Chapter Two: The Book of Infinite Virtue

Soon, the surrounding students gathered around. Some handed over clothes, while others expressed concern for the girl. From the bridge and the riverside, the onlookers burst into cheers, applause, and whistles. Clearly, everyone greatly admired Gao Wu’s righteous act, each showing their praise in different ways.

A few blushing girls crowded near Gao Wu, chattering incessantly, while several boys approached, eager to befriend him and offering their compliments. Gao Wu responded politely, but his attention remained on the unseen Infinite Book of Merit that no one else could perceive.

Thanks to the enthusiasm of the crowd, his merit continued to accumulate. He sighed inwardly—publicly saving someone was indeed the best way to gather merit, though such opportunities were rare and unpredictable. By his rough count, this rescue alone had earned him at least five hundred merit points, pushing his total beyond ten thousand—enough to advance the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra.

He recalled the age of fourteen, when a monstrous beast invaded the town, unleashing a massacre that destroyed everything. Gravely injured, he survived only by a stroke of luck, saved by another. The brush with death awakened memories of his past life, and the sect’s secret manual, the Infinite Book of Merit, manifested before him.

In his previous life, the world was technologically advanced, devoid of supernatural power. Temples and monasteries served merely as spiritual solace. Unexpectedly, the Infinite Book of Merit left by his teacher proved to be a true artifact, granting him a new existence in this parallel universe.

Here, supernatural energy abounded, allowing the Infinite Book of Merit to reveal its true form. Unseen by others, it was not convenient to explore its mystical abilities in public. With a thought, Gao Wu caused the ancient tome to vanish without a trace.

The slight and wiry Shen Yue squeezed through the crowd and reached Gao Wu’s side, giving him a sincere thumbs-up. “Awesome!”

Gao Wu glanced at the phone clutched in Shen Yue’s hand and asked quietly, “Did you capture my heroic rescue on video?”

Shen Yue only flashed a smug, reserved smile. Of course—martial arts weren’t his strength, but as a professional content creator for Kuaishare, filming videos was his forte!

Gao Wu was reassured. With Shen Yue’s help, he could set the footage to music, edit it, and publish it online, likely earning even more merit. As for videos taken by others, outcomes were uncertain—some might even use them to attack his reputation.

Human nature is complex, especially among the young. Their actions are driven more by personal likes or dislikes than by rational calculation, making them unpredictable.

The girl was escorted to the infirmary by a group of students. Gao Wu asked Shen Yue to follow and check on her condition, then returned alone to his dormitory.

As a member of the martial arts team—even as a reserve—Gao Wu had a single room on the top floor of the boys’ dormitory. The suite included a bedroom, a small living room, and a bathroom. The twenty-square-meter space felt more than spacious for one person, and the bathroom came equipped with a water heater and washing machine—very convenient.

He took a hot shower, changed into clean clothes, tossed the soaked ones into the washing machine, and, after handling these chores, stretched out lazily on his single bed.

Although the rescue had taken only a few minutes, it had drained him. Once the adrenaline faded, exhaustion settled in. He checked his phone and saw that many people had already posted short videos of his rescue on the local Kuaishare channel.

Opening the comments section, he found praise dominating, though there were also discordant voices criticizing or questioning him. Some complained his actions were too rough or that the physical contact was inappropriate, while others insinuated a clandestine relationship with the rescued girl.

Fortunately, the majority of viewers were supportive, quickly ridiculing and rebuking the critics. Gao Wu liked the most scathing retorts—after all his effort, he could hardly believe anyone would accuse him of acting for show; he itched to smash their heads in frustration!

For the especially flattering comments, he read them several times, savoring the praise before finally closing the app, satisfied.

He reopened the Infinite Book of Merit. On its blank pages, lines of merit +1 appeared in rapid succession, and his total had reached 10,307—still climbing. This lifted his spirits even more.

With a thought, the Infinite Book of Merit turned its pages, displaying his name and various statistics:

Gao Wu

Lifespan: 99
Spirit: 6.9
Constitution: 8.3
Strength: 7.1
Agility: 6.2
Aptitude: 6.5
Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra: Proficient+
Dragon Form Nine Styles: Skilled

Since awakening the Infinite Book of Merit, he had unlocked a spell: the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra.

According to the book, this mantra channels the eastern azure essence into the form of a dragon, refining both body and mind—a supreme divine incantation. When first activated, its emerald light instantly healed his grievously wounded organs, allowing him to survive the great disaster.

From that moment, Gao Wu recognized the mantra’s power and never let a day pass without practicing it.

The mantra itself was over a thousand characters long, and reciting it once took about eight minutes at first, requiring visualization of the Azure Dragon deity throughout. Practicing was complicated; at the beginning, he failed more often than he succeeded. Fortunately, his prior life’s training in a Daoist temple, coupled with the steadiness of one who had lived two lives, gave him confidence in the Infinite Book of Merit.

Through persistent cultivation, his recitation time shortened steadily. He discovered the mantra’s most direct effect was to strengthen his constitution, reinforce his bones and sinews, and heal injuries.

Under normal circumstances, the mantra couldn’t rapidly heal severe wounds. His swift recovery after the catastrophe was clearly a special effect from the first activation of the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra.

The Infinite Book of Merit’s data display had undergone several revisions, finally settling on the most intuitive format for Gao Wu’s understanding.

The constitution of an average healthy adult male was about five points; Gao Wu’s was a remarkable eight—three times the norm—entirely due to his relentless cultivation of the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra.

Constitution was a complex attribute, encompassing vitality, endurance, resilience, and more. For martial artists, a strong constitution meant withstanding intense training and quickly recovering from fatigue.

Thanks to this robust constitution, even without outstanding martial talent, Gao Wu’s diligence had made him an intermediate-level martial artist by seventeen.

In Dongjiang City and its nine counties, among a million secondary school students, Gao Wu ranked solidly within the top hundred in personal combat strength. The only reason his official ranking was lower was because his coach suppressed him at school, leaving him few opportunities to showcase his abilities.

Next year was the university entrance exam, and only the top ten on the school martial arts leaderboard earned direct admission to elite martial academies.

Gao Wu could do little about this, but with the Infinite Book of Merit, opportunity would come. The book could collect merit, but merit could only be used to enhance divine spells—not other martial arts, nor could it directly improve his base attributes. Even so, it was an unrivaled artifact.

After years of study and practice, Gao Wu realized that merit was gained through good deeds—deeds in line with his own simple and honest moral sense. The more people who knew of a good deed, the more merit he received; the fewer, the less. Thus, his public rescue had garnered hundreds of merit points, and further sharing through online videos would bring even more.

With his merit now exceeding ten thousand, he could elevate the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra to a higher level. This would quicken his recitation, enhance the mantra’s effect on his constitution, and perhaps even allow him to chant during combat.

In martial contests, fighters competed in strength, speed, skill, and endurance. If he could recite his mantra in battle, he could outlast any opponent of his level in a three-round match by relying on the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra alone.

But perhaps ten thousand merit points could also unlock other divine spells?

Experience showed that activating a new spell would summon mysterious power, refining his body and boosting his attributes. If so, his strength would leap forward dramatically.

At this crucial moment, he had to choose with utmost care…