Chapter 658: Chapter 658: Soul Imprint Manual Chapter 658: Chapter 658: Soul Imprint Manual “It’s nothing much,” Feng Jun decisively shook his head. How easy could it be to owe money to such a top-tier business family? After all, Feng was someone from the age of information explosion, and he didn’t even have a credit card, let alone this kind of debt. “I’m not used to owing people.”

“Alright, just a joke,” Huang Fu Flawless said with a slight smile. “Do you want the manual with the ‘imprint’?”

“This I can take,” Feng Jun nodded. He understood this level of coded language; ‘imprint’ actually referred to a Soul Seal.

A so-called Soul Seal is an imprint on the soul. Generally, if chosen correctly, a manual imbued with a soul imprint is somewhat more reliable than those officially sold by the Tiantong Commercial Alliance, even though they’re not exactly above board.

The uses for a Soul Seal are numerous, but a manual with a Soul Seal can only be read once, and the key point is… it requires someone’s death.

In essence, the creation of a Soul Seal manual happens under two circumstances: one is where ancestors willingly leave behind a one-time use manual for their descendants for various reasons; the other is… obtained through a Soul Search!

Thus, the Tiantong Commercial Alliance is not just about legitimate business deals. Among successful businessmen, it’s almost impossible to find a pure lotus.

“Then… five hundred Spirit Stones will do,” Huang Fu Flawless offered half the price.

“Forget it, still can’t afford it,” Feng Jun shook his head. That particular Mei wasn’t even worth five hundred Spirit Stones, why bother?

In fact, he was somewhat wary of things like Soul Seals. There were too many Great Cultivators in the mobile phone realm, and only those at the Golden Core stage could be called True People. With spiritual matters that involved the soul, a slight manipulation could have serious consequences, so he needed to be highly vigilant.

Huang Fu Flawless looked at him indifferently, “Then how many Spirit Stones are you willing to pay?”

Feng Jun thought for a moment, then spoke, “One hundred Spirit Stones… I just want to try controlling a Qi-Refining Practitioner; killing one doesn’t earn you many Spirit Stones either.”

Qi Refining Practitioners indeed don’t have many Spirit Stones; Pan Renjie, at the Qi Refining Ninth Layer, usually only had a few dozen on him–of course, that’s because he had recently been undergoing Worldly Trials, so there was no need to carry too many Spirit Stones.

But even in the Cultivation World, who carries that many Spirit Stones if they’re not planning to buy any big items?

Yu Meiren carrying several hundred Spirit Stones was considered a lot, and he was worried about coming to Mount Zhige where offending some powerful person was a possibility. With those Spirit Stones, at least he could hide for a few years outside.

“One hundred Spirit Stones,” Huang Fu Flawless almost laughed at the audacity. How could I, the dignified Chairman of the Eastern Branch, discuss a transaction for a mere hundred Spirit Stones?

Her eyes shifted, “Here’s the thing, I personally have a Soul Imprint publication of the ‘Essence Blood Control Technique’ which can control thirty-six Exotic Beasts through essence blood. However, a Qi Refining Practitioner can only control up to nine… One hundred Spirit Stones for you, interested?”

Feng Jun pondered and asked, “At what Cultivation Level can one control thirty-six Exotic Beasts?”

“Golden Core, of course,” Huang Fu Flawless answered without hesitation. “The detachment stage controls twenty-seven, but… the upper limit for Golden Core Stage is thirty-six, though it can include one Nascent Soul Exotic Beast.”

The expression on Feng Jun’s face turned odd, “You didn’t Soul Search a True Person, did you?”

Hearing this, Huang Fu Flawless rolled her eyes at him, “What kind of joke is that? Soul Searching a True Person… what Cultivation Level would that require? Besides, even if such a manual existed, it wouldn’t have ended up in my hands.”

As they talked, the all-terrain vehicle returned to the small courtyard. Knowing that it would soon be inconvenient to speak, she quickly said, “It’s a spoils of war found on a bandit’s body, probably left by a Qi-Refining Practitioner. Whether there’s anything amiss with it, I’m not sure.”

“Amiss?” Feng Jun asked in surprise, but the vehicle had already arrived back at the small courtyard.

Huang Fu Flawless didn’t explain further, but simply asked aloud, “Are you sure you want this manual?”

Feng Jun hesitated, then nodded, “I’m sure I want it.”

Chairman Huang Fu nodded, “Okay then, I’ll go fetch the goods, and they’ll arrive soon.”

“Wait,” Feng Jun interjected, “I would also like twenty Mortal-grade Storage Talismans. What do you say to ten Spirit Stones?”

However, Huang Fu Flawless didn’t let even the small change slip by, “To outsiders, we sell at one Spirit Stone per piece. Let’s settle for fifteen.”

After a pause, she asked curiously, “What do you need so many Mortal-grade Storage Talismans for?”

The Mortal-grade Storage Talismans were, of course, available for sale at the Tiantong Commercial Alliance, but they were traded for Spirit Stones. Buying such items from the Commerce Alliance wasn’t economical, as one could obtain them with gold and silver by making arrangements in the Mortal Realm.

Thus, when the Tiantong Commercial Alliance sells these items, they often serve as giveaways or bundling items to maintain customer relationships.

She was puzzled at why Feng Jun wanted so many inconsequential items.

Feng Jun smiled mysteriously, “If I tell you their use, would you sell me thirty for ten Spirit Stones?”

“No problem,” Huang Fu Flawless replied crisply, for at that price, the Tiantong Commercial Alliance wouldn’t lose money.

Feng Jun showed a grin, “Of course, it’s for exploring secret realms.”

“Which…,” Huang Fu Flawless began to ask which secret realm, then realized what he meant. Secret realms that needed Mortals to explore–weren’t those the very ones he just mentioned, the secret realms of the Dharma-Ending Age?

Her eyes widened with anger, “You… do you not think that was excessive, Fellow Daoist Feng?”

Without waiting for Feng Jun to respond, she promptly conjured a red flower, somewhat resembling a lotus. The flower grew rapidly upon contact with the air, expanding to a size of about three feet in diameter in an instant. She stepped onto it, and the red flower lifted her three feet off the ground, carrying her away through the air.

Feng Jun simply took it that she was angry, but unexpectedly, after Huang Fu Wuxia turned her back on him to leave, the corners of her mouth betrayed a hint of a smile.

Back in her courtyard, she shut the door to her room and retrieved a half-a-foot-tall brown wooden carving, which was a half-body sculpture of a person.

She placed the carving on the table, then brought out an incense burner and a stub of incense about ten centimeters long. She bowed thrice to the wooden carving, lit the incense, inserted it into the burner, and began murmuring something softly.

Curls of incense smoke rose up, emanating curious fluctuations. After roughly the span of three to five breaths, the wooden carving seemed to twist and then a phantom emerged from it, growing increasingly larger.

The phantom gradually solidified, revealing its true form – the image of a middle-aged scholar, identical to the wooden carving.

The scholar cast a glance at Huang Fu Wuxia and spoke with a smile, “Who might this be? If it isn’t Wuxia. You don’t look like you’ve been bullied. What brings you to me?”

“I have come to pay respects to my esteemed ancestor,” Huang Fu Wuxia bowed deeply in respect, “I have a Cultivation Technique at home, I hope you could bestow upon it a trace of your Divine Sense.”

“This again…” The middle-aged scholar rolled his eyes helplessly, his gestures and expressions remarkably lifelike despite being just a phantom, “Aren’t you supposed to make your own way in the world by your own abilities? Your ancestor is rather busy too.”

“This time it’s not for personal grievances,” Huang Fu Wuxia replied with a smile, “Just a trace of your Divine Sense that can follow is enough, the more secret the better. I’ve found an interesting person and I wish to probe his origins.”

“You should be clear that the powers of a Golden Core Master are not for you to use in such a manner,” the middle-aged scholar said sternly, yet there was a hint of helplessness on his face, “There are plenty of interesting things in the outside world. You can’t always rely on your ancestor. How will you grow?”

“This person is truly intriguing,” Huang Fu Wuxia smiled as she spoke, “Shall I send you his information?”

“No need, I am not as free as you are,” the middle-aged scholar waved his hand dismissively, “Alright, have someone bring the Cultivation Technique over, and I will create a Divine Sense Plaque for you to handle… Don’t bother me with every little thing.”

“Just a small fraction of Divine Sense,” Huang Fu Wuxia quickly added, “That person might also have a true master behind him, ancestor, take care not to incur a loss.”

“Alright, I understand,” the middle-aged scholar’s figure began to fade, “You’re not young anymore. Focus on proper matters and strive to advance to the Nascent Soul stage soon….”

After returning to the backyard, Feng Jun reassembled the Lingzhi Formation and verified there were no issues before resuming his Talismans practice.

Early the next morning, he drove an all-terrain vehicle straight towards the small courtyard at Wuyou Platform.

One could imagine the bemused reaction of Elder Yan upon seeing the Analysis Formation Method for Spirit Plants that Feng Jun had set up.

However, while he was engrossed in his calculations, a voice sounded at the entrance of the courtyard, “Huang Fu Wuxia of the Tiantong Commercial Alliance has come to pay respects to the elders and Fellow Daoists of Wuyou Platform.”

Then Pan Renjie’s voice could be heard exclaiming, “Is this a mistake? You… you must be a descendant of the Huang Fu Family, aren’t you?”

“Ah, if it isn’t Elder Brother Pan,” Huang Fu Wuxia spoke with a smile, “You haven’t entered the Nascent Soul stage yet? You need to put in more effort.”

Elder Yan was taken aback at first, then pulled out an Array Plate, activating it immediately, revealing it to be an Obstructing Vision Array.

He then walked from the back to the front courtyard, his expression not looking great.

No one likes being interrupted while deeply engaged in research, so his demeanor was not friendly, and he directly inquired, “So the descendant of the Huang Fu Family has become the chairman. May I know the purpose of your visit?”

Huang Fu Wuxia gave him a slight smile, “I’ve come to pay my respects to the elders of Wuyou Platform. With Elder Yan here, it would be remiss of me to not visit, lest others ridicule the Huang Fu Family for lacking courtesy.”

Elder Yan responded to her without much warmth, “Alright, you have paid your respects. I have things to attend to at the moment. How about we talk in a day or two when I’m free?”

“I wanted to ask,” Huang Fu Wuxia turned her head to look at Feng Jun, “is the Lingzhi Formation completed?”

“I will not be divulging any relevant information to you,” Feng Jun certainly wasn’t going to answer directly. He suspected that this might be intentional on her part, a ploy to stir up trouble between himself and Wuyou Platform. Even if it wasn’t a ploy, he had no obligation to satisfy her curiosity, “Your curiosity is too strong.”

Huang Fu Wuxia simply smiled slightly and looked away, “May I ask Elder Yan, are you researching the Lingzhi Formation?”

Elder Yan replied earnestly, “This is a formation method that Wuyou Platform has already purchased. I am afraid I cannot disclose any details.”

“I’ve heard that Elder Yan bought the formation for research purposes,” Huang Fu Wuxia said with a smile, “What I mean is, please focus on your research and after completing it, could you consider transferring the formation to me? For business… it should be left to Tiantong after all.”

Elder Yan was reluctant to fall out with her, precisely because he feared this scenario – the Analysis Formation Methods that were easily replicable. To ensure exclusive operation, besides Wuyou Platform’s own deterrent power, maintaining good relations with other major forces was also crucial.

If Tiantong really became upset and started replicating without regard, what could he do about it?

(Updated to here. Calling for monthly votes.)