In the Heavenly Flame Dynasty's royal palace, the cold laughter of Li Huang echoed as he stood amidst the silence of the grand hall.
"A failure... so it seems. But at least the second attempt was close," Li Huang murmured to himself with an indifferent tone.
He then ordered, "Clean up the palace hall."
The Shadow Guards immediately knelt to receive the order and began cleaning in an orderly manner, while Li Huang calmly returned to his throne. He started to jot down notes on what he had learned from the recent experiment.
At this moment, the system was in the process of upgrading, preventing Li Huang from checking his current kill points. However, he remained unconcerned.
Suddenly, one of the Shadow Guards approached with an important report about the conquest of the Heavenly Flame Dynasty.
"Your Majesty, the entire Heavenly Flame Dynasty is now under your complete control," the Shadow Guard reported respectfully. "Additionally, we have gathered significant resources, including several billion spirit stones, rare herbs, elixirs of longevity, and numerous other valuable assets."
The Shadow Guard respectfully handed a scroll to Li Huang, who opened it immediately. The scroll detailed that the population of the Heavenly Flame Dynasty was approximately 200 million, with only around 2 million soldiers in active service, a rather small number compared to neighboring empires.
Sitting on his throne amidst the quiet palace hall, Li Huang's thoughts swirled in his mind as he meticulously documented every problem, solution, and future development plan for the dynasty. He also pondered potential future prospects.
"I'll change the dynasty's name to my own… eventually," Li Huang muttered softly before smiling. "But not yet."
He set his brush down and turned his attention to calculating the resources needed to manage and further develop the dynasty. Time passed quickly until nightfall.
At that moment, the system's voice echoed in his mind.
[Upgrade complete. System Level 3 is now available.]
Li Huang lifted his gaze from the pile of documents and immediately set his brush aside. He asked with a simple but powerful voice, "What's changed?"
[Congratulations, Host. You have earned a summoning card for an army, as well as 1,251,864,120 kill points from conquering the Heavenly Flame Dynasty and eliminating countless individuals.]
[Total Kill Points: 1,256,584,890 points]
The system continued to report: [Host, after the upgrade, you can now use kill points to increase your cultivation level, and your cultivation foundation will become more stable.]
Li Huang nodded slightly. "Is that all?" he asked, his voice cold.
[There is also a system shop function. Would you like to check it out?] the system responded.
"Open it," Li Huang commanded, leaning back on his throne as a shop window appeared in front of him. He began scrolling through the items, hoping to find something of interest but was met with only cheap seeds.
[System Shop]
[Watermelon Seeds: 1 Kill Point]
....
[Pumpkin Seeds: 1 Kill Point]
....
[Potatoes: 1 Kill Point]
....
[Corn Seeds: 1 Kill Point]
....
[House: 10 Points]
After scrolling through everything, Li Huang sighed softly. "Is this all you have for sale?"
The system quickly responded: [That's all for now, Host. If you want the shop to offer more items, you'll need to upgrade the system to Level 4. Besides, I'm not a shop system, this is the best I can do for now.]
Li Huang nodded and immediately asked, "How much to upgrade the system to Level 4?"
[5 billion points, Host] the system replied formally.
Li Huang smiled faintly before shifting the conversation. "I want to advance my cultivation to the Transcendent level, Stage 1... how much will it cost?"
The system quickly processed the request: [Advancing to the Transcendent level costs 10,000,000 points per stage. The Nirvana level costs 1,000,000 points per stage. Currently, the Host is at Nirvana Stage 1, but some aspects of your foundation remain unstable. I can assist in perfecting it for a total of 20,000,000 points.]
Li Huang nodded gravely before commanding, "Proceed with the advancement."
[Total Kill Points: 1,236,584,890 points]
The moment Li Huang gave the order, an immense surge of power erupted from his body. Spiritual energy rippled violently around him, shaking the palace walls, almost causing some sections to collapse.
Nirvana, Stage 2...
....
Nirvana, Stage 6...
....
Nirvana, Stage 9...
....
Transcendent, Stage 1
Li Huang's power soared rapidly. His entire being radiated with limitless spiritual energy as his cultivation foundation solidified to its peak. Every aspect of his body and soul became perfect, without a single flaw or impurity.
Li Huang opened his eyes, which now shone with a newfound authority. He could feel the immense power coursing through him—his body and spirit now complete in every aspect.
Sitting on his throne with a composed expression, Li Huang spoke quietly, "Activate the army summoning card."
[Congratulations, Host, you have summoned the Golden Throne Army.]
[Golden Throne Army, Level 1: All members possess cultivation at the Foundation level, Stage 9. They are highly skilled in governance and can act as protectors of the Emperor. You can summon 10 members per day. Their loyalty to the Host is 100%, and they will never betray you. (Next upgrade requires 1,000 points.)]
"Advance the Golden Throne Army to Level 5," Li Huang ordered decisively.
[Total Kill Points: 1,225,483,890 points]