Organizing Gains, Merit Skyrockets! (Happy New Year!)

The incident at the Gathering Heroes Pavilion drew the attention of everyone along the west bank of the city.

The long blade that nearly pierced the entire boat was truly terrifying.

It scared many of the wealthy patrons visiting the Gathering Heroes Pavilion.

Naturally, with such an event, news spread like wildfire, and soon the entire west bank of the city was abuzz.

For a time, many gangs and powers within Black Goose City were inquiring about who the person was that had caused the arrogant Canoe Gang such a significant loss.

Was it Quartermaster Ji Changyin from the army stationed outside the city, or Constable Xu Weisai from the yamen?

However, as various factions investigated, they discovered that neither of them was on the west bank of the city.

Furthermore, the remaining Muscle-Refining Realm martial artists in Black Goose City had also denied their involvement.

This newly appeared stranger, a powerful expert, immediately caught the attention of all the forces in Black Goose City.

However, the Canoe Gang remained tight-lipped, and for the time being, no one could ascertain the identity of this emerging Muscle-Refining Realm martial artist.

Meanwhile, Qin Zheng, the instigator of the event, took advantage of the chaos and left the west bank first, returning to his home in the south of the city.

Gulp, gulp~

Qin Zheng downed several mouthfuls of medicine.

He then let out a long sigh.

Although he hadn't exerted too much force tonight, that final strike had genuinely surpassed a thousand catties of power.

As a result, his partially healed internal injuries had worsened slightly.

However, it wasn't a significant issue; a night's rest would be enough to recover from this minor injury.

But

He had taken action tonight.

And he had done so using his true identity!

He believed it wouldn't be long before those with ulterior motives found out.

At that point, his strength would be exposed to everyone.

Fortunately, the First Boss of the Canoe Gang understood the situation and was willing to back down and endure it.

Otherwise, if he hadn't, Qin Zheng would have been forced to kill all the Canoe Gang members present tonight.

In that case, his full strength would have been revealed to the world.

He probably wouldn't be able to live peacefully in Black Goose City anymore and would have to flee to a distant land, living under a false identity.

Until his strength was sufficient to disregard the greed of the entire martial world.

And reaching that level would likely take a considerable amount of time.

Qin Zheng wasn't ready for that kind of life yet.

However, taking action tonight did have one benefit.

That was that the people he killed weren't very strong; they were merely a group of Flesh-Refining Realm martial artists who had only broken through the second major hurdle.

But the deterrence he established was quite significant!

Being able to deter the Canoe Gang and retreat calmly, such a feat, once spread, Not only would it obscure his true strength, preventing his full capabilities from being exposed, But it would also make the various factions in Black Goose City aware of him, thus preventing them from bothering him over trivial matters.

Coupled with the rampant rumors about the bandits outside the city, if his name gained notoriety, even if it couldn't deter the bandits, It would let them know that within Black Goose City, some people could be provoked, while provoking others would come at a great cost.

However, Qin Zheng was a bit unsure if he had truly deterred the Canoe Gang.

He wondered if his final strike, which pierced six floors, would have the effect he intended.

If the First Boss of the Canoe Gang was two-faced, saying one thing to his face and another behind his back, Then he might still face retaliation from the Canoe Gang.

At that point, with no retreat, he would have no choice but to act decisively and annihilate the entire Canoe Gang.

Thinking of this, Qin Zheng couldn't help but sigh softly.

It all stemmed from his insufficient strength.

If his strength were sufficient, he would have directly moved to destroy the entire Canoe Gang tonight.

If such a feat were to spread, who would dare to provoke him further?

One comes, he kills one; two come, he kills a pair!

As long as his strength was enough, these opportunistic gangs would be actively delivering Merit to him!

And to achieve such unbridled freedom, all he needed was an internal cultivation technique!

As long as he possessed an internal cultivation technique, he could rapidly improve and strengthen his body.

This would allow him to raise various martial arts to their peak!

The Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill has thirteen levels. Each level increased his strength by one thousand catties.

If he were to master this martial art, he would possess a colossal strength of thirteen thousand catties!

With such immense strength, every movement would exude unparalleled might!

At this moment, Qin Zheng's desire for internal martial arts reached its zenith.

However, he also understood that these were controlled by the great aristocratic families and established martial sects, and were not easily taught to disciples outside their core.

Internal martial arts were a hundred times more precious than external ones.

He was merely a humble executioner in Black Goose City, making the path to obtaining internal martial arts incredibly difficult.

But he possessed the Merit Scroll, granting him limitless potential. As long as he slowly accumulated merit, he would surely have the chance to obtain internal martial arts in the future.

At that time, he would break through his limitations and soar to the heavens!

For now, he would lie low, slowly accumulate, and patiently await his opportunity!

After reviewing the events of the night in his mind, Qin Zheng then focused his attention inward, looking at the Merit Scroll.

Although tonight had been somewhat perilous, the rewards were substantial!

[Qin Zheng]

[Lifespan: 70 (17)]

[Martial Arts: Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill (Level 3), Great Sun Golden Cicada Skill (Minor Accomplishment), Black Fiend Palm (Mastery), Golden Cicada Sheds Its Shell (Mastery), Ghost-head Saber Technique (Mastery)]

[Merit: Fourteen taels, eight qian]

[Current Martial Art · Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill can be upgraded, requires one tael of Merit. Do you wish to upgrade?]

[Current Martial Art · Great Sun Golden Cicada Skill can be upgraded, requires five taels of Merit. Do you wish to upgrade?]

Upon seeing the information, Qin Zheng's eyes lit up!

His accumulated merit had reached a new record high!

A full fourteen taels and eight qian!

The people he had killed tonight, including the Canoe Gang's Second Boss and his son, amounted to only nine people in total.

Yet, by saving others, his merit had directly surged to fourteen taels and eight qian!

Qin Zheng recalled that after upgrading the Great Sun Golden Cicada Skill to Minor Accomplishment and the Black Fiend Palm to Mastery, he only had one tael and two qian of merit left.

Therefore, killing those nine people had increased his merit by thirteen taels and six qian!

Indeed, these swine were not clean; they were all deserving of death!

At this moment, Qin Zheng felt a sense of exhilaration from killing, as if the more he killed, the better he felt.

As long as he obtained internal martial arts, he could begin hunting down these corrupt gang members.

For those with bad reputations, he would surely strike them down one by one.

At that time, he could keep killing, and his merit would continuously increase.

And through that, he could rapidly grow stronger!

Thinking of this, Qin Zheng chuckled softly, imagining such a life, which felt truly blissful.

However, this still depended on obtaining internal martial arts.

Furthermore, he had only been here for a short time since his transmigration, and his understanding of the martial path was still insufficient.

All of this required careful planning and a gradual approach.

Thus, Qin Zheng withdrew his thoughts and focused on the Merit Scroll, silently stating:

"Upgrade Martial Art · Great Sun Golden Cicada Skill!"