Translator: AnubisTL
The night draped over Dawnlight Manor, a once-luxurious villa belonging to a noble family, like a sheet of black velvet.
By day, Jieming, under the guise of "Jack," strolled leisurely through the bustling streets of Golden Harbor, gathering Red Dust Qi amidst the throngs of people and posting high-reward bounties for Hundred Flowers Dew.
But as night fell, the villa transformed into his true battlefield and training ground.
The extravagant rewards for Hundred Flowers Dew, combined with the ruthless methods "Jack" had displayed at the adventurer's guild, sent shockwaves through Golden Harbor's underworld.
Some coveted the massive gold bounty, dismissing this "new tough guy" as nothing more than brute force.
Others couldn't swallow the humiliation Karl had suffered, seeking to reclaim their lost pride.
Driven by greed and vengeance, individuals began to "test the waters" at Dawnlight Manor under the cover of darkness.
One night, two stealthy thieves infiltrated the villa with silent precision.
Their movements were agile and ghostlike, as they attempted to evade patrolling guards and potential magical traps.
Yet every step of their operation was laid bare before Jieming's eyes.
The seemingly empty garden was in fact saturated with Jieming's Glimmering Eye surveillance system.
Various models and types of Glimmering Eyes were strategically deployed, ensuring that no subtle shift in airflow or faint life fluctuation could escape Jieming's "divine gaze."
Just as the two thieves infiltrated the garden, seeking a breach in the defenses, Jieming finally snapped out of his research trance.
"Two rats," he sneered.
He showed no mercy to these greedy intruders who dared disturb his work.
"Well, it's perfect timing. I needed test subjects for my Divine Power Faith Network experiments anyway. These two just delivered themselves."
His figure blurred into a fleeting afterimage.
One thief felt a sudden chill at the back of his neck, then darkness engulfed his vision as he lost consciousness.
Jieming pinched the thief's neck without a sound and silently dragged the unconscious body into the shadows.
The other thief only realized his companion had vanished moments later. His hair stood on end as he instinctively tried to raise the alarm, but a tremendous force struck him from the side.
Jieming delivered a swift chop to the thief's spine. The man groaned, his body convulsing in agony as he collapsed to the ground, paralyzed.
"You've come at just the right time," Jieming said coldly, looking down at the thief. A faint glow emanated from his fingertips.
The thief's eyes were filled with terror, but his paralyzed body remained motionless, as if numb.
Under the thief's terrified gaze, Jieming delved into his mind, extracting memories to identify their mastermind.
With a flick of his finger, the two thieves were sent flying toward the basement entrance. The floor and walls automatically smoothed over, leaving no trace of their presence.
In the following nights, the probes grew bolder and more varied.
Some attempted to cast curses around the manor, hoping to secretly weaken "Jack," but before the curses could take shape, the casters vanished without a trace.
Several burly men tried to force their way in, but the moment they touched the gate, Jieming kicked them flying from behind the door, their bodies exploding into bloody mist mid-air.
Even an adventurer guild attempted to use crude magical tools to confuse Jieming, but these clumsy tricks only enriched his collection of experimental subjects.
Within days, Dawnlight Manor became infamous throughout Golden Harbor's underworld.
Anyone who dared approach vanished like a clay ox sinking into the sea, never to be seen again. It was as if the manor had become a man-eating abyss.
The once-arrogant thugs sheathed their claws, and even the adventurers who had coveted the massive bounty fell silent.
The nights in Golden Harbor grew eerily quiet, all thanks to that single villa.
Finally, this reputation built on death drew the attention of the true "overseer."
One bright morning, a squad of guards in gleaming armor escorted a stout merchant with fleshy ears and a silk robe to the gates of Dawnlight Manor.
Ryan, the merchant, was a pivotal figure in Golden Harbor's underworld and the true boss behind "Iron Hammer" Karl.
Representing the interests of most of the city's local nobles, he was an ideal negotiator.
Behind him, two guards dragged "Iron Hammer" Karl like a dead dog.
Karl, his leg deliberately broken, trembled violently, his face contorted with fear and humiliation, fresh wounds marring his body—clear evidence of a brutal lesson.
"Lord Jack!" Ryan stopped three meters from the gate, his face plastered with the most obsequious smile.
He bowed deeply, his voice trembling almost imperceptibly. "This humble servant, Ryan, has brought this blind fool here to beg your forgiveness!"
He kicked Karl viciously, twisting his already pale face into a grimace as he forced him to kneel before Jieming. "This idiot! How dare he offend your esteemed authority! He deserves to die a thousand deaths! Lord Jack, please quell your anger and dispose of him as you see fit!"
Ryan's voice was harsh, yet he desperately tried to convey his reverence for Jieming.
Karl lay prostrate on the ground, his body shaking uncontrollably, not daring to utter a single word. He knew his survival depended entirely on the mood of the young man before him.
Jieming stood beneath the villa's portico, the sunlight casting a shadow behind him, obscuring his expression. He watched the scene unfold in silence, sensing the fear in Ryan's voice and the despair in Karl's eyes.
He understood this was a concession from Golden Harbor's local nobility. Ryan's apology served both to demonstrate the nobles' sincerity and preserve their dignity, indirectly signaling their acceptance of Jieming's "external force" presence.
The local nobles' intentions were simple: to maintain a clear boundary between their territories, like well water that never mixes with river water.
If Jieming were still acting as "Jieming," he would have given these indigenous people a harsh lesson, teaching them the true meaning of "might makes right."
But now that he was playing the role of "Jack," he couldn't afford to completely burn bridges.
Moreover, for the current Jieming, a relatively stable Golden Harbor served his interests better.
In truth, Jieming had orchestrated this entire situation from the moment he entered the city.
Though he never explicitly stated it, he had subtly and deliberately portrayed himself as a black-gloved operative of some noble faction.
As a result, Jieming faced far more scrutiny than other adventurers.
However, once the nobles confirmed his capabilities, they naturally withdrew their probes, even treating him as one of their own.
This was an unspoken rule among the nobility.
After all, the proverb "even a mighty dragon can't suppress a local serpent" implied that the serpent shouldn't provoke the dragon—but only if the newcomer truly was a "mighty dragon," not just a "mud loach."
After so many probing attempts, both sides had confirmed their respective "ecological niches." Out of the nobles' sense of "propriety," neither party would naturally resort to open conflict.
"I accept your apology," Jieming said, his voice flat and cold, devoid of any emotional inflection. "As for this one, ensure he never appears before me again."
Hearing these words, Ryan exhaled a long sigh of relief, feeling as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders.
He knew that this mysterious and powerful "Lord Jack" had accepted their atonement, signaling the end of the matter.
The opposing faction had secured their right to remain undisturbed, while Ryan's group had preserved their dignity.
Though Karl had suffered greatly, at least his life had been spared.
"Thank you, Your Lordship! Thank you for your mercy!" Ryan bowed repeatedly, then signaled to his subordinates. The two guards immediately hoisted Karl up and swiftly retreated from Dawnlight Manor's territory.
From that moment on, the underworld of Golden Harbor understood that Dawnlight Manor and its master, "Jack," were entities not to be trifled with.
Since gaining the right to be left undisturbed at Dawnlight Manor, Jieming rarely left the premises, except to collect Hundred Flowers Dew every few days. He remained immersed in his research world, barely stepping outside.
Before he knew it, two months had passed since his arrival in Golden Harbor.
He had transformed the spacious, space-expanded basement into a temporary laboratory, where rune-carving knives, alchemy vessels, and testing equipment were neatly arranged.
"Sigh... Relying solely on biological experiments to study the Divine Power Faith Network is utterly insufficient!"
Before the operating table, Jieming, his hair disheveled, looked up and couldn't help but sigh at the heavens.
"I really want to capture a divine being for research... Damn it! If I'd known it would come to this, I would have told that blood angel to hold back a little."
After two months of studying the Divine Power Faith Network system, Jieming increasingly understood why wizards were so fascinated by "divine beings."
This thing was practically a natural treasure of the wizard world.
In essence, each divine being represented the essence of the local plane's rules. The value embodied by a divine being accounted for over eighty percent of the plane's total worth.
Even with the planar deity's Divine Power Faith Network, despite the rudimentary research equipment and limited materials...
Despite all the disadvantages, Jieming felt he had gained immense insights in just two months.
The entire study of the Divine Power Faith Network could be broken down into numerous sub-topics, such as the energy transmission system, information transmission system, and energy transformation system.
"Although I've only scratched the surface of the energy transmission system, even applying these findings to myself should boost the strength of my Great Light Phase by over 30%... Damn it! I'm getting more and more tempted to capture a divine being for research!"
If such crude conditions could yield such astonishing results, Jieming dared not imagine what he could achieve with a proper divine being on his operating table.
"Sigh... Garlic bird, garlic bird. With my current strength, I should stop daydreaming."
After indulging in his fantasies for a while, Jieming finally had to return to reality.
He sighed, waved his hand to clear the chaotic experimental setup, and staggered out of the basement.
(End of the Chapter)
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