System Upgrade

"The panel upgrade is complete. Panel permissions have been unlocked, and the fusion function is now available..."

Zhou Yi, who had not yet gotten out of bed, was awakened by the voice in his head. Hearing that the panel upgrade was complete, excitement surged through him. Sleep was the last thing on his mind now. He sat up in bed and opened the panel.

Name: Zhou Yi

Race: Human (10%)

Vitality: 5

Spirit: 1.2

Mental Cultivation: Tongming Record (Complete), Primordial Pile (Complete)

Techniques: Body Refining, Blade Technique, Movement Technique, Special

Yin Energy: 53

Exotic Qi: Qi (5)

The panel had become much simpler. Strength, speed, and physique had been replaced by vitality, while martial arts had been reclassified as techniques. At the same time, Zhou Yi noticed that a 10% had appeared after his race. He could not make sense of it and had no idea what would happen once it reached 100%.

Unable to figure it out, Zhou Yi stopped dwelling on the percentage. He opened the Body Refining section and found the Body Refining Techniques he had cultivated neatly listed inside. However, the word "Complete" after them had changed to "Can Be Fused." Zhou Yi tried using his mind to fuse the Jade Lock Skill with the other two Body Refining Techniques.

"Fusing."

"Fusion failed. Insufficient Yin Energy."

"So it really can be fused. I just don't have enough Yin Energy!" Only then did Zhou Yi look at the Yin Energy on his panel. There were only 53 points left. It seemed his previous breakthrough had consumed far too much Yin Energy.

Just as Zhou Yi calmed down and began wondering where he could obtain Yin Energy, three bells suddenly rang outside.

From his memories, Zhou Yi knew that this was the bell summoning the villagers to discuss matters at the ancestral hall. Usually, the village bell would only be rung when something major had happened.

Zhou Yi guessed that they were going to discuss the Red and White Fiends. After all, nothing else of note had happened.

After getting dressed, Zhou Yi opened the door and headed for the village ancestral hall. Along the way, he encountered many villagers walking in groups, discussing matters as they went.

"What major event has happened? Old Wang, do you know?"

The villager being asked shook his head, indicating that he did not know either.

After asking around, the man found that all the nearby villagers were shaking their heads. Seeing that no one knew what had happened, most of them wore grim expressions. They wondered what disaster had struck, for every time the bell rang, it heralded bad news. The last time it had rung was five years ago, and many people in the village had died then.

Zhou Yi heard them but did not answer their questions. He merely shook his head and quickened his pace toward the ancestral hall.

Upon entering, he saw that most of the villagers had already arrived. After one glance, Zhou Yi walked toward Old Qin and his master.

Beside his master stood a burly middle-aged man. After approaching the three of them, Zhou Yi greeted Old Qin and his master. The two nodded at him.

His master then introduced the middle-aged man standing beside him.

"This is Chief Constable Li Zhengqing of our village. Like your master, he is also an expert in the Vitality Realm," Qu Yong said to Zhou Yi.

Then Qu Yong pointed at Zhou Yi and said to Li Zhengqing, "This kid is my disciple. He has also just stepped into the Vitality Realm!"

Qu Yong emphasized the words "Vitality Realm," clearly intending to show off. Zhou Yi greeted Li Zhengqing.

Li Zhengqing, who had initially paid him little mind, finally put away his contempt after hearing that Zhou Yi was also in the Vitality Realm. By his reckoning, someone Zhou Yi's age should at most have reached the Mid-stage Strength Channeling Realm. He had not expected Zhou Yi to be at the same realm as himself.

Thinking this, Li Zhengqing did not put on airs. He returned the greeting and said, "Little Brother Zhou truly is a rising generation to be feared!"

"You flatter me." Zhou Yi replied calmly.

After exchanging greetings, the two followed Qu Yong to the front of the ancestral hall and took seats in chairs on either side.

Li Zhengqing suddenly felt that the name Zhou Yi sounded familiar. After thinking for a moment, he remembered. Wasn't this the "celebrity" from the Patrol Team that his subordinate Li Yuanfang had mentioned? So it was him.

Thinking of this, Li Zhengqing asked Zhou Yi, "Little Brother Zhou, do you know Li Yuanfang?"

"I do. Constable Li has helped me a great deal," Zhou Yi answered, intending to put in a good word for Li Yuanfang.

A smile appeared on Li Zhengqing's face upon hearing this. He said to Zhou Yi, "Is that so? I must also thank you for helping resolve that ghost infant last time. Otherwise, the yamen would have suffered grievous losses."

"I merely acted when I saw injustice." Zhou Yi had no interest in chatting with Li Zhengqing. He responded half-heartedly while looking toward Qu Yong.

Seeing that Qu Yong's expression was not too terrible, Zhou Yi felt somewhat relieved. Since arriving in this world, the only people who had sincerely helped him were his master and Old Qin.

Zhou Yi continued making idle conversation with Li Zhengqing. He had not expected the tall, burly Li Zhengqing to be such a chatterbox, and Zhou Yi grumbled inwardly.

Most of the villagers below were whispering among themselves, discussing what exactly had happened.

After quite a while, the noise around Zhou Yi suddenly fell silent. Turning his head, he saw the village chief entering through the ancestral hall doors and walking toward Old Qin and Qu Yong.

Ordinary villagers might not recognize Qu Yong, captain of the Patrol Team, but they certainly recognized Qu Zheng, the chief of Qingzhu Village. Whenever villagers had disputes, they usually did not go to the yamen but sought out the village chief instead. The chief handled matters in Qingzhu Village fairly, and most villagers trusted the old man. As for the yamen, it only appeared when a murder case occurred.

After stepping onto the platform in the ancestral hall, the village chief cleared his throat and said to the silent villagers below, "Everyone, I called you here today because we discovered two aberrations. Both are at least Crimson Grade. If they were ordinary Crimson Grade aberrations, my son Qu Yong could handle them. But those two aberrations have already grown into a force to be reckoned with. When my son and the village talisman master went to investigate, they were both injured."

"What? Then what do we do?" "Can't the Precious Image stop them?" "Even Lord Qu was injured?"

The villagers in the ancestral hall raised a flood of fearful questions, their faces unconsciously tightening with anxiety.

Seeing this, the village chief immediately shouted, "Everyone, calm down and listen to me."

The villagers all turned their gazes toward the village chief, hoping that he could offer a solution.

Under the villagers' watchful eyes, the chief said, "First, I will answer your questions. Since the aberrations appeared inside the village, even the Precious Image cannot guard against them. As for a solution, we can only seek aid from Luoshi City."

After the village chief finished speaking, the ancestral hall once again erupted with discussion.

"What? Ask Luoshi City for aid? Their appetite is no small thing. Looks like we've worked for nothing again this year."

"That's right, that's right. Village Chief, think of another way!"

"I say, your lives are about to be lost, and you still care about those few scraps and coins?"

"Wang Second Brother, that's easy for you to say. Your family doesn't have so many mouths to feed."

Watching the villagers argue with such fervor, the village chief's face showed that he could not bear it. Yet he still gritted his teeth and said, "Everyone, I know your lives are hard, but asking Luoshi City for help is already the last resort."

"My son Qu Yong was injured fighting those aberrations. Now, there is no one in Qingzhu Village capable of resisting them. I had no choice but to resort to this measure."

"If those aberrations enter the village, it will be no different from a massacre."

Hearing the village chief's solemn words, the villagers below stopped discussing.

After a while, a voice came from the crowd.

"Village Chief, you have always treated us well. I support you."

"That's right. When has the Village Chief ever harmed us? I support him too."

Before long, the villagers' emotions were stirred, and they all voiced their support for the village chief.

Seeing this, the village chief's eyes filled with tears as he said to the villagers, "I will not let you down. From here on, I will be relying on all of you."

After the village chief finished speaking, the villagers filed out of the ancestral hall.