Merit Gift Pack, Hello

Just as Lin Xuan was thrilled beyond measure, a commotion erupted in the woods.

A herd of brilliantly colored deer burst out from deep within the forest, panic written all over their faces.

They fled frantically downstream along the creek.

Something terrifying seemed to be chasing them from behind.

The answer soon revealed itself.

More than a dozen massive, vicious-eyed hyena-like monsters were pursuing them wildly.

Their fur was a filthy grayish-brown, drool hanging from their jaws, and every pounce carried a foul gust of wind.

One slower-colored deer was tackled.

In an instant, it was swallowed up by three or four monsters.

Its piercing cry rang out only once before it was drowned out by the horrifying sounds of bones cracking and flesh being torn apart.

A slaughter.

Unfolding right before Lin Xuan's eyes.

Lin Xuan's gaze changed instantly.

Not with sympathy, much less fear.

It was the fervor of a beggar who had starved for three days and nights suddenly laying eyes on a lavish feast.

Monsters?

Prey?

No.

This was a huge wave of moving merit points.

And they had fucking delivered themselves right to his door.

"You vile beasts, stop at once!"

Lin Xuan shouted thunderously, righteousness radiating from him.

Anyone unaware of the truth would have thought he was truly ridding the people of evil.

Without hesitation, he twisted at the waist and scooped up several stones from the ground.

The exertion of every muscle and the movement of every bone were crystal clear to him.

He could even instinctively identify which part to strike for the greatest damage.

Whoosh.

The first stone flew from his hand.

It did not hit the monster's body. Instead, it shot precisely into its open mouth.

The monster had been about to bite through a colored deer's neck and had never expected an attack from the side.

The stone plunged straight down its throat.

"Urgh—"

The monster let out a strange cry, its body suddenly stiffening before it crashed to the ground.

Its limbs twitched a few times, then it went still.

On the panel in Lin Xuan's mind, the number that had just returned to zero suddenly jumped.

text
Merit Points: 0.5

"So it really works."

Lin Xuan was delighted, but his hands did not stop moving.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Stone after stone tore through the air.

Each one flew precisely toward a monster in the midst of killing.

Some pierced straight through an eyeball, bursting out the back of the skull with brain matter clinging to them.

Some shattered fragile neck bones, twisting their heads at grotesque angles.

Others struck their hearts, causing their charging bodies to stagger and collapse, never to rise again.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Dull impacts rang out one after another through the forest.

Each one marked the end of a life.

And the addition of another sum of merit.

The merit points in Lin Xuan's mind began jumping wildly again.

0.5!

1.1!

2.0!

3.8!

Those once-ferocious monsters were now as fragile as paper mâché before him.

Before they could even see where the attacks were coming from, they fell one after another amid chaos and wails.

When the last monster had its brow pierced by a stone and collapsed unwillingly into a pool of blood, the merit value in Lin Xuan's mind settled at [5.8].

"Whew."

Lin Xuan tossed away the last stone in his hand and panted heavily.

His arms were so sore and numb he could barely lift them, and his forehead was drenched in sweat.

Throwing more than a dozen stones in succession, putting his full strength into every throw, had drained an enormous amount of stamina.

Yet his eyes shone with a frightening brightness.

In just a few minutes, he had gained 5.8 points of merit.

What a satisfying rate of profit.

Without hesitation, he sank his consciousness into the panel.

"Upgrade!"

His merit value instantly dropped to zero.

Buzz.

Another wave of insight surged into his mind.

Lin Xuan sat down cross-legged.

This time, he neither deliberately calmed his mind nor visualized anything.

The jumble of thoughts in his head vanished on their own without a trace.

Within minutes, he entered a state of deep meditation he had been unable to reach for a very long time.

His soul had never been so clear and tranquil.

He could sense his own body.

He could hear blood rushing through his veins.

He could hear the powerful beat of his heart.

He could even sense the wind around him, as well as the rescued multicolored deer cautiously licking their wounds in the distance.

The surroundings had never felt so vivid to him.

He checked his current mental strength. It had risen from the equivalent of two ordinary people to that of two and a half ordinary people.

Then Lin Xuan began planning his next steps.

"First, farm merit and cultivate the Dust-Cleansing Realm as quickly as possible, so I'll have enough strength to protect myself."

"Second, find someone and confirm where I am, as well as the current time."