The power of the Universal Printer was simply terrifying—utterly defying the heavens.
It was essentially a form of direct duplication. The time-consuming process of refining could now be skipped entirely. Everything was printed directly. Even the intricate runes could be reproduced perfectly—down to the tiniest detail. The end result? No differences whatsoever. This level of capability… it was downright frightening.
With such an ability, it was nothing short of heaven-defying.
One could imagine that as long as a single talisman was successfully refined, all it took was to place the required materials into the Universal Printer to produce an endless supply of identical talismans. So long as materials were sufficient, limitless copies could be generated with ease. That was a terrifying ability.
It was like moving from hand-copying to mass printing—an extraordinary leap.
The same applied to magical artifacts. If one could print those as well, wouldn't it mean instant duplicates—two, three, or even countless copies?
But upon deeper thought, it wasn't as godlike as it first seemed.
First of all, the printer didn't conjure things from thin air—it still required the correct materials. No matter how heaven-defying, without the ingredients, nothing could be printed. That was a fundamental limitation.
"Besides, the items printed by the Universal Printer are all standardized. There's no chance of getting a superior version—like mass-produced gear. No rare treasures. Just regular use-grade items. Right now, it's only a Yellow-rank treasure, so it can only print items within the Yellow tier. And materials themselves cannot be printed. But even so, this machine can offer unparalleled advantages—especially to our current Xuanhuang Village," Yi Tianxing mused as he looked at the Celestial Register Cards being printed.
He wasn't blindly awed by the printer, no matter how powerful it was. It still had its limits.
For example, a Blazing Flame Talisman made by a cultivator might produce a top-grade version. But even if you fed the printer a top-grade talisman to copy, the result would still be a standard low-grade version.
The gap between a top-grade and a low-grade Blazing Flame Talisman was huge, both in terms of value and power.
Moreover, printing top-tier artifacts still required extremely rare materials—things that weren't easy to acquire. Just having a design didn't mean you could print it. For example, something like the Taiji Diagram—even if you had it, could you really print it?
So yes, the Universal Printer was powerful, but far from omnipotent.
Still, for now, it was more than enough.
Card after card of Celestial Register Cards were printed out.
"Good. I can finally launch my Merit Points System."
Yi Tianxing's eyes gleamed with excitement.
That night, Yi Tianxing sat cross-legged in his meditation chamber—not refining talismans, nor working on any external tasks, but engaging in proper cultivation.
With his eyes closed, wisps of natural energy from the heavens and earth were automatically drawn into his body.
This time, he was working to open the Yin Qiao Meridian.
The Yin Qiao Meridian—a branch of the Kidney Meridian of the Foot Shaoyin—starts at the heel, flows up the inner thigh, passes the abdomen and chest, enters the neck, connects to the face and eyes, and finally converges at the inner corners of the eyes with five other meridians.
This was the third of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians he was attempting to open.
The process went surprisingly smoothly.
Though each Extraordinary Meridian came with immense difficulty and required vast quantities of true qi—especially since they had to be opened in one single breath without interruption—Yi Tianxing found this attempt to be even easier than the previous two.
His divine sea contained such an immense reserve of true qi that the meridian was cleared almost instantly. As each segment was opened, it was immediately nourished and strengthened by the overflow of true qi, toughening the newly formed path.
The entire Yin Qiao Meridian was opened in one clean stroke.
With its completion, his ability to absorb and circulate natural energy surged again. The spinning vortex of energy outside his body rotated faster than ever.
The benefits of opening the Eight Extraordinary Meridians for cultivators were immense.
"This is the third now… At this rate, opening the rest will no longer be difficult. After nourishing it with true qi tonight and reinforcing it with blood essence tomorrow, it'll fully mature."
Yi Tianxing couldn't help but feel a trace of joy.
The newly opened meridian greedily absorbed True Dragon Qi, expanding and evolving visibly.
However, he didn't immediately proceed to open the next meridian. Instead, he turned his attention inward.
Now, it wasn't just the divine sea absorbing spiritual energy. His major life apertures were active as well:
Innate Yin-Yang Eyes
Dantian Aperture
Food Cauldron Aperture
Mystic Armor Aperture
All were continuously drawing in natural energy to fortify themselves.
The Dantian Aperture had already given birth to a spiritual field, and though its growth had slowed, it was now steadily enriched by spiritual energy, becoming increasingly vibrant.
As for the Food Cauldron, it remained a bizarre and mysterious aperture. It absorbed some natural energy, but it primarily grew through the nourishment gained from fine cuisine. Every time a dish was consumed, an image of the dish would imprint on the cauldron, strengthening its essence.
But the most fascinating of all was the Mystic Armor Aperture—acquired from Liu Bao.
Yi Tianxing could sense natural energy flowing into the aperture, where it was absorbed by a cloud of ever-changing mist. Within the mist, faint images of various armors and robes formed and dissipated. It was as though the aperture could generate all kinds of combat attire—but it had yet to stabilize.
It continued to absorb energy, strengthening its potential.
Time passed quietly.
Two days slipped by.
In that time, Xuanhuang Village was buzzing with activity.
Some were clearing wilderness, some mining the crystal vein, and others busy expanding the village.
Even the wooden walls were torn down and restructured. New buildings rose rapidly in succession.
The efficiency was unimaginable by mortal standards.
Cultivators, with their superior strength and stamina, labored with superhuman vigor. Two people could easily carry a massive tree trunk while sprinting. Others leapt great distances carrying bundles of vines.
Tilling land looked like dancing flames—plowing entire fields in minutes.
Buckets of water were thrown hundreds of feet with a single swing.
Heavy boulders were hoisted and hauled with ease.
Even the women washing clothes at the riverside wielded such strength that a single shake wrung their clothes dry like a rod.
Scenes that once defied belief had become commonplace in Xuanhuang Village.
Under the guidance of the Heavenly Works Pavilion, village construction progressed at lightning speed.
The One Hall, Two Pavilions, and Six Palaces were all completed and operational, complete with signboards.
And today, many villagers were gathering curiously before a newly finished building—lining up outside.
Above the building hung a sign: Celestial Register Hall!
Inside, the hall was a wide open space with several desks arranged neatly.
Atop each desk stood a mirror-like rectangular screen.
These screens, crafted from bone crystal, were similar in material to the Celestial Register Cards. Translucent and glowing, they looked just like LCD screens from the 21st century—only entirely magical in nature.
Next to each screen was a bone crystal slot, shaped like a card reader, where a Celestial Register Card could be inserted. The slot and screen were linked as one system.
"You are Li Dafu, 32 years old. Previously married, but now separated from your spouse. Occupation: vegetable farmer. Skilled in cultivating various crops. Is this information correct?"
Jia Yucun looked up from the screen and asked the man before him.
"Yes, that's all correct," the man nodded, his eyes filled with both curiosity and excitement as he glanced at the screen and the crystal card.