Free Web NovelChapter 290: Chapter 169: Those Picked Out Are All My Men
The Spirit Binder had summoned a Mao Jiang with nearly five hundred years of power.
This was a Xingzi he had spent half his life’s effort to subdue and capture.
A thick layer of hair grew all over the Mao Jiang’s body, just like a steamed bun that had been left out for too long and grown moldy.
The Mao Jiang’s body was as hard as iron; ordinary blades couldn’t even scratch it.
And the greater its power, the tougher its body became.
Unlike the slow-moving White Corpse and Green Corpse, a Mao Jiang was agile, capable of leaping onto rooftops and into trees.
Most importantly, a Mao Jiang no longer feared sunlight.
This was why it could appear in broad daylight.
Lu Yuan hadn’t fought against a Xingzi many times, especially not a Mao Jiang with nearly five hundred years of power.
This Mao Jiang’s power was high enough to break through the protection granted by Lu Yuan’s Seventh Grade Official Position.
The fortune from a Seventh Grade Official Position might be enough to repel an ordinary wild Xingzi, but against one with five hundred years of power, it was useless.
To defend against such a Da Xingzi, one would need the fortune granted by an official of the Third Grade or higher to be immune to its attacks.
The Holy Body cultivation that Lu Yuan practiced also contained a Secret Technique to protect himself from the assault of evil spirits.
But he didn’t want to use it here. He wanted to test his other methods against it.
Facing the Jiangshi, a method for dealing with them from the Mao Mountain Lineage popped into Lu Yuan’s mind.
’Pinch sticky rice with the right hand, stir it in a bowl full of ink and chicken blood, then cover it with an Eight Trigrams Mirror.’
’The Magic is complete, and the Jiangshi can be repelled!’
But in this situation, there was no way Lu Yuan could set up an altar and perform a ritual!
Just as the Mao Jiang lunged at him, Lu Yuan remembered Lu Ban’s Ink Pot—a reward from the system! free𝑤ebnovel.com
It was the same kind of treasure used by the Mao Mountain Lineage to exorcise Jiangshi.
’If not now, when?’
Lu Yuan pretended to pull the Ink Pot from his robes and drew out the Ink Pot Thread.
It was originally meant for marking coffin planks, but he couldn’t be bothered with that now.
The Mao Jiang’s claw was about to strike Lu Yuan.
Su Liyan wrung her hands, watching her big brother anxiously from the sidelines, her heart skipping a beat.
She was worried he might get hurt, but she didn’t dare rush forward to interfere.
She was afraid that if she went up to help, she would cause him to lose face in front of these hundreds of people.
Of course, if he were in real danger, Su Liyan wouldn’t just stand by. If her big brother got hurt, how could he dote on her in the future?
Lu Yuan looked at the Mao Jiang. ’This mindless creature is going for the kill!’
’And that old man is a fool. This is just a sparring match, why’d he get so serious?’
’If it scratches me, won’t I turn into a Jiangshi too?’
In his haste, Lu Yuan pulled out the Ink Pot Thread to block the Mao Jiang’s descending claw.
The Mao Jiang’s hand struck the Ink Pot Thread, creating a CRACKLE of sparks.
The Mao Jiang trembled all over and leaped back, clearly afraid of the object in Lu Yuan’s hand.
This was a perfect example of one thing being the bane of another!
’Heh! This was the right tool for the job.’ Holding Lu Ban’s Ink Pot, Lu Yuan’s confidence surged.
The Mao Jiang leaped high into the air, intending to use the force of its descent to knock him down.
Seeing the Mao Jiang in mid-air, Lu Yuan thought, ’Isn’t this the perfect opportunity?’
Lu Yuan tied one end of the Ink Pot Thread to the Jade Pendant hanging from his waist.
It was fashionable for people of this era to wear Jade Pendants.
Every era has its own style, just like the punk styles of the 1970s.
The spectators never would have guessed that the Zhao Mansion’s young nephew was such an all-rounder, skilled in Body Technique as well!
Facing a Jiangshi without specially prepared tools to counter it was truly a difficult fight.
This young nephew looked so frail, yet he carried a magic treasure for subduing Jiangshi on his person at all times.
The spectators couldn’t tell that Lu Yuan had pulled the Ink Pot from his system; they all thought he had been carrying it in his robes.
Some even began to suspect this was a personal exhibition match arranged by Lu Yuan.
Lu Yuan swung the Jade Pendant and threw it.
It wrapped around the Mao Jiang’s ankle.
The airborne Mao Jiang’s leg was ensnared by the Ink Pot Thread, followed by another series of CRACKLES!
Lu Yuan took a few steps back, yanked the Ink Pot Thread, and slammed the Mao Jiang onto the ground.
The Mao Jiang hopped in place, trying to scrape off the Ink Pot Thread wrapped around its ankle.
But Lu Yuan gave it no such chance.
Gripping the Ink Pot, he circled the Mao Jiang rapidly a few times.
He bound the Mao Jiang completely with the Ink Pot Thread.
The Spirit Binder never expected Lu Yuan to pull a move like this.
If Lu Yuan had used a sword, he certainly wouldn’t have been able to subdue it.
Instead, he’d used the Ink Pot Thread to wrap the Mao Jiang up like a rice dumpling.
The ink from the Ink Pot Thread seeped into the Mao Jiang’s skin, making it howl in pain.
Every drop of ink that sizzled and evaporated away struck the Mao Jiang with searing pain.
Once the ink on the Ink Pot Thread was used up, the Mao Jiang would break free again.
Lu Yuan had to use this time to draw a few powerful Talismans to achieve Suppression.
Then this match would be over.
Seeing his Mao Jiang sparking and convulsing, the Spirit Binder’s heart ached. He used the Spirit Capturing Device in his hand to stabilize the creature and begged Lu Yuan to release the thread wrapped around it.
"Sir, I concede!" the elderly Spirit Binder said with a sigh and a shake of his head.
Since his opponent had conceded, Lu Yuan saw no need to proceed with the final Suppression.
Lu Yuan retracted the Ink Pot Thread, pretended to put the Ink Pot back into his robes, but in reality, stored it back in his system.
Lu Yuan flicked the ink from his right hand, wiped his Jade Pendant clean, and tucked it back into his sash.
He thought to himself, ’I always end up using Lu Ban’s Ink Pot to fight Jiangshi.’
’A treasure meant for snapping lines to suppress Jiangshi has been turned into a combat weapon by me.’
’Good thing the Ink Pot Thread can be replaced and the ink is inexhaustible.’
The crowd outside the ring had just witnessed a thrilling battle and burst into cheers.
"It’s been a long time since I’ve seen such an exciting fight!"
"Yeah, he’s the Zhao Mansion’s nephew, all right."
"That was the first time I’ve ever seen a Mao Jiang."
...
Most of the people who had eagerly signed up to challenge him earlier were now pretending to be deaf and mute.
"Hey, Old Wang, weren’t you just raising your hand to sign up for a challenge? Why are you chickening out now?" a man said, nudging the person next to him with his elbow.
Old Wang lowered his head and replied, "You little bastard, how the hell am I supposed to beat that?"
"That’s true. You’ve got to know your own limits."
"Get outta here..."
After watching Lu Yuan’s last few matches, the spectators below the stage decided it was better to just honestly collect their monthly wages. Those ten taels of silver were clearly not easy to earn.
But there were always a few who refused to believe it, thinking Lu Yuan only beat the Mao Jiang through sheer luck.
They believed the Zhao Mansion’s nephew just happened to be carrying a treasure specifically for dealing with Jiangshi.
However, what happened next was a real slap in the face for them.
The Celestial Masters who stepped up to challenge him were all easily knocked to the ground by Lu Yuan in a matter of moments.
Now, the spectators below the stage were all cheering loudly.
Some even tried to egg on the Grand Celestial Masters beside them to go up and knock Lu Yuan down a peg.
But anyone who could cultivate to the level of a Grand Celestial Master wasn’t lacking in emotional or intellectual intelligence.
There was absolutely no need for them to enter the ring in this situation.
It was like a human competing against a dog. If you win, you’re just better than a dog. If you tie, you’re the same as a dog. If you lose, you’re worse than a dog.
If they won, they’d steal the spotlight, but wouldn’t they fear being targeted for revenge later?
If they lost, how could they ever hold up their heads with the title of Grand Celestial Master again?
After all, Lu Yuan hadn’t been certified by any Daoist Temple; he couldn’t even be considered a Celestial Master.
Even a Wandering Celestial Master needed to get their identity certified by a Daoist Temple.
Otherwise, how could they roam the martial world and take on jobs?
Even Travelers were managed by a Guild.
If certain items weren’t consecrated at a temple, buyers might not even recognize their value.
Lu Yuan saw that no one else dared to challenge him.
He stood in the fighting ring and announced, "Since no one is challenging me voluntarily, this afternoon, I will begin selecting people myself."
At that moment, everyone was thinking the same thing: ’Please don’t let him pick me this afternoon.’
’I’m so close to the finish line, how can I get eliminated now?’
Having fought several matches in a row, Lu Yuan was also feeling a bit tired.
Since no one was challenging him, he decided to take the lunch break to rest properly.
Su Liyan ran up to him, kneading his shoulders, and asked softly, "Big brother, how are you feeling?"
"Mmm, nice, that’s comfortable... your massage is great." Lu Yuan, completely missing her point, thought she was asking about the massage.
Su Liyan didn’t ask again. She just continued kneading her big brother’s shoulders, confident that his strength was more than enough to handle whatever came next.
「That afternoon.」
Lu Yuan stood before the high platform, selecting people from the crowd for the third round of assessment.
"You, you, and you..."
The chosen individuals stepped out from the crowd and stood before everyone.
Jiang Huai, a Central Guard Thousand Households from the Southern Town Patrol Department, glanced left and right, looking at the others who had been called out with him.
’What the fuck? What’s going on?’
’Every single person he picked is one of my men!’
