Chapter 431 - 302: The Situation

Although he couldn’t recall what had happened while he was "asleep," the massive drain on his Physical Ability and Primordial Qi proved that it was anything but simple.

Something had definitely happened after he’d inexplicably fallen asleep.

He then immediately used his thoughts to communicate with the Rebirth Jade, and his attention was quickly drawn to the Merit record.

Merit: One Good Deed, Four Merits, and Four Gains

Without his knowledge, his Merit record had increased by Nine Gains.

He took a deep breath. Connecting this to the faint, approaching sense of crisis he had felt earlier, he realized he had encountered an extremely bizarre incident, one perhaps related to some kind of Evil Spirit.

However, having weathered countless storms, he quickly calmed himself and began to think rationally.

’I can’t remember anything after I fell asleep, but my Primordial Qi was heavily consumed. Was my body’s Primordial Qi drained by some kind of Evil Spirit? No, that doesn’t seem right. Though my body is weak, my Spirit and will have not diminished. To be able to seal my consciousness, this Evil Spirit must be powerful. Its essence, at the very least, can’t be weak—it’s probably at the Jia-rank or higher. If it had directly drained my Primordial Qi, this body likely wouldn’t have survived. Besides, the increase in Merit wouldn’t make sense either.’

’Merit can’t increase for no reason. This means that while I was asleep, I eliminated a hidden danger related to an Alien Source. But there are no signs of a fight in my room, and my body hasn’t even moved... ’

Zhao Xuanqi thought quietly, summarizing the clues he had gathered.

Falling asleep... unconsciousness... memory loss... but an increase in Merit.

This meant that he must have taken some action during the period of his memory loss.

In that case, there was only one possibility.

A dream.

’Was I dragged into a bizarre "dream"? Or maybe it wasn’t a dream, but an even stranger state—one where I can earn Merit, but also consume Primordial Qi. In other words, if I were to have an accident in there, there would likely be a corresponding change in reality.’

’What in the world is this thing?’

Zhao Xuanqi frowned, a few theories forming in his mind.

An ordinary Cultivator, even one who had survived the tide of the Night Parade of Hundred Demons, would have found it difficult to deduce so much after losing their memories of being in the Ghost City. At most, they would have assumed they had encountered an Evil Spirit that secretly drained Primordial Qi.

But Zhao Xuanqi was different. His Spirit was exceptional, far surpassing that of Cultivators at the same level. Furthermore, he possessed the Rebirth Jade, which allowed him to examine the clues left in his Merit record. Even with his memory lost, he could still derive a great deal of information.

’Now that I’m awake, has the Evil Spirit’s attack stopped?’

He pondered for a moment, then once again gathered his Spirit to heighten his intuition.

In a trance-like state, he sensed an extremely faint feeling of danger. He focused his Sensing for nearly a Quarter Hour and discovered that as time went on, this feeling of danger seemed to be slowly intensifying, becoming more and more distinct.

’This isn’t over. After a certain period, the same thing will happen again.’

Zhao Xuanqi opened his eyes, having reached his conclusion.

This bizarre affair was beyond his current understanding. He contemplated whether it was necessary to disclose the matter to the upper echelons of the Red Heart Sect.

However, he quickly dismissed the thought.

Many of his own peculiarities would not stand up to close scrutiny, and that could lead to even greater trouble.

’Since I was able to survive, it means the Evil Spirit hasn’t reached a point where it can threaten my life. Hmm, it’s still unclear if this is a solo incident or a multi-person one. However, an event of this fundamental level is unlikely to affect only me. If it’s a multi-person incident, then I can gather some information by asking around indirectly.’

’This time, I’ll be prepared. Perhaps I can find a way to bypass the memory block and leave myself some information about the Evil Spirit. Then, if I can’t solve it on my own, I can pass the intel about this incident to the Red Heart Sect through other channels. Besides, for someone like me who hasn’t even reached the peak of Cross-Training, to accumulate Nine Gains in Merit Points in such a short time... that kind of efficiency... ’

Soon, Zhao Xuanqi made his decision.

He would discreetly inquire about the incident while also preparing for the next potential crisis.

’I need to accelerate my power progression, even if it means wasting large amounts of Life Primordial Qi.’

’And it’s not just my foundational strength. I need to diversify my combat methods. A simple, basic Blood Qi Rune probably won’t be enough anymore.’

Zhao Xuanqi mused inwardly.

Originally, his plan had been to advance step by step, raising his status within the Red Heart Sect to obtain more Secret Transmission materials and conserve Merit.

But gaining Merit in this world seemed easier than he had imagined. Moreover, the more he learned, the more he realized how dire the situation in this world was. It didn’t leave him much room to improve at a leisurely pace, so he changed his attitude.

He closed his eyes slightly, using the Rebirth Jade to communicate with this world’s Celestial Dao and call up information on Cultivation Techniques.

Information on numerous top-tier Secret Transmissions was shrouded in a layer of Fog, their Celestial Secrets obscured by some power. The Merit required to break through these Celestial Secrets was far more than he could currently afford.

Only one top-tier lineage was not obscured by Celestial Secrets: the ultimate Secret Transmission of the Spirit Official Dao, to which the Red Heart Sect belonged.

The Great Spirit Official Record.

The Merit Points required to exchange for the entire Secret Transmission was one "Dao"—a unit so large Zhao Xuanqi had never even seen the number, nor did he know how many orders of magnitude it was above a "Good Deed." Fortunately, this Secret Transmission could be exchanged in parts. The Merit required for just the basic Chapters was still within his means.