The Sage Who Transcended Samsara

Meng Qi nodded slightly. “Aside from this, I won’t exchange for anything else because it’s pointless.”

“It is difficult to complete any task with just divine weapons and elixirs. It would be possible with Dharmakaya skills, but it would be risky. I’m not lacking in Dharmakaya movements, so it’s unnecessary for me to exchange for them. I have no need for Precious Weapons as my four weapons are of exquisite quality. What I do need are healing elixirs like the Immortality Elixir of East Pole, the subsidiary Exterior skills, and secret treasure charms to make a quick getaway.”

There were three parts to the “Muscle-bone Strengthening Scripture,” first of which was the elevation from enlighten the Apertures to the Exterior, worth 10,000 Karma points. The second part was the elevation from the Exterior to near Dharmakaya, worth 40,000 Karma points. The last part was the elevation from near Dharmakaya to the real Dharmakaya, or if the practitioner was already at the Dharmakaya level, he/she could take it to another level, worth 100,000 Karma points. In order to complete the task, he just had to exchange for the third part. Apart from the cost in terms of Karma points, there were no other requirements.

In addition, it had the ability to turn rotten things into treasure, elevating skills from any style. As long as they had enough Karma points, it was the best choice.

“I’ll lend you some karma points, just don’t forget the interest rate which stands at 1 to 1.4 percent,” Jiang Zhiwei said with a laugh.

With Qi Zhengyan’s departure from the group, they could not help but bring up memories. They smiled to hide the pain inside.

“I’ll even increase the interest rate to 2.2 percent. Five hundred Karma points are nothing.” Meng Qi answered with a laugh. His tone was like that of someone from a respected family. With the sense of the “World of Dao” and possible understanding of the “I, the Unique and Righteous” in the future, he did not have to worry about Karma points.

When he received 500 Karma points from Jiang Zhiwei, Meng Qi walked straight up to the pillar and chose the second part of the “Muscle-bone Strengthening Scripture”.

Suddenly he felt something heavy land in his hands. A thick scripture appeared. It contained 33 different positions and notations.

As he flipped through the book, Meng Qi asked Zhao Heng casually, “Which world will you enter with the Reincarnation Charm? Do you want to find out more about the next task before deciding?”

“You have a point. I did kind of rush to a decision.” Zhao Heng replied with a sigh.

After his first Death Task, he had been rich in Karma points. Sure, there were a few deaths, but without a ban on using secret treasures, he was able to come out of it unscathed. However, the latest Death Task had scared him a bit because he was lucky to have even completed it. Without the wooden sculpture from Master Lu, it seemed they would have only been able to succeed if Qi Zhengyan had brought the Saint Emperor of Benevolence down to the ninth underground level and sacrificed himself in the process. It would have killed the fighting spirit of the soldiers of the imperial court, and they could have won by strategizing and fighting hard.

Otherwise, there would have been one or two more deaths out of the four of them!

The near-death experience frightened him. He had realized that his strength was still not up to scratch. He was in a rush to elevate his ability, which was why as soon as he got the Reincarnation Charm, he had wanted to rely on it to gain more skills. However, he had forgotten about exchanging for the details of the next task.

Meng Qi smiled without saying anything. He exchanged for the details of the next task.

“The next task will be an individual task. You might cross paths with other Samsara travelers and teams, but please exchange for the details individually. The price is still 400 Karma points.” The Dominator of Samsara in Six Realms spoke expressionlessly.

“Individual task? It’s a good thing that I borrowed 500 Karma points!” As these thoughts appeared in Meng Qi’s mind, he took out 400 points from the 415 he had left over.

Suddenly, the grand, solemn voice of the Dominator of Samsara in the Six Realms reverberated in his heart.

“In the age of chaos, demons and ghosts hold the reins. They’ve contaminated the souls of innocents. Though many Taoist monks and swordsmen have tried putting a stop to the evil, it’s still a drop in the ocean. They could only save the city and eliminate a few ghosts here and there.

“Main task: Head to Lanruo Temple and locate the Real Body of the Warlock of the Dark Mountain. Find his roots and completely eliminate him. If the task is successfully completed, you will be rewarded 4,000 Karma points. Fail, however, and the same amount will be deducted. If you have insufficient Karma points, you will be obliterated.

“The details of the individual task cannot be revealed to other members of the team, otherwise you will be obliterated.”

“Damn, is this the Female Ghost Story? Is it a good idea to be enemies with the Warlock of the Dark Mountain?” Meng Qi froze. From the words “find his roots”, he realized this was far different from what he had anticipated. There must be some hidden secrets and the Warlock’s strength had perhaps grown exponentially!

Meng Qi gathered his thoughts and looked at Jiang Zhiwei and the others. He realized that they were all shaking their heads, realizing that they could not reveal the details of their individual tasks.

Zhao Heng heaved a sigh. “I plan to go back to the spiritual realm we just left. Since the Revolutionary Army is about to win the battle and we have a history of helping each other, I could get a lot of help. That will beneficial for the advancement of challenges.”

What he did not mention was that the imperial court was about to fall, and he could gain a lot of spoils and use Du Huaishang’s breath to practice and elevate himself!

“Good choice.” Meng Qi commented. By the next task, Zhao Heng would more than likely cross the first level of the Celestial Ladder.

Zhao Heng used 2,400 Karma points to exchange for a year’s time, adding to the two months he had from the Reincarnation Charm. Since he had exchanged the protecting secret treasure from before for karma points to deal with the Death Task, this time he chose a Top Grade Vertical Golden Light that could be used twice. Though it cost him 6,300 Karma points, it was necessary in case of a dire situation!

Since he still had 1,800 karma points, he decided to exchange back the Dragonsnake Sword in order to deal with the monitoring of the Political Affairs Hall. In the end, he was only left with 100 points.

“I think it’s a good idea to use the Reincarnation Charm during the time to exchange for things. At least he would be getting maximum usage out of it,” Meng Qi said as he looked at Ruan Yushu and Jiang Zhiwei.

“That’s what I would do when I become a grandmaster, but I would choose to head to the apotheosized world instead!”

Ruan Yushu agreed. “That’s how I was planning to exchange and hopefully get past the first level of the Celestial Ladder before the next task.”

She puckered her lips in annoyance as though she was displeased with her own strength. Clearly, she was dissatisfied with the result of death.

“If so, which world will you be headed to?” an interested Jiang Zhiwei asked.

“If I choose an easy world, then the challenge would be lacking. However, if the world I choose is too dangerous, then my life will be in peril.”

“I want to return to the Apotheosized World to learn the zither and pass on my talent,” said Ruan Yushu, her eyelashes like fans flapping about. It seemed she had long thought about it.

“The Apotheosized World?” Meng Qi frowned. “Well, it makes sense, I suppose. As long as you don’t get involved in the war for the land, it wouldn’t be too dangerous, but you should still exchange for some secret treasures for protection.”

Compared to the Journey to the West where ghosts and monsters roamed and which was full of danger, the Apotheosized World was far better.

Jiang Zhiwei smiled. “I want to return to the apotheosis too and roam the land. I want to check out the School of Mo in Qi lang. I could accompany Sister Yushu.”

“Since I have the Reincarnation Charm, I should make good use of it. During the battle with Wen Jing, I had used my Sword Principle to the maximum, and I felt my improvement. Hence, I don’t want to exchange for other sword art but accept more challenges instead in order to enhance my Sword Principles!”

Meng Qi rubbed his eyes and mocked himself. “While you’re there, can you help me gather some news on the Jade Virtual Palace? The Immortals have some history in the Apotheosized World, so you could use them.”

Everyone present was a part of the Immortals, so Meng Qi did not have to worry about hiding anything from them.

Like Zhao Heng, Ruan Yushu had previously exchanged all of her protective treasures for Karma points. Now she had no choice but to exchange for another protective treasure, allowing the Dominator to earn quite a lump sum. However, Ruan Yushu had no choice back then because she had wanted to be prepared for the death task.

Since the Guanghan Jade Robe had the power to awaken the Vital Spirit and fend off spirits, Ruan Yushu chose the “True Talisman of the Cloudy Plumes” with Meng Qi’s help. The talisman could be activated twice, which could create a dummy and help the user absorb an attack. Though the defensive element was not as good as the Guanghan Jade Robe, it could still effectively defend against rope-type treasures. If used coherently with the Robe, it could take an attack by other secret treasures. It was worth 7,000 Karma points.

Aside from that, since she had to return the Zither of Seven Deities upon returning from the Apotheosized World, Ruan Yushu decided to use 4,000 Karma points on enhancing the Phoenix-perching Zither to Mid Grade. She hoped that before the next task it could be elevated to Top Grade.

Take away another 2,400 Karma points for a year’s time, Ruan Yushu was only left with 125 points.

Jiang Zhiwei had to prepare against strange secret treasures if she wanted to roam the Apotheosized World. With Meng Qi’s guidance, she exchanged for two secret treasures to be used with the Seamless Robes of Heaven. One was a top grade secret treasure “Grand Luo Medallion,” which could be used twice to protect the Vital Spirit—worth 7,000 Karma points. The other was the “Mannequin of Selflessness,” which could replace one’s body to take on any attack, again could be used twice—worth 6,000 points.

In the end, Jiang Zhiwei was left with 725 Karma points which she kept because she could not find anything else worth getting.

“You should all go the Azure Heaven first and find Pao-P’u-Tzu to borrow some healing elixirs in order to be safe.” Meng Qi suggested.

He was taking a leaf from the Bluecloud Progenitor’s book!

Jiang Zhiwei and Ruan Yushu both nodded without saying anything. The situation with Qi Zhengyan had made them realize they were helpless. Zhao Heng was anxious to improve his strength so he did not want to waste any time.

Watching them disappear from Samsara Square, Meng Qi sat down cross-legged. He felt quiet and peaceful. Though the place was serene and peaceful with the towering statues of the magical beasts, he felt cold and alone.

“Who would still remain in the end?”

After a long while, he heaved a sigh and decided to return. He reappeared at the Pure Sun Sect.

Since he was not sure if Master Lu wanted people to know about him, Meng Qi did not mention him to Taoist Chonghe and that sword attack. He bade them farewell and headed straight for Huamei Heights.