The Truth About Merit: Pills Should Be Put to Their Greatest Use!

Xiao Yao's consciousness settled on the "Merit" entry.

There was a tiny plus sign beside it, and Xiao Yao tapped it to open the notes.

[Ways to Obtain Merit: First, follow the natural order, enlighten humanity, and promote the Dao sects to gain Human Dao Merit.

Second, mend the flaws of heaven, save the world from calamity, and do things beneficial to the world to earn the favor of the Heavenly Dao and receive Heavenly Dao Merit.]

"So that's how it is..." A flash of unprecedented understanding passed through Xiao Yao's eyes.

In an instant, he connected everything. Why did pills above the seventh grade attract Pill Lightning? Was it truly because "heaven envied genius"?

No! The world was preventing high-grade pills from appearing!

"Grandpa Lu, is the Heaven and Earth Energy in this world extremely thin, perhaps even... constantly draining away?" Xiao Yao asked inwardly.

"Huh? How did you figure that out?" Grandpa Lu said in surprise. "That's right. This world's laws are incomplete, its energy level is low, and it has no source of replenishment. It's like a pond that keeps leaking water. The birth of anything too powerful, anything beyond what it can bear, accelerates its energy consumption. Pill Lightning is both a trial and an erasure, a self-preserving instinct of this world's Heavenly Dao will."

The answer was already obvious!

At this moment, Xiao Yao's thoughts had never been clearer! His gaze seemed to pierce through the endless ages of the Dou Qi Continent and glimpse the deepest secret of this world.

"I understand... The best way to gain the greatest Heavenly Dao Merit isn't to follow the rules keeping this world barely alive, but to... cure this world's 'illness'!"

"Because spiritual energy has dried up, the world's origin has been 'tightening its belt.' Pills above the seventh grade are already plundering this heaven and earth. In the original story, when Xiao Yan refined a Ninth-grade Profound Pill, he forcibly drained all the spiritual energy within ten thousand miles of the Yao Clan just to barely succeed. Ninth-grade Golden Pills have vanished entirely, leaving only a golden Lightning Dragon within the Ancient Void Dragon Thunder Pool. That is why Pill Lightning descends from the heavens—it is heaven's will acting to minimize the loss!"

"At its root, this world's 'illness' lies in the fact that the Dou Qi Continent is a lower plane of the Great Thousand World. Its ancient glory has long passed, spiritual energy has run dry, and the last Dou God, Tou She Ancient God, ascended ten thousand years ago. The passage connecting it to the Great Thousand World closed, spiritual energy vanished, and heaven and earth withered. The best way to obtain merit from the Heavenly Dao, then, is to break through to the Dou God realm, ascend to the Great Thousand World, and guide higher-level spiritual energy back to revive and nourish this world's origin!"

The final ending of Battle Through the Heavens surfaced in his mind. Why had the Dou God bloodline withered? Because Origin Qi had been cut off! And what was Origin Qi? It was merely a degraded version of the spiritual energy of the Great Thousand World!

And ten thousand years ago, who had been the last powerhouse to shatter heaven and earth's prison and advance to the Dou God realm?

Tou She Ancient God! An emperor of flames who had formed from the number one Heavenly Flame on the Heavenly Flame Ranking after cultivating for ten thousand years and gaining sentience!

"Heavenly Flames... Tou She Ancient God..." A scorching light called ambition erupted in Xiao Yao's eyes. "The previous savior was transformed from a Heavenly Flame! Then the quickest shortcut to recreating that miracle is to... gather all the Heavenly Flames!"

He was almost certain that these wondrous flames born between heaven and earth inherently possessed a trace of the power to "mend heaven." They were part of this world's laws. That was why Tou She Ancient God had devoured Heavenly Flames to become number one on the ranking, ultimately becoming a Dou God and ascending to the Great Thousand World. He had left behind the Emperor Grade Nascent Pill, containing origin emperor qi and coveted by all at the Dou Saint Peak. It naturally contained a trace of "Heavenly Dao Merit," and absorbing naturally born Heavenly Flames would only continuously expand that achievement!

Every Heavenly Flame he collected would not only increase his strength, but also accumulate merit and lay another brick toward the grand undertaking of "mending heaven" and absorbing Origin Qi!

"So that's how it is... So that's how it is!" Xiao Yao laughed wildly in his heart. "The path to becoming stronger and the path to gaining merit are actually one and the same! And this path was supposed to have been prepared for Xiao Yan, that Child of Destiny!"

"I'm sorry, cousin." A defiant curve slowly rose at the corner of Xiao Yao's mouth. "From this day onward, I will walk your path! I will take every one of your opportunities! Your glory will become the stepping stone for my ascent to immortality!"

"You aren't the one who was wrong. The world simply chose me. The world needs me!"

"But I still need to solve the problem of Heavenly Flame fusion being too violent. After all, I don't cultivate the Heavenly Flame Evolution Technique."

Just then, as though sensing Xiao Yao's lofty declaration and his intense desire to fuse Heavenly Flames, Grandpa Lu's voice rang out again, carrying a trace of disdain.

"Hmph, look at that pathetic ambition of yours. You're only fusing a few low-realm mortal flames, and you're already worrying this much?"

"Mortal flames?" Xiao Yao froze.

"What else would they be?" Grandpa Lu said proudly. "Boy, have you forgotten what supreme flame you possess within your body? That is Samadhi True Fire! The supreme divine flame formed by the unity of essence, qi, and spirit, born from within and born from the Dao! Before it, these so-called Heavenly Flames are nothing more than unruly children tainted with a little of this world's law power!"

"You need not worry about backlash when fusing them! Samadhi True Fire is the emperor of flames. When these Heavenly Flames see it, they can only bow and submit! Not only will there be no danger, they can even stimulate the slumbering Samadhi True Fire spirit within you, allowing it to acknowledge you sooner and merge with your soul!"

Grandpa Lu abruptly changed his tone, and his voice grew more solemn.

"Moreover, the benefits to you will be immense! If you wish to advance into Refining Void into Dao, attain True Immortal status, and ascend in the future, you must pass the Three Disasters and Nine Calamities! One of those calamities is Yin Fire. This fire burns upward from beneath your Yongquan acupoint and penetrates straight to the Niwan Palace. Your five viscera turn to ash, your limbs decay, and a thousand years of cultivation become an illusion! The Heavenly Flames you subdue now may be external flames, but they can let you adapt in advance to the pain of being tempered by countless fires and strengthen your resistance to the laws of flame. When the Calamity of Yin Fire descends, you will have a greater chance of passing through it safely!"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yao suddenly understood, and his final trace of concern vanished completely!

"Thank you for your guidance, Grandpa Lu!"

At this moment, an incomparably grand and incomparably clear goal was firmly established in Xiao Yao's heart!

He suppressed the turmoil in his heart and returned his attention to reality. Taking out the jade bottle from his storage ring, he looked at the perfect seventh-grade low-tier pill within, which contained boundless life essence and a trace of Thunder Law.

"This Human-Supplementing Immortal Pill would benefit me, but it is only a finished seventh-grade pill and not something I truly need. After tempering my body with Lightning Law, my foundation is already flawless."

A graceful figure slowly emerged in his mind. She was a girl who always followed behind Xiao Yan, gentle and elegant, yet possessed an ancient bloodline.

"Xiao Xun'er..."

A meaningful smile slowly curled across Xiao Yao's lips.

"The young lady of the Ancient Clan with a Divine Bloodline suffered from illness since childhood, and Xiao Yan just happened to slip into her chamber to use Dou Qi to nourish her, taking advantage of her and winning her heart. Come to think of it, that brat Xiao Yan seems to have crossed over with an adult soul too. Tsk, tsk, tsk."

"Now that I think about it, it was nothing more than the difficult awakening of an Ancient Emperor Clan Divine Bloodline! She has only just advanced to Dou Zhe. This seventh-grade immortal pill, containing the true meaning of 'completion' and gentle enough for someone of her strength to consume, is probably more precious to her than anything else, isn't it?"

"Rather than taking it myself for a minor boost, I might as well... use it to make an investment. The Ancient Clan's young lady is incredibly wealthy. I wonder what price you and the Ancient Clan can offer for this pill? My grand plan to mend heaven and save the world shall place its first chess piece and make its first investment with you!"

Having made up his mind, Xiao Yao lingered no longer. After determining the direction of the Xiao Family, his figure flashed and transformed into a streak of light, speeding toward Wutan City.