First-Year Internship—And You Went to Site 749 to Contain Monsters?!
Chapter 284: The Enduring Fire of Sin—This Is “Heaven-Taking, Earth-Manifesting” Lord Lu Taishui

...

Back at the 749 Bureau.

Yan Feifan was writing furiously, putting together the report about himself and Lu Ding.

Drawing from his third-party perspective as a field reporter during the operation, along with the first-person footage from Lu Ding’s law enforcement recorder.

Yan Feifan wrote a detailed, multi-thousand-word report.

Submitted it to the higher-ups.

Now all he had to do was wait for the recognition and rewards.

As for Lu Ding...

He wasn’t slacking either.

As soon as he got back, he began researching the fusion of the Cinderfire Technique and Yin Fire.

His self-discipline was top-tier.

With the bonus effect from Oneness with Heaven and Man.

He was still savoring the sensation of wielding Three Calamities Yin Fire back then.

Inside the cultivation chamber...

A wave of heat surged outward.

A flame had ignited in Lu Ding’s hand.

As time ticked by second by second...

The flame gradually deepened in color, thickening into a sticky crimson hue that danced steadily in Lu Ding’s palm.

The temperature in the room kept rising with it.

...

Outside.

Once the battle cleanup had been completed—

News about Lu Ding’s Heaven-Taking, Earth-Manifesting ability was locked down completely.

Everyone unanimously assumed it was just a spell.

Sure, the form looked a little like a Si Ming Avatar...

But no one even considered that possibility.

It was just too far removed from the known Si Ming forms and theories.

Even within 749, no one questioned where Lu Ding’s “spell” came from.

All they did was help cover it up.

After all, the only people who knew what happened there were 749 Investigators.

The Tianli Cult Cultivators and Huokang Village Cultivators of Qi? Wiped out.

As long as Lu Ding’s Heaven-Taking, Earth-Manifesting wasn’t exposed—

It remained a trump card.

Luoyao 749 had done the same thing in the past.

Whether Lu Ding revealed it or not was his business. As an organization—

They’d never leak their own prodigy’s ultimate move.

Everyone knew—

Lu Ding would be competing in the upcoming Monster Room trials.

So the entire squad was holding back their excitement.

Once all the elite contenders entered the Monster Room—

The door would shut.

Lu Ding would activate Heaven-Taking, Earth-Manifesting.

And the massacre would begin.

Hehehe!!!

Just wait.

Just wait and watch the top-tier talents from other nations panic outside the gate.

Because this time, the Monster Room would house a real monster.

A cultivator in the Linghai and Divine Palace Realms... beating a Si Ming Realm opponent.

One meter-tall Linghai cultivator beating down a hundred-meter-tall Si Ming Avatar.

Just imagining it gave people artistic goosebumps.

What is a surprise?!

This motherf*ing thing is a surprise.**

Still thinking about teaming up to take down the Great Han?

Keep dreaming.

You think you can handle it?!

This is Heaven-Taking, Earth-Manifesting Lord Lu Taishui.

Even if all the other East Asian countries team up—so what? Even combined, you still can’t handle him!

Talk big all you want.

But your so-called geniuses? They’re just going to get slaughtered by your Han bro’s Taishui.

This is what we call “concealed strength.”

Got it?

Yunhai 749: “All of you just die, hahahahahahahaha...”

Sure, all this made sense.

But Lu Ding’s progression and his ever-upgrading power—

That part didn’t make sense.

After every trump card, there was another one. After each ultimate move, he’d whip out a new one.

The view returned to the cultivation chamber.

The crimson fire in Lu Ding’s hand was now thick and roiling.

The text on the golden finger interface under Cinderfire Technique...

Was slowly fading away—until new characters gradually formed.

【Enduring Fire of Sin: Once touched, it cannot be extinguished—neither through death nor destruction.】

Sure, you could cut off the part that got contaminated.

But with his newfound clarity, Lu Ding could now tell you with absolute certainty—

Even if you cut it off, it won’t grow back.

Unless the one tainted by the fire had a realm much higher than his.

And the Enduring Fire didn’t just stick to the body.

It stuck to the soul.

Lu Ding slowly opened his eyes.

Looking at the Enduring Fire of Sin in his hand.

This thing... was honestly kind of unreasonably overpowered.

There was actually a little-known backstory behind it.

Lu Ding had come across it in one of those bizarre anecdote collections—specifically, in a story from Shu region where someone tricked Zhang Xianzhong into using live nettles to wipe his crack. The next entry told this story.

If not for the golden finger labeling it by name, Lu Ding probably wouldn’t have made the connection.

They said, back in the Tang Dynasty, there was this monk—

No one knew where he came from or where he was going.

Bit of a nutjob, but sharp as hell.

He’d grab random people on the street and declare: “You have sinned! You have sinned! You have sinned...”

Left people totally confused.

What sin do I have?

The big monk got annoyed. “You don’t know your own sins?”

Alright, alright, so you’re just gonna be stubborn about it, huh?

And boom—he lit the guy on fire. Later someone reported it, and the big monk got arrested. During the investigation—

Hey, turns out the guy really was guilty.

But you still can’t just go around setting people on fire.

Punishment was necessary.

The big monk pleaded, “Don’t punish me. I can identify who is guilty.”

And with that skill,

The monk climbed the ranks all the way to the emperor’s favor.

The Tang emperor at that time was also a devout Buddhist.

Great—here comes a heaven-sent sage to help the emperor govern and usher in a golden age.

As it happened, the country was in turmoil back then.

So with imperial permission, the big monk went around chanting at people every day—“You have sinned, you have sinned, you have sinned...”

Then set them on fire.

Until one day—

A new emperor ascended, one with “Fire” in his name.

And since the monk also used fire, the emperor thought—this monk must have been sent just for me.

One day, with no one else around, the emperor asked him: “I see you judge others every day—so tell me, do I have any sins?”

The monk instantly sobered up. No more crazy talk. “You are the Son of Heaven—how could you have sinned?”

The emperor was pleased.

But then, during another execution, the emperor reached out and touched the fire—after all, the monk had said it only burned the guilty.

The moment he touched it—it burned him.

What the h*ll did that mean?

I’m guilty too?!

That’s not acceptable. No way he’d admit that.

So he made up an excuse—“You *****”—and called for guards. “Off with the monk’s head! Monks are all frauds! Tear down the temples!”

And that’s how the anti-Buddhist crackdown began.

Of course, this is just a folk anecdote—no historical basis.

But from it, you can see—the fire might be called Fire of Sin, but it doesn’t burn you because you’re guilty.

It burns you, and then you’re guilty.

Now tell me that’s not a load of bull.

What kind of fire doesn’t burn people?

Thinking about all this, Lu Ding couldn’t help but chuckle.

He imagined that emperor reaching out to touch the fire, getting scorched, but not daring to scream.

Had to hold it in.

Because screaming meant admitting guilt.

Hilarious.

Sure, this fire was kinda ridiculous—but that was exactly the kind of nonsense Lu Ding liked.

Perfect for dealing with people who made no sense.

He stood up and walked out of the cultivation chamber.

Outside, the sky was already bright.

Internal reports at the Bureau were still being compiled.

So rewards and promotions would have to wait.

Which meant advancing his realm would have to wait too.

With nothing else to do, Lu Ding figured he’d go visit Uncle Crooked Mouth.

Maybe he’d get something useful out of the old man’s rambling.

And maybe rack up a few more contribution points.

After all, you can never be too high-level.

Cultivation’s like money—who ever complains about having too much?

As for Bai Hemen...

Let him sleep.

He was warned not to drink that much. Can’t hold his liquor, weak as h*ll, and still loves to party.