Merit-based card draws, quickly become a Heavenly Emperor

Liu Qingyu had somehow floated to the table, leaned over to look at the painting, and took a soft breath: "My benefactor, you painted me so beautifully."

She reached out and touched the hem of her skirt on the paper, then looked up at Fang Zheng, her eyes gentle yet filled with tenderness.

"My benefactor, you wouldn't want to sell this painting, would you?"

Fang Zheng rolled up the painting, carefully put it into the bookcase, and glanced back at her: "Of course not for sale."

......

Several more days passed.

After nightfall, Fang Zheng changed into the official robes of a Yin official, picked up the Soul-Binding Chains, and went out.

A message came from the gates of hell: these past few nights, evil spirits have been causing trouble in the west of Yongqing County. Although they haven't killed anyone yet, they are constantly draining people's life force.

By lighting the soul-detecting candle, Fang Zheng followed the trail and caught a vengeful ghost in an alley in the west of the city.

The creature had just emerged from someone's yard, filled with resentment, and was about to crawl into the house.

The chain was thrown out, and the ghostly howl was cut off after only half a sound.

With Fang Zheng's current strong ability to control ghosts, and with Liu Qingyu's support, this ninth-rank wandering ghost is no match for him at all.

By the time the family came out upon hearing the commotion, Fang Zheng had already accomplished his task and left, concealing his merit and fame.

However, when they saw the burn mark left on the courtyard wall, they knew that Fang Zheng had taken action to catch the ghost.

"Lord Fangzheng saved our lives."

The old man pulled his son to kneel at the gate of the courtyard and kowtowed several times towards the end of the street.

As the news spread, Founder's reputation soared even higher.

When Fang Zheng returned to the courtyard, the moonlight was bright.

He took off his official robe and hung it up, then opened the panel to check his merits, which were just enough for another ten-pull.

As usual, he poured his merit into the Painting Dao Spring and Autumn card pool. A flash of light appeared, and ten cards appeared before his eyes.

The first few cards were all black cards, but when the last card lit up with a gray light, Fang Zheng's eyes lit up slightly.

【Photographic Memory】(Rare, Grade 9, Gray, Letter): Talent Card. After use, memory is greatly enhanced, and past scenes can be accurately reproduced in the mind.

He immediately used the cards, and his mind instantly cleared.

Even the strokes of a single character on a page of a document I read yesterday can now be vividly recalled in my mind.

Before he could even experience the wonders of [Photographic Memory], Fang Zheng felt a swelling between his brows. With the infusion of cultivation card energy, the Yuan power in his ancestral aperture had increased significantly.

With a popping sound, he finally stepped from the minor stage of visualization to the major stage.

Fang Zheng felt the increasingly solidified Yuan energy between his brows, and a smile appeared on his lips.

It took him less than two months to go from entering the stage of meditation to achieving mastery.

This progress would require at least several years of arduous training, or even longer, in those cultivation sects.

He achieved a level of progress that others could only dream of, effortlessly and naturally through a combination of card draws and cultivation.

The combined effects of Liu Qingyu's cultivation, the gradual accumulation of knowledge, and the card draw bonuses from the gacha pool allowed his cultivation to advance by leaps and bounds.

At this pace, the eighth-grade Artifact Realm will be right before our eyes.

Just as he was preparing to meditate and cultivate, Liu Qingyu suddenly sent a strange movement through his palm.

"My benefactor, someone is trying to summon my soul." Her voice carried a hint of doubt.

Fang Zheng opened his eyes, his brows furrowing slightly.

It has been more than a month since Liu Qingyu committed suicide by jumping into the well. Why would anyone be trying to summon her soul at this time?

Could it be that the Cao family became suspicious and set a trap to lure her out?

Liu Qingyu sensed it carefully for a while, and her expression gradually became strange.

"The person who summoned the soul claimed to be Lü Zhengfeng, who was appointed by the prefecture to Yongqing County as a seventh-rank supervisor, responsible for investigating the murder of my father, Chu Tiankuo."

He said that if any spirit is still alive, they can return to the old house for a visit.

She looked up, her tone uncertain, "He actually knew about my relationship with my father."

"My benefactor, shall I go or not?"

Fang Zheng's heart skipped a beat.

He had heard from Li Yuanshan and Guan Tieyi that the state government was preparing to send capable personnel to investigate Chu Tiankuo's case.

Judging by the time, we should be arriving in Yongqing County by now.

He didn't rush to answer; instead, he lit incense and contacted Li Yuanshan.

He received definite information from Li Yuanshan.

The prefectural government did indeed appoint a seventh-rank official named Lü Zhengfeng to take over as the chief supervisor of Yongqing County.

After confirming that it was not a trap, Fang Zheng led Liu Qingyu to the Liu residence overnight.

The snow was falling heavily, and the world was covered in white. The courtyard wall of the Liu family's old house looked particularly short in the snowy night.

Liu Qingyu had never returned to this place since she threw herself into the well. Now that she had returned as a ghost, she was filled with many emotions.

Just in case, Fang Zheng hid in the darkness, while Liu Qingyu entered the hospital alone.

She paused at the gate of the courtyard, stared at the dilapidated wooden door for a while, and then reached out and pushed it open.

A candle was lit in the main hall.

A middle-aged man sat by the candlelight, his posture upright, his temples slightly gray, his face gaunt, his lips pursed, exuding an air of sternness.

He sat there like a cast-iron statue.

However, upon seeing the red-clad female ghost push open the door, he suddenly stood up, his face filled with unconcealed sorrow.

"I'm late."

His voice was very low and filled with self-reproach.

"Brother Chu entrusted his daughter to me, but I arrived too late."

Who harmed you? How did you become a ghost?

Liu Qingyu stood at the doorway, not moving forward.

Her gaze was wary as she sized up the man who called himself Lü Zhengfeng.

"Are you really Lord Lü Zhengfeng?"

How did you know about my relationship with my father?

Lu Zhengfeng took a deep breath, concealing the sorrow on his face, and reached into his robes to take out a blue official talisman, which he then handed over.

"Brother Chu and I were comrades in the army, and we had a life-or-death bond."

A little over a month ago, he sent me a message by carrier pigeon, saying that he had found his daughter who had been lost for many years.

He also said he was investigating a major case and needed my assistance.

He paused, his voice turning somber, "But before I could even apply for a transfer order, the devastating news arrived: he died at home."

"In order to take on this important task and find out the cause of Brother Chu's death, I have been working in the prefectural government to try to be transferred to Yongqing County to investigate the case, and I finally received the appointment today."

He pointed to the documents on the table, "After arriving in Yongqing County, I first searched his residence and found the coded message he left behind. Only then did I realize that his daughter was you, Liu Qingyu."

Later, I inquired about the news and heard that you suddenly disappeared after passing the exam, so I tried to summon your spirit.

I didn't expect it to be a ghost, not a human.

I should have come sooner!

He sighed, his gaze falling on Liu Qingyu, filled with self-reproach and regret.

Liu Qingyu asked her a few more questions about her father's military experiences, and Lü Zhengfeng answered them all perfectly.

With official documents and certificates as proof, Liu Qingyu's expression finally relaxed.

What Lü Zhengfeng said should be true.

So, Liu Qingyu briefly recounted those unbearable days.

Her father died tragically, her mother passed away from illness, and after finally passing the imperial examination, she was forced to commit suicide by jumping into a well by the wicked young master of the Cao family.

After transforming into a demon, he killed the wicked young master and several servants. Later, he encountered Fang Zheng and Li Yuanshan, who rescued him, sealed him away, and led him step by step to where he is today.

As Lü Zhengfeng listened, his face grew increasingly grim, his fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white, and finally he slammed his hand on the table.

"Outrageous! This is utterly lawless! They deserve to die!"

Today I will thoroughly investigate the Cao family!