CHAPTER 555: VALUE OF MERIT POINTS

Han Yu saw the rune circle flared to life.

The light rippled outward in concentric rings, and for a moment, Han Yu felt a faint vibration in his spirit. His token pulsed, glowing faintly red before turning back to its usual dull hue.

The entire process lasted less than three seconds.

Han Yu removed the token, nodded once, and walked away. The attendant said nothing, already motioning for the next disciple to step forward.

Han Yu moved toward one of the nearby walls, away from the line. Once he was sure no one was paying attention, he infused a small amount of Qi into the token. His spiritual sense entered it, and new information appeared in his mind like a faint whisper.

The number floating at the center of the interface made him pause.

Merit Balance: 80,000 Points.

Han Yu blinked once. "Eighty thousand?" he murmured under his breath. "That’s... a lot. Or maybe it’s not?"

He frowned.

It was difficult to gauge the value. Merit points varied from sect to sect, and the Slaughtered Moon Divine Blood Sect was far older, larger, and more powerful than his former home. It was entirely possible their internal economy operated on a completely different scale.

Curious, Han Yu began walking along the outer walls of the hall, where massive stone plaques listed available goods and their prices in glowing red script.

The list was extensive.

It stretched from the floor to the ceiling, divided into categories: Basic Pills, Elixirs, Spiritual Herbs, Weapons, Materials, Artifacts, and more. Each item had a short description and a merit value beside it.

Han Yu started by checking the most basic items, just to establish a comparison.

"Qi Replenishing Pills," he murmured as his eyes skimmed the text.

In the Twin Leaf Peak Sect, those were a staple for every cultivator. They were the cheapest and most commonly traded item.

"Ten points per pill," he recalled from memory.

Here, the plaque listed them for one merit point each.

"One?" Han Yu whispered in disbelief. "That’s... one-tenth the price."

Was that because they were cheaper to make here? Or was it because the value of the sect’s merit points was simply that much higher? The thought made him uneasy.

He moved on, scanning the list for another familiar item.

"Red Top Ganoderma," he muttered when he found it. "Used in body-strengthening elixirs and healing brews. Ten grams costs about a hundred points back home."

Here, it was listed at fifty.

Han Yu crossed his arms, deep in thought. "So, some things are cheaper... but that might just mean they have a better supply of herbalists or access to richer materials."

He continued comparing items for several minutes, mentally tallying the prices.

Most basic materials and pills were significantly cheaper than in the Twin Leaf Peak Sect. But then, as he scrolled further down, he noticed something unusual, certain common items from his old sect were far more expensive here.

For instance, Azure Spirit Grass, a mild alchemical base that grew in abundance across the Great Continent, was priced at nearly two hundred points for just a handful. Han Yu raised an eyebrow.

"Two hundred for that grass?" he thought. "That’s absurd. I can get a whole kilo just by walking around the sect’s forest randomly."

But then he remembered; the Slaughtered Moon Divine Blood Sect was on the Blood Moon Continent, a completely different environment. Resources that were common back home might be rare here. The prices reflected that scarcity.

After another few minutes of comparison, Han Yu found a section of high-grade materials, and his eyes widened slightly at the prices.

The cheapest items in this category started at 10,000 merit points each.

He read a few aloud under his breath. "Corpse Moth Wings... Blood River Salamander Skin... Bone Ash Crystal Dust."

He had never heard of any of these before. But judging by the descriptions, they were materials used in blood-based cultivation techniques. Their rarity and the fact that they were highly prized by this sect explained their incredible cost.

He made a mental note not to stand out by purchasing anything unusual for now.

Then, one item in particular caught his attention.

Moon Blood Crystal – 5 Merit Points each.

Han Yu froze.

He blinked once, certain he had read it wrong, but no—it was there in bright red letters.

"Five merit points," he whispered. "For one crystal?"

His thoughts reeled. He had thousands of them stored away in his ring. Ju Fan had been hoarding them like they were common pebbles. Han Yu himself had already consumed several hundred in cultivation without thinking twice.

If each crystal was worth five points, he was sitting on a fortune.

And yet... something about it puzzled him.

When he had first entered the hall and glanced at the price boards from afar, he was certain the value listed had been four points.

"Wait," Han Yu thought, narrowing his eyes. "Did the price change?"

He focused his senses on the glowing formation that displayed the price. It pulsed faintly, like a living thing. The numbers seemed to shift slightly in hue, as though connected to an automated formation that adjusted values in real time.

Han Yu decided to test his theory.

He found a quiet corner of the hall and pretended to browse while observing the display from a distance. The disciples around him went about their business, completely unaware of his focus.

An hour passed, and when he looked again, his suspicion was confirmed.

The price had changed... from five points to six.

Han Yu exhaled softly. "So it’s a dynamic market," he murmured. "The value rises and falls with demand. The crystals must be in high circulation right now."

He watched as a few disciples purchased small pouches of Moon Blood Crystals from the attendants, handing over their merit tokens without question. Clearly, the crystals were considered an essential resource for cultivation here, much like spirit stones elsewhere.

That explained their fluctuating price.

Still, the realization left Han Yu with a quiet sense of unease.