Merit for the Human Xia Clan

Lord Si An continued, "Si Lianghong is a Title-level mage who has already lived for over five hundred years! Normally, a mortal's lifespan does not exceed two hundred years, but Grand Mage Si Lianghong successfully transformed herself into a Blood Demon, which is why her lifespan is so long. This old hag, who has lived for over five centuries... her strength is unfathomable. The Blood Demon Tower where she cultivates is filled with countless dangers; even Transcendence beings are unwilling to intrude."

"The Si Family is also the number one clan in the entire Qinghe Prefecture! The Prefect of Qinghe, the generals of the prefecture's city guards, and the lords of the many counties like Yi Water City and Feng City—nearly eighty or ninety percent of them are held by members of the Si Family! Many important positions everywhere are also occupied by the Si Family."

"In other words, in Qinghe Prefecture, the Si Family covers the sky with one hand." Si An said this very calmly.

Dongbo Xueying was astonished: "The Prefect, the generals, the many city lords... so many important positions are held by the Si Family?"

"The entire empire is like this to begin with."

"This is not a world of mortals; it is a world of Transcendence!" Si An said, "Although the old hag Si Lianghong is not a Transcendence, she is nearly one, and she has excellent relationships with several great clans that possess Transcendence beings, which is how she obtained the administrative power of Qinghe Prefecture. All power is in the hands of the Si Family, so... if the Si Family says you are guilty, you are guilty even if you are innocent! If the Si Family says you are innocent, you are innocent even if you are guilty!"

Dongbo Xueying was somewhat shocked: "This, this..."

"Have you forgotten? Even though your parents were nobles, weren't they dragged away just because of a single decree?" Lord Si An said.

Dongbo Xueying's expression sank slightly.

"Transcendence beings can issue decrees! Within a certain range, they can transcend the law!" Lord Si An said.

"Does the Moyang Clan have a Transcendence being?" Dongbo Xueying asked immediately.

Saving his parents was something he had always pursued.

"There is one Transcendence being, but it is a pseudo-Transcendence," Lord Si An said. "This kind of pseudo-Transcendence has the lowest strength among Transcendence beings. I fear that the old hag Si Lianghong and that madman Xiang Pangyun are both comparable in strength to that Moyang Clan Transcendence."

"A pseudo-Transcendence?" Dongbo Xueying was somewhat puzzled.

"The Moyang Clan has a very long heritage. The one who founded the clan was an incredibly powerful Transcendence, but after that Transcendence died, the Moyang Clan declined... Fortunately, their foundation was deep enough. Decades ago, a Title Knight of their clan used some clever means to force his way into the Transcendence realm, but that is the lowest level of Transcendence. Some top-tier Title-level experts might even be able to defeat them!"

Dongbo Xueying immediately remembered.

The 'Woodcutter Knight' who awakened the Primordial Bloodline that he had once read about in books.

That Woodcutter Knight, while still at the Title-level, had once killed a Transcendence being with a single swing of his axe! It was entirely possible for a Title-level expert to defeat a Transcendence.

After the Woodcutter Knight became a Transcendence, he was invincible among them and was honored as the 'Strongest Transcendence' of that era.

"Transcendence matters are too far away," Lord Si An laughed. "What I want to tell you is, never offend Title-level powerhouses; every single one of them possesses terrifying strength! And Si Lianghong and Xiang Pangyun are the two most terrifying people in Qinghe Prefecture. They are the two heavens of Qinghe Prefecture."

"The Si Family is deeply rooted."

"As for Xiang Pangyun, he is an extremely terrifying and horrific madman," Lord Si An said.

"A madman?" Dongbo Xueying asked, puzzled.

"Yes," Lord Si An said. "On the Blood Blade Ranking, a list of assassins, very few reveal their real names, but Xiang Pangyun is one who does. He is extremely fond of slaughter, and because he always accepts missions from the Blood Blade Tavern, he commits no crime when he kills."

"Missions from the Blood Blade Tavern, no crime for killing?" Dongbo Xueying was confused.

"You could also go to the Blood Blade Tavern to post a mission, but the bounty... is set by the Blood Blade Tavern! The Blood Blade Tavern takes eighty percent, and twenty percent goes to the assassin," Lord Si An said. "The bounty set by the Blood Blade Tavern is determined based on the target's noble rank, strength, background, and many other aspects. The price is always very high."

Lord Si An lowered his voice: "Let me put it this way: the Blood Blade Tavern has existed in the history of this plane for who knows how many tens of thousands of years. It and the Earth Temple are the two oldest forces."

Dongbo Xueying nodded.

This world had gods.

And the 'Earth Temple' was a temple that appeared almost shortly after this world plane was born; its history was almost equivalent to the history of this plane. It was also the only temple currently recognized by the empire! All others were considered evil gods or demon gods.

The 'Blood Blade Tavern', which only served assassins, was equally ancient and long-standing.

Lord Si An said: "Xiang Pangyun is a terrifying madman, but you rarely encounter him. Unless someone puts a bounty on your life at the Blood Blade Tavern! But the Si Family is different... The Si Family has infiltrated almost every aspect of Qinghe Prefecture, so it is very easy to run into people from the Si Family. When you meet people from the Si Family, you must endure it. After all, they can find any excuse to arrest you!"

"Unless you possess Title-level strength and obtain a Bronze Token!" Lord Si An laughed. "Then the power you possess will be much greater, and the Si Family will have no right to deal with you casually. If you become a Transcendence, the Si Family will have to tremble before you... provided you are a normal Transcendence, not a pseudo-Transcendence."

"The power of a Bronze Token?" Dongbo Xueying was curious.

"Correct."

"This is what I am about to tell you. The Black Iron Token not only represents your identity, but it also represents some special powers." As Lord Si An spoke, he flipped his hand, and a thick book and a dossier appeared in his palm.

Lord Si An handed the dossier to Dongbo Xueying: "The reason our Xia Clan can stand tall in this world is because countless powerhouses have followed one after another. Therefore, a long, long time ago, a remarkable Grand Alchemy Mage of our Xia Clan set down the rules! He divided many tasks that required blood and sweat into different levels for powerhouses to execute."

"Those who succeed can receive merit points."

"Merit points can be used to exchange for almost anything you want."

Lord Si An handed the other thick book to Dongbo Xueying. "This is the Exchange Codex. It ranges from gold coins and worldly goods to many miraculous items... even if you want to kill a Transcendence, or even become the Emperor of the entire empire! As long as you have made enough contributions to the entire Xia Clan and have enough merit points, you can even become the Emperor."

Dongbo Xueying was stunned.

The rules set by that Grand Alchemy Mage of the human Xia Clan were too domineering! If you have enough merit points, can you achieve anything?

"What about saving my parents?" Dongbo Xueying couldn't help but ask.

"If you have enough merit points, wiping out the Moyang Clan is just a matter of a single word, let alone saving your parents," Lord Si An shook his head and laughed. "Of course, everything requires merit points! It all depends on how much you have contributed to humanity and to the race! These are all Black Iron-level missions, and the merit points rewarded are very few. Relying on these merit points to wipe out the Moyang Clan? You wouldn't have a hope even after ten thousand years of hard work."

Dongbo Xueying looked at the dossier.

There were tasks listed one after another.

For example, killing a certain bandit rewarded ten merit points!

For example, entering the Destruction Mountain Range to find a special necklace left behind rewarded fifty merit points.

Lord Si An looked at Dongbo Xueying and said: "This Black Iron mission list and the Exchange Codex are the most important things... You can take a careful look. As long as the merit points you earn exceed one thousand, you will automatically be exempt from most laws. Only some of the empire's ironclad laws cannot be violated. After all, even Transcendence beings, who can transcend most laws, cannot violate certain ironclad laws."

"One thousand points?" Dongbo Xueying was speechless.

Killing someone of Gai Bin's level usually only yielded ten contribution points.

Venturing into the Destruction Mountain Range to search for lost treasures was dangerous, time-consuming, and success was far from guaranteed, yet it only offered fifty contribution points.

How difficult would it be to scrape together one thousand?

"Rewards for Black Iron-level missions generally range between ten and one hundred contribution points," Lord Si An said with a smile. "Bronze-level missions start at a minimum of one thousand contribution points."

"I would like to ask, how can I rescue my parents?" Dongbo Xueying asked.

"There are many methods within the Exchange Codex," Lord Si An replied. "However, we must find the method that requires the fewest contribution points. I will immediately use our Dragon Mountain Tower intelligence network to investigate your parents' current situation. Based on where they are being held... we will find a way to rescue them."

Dongbo Xueying could not hide his excitement. "Alright, thank you for the trouble, Lord Si An. Please, investigate quickly. Find out exactly how my father and mother are doing right now."

"Leave it to me. Since the Moyang Clan is in the East Region Province, it will take a bit more time. I estimate it will take about a month to clarify your parents' current situation. By then, I will help you find the relatively easiest way to rescue them," Lord Si An said.

"Thank you for the trouble." Dongbo Xueying's heart was racing.

Father, Mother, are you both doing well?

"Very well, I shall take my leave then." Lord Si An stood up. "Every month, our people at Dragon Mountain Tower will deliver an Imperial Newspaper and a list of missions. You may accept missions at any time to contribute to our entire Xia Clan."