The Spirit Lock Circlet was a confinement spirit tool that—once activated—would lock the True Spirit to forever confine the soul.
Many large cultivation clans would use such methods to control their servants. Most of the servants of these clans were cultivators as well, and not only were they in Foundation Stage, but some were even in the Golden Core or Budding Soul Stages as well. These types of people were extremely dangerous, and given how much power they had and how vast the land was, why would they willingly choose to become a flunkey to someone else? Someone had created this kind of spirit tool specifically for the sake of locking the spirit and soul of a cultivator to prevent betrayal. Once someone gave an oath, the circlet would lock the cultivator's soul and prevent them from violating it.
As for Grand Elder Jing Guang, he didn't have time to slowly grind down all the potential conditions with Fang Xing and so he'd directly suggested this method. It wasn't possible for him to take this little brat's life right now and this brat assuredly wouldn't agree to becoming a permanent servant of the Jing clan, so he had to take a step back and suggest servitude for the duration of the Mysterious Domain only. Not only was this something far more likely to be accepted, but this boy's battle prowess would be a huge help if he did.
People like Grand Elder Jing Guang placed battle prowess and their own benefit above everything else. Although this little brat had come out of nowhere and played him, his abilities truly were something. Not even his great great granddaughter or Yuan Shenglian had the same level of guts; if he could convince this boy to work for him it would bring about great results!
The brat ended up agreeing to it just as Grand Elder Jing Guang expected. "Go, use the Spirit Lock Circlet on him!" Jing Guang coldly commanded, a hint of pride tugging at the corner of his curved lips.
"Yes, Grand Elder." Jing Fu nodded and moved forward to enter the Mysterious Domain, but Jing Guang stopped her and said, "You wait here. Let Shenglian go instead."
Yuan Shenglian sighed to himself. "Yes, Grand Elder."
Grand Elder Jing Guang sent a strand of spirit sense into the Spirit Lock Circlet—effectively laying out the terms and conditions—before passing it on to Yuan Shenglian.
Yuan Shenglian understood the grand elder was still concerned about the possibility Fang Xing might decide to take his granddaughter if she got close and so had chosen to send him in instead—he was merely an outsider, after all, and nowhere near as important. He accepted the Spirit Lock Circlet and stepped towards the small stone bridge.
After so much time had passed, what was left wasn't even enough for half a cup of tea. Without any superfluous words or actions, he walked in front of Fang Xing and handed him a shiny black metal circlet. "Speak your oath!"
Fang Xing's expression became pensive as he spoke in a low voice, "I vow to work for the Jing clan while inside this Mysterious Domain…." As soon as those words were spoken over that circlet, a faint light appeared, symbols began to shine one by one, and it finally flew up into the air on its own to secure itself to Fang Xing's head. Upon seeing how Fang Xing hadn't done anything abnormal, Yuan Shenglian let out a sigh of relief while Grand Elder Jing Guang showed a cold smile. Jing Guang's disciples relaxed as well, although Chu Ci on the other hand had a face covered in tears.
The expressions of the other three Golden Cores became rather complex as worry began to set in; who knew what this old monster Jing Guang might decide to do to their disciples now that he'd taken more control of the situation? Would he order the boy to massacre their disciples…? It was just a pity that no matter how worried they were now, they still couldn't do anything. Once someone entered the Mysterious Domain, they couldn't leave from the same point and had to find one of the exits located elsewhere.
"Take her inside! The formation pivot is nearly closed!" Grand Elder Jing Guang loudly commanded before passing Chu Ci to Jing Fu. When using this kind of curse, he had to commit to his vow as well or else there would be a crack in the contract between them.
The formation pivot was going to close soon, and Jing Fu didn't dare to delay. While holding on to Chu Ci's clothes, Jing Fu took her and the rest of the Jing Guang disciples through the small stone bridge with a dash. As for Fang Xing on the other side, he walked towards them with an emotionless expression that masked completely what he was thinking before he held out both hands to take Chu Ci back from Jing Fu.
When Fang Xing was just about ten or so feet away, Jing Fu suddenly sneered and a tyrannical look swept across her face. "You're the one who caused me to be scolded by my grand elder, yet you still want this girl's life?"
This left Fang Xing startled and his pupils began to dilate.
Yuan Shenglian had also guessed at Jing Fu's thoughts and screamed out with surprise, "Shimei Fu, don't—" Before he could finish, however, Jing Fu suddenly raised her hand and slammed it against Chu Ci's back, pushing her towards Fang Xing like a stringless kite. Nearly scared out of his wits, Fang Xing yelled out before dashing over to catch her in his arms. As he looked down, Chu Ci's mouth filled with blood that she spurted one after another towards his chest while her gaze became blurred.
Chu Ci was only in Spirit Stage; how could she handle the full-power attack from someone in Foundation Stage? If it had been under normal circumstances, she would have the Umbrella of Tenra White Jade to use as protection, but it just so happened she'd lent it to Fang Xing out of concern for his safety. She took the full impact of this blow, and on her back was a deep pit that curved inwards.
"Little Sister Fu, you…." Yuan Shenglian quickly rushed over, but his brows creased when he saw the damage had already been done.
"Hmph, we only agreed to bring this girl inside, we never agreed not to kill her! Since he's already wearing the Spirit Lock Circlet, what can he do now?" Jing Fu rolled her eyes at Yuan Shenglian before she continued with dissatisfaction, "It is you we're talking about here, though; is your heart still pining for her?"
When Grand Elder Jing Guang saw this from the other end of the bridge, his brows slightly creased as well. He'd originally thought that if Fang Xing was truly able to help their Jing clan prosper within this Mysterious Domain, taking him in as his direct student and have him working for him the rest of his life wouldn't be a bad idea. Upon seeing this, however, he could only let out a sigh; now that this girl was killed, the Jing clan would have reaffirmed their status as being this kid's enemies until the end of time. It seemed his only option was to kill this boy once the Mysterious Domain had run its course….
"Girl, you ok? You're not going to die right?" Fang Xing asked with a shaky voice as he looked at the pale-faced Chu Ci, clearly rather uncertain of what to do next.
Chu Ci's lips became dark red and her gaze began to falter. She lightly held up her hand and weakly placed it on Fang Xing's shoulder before starting to say something, but her voice was so soft Fang Xing had to move closer to her lips before he could hear. "You really did take me inside, Xiaojiu…."
Fang Xing shivered as though his heart had been mercilessly wrung. "Of course! Your little grandpa here is powerful beyond imagination. I'm also going to take you with me to go kill your big brother, so don't you die now…."
"Don't kill my big brother. You… you're not strong enough to be his opponent…." Chu Ci's voice was ever so weak. "Also… don't kneel in front of others. It makes me upset…."
A silent rage began to bubble up from the bottom of Fang Xing's heart and his eyes became bloody red in an instant. He'd casually kidnapped the princess of Chufung and hadn't originally taken her seriously, but after being with her the past few days, not only did he not despise her, he'd also forged some emotional ties. Hearing her words now, it felt as though his heart was being whipped….
"Dammit, you think I like to kneel? It was all for you. Don't you die on me now, you still owe me…." Filled with nervousness, anger, and anxiety, he began to fiddle with all the pellets he had and started forcibly pouring them into her mouth, but her colors began to fade away and her breath started growing faint.
Just at that moment, a black smoke flew over to cover Fang Xing and quietly reminded him, "Kid, the Blood Lotus Seeds…."
"Yes…. Yes yes yes…." Fang Xing instantly remembered and rushed to pull out a Blood Lotus Seed before stuffing it into her mouth. The Blood Lotus Seed wasn't something he would use without a good reason so he'd hidden it quite well. His emotional state was so disheveled he hadn't thought of it at all.
Chu Ci couldn't even swallow by the time the Blood Lotus Seed entered her mouth. In panic, Fang Xing shoved himself up against her mouth and gave it a blow, pushing the pellet down her throat in one go.
A faint bloody shine instantly covered her body, and her pale face immediately began to show some color. A Blood Lotus Seed was considered a miracle medicine and would be enough to keep her alive, but this kind of miracle medicine still needed to be circulated within the meridians and carried through the body via Qi. Chu Ci was clearly unconscious and unable to move, let alone activate her Qi, and her broken bones also required mending which would need further assistance from Fang Xing.
A surprised voice rose up. "Eh? Brat, what pellet did you just use? Give it to me!" Jing Fu gripped her longsword and pointed it towards Fang Xing; she'd sensed the unique power in the Blood Lotus Seed Fang Xing had fed to Chu Ci and greed began to grab at her.
Fang Xing felt slightly relieved when he saw Chu Ci's condition was improving, but those words filled him with anger and murderous intent. "You want the Blood Lotus Seed? You'll need to be alive to enjoy it." After taking a quick glance at Grand Elder Jing Guang on the other side of the bridge, he planted the Flag of Ten Thousand Spirits into the soil next to Chu Ci and quietly ordered the Peng King, "Protect this girl for me and check her wounds again…."
Once that was done, Fang Xing suddenly began to stand up. He ignored the sword Jing Fu was pointing at him and showed an extremely peculiar expression on his face. "Did you know this damn girl is my f*cking hostage?" Fang Xing suddenly yelled, leaving Jing Fu dumbstruck. "This girl is my hostage, and if someone's going to kill her, it's going to be me and me alone. No one else is allowed to touch her." His gaze was like a burning flame that grew hotter and hotter. "Did you know I told this girl that if she followed me, I'd take her safely into the Mysterious Domain? And yet you hurt her; are you trying to turn me into a liar?"
The terrifying murderous intent surrounding Fang Xing caused Jing Fu to shiver in fear, and she couldn't help but to reflexively take a step back. Even Yuan Shenglian was put on alert as he sensed the terrifying power surrounding the boy, and he quickly took a step forward to stand protectively in front of Jing Fu.
After taking a step back, Jing Fu quickly realized the situation and began yelling right back at Fang Xing. "Heh, brat, the Spirit Lock Circlet is still sitting tightly on your head. Are you trying to rebel against it?" Since Fang Xing was wearing the Spirit Lock Circlet, how could he do something like causing trouble?
Yet Fang Xing simply sneered. "Spirit Lock Circlet?"