"!!!"

"Thirty thousand Merit?!" Fang Xing’s eyes widened as he stared at Shen Ye, his heart trembling.

Having been in the Observatory for so long, he knew exactly how much thirty thousand Merit was.

The resources that could be exchanged for were a fortune!

Third place alone came with a reward of thirty thousand Merit.

How much would second and first place get?!

Fang Xing hadn’t expected the quarterly performance rankings to have such generous rewards.

The value of thirty thousand Merit was far greater than thirty thousand silver, or even a hundred thousand silver.

Shen Ye looked at him and said, "I came to find you to distribute the Merit."

"You and I will each take ten thousand Merit. The remaining ten thousand will be used to reward the other ten Captains, with each getting one thousand. Do you have any objections?"

Hearing Shen Ye’s proposal, Fang Xing nodded. "I have no objections."

It was only reasonable that he and Shen Ye would take the largest share.

After all, without the Dongting Lake mission, they wouldn’t have achieved this ranking.

As for the remaining Merit for the squad members, that was also very reasonable.

The Observatory wasn’t a place for lone wolves.

A squad was a single entity.

Splitting ten thousand Merit as a reward, a thousand for each person, was a squad-wide benefit.

It would also further ignite their passion for undertaking missions.

A lower quarterly ranking meant reduced rewards, poorer treatment, and penalties. So naturally, there had to be rewards for a high ranking.

"Alright, give me your waist token," Shen Ye said.

Fang Xing handed his waist token to Shen Ye. With a light swipe, his three thousand Merit instantly surged to thirteen thousand.

"Thank you, Sir." Fang Xing put away his waist token and cupped his hands in a salute.

He needed to exchange for some resources.

For him, this amount of Merit was a considerable sum.

It would allow him to exchange for even more resources.

Shen Ye looked at him, smiled, and said, "Speaking of which, I should be thanking you. For my first ranking as a Commander, I really rode on your coattails."

Hearing this, Fang Xing gave a slight smile.

It was true, after all.

But it was better to be modest.

"You’re too kind, Sir. Without your leadership, I’m afraid I wouldn’t have reached my current level."

Shen Ye looked him up and down. "I feel like your aura has strengthened. Don’t tell me you broke through?"

Fang Xing nodded slightly. "A small improvement. I’ve just stepped into the True Qi Second Layer."

Shen Ye: "..."

"You’ve already reached the True Qi Second Layer?" The smile on Shen Ye’s face froze as he stared at him in disbelief.

Fang Xing nodded. "Yes, I relied on a Demon and Monster Core to break through."

Hearing this, Shen Ye’s heart clenched, but he quickly calmed down.

Using the Inner Core of an Initial Realm Demon to break through a level was, admittedly, reasonable.

But the thought that Fang Xing’s Cultivation had already surpassed his own still left Shen Ye feeling a little dejected for a moment.

His inherent strength had already been superior, and now, Fang Xing’s Cultivation was a step higher as well.

’This won’t do. I can’t let him leave me too far behind. I have to work harder too.’ Shen Ye resolved this in his heart.

This was the first time he had ever felt such pressure.

A Commander whose Cultivation was lower than his Vice Commander’s—it would be a laughingstock if word got out.

Even though he knew Fang Xing’s strength had already surpassed his, he couldn’t let himself fall too far behind, no matter what.

"I’ll be going now."

Shen Ye said this and turned to leave.

Watching Shen Ye’s retreating back, Fang Xing was lost in thought.

’So I’ve inadvertently created pressure for him...’ Fang Xing thought to himself.

This sudden change in demeanor undoubtedly meant that his own breakthrough had made Shen Ye feel pressured.

It had produced an unexpected effect.

However, Fang Xing didn’t dwell on it.

His current Cultivation was the result of his own hard work.

And he wouldn’t stop here!

Watching Shen Ye’s figure disappear, Fang Xing calmed his mind and strode toward the Merit Hall.

Inside the Observatory’s Merit Hall.

Fang Xing examined the exchange catalog.

He focused on the Elixir and Treasure Medicine categories.

To achieve a breakthrough in his Red Fire Divine Skill, he would have to rely on external items to advance.

Looking at the exchange catalog in his hand, Fang Xing quickly selected two items.

First, the Earth Fire Lotus!

This was a Treasure Medicine that contained a potent Fire Attribute!

The other was the Fire Element Pill!

An Elixir refined from several powerful Fire Attribute ingredients.

’First, let’s see how effective they are.’

Having selected the two items, Fang Xing immediately exchanged his Merit for them.

The Earth Fire Lotus was more expensive.

A single stalk of Earth Fire Lotus cost one thousand five hundred Merit.

The Fire Element Pill was also pricey.

One thousand Merit!

Just these two items consumed two thousand five hundred Merit.

After exchanging for the two items, Fang Xing left the Merit Hall.

Currently, his focus was entirely on the Red Fire Divine Skill.

His Dragon’s Roar Iron Cloth Shirt had already reached the Fourth Layer Extreme. Having reached this stage with the help of Dragon Essence Power, it would be difficult to make any breakthroughs in the short term.

His Longevity Technique was progressing steadily, and his Cultivation was at the True Qi Second-Layer Extreme.

The only thing that hadn’t changed was his Red Fire Divine Skill.

The Red Fire Divine Skill had four major stages.

Each one brought an astonishing transformation.

After cultivating the Blue Flame, he was already unrivaled among those at the Neutralizing Force level.

He was ever-victorious!

Achieving the Red Flame stage was similarly successful.

Back on Lake Heart Island, when he was trapped in the Blood Demon Sect’s Array, he likely wouldn’t have escaped if not for his Red Fire Divine Skill.

The flames of the Red Fire Divine Skill were not only astonishingly powerful, surpassing ordinary flames, but could also suppress the techniques of evil and demonic paths.

If he could achieve a breakthrough in this Divine Skill, he would be able to achieve unexpected results with its power, even if he encountered unforeseen circumstances.

Returning to his courtyard residence, Fang Xing immediately holed himself up in his room.

He took out the Earth Fire Lotus. As he focused his gaze on it, a notification appeared before his eyes.

[A fifteen-year-old Earth Fire Lotus, containing a trace of Earth Fire attribute. Reinforcement requires 500 points!]