Meng Qi's "Ideal"

Ge Chongshan, who had witnessed this sword strike from the closest distance, shared the same frozen expression as the Hidden Emperor Fortress Lord, his face stiff, but his pupils contracted violently like needle tips. Only, compared to the Hidden Emperor Fortress Lord, he could still mutter in disbelief: "Such a sword technique, such a sword technique..."

Even an immortal dancing with a sword could not surpass this!

This was the cry in his heart, and also the sentiment of the other experts outside the hall. This sword strike was a divine swan beyond the heavens, a divine dragon extending its claws, leaving no trace, only its might felt!

Their minds endlessly replayed the details of this sword, but they could only recall that dazzling, heart-piercing sword light, and the feeling that heaven and earth themselves turned their heads in awe.

For some reason, a thought suddenly flashed through Ge Chongshan's mind: "'Divine Sword Beyond the Heavens,' 'Divine Sword Beyond the Heavens,' with such a sword technique, no wonder the title 'Divine Sword Beyond the Heavens'!"

At this moment, because the Hidden Emperor Fortress Lord had died, the Black Clothed Men transformed into "Poison Beasts" grew even more frenzied, their decay worsening, and the scene instantly spiraled out of control into chaos.

Ge Chongshan was a seasoned expert who had walked the martial world for many years. He quickly snapped back to his senses, gathered his energy, and shouted: "The demon lord has fallen! The poison mist only saps our strength; kill these 'Poison Beasts' before that, and we'll be safe!"

"Brothers, I'll help you!" After stabilizing morale, he dashed forward, his Iron Fan thrusting straight at a Black Clothed Man's back, trying to end the fight before the weakness deepened.

Meanwhile, a grand, solemn yet cold and indifferent voice rang in Meng Qi's ears:

"The Hidden Emperor Fortress Lord is dead. The main mission is complete. Each person is rewarded fifty Merit Points. Return."

Meng Qi's vision went black, feeling as if he couldn't see his hand in front of his face, his ears eerily silent.

Then, a white light surged, and the White Jade Plaza, like an immortal's pavilion, reappeared in Meng Qi's eyes.

"So we really returned directly..." Meng Qi felt a slight joy. Being somewhat familiar with similar Reincarnation Worlds was a bit of an advantage for him; otherwise, with his current low martial arts, he would always feel a bit inferior facing his other companions.

"Mission complete. One free treatment available."

A milky white light fell upon Meng Qi, making him feel warm and comfortable, as if soaking in a hot spring. All the fatigue and soreness from before vanished, his energy restored, and his spirits lifted.

"Oh, the injury healed so fast?" The surprised voice came from Qi Xia, who was also bathed in the milky white light. Her left shoulder, a bloody mess, was visibly wriggling and healing, fully recovered in just four or five breaths.

Jiang Zhiwei, within another white light, stood up and moved her legs, both delighted and shocked: "I'm fully healed too. Even the Great Return Pill of Shaolin Temple probably wouldn't have such an effect."

"Perhaps only a Land Immortal at the Dharma Body level or a corresponding immortal pill could achieve this." Zhang Yuanshan circulated his qi and found that the poison mist he had inhaled earlier had been purged at some unknown time. "It's a pity I've never seen such an immortal figure act, so I have no basis for comparison."

Meng Qi had heard from Xuan Xin that the major sects currently leading the martial world were all schools that had once produced "Dharma Body" level Land Immortals. However, proving the Dharma Body was difficult, and not every era saw such immortal figures in these sects. In fact, most of the time, most sects lacked them—like the current True Martial Sect, Xuantian Sect, Sword Washing Pavilion, and Great River Gang. Thus, a favored disciple like Zhang Yuanshan had never seen a Dharma Body expert in action, while Shaolin, with its Dragon Subduing Arhat, vaguely held the position of leader of Great Jin.

Of course, these ancient, long-established sects, even without a Dharma Body level Land Immortal, were not to be underestimated. They each possessed, to varying degrees, some Sect Protecting Divine Weapons—legacies or lucky finds from predecessors who had proven the Dharma Body. If a peak Outer Scenery grandmaster fought desperately, these divine weapons could unleash power close to the Dharma Body level. For example, Xuantian Sect's "Time Saber," suspected to have been forged by the Heavenly Emperor, was even ranked among the top ten divine weapons on the first page of the mysterious "Lord of Six Paths Samsara"'s evaluations, the most unfathomable of all.

It was precisely because of these divine weapons guarding them that the major sects, even without a Dharma Body expert, were not easily taken advantage of or fallen into decline. However, if these sects rotted from within, going several generations without even a peak Outer Scenery grandmaster, then the divine weapons would be coveted by outsiders. Over the past two to three thousand years, quite a few major sects had similarly perished or degenerated.

—From the conversations of Xuan Xin, Zhang Yuanshan, Jiang Zhiwei, and others, Meng Qi had roughly pieced together the cultivation levels of this world: After "Hundred Days Foundation Establishment" came the "Qi Accumulation and Body Tempering" (Meditative Qi Accumulation) stage. Once the hundred meridians were fully opened and Qi Accumulation was accomplished, one would turn to cultivating the internal organs and acupoints, opening the nine innate orifices—this was the "Orifice Opening" stage.

Next was the "Outer Scenery" realm, which Meng Qi hadn't yet fully understood. Crossing "Outer Scenery" led to the "Dharma Body" realm of Land Immortals, encompassing various Dharma Bodies, Dao Bodies, and Golden Bodies, such as the Arhat Golden Body, Tathagata Golden Body, Bodhi Golden Body, Supreme Dao Body, Taiji Dharma Body, and so on. It was said that the gap between different levels of Dharma Bodies was as vast as the distance between heaven and earth, but to those at lower stages, they all seemed equally possessed of Vast Supernatural Powers and unfathomable.

As for whether there were realms beyond that, Meng Qi did not know.

The milky white light slowly dissipated, and the "Lord of Six Paths Samsara" once again cast down its cold, grand voice: "From now on, for each Reincarnation mission, if the main mission is completed, no matter how severe the injury, as long as you are not dead, you will receive treatment without needing Merit Points. If the main mission is not completed, aside from the corresponding penalties, requesting treatment will require paying the corresponding Merit Points. The heavier the injury, the more Merit Points needed. For specific prices, you can look through the miscellaneous items list."

"That's fair..." Qi Zhengyan muttered quietly, the usually taciturn man showing a hint of excitement.

Meng Qi nodded. Indeed, getting injured while completing a mission should count as a "work injury." If the mission was ultimately completed, it should be "reimbursed."

Thinking this, he suddenly startled: "'Lord of Six Paths Samsara' seems all-powerful. Could these strange thoughts in my mind, not belonging to this world, be detected by him? If my identity as a 'transmigrator' is exposed..."

As he pondered, he sighed. The "Lord of Six Paths Samsara" was immensely powerful; having been brought here without any awareness, it was possible his memories had already been searched and read.

"Ah, maybe the 'Lord of Six Paths Samsara' already knows..." Meng Qi, resigning himself to fate, thought bitterly with a touch of dark humor: "To Ge Chongshan and the others, we're also 'transmigrators.' What's so special about being a 'transmigrator'!"

"'Hidden Emperor Fortress' mission evaluation: aside from Jiang Zhiwei, who received 'Average,' all others received 'Ordinary.' No additional rewards. Jiang Zhiwei also did not meet the lottery criteria, only receiving ten Merit Points." The "Lord of Six Paths Samsara"'s words stunned everyone. So besides Merit Point rewards, there were additional rewards and lottery chances?

The corner of Meng Qi's mouth twitched. Was this a pass-fail evaluation?

Suddenly, a jade booklet appeared before each of them.

"This is a copy of the exchange catalog, which also records your Merit Point totals. After selecting the items you want, go to the central light pillar to exchange. Except for the jade booklet, which must remain, all items can be freely chosen to be stored here or brought back to your original world."

As the Lord of Six Paths Samsara finished speaking, five white jade doors appeared around the statues of Divine Beasts and Immortal Birds, each inscribed with the names of Meng Qi and the others.

"No portable storage item, uh, magic artifact?" Meng Qi asked based on his "experience." What about a portable storage space?

"You need to exchange for it yourself. It's in the miscellaneous items list." As the Lord of Six Paths Samsara spoke, the jade booklet before Meng Qi flipped on its own, stopping directly at a similar item:

"Mustard Ring, oddity, the simplest spatial item. Exchange price: three thousand Merit Points."

Meng Qi glanced at the Merit Point count always displayed in the upper left corner of the jade booklet—"eighty"—and could only respond with a hollow laugh.

"You may now begin attempting exchanges." After saying this, the Lord of Six Paths Samsara fell silent, and the entire White Jade Plaza was quiet.

Meng Qi listened, excitement stirring in his heart. Finally, a chance to exchange for advanced martial arts!

The life in the Servant Courtyard had whetted his appetite for learning martial arts; he was utterly unwilling to spend his whole life as a mediocre Sectarian Monk!

"What should I exchange for?" Meng Qi knew too many divine skills and martial arts, his mind a chaotic mess as he eagerly scanned the martial arts catalog.

"Six Meridian Divine Sword, complete version, exchange price: one thousand three hundred Merit Points."

"Minor Formless Skill, complete version, exchange price: one thousand two hundred Merit Points."

"North Profound Divine Skill, complete version, exchange price: one thousand five hundred Merit Points."

"War God's Manual, complete version, exchange price: two thousand one hundred Merit Points."

Perhaps due to his dazed state, Meng Qi only saw the martial arts he was familiar with.

Stimulated by those numbers one after another, Meng Qi slowly sobered up and smiled bitterly in self-mockery: "How did I jump straight to looking at Outer Scenery level martial arts? I don't have nearly enough Merit Points!"

At the same time, he flipped back and forth, seeing the Great Celestial Absorption Skill listed among Orifice Opening level martial arts, priced at five hundred Merit Points, and spotting many other familiar techniques. He mused to himself: "Most Gold Series Ultimate Arts are in the Orifice Opening tier, with only the Carefree Sect's divine arts and the Six Meridian Divine Sword and a few others classified as Outer Scenery level, and they're the cheapest part of that tier. As for the Huang Series, almost all top-tier extraordinary arts fall into this category. It seems the Outer Scenery realm is marked by communicating with Heaven and Earth..."

The Gold Series Shaolin ultimate arts were marked with the word (Ordinary), while those from this world were not, but they were noted as being upgradable from the "Ordinary" versions.

"What should I exchange for?" Meng Qi muttered this phrase again, influenced by the surge of excitement from just looking at these martial arts. In his mind, an image of his "future" self gradually took shape.

Mm, it had to be white robes as pure as snow, a longsword gleaming like light, riding a fine steed, bathed in moonlight, treading water as if on flat ground, subduing a powerful foe with a single strike—as dashing as could be! As handsome as could be!

Meng Qi was almost drooling from his fantasy, secretly deciding to develop in that direction. Suddenly, a crisp and pleasant voice rang in his ears: "Little Monk, have you decided what to exchange for?"

"No." Meng Qi immediately sat up straight, looking at Jiang Zhiwei with a serious expression. "Miss Jiang, what about you?"

"I haven't either." Jiang Zhiwei shook her head. "What I can exchange for now, I don't really need, and what I want to exchange for is still twenty Merit Points short."

Ah, she came to borrow money from me—no, borrow Merit Points? Meng Qi's heart suddenly churned with intense struggle. Lend or not? If I lend, I'll have sixty Merit Points left, limiting my exchanges. If I don't, Jiang Zhiwei and I have shared hardships, our bond is deep, and she's looked out for me quite a bit—my conscience would really be uneasy. But if I befriend her, the next mission will be a bit more secure. If I offend her, she could easily trip me up in the next mission, and I'd die without a burial place.

Indeed, borrowing money is an eternal great dilemma! Meng Qi sighed softly. He initially decided to "play dead" and see how things went, but then he thought of Jiang Zhiwei's character, martial arts, and sect background since they'd met, and finally blurted out:

"Nine in, thirteen out!"

Pfft, Jiang Zhiwei couldn't help laughing: "You're so young, where did you learn such nonsense?"

Then, beaming with joy, she cupped her hands playfully: "I appreciate your kindness, but how could I bring myself to beg alms from a poor monk like you? I'm here to give you some advice, so you don't pick the wrong martial arts."

"Please, Miss Jiang, enlighten me." Not having to "lend" money, Meng Qi felt greatly relieved and cupped his hands happily.

"Little Monk, you should be like this—you really have no sense of being a monk." Jiang Zhiwei mimicked a hands-together gesture. "Honestly, you need to exchange for a lot just to barely stand on your own. Even if we pooled all our Merit Points, I'm afraid it wouldn't be enough. You have to take it step by step."

"You haven't learned any Leaping Technique. If you encounter enemies later, you won't even be able to dodge. And if there's a need to hurry, climb mountains, or go through forests, you'll definitely fall behind us. If things get urgent, we can't wait for you. So, you must learn a Lightness Skill."

"Second, you need to exchange for an External Hardening Kung Fu, like Iron Cloth Shirt. That way, you can greatly improve your survival ability."

"These two are the top priorities. If you have Merit Points left, exchange for a Basic Blade Art. It's easier to get into than sword arts, helping you improve your combat strength quickly in a short time. After all, none of us know when the next reincarnation mission will start."

Iron Cloth Shirt, blade art... In Meng Qi's mind, an image suddenly emerged of a burly, broad-backed man with a long blade, his skin iron-black. This, this couldn't be his future self, could it? This didn't match his "ideal" at all! The style was all wrong!