After leaving Commander Li’s room, Su Yu bid farewell to his senior sister and the others and eagerly headed for the Merit Pavilion.

The Merit Pavilion was in the rear hall of the Government Office, and its entrance was heavily guarded. Behind the counter sat a vigorous, sharp-eyed old man with a goatee.

"Elder, I’ve come to claim my merit points," Su Yu said, handing over his Token.

"Ah, so you’re Su Yu. The younger generation is truly impressive. My name is Tian Mo, and I am the one in charge of this Merit Pavilion."

Tian Mo seemed to know of Su Yu. After briefly inspecting his Token, he returned it and handed over a heavy, dark gold-colored book. "Su Yu, you currently have five thousand merit points in your account. Have a look and see what you’d like to exchange them for."

Su Yu accepted the book and opened it to the first page. A line of small text met his eyes:

"Merit points circulate internally within the Law Enforcement Team to reward those who have rendered meritorious service. They can be exchanged for rare treasures, supreme techniques..."

He quickly flipped to the elixir list:

"Elixirs: Red Ginseng Jade Skin Pill, exchange price: 5 points. For those just starting on the path of Martial Arts. Strengthens Qi and Blood, and toughens the skin."

"Elixirs: Black Scale Blood Orifice Pill, exchange price: 15 points. For the cultivation of Martial Artists at the First Acupoint Realm. Enhances Qi and Blood."

"..."

"Elixirs: Red Jade Pill, exchange price: 5,000 points. Can help those at the Third Acupoint Perfection realm break through the bottleneck to the Flesh Refining Realm."

A flicker of shock passed through Su Yu’s eyes as he looked at the list of redeemable elixirs.

Although the variety of elixirs in the Merit Pavilion wasn’t extensive, they were all practical treasures. Moreover, redeeming them with merit points was extremely cost-effective.

For example, the Red Ginseng Jade Skin Pill he had taken before cost at least ten taels of silver per pill on the market, but here, it was only five merit points.

The Black Scale Blood Orifice Pill he was currently taking was a full thirty taels of silver per pill on the market.

However, his master now provided him with elixirs every month, so he wasn’t in short supply for the time being.

’That Red Jade Pill is a great item, too. It can actually help someone break through the bottleneck to the Flesh Refining Realm.’ He knew that items capable of helping one break through a bottleneck were always the main attractions at auctions in places like the Four Seas Chamber of Commerce, fetching astronomical prices.

’But here, you can redeem it directly!’

’But it’s useless to me. What I want is the Bone Marrow Cleansing and Bone Forging Pill that can improve one’s innate potential!’

He quickly continued flipping through the pages. When he reached the end, he still hadn’t found it.

’It’s not listed here. Why is that?’

’But my senior sister said she’d heard news about this pill being available.’

Su Yu’s brow furrowed. He set down the book and looked at Tian Mo, who was leisurely sipping his tea. "Elder Tian, I have a question. I heard that the team has a precious pill for improving one’s innate potential available for exchange, so why isn’t it in this book...?"

Tian Mo paused mid-sip. He glanced at Su Yu but said nothing.

Su Yu understood the unspoken message. His eyes darted around, and seeing no one nearby, he swiftly pulled a ten-tael silver note from his robes and slid it silently across the desk.

"Elder Tian, I’m new here. I would be grateful if you could offer some guidance."

Tian Mo calmly placed the book on top of the silver note, a smile spreading across his old face. "Captain Su is a sharp one, indeed. I most enjoy associating with youngsters like you who understand the way things work."

He lowered his voice. "The items listed in this book aren’t the full inventory. Some of the best things are in limited supply and would cause too much envy, so the higher-ups haven’t decided on the specific quotas yet."

"If they offer too few, they’re afraid you’ll all be at each other’s throats for them, leading to internal conflict. If they offer too many... well, the items themselves are too scarce. Balancing everyone’s interests isn’t so easy."

Su Yu nodded and whispered, "Do you know how many of those Bone Marrow Cleansing and Bone Forging Pills the higher-ups will ultimately make available as rewards? And how many merit points would one cost?"

Tian Mo stroked his beard. "This pill can improve one’s innate potential. The weaker the potential, the more significant the improvement. It is an absolute treasure. Even among Mystic-grade Elixirs, it is a top-tier item. Countless Noble Descendants have their eyes on it! I’ll give you the inside scoop: next year, the Pavilion will offer one at most. As for the price..."

He held up five fingers and wiggled them. "At least... fifty thousand points!"

Fifty thousand points!

Su Yu’s heart gave a violent lurch. The pill’s value was even higher than he had imagined!

His salary as a captain was only a little over one thousand points per year!

’To save up fifty thousand points... wouldn’t that take forty or fifty years?’

Even if he managed to perform a major meritorious deed like this one every single year to earn five thousand points, it would still take at least several years—and that was being optimistic!

’Is this damned thing even meant to be redeemed by anyone?’

At this thought, he couldn’t help but feel a pang of envy for Cui Wanhe. To think that for becoming the Martial Examination Champion Scholar, he had directly received a Bone Marrow Cleansing and Bone Forging Pill!

’It’s a shame I started Martial Arts so late. I was only at the First Acupoint level during the Martial Examination. There was no way I could have taken the title of Martial Examination Champion Scholar!’

’As for next year, it’s uncertain if there will even be a Martial Examination, or if the champion would be rewarded with such a precious pill again.’

’Besides, this year was special with the establishment of the Law Enforcement Team. He speculated that next year’s Martial Examination most likely wouldn’t be the grand event it was this year.’

"Thank you, Elder Tian. Do you know when this pill will be added to the merit exchange list?"

"The exchange list will be updated early next year. It will most likely be added then!"

"Thank you for your honesty, Elder Tian." Su Yu took a deep breath to calm himself. ’Now that I know the price, it’s better than flying around blindly like a headless chicken.’

’But there’s no way I can gather fifty thousand merit points by early next year. I’ll just have to compete with even more people for it then!’

’Looks like I’ll have to take on more missions for the Law Enforcement Team to accumulate merit points.’

After getting the information he wanted about the pill, Su Yu continued to flip through the other sections of the book. He discovered there were indeed many good things in the Merit Pavilion.

Besides elixirs, there were also many Upper-tier Martial Arts, such as the Snow-Stepping Stance, the Blood Shadow Saber Technique, and the Sunset Spear...

There were also weapons, armor, and various Treasures of Heaven and Earth.

For example, precious fish and Flying Dragons could be redeemed, but the stock for these items was updated intermittently. Once they were gone, you just had to wait.

’I don’t lack elixirs or Cultivation Techniques right now. For weapons, Mo Yuan and the heavy water tungsten gold coins are sufficient for the time being. As for armor, since I practice the Black Stone Body Forging Skill, I have even less need for it.’

’By that logic, I should either save all my merit points, or exchange a portion of them for Treasures of Heaven and Earth to supplement my Qi and Blood and raise my Martial Arts cultivation as quickly as possible!’

’I could also redeem some special pills, like Hemostatic Pills, to keep on hand.’

"Elder Tian, I have one more question. I currently need to supplement my Qi and Blood for my training. I’m not sure what would be a suitable item to redeem for that purpose?"

A hint of approval appeared in Tian Mo’s eyes. He flipped to the middle of the book, his gaunt finger tapping a specific line. "This Red Essence Earth Dragon Porpoise meat is the most suitable. Although its effect on increasing Qi and Blood is much weaker than Flying Dragon Meat, a ten-catty portion only costs ten merit points. It’s the best value for your points."

Su Yu thought for a moment. "In that case, please redeem ten portions for me, Elder Tian. And a bottle of Qi Blood Pills as well..."

...

「Su Mansion, Front Courtyard.」

The winter sun, a welcome sight after a long spell of bad weather, fell upon the stone table in the corner.

Su Yu sat on a stone stool, gripping a massive bone the size of a washbasin and gnawing on it with gusto. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

The massive bone was from the Red Essence Earth Dragon Porpoise meat. He’d had Mu Ying simmer it over a low fire with a secret blend of spices for a full six hours, until the meat was tender and had absorbed all the flavor. Each bite was not only chewy and richly aromatic, characteristic of beast meat, but also sent a deep warmth down his throat and into the pit of his stomach.

As he continued to swallow the meat, his Martial Artist’s stomach, like a roaring furnace, began to churn wildly. It absorbed the potent Qi and Blood contained within the meat, transforming it into streams of heat that coursed through his limbs and body.

Before Su Yu’s eyes, ink-black text began to appear:

[Breakthrough Point Progress +0.1%]

[Breakthrough Point Progress +0.1%]

...

In a short while, he had finished all ten catties of beast meat. Su Yu rubbed his stomach, feeling full, and looked up to check his final Breakthrough Point progress.

[Breakthrough Points]: 0 (Progress 33.3%)

"Good stuff! It actually increased the progress by more than one percent!"

Su Yu’s eyes lit up. ’Just ten catties of this meat increased my progress by more than one percent. If I ate all one hundred catties, wouldn’t that increase my progress by over 10%?’

He quickly calculated in his head. ’In the past, one expensive precious fish only increased my progress by 5%. But one hundred catties of this beast meat only costs one hundred merit points from the Merit Pavilion and can increase it by around 10%. The value is incredible! From now on, I have to make sure I have a steady supply of this Earth Dragon Porpoise meat for every meal!’