Chapter 88: Benefits of Joining the Group

Although the promotion ceremony looked like a headache, it didn't stop Li Yu from gathering the elixir formulas first.

"Demon Star, display all elixir formulas involving other God-Ascension paths that can be concocted by the Spirit Venerable path's Elixir Disciple sequence."

"This request involves certain secrets of the gods and requires a payment of 200 merit points. Shall it be deducted?"

"Yes!"

Li Yu had experienced this scenario before when he tentatively tried to find loopholes to peek at more secrets.

It wasn't exactly a rare secret; rather, the names of [Sequence 8] for most God-Ascension paths could be inferred from the names of their elixir formulas.

The first time, he couldn't afford the price.

This time, Li Yu was wealthy and bold, so naturally, he didn't hesitate; this was a guaranteed return on investment with profit to boot.

"Deducted!"

"Martial Dao Elixir, Blood Battle Elixir, Corpse Transformation Elixir, Ancient Folk Elixir, Human Tooth Elixir, Medicine King Elixir, Ghost Soul Elixir, Dao Bone Elixir, Confucian Heart Elixir, Nun Elixir, Black Buddha Elixir, Flower Maiden Elixir..."

The page that greatly surprised Li Yu appeared before his eyes.

He didn't exchange for them immediately, but instead began to study the elixir formulas one by one.

They only had names and brief introductions, but that didn't hinder his deductions.

"The Martial Dao Elixir should be for the Martial Disciple of the Great Saint path under the Demon-Slaying Sect... The Blood Battle Elixir looks the most cost-effective; it can simultaneously impersonate the Sequence 8 of the Red God Sect and the Blood God Sect... The Corpse Transformation Elixir should be for impersonating the Corpse Collector of the Undying Corpse God sequence... The Human Tooth Elixir can be used to impersonate the [Cuisine Person] of the Forbidden God Sect, but its efficacy isn't as good as my Heart-Compassion Elixir..."

"What on earth is this Ancient Folk Elixir? After consumption, one can transform into the body of an ancient ancestor, strong and primitive... and that's it? Which True God path's Sequence 8 is this? It costs 500 merit points? So expensive."

After all, the introductions were not exhaustive.

Li Yu guessed based on the elixir names and couldn't know everything; buying them would reveal more.

Additionally, because the difficulty and utility varied, the values of these elixir formulas also differed.

Most of them were still 100 merit points.

But the rarer ones, such as "Ancient Folk Elixir," "Confucian Heart Elixir," "Flower Maiden Elixir," and "Alien Person Elixir," had significantly higher prices.

Fortunately, he already possessed four elixirs, so he only needed to purchase five more formulas.

After some thought, he still didn't make a choice immediately, but abruptly asked:

"Can merit points only be exchanged here and now?"

"Upon returning to reality or during the next expedition, can I summon the Demon Star to perform exchanges?"

"The answer to the question is under 100 merit points; it will be deducted directly and answered."

"No merit points need to be deducted!"

"Every function the Order Master uses to summon the Demon Star in the real world requires corresponding permissions... The Order Master has now completed two expeditions and ranked first in contribution both times, unlocking the exchange list permission; you may inquire and exchange in reality and other Strange Realm Spirit Worlds."

He had obtained the answer he wanted, but Li Yu still felt like complaining.

Because he discovered that the rules related to the Demon Star Order were truly disgusting.

Such as permissions!

He possessed them, but he didn't know it himself.

If he didn't ask, the Demon Star wouldn't say.

After all, it wasn't the first time; Li Yu had become somewhat accustomed to the malice this thing held toward rogue cultivators without backgrounds and had gradually figured out how to use it.

The answer just now didn't cost him merit points, but it was quite valuable.

At the very least, Li Yu knew he didn't have to spend all his merit points and could keep a portion for emergencies.

He set his mind to it again and said:

"Demon Star, exchange for the Martial Dao Elixir, Ghost Soul Elixir, Medicine King Elixir, Dao Bone Elixir, and Ancient Folk Elixir."

"900 merit points have been deducted!"

Once again, following the cold notification sound, five detailed elixir formulas were delivered.

After concocting and consuming the first four, one could play the roles of Martial Disciple, Wandering Soul, Apothecary, and Ordained Daoist respectively, each costing him 100 merit points.

The fifth one deducted 500 points at once.

He could have bought normal elixir formulas, but since he had plenty of merit points now, his curiosity about this rare elixir formula completely won out, so he indulged himself a little.

Focusing his attention, he soon glimpsed a new secret and learned of a new True God.

"Ancient Folk Elixir!"

"The formula for this elixir is sacrificial meat of wild folk, incense ash, star-colored ore... After consumption, one can briefly transform into the body of an ancient ancestor, possessing a strong and savage physique; the five senses will be greatly amplified, and one will gain extremely special and primitive inspiration."

"This elixir was created by imitating the [Wild Folk] of the Blood Age Star Lord path. The Blood Age Star Lord is an extremely special Evil God; He does not participate in the struggle between righteous and evil, but descends to the human world once every period of time. Each time, He causes extremely serious disasters, but also leaves behind powerful legacies and paths."

"His first batch of believers were the ancestors who lived in the wilderness during the ancient era, surrounded by countless dangerous strange objects. This Evil God's descent caused the ancestors' flesh and blood to mutate and twist, but the phantom starlight surrounding His divine body also ignited the candles of strangeness, making those strange objects afraid to approach, allowing the ancestors to survive."

"Therefore, the initial first-tier sequence is called: Wild Folk."

"The concoction and consumption of this elixir must be done with caution; once detected by the Blood Age Star Lord, it is very likely that disaster will be brought down directly."

"Do not mention His name rashly, and do not spread it."

"Huh? It can't be that coincidental, right?"

When Li Yu finished reading the elixir introduction, the charging progress of the ninth truth bubble on his eye membrane surged forward.

In his mind, he suddenly thought of the Ninth Pioneer Team he was in in reality.

One of the members: Sang Zhu.

He had gifted Li Yu a strange candle, saying that after lighting it, it would have a deterrent effect on strange objects.

He also specifically stated that the path sequence he cultivated could not be leaked, or Li Yu would have trouble if he heard it.

Comparing the two!

Li Yu could almost be certain: the Evil God that Sang Zhu believed in and followed was this [Blood Age Star Lord].

"In that case!"

"This elixir is indeed not easy to concoct. If I were to concoct it and this Evil God descended from afar, wouldn't I be doomed?"

"Although I didn't lose out, it's a bit of a waste," muttered Li Yu, who had satisfied his voyeuristic and secret-seeking habit.

Afterward, he intended to exchange for another ordinary elixir formula.

However, it was at this moment that the change he had almost ignored arrived.

"The Order Master codenamed 'Play Star' is using high-level permission to send you a Star Group invitation. Do you wish to join the [Heavenly Pride Assembly]?"

"Yes!"

"You have joined the group. Because the Order Master is a new group member, you have the privilege of exempting the merit point deduction for your first message; the word count is limited to 100."

"Every subsequent message will deduct 100 merit points from the Order Master."

"Regarding other rules of the Stars, please explore them yourself, Order Master."

Accompanied by these sounds, Li Yu felt his sea of consciousness suddenly churn.

One after another, incomparably demonic stars appeared densely.

Above each star, there were different codenames.

=9+Book_Bar

Among them, he recognized several on the spot.

The second: it was Wisdom Star Shang Yang, and Sun-Eating Star Cui Minmin.

There were a few others, such as "Rebel Star" and "Plague Star."

Their identities seemed to remain mysterious, known to no one.

In reality, on the day the Demon Star descended, Li Yu had used his Truth Soul Body to see them all clearly.

They were all Sequence 7, and there were even Sequence 6 existences.

And as soon as he arrived, before he could say anything, he saw the demonic stars begin to flicker one after another.

Demonic messages also appeared in Li Yu's sea of consciousness:

"Hahaha... he's here, he's here, the legendary Calamity Star. Sister Cui really has the means after all. Shang Yang, you idiot, you've been secretly searching for him for days and couldn't even find a hair, but as soon as Sister Cui made a move, he's already joined the group."

"Are you mocking me? The price I paid to invite him into the group was not small. My Strange Realm expedition this time was a complete failure; not only was my mission merit stolen, but the group of slaves I had just subdued were all harmed to death by him. Next time, I should let you all run into him and learn the power of the Calamity Star."

"So fierce? What is his path sequence? Is it the one we guessed before, the Thousand-Faced God Sequence 8 [Skin-Wearer]?"

"He won't say, but I think it is."

"Shang Yang, speak up! You are a dignified Wisdom Star, don't disgrace your codename. Your victim is right before your eyes; come out and threaten him. We are already waiting to watch the show. Everyone, come and place your bets on who wins and who loses this clash; I'll be the bookie."

"I bet on Calamity Star to win, 1,000 merit points."

"Me too, 2,000 merit points."

"Pah, you're all a bunch of disloyal people. At least this idiot Shang Yang is our old group member; I bet on him to win, 100 merit points."

Li Yu looked at these chaotic thoughts, feeling quite speechless.

First impression: these Heavenly Prides were likely all wealthy individuals.

It was quite normal, not to mention the others.

Just taking "Cui Minmin," although Li Yu snatched the first place in contribution in this expedition, that was actually due to the number and importance of the missions Li Yu completed.

If calculated purely by merit points obtained, Li Yu might not have won.

Since she was like this, the other Heavenly Pride Demon Stars went without saying.

Second impression: there were few normal people among these Heavenly Prides.

Every one of their messages contained extremely intense and full emotions that were almost overflowing.

Even without a clear figure, Li Yu could still feel the twisted souls of the people behind these messages.

Being a newcomer, he acted with caution.

So Li Yu just watched and did not respond with a single word.

At the same time, he had already begun to silently explore the rules of the function called [Stars].

The next moment, he made a discovery.

Appearing before his eyes, in addition to a large number of eerie stars, were some stars emitting a normal radiance.

When Li Yu gazed at them and subconsciously flicked them with his consciousness, the relevant information immediately surfaced in his mind:

"This is shared knowledge: a volume of 'Illustrated Guide to Gods'."

"It belongs to the Stars [Heavenly Pride Gathering], and the sharer is the group owner, Play Star."

"To view this knowledge, you must pay the group owner one hundred merit points."

"This is one of the benefits for group members!"

"This book is worth five thousand merit points in the Demon Star Order."

"Do you wish to pay?"

"Holy crap, a welfare group file?"

"Pay!"

Li Yu had almost no hesitation; while a group of geniuses with twisted souls were still clamoring, he paid the one hundred merit points very readily.

The next moment, that star flew directly toward him and exploded in the sea of his consciousness.

It made him very happy, as the secret knowledge for rapidly charging the ninth truth bubble flowed directly out.

PS: Asking for monthly votes, thank you all.

(End of this chapter)