Chapter 4

He truly could not figure out what kind of background Lu Changsheng had to possess such an enormous amount of merit that he could squander it so freely.

In the Great Desolation World, those who bore great merit often possessed extraordinarily profound blessings. They were favored by Heaven's will, with enduring luck.

Sometimes, they could even casually pick up treasures while walking along the road.

More importantly, the Heavenly Dao would protect such people.

Not to mention taking their lives—even slightly injuring them might bring down Heavenly Punishment.

This was precisely the confidence that allowed Lu Changsheng to remain so calm and unhurried.

At this moment, Lu Changsheng himself also felt that the nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine "suns" behind him were too dazzling. With a slight movement of his mind, he concealed all the Golden Wheels.

Only after the brilliant radiance had completely faded did Kunpeng gradually recover. He looked at Lu Changsheng in shock:

"What exactly is your identity? How could you possess such an enormous amount of merit protecting your body?"

As the widely experienced Demon Master, Kunpeng knew the power and taboos of merit all too well.

Therefore, after Lu Changsheng revealed his Golden Wheels of Merit, Kunpeng completely abandoned any thought of attacking.

Facing someone bearing such immense merit, even though he was a late-stage Quasi-Saint, he did not dare recklessly provoke Heaven's might.

Hearing the suspicion and uncertainty in Kunpeng's questioning, Lu Changsheng merely raised his eyebrows lightly, a completely undisguised trace of disdain surfacing on his face.

That look was as if he were staring at two hillbillies who had never seen the world.

The corners of his mouth lifted slightly as he spoke with disdain—

"Those few things count as great merit?"

As he spoke, Lu Changsheng casually took more than a dozen Houtian Merit Spirit Treasures and Merit Supreme Treasures out of the system.

His tone was casual:

"I really don't understand. What's so precious about things that are everywhere?"

Kunpeng was famous for being poor among the Quasi-Saints.

He had only one Houtian Merit Supreme Treasure on him.

Seeing Lu Changsheng casually take out more than a dozen Houtian Merit Supreme Treasures and Merit Spirit Treasures, Kunpeng became so jealous that he nearly ground his teeth to pieces.

Che Qi's eyes also reddened at the sight of each Merit Treasure.

The two members of the Demon Race could not understand who Lu Changsheng actually was.

The merit others dreamed of possessing seemed worthless to him.

His entire body had been refined into Merit Treasures, while nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine Golden Wheels of Merit hovered behind him. The sight made both of them burn with envy.

Seeing how strongly they reacted to the Merit Treasures, Lu Changsheng looked puzzled:

"Seriously? A few Houtian Merit Treasures are enough to excite you this much? What if they were Xiantian—"

As he spoke, he took out his Companion Spiritual Treasure—the Top-grade Innate Merit Spiritual Treasure, Tai Xu Creation Banner.

In an instant, the air seemed to freeze.

The only sound was Kunpeng's hurried breathing.

He stared fixedly at the Tai Xu Creation Banner, his eyes bloodshot, while the last shred of reason suppressed his urge to seize the treasure.

As for Che Qi, who had retained a trace of clarity, he completely lost his mind upon seeing this Xiantian Merit Spiritual Treasure.

He roared:

"Fortune is found amid danger! Who cares if people with great merit are blessed and cannot be touched? I, Che Qi, insist on giving it a try!"

Kunpeng hurriedly tried to stop him. "Absolutely not—"

Before his words had even ended, Che Qi's killing intent had already arisen.

The aura of a peak Grand Unity Golden Immortal erupted thunderously. He raised his hand, intending to unleash a divine ability and kill Lu Changsheng in one blow.

However, at the instant he raised his hand—

The sky, which had been calm and peaceful, suddenly gathered vast clouds of black and purple thunder.

Lightning churned within the clouds, and the Great Dao Divine Runes appeared and vanished.

The River of Years manifested.

The Three Thousand Great Dao Laws emerged in the air.

The Law of Destiny was especially dazzling and solid within the clouds, as if something were brewing.

Before long, a world-destroying divine thunderbolt quietly took shape.

Just as Demon Saint Che Qi was about to strike—

"Crack—"

The divine thunderbolt suddenly crashed down.

The majestic thunderbolt tore apart the stars filling the heavens,

shaking the boundless void.

The lightning struck directly atop Che Qi's head.

"Pfft—"

This tremendous divine thunderbolt contained the true meaning of the Three Thousand Great Daos,

as well as the supreme might of the Law of Destiny.

In an instant, Che Qi's physical body and nascent soul were blasted into ashes.

In the sky, the previously tranquil River of Years stirred up a tiny wave.

A droplet of water splashed up from the wave, shattered in midair, and vanished.

At this point, Che Qi had been completely erased by the Primordial Heavenly Tribulation.

He no longer had even the chance to reincarnate.

Nearby, Kunpeng covered his face with one hand and turned his head away,

unable to bear looking.

How foolish did one have to be to dare attack someone bearing such immense merit?

Lu Changsheng lowered his head and glanced at the scorched patch on the ground, shaking his head helplessly:

"Truly ignorant. You got this excited over a mere Xiantian Merit Spiritual Treasure!"

"That fool Che Qi. How could you dare provoke someone capable of condensing nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine Golden Wheels of Merit?"

Kunpeng stared at the scorched earth and muttered under his breath.

Facing such a freak who had enough leisure to condense nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine Golden Wheels of Merit,

let alone himself, a mere Quasi-Saint,

even a Saint would have to keep a respectful distance.

This was no cultivator.

It was clearly karma itself walking the world.

As he shook his head, Kunpeng secretly speculated about how much merit Lu Changsheng had accumulated.

"Although this person has nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine dazzling Golden Wheels of Merit behind him,

at most, he has no more than a million merit,

which naturally pales far in comparison to Saint Nuwa's tens of millions of merit.

Even so, it would be best to befriend someone bearing such merit."

In Kunpeng's view, Lu Changsheng was merely at the late-stage Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm.

Even if he had performed some earth-shaking good deed in his previous life,

at most, he would only have a million merit on him.

As for deeds worthy of tens of millions of merit,

that was a level Kunpeng did not even dare imagine.

And this was the limit of what Kunpeng could understand.

If he learned that Lu Changsheng actually possessed one hundred million million merit, he would probably be frightened to death on the spot.

After all, Nuwa created humanity and bestowed blessings upon the Great Desolation, yet had obtained only tens of millions of merit;

even Pangu's immeasurable merit from creating the world was nowhere near Lu Changsheng's terrifying total of one hundred million million.

After figuring this out, Kunpeng immediately changed his expression.

He piled a gentle smile onto his face and said to Lu Changsheng:

"Fellow Daoist, what happened just now was merely a small misunderstanding. Please don't take it to heart."

Seeing Kunpeng's sudden change in attitude, Lu Changsheng paid it no mind. Instead, an idea struck him, and he thought privately:

"I heard that Kunpeng's speed is among the best in the Great Desolation World.

If I hired him as a mount, that wouldn't be a bad choice."

Although Lu Changsheng wholeheartedly wanted to squander that one hundred million million merit,

before he exhausted it, making himself more comfortable was only reasonable.

Just as Lu Changsheng was secretly calculating,

Kunpeng did not mind his expressionless face and continued asking with a smile:

"I am the Demon Master Kunpeng. May I ask how I should address you?"

Lu Changsheng, who was pondering what kind of "salary" to offer Kunpeng, answered casually:

"Lu Changsheng."

After answering, he began discussing the matter with the system:

"System, what do you think? Kunpeng is the Teacher of the Demon Race and a late-stage Quasi-Saint.

With such status and strength, if he becomes my mount,

his annual salary should start at a million merit, right?

If you think that's reasonable, I'll go negotiate the terms with him."

Upon hearing this, the system immediately replied in a cold mechanical voice:

"System evaluation complete. The amount set by the host is excessively high!

Please do not make things excessively difficult for the system."

Lu Changsheng curled his lips and complained softly:

"So stingy. He's a Quasi-Saint Kunpeng, after all. What's wrong with giving him an annual salary of one or ten million merit to be my mount?"

The system did not respond to his complaint.

Lu Changsheng had long since grown accustomed to this.

The system possessed no intelligence and was merely a mechanical creation.

It would only respond when necessary.

Kunpeng had completely forgotten that he had just wanted to kill Lu Changsheng and seize his Supreme Treasure.

Now, he shamelessly moved closer and enthusiastically struck up a conversation, trying to build a relationship:

"So you are Fellow Daoist Changsheng. I have long admired you.

You have a broad and imposing forehead, and profound blessings.

You are truly a rare talent in the Great Desolation World.

Why not join my Demon Race and become the Great Sage of Merit,

commanding countless demon armies? Would that not be delightful?"

Lu Changsheng was communicating with the system and completely ignored Kunpeng's words.

When he came back to his senses, he merely looked blankly at Kunpeng, who had eagerly approached him, and asked:

"What did you just say?"

Hearing Lu Changsheng's words, several black lines appeared on Kunpeng's forehead.

But remembering that the other party bore great merit, he could only suppress his displeasure,

preparing to repeat his invitation.

Before he could speak, however, Lu Changsheng waved his hand:

"Forget it, forget it. Whatever you were saying isn't important.

Why don't you listen to me first?"

Ignoring Kunpeng's darkening expression, Lu Changsheng continued:

"I see that your strength is impressive, and your speed is also top-notch in the Great Desolation.

Why not become my mount?

I'll give you ten thousand merit every thousand years. What do you think?"

The system had not clearly stated how much merit he could offer,

so Lu Changsheng could only test the waters bit by bit.

As soon as Kunpeng heard this, he flew into a rage, as if he had suffered immense humiliation, and shouted:

"Fellow Daoist Changsheng, I regard you as a fellow brother of the same path.

How can you humiliate me like this?"

Lu Changsheng, however, did not take it to heart.

In his eyes, there was no deal in the world that could not be reached,

only a price that was not high enough.

Thus, he tentatively took out a dazzling golden cloud containing one hundred thousand merit and spoke again:

"Then how about one hundred thousand merit every thousand years?"

Seeing that mass of merit cloud gleaming with golden light, Kunpeng could not help swallowing,

and his breathing grew hurried.

The last shred of his dignity made him persist in refusing:

"What do you mean by this? I, Demon Master Kunpeng, am not that kind of person?"

This time, Kunpeng's tone had clearly softened,

No longer as forceful as before.

His eyes were even reddened as he stared intently at that mass of Golden Cloud of Merit.

Seeing this, Lu Changsheng took out another dazzling Golden Cloud of Merit—nine hundred thousand merit—without the slightest hesitation.

Lu Changsheng spoke with a smile:

"Do you think that's too little? Then I'll give you one million merit every thousand years."

When that million merit appeared,

Kunpeng instantly cast his reason and dignity to the back of his mind.

He immediately prostrated himself on the ground and returned to his shrunken Kunpeng form,

Then said ingratiatingly:

"Great Master, where are we going next?"

Seeing how quickly Kunpeng had changed his attitude, Lu Changsheng couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement.

Still, Kunpeng could hardly be blamed for disregarding his dignity.

The truth was, Lu Changsheng had simply offered too much.

One million merit every thousand years—

Nuwa had only gained a few tens of millions of merit from creating humanity,

Yet Kunpeng only had to serve as a mount for tens of thousands of years to receive an equal amount.

What did tens of thousands of years amount to in the primordial world?

It would take longer than that just to doze off.

Thinking of this, Kunpeng's face filled with an ingratiating smile as he turned his head toward Lu Changsheng:

"Great Master, isn't one thousand years a little too short,

Not enough to show the benefits of having me, Kunpeng, by your side.

Why don't you hire me directly for fifty thousand years? What do you say?"

Looking at Kunpeng's obsequious appearance, Lu Changsheng nodded in satisfaction: