The big-bearded man sat on the bed.
The two women beside him were also startled awake.
After waking up, they found two strangers in the room.
They were all so scared they covered their chests and huddled in Palace Master Shang's arms.
Palace Master Shang hugged the two women, signaling that everything was fine.
"Mr. Zhuge, what brings you to our Ten Thousand Beasts Palace?"
Zhuge Heng pushed up his sunglasses, obscuring his eyes, "First, put away your gun. I don't like being pointed at with a gun."
Palace Master Shang looked down, quickly grabbed his shorts from the side, and put them on.
He casually pulled on a golden bathrobe, got out of bed, and walked down.
"Now can you tell me why you're here in the middle of the night?"
"I've recruited a new student with Beast Taming Talent. I've brought him to the Ten Thousand Beasts Palace to fully awaken it and to help him choose two suitable fierce beasts to sign a contract with."
Palace Master Shang's brow furrowed as he glanced at Fang Xin, who was still in his pajamas.
"You came in the middle of the night just for this?" Palace Master Shang sat down.
"I had other things to do during the day! I didn't have time to bring him!"
Palace Master Shang scrutinized Fang Xin from head to toe, noticing bloodstains on Fang Xin's sleeve and quite a bit of blood on his shoes. "A new student with Beast Taming Talent that you value, that means he has at least an S-rank or higher Beast Taming Talent?"
"Yes, S-rank. Oh, an S-rank without using any potions."
Palace Master Shang's hand, which was tying his bathrobe, suddenly paused. "An S-rank without potions? That means an SS-rank Beast Taming Talent?"
As he spoke, Palace Master Shang's gaze, fixed on Fang Xin, was like that of a long-starved beast encountering fresh meat; his eyes glowed.
"Mr. Zhuge, could you let us have him for our Ten Thousand Beasts Palace?"
"No!"
"Mr. Zhuge, although the Ninth Division is very strong, as the saying goes, 'each has his own specialty.' In the area of Beast Taming Talent, our Ten Thousand Beasts Palace can be considered far ahead. If you let him come with me, I will do my utmost to cultivate him!"
Palace Master Shang stared at Fang Xin like Lao Se Pi looking at an unparalleled beauty, practically drooling with desire.
Unexpectedly, Zhuge Heng flatly refused, "That's not possible!"
"What's not possible about it? He has Beast Taming Talent; he can only cultivate his talent better if he's in our Ten Thousand Beasts Palace!"
Zhuge Heng placed his teacup aside. "Beast Taming Talent is not his primary talent!"
"Ah? An SS-rank Beast Taming Talent isn't his primary talent? Then what is his primary talent?" Palace Master Shang stood up, agitated.
"SSS-rank Strength Talent!"
Palace Master Shang walked a circle around Fang Xin with his hands behind his back, doing his best to squeeze out a smile he thought was kind, and patted Fang Xin's shoulder.
"Young man, what's your name?"
"Fang Xin!"
Palace Master Shang recalled, "Fang Xin? I remember that name wasn't on the list of SSS-rank talent new students this year!"
Zhuge Heng smiled, "Didn't I just say he didn't use any potions!"
Palace Master Shang slapped his head, looking enviously at Fang Xin, "All the good talents are taken by your Ninth Division!"
He then sat back down, poured himself a cup of tea, and said, "Mr. Zhuge, we're old friends, and you know, I'm half a businessman. As a businessman, before doing anything, I have to consider profit! Awakening Beast Taming Talent in our Ten Thousand Beasts Palace offers far more benefits than awakening it elsewhere! In the future, his affinity with beasts will be very high, making it much easier to sign contracts!"
Zhuge Heng said directly, "The Ten Thousand Beasts Palace helps him awaken his talent, and I'll give you a piece of news."
Palace Master Shang argued, "You just said you'd give him fierce beasts too!"
Zhuge Heng snapped his fingers, and a giant centipede appeared in the bedroom.
"This is what he found. Just replace it with an equivalent one! Of course, if you want to build a good relationship with him, giving him a higher-grade one is fine with me! It just depends on whether you're willing!"
Palace Master Shang smiled, then looked at Fang Xin again, his eyes still showing a desire to keep Fang Xin in the Ten Thousand Beasts Palace.
However, trying to snatch someone from this white-haired man was somewhat impossible, so he eventually held back.
"Alright! Then what was the news you mentioned?" Palace Master Shang asked again.
Zhuge Heng bared his small white teeth, showing his signature smile.
"First, let him awaken. I'll tell you after he awakens. The news I give you is guaranteed to make you so happy you won't sleep tonight!"
Palace Master Shang stood up. "Mr. Zhuge, among everyone in your Sky Shield Bureau, I like doing business with you the most, and I only consider you a friend—straightforward!"
"Then, ready to awaken?"
"Let's go, I'll take you!"
Zhuge Heng smiled, "That's too much trouble!"
Before his words finished, the surrounding environment blurred and twisted.
When the scene solidified again.
Fang Xin found himself standing at the foot of a mountain.
A winding mountain path led towards the summit, obscured by the lush trees along the way.
Palace Master Shang clicked his tongue, "Spatial Talent truly deserves to be among the top talents."
Zhuge Heng tilted his head, motioning for Palace Master Shang to lead the way, and casually said, "Personal ability is strong; please don't elevate it above talent itself."
Palace Master Shang laughed heartily, the night wind blowing his golden bathrobe open to reveal a chest full of hair.
As they walked up, Palace Master Shang chatted, "I heard that Mr. Zhuge is getting a promotion? Is this news true?"
Zhuge Heng smiled at the question, "Who told you that?"
"I heard it when I was chatting with a few people from the Five Elements Alliance the other day!"
Zhuge Heng ascended the steps. "The higher-ups gave me two choices: one was to go to the Church to serve as the Red Lotus District Governor, and the other was to pick any one of the other eight divisions to be a director."
Palace Master Shang paused slightly in his steps, then continued walking, saying, "Then what was Mr. Zhuge's final choice?"
"I went to the old man's house who signed the transfer order. After friendly and cordial discussions, he finally agreed to let me continue to stay in the Ninth Division, without having to go anywhere else."
Palace Master Shang turned back to look at Zhuge Heng. "Mr. Zhuge, the Church wanted you to be the Red Lotus District Governor; that's a promotion."
Zhuge Heng was completely dismissive of this. "Those old religious fanatics in the Church, besides inciting people and engaging in power struggles, are useless. Seeing them just annoys me."
Palace Master Shang, as if shocked, covered Zhuge Heng's mouth. "Mr. Zhuge, you absolutely cannot say such things carelessly!"
Zhuge Heng pushed away Palace Master Shang's hand in disgust. "I said it. If they want to find trouble, they can come find me!"
Palace Master Shang kept looking left and right, his expression and actions showing fear of being overheard.
He stopped discussing such topics with Zhuge Heng.
Palace Master Shang led Zhuge Heng and Fang Xin to the mountaintop.
On the mountaintop was a huge altar.
And in the center of the altar.
There was a huge flight of stairs.
There were a total of nine steps.
But if one looked closely, they would find that a giant dragon's skeleton lay sprawled across the nine steps.
The very top, the ninth step, was where the dragon's head was located.
Zhuge Heng tilted his head, gesturing to Fang Xin.
"Go up! Go as many steps as you can!"
Palace Master Shang reminded him from the side, "After you go up, if the pressure becomes too much to bear, stop. Try to stay on the step you can endure for as long as possible.
But absolutely do not force yourself! Especially the last three steps. However, since you have SS-rank Beast Taming Talent, gritting your teeth and enduring for a while on the eighth step shouldn't be a problem."
"What are the benefits of staying up there?" Fang Xin asked curiously.
Palace Master Shang patiently explained, "Awakening your Beast Taming Talent through the Dragon Bone Aura, the Dragon Bone Aura will merge with your aura. The longer you stay, the more Dragon Bone Aura you will have in your body. In the future, if you want to sign a contract with a spirit beast or even a divine beast, where others might take three hours, you'll only need three minutes."
Fang Xin walked up the steps.
He could indeed feel a very strange aura, an aura like that of a wild beast, exerting a certain pressure. Fang Xin climbed four steps in one breath. As he went higher, the pressure gradually increased, giving him the feeling of being stared at by the king of all beasts.
However, for Fang Xin, there was no pressure at all. In a blink of an eye, he reached the seventh step. The pressure increased significantly, but Fang Xin felt it was not difficult for him. He stepped onto the eighth step again.
The pressure was almost double that of the seventh step, and his heartbeat quickened slightly.
But he felt he could completely handle it.
Fang Xin looked towards the ninth step, his eyes eager to try.
Palace Master Shang watched Fang Xin with an envious gaze.
"It looks like he's reached his limit. An SS-rank Beast Taming Talent, this is a treasure in the Ten Thousand Beasts Palace! Once he grows up, as long as no SSS-rank Beast Taming Talent appears in the Ten Thousand Beasts Palace, he will be a candidate for the future Palace Master!"
But as soon as his words fell.
Fang Xin stepped onto the ninth level.