Demonslayer Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Submitting Grades　　 　　

The exterior was normal, but after he pressed the surface several times, it suddenly opened, revealing a compact device beneath. At this moment, the device was radiating flashes of blue light.

"Verifying data." The ice-cold voice of a man could be heard from the wrist.w.a.tch: "Heaven's Law student No. 2452, Xu Yangyi, s.e.x: male. Number one, please state your reason for communication."

"Number one, to apply to submit a.s.sessment grades." Xu Yangyi said straight-faced: "Mission location: Sanshui City, mission objective: serial killer case. Degree of difficulty: no rank."

"The time from now until the graduation ceremony is fifteen days and eight hours. Before that, I want reconfirm a rule once." The pitch of the man's voice didn't waver whatsoever: "Heaven's Law has never used the method of communication to inspect a student's grade. I believe I don't have to remind you again of the importance of the graduation exam — as Yuyang City's Rank One, Mr. Xu, you should be even clearer on this than myself."

"Of course."

"Second, the graduation examination grades will be announced on Nantong Province's widescreen. If you misreport your grade perhaps you will gain momentary interest, however, upon returning to the academy to harvest the rewards… I believe it isn't necessary of me to say this, as well; Mr. Xu understands it, too. In case some Core Formation cultivators' a.s.sistants or Foundation Establishment seniors discover the person they were paying attention to has a deceitful nature, I'm afraid your path of cultivation will end here."

Xu Yangyi grunted, misreporting? He absolutely wouldn't lay claim to feats he wasn't responsible for.

"Good, then you may continue, Mr. Xu. Our conversation has already started being recorded. My work ID examination number is penned 9310. Same as early-stage Qi Condensation. Please remember my number."

The light tapping of a keyboard could be heard, and Xu Yangyi began speaking: "Grade: accomplished. Cla.s.sification: Serpent Eye. Demon age: indeterminate."

"Ma.s.s?"

"The demon's entire body is approximately around a hundred meters. It's already been taken inside into the branch's issued dimensional s.p.a.ce Dao-tool."

The flowing sound of keyboard typing halted, and after several seconds, the cold, crisp voice of a man echoed out again: "Mr. Xu, I hope you haven't forgotten my reminder just a moment ago."

Xu Yangyi furrowed his brows.

"According to the records, the ma.s.s of a Qi Condensation-stage demon doesn't break over fifty meters. This is the cut-off point. Thank you." The man's voice seemed to sigh: "As Yuyang City's Rank One, there's no shortage of powerful eyes that have fallen upon you. Perhaps because you were too cooped up in the academy, you don't understand the powers of the outside world all too well. However, I can remind you. The number of cultivators and rogue cultivators in China is approximately around million people, while in every 'cradle' of 'cultivation' — the number of graduated students of Heaven's Law is at most three hundred. You need not be worried about your future prospects, Mr. Xu."

While he had spoken extremely tactful, his words were yet rather penetrating. With Xu Yangyi's performance as Rank One, granted that it wasn't good that he didn't complete his mission and as such would be regarded as odd, he wouldn't necessarily have his value distorted when it came for the personnel selection of every major power.

At the same moment, within Nantong Province's provincial government building inside a room with several tens of computers, a tall, skinny middle-aged man around forty years of age was combing back his glossy hair. He pushed down on his gold-rimmed gla.s.ses and drank a mouthful of coffee somewhat impatiently.

"Old Ying, you run into a problem?" He and the colleague beside him had worked this job together for many years. Looking at his appearance, he laughed: "It's a tick of yours to drink coffee when you're impatient. It's been several tens of years, but you still haven't changed."

"It's not something I can change." Old Ying pressed the pause b.u.t.ton for the recording and kneaded his forehead: "Yuyang City is a major city administrated by Nantong Province. The Rank One can basically be said to be a seeded player. In the past several days, Dao-Master CloudCrane's Disciple Chen had reminded us that Dao-Master CloudCrane's enterprise in Yuyang City, Golden Prosperity Pictures, needs an awesome Qi Condensation cultivator to calm the scene. Since Yuyang City is Nantong Province's second major city, the demons in kind have forcibly taken s.p.a.ce to survive; it's not very peaceful. This Rank One…"

Old Ying swept his eyes over the screen and directly set down the recording, His lanky body learned against his chair, and he laughed grimly: "I was prepared to recommend him to Dao-Master CloudCrane, and I even brought it to his attention pretty obviously, but he suddenly reported to me the demon's corpse was a hundred meters. An old Foundation Establishment monster? Is this really the time for big talk? Can a single mu produce thousands and thousands of bushels? What a joke."*

His colleague by his side listened to his spiel and laughed: "A hundred-meter-long demon corpse… This is an old Foundation Establishment monster, right? In any case, you were only ranked fifty that year, Old Ying…"

"It's nothing more than a pretty excuse." Old Ying faintly pressed down on his gla.s.ses: "Only the top twenty grades in the graduation exam are worth a d.a.m.n. What's the difference between rankings twenty-one to a hundred? With his performance, he's bound to end up within the entire province's top twenty. He doesn't have any need to misreport, but for his nonsensical vanity, he reported a hundred-meter-long demon corpse. Every year, you get to see this kind of keyed-up hothead. After going through ten-odd years of Heaven's Law's h.e.l.l training, they've taken a fall in moral character in a loop-the-loop."

"Let's listen up first, alright." His colleague was interested, as well. Moral character was absolutely important in cultivation, and it was often even more important than cultivation. There wasn't any difference between Heaven's Law's graduation and a university's graduation. It was merely on the eve of graduation, "company recruiters" would become "cultivation powers".

No one would recruit a person of questionable moral standing. Even if a Core Formation master took a fancy to him, how could they possibly entrust him with a heavy responsibility?

Old Ying remained cool and collected, switching on the recording software once more. He said coldly: "Mr. Xu, you still have one more chance. I didn't take a recording just now. You can carefully… jog your memory again of the specifications of the demon's corpse."

The sound of dialogue echoed out on the other side, as it seemed that Xu Yangyi was asking someone called Mao Ba'er. Once the other gave him a detailed answer, Xu Yangyi's voice clearly rang out again: "Mhm, I was clear about it." 

"Mr. Xu, please treasure your opportunity." Old Ying furrowed his brows. This time, he hadn't been prepared to switch off the recording key. Was this a joke? I already gave you a chance, if not for his recommendation to a Core Formation master at the top of the food chain, and also the glory of his Nantong Province branch, what was the least bit need of him to give this kind of chance to a little cultivator that hadn't even graduated?

"Mhm, in total, it is a hundred-forty-two meters and three centimeters  long and four meters in width in its entirety."

"Pfft…" His colleague nearly spurted out in laughter, resisting the urge to smile with great difficulty, shrugging his shoulders and looking at Old Ying's ashen face. With a gesture symbolizing "at your will", he shook his head with a regretful look in his eyes soon after and said with drawn lips: "What is this person even on about?"

Old Ying closed his eyes, and as he opened them, his voice carried an even icier hint: "I understand. I shall report it as is. Mr. Xu, is there anything else?"

Don't scream, you mustn't.

This kind of person would be expelled as expected through the course of a nature. No matter the fact he was Yuyang City's Rank One.

In regards to a person whose prospects were already culled off, what qualifications did they have to earn respect?

"Oh, there's something else." Xu Yangyi's voice paused on the other side: "This was a berserker. The academy regulations state in the event of an unusual circ.u.mstance, bonus points may be added. I'll have to trouble you to make note of it."

In a momentary flash, the wrist.w.a.tch over on his side went quiet.

Just as his colleague was about to cover his mouth to stem his laugher, he failed to laugh in that next instant. Old Ying looked at his computer in shock, believing he had heard incorrectly.

He… What did he just say?

"It seems you just said… A berserker?" Old Ying was suddenly startled back into his wits by this answer. Upon discovering this, he had unexpectedly been too shocked and surprisingly asked!

By his side, his colleague looked at him an incredulous look plastered all over his face. 

"Okay, I'm hanging up."

"Hold up a second!" These words had completely made the two draw back to attention. Old Ying gripped his microphone with his voice raised: "Mr. Xu, you must remember clearly! A berserker has to be reported to a special 'unusual' management office! Their striking capabilities are over five times that of a normal demon! Moreover, they can cross over two minor stages! It has be said, as well, if it's the initial stage of Qi Condensation, it'll become late-stage Qi Condensation! Furthermore, the probability of such an usual circ.u.mstance appearing is astronomically rare! Only Heaven's Law's academy-affiliated Kyoto Hospital and Shanghai Hospital have dissected an actual subject! You…"*

His tone of voice not yet falling, he was thoroughly floored, while his colleague nearly jumped!

This was because an image had been sent over to the computer. When Xu Yangyi had clashed against the serpent's head that was covered in bony spurs in ridges like a ball of fire, Mao Ba'er had snagged a photo!

Beneath moonlight, the tremendous serpent several tens of meters in length had thrust its bones outwards, and the ball of fire had caused the radiant moon to lost its l.u.s.ter! Even if it was hazy, one could also see the skewed color of the demon's pupil, and the hundred plus tiny snakes as thick as a man's waist on the ground! As well as… the tremendous serpent's forty-plus meters of length outside the ground!

An extraordinary situation… The reason being, a Qi Condensation demon has surpa.s.sed the body of a Foundation Establishment demon!

Boom… Boom…

Old Ying didn't know when, but he had already started to stand up, his mouth slightly ajar, pus.h.i.+ng back on his gla.s.ses incessantly.

It was unknown when, but his colleague by his side had also stood up with his eyes swiftly popping out, fixed rigidly upon the computer screen

They recognized three things.

One, this photo didn't have any traces of being tampered with..

Two, this serpent… Even if it wasn't a berserker, it was absolutely also in some other abnormal state!

Three…

"This is… Solution Ninety… life sacrification…" Old Ying's throat was like he had swallowed a date, trembling violently: "In the history of students in Heaven's Law that haven't yet graduated that could learn… and employ… this move during the graduation exam, they are all… absolute heavenly-blessed heroes…"

He himself knew… it wasn't until ten years later he could use this move! Only then he dared to use this move!

"You… No, sir, are you certain that all that was mentioned is true?" Finally, he strongly suppressed the shock of his heart and spoke.

He really wanted the other to deny it, since this kind of disparity, envy, and admiration had soured within his heart to become an ocean.

They were all men, all cultivators, but wasn't this disparity too great!

However, he moreover wanted the other to admit it! This was because… if he could recommend him to a Core Formation master's a.s.sistant manager, Nantong Province's reputation in China's world of cultivation and scope of power would drift upwards by a small stage! Especially, such an outstanding talent! 

"Of course, I'm still in the sickroom right now. I will arrive at Nantong Province's provincial capital in time. However, this berserker's strength was strong at all. It was just between the pinnacle of the initial stage and middle stage."

Old Ying and his colleague both didn't know who was it that had hung up the phone.

In their hearts, they felt a sense of loss, excitement, and envy… all kind of feelings converged together into a channel.

What kind of good luck… did one one need to actually meet such an extraordinary circ.u.mstance during their graduation examination?

What kind of strength did one… actually… actually need to be able to kill the opponent?

And to speak so matter of factly… What were you on about that its power wasn't strong at all? Between the pinnacle of the initial stage and middle stage… Could it be you don't know that baseless boasting is the greatest fatality? The mere body of a tremendous demon serpent would cause a majority of initial stage cultivators and Xu Yangyi alike to shrink back!

In all of China, over 80% of cultivators were at the realm of Qi Condensation! No! The world! Among them, 60% were at the initial stage! Would it kill you not to brag?!

"Report this immediately to the branch's council members! Old Ying stood up as if he had just awakened from a dream and suddenly stomped his foot in annoyance: "f.u.c.k… I actually forgot to state my work number one more time!"

T/N: Sorry I've been MIA for this past week, but I got a good reason. At some point I was translating, something just "clicked". I looked back at my old chapters and pretty much retranslated/fixed a lot of stuff I wasn't sure about or translated just plain wrong. I HIGHLY encourage you to go back and read all the past chapters for a better experience and also the things I got wrong. More changes might come in the future as I keep reading and becoming more familiar with the story. Pls go back and read so all my effort won't be wasted, lul. 

* Mu is a chinese measurement for land. Unlike Jin, which can be translated into catty, a mu is defined as 1/15th of a hectare. Doesn't sound very smooth to put it like that.

** 魔都 - is an alternative spelling of Shanghai. I want to make a note of this since, you can translate this as "demon city" or "magic city".