Chapter 12: Merit Gambling, Substitute Death Yin Puppet
“Multi-Colored Merit Fish, one billion grand prize…”
Since the related news had already spread like wildfire and everyone was discussing it, Lu Yang figured out the whole story without much effort.
It turned out that there was a permanent special mission within the Primordial Saint Sect called “Accumulating Merit.”
The location was below the Sacred Fire Cliff, deep within the Cloud Sea, at a treasured land named the “[Merit Pool].” In the pool lived a rare species of Spirit Beast called the “[Merit Fish].”
The fish came in five colors: White, Blue, Purple, Gold, and Multi-Colored.
The closer the color was to multi-colored, the more sufficient the Merit Fish’s Essence and Qi. Consuming it could not only improve the quality of True Qi but even had the effect of breaking through bottlenecks.
The so-called “Accumulating Merit” mission was born from this.
Each person could only accept this mission once a month. First, they would blindly choose a number, and then by paying 10 Contribution Points, they could bring out the Merit Fish corresponding to that number.
However, the 10 Contribution Points paid by the cultivator would not be reclaimed by the Saint Sect. Instead, it would be recorded in the [Merit Pool]’s account just like that. The high-level officials of the Saint Sect had specifically explained this — as long as someone could select the sole Multi-Colored Merit Fish in the pool, they could obtain all the Contribution Points within the [Merit Pool]!
It had been nearly a hundred years since this mission was released.
But for a hundred years, not a single person had selected the Multi-Colored Merit Fish. As a result, the Contribution Points in the pool accumulated more and more, becoming an astronomical figure.
“One billion… One billion!”
On the rocking chair, the old man was still muttering in a low voice, his tone filled with envy, jealousy, and hatred.
Just yesterday, the super grand prize of this “Merit Lottery” finally had a result. The disciple who obtained it had entered the sect less than ten days ago.
A century-old prize pool, taken by a rookie who had been in the sect for less than ten days!
It was no wonder the old man from the [Scripture Pavilion] felt psychologically unbalanced. After all, this one-billion grand prize contained a share of his Contribution Points from participating in the [Merit Pool] mission over so many years.
Not to mention that while Xiao Shiye obtained the one billion grand prize, he also obtained the most precious Multi-Colored Merit Fish. After consuming it, he broke through from the First Layer of Qi Refining to the Perfection of Qi Refining in a single night. Now, he had been accepted as a disciple by a Perfected one of the sect and had entered secluded cultivation to prepare for charging at Foundation Establishment.
Such circumstances made even Lu Yang unable to hide his envy.
But soon, his expression changed… because that lucky guy, Xiao Shiye, did not hide the number he chose when he drew the Multi-Colored Merit Fish.
“2025113”
Looking at this number, Lu Yang couldn’t help but swallow his saliva.
Just as Lu Yang firmly memorized this string of numbers in his heart, preparing to utilize it in his next life, a beautiful figure suddenly walked in from outside the [Scripture Pavilion].
“Junior Brother Lu.”
Lu Yang looked up at the voice and immediately recognized the person. It was Fairy Qing Chen. She seemed surprised as well, her pretty face carrying a hint of delight at the chance encounter.
“Oh, it’s Qing Chen. Is it time?”
The [Scripture Pavilion] old man also saw Fairy Qing Chen. His originally listless expression instantly turned serious, and he stood up. “Then let’s set off immediately.”
“Senior Brother, are you also going to explore the Cave Abode?” Lu Yang asked curiously.
“What else?” The old man said grumpily, “I just lost a huge sum of money. If I don’t find some side jobs to do, I’ll be drinking the northwest wind!”
“Lost a huge sum of money?”
“Sigh, speaking of it, it was my momentary carelessness.” The old man sighed. “Some time ago, the Saint Sect fought a great battle with the [Jade Pivot Sword Pavilion] of Jiangnan.”
“The [Jade Pivot Sword Pavilion] came prepared and forcefully snatched a ‘Ten-Thousand-Man Pit’ belonging to the Saint Sect in the south.”
“The ‘Substitute Death Yin Puppet’ produced in that pit are precious rare treasures. Since the pit was seized, their price within the Saint Sect immediately skyrocketed.”
“At first, everyone was hoarding goods. Out of caution, I watched from the sidelines for a while.”
“Later, I found that the price was indeed only rising and not falling. Thinking the opportunity would pass in a flash, I finally made a move and hoarded a batch of goods from someone else at a high price.”
Speaking to this point, the old man looked heartbroken, slapping his thigh in regret. “Who would have thought that right after I finished hoarding, news came that the Saint Sect launched a counterattack and had already retaken the Ten-Thousand-Man Pit. The price that had just gone up instantly plummeted, becoming even lower than the original price!”
Lu Yang: “…”
“But fortunately, there’s Qing Chen.” The old man sighed for a while, then cheered up again, exclaiming, “Qing Chen is a good person.”
Fairy Qing Chen smiled shyly. “Senior Brother flatters me.”
“It truly comes from the bottom of my heart,” the old man said sincerely. “If you hadn’t recommended Senior Brother Zhao to me, I’m afraid I wouldn’t even have been able to get my principal back.”
“It was just a small effort,” Fairy Qing Chen said modestly. “Senior Brother Zhao happened to need a batch of Substitute Death Yin Puppet, and Senior Brother, you happened to have a batch hoarded in your hands. I simply met the occasion. I only hope that later when we explore the Cave Abode, if I see something I like, Senior Brother can help me a little.”
Senior Brother Zhao… Zhao Xuhe? Lu Yang’s heart moved slightly.
“By the way, Junior Brother Lu.”
Only then did Fairy Qing Chen seem to remember Lu Yang. She turned her head and looked over. “Is Junior Brother really not planning to come along for this Cave Abode exploration?”
Lu Yang shook his head. “Junior Brother has just entered the sect not long ago. My power is small and my strength is weak. I only want to focus on cultivation. Exploring Cave Abodes is too dangerous— I truly have the will but not the strength.”
“Kid, I don’t like hearing those words.”
The old man shook his head. “Focus on cultivation? For ordinary disciples like us with no money and no power, only knowing how to bury our heads in cultivation leads to no path to immortality.”
“Cultivating immortality is originally an act of defying Heaven. If you don’t take risks, how can your cultivation advance by leaps and bounds?”
“When everyone feels afraid and wants to retreat, that is exactly when you should bravely attempt and strive. Only then can you seize the opportunity!”
Others are fearful, you are greedy. No wonder you went bankrupt.
Despite the old man’s eloquent speech, Lu Yang politely refused. The old man feels angered, left a sentence—”Rotten wood cannot be carved”—and turned to leave.
Seeing this, Fairy Qing Chen couldn’t say much more. She gave Lu Yang a deep look, then also turned and left. Together with the old man, she arrived at a concealed Cave Abode on [Heaven-Mending Peak]. She asked the old man to wait in the outer courtyard first, then walked into the inner courtyard and arrived in front of a quiet room.
Before long, the door to the quiet room opened, and Zhao Xuhe strolled out.
“Failed again? He still didn’t agree?”
Listening to Fairy Qing Chen’s account, Zhao Xuhe’s brows gradually furrowed. “He really has a steadfast Dao heart. Fine, missing one person is harmless.”
“Senior Brother, I feel there is something wrong with this person.”
Fairy Qing Chen bit her silver teeth lightly. “The Life Lamps of my three lovers have extinguished. Last night I sent them to kill that guy… it seems they failed.”
“Senior Brother, you also know that my three lovers were all at the Third Layer of Qi Refining. If Lu Yang could kill them… could he already be at the Middle Stage of cultivation?”
“Impossible! Absolutely impossible!”
Zhao Xuhe shook his head without hesitation. “How easy is it to break through a bottleneck? In just a few days, at most, he broke through to the Third Layer of Qi Refining. It’s impossible for him to have broken through to the Middle Stage.”
“You don’t need to be suspicious. I checked his purchase records.”
“He bought so many [Vitality Great Pills]. If he consumed them regardless of the cost, reaching the Third Layer of Qi Refining wouldn’t be surprising. As for your three lovers…”
“He used a technique loan to buy a Divine Ability, which is the [True Art of Divine Lightning Sword Control] from the [Jade Pivot Sword Pavilion].” Zhao Xuhe analyzed seriously, peeling back the layers. “If he has exceptional talent and high comprehension in the way of the sword, being able to quickly master the sword art, then slaying your three lovers wouldn’t be strange.”
“Senior Brother is right.”
Fairy Qing Chen thought for a moment and felt that Zhao Xuhe’s analysis was more reasonable. After all, she had experienced deeply how difficult the bottleneck to the Middle Stage was back then.
It took her nearly ten years to barely break through.
Now, to say that a newly entered disciple broke through in less than a month… unless he was the reincarnation of a Perfected one re-cultivating, it was basically a fantasy story.
“Enough, we’ll talk about this later.”
Zhao Xuhe waved his hand, a cold light in his eyes. “First handle the matter of the ‘Cave Abode’. Are all the people gathered?”
“They are all here,” Fairy Qing Chen nodded. “Especially Wang Bairong from the [Scripture Pavilion]. Senior Brother bought his Substitute Death Yin Puppet, so he trusts us very much now.”
“That’s good.”
Zhao Xuhe smiled coldly. “My Saint Sect has always been full of talents. Whether we can make a huge profit this time depends entirely on these Junior Brothers of mine…”
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