315: Chapter 250: Battle Merit Exchange, Epic Cards Acquired

The effect of the Advanced medical pod was truly extraordinary. Under the continuous efforts of pure life essence, the Order source crystal force field, and the legion's top medical priests, the injuries of Lin Zhou and his teammates were recovering at a speed far exceeding the norm.

Three days later, the surface of the hideous wound on Lin Zhou's back had healed, leaving only a pale red scar with faint, shimmering Law light. Over ninety percent of the internal erosion from the Law of Destruction had been purified, and the remaining trace had been completely Sealed, requiring his own Divine Power to slowly erode it during subsequent Cultivation.

His Divine Power had recovered to 38,000/60,000, his Soul trauma had basically subsided, and his thinking had returned to being sharp. What pleased him most was that, with the medical officer's special permission and assistance, he had returned to his God Kingdom at the consciousness level yesterday to use the [Rule Repair Crystal] gifted by the commander-in-chief to repair the damaged [Temple of Law].

That crystal, containing the pure Origin of Law, was indeed miraculous. Placing it at the core crack of the temple and guiding the Divine Power to activate it, the crystal turned into countless threads flowing with the radiance of Order. Like the most skillful craftsman, it precisely bridged the cracks, smoothed out the wrinkles of Law, and even triggered the Power Of Faith stored within the temple itself to perform a thorough "quenching" of the Law.

The entire process lasted a full day. When the last trace of the crack was replaced by pale golden Order textures, the entire [Temple of Law] not only recovered as before, but the Law fluctuations it emitted were even more stable and pure than before the damage, with faint signs of evolving to a higher level. The temple's functions were fully restored, the blessing of the [Law] divine office returned to its Peak, and perhaps because of this "breaking and then establishing," his understanding of Order seemed to have deepened a little.

[Temple of Law repair complete! Status: Intact (Law slightly strengthened).]

[divine office [Law] effect restored, slightly improved (understanding of Law deepened).]

The recovery of the others was also good. Zhao Hao's Red Dragon enjoyed top-tier treatment in the specialized Dragon healing room, its injuries were mostly healed, and its scales were glossier than ever. Wang Meng's Behemoth Warriors were thick-skinned and fleshy with astonishing recovery abilities, already capable of basic training. Li Mo and Qin Qing mainly suffered from excessive Divine Power consumption and slight Law tremors, but after treatment, they were no longer in any serious trouble.

By the fifth day, the five of them had basically recovered their combat effectiveness and were allowed to leave the medical center to return to their temporary residence at the base—an independent courtyard upgraded to the specifications of a "field-grade officer." The courtyard was equipped with basic training facilities, a meditation room, and a small conference room, and the environment was much better than the collective dormitories of the "Fledgling Eagle" cadets before.

After settling down, the first thing to do was naturally to count and exchange the final reward from this astonishing adventure—that whopping 100,000 points of war merit! This did not include the remaining balance from the previous Watchtower No. 7 mission (the squad had a total balance of about two thousand more points) and the fixed merit quota added monthly after promotion in military rank.

In the courtyard conference room, the five of them sat around again, but the atmosphere was completely different from when they discussed pooling money to buy the [divinity extraction device]. At that time, it was solemn, cautious, and carried the determination of burning their bridges. Now, it was excitement, anticipation, and a joy of "harvesting."

On Lin Zhou's personal tactical tablet, the merit number showed a heart-accelerating 102,150 (including the previous remaining balance and the fixed quota issued for the first time after promotion). Zhao Hao, Wang Meng, Li Mo, and Qin Qing also each had a considerable amount of merit (distributed according to the proportion of mission contribution, roughly between 15,000 and 25,000). Although it was far less than Lin Zhou's, it was enough to dazzle them.

"Alright, no more nonsense. Let's talk about what everyone wants to exchange for first to avoid conflicts and to advise each other." As the captain, Lin Zhou spoke first with a smile on his face. Although this mission was dangerous, the return was truly worthy of the effort.

Zhao Hao had long been unable to hold back and was the first to shout: "I want to exchange for the [Dragon blood Secret Realm]! I must! My Little Red (Red Dragon) was not lightly injured this time, but it was a blessing in disguise, and its Bloodline shows signs of loosening. If there is a high-quality Dragon blood environment to stimulate it, it might directly Awaken a trace of Ancient Dragon Bloodline! I can also go in and soak to strengthen my Physique!" He pulled up the exchange list and pointed to a card emitting purple light, with a pattern of a valley churning with magma and Dragon shadows.

[Epic Card: Dragon blood Secret Realm (Terrain/Resource)] Quality: Purple (Epic). Introduction: Seals a naturally formed Dragon blood deposit environment, which has been specially treated and can be safely integrated into the God Kingdom. The Secret Realm is filled with diluted and stabilized Dragon blood energy (leaning towards Fire and Strength types) and is accompanied by a small amount of resources such as dragon blood grass and dragon bone ore.

Effects: Dragon blood Bath: Non-Dragon type dependents entering the Secret Realm (must meet a certain Physique standard, recommended LV30 or above) can slowly absorb Dragon blood energy, permanently increasing Strength and Physique attributes (the increase is related to individual potential and stay time, usually 5-15 points), and slightly increasing flame resistance. The effect is better for Dragon type dependents, as it can purify the Bloodline, accelerate growth, and has a small probability of Awakening Bloodline skills.

Environmental Modification: After integrating into the God Kingdom, it can slightly change the surrounding environment (temperature rises, the land contains faint Dragon might), suitable for Fire or Strength type dependents to settle. Resource Output: Automatically generates a small amount of [Diluted Dragon blood Essence] (can be used to refine low-tier Physique potions) and [dragon blood grass] (excellent-grade medicinal material) daily.

Restrictions: The Secret Realm area is about 1 square kilometer, and the number of dependents it can accommodate at one time is limited (recommended not to exceed 100). Dragon blood energy has slight corrosiveness, and those with insufficient Physique or will may experience negative effects (irritability, loss of reason) if they stay for a long time. Non-Dragon type dependents need to wait at least seven days between each bath to digest the energy. Exchange Price: 30,000 war merit.

The price was high, but the effect was indeed tempting, especially for a deity like Zhao Hao who specialized in the Dragon type. Wang Meng scratched his head: "I'm not interested in those flashy Secret Realms. What the Behemoth Warriors need is real strength and tough equipment! I have my eye on a set of [Meteorite Heavy Armor Forging Blueprints (Rare)] and a batch of [Star Iron Ingots], which will cost about 18,000 merit in total. With the rest, I want to exchange for some general strengthening potions that can quickly improve the basic attributes of the Behemoth Warriors."

Li Mo pushed up his glasses, his eyes flashing with a desire for knowledge and the unknown: "I need a large amount of rare metals, energy crystals, and... [Advanced Energy Circuit Analysis Knowledge (Encrypted)]. In addition, subsequent research on that [divinity extraction device] will consume a lot of special Materials, so I will reserve a portion of the merit for this. It will cost about 22,000 points in total."

Qin Qing was concise: "Perfect the Judgment Angel Legion equipment, exchange for [Holy Inscription Engraving Method (Rare)] and supporting Materials, and strengthen the [Seal of Order]. It will need 12,000 points."

After everyone finished speaking, they looked at Lin Zhou. Lin Zhou had the most merit and the most choices. He already had a plan. "I have two main goals." Lin Zhou pulled up the list, "The first one, [Titan Remains]."

On the screen appeared a purple card exuding a heavy, ancient, and wild aura. The pattern was a section of grayish-white bone that one could almost feel its enormity and power just by looking at the picture. The surface of the bone had dark golden natural patterns, and faint light halos flowed inside.

[Epic Card/Materials: Titan Remains (Incomplete)] Quality: Purple (Epic). Introduction: A finger bone remnant from an ancient Titan giant (juvenile or low-tier). Although it has gone through long years, it still contains majestic life force and faint Titan Laws (Strength, Earth, Thunder). The bone is huge, with a total length of about fifteen meters, and the thickest part has a diameter of over three meters.

Effects/Uses: Divine Artifact Embryo: It is one of the top core Materials for forging Strength, Earth, or Thunder type Divine Artifacts. Weapons or armor forged with it as the main material have extremely high base attributes and come with powerful strength bonuses, Earth control, or Thunder damage. Law Insight: Long-term contact or research may allow one to comprehend a trace of Titan's Strength Law or Earth rhythm (very low probability).

divinity extraction: There are extremely weak Titan divinity fragment residues deep in the bone (estimated content: 0.5 units), which can be attempted to be extracted through Advanced extraction means (such as the [divinity extraction device]). Note: Titan divinity is violent and exclusive, and the extraction difficulty and risk are relatively high. Bloodline Research: Can be used to study the mysteries of Giant type Bloodlines, or attempt to Cultivate/strengthen related dependents (huge risk, easy to cause Bloodline collapse or distortion).

Warning: The bone itself retains the faint will and power radiation of the Titan, and improper handling may cause backlash or contamination. It requires at least Mid-Tier Divine Power to be held safely for a period of time. Exchange Price: 35,000 war merit.

"Titan Remains... are you going to use them to forge a Divine Artifact? Or..." Zhao Hao was curious. "Mainly for that 0.5 unit of divinity." Lin Zhou said bluntly, "Our [divinity extraction device] is already in place, and we are missing suitable 'raw Materials.' Although this Titan Remains has very little divinity content and extraction is risky, it is a relatively 'pure' natural divinity material (not obtained through killing and plundering), similar in nature to what we extract from Ancestral Essence, and can be used as the first 'trial product' for the device's official operation, and can also supplement our divinity reserves." He now possessed the conversion ability of the Temple of Civilization, so as long as he could obtain divinity, no matter the inclination, he had a way to convert it for his own use.

Everyone nodded; this was indeed a long-term investment, and it was directly related to the device shared by the squad. "What about the second goal?" Li Mo asked. Lin Zhou switched the screen to show a building card: [Hundred Schools Forum (Blueprint)].

[Epic Card/Building Blueprint: Hundred Schools Forum (Miracle Building Prototype)] Quality: Purple (Epic). Introduction: Records the complete construction blueprints and some core Law runes of a special building "Forum" used in ancient times to spread thoughts, debate principles, and condense the aura of civilization. It is not a physical building and needs to be built by collecting Materials in the God Kingdom according to the blueprint.

Effects (estimated after completion): Acceleration of thought dissemination: Significantly increase the dissemination speed and depth of understanding of the Hundred Schools of Thought within the God Kingdom, dependent intelligence attribute growth rate +15%, acceptance of new thoughts +30%. Additional civilization points output: When the Forum holds specific "Dao discussion" or "lecturing" activities, additional civilization points can be produced according to the scale and quality of the activity.

Resonance strengthening of Hall of Heroes: Resonates with the function of the Temple of Civilization [Hall of Heroes], slightly increases the recovery speed of the Heroic Spirits' true spirits, and has an extremely low probability of attracting ownerless sage thought fragments from the Void Realm. Law reconciliation: Within the scope of the Forum, Law conflicts between different schools of thought will be alleviated and guided to a certain extent. Construction requirements: Massive amounts of rare stone, spiritual wood, special metals that carry thoughts (such as [Preaching Copper], [Literary Heart Jade], etc.), and the builder's profound understanding of Law. Exchange Price: 28,000 war merit.

"This blueprint can further perfect my God Kingdom's civilization System, accelerate dependent growth and thought dissemination, and has huge long-term value." Lin Zhou explained, "Moreover, it has the highest compatibility with my core path." The two together cost 63,000 merit. He still had nearly 40,000 merit left.

"With the remaining merit," Lin Zhou continued, "I plan to exchange for a batch of high-quality general resources, such as [Psionic Crystals], [faith crystal], [Law Stability Anchors], etc., to replenish this consumption and prepare for the subsequent development of the God Kingdom and possible research. In addition, the previously damaged cargo ship and consumed supplies also need to have a portion of the cost deducted from our total reward, about a few thousand points."

Everyone had no objections to Lin Zhou's choice. His plan took into account short-term strength (divinity raw Materials), long-term development (civilization buildings), and basic replenishment, which was very comprehensive. With the discussion settled, the five of them did not hesitate and submitted their exchange applications through the military System. Because their merit amount was huge and the exchanged items were precious, the applications were directly reviewed by the high-level military supply department, and the efficiency was extremely high.

A moment later, prompts of successful exchange sounded one after another. Lin Zhou now had two physical cards in his hands that emitted a purple halo—[Titan Remains] and [Hundred Schools Forum Blueprint]. At the same time, a massive amount of resources began to be transported through special teleportation arrays to his temporary warehouse at the base and his God Kingdom coordinates (some were directly transmitted into the God Kingdom).

Zhao Hao happily received the [Dragon blood Secret Realm] card and was already fantasizing about the Red Dragon's evolution and his own muscles bulging. Wang Meng received the heavy forging blueprints and a batch of glittering metal ingots. Li Mo's front was piled up with various rare Materials and encrypted knowledge crystals, and he couldn't stop grinning. Qin Qing began to carefully inspect the delivered holy inscription Materials and reinforcement parts.

"By the way," Li Mo suddenly remembered something and said to Lin Zhou, "I have completed the preliminary external research and energy adaptation for that [divinity extraction device]. Once you are fully recovered, we can try the first official operation. Titan Remains... is a good starting point, although the amount is a bit small."

Lin Zhou nodded, looking at the card in his hand depicting the huge remains, feeling the ancient power contained within and that faint but real divinity fluctuation, his eyes full of anticipation. War merit exchange was completed, and the Epic cards were acquired. The season of harvest was also the beginning of accumulating strength for the next climb. And extracting divinity would undoubtedly be a key step in the next stage.