"Don't stop me—I'm drilling this thing to death!"
Lu Ding shook off Luo Anping’s grip, revved up the power drill, and rammed it straight into those horrifying, open eyes.
Blood splattered.
This time, it drenched Lu Ding from head to toe.
And at that moment, the stone sphere let out a spine-chilling scream.
Lu Ding grinned.
This was a monster. No doubt about it!
What kind of normal stone bled and screamed?!
And right now, it was completely helpless.
He had waited over ten years for this.
Since the moment he transmigrated, Lu Ding had known his Golden Finger existed—but it had never activated.
Finally, this was his chance!
While the others were paralyzed with fear, Lu Ding had already prepared himself for this moment years ago.
In fact, to strengthen his mental endurance, he had forced himself to develop a hobby—watching horror movies.
Full HD. No censoring.
What hadn’t he seen?
He was born for this.
Luo Anping stood frozen.
Holy sh*t… a real badass is different indeed.
For the first time, he stopped running.
If Lu Ding had the guts to stay, then at the very least, he could watch from behind.
The stone’s screams grew sharper.
But Lu Ding’s grin never faded.
Then, with a loud crack, the stone split in two.
And in that instant—
A page turned in his mind.
【Monster Containment Prison – Registry Updated】
【Contained Monster: Stubborn Stone of Nanshan (Unborn)】
【Reward Obtained: Path of Jinche】
【Path of Jinche: Nothing Left Uncut】
A warm current surged through his body.
Lu Ding could feel it—power awakening within him, a force beyond words.
Finally.
Finally, he had unlocked his Golden Finger.
The years of waiting, the endless patience—it all paid off.
If it weren’t for this ability, he would’ve seriously considered deleting his account and starting over.
No parents. No resources. A hellish start.
At fourteen, he left the orphanage to fend for himself—studying while struggling to survive without a home.
If not for government aid, he wouldn’t have even known how to keep going.
But now, he had finally made it through.
He tossed the power drill aside and sat on the ground, exhausted.
Luo Anping, still shaking, handed him a cigarette. His lighter clicked multiple times before he finally managed to light it for Lu Ding.
"Honestly, Brother Lu… I’ve met a lot of tough guys in my life.
But someone as ruthless as you?
This is my first time."
He exhaled a long puff of smoke, releasing all the tension in his chest.
Lu Ding flashed a grin.
"Brother Luo, can I get a raise?"
"Raise? Hell yeah! Bonus and salary—this month, I’ll round it up to twenty thousand! I’ll transfer it right now!"
A quick tap on the phone.
20,000 yuan—instantly credited.
Golden Finger unlocked.
A fat paycheck in his pocket.
For the first time since transmigrating, Lu Ding felt truly grounded.
That’s when he finally processed the earlier system notification.
Stubborn Stone of Nanshan.
It was real.
Not from this world’s myths, but from his past life’s legends.
He vaguely recalled an old story from Zibuyu—
A scholar named Chen once sought a prophetic dream in a temple.
In his dream, a god and a city deity discussed a prophecy:
"Death in Guangxi, fate in Tangxi, the Stubborn Stone of Nanshan—alive for ten thousand years."
Later, the scholar actually traveled to Guangxi and met an ancient stone spirit disguised as an old man.
The two conversed, and the scholar foolishly thought they were friends.
Then, the stone spirit dropped a bombshell.
"I’ve cultivated for ten thousand years but have yet to reach enlightenment. I need your help—bring me a statue of the Nine Heavens Goddess, carved from three thousand catties of sandalwood."
"Help me, my friend… or I’ll kill you."
When the scholar asked what path the spirit followed, the old man replied—
"The Path of Jinche."
The scholar turned pale.
The Path of Jinche—when combined into one word, meant "cut."
The scholar fled in terror and later tricked the spirit into entering a temple, where gods and deities battled it.
But in the end, the stone spirit escaped.
That was the legend of the Stubborn Stone of Nanshan.
And now, in this world, Lu Ding had encountered it before it was even fully born.
And he had taken it down.
If it had fully awakened?
Not even a hundred Lu Dings would’ve been enough.
But life wasn’t about ifs.
This time, he won.
He could now summon razor-sharp slashes with a single thought.
How strong were they?
Time to find out.
Finishing his cigarette, Lu Ding glanced at the broken stone pieces.
No idea if they were useful.
But one thing was certain—he wasn’t wasting them.
He found a wheelbarrow, loaded up the fragments, and pushed them away.
Luo Anping watched but said nothing.
He wasn’t stupid—he was a project manager.
If he didn’t know when to keep his mouth shut, he wouldn’t have made it this far.
"You should take a few days off," Luo suggested.
Lu Ding had been thinking the same thing.
"Alright. Call me when things settle down."
Not that he planned to come back.
Before, he worked just to survive.
But now?
His goal was to hunt monsters.
His life was destined to be extraordinary.
Money?
That’d come naturally.
At worst, he’d just stop eating beef.
Back at his dorm, he dumped out his suitcase, tossing out all his clothes.
Then, he carefully packed the stone fragments inside and headed back to his 300-yuan-per-month rental.
Meanwhile…
Lu Ding had just left.
Luo Anping had barely caught his breath when—
Two people walked in and blocked his office door.
A man and a woman, both in tactical gear.
A badge flashed in front of his eyes.
"Where is it? Where is he?"
Luo Anping, not one to betray someone easily, played dumb.
"What? Who?"
BANG!
A black handgun slammed onto the table.
"Do you want to talk?"
Luo Anping dropped to his knees instantly.
"Big brother, big sister, it’s got nothing to do with me! It was all Lu Ding—!"
He spilled everything.
Even played them the 24K ultra-HD surveillance footage.
The two agents watched it all in silence.
Then, they exchanged a glance—
And in each other’s eyes, they saw the same thing.
Pure shock.
Without another word, they turned and left.
Only leaving behind a single warning—
"Forget what happened here. Say nothing.
You don’t want to drink tea at the Bureau."
Luo Anping nodded frantically.
"Understood! Got it! I won’t say a word!"
He grinned like a man kissing up to a boss.
Watched them walk away.
Then let out a long sigh.
"Brother Lu… Sorry, but I’m not about to risk my life for you."
Not when the badge they showed belonged to National Security.