Chapter 380

"Hidden task settlement in progress..."

"Time traveler has completed team formation task and may now establish a team contract within their personal space. After contract formation, if a teammate dies, the contract's last will may be executed: either reduce the cultivation base of remaining teammates, or bequeath the deceased's assets to teammates. Upon a teammate's death, other members may choose to activate a resurrection quest (Warning: resurrection quests are extremely difficult; time travelers are advised to consider carefully)..."

"Personal spaces of team members may be subdivided and merged into a base space."

"Base time no longer stagnates relatively; its flow rate is ten times that of the main world, but the interval between time traveler missions shall be measured by the time traveler's own temporal sequence. When one team member's mission activates, other time travelers may choose whether to enter the mission alongside. Time travelers may return to the base space at any time according to their own permissions."

"Time traveler has completed commissioned task: reestablished the Four Great Sects, received task reward of twelve hundred moral points!"

"Hidden task settlement successful: reestablished human lineage, evaluation: superior."

"Reestablished Four Great Sects: promoted from Wu-Middle to Wu-Superior; destroyed demon kingdom, eradicated demon lineage: Wu-Superior promoted to Wu-Upper; transmitted lineage: Wu-Upper promoted to Ding-Middle; taught Heavenly Court laws, established Covenant of Zhengyi Miao Wei: Ding-Middle promoted to Yi-Lower; founded Dao Alliance, human destiny calculation in progress... Human destiny shall flourish for five thousand years, with three Nascent Soul positions established: promoted to Jia-Lower."

"Teaching task overall evaluation — Jia-Lower, total reward: twenty thousand moral points."

"Because the Qiong Ming World now holds the time traveler's lineage, each mission cycle provides two hundred moral points as teaching moral, until the lineage is extinguished."

The hundred moral points from the main quest reward are given to everyone.

The side quest of slaying the Five Demon Kings counts total contribution; since Brother Qian Chen was the primary force behind defeating the Wise Wolf King, White Bone King, and Dragon Tree King, he directly received one hundred moral points; in the faction quest, most demon time travelers were slain by Brother Qian Chen and Sister Ning, who split a reward of two hundred forty thousand merit points, equivalent to eighty moral points; from the commissioned quest, he earned four hundred moral points—totaling five hundred eighty moral points.

Compared to last mission's three thousand moral points per person, the gains are much less.

But the real windfall was the hidden teaching task triggered by sparing the Kong Que, which directly awarded Brother Qian Chen seven thousand moral points based on total contribution.

After settlement, Seeing Yan Shu fell silent.

Ning Ning Qingchen widened her eyes, pulling up the exchange list and staring in awe. Si Princess Qingcheng was utterly stunned; she counted the numbers once... then counted again, exclaiming in delight: "Just the hidden quest awarded five thousand moral points? Has the Lord of Reincarnation turned into a benevolent benefactor?"

"I did nothing and still got four thousand," Seeing Yan Shu said, eyes like bronze bells, breathing heavily: "The Qiong Ming lineage now grants two hundred moral points per cycle as teaching merit."

Seeing Yan Shu turned and slapped Brother Qian Chen's shoulder hard, exhilarated: "Young brother, you were right not to kill the Kong Que — you've hit the jackpot!"

"After all, they're blood relatives..." Brother Qian Chen wiped his tear-filled eyes, sighing: "An extra payment is only fair."

He sighed: "Completing a hidden task isn't simple. Defeating the Kong Que was already nearly impossible; you had to defeat but not kill, capture her alive, to trigger the hidden task. Just that one hurdle is worth at least seven thousand moral points. The subsequent teaching task — had we not considered Qiong Ming's future, merely preached briefly and left, the lineage we left behind would have had no impact. So another seven thousand moral points are mine for founding the Dao Alliance and establishing order in Qiong Ming..."

"Then what about the last six thousand?" Seeing Yan Shu asked curiously.

"Those last six thousand likely come from the Human Faction's reward for our Dao Alliance transmitting the Heavenly Court's laws, integrating them into the order established by the Primordial Dao Ancestor — it's good to lean on a big tree!"

Brother Qian Chen turned and smiled at Si Princess Qingcheng: "It's not that the Lord of Reincarnation has become generous—this mission's reward didn't come from him at all, but from the Human Faction. Only insiders are this generous! From the faction quests and rewards so far, the Reincarnation Realm clearly has several factions: Human, Demon... even Buddhist, Demon Dao, and Daoist factions likely have their own representatives within the Reincarnation Realm."

"If that's true..." Brother Qian Chen drew a deep breath: "Your father's got serious wealth."

Si Princess Qingcheng blinked, then realized: "Brother, you mean my father might be part of the Daoist Faction..."

"At least one of its leaders."

Brother Qian Chen said: "Our task is to slay demons and eradicate evil, upholding the righteous path. Your father's task might be establishing Daoist sects across worlds, transmitting the Three Mountains lineage! Just one Qiong Ming World gives two hundred moral points per cycle. If he completes a hundred or so, his 'salary' from each Human Faction mission might exceed our total earnings from this mission."

"No wonder it's called moral—among known rewards, good virtue is literally earned by performing good deeds. Merit involves maintaining cosmic balance and the Reincarnation Realm's own interests. Moral, however, is the reward for establishing systems, incorporating other worlds into the Reincarnation Realm, and transmitting lineage and teachings."

"Good virtue changes one person; merit changes an era; moral is the most enduring — it changes a lifetime, even generations."

Seeing Yan Shu hesitated: "Then, young brother, should we change our ways and focus on building moral?"

"Had we not, by chance, come to a world torn by human-demon crisis, how could we have encountered such a task?"

Brother Qian Chen shook his head slightly: "Below Nascent Soul, focus on slaying demons and evil. Establishing merit, words, and virtue — these are matters for Nascent Soul and above. Without this slaughter to cleanse everything, how could we unify a world's legacy and establish a lineage?"

Seeing Yan Shu exhaled in relief — he still preferred the swift, clean strike of a sword against demons and monsters; he truly didn't want to laboriously teach disciples in every world.

Si Princess Qingcheng pointed to the cloud terrace before them: "Enough talk—let's move part of our side's Void Cloud Terrace here and establish our team's base!"

Seeing Yan Shu and Si Princess Qingcheng temporarily opened the door and left. Brother Qian Chen, however, replanted the Karmic Fire Lotus into the Pinghu Lake. Ning Ning Qingchen carefully cradled the golden egg transformed from Master Feng and placed it atop the lotus.

Brother Qian Chen observed the golden egg's rhythm of absorbing spiritual energy and said to Ning Ning Qingchen: "In about ten years, Master Feng's bloodline will complete its transformation. With the Reincarnation Space's time flow ten times faster than the Earth Immortal Realm, that's only one year in Earth Immortal time."

Ning Ning Qingchen bowed gratefully: "Thank you, Elder Brother!"

Brother Qian Chen sighed faintly. Ning's heart tightened again; she asked anxiously: "Is there still some hidden danger? Why do you sigh like that?" Brother Qian Chen shook his head: "This danger is extremely perilous — you won't be able to handle it."

Ning Ning Qingchen worried: "I still have five thousand moral points — surely..."

Brother Qian Chen cut her off: "After Master Feng's bloodline transforms, she'll be nearly an ancient spirit beast. Even as a big yellow chicken, she eats so much — if she becomes a true phoenix, her appetite will be ten times greater. I'm genuinely worried about your purse!"

Ning Ning Qingchen feigned annoyance: "Why are you so teasing, Elder Brother?"

"You're the one who started being polite..." Brother Qian Chen laughed heartily: "And from my experience, even six hundred moral points can't feed a few pigs. Look at these four-legged gold-eating beasts!" He pointed to the four spirit deer resembling white deer, then to the Ear God and the Gold-Silver Children sprinting wildly through the paradise, chasing the pitiful ginseng child: "And these two-legged gold-devouring monsters!"

Brother Qian Chen looked pityingly and shook his head: "Sister, you can barely feed yourself — how will you feed Master Feng, this bottomless pit?"

Ning Ning Qingchen smiled: "Then you feed her for me!"

The two locked eyes.

After all three had formed Golden Cores, Ning Ning Qingchen's faint insecurity and tension dissolved silently in that gaze. Brother Qian Chen simply used this method to dispel the excessive pride born from her self-perception as a lone cultivator.

Brother Qian Chen and Seeing Yan Shu had always respected Ning's pride, yet hoped she'd accept their support. After forming Golden Cores, Ning had grown quiet; after Master Feng's injury, even more so.

Seeing Yan Shu felt his words clumsy, so feigned an excuse to leave, letting Brother Qian Chen resolve Ning's lingering unease.

Ning Ning Qingchen sat by the lake, dipping her feet in, washing her jade soles, smiling: "Elder Brothers treat me so well!"

"There you go again with the politeness," Brother Qian Chen said, propping his head in his hands, gazing upward: "A Dao companion is meant to be like this, isn't it? Walking the Dao alone is too hard and lonely. Even the Supreme Dao Ancestor needed two companions to support each other — why should we pretend to be so strong?"

"After emerging from the Kong Que's belly, you gained Yin-Yang Qi and the Five-Colored Divine Light — did you form your Jin Dan?" Ning Ning Qingchen asked.

Brother Qian Chen's face twisted slightly; he countered: "Sister, can a person have two Golden Cores?"

Ning Ning Qingchen stared in shock: "The Dao is singular — the Jin Dan is the convergence of essence, energy, and spirit, the vessel for the soul. How could there be two? Unless one isn't a Jin Dan at all — did you take the Kong Que's Five-Colored Divine Light and form a Jin Dan for it? You're mother and child now — you two are quite the pair..."

Brother Qian Chen looked aghast: "Who's this filthy demon? Give me back my Sister Ning!"

After laughing and teasing, Brother Qian Chen explained: "My soul's true spirit, due to another encounter, is lodged within a spiritual treasure — this blocks my Jin Dan formation. Thus, these two Golden Cores are bodily cores, not anchored to my soul's true spirit. One could say I've formed them — or not. They're two 'core heads' I've cultivated, to be refined later via the Brother Huan Dan method, nine turns and nine returns, to awaken the spiritual treasure and use it as my vessel for true Jin Dan formation."

Ning Ning Qingchen sighed: "Spiritual treasures are like Nascent Souls — are you pre-advancing your Nascent Soul avatar cultivation?"

"I've begun to understand how to form my Jin Dan. Affairs in the Central Lands are too complex and too deeply entangled with my karmic ties. I intend to travel beyond the seas, to find Elder Brother Yan, and use the abundant resources there to truly form my Jin Dan. Will you come with me?" Brother Qian Chen invited.

Ning Ning Qingchen nodded slightly: "I've long heard the lands beyond the seas differ from the Central Lands — I've wanted to see them. Elder Brother Brother Qian, then — beyond the seas?"

Above, the golden sun crow floated and sank; in the void of the cloud terrace, a portal suddenly appeared.

Immediately, a patch of Void Cloud Terrace dozens of li in size, crowned with countless strange metals rising like peaks, erupted with a thunderous roar from the portal and merged into the paradise. Another patch, hundreds of li wide, featuring green hills, clear waters, and abundant spiritual energy—containing a mid-grade spiritual vein—also emerged from another portal, slowly approaching the Pinghu Paradise.

Amid the violent tremors of the Void Cloud Terrace, the paradise expanded a thousand li, nearly reaching the rank of a top-tier paradise, rivaling the accumulated lands of Central Lands clans.

"That largest patch—it must be Sister Si's Void Cloud Terrace!"

Brother Qian Chen pointed to the newly merged paradise, sighing: "I saw it on the Lord of Reincarnation's exchange list—a balanced Five-Element spiritual peak paradise. Just the theme background cost two thousand moral points. She added a spiritual vein, thirty-six spirit springs, a cloud-emerging zone, a cloud-top thunder pool, and purchased a spiritual plant package..."

He himself felt a pang of envy, grumbling: "How much did Sister Si make the Lord of Reincarnation lose? When it comes to wasting money, I'm left in the dust... Having a father is great..."

Si Princess Qingcheng flew from that paradise, circling midair, laughing: "Elder Brother, now our base rivals my family's Jade Spring Mountain paradise. Of course, it still falls short of my father's Earth Lung Cave Heaven... but now we can plant Green Jade Qianyuan Grain! But this spirit grain needs thunder essence irrigation — this thunder pool can only support five hundred mu... Too bad Purple-Wave Dragon Tooth Rice requires dragon vein nourishment."

Si Princess Qingcheng pulled some grain seeds from her waist pouch, hesitated a moment, then decisively opened the exchange list.

Brother Qian Chen quickly stopped her: "Enough! Sister, don't waste any more! We all know how Master Tao can squeeze coins out of stones..."

Si Princess Qingcheng looked up: "One thunder pool is only two hundred moral points — we'll earn it back quickly!"

Brother Qian Chen summoned a blue heavenly hand from his crown, channeling all remaining thunder essence from the Inner Scene True Pill into the cloud-top thunder pool, then mastered the Five Thunders, unleashing a Purple Celestial Thunder. Pure purple lightning descended from the void, expanding the one-mu pool a hundredfold into a hundred-mu Bagua thunder pool, shimmering with countless flashes of lightning.

He retracted the Primordial Qi Grasping Hand, exhaled deeply — just in time to stop this spending titan.

"Sister! Master Tao isn't easy — when you formed your Jin Dan realm, how many true talismans did you use? Then you fought the Kong Que... give Master Tao some breathing room!"

Si Princess Qingcheng tilted her head, puzzled: "My father draws one true talisman with a flick of his brush! And every time he tests our progress, he collects ten or so from the senior brothers. He doesn't want them — he gives them all to me. So every time I return to Jùqū Mountain, I get a huge pile..."

"Have pity on your elder brothers!" Brother Qian Chen said with deep sympathy.

Seeing Yan Shu arrived, sword in hand, glanced at the vastly expanded paradise, and laughed: "Stop feeling sorry for others! With a paradise this big, how many mu of spirit fields can you open? Can you even process all the spirit herbs you'll harvest, Young Brother?"

Brother Qian Chen smiled: "This time, have the Lord of Reincarnation refine the Supreme Eight Scenery Furnace into a magic treasure—then it can brew spirit pills automatically, without me managing it!"

He declared boldly: "From now on, any pill below the first transformation, no matter how simple, we'll have as many as we want."

"I created the Five Elements Mountain and emptied all my pills—but from the Great Kong Que King, besides the divine weapon Phoenix Wing Purple Gold Cauldron, there are several other magic treasures. Had I not been unable to subdue it, I could've released it into the Reincarnation Realm to roam—its perfected Five-Colored Divine Light could've gathered countless magic treasures. Perfect as a treasure-bringing child!"

Brother Qian Chen sighed in anguish: "Alas! Fate is cruel! Let's divide the magic treasures and tally our gains from this mission..."