Shared Heavens from Douluo Continent Chapter 19

"If you lose, not only will your daughter become my servant, but you will also become my family slave from now on. And you'll hand Red Plum Villa over to me."

"..."

Zhu Changling's mouth twitched slightly. He suppressed his anger and pondered for a moment before finally nodding. "Since Young Master Dai has put it that way, Zhu can only risk his life to accompany a gentleman."

Dai Changsheng looked very young, at most in his early twenties, so Zhu Changling did not believe he was particularly strong.

Moreover, Zhu Jiuzhen had only brought a dozen or so vicious dogs with her on this hunting trip.

Judging by Dai Changsheng's tattered fur coat, he might know martial arts, but his skills could not be very high. Otherwise, he would not have ended up in such a sorry state.

If Zhu Changling had faced more than a dozen vicious dogs at once, he could have killed them all without suffering so much as a scratch. Therefore, he was completely confident he could defeat Dai Changsheng.

"Excellent! Then take a palm strike from me first!"

As soon as Dai Changsheng finished speaking, he pushed off hard with his feet and leaped straight from horseback, throwing a palm at Zhu Changling.

A cold gleam flashed through Zhu Changling's eyes. With a flick of his hand, he drew the Judge's Brush hidden in his sleeve, gathered the force of One Yang Finger at its tip, and viciously jabbed toward Dai Changsheng's palm.

Although Zhu Changling had died rather miserably in the original story, his strength was not actually weak.

After all, he had cultivated One Yang Finger for decades. Even if he could not compare to the leaders of the six great sects, his strength was still enough to rival their elders.

As the saying went, names could be mistaken, but nicknames never were.

Zhu Changling was known in the martial world as "Shocking Brush," referring to his exceptional mastery of One Yang Finger and the Judge's Brush Technique.

When Zhu Changling fully activated the force of One Yang Finger and unleashed the Judge's Brush Technique, he could pierce even a bluestone slab two fingers thick, let alone Dai Changsheng's flesh-and-blood palms.

Slap!

Just as Zhu Changling thought he could cripple Dai Changsheng's hand in a single move, a tremendous force suddenly burst from the brush tip the instant palm and brush met, shattering the specially made Judge's Brush.

This is bad!

Before Zhu Changling could change his move, that flesh-and-blood palm, harder than granite, slammed into his shoulder without losing any momentum.

Crack!

With a sharp snap of breaking bone, Zhu Changling's right arm twisted instantly. His entire body flew backward out of control, smashing a large hole through Red Plum Villa's gates.

"Father!!!"

Seeing that the father she had always believed invincible could not even withstand a single move from Dai Changsheng, Zhu Jiuzhen could not help regretting provoking this fiend.

"Zhu Changling, you lost! From today onward, your entire family will be this young master's household slaves, and Red Plum Villa will be this young master's as well."

Having finally caught his breath, Zhu Changling heard Dai Changsheng's words and could not stop himself from coughing up a mouthful of clotted blood. His eyes rolled back, and he fainted.

Looking at Zhu Changling's miserable state, Dai Changsheng felt no pity whatsoever. Instead, he believed the man deserved it.

During their exchange just now, Zhu Changling had shown no intention of holding back. If Dai Changsheng's defense had not been so extraordinary, his right palm would definitely have been crippled.

"What are you all standing around for?"

Dai Changsheng turned to the attendants around him and scolded them with feigned displeasure. "This young master is Red Plum Villa's new master from now on. Hurry up and prepare bathwater and a fresh change of clothes for your villa master!"

Only then did the attendants snap out of their shock and hurriedly set to work.

Thanks to Passerby Who Likes Novels for the 100 Qidian Coins, and thanks to the other readers for their support.

Chapter 40: Nine Yang Divine Skill

Since Dai Changsheng had made the wager with Zhu Changling in front of everyone, even Zhang Sanfeng would have had no grounds to say he had done anything wrong.

That was called having just cause!

Seeing that even Zhu Changling was no match for Dai Changsheng, and that the two had made a wager, the attendants naturally did not dare disobey Dai Changsheng's orders.

Before long, the maids of Red Plum Villa had prepared bathwater and a change of clothes for Dai Changsheng.

"Zhu Jiuzhen, you don't want your father to die of his grievous injuries, do you? As long as you behave obediently, this young master will ensure that your father's life is safe."

Under Dai Changsheng's threats and inducements, the spoiled and willful young lady Zhu Jiuzhen could only obediently become a maid and attend to his bathing and changing.

The following morning

When warm sunlight streamed through the window and fell across Dai Changsheng's face, he awakened from his sleep and slowly opened his eyes.

Zhu Jiuzhen, her hair disheveled, was wrapped around Dai Changsheng like an octopus. Faint tear tracks still lingered on her Pretty Face, while her soft pink lips looked somewhat swollen.

Although Zhu Jiuzhen had only been a vicious supporting female character in the original plot, her looks and figure were beyond reproach. She was more than qualified to serve as a bedwarming maid.

Thus, Dai Changsheng had shown her plenty of affection last night and performed Ah Wei's Eighteen Styles in full. She probably would not be getting out of bed today.

Smack!

Dai Changsheng first moved aside Zhu Jiuzhen's jade-like arms and legs, then pulled free and summoned the maids waiting outside to help him wash up and change.

After Dai Changsheng had enjoyed a lavish breakfast under the maids' attentive service, he finally had someone summon Zhu Changling.

With splints and white cloth wrapped around his arm, Zhu Changling entered the hall where Dai Changsheng was and hurriedly knelt on one knee. "This old servant greets the Villa Master!"

Although Zhu Changling wanted nothing more than to cut Dai Changsheng into a thousand pieces, he also understood that a gentleman could take revenge even ten years later.

Before he was completely certain he could deal with Dai Changsheng, Zhu Changling could only console himself inwardly that a true man could bend and stretch. For now, he would endure humiliation and repay it tenfold later.

Dai Changsheng could naturally guess Zhu Changling's general thoughts, but he did not care much.

After all, Dai Changsheng's goal was to unify the realm. If he could not even keep one Zhu Changling under control, he might as well wash up and go to sleep!

"Old Zhu, this villa master is very interested in One Yang Finger. Take me to see its martial arts manual."

"..."

Zhu Changling's expression changed slightly, but he finally took a deep breath and said, "This old servant obeys!"

Led by Zhu Changling, the two soon arrived at the private study reserved for the villa master. The One Yang Finger manual was hidden inside a secret compartment there.

What pleasantly surprised Dai Changsheng was that the contents of the One Yang Finger manual were remarkably complete, allowing one to cultivate all the way to the first rank.

According to the original story, One Yang Finger was divided into nine ranks. The ninth rank was the lowest, while the first rank was the highest.

Unfortunately, One Yang Finger was easy to learn but difficult to master. Zhu Changling had cultivated it painstakingly for more than thirty years, yet had only reached the fifth rank. In the martial world, he could only be considered a second-rate expert.

Aside from the martial arts manuals for One Yang Finger and the Judge's Brush Technique, the study also contained dozens of more common martial arts manuals, such as Iron Shirt and the Black Tiger Saber Technique.

Those martial arts manuals were widely circulated common goods in the martial world. Zhu Changling had specifically collected them because he wanted to use them to train household slaves who knew martial arts.

After obtaining those manuals, Dai Changsheng did not rush to practice them. Instead, he had Zhu Changling lead the servants of the estate out to search for the trail of monkey troops near Red Plum Villa.

In the original plot, Zhang Wuji had been forced to jump off a cliff to escape Zhu Changling and the others' pursuit. By sheer accident, he discovered the entrance to an isolated paradise and found the Nine Yang Divine Skill manual hidden inside a white ape.

Unfortunately, the passage through that entrance was too narrow and could only accommodate children. Otherwise, Zhu Changling would not have become stuck to death inside it.

Dai Changsheng was even more powerfully built than Zhu Changling, so he naturally could not pass through that entrance either.

Therefore, Dai Changsheng planned to take another route. By tracing the monkey troops living near Red Plum Villa, he would find another entrance to that hidden valley.

While Zhu Changling led people out to search for the monkey troops, Dai Changsheng began reading the martial arts manuals in the study. Relying on his memory, far beyond that of an ordinary person, he forcibly memorized every word of their contents.

However, Dai Changsheng had no intention of practicing those martial arts. Aside from One Yang Finger, the remaining third-rate martial arts were simply not worth wasting his time on.

The reason Dai Changsheng had deliberately memorized the contents of those third-rate martial arts was actually so that he could share them with his other selves in other worlds, allowing them to use those martial arts to train subordinates.

As for One Yang Finger, which was easy to learn but difficult to master, Dai Changsheng planned to first cultivate the Nine Yang Divine Skill to mastery before taking it up as a secondary practice.

The Nine Yang Divine Skill was one of the most profound martial arts manuals in Jin-style wuxia novels. It harmonized yin and yang, blending hardness with softness.

If one could cultivate the Nine Yang Divine Skill to mastery, one would not only gain Immunity to All Poisons and an inexhaustible supply of true qi, but also become capable of using any martial art in the world with ease.

If Zhang Wuji had not cultivated the Nine Yang Divine Skill to mastery in the original story, he could never have mastered the sixth level of the Heaven and Earth Great Shift in only a few hours.

As the saying went: sharpening the blade did not delay the chopping of firewood!

As long as Dai Changsheng first cultivated the Nine Yang Divine Skill to mastery, he could then cultivate One Yang Finger to its highest realm in a short time.

After several days of searching, Zhu Changling and the others soon found traces of the monkey troops and followed the clues to that hidden valley.

To prevent Zhu Changling from causing trouble, Dai Changsheng did not enter the valley himself. Instead, he sent several household slaves who knew rudimentary martial arts into the valley with climbing ropes, ordering them to retrieve the Nine Yang Divine Skill hidden inside the white ape.

Since the families of those household slaves all lived in Red Plum Villa, Dai Changsheng did not need to worry about them betraying him for profit.

Before long, the household slaves climbed back up the ropes and handed Dai Changsheng the four oilpaper-wrapped volumes of the Nine Yang Divine Skill.

After obtaining the Nine Yang Divine Skill, Dai Changsheng began a journey of bitter cultivation, spending at least four hours each day practicing it.

Perhaps because Dai Changsheng's Comprehension and physical constitution far surpassed those of ordinary people, his cultivation efficiency with the Nine Yang Divine Skill was also extremely high.

In the original story, Zhang Wuji had spent a full five years cultivating the Nine Yang Divine Skill to mastery.

At Dai Changsheng's current pace, he should be able to cultivate it to mastery in at most around a year.

Chapter 41: Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring

Time flowed swiftly, and more than half a month passed in the blink of an eye.

Just as Dai Changsheng finished cultivating the Nine Yang Divine Skill as usual and was preparing to loosen up, Zhu Jiuzhen suddenly came hurrying over.

Zhu Jiuzhen wore a red hunting outfit, looking valiant and spirited. Her flushed little face appeared especially alluring.

"Master, while this servant was out hunting today, I encountered an honest-looking boy. He was afflicted with cold poison, so he should be the Zhang Wuji you mentioned."

Halfway through speaking, Zhu Jiuzhen took out two ancient books and handed them to Dai Changsheng. "Master, when this servant encountered that boy, his cold poison happened to flare up, so this servant had people bring him back.

These two books were found on him as well. They should be the Medical Scripture and Poison Scripture you mentioned, right?"

After speaking, Zhu Jiuzhen blinked her lovestruck eyes and wore an expression that begged for praise.

After Dai Changsheng's careful training over this period, Zhu Jiuzhen's body and mind had already been shaped by him, and she willingly served him as a slave before him.

Seeing this, Dai Changsheng gave Zhu Jiuzhen's shapely rear a hard pat. "Well done! I'll reward you properly tonight, you little slut. For now, take me to see that boy."

"Yes, Master~"

Zhu Jiuzhen instinctively rubbed her thighs together, then revealed a delighted smile and led Dai Changsheng to meet Zhang Wuji.

Under Zhu Jiuzhen's guidance, Dai Changsheng soon met Zhang Wuji, who had changed into the clothes of a household servant.

At this time, Zhang Wuji was only fifteen years old. Having suffered from cold poison for so long, he looked somewhat thin and haggard.

"Th-thank you, Miss, for saving my life."

When Zhang Wuji saw the beautiful Zhu Jiuzhen, all his attention was immediately drawn to her. His heart felt as though it were about to leap from his chest, and he instinctively knelt before her.

"What a silly boy. All right, all right, get up already~"

Zhu Jiuzhen smiled and waved her hand, then pointed to Dai Changsheng beside her. "Silly boy, let me introduce you. This is the master of our Red Plum Villa, Villa Master Dai Changsheng!"

Only after hearing Zhu Jiuzhen's words did Zhang Wuji notice Dai Changsheng. He hurriedly cupped his hands in greeting. "Greetings, Villa Master Dai."

"Boy, you are Hu Qingniu's personal disciple, Zhang Wuji, aren't you?"

Zhang Wuji's expression changed dramatically when Dai Changsheng exposed his identity. However, before he could make excuses, Dai Changsheng continued, "Don't worry. This villa master has no interest in the Dragon Slaying Saber.

This villa master would never believe that a mere Dragon Slaying Saber could command the realm.

Otherwise, Abbess Miejue, who holds the Heavenly Sword, a weapon as famous as the Dragon Slaying Saber, would have long become the Alliance Leader of the martial world even if she could not command the realm.

Compared to the Dragon Slaying Saber, this villa master is more interested in these two books, the Medical Scripture and Poison Scripture.

Stay at Red Plum Villa from now on and teach this villa master medicine and poison arts!

This villa master will not treat you unfairly. I will use the Nine Yang Divine Skill to expel the cold poison in your body. What do you say?"

Seeing the hesitant look on Zhang Wuji's face, Zhu Jiuzhen could not help urging him, "Silly boy, what are you waiting for? Hurry up and kowtow to thank him!"

"Th-thank you, Villa Master Dai!"

The still-hesitant Zhang Wuji heard Zhu Jiuzhen speak, and his legs immediately went weak as he knelt before Dai Changsheng.

Looking at Zhang Wuji, who was much like Fei Yangyang, Dai Changsheng was speechless for a moment and shook his head with an amused smile.

No wonder Zhu Yuanzhang had ultimately gotten the advantage in the original plot.

With Zhang Wuji's personality, loving beauties even more than he loved power, he simply was not suited to be emperor.

After Zhang Wuji joined Red Plum Villa, Dai Changsheng had to set aside another two hours each day to study medicine and poison arts in addition to cultivating the Nine Yang Divine Skill. His life became increasingly fulfilling.