Chapter 53: Behind the Radiance
Chapter 53: Behind the Radiance
The earth around Li Hao began to tremble gently.
Li Hao froze, looking around. He noticed that the distant, broken mountains and the crimson sky were gradually fading.
Had he cleared it? Was the Mourning River Battlefield about to vanish? !
Li Hao was dumbfounded. Everything happened so quickly that he didn't have time to react.
As the ground began to sink and the small hut he was in started to sway and collapse, Li Hao quickly stepped out. His figure flickered, and he appeared in the center of the village at the Stage.
Pulling out a Gold Paper, Li Hao swiftly placed it in the strange Shrine.
Suddenly, the Shrine burst into a brilliant golden light, releasing a Water Blossom Barrier that enveloped him.
Standing within the barrier, Li Hao watched as the village outside seemed to crumble and shatter. Everything was tearing apart, blurring, and finally, disappearing completely.
He found himself back in the narrow cave.
The old, small Shrine had lost its golden glow and now looked ordinary. The two decayed and fallen statues smiled with a half-lip grin.
The Gold Paper flew back like a thread, sinking into Li Hao's palm, giving him a warm sensation.
Li Hao felt as if a strand of Divine Soul had entered his body.
Following his will, the golden thread reappeared in his palm, transforming back into the Gold Paper.
On the Gold Paper were three lines of small text:
Name: Chong Er
Merit Points: 100 (Ranked 99 in the Great Yu Dynasty)
Achievement: Cleared the Fengshan Mourning River.
...
"So this is Merit Points? It doesn't seem particularly special."
Li Hao carefully examined the Gold Paper. He had heard from Second Uncle and Old Feng that the Mourning River Battlefield was divided into five levels, with significant differences. The level he had just experienced was probably the lowest, the Residual Thought level of the Mourning River Battlefield.
Destroying a Mourning River Battlefield earned Merit Points. If one cleared it and made the Mourning River permanently disappear, the Merit Points would be a hundred times greater!
In other words, if he had just killed the Black-robed Scholar and destroyed the village, he would have only received a few Merit Points.
Apart from the Residual Thought level,
there was the Yinsha-level Mourning River.
The Netherworld-level Mourning River.
And the Yudu-grade Mourning River, which even Second Uncle and the others were reluctant to enter.
As for the most terrifying Mourning River, Second Uncle and the others didn't mention it. It was a place where even beings of the Sacred Saint level would perish if they were drawn in.
The Yudu-grade Mourning River was already considered a forbidden area.
And the Netherworld-level Mourning River could only be entered by Heavenly Masters.
The Mourning River had existed for a long time. Although the Li Family's duty wasn't to suppress the Mourning River, they did have some related records. Destroying a Yinsha-level Mourning River would earn around 10 Merit Points.
Destroying a Netherworld-level Mourning River would earn around 100 Merit Points.
But if one cleared a Netherworld-level Mourning River, they would receive 10,000 Merit Points!
As for what Merit Points could be used for, no one knew for sure. There were many rumors. Some said they could be exchanged for a new life after death, others claimed they could accumulate blessings for the afterlife and offset the karma of killing.
But rumors end with the big shots.
Since the two elders said no one had found the true use of Merit Points, it was certainly the case.
Currently, the only use of Merit Points was as a kind of "score" that could roughly estimate the number of existing strong individuals in the Great Yu territory based on their Merit Points.
Yes, the number of existing strong individuals.
If someone with Merit Points died, their Merit Points would also disappear, and they would be removed from the list.
Therefore, for many top-tier forces, this also became a way to check if someone was still alive.
The two elders were probably on the list, but he didn't know where they ranked... Li Hao's thoughts moved, and as if sensing his thoughts, the text on the Gold Paper changed, revealing a list.
The Merit List.
The first name caught his eye: Wang Zhendong.
Merit Points: 9372.
The second person, Wang Tianchong.
Merit Points: 7328.
The third person, also surnamed Wang!
The fourth, fifth... Li Hao glanced over the list and saw that six out of the top ten were surnamed Wang.
Looking further down, fifteen out of the top thirty were surnamed Wang!
Li Hao's face changed slightly, and a sense of heaviness mixed with surprise settled in his heart.
Although the task of pacifying the Mourning River was the responsibility of the Wang Family, the cost in human lives was immense.
Each name on the list, with its corresponding Merit Points, appeared as nothing more than cold, golden numbers, but in reality, they represented countless life-and-death struggles and perilous encounters.
This was no different from the Border Demon Slaying.
One must remember that the Li Family, in their duty to guard the border against demons, had seen six out of the nine sons of the previous generation die in battle, a truly tragic loss.
Now it seemed that the other Divine General Manors had not fared much better.
After all, the number of Wang Family members he could see on the list was already significant, but who knew how many more had once been on the list and then disappeared?
This seemingly prosperous and peaceful kingdom, with its tranquil rivers and happy citizens, where young girls enjoyed boat rides and young men rode horses in the countryside, and vendors peddled their wares without a care, was all sustained by the silent sacrifices of countless unnamed heroes.
"This prosperity... it was hard-won", Li Hao muttered to himself.
He felt a deep respect and reverence for the names on the list.
Continuing down the list, he didn't see his second uncle's name, perhaps because he used an alias.
But Li Hao did see the nickname that Old Feng had mentioned: Bu Liuxing.
Ranked 35th, with a staggering 3201 Merit Points.
Li Hao couldn't help but be stunned. He was almost certain that anyone with such a high number of Merit Points and this name had to be the Thief Saint!
"Old Feng, who goes solo, has such a high number of Merit Points..." Li Hao's gaze grew serious.
Apart from his second uncle, Old Feng had few friends.
This meant that his Merit Points were almost entirely earned through his own battles.
He stood alone against the Mourning River.
However, Old Feng's reputation was poor; he was the Thief Saint, despised by all the major powers.
Cursed by the masses.
Why would he go to such lengths and take such risks?
Perhaps there was an answer, perhaps there wasn't.
Li Hao remained silent, suddenly feeling that the old man who had joked around with him while fishing was someone he knew well but didn't truly understand.
After a moment, he continued scanning the list.
Before long, he saw another familiar name: Jian Wudao!
Surprisingly, he, like the Wang Family, used his real name.
Most of the names on the list, aside from those of the Wang Family, were aliases.
For example, the Thief Saint's "Bu Liuxing" was clearly not his real surname.
Sword Saint... Li Hao's eyes narrowed as he saw his ranking: 76th.
Merit Points: 738.
This meant he had at least destroyed seven Netherworld-level Mourning Rivers or completed seven Residual Spirit-level Mourning Rivers.
Li Hao had already realized that the Merit Points list did not fully reflect one's true strength. For instance, both the Thief Saint and the Sword Saint were at the Fourth Establishment Realm, yet their Merit Points differed by four to five times.
There were also many other experts who had not participated in the pacification of the Mourning River.
After all, aside from the rewards offered by the court, there was no other benefit to dealing with the Mourning River. The seemingly meaningless Merit Points had no known use.
The world is bustling with people, all seeking gain.
No one gets up early without a profit to be made.
This was why the Mourning River Bureau was severely understaffed, leading to a tense situation.
It was also why he could rank in the top hundred of Dayu by completing a Residual Spirit-level Mourning River.
Li Hao sighed lightly and put away the Gold Paper.
Suddenly, his senses stirred, and he detected someone approaching.
Li Hao quickly realized what was happening.
Looking at the shrine before him, he saw it was slowly sinking into the ground, as if about to disappear.
This shrine was connected to the Fengshan Mourning River.
Now that the Mourning River had vanished, the shrine naturally followed suit.
Wait a moment.
Li Hao was suddenly alarmed. This Mourning River was so simple; could it really be the one prepared for the new students' test in a year?
If it disappeared now...
What would they test in a year?
Good grief.
Wasn't this like tearing up the test papers for all the future examinees in advance?!
Li Hao felt speechless. He had only intended to teach the scholar how to paint, not to complete the entire challenge!
Time to scram.
Li Hao hurriedly moved, vanishing from the spot in an instant.
As Li Hao fled, many people across the land were stirred into action.
(End of Chapter)
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