Chapter 336 - 327: Shackles, Entry Level

Chapter 336: Chapter 327: Shackles, Entry Level

On his way back to the city from Panxiang Temple, Fu Juemin changed his route and went directly to the teahouse where he had last met Helu.

This was a secret stronghold run by the Profound Banner, and the teahouse was filled with "their own people."

He took out Helu’s Prince’s Decree and waited in the "Earth" Number One private room. Before he could finish two cups of tea, Helian arrived.

Helian was still dressed in a long, black gauze dress.

The woman’s neck was beautiful—long, slender, and a creamy white. A classic swan neck.

But this time, when she met Fu Juemin, she had deliberately put on a neck ring patterned with Profound Gold. It was hard to say if it was to prevent Fu Juemin from choking her again.

"Go into the Former Imperial Palace and find a Martial Arts Secret Manual for me."

Fu Juemin instructed Helian in a calm tone as he sipped his fragrant tea.

Helian, who had been smiling sweetly, heard Fu Juemin’s words and her expression immediately soured.

"Why don’t you just ask me to steal the undergarments of the former dynasty’s Princesses for you?"

Helian said, grinding her teeth.

"I don’t have that kind of fetish."

Fu Juemin set down his teacup and tapped its base lightly on the table, making a TAP TAP sound.

"Don’t tell me you can’t do it. The Helers have Yingjing City under their thumb. If you’re unwilling or unable to help with such a small matter..."

Fu Juemin looked into Helian’s eyes and threatened, "Then I’ll have to seriously reconsider this partnership with you."

Helian was furious, but she glanced at the Exorcism Saber Fu Juemin had casually placed on the table, and somehow, her anger dissipated.

"Fine."

She nodded in agreement. "What Secret Manual are you looking for?"

"Saber Techniques. The higher the grade, the better. The more variety, the better.

Also, cultivation methods, notes, and insights for the Heart Intent Realm and above..."

Fu Juemin not only mentioned the Bodhi Golden Body Technique, but he also threw in all the other Martial Arts he needed, continuing until Helian’s expression turned ugly again before he finally stopped.

"That’s all for now."

Fu Juemin took a sip of warm tea to soothe his throat and added casually, "Any more and I’m afraid you’d have trouble carrying it all."

"Well, I should really thank you for that."

Helian glared at him, then said coldly, "You’ve been cooped up in the Yan Family this whole time without making a move?"

"Yes."

Fu Juemin glanced at her and said flatly, "Don’t rush me. I have my own plans."

"I wouldn’t dare rush you,"

Helian sneered. "But since you’ve taken our payment, you should at least do something to show for it.

Don’t blame me for not reminding you, the Wuchen Grand Sacrifice has been moved up. It’s expected to be held next month.

The Prince said that before the Grand Sacrifice, you need to use the Ghost Dragon Beard to control at least five Demon Officials to ensure the sacrifice fails..."

"Fails?!"

Fu Juemin’s expression flickered upon hearing this, a strange glint in his eyes. "You want the Grand Sacrifice to fail?"

"What else?"

Helian said with a cold expression, "If the Grand Sacrifice doesn’t fail, how can we sever the Wuhuan Jin Clan’s last thread of destiny and help my Helers Clan take the opportunity to reclaim the Royal Banner?"

"So that’s how it is."

Fu Juemin’s face showed an expression that said, ’Now I finally know what to do.’

’He had been worrying about how to handle the Wuchen Grand Competition, but it turned out the Helers just wanted to sabotage it. No wonder they didn’t care that he had killed three Demon Officials.’

’If failure was the goal, then things just got a lot easier.’

’When it came to making things succeed, Fu Juemin wasn’t necessarily an expert. But when it came to causing chaos? Who could possibly do it better than him?!’

"Don’t worry, I’ve already used one Ghost Dragon Beard on the Yan Family’s Demon Rhinoceros. There are four left. There’s still enough time."

Fu Juemin thought for a moment, his eyes flickering as he deliberately said this to test her.

Helian said coolly, "You’d better be right about having enough time. Otherwise, if you ruin our plans, you can forget about this partnership, and you won’t be able to bear the consequences."

"Understood."

Fu Juemin nodded.

’He’d figured it out. The Profound Banner people had no idea whether he had actually used the Ghost Dragon Beards that Helu gave him.’

’Presumably, only the First Grade Ghost Flood King venerated by the Profound Banner would sense anything.’

’Since there was a layer of separation, Fu Juemin had a lot of room to maneuver.’

"...If you do your job well, the Prince will not be stingy with his rewards."

Helian’s tone suddenly softened. Her gaze swept over the Exorcism Saber before landing gently on Fu Juemin. "You’re wary of us, probably because you feel that since you’re not one of the Manchus, you can never be truly trusted.

If the matter of the Grand Sacrifice is successful, I can speak to the Prince on your behalf and have him grant you the Helers surname..."

Helian’s beautiful eyes shimmered. She deliberately lifted her long skirt, placing a smooth, porcelain-white thigh gently on the table. "Even if you have... other requests," she said seductively, "we can discuss those too."

Fu Juemin watched Helian with great interest, saying nothing. He stared until the seductive look on Helian’s face began to falter, and she started to look uncomfortable.

Then he casually picked up his Exorcism Saber, rose lightly to his feet, and walked straight out the door.

"You’re showing the wrong part."

Fu Juemin glanced at Helian’s thigh, then pointed to the Neck Ring on her throat. "Next time, remember not to wear this thing. Show your neck instead. Perhaps I’d be more interested then..."

With that, he chuckled softly, pulled open the door, and strode out.

"Bastard!"

Helian snatched her thigh back off the table, where it had been resting for some time. Clutching her neck, she spat in anger at Fu Juemin’s departing back, cursing under her breath for a long while.

...

When Fu Juemin returned to the Yan Mansion, he arrived just as Gu Shouyu was officially beginning the second organ implantation "surgery" for Hong Huan and Xu Chu.

He stood outside the implantation room for a while, listening. Not wanting to disturb them, he turned and went back to his own room.

In a quiet room dedicated to cultivation, Fu Juemin sat cross-legged on an embroidered cushion in the center of the floor. On the wall behind him, the large character for "Silence" was written.

A censer of sandalwood burned in the room, its blue smoke rising slowly. Fu Juemin closed his eyes, his mind sinking into the depths of his consciousness.

Three days of debate, a final moment of epiphany, and the Dharma Form was achieved.

At this moment, the mass of darkness deep within Fu Juemin’s consciousness had already undergone some noticeable changes.

—It was no longer an irregular ink stain, but was beginning to show a rough outline.

The outline was generally long and strip-like, with multiple protrusions on its sides and top... Before it was fully formed, even Fu Juemin couldn’t tell what shape it would eventually take.

His consciousness, too, was undergoing a dramatic transformation, as if it were constantly condensing toward a single point on his spiritual platform, separating the wheat from the chaff.

He didn’t know how long this transformative process would last. For now, all he could do was wait patiently for the results.

’I wonder if activating [Gui Cang] would speed things up...’

Fu Juemin thought, then opened his eyes and got up from the cushion.

He went outside, summoned Mu Feng, and gave him a list of instructions for the items needed to practice the Bright King Shackles Skill.

His priority now was to first reach the Entry Level of the Bright King Skill.

.....

「Seven days later.」

「In the Yan Mansion’s underground secret chamber.」

The vast secret chamber had ventilation shafts on all four sides.

Torches, candles, and gas lamps illuminated the entire chamber, making it as bright as day.

Beneath the countless flickering flames, Fu Juemin sat cross-legged in the center of the chamber, his upper body bare.

His long, well-proportioned body was wrapped in layers of pure steel chains, some thin, some thick.

These chains extended outward, threaded through multiple pulleys nailed to the four walls and the floor, and finally all converged on a massive Demon Rhinoceros the size of two water buffaloes.

The Demon Rhinoceros snorted hot, white air from its mouth and nostrils, a sound like muffled thunder rumbling in its throat as it walked slowly around the room.

With every step it took, the chains attached to it pulled a fraction tighter, causing the dense web of chains on Fu Juemin’s body to constrict even more.

KRAK— KRAK— KRAK—

Aside from the soft crackling of the flames, the only sounds in the room were the footsteps and breathing of the Demon Rhinoceros, and the dragging and tightening of the chains.

Under the immense pull of an Elephant Level Demon Rhinoceros, even a stack of pig iron wrapped in those chains would likely be twisted into scrap.

Yet Fu Juemin, his eyes shut tight, remained as motionless as a mountain. His expression was placid, and his body showed no sign of buckling or deforming.

Mu Feng and Yan Xi, who were waiting in a corner, witnessed the entire scene. Mu Feng was relatively calm, as he had some understanding of Fu Juemin’s strength.

As for Yan Xi, the new Patriarch of the Yan Family, the look in his eyes as he watched Fu Juemin was one of seeing a ghost or a god.

Recalling the ferocious figure he had glimpsed at the chamber door last time—the one who subdued his family’s Tributor, the Demon Rhinoceros, with a single hand—he felt an overwhelming urge to drop to his knees and worship him on the spot!

...