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Chapter 12: Merit Lottery, Soul-Stealing Yin Puppet
Chapter 12: Merit Lottery, Soul-Stealing Yin Puppet
“A Color-Changing Merit Fish—ten billion points!”
Since rumors about the lottery had long since spread across the sect, Lv Yang quickly grasped the full story without much effort.
It turned out the Primordial Sacred Sect hosted a permanent special task called the “Merit Accumulation Task.” Located beneath the Holy Flame Cliff, deep within the sea of clouds, was a sacred site known as the Merit Pool. Within this pool dwelled a rare spirit beast—the Merit Fish.
The fish came in five colors: white, blue, purple, gold, and multicolored. The closer a fish’s hue was to multicolored, the more potent its essence. Consuming one could not only refine one’s spiritual energy but even help breakthrough cultivation bottlenecks.
Thus, the Merit Accumulation Task was born.
Every disciple could claim the task once monthly—choosing a random number and paying ten contribution points to claim the corresponding fish. However, the sect didn’t reclaim these points. Instead, they accumulated in the Merit Pool’s account. A sect elder had once declared publicly that whoever selected the sole multicolored Merit Fish in the pool would claim all the contribution points within!
Yet for nearly a century since the task’s inception, no one had ever chosen the multicolored fish. The unclaimed points had piled into an astronomical sum.
“Ten billion! Ten billion!”
The elder muttered enviously from his rocking chair, his voice dripping with longing.
Yesterday, the century-old jackpot had finally been claimed. The winner? A disciple who’d joined the sect less than ten days prior.
A century’s worth of rewards, snatched away by a newcomer!
No wonder the Scriptorium Elder felt bitter—his own contributions to the pool over the years had fattened that prize. Worse still, the lucky fellow, Xiao Shiye, had not only claimed the ten-billion-point jackpot but also obtained the precious multicolored Merit Fish itself. After consuming it, he’d breakthrough from the first layer of Refining Qi to Refining Qi Perfection overnight. Now, a sect elder had taken him as a disciple, and he was secluded, preparing to ascend to Foundation Building.
Even Lv Yang couldn’t suppress a flicker of envy.
But soon, his expression shifted. The lucky winner, Xiao Shiye, hadn’t hidden the number he’d chosen:
2025113
Staring at the digits, Lv Yang swallowed hard, committing them deeply to memory.
As he resolved to use this number in his next life, a graceful figure suddenly entered the Scriptorium.
“Senior Apprentice Brother Lü?”
Lv Yang looked up at the voice, instantly recognizing the speaker—Qingchen Immortaless. She seemed equally surprised, her delicate face brightening with delight at the chance encounter.
“Oh, it’s Qingchen. Is it time already?”
The Scriptorium Elder also noticed Qingchen. His previously listless demeanor straightened as he rose, saying, “Then we should depart immediately.”
“You’re joining the cultivation cave expedition too, Senior Brother?” Lv Yang asked curiously.
“Of course!” the elder snapped, “After losing such a fortune, I’ll starve if I don’t find some side income!”
“Lost a fortune?”
“A foolish mistake,” the elder sighed. “Recently, the Holy Sect clashed with the Jade Pivot Sword Pavilion in the south. The Pavilion seized one of our mass graves—a critical source of Soul-Stealing Yin Corpses, a rare treasure. Once lost, its price within the sect skyrocketed.”
“At first, everyone stockpiled supplies. I cautiously held off at first.”
“But when prices kept rising, I realized I might miss my chance. So I bought a large stock at inflated prices.”
Here, the elder pounded his thigh in regret. “But no sooner had I stocked up than news came—the Holy Sect reclaimed the grave! Prices plummeted overnight, worth less than their original value!”
Lv Yang fell silent.
“Thankfully, there’s Qingchen,” the elder continued, sighing before rallying. “She’s a lifesaver.”
Qingchen blushed modestly. “Senior Brother flatters me.”
“I speak from the heart,” the elder insisted. “If not for her recommending Senior Brother Zhao, I’d have lost my principal investment.”
“It was merely a coincidence,” Qingchen demurred. “Senior Brother Zhao needed Yin Corpses, and you had stockpiled them. I simply connected the two. I only ask, when we explore the cultivation cave, Senior Brother might assist me in securing items I desire.”
Zhao Xuhe? Lv Yang’s heart stirred.
“Ah, Senior Apprentice Brother Lü.”
Only now did Qingchen seem to recall Lv Yang, turning to him. “You truly won’t join us on the cave expedition?”
“I’m afraid I’d only embarrass myself,” Lv Yang declined, shaking his head. “I’ve just joined the sect, with little strength. I’d rather focus on cultivation. Such expeditions are too perilous for me.”
“Now that’s where you’re wrong, young one.”
The Scriptorium Elder shook his head. “Focusing on cultivation? For ordinary disciples like us with no wealth or influence, burying ourselves in practice alone leads nowhere.”
“Cultivation itself defies heaven’s will. Without risks, how can you advance rapidly?”
“When others fear and retreat, that’s when you must dare to act, to seize opportunities!”
Others fear, you greed—no wonder you went bankrupt.
Despite the elder’s impassioned speech, Lv Yang politely declined again, prompting a frustrated “Incorrigible!” as the elder stormed off.
Qingchen didn’t press further. She cast Lv Yang a lingering glance before departing with the elder toward a hidden cultivation cave on Heaven-Mending Peak. There, she asked the elder to wait outside while she entered the inner courtyard’s meditation chamber.
Soon, the chamber doors opened, and Zhao Xuhe stepped out.
“Still refused? He truly won’t come?”
Zhao Xuhe frowned as Qingchen recounted the encounter. “A steadfast cultivator indeed. No matter—his absence won’t hinder us.”
“Senior Brother, I suspect him.”
Qingchen bit her lip. “My three henchmen’s fate lamps extinguished last night. I sent them to kill him, but they failed.”
“You know my men were at the third layer of Refining Qi. If Lv Yang killed them, could he already be at the fourth layer?”
“Impossible!” Zhao Xuhe shook his head firmly. “Breaking through layers takes time. At most, he might’ve reached the third layer days ago—never the fourth.”
“Don’t overthink it. I’ve checked his records.”
He bought many Primordial Qi Pills. If he recklessly consumed them, reaching the third layer isn’t surprising. As for your men…
“He purchased the Jade Pivot Sword Pavilion’s Divine Thunder Sword Art via a cultivation technique loan,” Zhao Xuhe analyzed. “If he’s gifted in sword cultivation, mastering the technique quickly, defeating your men isn’t implausible.”
“You’re right,” Qingchen conceded after reflection. She knew well how arduous breakthroughs were—she’d spent nearly a decade ascending a single layer.
A newcomer achieving such feats in weeks? Unless he were a reborn immortal, it defied reason.
“Enough. Focus on the cave first.”
Zhao Xuhe waved dismissively, eyes glinting coldly. “Is everyone assembled?”
“All set,” Qingchen nodded. “Especially Wang Borong from the Scriptorium. Since you bought his Yin Corpses, he trusts us completely.”
“Excellent.”
Zhao Xuhe smiled thinly. “Our sect brims with talent. This expedition’s success hinges on our brothers’ efforts.”
(End of Chapter)
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