r18novel Chapter 3 Merit-Based Sainthood System
Chapter 3 Merit-Based Sainthood System
Qin Mo reached out and summoned the Myriad Souls Banner back into his palm, transforming it back into a small black banner.
He carefully sensed the changes inside the banner and nodded in satisfaction.
The negative energy contained in the souls of those demons was extremely pure, and after being absorbed by the Myriad Soul Banner, it was directly transformed into evil spirits.
This efficiency is more than a hundred times faster than his arduous search for evil cultivators in the Xuanhuang Realm and the collection of their souls one by one.
"This world..." Qin Mo murmured to himself, his gaze sweeping over the enormous purple rift in the sky, "is quite an interesting place."
Moran and his comrades stared in disbelief at the scene before them, which resembled a miracle (or rather, a more sinister one).
The dog tags in its mouth all fell to the ground.
The man didn't kill them; instead, he annihilated those arrogant demons in an instant!
"My Terra..." Moran cried, tears welling in his eyes. "Could this be an angel sent by the Emperor! A saint walking among men! He is protecting our souls, he is punishing the demons!"
"Praise be to the Emperor! Praise be to the Saint!"
Dozens of surviving Astronaut soldiers knelt down without hesitation, kowtowing frantically towards Qin Mo's retreating figure, offering their gratitude and faith.
Just then, Qin Mo suddenly felt a strange power surging into his body from behind.
"This is... the power of faith? The power of will?!" Qin Mo was shocked.
In the world of cultivation, such ethereal things are extremely difficult to collect, yet they are so abundant in these mortals!
【Ding--】
A mechanical voice devoid of any emotion echoed in Qin Mo's mind.
[The system has detected that the host has successfully saved mortals in this universe and gained the power of pure faith.]
The Merit-Based Sainthood System has been activated.
[Host behavior detected: 1300 warp demons eliminated, 37 Imperial citizens saved]
[Merit Points Gained: 14,808]
[Current Faith Value: Low (37 people)]
[System Description: Accumulate the faith of mortals, eliminate evil spirits and heretics. The higher the merit, the stronger you become. Merit can be converted into cultivation, supernatural powers, and the essence of magical treasures, ultimately leading you to the path of sainthood through merit.]
[Notification: Host's current location—Star Cardia, M41.999. The Thirteenth Black Expedition is underway.]
[Initial New Player Reward: The embryonic form of the Golden Wheel of Merit.]
[Side quest triggered: Guard Kadia. Quest rewards vary depending on the final outcome.]
The moment the voice fell, a pale golden halo suddenly appeared behind Qin Mo.
The halo was extremely illusory, yet it carried a magnificent, solemn, and righteous aura that was completely opposite to the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, as if a faint but real sun had suddenly risen from a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.
The black banner is on the left, and the golden wheel is behind.
It exudes an overwhelming evil aura, yet it also subtly carries a sacred intent.
Qin Mo stared at the golden screen and remained silent for a full ten breaths.
Achieving sainthood through meritorious deeds?
He, a dignified evil cultivator, the renowned Wanhun Daoist of the Xuanhuang Realm, a supremely evil person who has collected countless souls and nurtured evil with evil for six thousand years, actually wants to become a saint through merit.
The Star Guardians on the ground, gazing at the golden wheel radiating golden light behind Qin Mo, became even more devout, shouting that they were messengers of some emperor.
While in mid-air, Qin Mo glanced down at the system panel, then looked at the group of soldiers below, and finally understood something.
This world is dangerous.
The people in this world are also miserable.
But similarly—this world is practically a blessed land tailor-made for him.
Demons roam the land, evildoers run rampant, and all living beings suffer greatly, yet faith remains resilient to an almost unbelievable degree.
He possesses the Banner of Ten Thousand Souls, capable of subduing all evil spirits and heretics.
He now has an additional merit system, which allows him to ascend to the path of sainthood through the power of the wishes of all beings.
According to the system's warning, the planet called Kadia is about to be destroyed, and all the humans on the planet are facing the fate of having their souls devoured by demons.
If he saves these people, he will gain merit and faith.
If he eliminates those demons, the Banner of Ten Thousand Souls can continue to evolve.
"The Emperor's messenger... The Emperor has indeed not abandoned Kadia..."
"Cardia stands strong!!"
Looking at the group of mortal soldiers who had just volunteered to be scattered and were now howling as if they had been fully revived, Qin Mo suddenly felt a subtle feeling rising in his heart.
The mortals of this world are quite different from those of the Xuanhuang Realm.
They are weak, fragile, and short-lived, yet they face an enemy of unparalleled terror.
Knowing full well that their souls would fall into an endless abyss after death, they still took up arms and stood on the front lines.
It's not that they're not afraid of death.
They were simply more afraid of retreating than of death.
On the distant battlefield, the flames of explosions and the roars of demons still echoed.
Further away, the colossal rift in the sky known as the Eye of Terror continues to expand, with endless darkness attempting to devour the last glimmer of light on the planet.
Qin Mo gripped the Myriad Soul Banner tightly.
Throughout his six-thousand-year career as a heretic cultivator, he never did anything so-called "good."
He takes souls, but only the souls of the wicked; he kills, but only those who deserve to die.
People in the cultivation world called him an evil cultivator, but he knew in his heart that he had simply chosen a path that was not recognized by the world.
And now, in this world a hundred times darker than the cultivation world, he suddenly discovered—
His unapproved path happens to be the only correct one here.
Collect the souls of evildoers? This place is teeming with demons.
Using evil to fuel evil? The souls of those demons are the best nourishment for the Banner of Ten Thousand Souls.
And as he does all this, the gratitude and faith of ordinary people will become the key for him to break through the final bottleneck.
A heretical cultivator transcends tribulation to become a saint, and the Banner of Ten Thousand Souls suppresses all demons.
"interesting."
Qin Mo licked his lips, his gaze fixed on the depths of the Eye of Fear.
There, he sensed four extremely powerful wills watching over the planet—angry, cunning, decaying, and joyful.
The four forces also took notice of him at the same time.
How dare a mortal completely devour their servants? A faint roar even echoed from the massive rift.
Qin Mo was not afraid at all; instead, he chuckled lightly.
"What are you looking at? I'll take you all down sooner or later."
If the followers of the Four Gods heard these words, they would probably think this person was incredibly arrogant.
But ironically, he really does have the ability to do so.
He could sense the power of those four wills; judging by their cultivation levels, they were probably at least at the level of a Primordial Golden Immortal.
In the past, Qin Mo would not have made an enemy of such powerful figures, but he could sense that these powerful figures seemed to be subject to some kind of restriction, otherwise they would probably have already taken action to kill him.
But they didn't. Since that's the case, what do I have to be afraid of? I also have the system of achieving sainthood through merit. When I become stronger in the future, I might be able to fight them.
Then, Qin Mo landed again in front of the surviving Astronauts.
Moran trotted over and gave a standard Imperial Eagle salute:
"My lord, I will now report to you on the situation in Cardia—"
"Wait." Qin Mo raised her hand to interrupt him.
He glanced at Moran, then at the thirty-odd Astronaut soldiers behind him who were still basking in the joy of their rescue, and frowned slightly.
Asking them one by one? That's too slow.
The cultivation level of these mortals... no, these mortals don't even have cultivation level; they are just pure mortals.
The information they possess is inevitably limited and fragmented. To piece together the entire picture of the world from their words would be an endless task, requiring endless questioning.
Qin Mo made a decisive decision.
"Stand still, everyone."
He extended his right index finger, and a faint glow appeared at the tip.
Platoon Leader Moran looked at the point of light with a puzzled expression. Before he could ask any questions, Qin Mo's fingertip had already touched his brow.
A gentle yet irresistible force surged into Moran's mind.
Moran instinctively tried to back away, but his body was completely immobilized.
"Don't be nervous, I won't hurt you," Qin Mo said calmly. "I'm just looking at your memories."