My Buddha Heart Demon Seal

"It should be Ning Zhuo begging me to handle this matter."

"Not me rushing to make arrangements for him."

"I'm his grandfather, his elder!"

"If I really did that, wouldn't it make his tail stick up to the heavens? From then on, he'd look at me only through his nostrils!"

"How would I discipline him in the future?"

But circumstances did not bend to human will.

Young Clan Leader Ning Xiaoren had already backed Ning Ze into a corner, and Ning Ze had no desire to give up his managerial position.

What was he supposed to do?

Ning Ze racked his brains for a long while, yet found no good solution.

By afternoon, Ning Zhuo returned.

In the Central Hall, Ning Zhuo once again paid his respects to Ning Ze and Wang Lan, explaining his purpose. "This nephew has come mainly to take away his daily necessities."

Before this, while studying at the academy, Ning Zhuo had usually lived here. Only on weekends did he return to live alone.

Ning Ze feigned concern and asked how things had been going.

Ning Zhuo secretly stirred the power of the Treasure Seal in his sea of consciousness while telling the couple that he had found work at a Mechanical Workshop, where the benefits were quite good.

After exchanging a few simple words, Ning Zhuo took his leave.

Watching his retreating back, Wang Lan snorted coldly. "What Flying Disc Workshop? I've never even heard of it. What future could some tiny workshop like that possibly have?"

Ning Ze remained expressionless. "Young people are full of spirit. They have to go through some hardship before they understand how difficult the world is."

Seeing how stubborn Ning Zhuo was, Ning Ze felt even more repulsed by the thought of spending money and pulling strings for him.

"Wait. Perhaps I can make use of his temperament and work something out." Ning Ze suddenly thought of an excellent idea.

He sneered. "Little Zhuo is too bookish, and he's young. He likes adventure and excitement."

"I remember that quite a few Lineage cultivators have joined the Demon Hunting Society, entering and leaving the Crimson Flame Demon Lava Cave to hunt volcanic demon beasts."

"I can have someone provoke Little Zhuo into hunting demons!"

Grandmother grew worried. "Wouldn't that be too dangerous?"

She hated spending money, but she also did not want to see Ning Zhuo injured or killed.

Grandfather shook his head slightly. "There are already quite a few Ning Lineage members in the Demon Hunting Society."

"Besides, the Young Clan Leader had me purchase a full eighty As-You-Wish Ropes this time. Clearly, our Lineage is preparing to explore the Crimson Flame Demon Lava Cave on a grand scale."

"When that time comes, with the Lineage's strength protecting him, Little Zhuo's safety should not be an issue."

"Little Zhuo is young and hot-blooded, with a blazing heart. He likes thrills and adventure, and wants to make it on his own. He is stubborn and resents my arrangements, wholeheartedly determined to join the Demon Hunting Society! How does that explanation sound? Hahaha."

"The brilliance of it is this—exploring the Crimson Flame Demon Lava Cave is also an important Lineage matter. Ning Zhuo is contributing to the Lineage. Stretching it a little, this counts as Family Business too. The Young Clan Leader will have a hard time using this matter to squeeze me."

"Of course, the money still has to be sent."

"It's just that arranging for Little Zhuo to enter the Demon Hunting Society costs far less than placing him in the Family Business!"

Grandmother blinked, lowered her head, and thought for a moment. "That is a good idea."

"However, husband."

"Since the Lineage is making a major move in the Crimson Flame Demon Lava Cave, there will certainly be many opportunities to earn merit. Do you think our Ji Er..."

Grandfather immediately widened his eyes and rebuked her, "Are you crazy? Blades have no eyes on a battlefield. If Ji Er goes, what if something happens to him? What if there's some accident? Do you want us white-haired people to bury a black-haired one?"

"Ah?" Grandmother immediately panicked and hurriedly said, "I was thinking wrongly, thinking too much. Ji Er is safest staying home and making talismans!"

Neither of them noticed that, when Ning Zhuo had taken his leave and turned around, two streams of blood had flowed from his nostrils.

Ning Ze thought it had been his own idea, and secretly felt pleased with himself.

He did not know that this was actually the result of Ning Zhuo's deliberate influence.

The sun set, and night enveloped Fire Persimmon Immortal City.

Ning Zhuo took a deep breath. With a touch of nervous anticipation, he opened the pill furnace.

"Excellent, it passed just as expected!"

Seeing the Mechanical Fire Ape completely intact, Ning Zhuo relaxed, his heart leaping with joy.

Then, with a thought from him.

A seal hidden in his sea of consciousness flickered with a faint radiance.

It was precisely the magical treasure his mother had left him—My Buddha Heart Demon Seal!

Atop the seal were carved a Buddha and a demon, standing back to back in stark contrast. The Buddha wore a peaceful expression and gazed with compassion, while the demon looked savage, its eyes blazing like fire.

The body of the seal was shaped like a round basin, with Sanskrit talismans flickering in and out of existence around it.

The bottom of the seal bore immortal script, ancient and simple, with only four grand characters: "My Buddha Heart Demon."

With one thought, one became Buddha; with one thought, one became demon.

I am Buddha, and I am also demon.

When the seal reflected upon oneself, it was Buddha's compassion, saving others and saving oneself. When it reflected upon others, it could project a cultivator's thoughts and desires into another person's sea of consciousness, influencing and altering their ideas. At such times, it became another's heart demon.

To conceal this treasure, Ning Zhuo had suffered greatly and paid many prices. The main reason he had bought Golden Silk Jade Dew Cake in great quantities was to expand his sea of consciousness, build up his foundation, and barely sustain this magical treasure.

He had also gained much from this treasure!

For instance, when he had mingled through the Black Market as Tassel-Haired Wanderer and suffered a raid by demonic cultivators, Ning Zhuo had used this treasure to shake his enemies' hearts, creating openings. Even openings that lasted only an instant had repeatedly allowed him to win with ease.

And today, in order to influence Ning Ze, he had forcefully activated the magical treasure before him and drawn upon a thread of its power. Only then had Ning Ze received his "inspiration" and thought of the scheme to arrange for Ning Zhuo to enter the Demon Hunting Society.

But because of this, Ning Zhuo's soul had become weak, his spirit drained, and blood had flowed ceaselessly from his nose for a time.

"Grandfather is in the Foundation Establishment Realm, while I am only at the third layer of the Qi Refining Stage. Influencing him was extremely difficult, and I had to pay a price."

"It wasn't like when I acted in the Black Market, wearing the Azure Iron Han Armor and possessing Foundation Establishment power. Then I could draw out more of this seal's might and easily shake Foundation Establishment Realm enemies."

"However, this seal's true purpose does not lie there. It is meant for controlling mechanisms!"

Ning Zhuo activated the seal's power, forming a Heart Seal.

The Heart Seal was pale pink, shooting into the Mechanical Monkey's body in an instant.

The next moment, the Mechanical Monkey opened its eyes and leaped out of the pill furnace on its own!

The Mechanical Fire Ape was nimble and clever, springing everywhere through the Underground Workshop, moving up and down with perfect ease without knocking over a single object. Its movements were as light or heavy as it wished.

If anyone else witnessed this scene, their jaws would surely drop.

There were many ways to control mechanisms. The mainstream method was divine sense control. But for a cultivator to possess divine sense, they normally needed Foundation Establishment cultivation.

What Ning Zhuo had equipped the Fire Ape with was also a device for receiving divine sense. This meant such a mechanism creation was intended for Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators.

However, even an experienced Foundation Establishment Realm mechanism master would find it difficult to make the Fire Ape move with such agility using divine sense.

This was because the Fire Ape's divine sense receiving component consisted of three pellets Ning Zhuo had devised through clever ingenuity to save costs. Compared to an orthodox array disk, its control performance was greatly diminished. Thus, it was not that the mechanism master lacked skill—the Mechanical Fire Ape's control performance was simply this poor by nature.

Yet under Ning Zhuo's control, the Fire Ape was like a real monkey, lifelike in every detail!

It was all thanks to the Heart Seal.

As the saying went, heart answered heart, seal matched seal.

After Ning Zhuo used My Buddha Heart Demon Seal to plant a Heart Seal in the Mechanical Monkey, he could command the monkey directly with his mind. This method was more convenient and effective than divine sense.

Ning Zhuo controlled the monkey as it soared and flipped through the air, then tested its ability to store fire essence. Everything went smoothly.

"After years of preparation, it is finally completely finished at this very moment!" The youth sighed inwardly. Thinking of the Magma Immortal Palace, a resolute gleam flashed through his eyes.