After they closed the shop that night, Lu Ming and Feng Dema both went to bed.
Wen Ning sat on his bed, leaving only the small lamp on the counter lit.
He listened for a while. Only after he was sure Lu Ming and Feng Dema were sound asleep did he reach into his robe and take out the Jade Emperor's Golden Register.
Wen Ning placed the register beneath the lamp and flipped back a few pages to find the latest entry.
The entry read: Helped Zhou Guangfu fulfill his dying wish and guided him to a peaceful passing. Merit increased by one.
He turned another page: Cleared the Five-Power God's temple in Fangjia Ao and severed the karmic ties between Wang Jin and Fang Qingqin. Merit increased by one.
He kept turning until he reached the last page. There was only a single line on it, nothing else.
I'm halfway to the Heavenly Stem Count required to bring my merit to completion. Still a long road ahead.
Wen Ning closed the register but did not put it away immediately.
He sat there with both hands resting on it, his eyes closed, feeling the energy flowing slowly within him.
The power of his merit had all become a strand of energy within his cultivation.
The energy inside him began to move.
It rose from his dantian, circulating through his meridians again and again, growing faster and hotter with every circuit.
He gritted his teeth, a thin sheen of sweat forming on his forehead.
Just then, heat flared in his arm. A crimson-gold light emerged from his skin and took the shape of a figure in the empty space beside his bed.
Dressed in a long gown, Huang Ming stood beside the bed with her arms folded, watching him.
Wen Ning