Witness Technique

To be honest.

As a layman who doesn't care about fashion, Xi Shenlian had absolutely no clue about clothing brands.

The same went for all those so-called luxury goods.

So.

After casually strolling around the bustling street, his method for picking a store was brutally simple.

1. Biggest storefront.

2. Most lavish decor.

3. Prettiest salesgirls.

4. Sells men's clothes.

Once he found a place that met all those conditions.

Without even bothering to glance at the store's name, he walked straight over.

On the way.

The few security guards standing at the door looked at him with slightly conflicted expressions.

Normally, according to the rules, they'd have to stop someone who clearly wasn't dressed the part.

At a place where even the cheapest piece of clothing started at six figures.

There was no way they'd let some poorly dressed bum wander in and ruin the mood for their clientele.

But the ten exquisite rings on Xi Shenlian's hands gleamed with a peculiar radiance from their perspective.

That kind of gleam that screamed expensive.

Besides.

Even though Xi Shenlian's outfit was lacking, his decent looks kept him from being looked down on.

His calm, composed demeanor didn't exactly scream troublemaker either.

'Maybe he's actually loaded?'

'Just dresses way too plainly?'

The guards, all sharp in their suits and looking every bit the professionals, found themselves hesitating inside as he approached.

Their thoughts teetered on the edge of whether to stop him or not.

In the end.

One of the guards decided to step forward and block his way.

"Sir, we require proper attire here..."

He was about to say that the store required neat dress and asked him to come back in different clothes.

But.

Before he could finish.

Xi Shenlian merely glanced at him, and an overwhelming sense of terror surged from the guard's heart!

It felt like walking down a desolate country road at night and suddenly running into a pack of tigers.

The skin on his scalp instantly prickled as if jolted by electricity.

Making the hair on his head stand straight up.

His once ruddy, healthy complexion turned deathly pale!

His legs, which had stood ramrod straight from his days as a discharged soldier, suddenly went weak.

While his upper body remained stiff as a board.

He couldn't even dare to move!

The words in his mouth.

Naturally, died on his lips.

It wasn't until Xi Shenlian calmly walked past him and into the store that he remained frozen for a long, long time.

"Huh?"

"What are you doing?"

After a few seconds.

His companion, staring at him wide-eyed, couldn't help but nudge him a few times:

"I thought you were going to stop him."

Then.

His companion found that the guy toppled over with just a push.

And lay sprawled on the ground, limp all over, gasping for air.

Sweat was pouring down his forehead.

It was as if he had fallen gravely ill or just barely escaped death.

"??"

The companions around him were also startled:

"Do you have some acute illness?"

"..."

And Xi Shenlian, who had already walked into the shop, listened to the commotion behind him and thought calmly:

'Seems like I went a bit too heavy.'

Witness Technique.

This was one of the advanced skills inherent to the String Master Inheritance.

It allowed the user to use their mental energy, through eye contact, to inflict shock or fear on a target.

While it might not have much effect on the strong, being able to influence them for an instant in battle was already enough.

For the weak, it could directly cause excessive fear leading to shock or even instant death on the spot.

This made it both a deterrent and a kind of assassination method, capable of causing a target to drop dead without any external injuries.

According to the inheritance information.

This was a relatively advanced technique, one that ordinarily only a very seasoned String Master could use freely.

But to be honest.

Xi Shenlian had learned this technique just by reading it once.

Even more.

The same went for most of the other techniques.

Almost as soon as he received the inherited skills, he automatically mastered the majority of them.

He had stepped into a realm that would take others decades to reach.

For him.

What was called difficulty.

Was more about lacking sufficient strength and experience—some techniques might hurt him if used directly.

And this was his first formal use of the Witness Technique.

Due to inexperience.

He didn't dare use much mental energy, only a negligible amount—about one-thousandth of his total.

Originally, he just wanted to give the other party a psychological shock.

But after he succeeded.

He still heard, through his own hearing, that the security guard's heart had momentarily stopped.

That was a sign of excessive stimulation.

A precursor to being scared to death on the spot.

So he followed up with a second stimulus, jolting the guard's heartbeat back, performing a kind of cardiac resuscitation...

This left the man frozen in place and limp all over.

But his life was saved.

Soon.

As he formally stepped into the store.

Xi Shenlian, who had nearly just casually claimed a First Kill achievement, saw a female sales guide walking toward him. She was about thirty years old, with light makeup, wearing a women's blazer on top, a fitted short skirt below, and black high heels. Her figure and appearance were quite good.

Though she was a bit puzzled by Xi Shenlian's attire.

But the security guard outside hadn't stopped him.

Plus, Xi Shenlian's expression was very calm, completely unfazed by the luxurious surroundings, as if he were strolling down a street.

He looked like someone used to frequenting high-end shops.

So, out of professional standards and a willingness to try.

She didn't show disdain, but instead asked politely with a smile:

"Sir, welcome to our store. May I ask what you need?"

"Clothes and shoes. I want a full set from head to toe."

Hearing this affirmative answer that he was here to buy.

The female guide immediately felt that he was indeed a customer, and asked even more politely:

"Alright, I understand."

"So do you have any specific criteria?"

"Like the occasion? Or a price range and fabric preference?"

Hearing this, Xi Shenlian first said, "Any fabric works, as long as it's wearable for daily use."

Then he added a request that barely counted as one.

"As for the price... just give me the most expensive option."

There was no denying it—

Such a simple and reasonable demand was practically a lethal strike.

It shattered the saleswoman's mental defenses and any follow-up spiel on the spot.

As a salesperson, Who could turn down a client like this?

At the very least, she couldn't.

She loved this kind of straightforward, no-nonsense, and utterly reasonable request!

In an instant, Xi Shenlian's words not only made her smile even brighter but also made her bow even deeper.

"Alright, please follow me."