The ground around began to tremble gently.
Li Hao was stunned, looking around and noticing the distant broken mountains and the crimson sky seemed to be gradually fading.
Had he cleared it? Was the Mohe battlefield about to disappear?!
Li Hao was dumbfounded; everything happened too quickly for him to react.
As he watched the ground sink, his little grass hut was on the verge of collapsing from the shaking. He quickly stepped out and then, with a flash, appeared at the center of the village, near the stage.
He took out a piece of gold paper and swiftly placed it in the strange temple.
Suddenly, brilliant golden light burst forth from the temple, releasing a water-like barrier that surrounded him.
Standing inside the barrier, Li Hao watched the village outside as it shook violently, everything tearing apart and becoming blurry, until it all vanished.
He found himself back in that narrow cave.
The old, small temple had also lost its golden light, returning to an ordinary state, with two decaying statues smiling faintly.
The gold paper flew back like a thread, landing in Li Hao's palm, giving off a warm feeling.
He felt as if a breath of soul had added to his being.
As he focused, the golden thread appeared in his hand, transforming into the gold paper.
On the paper were three lines of small characters:
Name: Chong Er
Merit Points: 100 (Rank 99 in the Dayu Dynasty)
Achievement: Cleared the Mohe at Fengshan.
"This is the merit points? It doesn't seem that special."
Li Hao examined the gold paper closely. He had heard from Second Master and Old Feng that the Mohe battlefield was divided into five levels, with huge differences between them. The level he just experienced was probably just the lowest, the Remnant level of the Mohe battlefield.
Destroying a Mohe battlefield would yield merit points, but if one cleared it, making the Mohe disappear permanently, the merit points gained would be hundreds of times more!
This meant that if he had only killed the man in the black robe and destroyed the village, he would have only received a small amount of merit points.
Besides the Remnant level, there were also the Yin Sha level Mohe, the Underworld level Mohe, and the Youdu level Mohe, which even Second Master and the others were reluctant to enter easily.
As for the most terrifying Mohe, Second Master had not mentioned it, but it was a place where even those of their level could fall if caught up in it.
Even the Youdu level Mohe was considered a forbidden area.
The Underworld level Mohe could only be approached by heavenly masters.
The Mohe had existed for a long time. Although the Li family was not responsible for suppressing the Mohe, they still had some related information. Destroying a Yin Sha level Mohe would yield about 10 merit points.
Destroying an Underworld level Mohe would yield around 100 merit points.
But if one cleared an Underworld level Mohe, they could get 10,000 points!
As for what merit points were used for, no one knew for sure. It was said that the Tian Zhao Divine General's Mansion, which had suppressed the Mohe for generations, had not been able to figure out their purpose.
Throughout history, there had been many rumors about merit points. Some said they could be exchanged for reincarnation with the gods after death, while others said they could accumulate blessings for the afterlife, offsetting sins and so on.
But rumors stopped with the big shots.
Since both old masters said no one had figured out the use of merit points, it must be true.
Right now, the only known use was that they seemed to function like "points," allowing one to roughly estimate how many strong individuals still existed in the Dayu realm based on the amount of merit points.
That's right, existing ones.
If someone with merit points died, their points would disappear, and they would be removed from the list.
Thus, for many top powers, this became a way to check on the lives and deaths of others.
The two old masters should also be on the list; he wondered what rank they were... Li Hao's thoughts shifted, and as if sensing his mind, the characters on the gold paper changed, revealing a ranking list.
Merit Ranking.
The first name that caught his eye was: Wang Zhendong.
Merit Points: 9372.
The second person was Wang Tianchong.
Merit Points: 7328.
The third person was also named Wang!
As he continued down the list, he noticed that out of the top ten, six were named Wang.
Looking further down, in the top thirty, there were fifteen Wang names!
Li Hao's expression changed slightly, feeling a mix of surprise and heaviness.
Although it was the Wang family's duty to suppress the Mohe, he didn't know how many lives had been lost for this responsibility.
Each name on the list represented countless battles and dangers behind those cold, golden numbers.
This was no different from slaying demons at the border.
He knew that the Li family had fought to protect the country at the border, with six out of the nine sons in the last generation dying in battle, which was extremely tragic.
Now it seemed that other divine general mansions had not had it easy either.
After all, he could see so many Wang family members on the list; who knew how many others had appeared on the list only to disappear?
This aging dynasty was still in a prosperous era, with peace within the realm, common people living well, young girls playing on flower boats, boys riding horses in the countryside, and vendors selling their wares without worry. This ordinary scene of countless homes lit up at night hid how many nameless heroic bones were quietly cherished in the darkness?!
"This prosperity... is hard-earned," Li Hao murmured to himself.
In his heart, he felt a deep respect for the names above.
He continued to look down but didn’t see Second Master’s name; perhaps he was using a pseudonym.
However, Li Hao did see the nickname Old Feng had mentioned: "No Leaving."
Ranked 35th, with merit points of 3201.
Li Hao was taken aback; he could basically confirm that someone with such high merit points and this name had to be the Thief Saint!
"Old Feng, who walks alone, actually has such high merit points..." Li Hao's expression grew serious.
Aside from Second Master, Old Feng had few friends.
This meant that his merit points were mostly earned through his own battles.
He stood alone against the Mohe.
But Old Feng had a bad reputation; he was despised by all the powers as the Thief Saint.
The world pointed fingers at him.
Why would he risk himself to do such things?
Perhaps there was an answer, or perhaps there was no need for one.
Li Hao fell silent, suddenly realizing that the old man who had been joking with him while fishing was someone he was familiar with but did not truly understand.
After a moment, he continued to look down.
Not long after, he saw another familiar name: Jian Wudao!
He was actually using his real name, just like the Wang family.
Most names on the list, aside from the Wang family, were pseudonyms.
For example, the Thief Saint’s name "No Leaving"—what kind of surname was that?
The Sword Saint... Li Hao squinted slightly, noticing his rank: 76th.
Merit Points: 738.
This meant he had at least destroyed seven Underworld level Mohe or cleared seven Remnant level Mohe.
Li Hao realized that the merit ranking didn’t represent overall strength. For example, both the Thief Saint and Sword Saint were at the same cultivation level, but their merit points differed by four to five times.
Many experts had likely not participated in suppressing the Mohe.
After all, aside from the court's rewards, there were no benefits to dealing with the Mohe. This elusive merit points system had no known use.
The world was bustling, all for profit.
No one would get up early without a gain.
This also led to a severe shortage of personnel in the Mohe Office, making the situation tense.
At the same time, it was why clearing a Remnant level Mohe could place him among the top hundred in Dayu.
Li Hao sighed softly and put away the gold paper.
Suddenly, he sensed a movement and realized someone was approaching.
Li Hao quickly reacted.
Looking at the temple before him, he saw it slowly sinking into the ground, seemingly about to disappear.
This temple was connected to the Fengshan Mohe.
Now that the Mohe was gone, the temple would naturally vanish as well.
Wait a minute.
Li Hao suddenly felt alarmed. This Mohe was so simple; it couldn’t be the one meant for the new test a year later, could it?
If it disappeared now...
What would they test a year later?
Oh no.
Wasn’t this like tearing up all the exam papers for the candidates in advance?!
Li Hao felt speechless. He just wanted to teach that scholar to draw; he never thought he would clear the level!
Time to go.
Li Hao hurriedly took off, disappearing from the spot in an instant.
As Li Hao fled, many people across the land were stirred.
(End of Chapter)