Everyone's Suppressing Ghosts: Others Contract Divine Weapons, I Contract Blank Paper

The Merit Exchange Area is located on the second floor of the Town Museum.

There aren't many people here usually.

Merit is not money.

If you have money, you can buy popular items to ward off evil spirits, such as a peach wood sword with thunder patterns, a soul-suppressing bell, or a protective mirror with Buddha's light.

But meritorious service is not acceptable.

Merit can only be accumulated little by little through missions, mysterious cases, and practical training results.

Most new students who have just lit the life lamp have zero in their accounts.

But today, there was a crowd of people surrounding the exchange counter.

They didn't come to exchange anything.

They came to see how Xu Du would spend those fifty temporary merit points.

The electronic screen on the wall scrolls through the redemption catalog.

[Life Lamp Stabilizing Fluid: 20 Merit Points.]

[Mind-Stabilizing Pill: 30 Merit Points]

[Basic Ghost-Suppressing Talisman Pack: 30 Merit Points.]

[Thunderfire Talisman: 15 Merit Points/talisman.]

[Suppressing Evil Talisman: 12 Merit Points/talisman.]

[Pollution Isolation Charm: 25 Merit Points]

[Borrowing a standard-issue peach wood short sword: 20 merit points/time.]

[Low-risk wandering demon test access: 10 merit points/test.]

Next to the electronic screen, there was also a description of the project for the freshmen's practical training three days later.

[New Student Ghost-Slaying Training Project Two: Basic Yin Sha Cleansing.]

This section includes: single-target removal and group removal.

[Scoring criteria: Quantity cleared, time taken to clear, contamination leakage, and consumption of stabilizing materials.]

The cleanup leaderboard is updated in real time.

Many students stood in front of the screen, watching and discussing.

"Xu Du definitely needs to buy the Thunderfire Talisman."

"Yes, basic yin energy removal is a crucial step, and the white paper lamp isn't an offensive or warding object."

"We should also buy the Life Lamp Stabilizing Fluid, right? He just lit the Yin Lamp yesterday and dealt with a C-level mystery case."

"Fifty merits isn't much. The most reasonable amount is one bottle of Life Lamp Stabilizer and two Thunderfire Talismans."

"Zhou Cheng is upgrading his Thunder Pattern Peach Wood Sword today. If Xu Du doesn't boost his damage output, he'll definitely be suppressed on the ranking list."

Xu Du walked to the window.

Teacher Chen, who was behind the window, took his student ID and swiped it.

The small screen lights up.

Name: Xu Du.

[Class: Sophomore Class 2]

[Current temporary merit points: 130.]

Available funds: 50.

[Amulet for warding off evil spirits: A white paper lantern to guide the soul.]

[Lamp Type: Yin Lamp]

After reading it, Teacher Chen gave a reminder:

"You can only use fifty points of temporary merit now."

"Um."

"I suggest you change the Life Lamp Stabilizing Fluid first."

She pointed to the screen.

"You just lit the life lamp yesterday, and the white paper soul-guiding lamp is a special observation and talisman. The yin lamp has less data, so it's better to be cautious."

Xu Du glanced at the instructions on the back of the Life Lamp Stabilizing Fluid.

[Suitable for stable operation of conventional life-saving lamps such as yang lamps, thunder lamps, and open flame lamps.]

He looked back.

Do you have any blank talisman paper?

Teacher Chen was taken aback.

"What?"

"A blank sheet of paper that has never been written on."

The surroundings fell silent for a moment.

Immediately afterwards, someone burst out laughing.

"Blank talisman paper?"

"He doesn't want a finished talisman, he wants a blank sheet of paper?"

"Isn't blank talisman paper for talisman masters to practice on?"

"No runes, no spiritual power, what's the point of buying it? To write Spring Festival couplets on the spot?"

"He wouldn't really be planning to use blank paper to cleanse himself of evil spirits, would he?"

Teacher Chen also frowned.

"Blank talisman paper is available, but it's not a finished talisman and doesn't have the effect of suppressing evil spirits."

"I know."

Are you sure you want it?

"Sure."

Teacher Chen opened the materials catalog.

[Standard Blank Talisman Paper: 100 sheets, 5 Merit Points]

[Low-grade Rune Ink: One bottle, 10 Merit Points.]

[Talisman Storage Box: 1 box, 5 Merit Points]

[Basic Ink Pen: One pen, 10 merit points.]

Teacher Chen looked up.

How much do you want?

Xu Du said, "Five hundred blank talisman sheets, one bottle of talisman ink, one storage box, and one talisman-drawing brush."

Teacher Chen paused for a moment.

"Five hundred blank talismans, twenty-five merits."

"Low-grade talisman ink, ten merit points."

"Talisman storage box, five merits."

"Basic texturing pen, ten merits."

She looked at Xu Du.

"Exactly fifty."

This statement immediately caused an uproar.

"Fifty merits all used to buy paper?"

"Don't you want the Life Lamp Stabilizing Fluid?"

"Not even buying a Thunderfire Talisman?"

"Don't you want the basic exorcism talisman pack?"

"Is he trying to prove he didn't lose fast enough in the practical training?"

"Others buy talismans, he buys paper; is he really a professional in this field?"

Someone had already opened the college forum, their fingers flying across the keyboard.

[Live Update: Xu Du's 50 merit points have been cleared; he's bought 500 blank talisman papers!]

[The white paper lamp route is confirmed; he really is preparing to use paper for practical training.]

The peach wood sword with its lightning-patterned design laughed: "You use paper, I'll use a sword."

Xu Du ignored those voices.

"Can I deduct it?"

Teacher Chen checked it again.

"No refunds after redemption."

"Um."

"Sure?"

"Sure."

Teacher Chen paused for two seconds, then deducted the merit.

Small screen refresh.

[Disposable temporary merit points: 0.]

She took a gray cardboard box from the filing cabinet at the back.

Inside the cardboard box, five stacks of blank talisman paper were neatly arranged.

There was also a bottle of talisman ink, a pattern-drawing pen, and a black storage box next to it.

Xu Du took the cardboard box.

The way people looked at him was like they were looking at a madman who had just received a bonus and was buying waste paper.

Just then, a thunderclap suddenly came from the testing hall on the first floor.

boom!

The entire town hall shook.

Everyone instinctively rushed towards the railing.

The doors to the testing hall on the first floor opened.

Zhou Cheng came out from inside.

His face was still a little pale, but his eyes had brightened again.

He was holding a long wooden box in his hands.

The wooden box was opened.

Inside lay a foot-long peach wood dagger.

The sword was covered with purplish-black lightning patterns, each pattern seemingly concealing tiny flashes of lightning.

The electronic screen in the lobby then refreshed.

Zhou Cheng.

[Item for warding off evil spirits: A peach wood sword with a thunder pattern.]

Town Degree: 4.6.

[Item Rating: Grade A]

[Life Lamp Type: Yang Lamp]

[Statue Response: Excellent.]

A gasp rippled through the audience.

"Grade A!"

"The Thunder-Patterned Peach Wood Sword is indeed Grade A!"

"A town's strength level of 4.6 is very strong."

"If Xu Du's 5.3 wasn't so outrageous, Zhou Cheng's stats could have easily propelled him to the top of the leaderboard."

"An A-grade defensive talisman, clearing the rankings is a sure thing."

As Zhou Cheng listened to those sounds, he finally regained some of the feeling he had before yesterday.

He looked up and saw Xu Du standing in front of the second-floor window.

Then I saw the cardboard box in Xu Du's hand.

He was startled.

He then laughed.

Zhou Cheng carried the thunder-patterned peach wood sword up to the second floor.

The crowd automatically parted.

He walked up to Xu Du and glanced at the cardboard box.

"Fifty merits, and this is what you get?"

Xu Du said, "Hmm."

"Blank talisman paper?"

"Um."

Zhou Cheng laughed out loud.

"Xu Du, I thought you would at least buy a few Thunderfire Talismans."

He raised the peach wood sword with thunder patterns in his hand.

The lightning patterns on the sword blade glowed slightly.

"See that? A-grade talisman."

"This is what you can actually get points for in practical training."

Xu Du did not refute.

Zhou Cheng felt even more speechless.

He turned to look at Teacher Chen.

"Teacher, can we perform a low-risk spirit removal test on the new talisman?"

Teacher Chen frowned.

"Yes, but only low-risk tests can be done here."

That's enough.

Zhou Cheng looked at Xu Du.

"Let me show you what it takes to clear out the rankings."

The surrounding students immediately became excited.

"Here it comes, here it comes."

"Live test of the thunder-patterned peach wood sword."

"Xu Du had just bought the paper when Zhou Cheng immediately tested it. Isn't that like pressing the issue right in front of him?"

"The White Paper Lamp was indeed powerful yesterday, but to clear away the Yin Sha, we still need the Thunder Pattern Peach Wood Sword."

The test area opened quickly.

Staff members removed a low-risk toxic gas bottle.

The bottle opening is now open.

A wisp of gray evil spirit drifted out of the bottle.

The moment the demon took shape, the thunder-patterned peach wood sword in Zhou Cheng's hand lit up.

"break!"

He gave a low shout.

He raised the sword.

scoff!

A purple lightning bolt slashed out.

The gray demon exploded on the spot, turning into a wisp of black smoke, which was then absorbed by the test array.

Screen refresh.

[Test subject: Low-risk wandering feral creature.]

[Treatment method: Removal of the laser pattern.]

Quantity cleared: 1/1.

Time taken: 1.8 seconds.

Clearance rate: 100%.

[Pollution leakage: 7.9%]

[Item consumption: Low.]

Rating: Excellent.

The crowd erupted immediately.

"1.8 seconds!"

"The Grade A Thunder Pattern Peach Wood Sword is truly formidable."

"Low-risk wandering monsters are instantly killed."

"This data will definitely be among the top on the training elimination leaderboard."

"What is Xu Du comparing himself to? Paper?"

Zhou Cheng couldn't help but smile.

He looked at Xu Du.

"Did you see that?"

"This is called cleansing."

"It's not something that can be compared to writing a few sheets of paper and reciting a few old customs."

Xu Du glanced at the screen.

Then I asked Teacher Chen:

"What's the maximum number of animals that can be placed in this testing area at once?"

Teacher Chen was taken aback.

Why are you asking this?

"test."

Teacher Chen frowned.

"Low-risk wandering demons are not very dangerous individually, but if their numbers increase, they will attract each other and form a wandering demon swarm. It is generally not recommended to conduct group elimination tests on newcomers."

Zhou Cheng sneered.

"You don't want to do group testing, do you?"

Xu Du did not look at him.

"What's the maximum number?"

Teacher Chen was silent for two seconds.

"Standard testing area, maximum of twenty."

Xu Du placed the cardboard box next to the testing table.

"Then twenty will do."

The entire second floor fell silent instantly.

Some people stared wide-eyed.

"Twenty?"

"Is he insane?"

"Zhou Cheng only tested one, but he tested twenty directly?"

"A low-risk swarm of swarms of swarms is no joke."

"Can a blank talisman really ward off twenty wandering evil spirits?"

Zhou Cheng's smile froze for a moment.

He didn't expect Xu Du to say that.

Then, he sneered:

"Xu Du, aren't you overdoing it?"

"If twenty wandering demons are released at once, even the Thunder-Patterned Peach Wood Sword would have to be used continuously. Are you going to use Paper Cleansing?"

Xu Du looked at Teacher Chen.

"Can you test it?"

Teacher Chen's face was serious.

"Group testing is risky. If the protective barrier doesn't respond quickly enough, the wandering demons will break out of the testing array."

"I'll take responsibility."

Teacher Chen stared at him.

"Sure?"

Xu Du nodded.

Teacher Chen was silent for a moment before finally speaking:

"Initiate low-risk group elimination test."

The staff member's expression changed, but they still started the test area according to the procedure.

Twenty low-risk wandering evil spirits were sent into the formation.

The protective array outside the testing area lit up layer by layer.

The students watching instinctively took a few steps back.

Zhou Cheng stood still, staring intently at Xu Du.

He would like to see.

What kind of tricks can you play with 500 blank talisman papers?

Xu Du opened the cardboard box.

Take out twenty blank talisman papers.

The paper was ordinary.

There are no runes.

There was no inspiration.

It's the blank paper used by academy talisman masters for practice.

He placed twenty sheets of paper in front of him.

Then they raised the white paper soul-guiding lamp again.

The lamp paper swayed gently.

A pale white light fell on the blank talisman paper.

next second.

Twenty sheets of white paper floated up at the same time.

It wasn't blown up by the wind.

Instead, it was as if it were being held up by the lights.

Xu Du picked up the ink pen.

The talisman ink was not applied.

The pen nib was already stained white by the light.

He only wrote one word on the first sheet of paper.

Extinction.

The instant the word was formed.

On the remaining nineteen blank sheets of paper, the same character "灭" (extinguish) appeared simultaneously.

The students watching were all stunned.

"Simultaneous pattern formation?"

"He only wrote one page, and all twenty pages were lit up?"

"Blank talisman paper can be used like this?"

Teacher Chen suddenly stood up straight.

She noticed that the white paper was not ordinary talisman paper.

Under the light of the white paper lamp, each sheet of paper seemed to have been temporarily lit as a paper edict to ward off evil spirits.

Within the testing area, twenty wandering spirit bottles were activated simultaneously.

A gray mist burst forth instantly.

The twenty wandering demons merged into one, like a surging gray tide, and rushed directly towards Xu Du.

Exclamations arose from the crowd.

"They're here!"

"It would be troublesome if we couldn't stop them!"

Xu Du did not retreat.

He raised the white paper soul-guiding lamp.

"go."

Twenty sheets of white paper flew out at the same time.

Whoosh!

White paper fell like rain.

Each one is precisely labeled with a wandering demon.

There was no thunder.

There was no explosion.

Only the character "灭" (extinguish) on the paper suddenly lit up with a pale, cold flame.

boom!

The first wandering demon was covered by white paper and immediately dissipated into gray mist.

boom!

The second one.

boom!

The third one.

Bang bang bang bang bang——

The twenty soft sounds almost came together in one continuous burst.

The surging horde of evil spirits was wiped out by twenty sheets of white paper in just over three seconds.

Not a single one was left.

The testing area fell silent.

Everyone watched as the twenty sheets of white paper, suspended in mid-air, slowly fell.

The character "灭" on the paper has been burned to light ash.

The screen froze for a second.

Then the data refreshed wildly.

[Test subject: Low-risk wandering feral creatures.]

Target quantity: 20.

Quantity cleared: 20/20.

[Handling method: Order to remove the group.]

Total time: 3.2 seconds.

Average time per monomer: 0.16 seconds.

Clearance rate: 100%.

[Pollution leakage: 0.4%]

[Item consumption: Low.]

[One-time consumption: 20 blank talisman sheets.]

Rating: Excellent.

The next line of text immediately appeared.

[A new method for eliminating low-risk groups has been detected.]

[This sets a new record for the elimination of low-risk wandering evil groups in the academy.]

The entire second floor was deathly silent.

One swimmer, Zhou Cheng, 1.8 seconds.

Twenty wandering demons, Xu Du 3.2 seconds.

Average monomer time: 0.16 seconds.

Moreover, only 0.4% of the pollution leaked out.

This is not a lockdown.

This is not about bypassing the clearing item.

This is a positive clearance.

They were still using blank talisman paper.

Someone murmured:

"Twenty..."

"All cleared?"

"An average of one every 0.16 seconds?"

"That box of papers of his... can it really clear the list?"

"It's not that they can fight, it's that they just broke the test record."

The smile on Zhou Cheng's face vanished completely.

He stared intently at the data on the screen.

His 1.8-second single-target clear was already quite impressive.

But what's hanging next to it now is Xu Du's twenty group eliminations, 3.2 seconds.

The data is there.

Anyone can understand it.

Teacher Chen looked at the test records and his throat moved.

Then, she entered a note into the system.

The White Paper Soul-Guiding Lamp possesses the ability to temporarily transform blank talismans.

[Transformation: Paper order.]

[Current performance: Excellent results in eliminating low-risk groups.]

[It is recommended that the practical training department focus on reviewing this material.]

The moment this note was entered, the college forum exploded.

[Breaking News! Xu Du's purchase of paper with fifty merit points isn't crazy; he can turn blank paper into a talisman against evil spirits!]

[The Thunder-patterned Peach Wood Sword has a single-target attack time of 1.8 seconds, while the White Paper Lanterns have a group attack time of 3.2 seconds for 20 enemies!]

[An average of one every 0.16 seconds, is the elimination rankings about to change drastically?]

Others buy talismans, he buys paper, because he can make the talismans himself!

[White paper lamps aren't incapable of being cleared; they clear in groups!]

[Zhou Cheng's A-level Thunder Sword had just made its debut when Xu Du immediately broke the record for mass elimination!]

Students in the lobby on the first floor also crowded onto the second floor.

"Really?"

"Clear all twenty of those wandering demons at once?"

"Use blank talisman paper?"

"Then his five hundred sheets of paper, aren't they five hundred talismans for warding off evil spirits?"

"That's not how it works; there must be some life lamp being consumed."

"But this is too outrageous."

As Zhou Cheng listened to those voices, his expression grew increasingly grim.

Everyone was looking at his Grade A Thunder Pattern Peach Wood Sword.

Everyone is talking about Xu Du's box of paper now.

A box of paper.

Fifty meritorious deeds.

It actually suppressed his A-grade lightning sword.

He gripped the thunder-patterned peach wood sword tightly and gritted his teeth, saying:

"Xu Du, that was just a low-risk wandering demon."

"Practical training can't consist entirely of things like this."

Xu Du carefully put away the remaining blank talisman papers.

"Um."

Zhou Cheng felt a tightness in his chest.

That same reaction again.

He preferred Xu Du to refute him.

But Xu Du deliberately chose not to contend.

He only uses data to speak for himself.

Xu Du picked up the cardboard box and turned to walk towards the stairwell.

Zhou Cheng said coldly from behind:

"I will remove you from the cleanup list in three days."

Xu Du stopped in his tracks.

He turned around and glanced at the thunder-patterned peach wood sword in Zhou Cheng's hand.

He glanced again at the cardboard box in his arms.

"Clear the list?"

His tone was very flat.

"You'll see if you can hold out."

The museum fell silent instantly.

The test record from just now is still displayed on the electronic screen.

[Low-risk wandering evil spirit group elimination: 20/20.]

Total time: 3.2 seconds.

Average time per monomer: 0.16 seconds.

[This sets a new record for the elimination of low-risk wandering evil groups in the academy.]

Xu Du patted the cardboard box in his arms.

Five hundred sheets of paper.

"That will be enough in three days."