Mythical Scroll Artist: Starting with the God of Wealth, Zhao Gongming

Chapter 470 The Zhao Family's Deficit of Merit

Speaking of which, after a person's lifespan is used up, do they die directly or do some unexpected event occur?

If the opportunity arises, I might try it on Zhao Qinghe.

Although misappropriating someone else's lifespan comes at a high price and damages one's own merits and spiritual cultivation, if the other party has done too many immoral things and their merits are negative, the cost of misappropriating their lifespan will be infinitely reduced.

If done properly, there may even be additional gains.

For example, those evil scroll painters have all become red names in the Book of Life and Death. Killing them can earn you some merit.

Of course, the evil god scroll maker cannot directly manipulate the Book of Life and Death.

After all, from the moment they became the scroll painters of the evil god, they had already betrayed everything to the evil god, or rather, they were no longer considered "human".

For such wicked beings, physical exorcism should be performed directly.

"Let me take a look at this kid's inclination towards good deeds."

As he spoke, he manipulated the Book of Life and Death to view Zhao Qinghe's detailed information. His eyes lit up, and he was also somewhat shocked.

It's not surprising that someone like Zhao Qinghe has negative merits; what's surprising is that he has a lot of negative merits.

It's the kind of loss that you couldn't recover even if you worked in the underworld for a year, and that's even with a lot of data missing from the Book of Life and Death.

The actual deficit in merit is only greater than it appears.

"Good heavens, how many heinous things has this kid done behind the scenes?" Wu Xian thought to himself, secretly alarmed.

It's important to understand that most people don't actually come into contact with bad deeds that damage one's merits, and ordinary bad deeds are unlikely to affect the hidden attribute of merits.

After all, it is difficult for ordinary people to access the power of "merit," which includes not only gaining merit but also losing merit.

Therefore, Zhao Qinghe or the entire Zhao family must have done something shady.

So the question is, how could such a person live to the age of ninety-one?

It would be unreasonable not to lend him some of his lifespan.

Next, Wu Xian checked the files of the other members of the Zhao family. Good heavens, their merit deficits were ridiculously high, especially those of the older members of the Zhao family, who were definitely at the level of being utterly wicked.

"Hiss~ What heinous things is the Zhao family up to behind the scenes?"

Wu Xian was deeply shocked. He knew the Zhao family was scoundrels, but he never imagined they were this scoundrels.

They tried to take a day of Zhao Qinghe's lifespan, and the cost was so slight that it was almost imperceptible.

Then I tried diverting a month's worth of money, which came at a negligible cost.

If the money is misappropriated for another year, the cost will be slightly more obvious, but it will still be within Wu Xian's acceptable range.

However, when Wu Xian tried to continue misappropriating the funds, he discovered that some kind of force seemed to be secretly protecting Zhao Qinghe's lifespan.

This power is not the power of the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth, but rather a covert protection of the power of Yin spirit laws.

"Interesting. Has the Zhao family's Izanami developed to this extent?"

It's obvious without even thinking that it must be the Izanami statue from the Zhao family, which has been passed down for thousands of years.

But the more this happened, the more Wu Xian wanted to misappropriate the funds.

"So what if you've been developing for a long time?" Wu Xian sneered, directly using a wisp of merit power to manipulate things. "Come on, try protecting me in front of merit power."

The moment Wu Xian invoked his merits, his actions were instantly enveloped by the power of the Great Dao.

This is equivalent to elevating the matter to the level of major legal sanctions, or directly taking it to the Supreme People's Court.

Izanami clearly wanted to cover it up in secret, but the moment she encountered that power, she quickly withdrew and fled like a frightened bird, as if she had seen a ghost.

Even though she stopped in time, she was still inevitably tainted by the power of merit and punishment, and perceived by the Great Dao.

The specifics are unclear, but it's definitely enough to keep her going.

The reason is that Wu Xian's power in the Underworld and the Book of Life and Death is not yet perfect, and the weight of various laws is limited. If the Underworld were to develop further, the Great Dao sanctions triggered by that little bit of merit would severely damage her vitality and impair her cultivation.

"What are you smirking about, Brother Wu?" Bai Shiqi asked, casting a questioning glance his way.

"Nothing, I just thought of something interesting."

Wu Xian snapped out of his daze and made up a casual excuse.

……

The Necropolis.

The Yellow Springs warships were vast and imposing, exuding an overwhelming aura of yin energy; those unaware of the situation might mistake them for soldiers participating in a military parade.

"Tsk tsk, interesting~ Are they all dead?"

Zhao Qinghe looked around at the dilapidated and bizarre battlefield of Yaoyang City, and felt a sense of schadenfreude.

I wonder how many people died at the Underworld Club?
“The situation is urgent,” an elder from a collateral branch of the Zhao family sighed. “Although it’s just a small city, it still has two or three million people. It’s a real pity that so many unclaimed souls are left unclaimed.”

As they spoke, Zhao Qinghe and the others began to use their mysterious power to gather the wandering souls throughout Yaoyang City.

However, the situation before them left them completely bewildered.

"Hmm? So many people have died, where are their spirits?" Zhao Qinghe asked with a strange expression. "Why can we only sense a few scattered spirits?"

An elder from a collateral branch of the Zhao family frowned and analyzed, "Could it be that they were lured away by that Abyss Demon Lord?"

"What a pity," Zhao Qinghe sighed regretfully.

Although I felt frustrated, there was nothing I could do.

In the past, we could only pick up scraps from the loopholes and gaps in the upper framework. We finally waited until the upper framework was over and a blue ocean opened up, but unfortunately, a demon lord from the abyss appeared.

Fortunately, the Abyss Demon Lord's control was not comprehensive, and he could not cover many areas.

This also gave the Zhao family a good opportunity for development.

Meanwhile, a large army from the Necropolis also joined the disaster relief efforts.

Although I didn't really want to put in the effort, I still had to do the outward appearances well, since there were quite a few war correspondents from various media outlets on board the warship.

"Please make me look handsome in the photos."

Zhao Qinghe's elegant demeanor captivated the female war correspondent, who stared at him with infatuation.

Immediately, the divine image above his head unfolded, unleashing its full power, and he charged righteously towards the bloody battlefield below.

"Damn evil gods and flesh-and-blood monsters, Zhao Qinghe of the Necromancer's Guild is here—!"

I must say, Zhao Qinghe's acting skills are quite good.

Facing all sorts of bizarre and fleshy monsters, he fought valiantly, like a great warrior shouldering the mission of saving the world.

However, those flesh-and-blood monsters were too troublesome, and their undead scrolls were really difficult to deal with.

Only the most useful are the monster scrolls featuring ferocious and brutal monsters.

"Isn't this Brother Qinghe?" A young man flew over from not far away, easily slaying a large number of flesh and blood monsters by controlling two powerful beast-type scrolls. "I could see the power of your Necromancer's Gym from afar."

"..." Zhao Qinghe's forehead went black. "Why is Brother Liu Chao not in your Dengfeng Dojo team? What is he doing here?"

"I just stopped by to say hello?" Liu Chao from the Peak Gym joked, "If you ask me, your Necromancer Gym is still a bit too one-dimensional. Necromancer scrolls aren't very useful here."

Zhao Qinghe was certainly aware of this, and in fact, he had no intention of putting in any real effort.

But Liu Chao's sudden mockery and smugness really made him feel uncomfortable.

"I heard Brother Bai is here too? Why didn't I see him come?"

Zhao Qinghe abruptly changed the subject, striking at the other party's weak point. They were all from prominent families and knew each other very well.

If you come here to show off, don't blame me for hitting your sore spot.

Upon hearing this, Liu Chao's expression visibly stiffened, and he said irritably, "That guy disappeared as soon as he arrived. He doesn't look like he's going to do anything serious. Sooner or later, I'll crush him under my feet."

"Really?" Zhao Qinghe joked. "I don't think so."

"..." Liu Chao's face darkened, then he suddenly remembered something and immediately launched a counterattack: "Oh right, it seems he went to find that kid named Wu Xian. I heard that Brother Qinghe was bullied quite a bit by that kid at the Mechanical Dojo?"

Zhao Qinghe's face instantly turned ashen.

This exchange of blows vividly illustrates the saying "hurting the enemy a thousand while losing eight hundred of your own."

Seeing that they couldn't agree on anything, Liu Chao didn't linger and prepared to head to other battlefields.

Just then, two figures were seen charging through the vast horde of demons.

In an instant, their expressions turned serious and distorted.

Liu Chao stared intently at Bai Shiqi, a hint of malice and resentment lurking within him.

Zhao Qinghe stared intently at Wu Xian, gritting his teeth, and also harboring a bit of psychological trauma.

Of course, this is not the point.

The key point is that Wu Xian and Bai Shiqi's amazing performance at this moment truly dazzled the two of them, as well as the crowd of people in the nearby Undead Dojo.

The war correspondents who came along also immediately turned their cameras toward Wu Xian and Bai Shiqi.

There was no way around it; the sight of the two of them sweeping through the enemy lines was simply too shocking.

In contrast, the performance of the Necropolis Gym was like children playing house; it was on a completely different level.

"Good heavens, they're eating flesh and blood monsters one bite at a time? Without even chewing!"

"The thing is, that head is way too big! It looks so fierce and imposing!"

"I've never heard of Shiraishi Sai having such a monster scroll? Is it a new work?"

"It's like a countermeasure card tailor-made for this disaster."

"Really? It's only been a short time since the disaster, and they've already come up with a new work specifically targeting it?"

"It seems the rumors are true; Shiraishi Qi is indeed the most outstanding new generation at the Peak Dojo!"

Hearing the whispers around him, Liu Chao was almost unrecognizable.

But more than anything, people were shocked by Shiraishi Sai's two new scroll paintings.

Although he had prepared many trump cards before coming, it seemed unnecessary to reveal them in the face of the terrifying performance of the giant bug and the big mouth.

How the hell can you even compare these?
The two monster scrolls ate the monsters like they were eating sunflower seeds, crunching them one after another.

No other scroll can compare.

At least in dealing with flesh-and-blood monsters, these two scrolls have undoubtedly reached the pinnacle.

No, it should be three statues.

The beast scrolls controlled by Wu Xian were just as outrageous, even more so than Bai Shiqi's two.

The entire beast consisted of a head and a mouth, and it ravenously ate everything in sight, like a mad dog, trying to devour anything it saw.

"Young Master Zhao, it's been a long time!"

Wu Xian, joking and laughing, rushed up to the two of them, naturally making a mocking remark about Zhao Qinghe.

These used to be lines spoken by the villains on Zhao Qinghe's side, but now the roles have reversed.

Kou can be mocked, and so can I.

Zhao Qinghe's face was contorted, but he had to pretend to be calm, after all, all the live broadcast cameras were filming him.

"I truly didn't expect that Young Master Zhao would put aside our personal grievances and support Yaoyang City," Wu Xian said righteously and emotionally. "On behalf of the people of Yaoyang City, I express my sincere gratitude to you!"

Although the Zhao family may harbor ill intentions towards the Xue family, their support for the disaster area is still a helping hand.

Let's flatter him first.

"Cough cough..." Zhao Qinghe's expression was strange, he was at a loss for words. "It's only right, evil gods are the enemy of mankind, and also the enemy of our Necromancer's Guild."

"And who is this?" Wu Xian turned to Liu Chao beside him.

In fact, Bai Shiqi had already introduced him to the place on the way there.

The Liu family of Dengfeng Dojo is a prodigy, and together with Bai Shiqi, they are known as the twin stars of Dengfeng Dojo.

He's not inherently bad, but his mentality is unstable and he's a bit jealous.

Because he was constantly overshadowed by Shiraishi Qi, his mentality became somewhat distorted.

She's perfectly normal when Bai Shiqi isn't around, but as soon as she sees him, she's like a completely different person, acting like a total kid.

Based on his personality alone, he is not suitable to take over the Peak Dojo in the future.

Therefore, Shiraishi Sai never regarded him as a threat or a competitor.

"This is Liu Chao, the prodigy of the Liu family of my Dengfeng Martial Arts Academy," Bai Shiqi introduced, feigning seriousness. "Strange, Brother Liu, what brings you here? How's the battle going over there?"

"Hmph, you even know about our side?" Liu Chao's words were like he'd swallowed gunpowder, but fortunately, Bai Shiqi was already used to it.

Bai Shiqi chuckled, "Wasn't he off helping our disaster relief team figure out a strategy?"

"A solution? Those two monster scrolls?" Liu Chao was stunned. "Made on the spot?"

"That's not it," Bai Shiqi explained. "It was all prepared before I came. It was just that, on Brother Wu's advice and recommendation, I met with Senior Lu of the Divine Beast Dojo and underwent a bloodline structure implantation and modification."

The results were surprisingly good, and I plan to distribute these two scrolls to our rescue team.

"Senior Lu? Bloodline power implantation?"

Liu Chao's eyes flashed with surprise, and he seemed to be having some unusual thoughts.

I'll talk to my elders about it and suggest taking him to pay his respects to the late Master Lu. Perhaps that will lead to some positive development.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Liu Chao also mentioned the situation that the main force of Dengfeng Dojo was facing.

"Currently, our main force has encountered an evil god scroll maker, and one who is very famous on the bounty list," Liu Chao said seriously. "We can suppress him for now, but there is a problem. With the blessing of the evil god, that guy seems to be unkillable."

"Can't be killed?" Bai Shiqi frowned.

“That’s right,” Liu Chao said, “The power of the flesh and blood earth beneath our feet is endless, and so is that guy’s power.”

Wu Xian nodded and said, "At present, those evil god servants are indeed impossible to kill. I encountered one before."

"Can't I even eat it?" Shiraishi asked, puzzled.

“No,” Wu Xian shook his head. “Even if they are eaten, they can be reborn from the earth.”

"Hiss~ So, if the Demon God doesn't die, they won't die?" Bai Shiqi gasped in shock.

"At present, yes." Wu Xian said helplessly, "The best way now is to find a way to trap them, or simply ignore them."

Then, led by Liu Chao, they headed towards the main team of the Dengfeng Dojo.

Out of curiosity, Zhao Qinghe followed.

When the war correspondents heard about this, they naturally followed along with great interest.

(End of this chapter)