Chapter Fifteen: Secondary System
Because of the three Supreme Saint Talismans within the Jade Purity Immortal Talisman, the Investiture of the Gods system within Qingxu's soul had advanced by one level.
The level-two Investiture of the Gods system was even more formidable than the first; not only was the division of merit more detailed, but it had even unlocked missions.
“Missions? This is getting more and more like an online game,” Qingxu thought with a strange feeling.
Unable to restrain himself, he checked his own status.
[Taoist Qingxu]
True Form: Lower-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure (5%)—Qingxu Tower
Class: 33
Immortal Realm: Early Earth Immortal
Supernatural Powers: Stealth, Jade Purity Daoist Arts (Part II), Five Elements Daoist Arts (Introductory), Qingxu Sword Art, Supreme Saint Talismans (Teleportation, Defense, Summon Primal Clone)
Merit: 1 point Innate Merit, 35 points Acquired Merit, 100 points Yang Merit, 1000 points Yin Merit (1 point Acquired Merit = 480 million points Yang Merit; 1 point Yang Merit = 480 million points Yin Merit)
Karma: 15,555 points Innate Karma (increasing)
Mortal cultivators accumulate Yin Merit by performing good deeds. In their next life, Yin Merit brings wealth and prosperity; the greatest among them can become kings or feudal lords. For ordinary people, this is critical, but for cultivators, it is as ephemeral as clouds.
Yang Merit can be enjoyed without passing through the netherworld and allows entry into the path of cultivation—considered the fortune of a cultivator (though not the path of immortality itself).
For an existence like Qingxu, neither Yang nor Yin Merit has any use.
“Huh? Is that so?” As he was checking, Qingxu was suddenly startled by a new message from the Investiture of the Gods system.
[When Yang and Yin Merit are unified, they transform into Yin-Yang Virtue Qi.]
Yin-Yang Virtue Qi is generated by the laws of Yin and Yang in heaven and earth, ranking above even Innate and Acquired Yin-Yang Qi. It possesses unimaginably powerful offensive and defensive abilities. Whether for refining the body, battling enemies, forging weapons, or arranging arrays, it is an extraordinary aid.
“This is wonderful! With Yin-Yang Virtue Qi to assist, I can strengthen my body and foundation, and even upgrade the Qingxu Tower!” Qingxu was beside himself with excitement.
The Qingxu Tower was his life-bound spiritual treasure—of utmost importance, sharing his honor and disgrace, life and death. As his cultivation advanced, the treasure would also gradually ascend in rank, though this process was normally painstakingly slow.
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Mission: [Seek Your Fortune] — Difficulty 85 (out of 100), Location: Eastern Sea shore, Wanqiu.
“Incredible! With the Investiture of the Gods system’s prompts, it’s like having an invincible cheat code!”
The system’s heaven-defying capabilities left Qingxu in awe. With its support, he was benefiting beyond imagination!
This time, the greatest advantages of the level-two system were the Innate Merit and the missions. It was well known that in the primordial world, Innate Merit was reserved for Pangu’s lineage and the Heaven-Earth Xuanhuang Pagoda; even Nüwa’s creation of humanity only earned Acquired Merit. Now, with just 100 points of Acquired Merit, Qingxu could exchange for 1 point of Innate Merit through the system—a privilege that would make even the Primordial Saints green with envy.
Heaven-defying!
Utterly heaven-defying!
One must know that even the Heavenly Dao of the primordial world does not possess Innate Merit—this belongs to the Chaos Dao alone.
There is only so much Innate Merit in the primordial world, the result of Pangu’s act of creation. Whenever a bearer of Pangu’s bloodline dies, their Innate Merit disperses into the world, to be absorbed by others of the same bloodline.
Though Qingxu was born of a spiritual treasure, he had no connection to Pangu’s bloodline. For him, Innate Merit could only be used to refine treasures—something he had always regretted. Now, this wish was suddenly within reach.
“If the level-two system is this powerful, what about level three, or even four?” The Investiture of the Gods system’s miracle-working powers stoked Qingxu’s greed.
The system’s advancement depended on the Supreme Saint Talismans. This glimpse of hope made Qingxu’s heart race.
Primordial Sovereign had certainly comprehended more Supreme Saint Talismans—what was contained in this one Jade Purity Immortal Talisman was likely only a fraction. Moreover, there were other saints, and perhaps... the true Talismans of the Heavenly Dao itself!
Access to the other saints’ and the Heavenly Dao’s talismans was out of reach for now, but Primordial Sovereign was his master—someday there might be an opportunity. Thus, the Investiture of the Gods system could still be upgraded further.
As for revealing this to Primordial Sovereign? The thought never crossed Qingxu’s mind. As the saying goes, “Guilt lies not in possessing treasure, but in making it known.” Though his master valued him now, if the system’s existence were discovered, his fate would be grim. Besides, saints are aligned with the Heavenly Dao; if Primordial Sovereign learned of it, so would Heaven. Even if his master showed mercy for the sake of their relationship, Heaven would not tolerate him.
“This must be approached with utmost caution, never rushed,” he resolved silently.
After familiarizing himself with the level-two Investiture of the Gods system, Qingxu closed the Taixuan Cave Mansion and soared out of Kunlun Mountain, wrapped in clouds.
This was his first time leaving Kunlun, and Qingxu was filled with excitement. He remained deeply curious about the primordial world; if not for his limited cultivation, he would have ventured out long ago.
The primordial world was divided into four great continents: Eastern Divine Continent, Western Ox-Headed Continent, Southern Jambu Continent, and Northern Cudgelwood Continent. Beyond these lay the boundless Four Seas.
The Kunlun Mountains, situated in the eastern region of Buzhou Mountain, occupied the very center of the primordial world. Blessed by the spirits of heaven and earth, they were the greatest mountain range of all time, alongside Jade Capital Mountain of Western Kunlun, forming the two main spiritual veins of the world.
According to the mission, his fortune lay by the Eastern Sea. To reach it, he would have to cross the entire Eastern Divine Continent—a feat of considerable difficulty for Qingxu in his current state.
The Eastern Divine Continent spanned millions of billions of miles. Setting aside the dangers along the way, the sheer distance meant that, with his early Earth Immortal cultivation, it would take at least a year or two of flight to cross.
...
Upon leaving the Kunlun Mountains, Qingxu dispelled his auspicious clouds and proceeded on foot. Though traveling by cloud was swift, it would draw too much attention. Were he to attract some lesser Earth Immortals, demons, or tribesmen, he would be in grave danger!
The landscape was a vast tapestry of mountains and forests, deep valleys and waterfalls, wild beasts running, birds soaring—every aspect of nature unfolded before him, filling Qingxu with wonder.
With leisure time on his hands, Qingxu took out the Azure Sword and began inscribing restrictions upon it. After refining the central Xu-Yi Apricot Banner, and comprehending 129,600 talismans, it was the perfect time to further raise the Azure Sword’s grade.
Within a short span, the Azure Sword’s acquired restrictions had increased by one level, now boasting two layers. Its might had more than doubled.
“Wait, I still have the Supreme Saint Talismans!” Suddenly, an idea struck him. Though he had yet to fully comprehend the talismans, with the Investiture of the Gods system, he could still wield their power—though their might would depend on his own cultivation.
With a thought, he used the system to bind the three Supreme Saint Talismans to the Azure Sword.
As befitted talismans of a Primordial Saint, they possessed unsurpassed power. The moment they merged with the blade, the Azure Sword began to draw in and devour the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, tempering and elevating itself.
The art of refining treasures is divided into inner and outer methods. The inner method concerns restrictions, while the outer depends on the inherent strength of the artifact—like Sun Wukong’s Ruyi Jingu Bang in “Journey to the West,” a supreme outer weapon.
Restrictions could only be comprehended slowly by Qingxu—no one-day task—while a divine weapon required constant tempering by one’s own power, a long and arduous process. In the current primordial world, perhaps only the Wu tribe and those obsessed with close combat weapons would forge divine weapons in this way.
“Cultivating both inside and out, and with the addition of some Innate Merit, there will come a day when the Azure Sword rivals any treasure in existence,” Qingxu thought, full of anticipation.
Whoosh!
A faint sound tore through the sky—a terrifying demonic aura spread for dozens of miles, black as ink.
“Not good. Has the Azure Sword’s commotion attracted a covetous eye?” Qingxu sensed immediately that the newcomer was targeting him. He quickly realized that the disturbance from upgrading the sword had surely alerted nearby cultivators.
The strength of the approaching demonic aura was astonishing.
Peak Early Earth Immortal!
A level above Qingxu himself—worse still, a demonic cultivator. (His external clone’s soul had not yet recovered.)
Demons! Born from the primordial chaos, they stand in opposition to the Mystic Path. In ancient times, Demon Ancestor Luohu fought Dao Ancestor Hongjun and a dozen innate gods. With the power of the Four Swords of Immortal Slaughter, he annihilated many innate gods, but was eventually said to have been defeated by Hongjun, body and soul destroyed—though doubts remain about this tale.
From of old, it was said: “When the Dao prospers, the demons wane; when demons thrive, the Dao weakens.” The two are eternal opposites. This puzzled Qingxu—if Hongjun slew Luohu and the Mystic Path prevailed, why not eradicate the demon path entirely?
“There must be some hidden truth,” he sighed, resolving to investigate further when the opportunity arose. For now, he had to focus on the incoming enemy.
“Though my cultivation is lower, with the Xu-Earth clone, I have at least a fifty percent chance of victory, and I still have my supernatural powers and treasures.” With this in mind, Qingxu quickly formed a seal, concealing his form.
Stealth was Qingxu’s forte. His innate supernatural powers, combined with the Jade Purity school’s escape arts, made him unfathomable; even a Heavenly Immortal might not be able to find him.