Chapter 775: You Don't Get Agitated

Barring any surprises, it must be Li Shangqiu, one of the Four Mythical Heavenly Talents and the leader of Wuji, the strongest team within the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets.

Jiang Fan remained unfazed. If Li Shangqiu were an elder in the perfected ninth stage of Core Formation, like the four vice-pavilion masters, Jiang Fan might have shown some apprehension. But possessing the cultivation realm without the tempering of age meant Li Shangqiu's spiritual power was only slightly stronger than his. While powerful, he couldn't unleash the kind of suffocating attacks that seasoned seniors could.

Jiang Fan calmly stated, "Although I don't particularly care for Master Fayin, I'd like to say something on his behalf right now: Is it your place to question my actions?" It was truly absurd! Did Fayin Vajra need Li Shangqiu's permission to convert Jiang Fan? Who did he think he was, to question Jiang Fan's qualifications? If he had the ability, he should have pursued Fayin Vajra and asked him directly.

The hushed whispers that had filled the air instantly vanished. Eyes widened slightly. The only person who would dare to speak to Li Shangqiu in such a manner was likely Ye Banxia. Naturally, Li Shangqiu wouldn't dare to command Ye Banxia as he had just done. Bullying only occurs when there is a significant power imbalance; among the strong, mutual respect is typically observed.

Behind Li Shangqiu, his team members' expressions instantly turned cold. They began to shift their stances. As team members, they couldn't stand idly by while their leader was offended. Li Shangqiu raised a hand, and they immediately quieted, simply staring coldly at Jiang Fan.

"Even as a new disciple, you should have figured out who I am by now," Li Shangqiu said, his eyes frigid. "Yet you still dare to speak to me this way. It seems you truly possess some skill. Come! Let me verify if the legendary list of Fayin Vajra's converts lives up to its reputation." An oppressive aura from his perfected ninth-stage Core Formation cultivation erupted from him.

Jiang Fan's gaze remained calm, and he was about to step forward. However, the Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets, hovering in mid-air, calmly interjected, "I haven't left yet! Everyone, disperse! Prepare to submit your identity tokens for merit point calculation."

Li Shangqiu immediately withdrew his spiritual energy. He gave Jiang Fan a deep look and said, "We'll continue our fight later." Jiang Fan couldn't be bothered to acknowledge him. Instead, he curiously took out his identity token. Could this item actually record merit points automatically?

He joined the others, holding his identity token and queuing up for registration. Steward Yunyang, standing behind the crowd, wore an expression of profound surprise.

"Fan Jiang is actually on Fayin Vajra's conversion list?" she exclaimed. "Shang Shiqiu, why didn't you tell me?"

Shang Shiqiu suppressed a laugh and replied, "Master, you know now, don't you?"

Steward Yunyang immediately let out a long sigh: "I've only ever heard of those from the Great Cang Continent and the Sea Demon Tribe being on the conversion list. To think one has appeared from our small region is truly... what a pity, what a great pity."

Pfft— Jian Linyuan and the others struggled to stifle their laughter. They eagerly anticipated their Master's expression when the truth came to light.

Leng Qingzhu whispered, "Junior Sister Shang, well done. Master spends all day reading; she's practically become a recluse. She deserves a good teasing like this."

Shang Shiqiu smiled triumphantly, then a hint of worry crossed her face. "However, I didn't include Junior Brother Jiang in our team of senior disciples," she said. "When Master finds out, she won't blame me for not looking after our new junior brother, will she?"

Leng Qingzhu shook her head. "You don't need to worry about that. Junior Brother Jiang is a newcomer, after all; his inclusion would lower our team's total merit points. Master will understand."

Shang Shiqiu immediately relaxed. She quietly waited for the moment the truth would be revealed and her Master would be overjoyed.

The merit points were personally tallied by the four vice-pavilion masters, with each person entering a tent individually. When it was Jiang Fan's turn, he entered Gu Huaxi's tent. Gu Huaxi was holding a pen, shaking her head and sighing as she recorded the merit points of the previous senior disciple.

"I've registered about ten disciples, and the highest score was only one hundred merit points," she lamented. "The exploration of the underground world is becoming increasingly difficult. I truly don't know how much longer this system can be sustained."

In fact, these issues weren't just emerging now. The drawbacks had appeared a century ago. The tenth layer remained unexplored, and the ninth layer was gradually depleting. Fewer and fewer disciples arrived, drawn by its reputation, and the extracted resources became increasingly scarce. Even then, however, disciples' gains were at least a hundred merit points. Today, a hundred merit points is considered quite high. If this continued, the underground world would eventually become barren, and the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets, which relied on it, would completely decline.

Swish— Someone entered. Gu Huaxi looked up and saw it was Jiang Fan. Her tightly furrowed brows finally relaxed, and she chuckled, "It's you! It must have been quite an adjustment going to the underground world for the first time, wasn't it?"

Jiang Fan nodded. "It certainly was." Especially that 'Painting Heart.' It was the first time he had encountered something so bizarre. It could arbitrarily change its appearance. What was terrifying was that it seemed to be able to see through people's hearts. The entity first mimicked the charm and temperament of Consort Yunxia, then adopted the name Liuli. This couldn't have been a coincidence. That female ghost definitely possessed the ability to perceive human hearts!

Gu Huaxi laughed, "That's perfectly normal. The sheer yin energy there is enough to make anyone uncomfortable. You'll get used to it after a few more visits. So, did you acquire anything?"

Jiang Fan thought for a moment, then took out his identity token. "Yes, I did," he said. "I'm just not sure if it counts towards merit points."

Gu Huaxi couldn't help but chuckle. New disciples, at most, only ventured into the seventh layer. The bolder ones might explore the eighth layer. Both of those layers had been thoroughly scoured by previous explorers. Finding even a single valuable ore was considered very lucky; there were no truly good treasures left there.

Gu Huaxi consoled him, "Don't be disheartened, regardless of your gains." She took Jiang Fan's identity token and placed it onto a jade artifact resembling a pillow. Patiently, she began to explain to Jiang Fan: "Merit point calculation is divided into two parts. The first part is for stepping into areas previously undiscovered; this is what the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets values most and is the primary source of merit points. The second part is for the magic treasures you acquire. The identity token will roughly sense the item's grade and award a corresponding merit point score. However, its proportion is not high. Even if you find a spiritual artifact, your merit points won't exceed a thousand. So, no matter what the scan results show later, please don't be surprised." She was somewhat worried that Jiang Fan might be discouraged, as it was very likely his merit points would be zero. She reluctantly decided to prepare him beforehand.

Jiang Fan pondered silently. According to Shang Shiqiu, that hidden space alone was worth three thousand merit points. The mausoleum he, Wu Manyue, and Ren Guhong discovered together seemed to be of similar size and should also be worth three thousand merit points. Even if equally divided, each person would receive one thousand. Furthermore, he had successively obtained the Black Ancient Scripture, nine Dragon Heart Blood Lotus seeds, the Hook Judgment Brush, the Bronze Formation Plate, the Yin Marrow Tiger Seal, and the Black Bell. These items must also be worth some merit points, right? All combined, that would be at least four thousand. Among the disciples on this expedition, that was certainly not a low amount.

He nodded and said, "Understood, Vice-Pavilion Master Gu. I'm mentally prepared. I won't be surprised."

Gu Huaxi nodded slightly. She admired Jiang Fan's calm demeanor; it reminded her a little of her younger self. She wouldn't be surprised even if the sky were to collapse.

At this moment, the merit point calculation results appeared. She looked at them with a faint smile, still murmuring, "Mmm, it's good that you're mentally prepared. Yes, it's good..."

"Huh?" "How much?" She sprang to her feet in astonishment. The unintentional surge of spiritual energy she released sent the table in front of her flying.

Jiang Fan quickly pressed down on the table, trying to calm her. "Vice-Pavilion Master Gu, please don't get so agitated! Please, don't get so agitated!"