all, Yuan Shun Escort Agency was one of the major forces in Xianggu County, with plenty of guards patrolling and maintaining watch.

But once outside the agency’s gates, there were no guarantees; the marketplace was a mixture of all sorts, and recently, Duan Rong had seen quite a few officials and hooligans...

Duan Rong went down the steps in front of the Escort Agency and had just walked a few steps before he suddenly noticed something unusual. At the mouth of the alley behind him, a pair of eyes were fixated on him...

Duan Rong continued to walk forward, and that person actually left the alley mouth, seeming to follow him.

Duan Rong’s Divine Sense immediately locked onto that person.

After passing three alleyways, that person was still trailing him, not too far and not too close...

Through his Divine Sense, he could clearly "see" the person’s appearance, and Duan Rong could confirm that he had never seen this person before.

Duan Rong still maintained a normal expression and walked to the beef soup shop he frequented, eating and drinking while monitoring that person’s every move with his Divine Sense.

For a moment, Duan Rong’s mind was abuzz with thoughts.

Why is this person following me?

Could it be because of Jie Lei’s case that I am suspected? It doesn’t seem like it. If it was about Jie Lei, even if it’s not Jie Daohan or Fan Yuanhai, at least it should be someone from the government office. But this person is obviously very unfamiliar.

If it’s not about Jie Lei’s affair, then who else would be targeting me?

Suddenly, Duan Rong had a thought. A few nights ago, he, Ximen Kankan, and Jiang Qingyu had won quite a bit in the Weiyang Square’s first-floor hall. It was very likely someone noticed him then, and now, knowing his identity, were scouting him out.

Ximen Kankan and Jiang Qingyu, being scions of noble families, were difficult to target, but he, a newly joined Escort Master this year, seemed much easier to deal with.

"Looks like I might soon become a scouting target for some people." Duan Rong thought with a serious expression.

After finishing his meal, Duan Rong bought some cooked food for feeding hedgehogs at the nearby shop, then returned to Liu’s House for his stance practice. He had already decided not to socialize in the coming period, and aside from eating, he would only stay within the Escort Agency for cultivation, aiming to achieve the Third Level first.

Even if those people were scouting, would they dare to infiltrate the Yuan Shun Escort Agency and attack? The most crucial thing is to quickly enhance my own strength.

However, in the days that followed, Duan Rong discovered that the person disappeared after following him for three days.

They never appeared again.

But Duan Rong did not let down his guard, becoming even more cautious of his surroundings.

In the following days, Ximen Kankan and Jiang Qingyu came to Liu’s House to invite Duan Rong several times, but he turned them down.

"You’re practicing every day; you’ve almost gone crazy with it!" Ximen Kankan observed the bloodshot eyes of Duan Rong, evidently caused by long-term sleep deprivation.

"No madness, no life!" Duan Rong said with determined eyes, "You two go ahead, I really don’t have the time to spare lately."

Seeing Duan Rong’s dedication to cultivation, the two didn’t feel right to disturb him further and left dejectedly.

After over ten days of hard training, Duan Rong finally achieved the Third Level of Inner Breath Realm!

Duan Rong was naturally overjoyed but did not slack off. After a good sleep, he immediately immersed himself in the frantic training for the Inner Breath Realm Fourth Level.

With this practice, Duan Rong realized that the Fourth Level of Inner Breath was fundamentally different from the first three, no wonder Xiao Yu and Xia Shuangshuang were stuck at this level, unable to achieve it!

The increase in Inner Breath when achieving the Fourth Level was almost equivalent to the sum of the first three levels.

Moreover, the complexity of the Inner Breath Fourth Level’s operation circuit was almost perverse!

Ximen Kankan, solely relying on his spiritual power talent, was able to achieve the Fourth Level, this kid indeed had some skill!

Duan Rong estimated that with the difficulty of achieving the Inner Breath Fourth Level, if he couldn’t solve the issue of medicinal penetration, no matter how he practiced insanely, it would be impossible to achieve the Inner Breath Fourth Level before March next year.

He could only strive to enhance his Inner Breath, if he couldn’t achieve it, he could only participate in the selection assessment with the Third Level of Inner Breath Realm.

Although risky, the opportunity was still significant since, among the scions, only Ximen Kankan had achieved the Fourth Level of Inner Breath Realm.

After practicing the Fourth Level himself, he suddenly felt that Xiao Yu and Xia Shuangshuang would have no easy time breaking through in a short period.

During this time, Duan Rong went on another escort mission, following the Second Escort Team on a trip to Ruyang Prefecture.

This time, the journey was smooth with no incidents, though Xiao Yu’s attitude towards Duan Rong changed significantly during the trip.

Although she still explained some knowledge about escorting, she was noticeably colder towards him.

Even so, Duan Rong respected her more, always greeting her respectfully as "Master" when they met.

However, every time Duan Rong called Xiao Yu "Master," she would look at him with a peculiar expression.

Though things were slightly awkward between Duan Rong and Xiao Yu, he had become familiar with the rest of the Escort Team. The other Escort Masters in the Second Escort Team no longer treated him as an outsider, often joking with him. Moreover, Duan Rong was very unpretentious, getting along well with the two Porters.

This trip was, after all, the second one Duan Rong had been on, and he had already learned a lot about it.

This time around, it was noticeably easier than the first trip.

Upon returning from his second escort trip, Duan Rong plunged back into his intense cultivation frenzy.

One evening, while Duan Rong was standing in the courtyard practicing his stance, the sound of knocking came from Liu’s House’s gate.

Duan Rong’s eyes moved, and he extended his Divine Sense.

The Divine Sense passed through the door and courtyard, scanning Ximen Kankan and Jiang Qingyu standing outside.

Duan Rong "saw" his two friends, smiled slightly, dispersed his energy, and quickly walked over to open the gate to the courtyard.

Duan Rong had been practicing behind closed doors, and with his recent trip on an escort mission, the three had not seen each other for over a month. Now, facing each other, they were all filled with smiles and laughter.

"Goodness! You’re either in seclusion or on an escort trip; seeing you now is really not easy!" Ximen Kankan teased with a laugh.

Duan Rong chuckled honestly. Realizing he had neglected his two friends lately, he immediately invited Ximen Kankan and Jiang Qingyu into the courtyard, setting up tea and snacks in the pavilion to entertain them.