Legion

I never imagined the company was this terrifying. But then again, huh? Don't let his arrogance and strategic maneuvering fool you; over there he's just a garbage collector... Oh, right, speaking of which...

"So, Sergeant, you're also a demon from outer realms?"

The sergeant laughed, "Heavenly Demon... no, we are actually... well, that's about right. If the Demon God wants to see other worlds, once I return to headquarters and escape this calamity, I can help you apply for enlistment."

Our legion can recruit natives locally, but mercenaries don't have ranks. Even when they go on missions in outer realms, they need an officer to accompany them. Once I grant you the privileges of a private first class, you can freely use our legion's system and let your primordial spirit travel to other universes to cultivate."

Oh, you're trying to make empty promises. Damn it, I, a Four Fiends Great Demon God, am just a private in the army, can you believe it...?

So Li Fan also laughed honestly.

"Okay, okay, don't worry, I'll definitely keep your things safe. I also want to go and see the Beyond Heavens!"

The sergeant was genuinely delighted that his casual boasting had recruited a naive country bumpkin as a top-notch henchman.

"Don't worry, Qiongqi Demon God, joining my legion will bring you great benefits! Hahaha!"

The two then burst into laughter, forging a comrade-in-arms friendship.

Having received Li Fan's promise, the sergeant rushed off to make arrangements for his affairs, quickly transporting all sorts of junk he had amassed over the years to the Qingyang Sect for burial, preparing to escape before the company's leaders arrived. Of course, the pot was included as well, since something of that caliber wasn't so easy to sell. The sergeant also planned to return to headquarters to contact potential buyers.

So Li Fan temporarily abandoned his plan to swallow him whole and settled down at Great Guangming Temple for the time being. He spent his days shopping with Zhang Yanzhi, observing the organization and dynamics of the cult.

While the resurgence of the Divine Cult is inseparable from the strong support of the Legion, it must be said that the Divine Cult itself also possesses a vibrant and upward-striving energy.

To some extent, the entire cult is organized like an army, with all production and daily life geared towards war. Followers are either engaged in production or cultivating themselves in preparation for war, and have already made a total mobilization for all-out war.

It seems that this merit system is indeed suitable for a war-torn era. Rewards are based on the amount of work done, which easily motivates everyone. It prevents situations like those in the Immortal Palace and the Mystic Sect, where everyone is doomed from the start or simply collapses due to overwhelming odds.

Since I'm not fighting for my own property, going to the battlefield is just being cannon fodder and taking the blame. Whether I win or lose, it's all someone else's problem, so why bother risking my life?

On the contrary, the members of the cult are full of fighting spirit, not only attracted by the merits, but also fearless of death. Nonsense, what's there to be afraid of if they can be reincarnated and die?

More importantly, Li Fan discovered that the reason why the Divine Cult's system could be implemented was because those responsible for calculating merits and distributing rewards were not real people, but rather machines within the legion!

Yes, the Dharma King and the Altar Master are only responsible for issuing tasks. The Enforcement Venerable and Dharma Protectors are just henchmen. They don't interfere with the 'rewarding merits' process at all. All rewards and punishments are decided by the 'Divine Lord' through altar rituals, but in reality, there is a computer or similar device hidden in the shrine that records and calculates the KPIs of all registered followers, and then makes a list for the followers to choose what to exchange for from the Legion's reward pool.

Okay, it's similar to a game store, but it's definitely quite fair.

Moreover, the cult's 'prize pool' does indeed contain enough resources to be distributed among all its members.

Just like the sergeant showed him before, although the fighting in the Central Plains to the east was back and forth, in reality, countless civilizations of otherworldly beings in the vast area west of the Kunlun Mountain and Tianshan Mountains had been utterly destroyed by the cult, and billions of lives had become Blood Slave and blood puppets, mining and producing massive amounts of resources for the cult. It might seem like the cult was the weakest, but actually, their main force was all in the west developing branch mines and hadn't been brought back yet...

If it weren't for the fact that the alien Human Race in the west couldn't cultivate the Divine Cult's Cultivation Method, and ultimately they still had to recruit people from the Central Plains, the Divine Cult would probably have already crushed them.

Under Zhang Yanzhi's guidance, Li Fan checked the Blood Scroll Merit he had obtained from completing the Qiongqi quest.

Presumably to make it easier for cultivators in the Central Plains to understand, the Blood Registers of the Divine Sect are also divided into nine grades, from one to nine. Nine ninth-grade merits are converted into one eighth-grade merit, and so on.

Different levels of difficulty missions award different amounts of merit, and different mission results will also result in increases or decreases in evaluation. Moreover, as long as you participate in a mission, whether you assist from the sidelines or the mission fails, you can record an assist, which will also be evaluated as merit.

Moreover, merits are purely personal; they are not inherited from your father's first-class merit, nor can they be earned by someone who is a chosen one and can start accumulating merits directly from the first-class merit.

In theory, all followers must start with the ninth rank and complete the tasks. Completing them earns a ninth-rank merit. If someone performs exceptionally well and receives a superior rating, they can earn an eighth-rank merit and unlock the eighth-rank tasks. Otherwise, they must complete nine tasks to earn an eighth-rank merit and unlock the subsequent tasks.

However, in practice, level nine missions are usually initiation missions for disciples in the Foundation Establishment stage, which involve collecting materials, gathering intelligence, and at most fighting against martial arts figures and constables.

Level 8 missions are generally for Foundation Establishment cultivators, while Level 7 missions are generally manageable for Golden Core Stage cultivators. These missions involve killing demons to obtain their cores, assassinating officials, and so on. They are usually issued by the local altar masters, and the difficulty depends mainly on the missions of each branch altar. However, for a branch altar like the Lu Family's, Level 7 missions usually involve the descent of demon gods, a near-death experience.

As for the Nascent Soul Realm Divine Transformation stages. The main enemies will be the guardians of various vassal states, independent cultivators, and there is even a possibility of direct confrontation with the Xuanmen (mystical sects). Generally, the Saintess will coordinate and contact the leaders of multiple branch altars and the forces of local protectors to work together to accomplish this task.

Therefore, cultivators at the Nascent Soul Nascent Soul Stage Divine Transformation realms who join the Divine Cult don't need to be sent to kill demons for their gallbladders; they can all start participating directly from this level. As for assisting in assisting, they can earn level six merits, and outstanding performance can earn them a fourth-class rating.

As for the tasks and evaluations at levels one, two, and three, they are all major events concerning the world, and are definitely personally led and participated in by the Ten Ultimate Venerables. They will inevitably clash directly with the top experts among the Nine Great Xuan Sects.

When redeeming rewards, merit points are required. Generally, level nine merit points can be exchanged for a string of 100- Blood Coin. Since all rewards are redeemed with merit points and manufactured using secret methods, purchasing power remains quite stable, and the general public's spending will not be affected by economic fluctuations like those experienced by the Immortal Palace.

Furthermore, top-tier merit points are usually not used to exchange for Blood Coin, but rather directly for Cultivation Method and magic treasures. First-class merit points are exchanged for first-class rewards. Items like the Blood Record Heavenly Book and the Xuan Girl Heavenly Book can only be exchanged for top-tier merit points.

However, there aren't that many high-level quests available, so some unlucky guys have to repeatedly complete nine second-class, eighty-one third-class, and two hundred and seventy-nine fourth-class quests just to get one...

Sigh, no wonder they wanted Xuantian to be their Sect Leader. He's so diligent that he's moved countless followers; his hard work and achievements are truly remarkable...

Qiongqi has unknowingly completed a large number of tasks, mainly because the Saintess Zhang Yanzhi has been recording his merits and giving him top-notch evaluations. For example, he received top-notch evaluations for his work in seizing and escorting the meteorite iron, attacking Feisha Palace, pacifying the Shazhou forces, killing Feisha Palace Master Qu Feihuang, and killing Feisha Palace's Divine Transformation Ancestor, earning him five fourth-class merits.

The sergeant also pulled off a series of bizarre moves, including taking into account his past struggle with the company for the pot, his delivery of the pot to the main altar, his merits for joining the Divine Transformation Cult as a Divine Lord, and even his protection and escort of the Northern Saintess, thus accumulating four more fourth-class merits.

Finally, nine fourth-class merits were converted into one third-class merit, which was just enough to make up the difference. In this way, Li Fan could be rightfully appointed as the leader of the Qingyang Altar based on this third-class merit. Of course, the main reason was that the Qingyang Sect's territory had only recently been conquered, and he was a lone commander with no one to compete with Li Fan.

Although he had used up this third-class merit, he had previously injured some old demon from Shazhou, Huang Yuanhua. Huang Yuanhua had apparently ruined many things for the Divine Cult, and his head was worth a fourth-class merit with a bounty. Although Li Fan had only seriously injured the other party and hadn't killed him, participation was still important, so he still received a sixth-class merit for assisting. So Li Fan tried using his sixth-class Blood Register merit to exchange for some logs and maps introducing the local customs and culture of various places within the Divine Cult, spiritual vein dojos, secret realm mines, and he even got a set of Divine Protectorate Army Armor.

This is the standard armor of the Divine Protectorate Army. Painted blood red in the style of the Divine Cult, its design is clearly different from the armor of the Central Plains. It is a one-piece stamped plate armor. It is unknown whether this is due to the legion's technology or whether the alien races in the west have already developed a mature process.

The overall quality is acceptable. The armor is lined with layers of talismanic robes to resist curses and escape spells. It's like a mass-produced tin can. Even in Li Fan's hands, it's not so fragile that it's easily broken. You still need to use a little force to tear it open.

This complete set of armor can be exchanged for a seventh-class merit. For Foundation Establishment cultivator, completing nine eighth-class missions to obtain such armor is quite remarkable. Moreover, the Divine Cult Army all cultivate the Body Domination Technique, so after taking some medicine, they can easily travel a hundred miles a day without any problem.

Of course, in terms of defensive capabilities alone, the lamellar armor of the Central Plains Immortal Palace is not bad, and in some aspects it is even more advantageous, because the superior immortal soldier lamellar armor has runes and incantations engraved on each plate, specifically used to defend against cultivators' spells. However, it is easy to imagine that compared to other people's iron cans, the preparation of lamellar armor is expensive and complicated, and they are all family heirlooms of those immortal soldiers who have guarded the palace for generations.

Even with the wealth of the Li Country, and with the Heavenly Craft Peak of Ink Bamboo Mountain operating at full capacity, they could only guarantee one set for each general, colonel, and officer. Generally, only elite soldiers and detachments could wear a full suit of armor. Moreover, it was impossible to add a talisman and incantation to every single armor plate.

During the great war in Kun Country, the Divine Cult's elite troops, all clad in armor, routed the Immortal Palace army. At the time, Yuntai Peak deduced that the Divine Cult had mobilized its entire force; now it seems they weren't elite troops at all, just ordinary soldiers...

Honestly, if the cult and the legion join forces, even with some low-tech gadgets, the indigenous immortals in the remote mountains won't be able to fight them.

"I've heard that the experts from the Central Plains destroyed the Divine Cult several times. Back then, you probably hadn't yet cooperated with the Heavenly Demons of the Legion, right? Or were you forced to let them annex you because you were beaten so badly?"

Zhang Yanzhi was gnawing on a bunch of lamb skewers. "Oh, it wasn't them who came looking for us, it was us who went looking for them."

Kindness?

Seeing Li Fan glance at him sideways, Zhang Yanzhi quickly gave half of the lamb skewer to the devil, and then explained,

"Back then, our religion was shattered. Some of our esteemed leaders were killed, some were suppressed, and even the True Saintess was killed. The altars in the Central Plains were massacred, and the vassal states in the West also rebelled and declared independence, burning down branch altars in various places, massacring our followers, and plundering the religion's assets. In fact, it was on the verge of collapse and disintegration."

Therefore, the remaining followers tried to use the primordial mystical methods left by the God to call upon the Beyond Heavens and beg for help from the God."

Li Fan was shocked. "Hiss—I knew it! So the God Lord really did respond to you?"

"Yes, following the instructions, we excavated those extraterrestrial artifacts, and then the Outer Heaven Demon of the legion descended. Although they are not good at combat, they are really professional when it comes to production and logistics. I heard that in the past, managing merits and distributing rewards and punishments was handled by the Saintess. Thanks to them, I don't even need to do arithmetic anymore."

You lazy bum...

"So the God Lord has joined the legion too..."

That's true, they've made such a mess of the company, they definitely need to get revenge.

Zhang Yanzhi looked around, beckoned Li Fan to come closer, and whispered something in his ear.

"However, I heard from the previous generation's Saintess of the Zhang Family that the echo at that time was not from the God Lord, but from the Profound Maiden."

What...

"Hmm, it's hard to believe, isn't it? But it's true! We were quite shocked at the time, but we later found out that Profound Maiden Nu was originally from their legion, and a leader of a very high rank. When she heard that we were followers of the God Lord and were rebelling against the Immortal Palace, she arranged for people from her legion to come and assist us."

"That sergeant's putting on quite a show, isn't he? But don't be fooled, Demon God. That sergeant is just a second-level commander in the legion. Their legion is a very small one, and they don't even command as many people as one of our Ten Hearts disciples."

I was mowing the lawn when I discovered that the Profound Maiden was actually the legion's big boss...

"What rank does that Profound Maiden hold in the legion? General? Legion Commander?"

"I think they're called something like 'Second-Level Fleet Commander,' 'Eleventh-Level Commander,' or something like that. I don't know exactly how their legions are ranked, but an eleventh-level commander is definitely much higher than a second-level sergeant."

Holy crap... a squadron commander... doesn't that mean he has a fleet under his command? Since it's a fleet, there must be more than one cruiser, right? Wow... amazing! Amazing!

"But... why is the Profound Maiden helping the Divine Cult? Aren't her disciples and followers the ones hunting you down...?"

Li Fan was momentarily confused.

Zhang Yanzhi shrugged and went to exchange his merit points for lamb skewers.

"I don't know. Perhaps only the God Lord truly understood the Nine Xuan Girl Heavenly Book and was a true disciple of the Profound Maiden. Maybe they had a relationship after their ascension, or perhaps the Profound Maiden also felt that the current Demonic Sect had deviated from the righteous path."

Damn, no wonder the Xuanmen sect has no future in this world! Your ancestor even gave a thumbs up to the Divine Cult!