“How about it, do I look like one of those street performers?” The man in black mocked William Carter. William Carter remained silent, believing in the saying: “No one is attentive for no reason; if not a traitor, then a thief.” No matter how he looked at it, this man in black was no good. Why was he so insistent on taking him as a disciple? That talk about being a once-in-a-million martial arts prodigy—only a child would believe such nonsense.

Seeing William Carter hesitate, Emily Foster’s bright eyes flickered; she wished she could make the decision for him. Since this man was holding a real gun, his abilities were already beyond measure. Besides, if he wanted to harm you, you wouldn’t be able to resist anyway. With someone this powerful, it was always safest to agree first. Of course, Emily Foster had her own reasons for thinking this way—if William Carter could establish a connection with this man, it would greatly help her current situation as well.

The man in black grew impatient as he watched William Carter hesitate. With his status, if not for some ulterior motive, he would never waste time on such an ordinary person. If this guy still didn’t know what was good for him, he might have to kill him and forcibly refine him, though the results would be much worse.

Since childhood, William Carter had diligently recited the Heart Sutra. After more than ten years, clarity arose from meditation, and wisdom from clarity, so that he gradually developed the ability to sense others’ emotions. Without using his eyes or ears, it was an extremely strange sensation—he could accurately sense the deepest emotions in people’s hearts without any external cues. William Carter had researched many sources and felt that this peculiar ability was very similar to the Buddhist “telepathy,” guessing that he had stumbled upon this supernatural power by accident.

Even so, this ability, which William Carter considered to be telepathy, wasn’t of much practical use. Being able to sense people’s true emotions only made William Carter feel even more despair, and even developed a deep aversion to the hypocrisy of crowds.

But right now, this inexplicable ability allowed William Carter to clearly feel the man in black’s impatience and murderous intent. William Carter knew that if he hesitated any longer, he’d end up with a hole in his head, so he hurriedly said, “I’m willing, I’m willing to take you as my master…”

The man in black’s expression softened a bit and he nodded, “Then kneel and pay your respects to your master…” William Carter looked troubled. As a youth of the new century, he hadn’t even formally knelt to his own parents. To kneel before a complete stranger was something he found very hard to accept. The man in black didn’t want to waste time; seeing this, he waved his hand and said, “It’s not like the old days—forget kneeling, just bow.”

William Carter followed instructions and gave a deep bow, thus completing the disciple’s salute. The man in black accepted the bow with great composure and said, “Being your master isn’t for nothing. Come here, I’ll teach you my sect’s secret incantation…” At this moment, the man in black’s emotions were as deep and steady as an abyss; William Carter could only vaguely sense that he was in a good mood, while the envy and curiosity of Emily Foster beside him were reflected in his heart with crystal clarity.

William Carter couldn’t grasp the situation, but he felt that something was off, and a faint sense of foreboding arose in his clear mind. But at this point, he had no choice but to comply, so he obediently took two steps forward. The man in black pressed his index and middle fingers together like a sword, forming a common sword gesture, and after tracing a pattern on William Carter’s forehead, he shouted in a deep voice, “Zhuo!”

Emily Foster, watching from the side, saw clearly that as the man in black gestured, a strange and complex blood-red pattern appeared on William Carter’s forehead. The pattern looked like an ancient seal script, or perhaps a totem. As the man in black shouted, the blood-red pattern suddenly burst forth with a flash of bloody divine light, so dazzling that Emily Foster couldn’t help but close her eyes.

William Carter only felt a heat on his forehead, and an extremely scorching current rushed straight into his brain. Even with his deep endurance, he couldn’t withstand the sudden, intense pain and cried out, “Ah…” The pain, far beyond the limits of human endurance, would have killed an ordinary person on the spot. Only the tenacious nerves William Carter had developed since childhood allowed him to barely stay conscious. But at this moment, all he could see was endless darkness.

Chapter Three: The Vajra King’s Incantation

In the deep, boundless darkness, the only thing William Carter could sense was his own existence.

This mode of existence was extremely strange—without the six senses of ears, eyes, mouth, or nose, William Carter couldn’t even feel the presence of his own body. The only thing that existed was a clear consciousness and endless darkness.

Absolute silence, absolute darkness—time itself seemed to have stopped flowing here, and the only thing operating was William Carter’s calm mind. “Where is this place? Why have all my senses disappeared? Am I dead? Is this an out-of-body experience?” William Carter speculated silently about all the possibilities.

Just then, a ball of blood-red light rose in the darkness. The blood light looked like a coiled, winding divine dragon, or perhaps a complex ancient seal character. In the absolute darkness, this blood-red light was so intense that it almost felt blinding to William Carter. Of course, William Carter wasn’t actually seeing it—he could only barely describe the intensity of the blood light as blinding.

As the blood light grew stronger, a solemn, deep voice sounded. Although William Carter didn’t understand the meaning, he could feel the ancient, desolate power in that voice, piercing to the soul. In the midst of this voice, William Carter suddenly felt himself become lighter, uncontrollably drawn into the ball of blood light.

Within the blazing blood light, William Carter felt as if he might be melted at any moment by its scorching, fierce heat. Startled, he instinctively resisted. The moment this thought arose, the blood light flared even brighter.