Chapter 144: Soul Suppression, Mutation

This loud shout caused Huang Zong to pause. His hand, which was about to be pressed down, stopped three inches above Huang Kun's head. Huang Kun's expression was completely dazed; his breath was weak, and he had already lost consciousness.

At the entrance of the main hall, Huang Zong's father, Huang Shide, was glaring angrily at Huang Zong. Beside him, Huang Kun's biological mother, Ji Luoyu, immediately let out a shrill scream and lunged toward Huang Kun.

"You damned Huang Zong! What have you done to my Kun'er? Let him go this instant!" Ji Luoyu screamed. Without even thinking, she had already rushed forward four or five paces.

"Second Mother, please rest for a moment." Huang Zong sneered, waving his large sleeve, and a gentle force pushed her body back. At that moment, Qiu Lao, the chief retainer standing beside Huang Shide, instantly transformed his palm into a claw and grabbed at Huang Zong's shoulder.

"Elder Qiu, stop!" At the critical moment, Huang Yuanshan suddenly let out a loud shout, halting Qiu Lao's claw. Both Huang Shide and Ji Luoyu stared in stunned silence at Huang Yuanshan, having no idea what was happening.

"Father-in-law, what is going on? What is wrong with you? Could it be that you want to let these two brothers kill Kun'er? What wrong did Kun'er do? Why are you treating him like this?" Ji Luoyu cried out loudly, burying her face deep in Huang Shide's embrace, weeping uncontrollably.

Huang Shide also glared fiercely at the two Huang brothers and sneered, "You two unfilial sons actually want to kill your own flesh and blood! Release Kun'er immediately, or as your father, I will certainly not spare you!"

Huang Shide shouted sternly, his usually weak and timid demeanor temporarily radiating the imposing aura of a father. Huang Zong sneered with disdain and didn't even look at him. Huang Sheng, however, smiled and said, "Tell me, Father, is your gambling money still enough? If it's not enough, just come to my place and take some. You have plenty of free time, so you might as well gamble more to pass the days. What's the point of you trying to manage such trivial matters?"

Huang Shide's temperament was well known throughout Flame City. Among the previous generation, he was undoubtedly the most useless. A man in his forties, he was hopelessly addicted to gambling. Once, he had nearly gambled away half of the Huang family's assets, which infuriated Huang Yuanshan to the extent that he immediately stripped Huang Shide of his position as head of the family. Later, because Huang Kun displayed exceptional talent, Huang Yuanshan handed the management of most family properties over to him. Afterwards, when Huang Sheng recovered from his foul illness, Huang Yuanshan also allocated some family businesses to Huang Sheng to handle.

However, ever since that incident, Huang Yuanshan had never looked at Huang Shide with respect again. If not for the consideration that he was his biological son, Huang Yuanshan would have long since driven him out of the Huang residence and left him to fend for himself. Consequently, within this household, even the servants looked down upon Huang Shide.

Hearing Huang Sheng say this, a trace of joy actually surged into Huang Shide's heart. He had indeed been rather short of money recently; even when he left the casino earlier, it was only because he had been temporarily bailed out. The silver he owed to the casinos was countless, and relying on his meager allowance, he could never pay it back.

Just as he was about to show his delight, Ji Luoyu glared fiercely at him from the side, instantly bringing him back to reality. Swept by Huang Yuanshan's gaze, his heart trembled, and he sneered with a complete lack of conviction, "Bastard boy, what are you talking about? Let go of your second brother right now, or else... or else..."

"Get lost to the side! Aren't you embarrassed enough?" Huang Yuanshan roared, frightening Huang Shide into submissively retreating to the side. Huang Shide had originally come against his will, and now that Huang Yuanshan scolded him, he actually felt a sense of relief.

Seeing Huang Shide act in this manner, Ji Luoyu felt somewhat chilled in her heart. Yet, she naturally knew all too well what kind of person her husband was and what his character was like.

"You unfilial son, you have the nerve to call your own son unfilial! For the old man to have a son like you is simply the retribution of sins committed in a past life! I called you over not to hear you spout nonsense, but to let you watch the fine sons you raised slaughtering each other right before my eyes! You have lived your entire life in vain, you unfilial wretch!" Huang Yuanshan roared. His words caused Huang Shide to lower his head and repeatedly confess his guilt.

Yet, in his heart, he cared not in the least; he was only thinking of returning to the gambling den as soon as possible to play, and wished not to waste any more time here.

Huang Zong looked at his father as if looking at a total stranger. After Huang Yuanshan finished speaking, he immediately said in a deep voice, "Grandfather, what you call the slaughter of flesh and blood is indeed correct, but the victim is not my dear second brother. The suffering and torment that little Sheng and I have endured over the past decade or so must be vindicated. Rest assured, what I am using right now is not a martial skill, but a secret technique. Of course, this is not that evil soul-searching technique, but a great divine ability taught to us by that senior, named 'Soul Testimony.' When applied to a person's body, this secret technique has no side effects whatsoever; it merely compels them to speak the truth about what they have done."

Huang Zong smiled, and finally, his hand pressed onto Huang Kun's forehead. At that moment, the bizarre runes on Huang Zong's body began to pulse with activity. Huang Kun's expression instantly shifted, and he sat bolt upright.

Ji Luoyu wanted to stop him, but Huang Zong moved far too fast. Before she could even make a sound, Huang Zong had already successfully executed the technique.

Huang Kun seemed to have had his soul entirely replaced. Although his gaze remained hollow, the soul power radiating from his body was exceptionally formidable.

Huang Zong wore a cold expression as he looked at Huang Kun, secretly struggling to calm his violently fluctuating soul power. Although this secret technique was miraculous, the amount of soul power it required was extraordinary. Maintaining a stationary posture for so long had almost completely exhausted his soul power. Had that happened, Huang Zong would likely have been the first to collapse.

Even though the execution was successful, he had to sustain a massive output of soul power continuously, otherwise this secret technique could fail at any moment.

Since everything had reached this point, no one had any reason to interfere. Ji Luoyu's expression flickered uncertainly, a strong sense of unease stirring up her emotions. As for Huang Shide, he was also extremely anxious, though his worry was directed at the usurers at the casino; if he delayed any longer, he had no idea how high the compound interest would pile up.

"Begin. I'd like to see if those things were truly done by this little bastard," Huang Yuanshan said sternly. In truth, the person suffering the most internally right now was none other than Huang Yuanshan. If Huang Zong had guessed wrong, it would at best end with a simple punishment. But if Huang Zong's guess was correct, the nature of this matter was entirely different! How should he deal with Huang Kun? The palm of the hand and the back of the hand were both flesh; how was he supposed to choose?

Qiu Lao narrowed his eyes, continuously watching Huang Zong as if pondering something. The moment he first laid eyes on this secret technique, his gaze flickered, immediately revealing a trace of greed. This was only natural; a secret technique capable of searching memories without being fatal and without any side effects was virtually impossible to find across the entire continent of martial arts. If not for his status and the desire to witness its full power, Qiu Lao would likely have already made a move to coerce and forcibly seize it for himself.

For now, he made no move, simply watching quietly from the sidelines, awaiting the outcome of the matter. If this secret technique truly possessed such miraculous efficacy, then even if he had to discard his pride and snatch it away, it wouldn't be a big deal.

Huang Zong immersed himself entirely in the secret technique. He looked at Huang Kun and asked coldly, "Huang Kun, was it you who harmed my third brother into this state back then? Tell me everything you know."

Huang Zong's voice lacked the murderous aura it had at the beginning; instead, it carried a gentle warmth like a spring breeze. Huang Kun did not struggle at all; he immediately shook his head and said, "What happened back then had nothing to do with me. I know nothing about it."

Upon hearing Huang Kun's reply, the expressions of everyone present shifted dramatically, especially Huang Sheng's. The smile that had been on his face suddenly froze. He stepped forward and asked in a low voice, "Then was this matter done by someone you know, such as... your mother?"

Hearing Huang Sheng say this, Ji Luoyu leaped up like a monkey whose tail had been severed and cursed bitterly, "You bastard boy, stop spouting utter nonsense!"

Huang Sheng ignored her, instead staring closely into Huang Kun's eyes, paying attention to the changes in his expression.

Huang Kun shook his head expressionlessly and said, "This matter has nothing to do with Mother either. Neither of us knows anything."

With this reply from Huang Kun, both Huang Sheng and Huang Zong secretly cried out that things were going poorly. The sudden twist in the situation was simply beyond imagination. Hu Mo had previously claimed that this secret technique was infallible, and had even tested it on a servant. Yet why did such an outcome occur when applied to Huang Kun? Since Huang Kun flatly denied it, how were they supposed to handle this?

"Ha! I told you so! How could such a thing possibly have been done by us? Huang Zong, Huang Sheng, you two intended to harm your own flesh and blood, attempted to use ghosts and charms to confuse the public, and even slandered my Kun'er. Father-in-law, tell us how this should be dealt with—we will listen entirely to you!" Ji Luoyu said with a loud laugh, the lingering frustration instantly swept away.

Huang Kun fell deeply asleep after answering the two questions, and Huang Zong retracted his energy, as the burden was truly difficult to bear.

Huang Yuanshan glanced at the two brothers, sighed softly, and said, "Zong'er, Sheng'er, tell me, how should I deal with the two of you?"