Chapter 3

The young swordsman's lips twitched, and his brows furrowed tightly.

Looking at the empty treasure vault and the unfamiliar face, his expression gradually turned from blank to furious. With a swift motion, he drew his sword and pointed it directly at Xu Que, demanding sternly, "Who are you? How dare you擅自闯入我宗门宝阁 (intrude on my sect's treasure vault)?"

Xu Que glanced at the last remaining divine escape talisman in his system inventory and smiled calmly.

"Brother, you don't even know who I am, and you dare to point a sword at me? Do you know that I hate it the most when someone points a gun... uh, a sword at my head?"

"Ding, congratulations to the host 'Xu Que' for successfully showing off, gaining 1 point of show-off value."

The young swordsman was instantly stunned and mumbled, "I didn't point it at your head!"

He then quickly regained his composure and shouted angrily, "Enough talk! Daring to intrude on my sect's treasure vault is simply courting death."

As he spoke, the sword in the young swordsman's hand hummed, emitting a red glow and a scorching fire elemental spirit energy, charging straight at Xu Que.

Damn, this guy is not an easy opponent! He's much stronger than that little fairy, and he looks like he's at least at the Foundation Establishment stage! But why do these cultivators all act like this, ready to fight at the slightest provocation, and with such ferocity?

Xu Que cursed inwardly and immediately mobilized the spirit energy within his body to counterattack. However, as he moved, he realized something was wrong.

A massive surge of energy suddenly erupted within his body, surging through his eight extraordinary meridians, as if trying to tear him apart. It felt like being pierced by a million needles, causing Xu Que to shudder and fall to the ground.

"Ahh..."

Xu Que clutched his lower abdomen, where the dantian was located, feeling as if the spirit energy was about to tear him apart, with a tendency to burst and die.

Why is this happening?

Xu Que recalled the large pile of pills he had swallowed earlier, and his face turned pale.

It's over, this is it.

All those pills weren't ineffective; they needed to be catalyzed by him.

He hadn't even tried to circulate the spirit energy after swallowing them, and only when the young swordsman forced him to act did he end up catalyzing all the pills at once.

"Bold thief, what trick are you playing?"

Zhang Suliang suspiciously sized up Xu Que, noticing that he was clutching his lower abdomen and that dozens of empty pill bottles were scattered around. He was instantly alarmed and exclaimed in shock, "You... you just ate all these pills?"

Xu Que no longer had the strength to answer, his face contorted in pain as he writhed on the ground, growing paler by the second.

Even with five spirit roots, he couldn't fully digest the massive amount of spirit energy.

Zhang Suliang was also stunned. These spirit medicines... they were usually distributed to outer sect disciples as monthly rations! A single ordinary spirit-gathering pill was enough to sustain a Qi Condensation stage disciple for over a month.

But this guy had swallowed dozens of them in one go, including Foundation Establishment stage pills like the Spirit-Gathering Pill and Body-Refining Pill. Could he be trying to commit suicide to avoid punishment?

"Ding, detected that the host 'Xu Que' has exceeded the spirit energy limit, causing physical damage. Do you want to activate the automatic repair function? Note: The automatic repair function consumes 1 point of show-off value per hour."

The system's voice echoed in his mind, and without hesitation, Xu Que responded with his consciousness, "Activate it quickly, and help me deal with this spirit energy."

"Ding, automatic repair function activated successfully, deducting 1 point of show-off value."

"Ding, detected that the host has only learned the初级篇 (beginner level) of the 'Ancient Five Elements Technique,' which is insufficient to digest all the spirit energy. Need to purchase the中级篇 (intermediate level)."

With the activation of the automatic repair function, Xu Que immediately felt a significant reduction in pain. A light screen interface popped up in front of him, displaying the system's store.

This was the first time he had checked the system store, which listed a myriad of options, including various techniques and magical artifacts.

However, when he saw the price of the intermediate level of the 'Ancient Five Elements Technique,' he nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.

"The intermediate level costs 100 points of show-off value? Damn, are you trying to rob me? I worked hard to show off all day, and I can't even afford a technique."

Zhang Suliang frowned, about to speak, when Xu Que's face suddenly changed, and he let out another agonized scream.

"Ahh..."

The scream was truly pitiful, not an act, as the automatic repair function couldn't keep up with the destruction caused by the spirit energy. The sheer number of pills he had ingested was too much for his mortal body to bear.

"Rather than die in such agony, I might as well give you a quick death!"

Zhang Suliang, feeling a bit of sympathy, gripped his sword tightly, deciding to give Xu Que a swift end.

Seeing this, Xu Que mustered his last bit of strength and gritted his teeth, "Don't worry about me. A man is bound to die, either as heavy as Mount Tai or as light as a feather. If I don't go to hell, who will? Ahh..."

As he spoke, there was a muffled sound, and Xu Que disappeared, seemingly exploding and dying, with both his soul and body vanishing.

Zhang Suliang's mouth gaped open, unable to recover for a long time, seemingly stunned by Xu Que's heroic last words.

...

However, Xu Que hadn't died. He was afraid that staying there would result in Zhang Suliang killing him, so he decisively crushed the divine escape talisman and fled. Before leaving, he managed to show off one last time.

But this show-off was rather mediocre, and the system still rewarded him with only 1 point of show-off value, which was a drop in the bucket compared to the 100 points needed for the intermediate level of the 'Ancient Five Elements Technique.'

The key issue was that Xu Que had the automatic repair function activated, which consumed 1 point of show-off value every hour, while the spirit energy continued to grow, like a strong liquor with a powerful aftertaste.

This couldn't go on.

Xu Que was teleported to a small stream in the mountains, leaning against a large tree. He propped himself up, summoned the show-off system, and a light screen interface appeared before him:

"Host: Xu Que

Realm: Qi Condensation Stage, Level 10 (Just Beginning)

Experience: 0/1000

Show-off Value: 15 points

Technique: 'Ancient Five Elements Technique' Beginner Level

Occupation: None

Status: Prince Consort of the Fire Spirit Kingdom in the Eastern Wasteland

Current Vitality Status: Critically Endangered."

Seeing the last line, Xu Que's lips twitched violently.

Critically endangered was not a good sign, like receiving a critical condition notice in a hospital, almost a death sentence.

"Damn system, you promised to help me show off and fly. Quickly, help me find a solution!" Xu Que clutched his lower abdomen, his face full of pain.

"Ding, detection complete. Based on the host's current show-off value and vitality status, the system has found a solution for you..."

Hearing this, Xu Que's eyes lit up, and he felt a renewed sense of hope.

But the next moment, his vision went dark again.

The system automatically displayed the store interface, which prominently featured a technique called 'Self-Severing Meridians'!

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