Chapter 17: Equipment Crush, Physical Transcendence!

"Fire Manipulation Skill?"

"What is that?"

At that moment, a unique power spread through Xu Yang's body and mind.

Simultaneously, the system attribute panel began to change.

[Name]: Xu Yang

[Age]: 22 years old

[Daoist Arts]: Divine Ascension Scripture

[Daoist Skills]: Fire Manipulation Skill

[Cultivation]: Qi Refining Realm Triple Stage

[Magic Item]: None at the moment

[Merit Points]: 114 points.

[Storage Space]: 10 cubic yards

Compared to before, there's now an added [Daoist Skills] section on the attribute panel.

Moreover, behind the [Daoist Skills] section, the words "Fire Manipulation Skill" appeared.

"Daoist skills, Fire Manipulation Skill... Turns out what I get from scaring ghosts isn't just merit points; I can also gain their abilities."

Xu Yang had an epiphany.

SNAP!

He snapped his fingers.

A small flame emerged at his fingertip.

However, the flame was minimal, similar to that of a lighter; it was extinguished as soon as the wind blew.

But Xu Yang was incredibly excited.

These Daoist skills should only be learned when one reaches the realm of Daoism. He never thought he'd master it at just the Triple Stage of Qi Refining Realm!

It doesn't matter if the flames are small. Scare a few more fire ghosts, and naturally, they'll become stronger. The key is that there's a small "+" icon after the "Fire Manipulation Skill." That means if I have enough merit points, I can increase its power!

With this thought, the fear towards the fire ghost in Xu Yang's heart disappeared. He laughed while holding the peachwood sword, "A mere Minor Demon dares to be presumptuous before me, a Daoist Master?"

"Die!"

Instead of retreating, Xu Yang stepped forward and stabbed the fire ghost with his sword.

SWISH!

The fire ghost's flames surged wildly, and it spat out a large stream of fire from its mouth like a magic trick.

Xu Yang was alarmed!

It can spit fire?

The flames swept over him like a vast wave. Xu Yang's first reaction was to protect his face.

And so he did.

He raised the peachwood sword horizontally to block his face.

BOOM!

The flames engulfed Xu Yang, completely covering him.

"Uncle..."

"Uncle?"

Wang Xiaomao sobbed, "Uncle, why did you just die like this..."

When the fire faded away, Xu Yang stood in place, still holding the sword across his face, unharmed.

"Huh?"

"I'm fine?"

He lowered his sword, looked at his body in amazement, and even turned around to find no burn marks.

"I knew it!"

"Grandpa was a big shot; his peachwood sword and Daoist talisman are treasures. How could this Daoist Robe be ordinary?"

"It seems this robe has fire-resistant abilities."

With a flash of thoughts, Xu Yang laughed, "Minor Demon, what other tricks do you have? Bring it on! If I even frown, I'm not a real man!"

STOMP, STOMP, STOMP!

The fire ghost took three steps back in fright, and the horror in its empty eye sockets deepened!

"DING!"

"The fire ghost is frightened; +10 merit points, Fire Manipulation Skill +1."

"DING!"

"The fire ghost is frightened; +10 merit points, Fire Manipulation Skill +1."

Listening to the system's notification, Xu Yang became more arrogant, "Come at me!"

STOMP, STOMP, STOMP!

The fire ghost retreated another three steps.

Its back crashed into the wall, and with a poof, it turned into a bunch of ghostly flames and disappeared without a trace!

Xu Yang wasn't done earning Merit Points yet, so how could he let it escape?

In three or two steps, he reached the wall and pasted a Daoist talisman on it with a flip of his hand.

Hum!

As the talisman landed on the wall,

The whole wall emitted a burst of flames, and the fire ghost tumbled out of the wall the next moment, falling at Xu Yang's feet.

"Spare me!"

"Spare me, Daoist Master!"

The flames on its body had mostly extinguished, leaving only some scattered sparks sputtering and black smoke billowing as it kneeled on the ground and continued kowtowing.

???

Xu Yang raised an eyebrow.

It was kneeling and kowtowing, but why didn't it provide him with any Merit Points?

He thrust his peachwood sword forward, stopping the sword tip just three inches away from the fire ghost's forehead, and asked loudly, "Aren't you afraid of me?"

"Afraid, afraid..."

The fire ghost hastily said, "Daoist Master's power is boundless, how can a Minor Demon not be afraid?"

"Ding!"

"The fire ghost is frightened, Merit Points +10, Fire Manipulation Skill +1."

"Ding... "

After several system notifications, Xu Yang finally felt satisfied and sneered, "In that case, you can be more frightened for a while!"

"..."

The fire ghost was dumbfounded, looking up at Xu Yang and forgetting to continue kowtowing.

"Damn it!"

"What are you looking at?"

"Keep kowtowing!"

This fire ghost had caused the deaths of four children and a teacher. It deserved to die. How could Xu Yang be lenient to it?

He swung his peachwood sword horizontally, intending to teach the fire ghost a lesson with the flat side...

However,

The fire ghost's head directly exploded.

Immediately after, its body also shattered, and a weak ghostly figure flew out. Wang Xiaomao and the four children shouted excitedly, "Teacher... Teacher!"

The shattered fire ghost figure did not reassemble as Xu Yang had anticipated. Instead, it turned into specks of fire and scattered into the air.

"Ding!"

"Congratulations, you are rewarded for helping souls to transcend: Merit Points +100."

Xu Yang: "..."

He was a bit stunned.

What...

What just happened?

Did I just casually slap that fire ghost to death?

Is it that the fire ghost is too weak, or am I too strong?

Xu Yang did not know that the real power lies not within him but in the peachwood sword in his hand!

He was merely in the Qi Refining Third Layer, a cultivation base that is hardly strong enough to use most Dao skills. Normally, he would only have one fatal outcome if he encountered an evil ghost like a fire ghost!

But his "equipment" was too powerful!

The Daoist Robe he wore was from Grandpa, barely qualifying as ritual clothing, making it impervious to water, fire, and deterring malevolent beings!

The peachwood sword in his hand was even more remarkable, made from a thousand-year-old peach tree struck by lightning. It had been refined by his Grandpa's profound cultivation and Daoist skills, and had been used for years to subdue ghosts and demons. How could ordinary ghosts withstand the peachwood sword?

Then there was that Daoist talisman just now.

Xu Yang didn't understand the value of it!

Using it to deal with the fire ghost was like using a cannon to kill a mosquito.

Although he didn't activate the talisman's power, merely pasting it on the wall inflicted significant damage on the fire ghost!

Didn't you see that when the fire ghost fell out of the wall, its flames were nearly extinguished?

So, with just a light slap with the peachwood sword, the weakened and injured fire ghost was directly annihilated!

"That fire ghost had killed five people and was clearly not weak."

"But, I only began practicing Daoism today and am only at the Qi Refining Third Layer..."

Xu Yang quickly realized this and put away the peachwood sword into his storage space, carefully peeling off the talisman from the wall.

Meanwhile,

Another doubt rose in his mind.

"The system just said... that I was rewarded for helping souls to transcend?"

"So, killing the fire ghost counts as helping it transcend?"

Could this be...

The legendary process of physical transcendence?