"That is only natural; what I can give you is far, far more valuable than a mere Ninth Grade Peak Profound Pill," Jun Moxie snorted, his tone light yet brimming with inherent authority. This time, Young Master Jun wasn't posturing; with the Hongjun Pagoda at his disposal, the benefits he could bestow upon these two 'beings' were absolutely the kind they had only dreamed of, benefits they never imagined in their wildest fantasies.

"Perhaps Your Excellency misunderstands. The reason we seek the Ninth Grade Peak Condensing Pill rumored to exist is absolutely not for the purpose of increasing our strength," He Chongxiao's long, narrow eyes revealed a look of deep sorrow. "What we intend to do is quite simple: merely retrieve the Condensing Pill. We have no intention of using it for anything special."

Jun Moxie discerned immediately, with a keen ear, that these two referred to the Profound Pill as a 'Condensing Pill.' Could there be a hidden meaning? The character for 'condense' (, níng) suggested an active process, entirely different from something that generated automatically.

"Third Brother, why waste so many words on this brat? Boy, be straightforward! Hand over that treasure of yours quickly so this Lord can take it and leave! Don't go looking for trouble for yourself!" Xiong Kaishan's massive eyes glared at Jun Moxie, adopting the tone of a common highway robber: "Otherwise, this Lord will swat you dead with one palm! No matter how good the treasure, it's meaningless if you don't have the life to enjoy it—that's what they say, isn't it, Third Brother!"

"Swat me dead? Are you sure you possess such capability?" Jun Moxie slowly rolled his eyelids, his voice overflowing with inherent arrogance and absolute confidence!

Although Young Master Jun was surprised that this brute could utter such a philosophical statement, he was utterly baffled as to where this confidence originated. Given the means by which he had revealed himself, surely no one would doubt his own 'profound and inscrutable' strength!

"Naturally, I do not," Xiong Kaishan replied honestly, shaking his head and puffing out his chest. "But you certainly don't have the ability to swat me dead either!"

"If you don't have the skill, why are you shouting? Besides, when did I ever say I would swat you dead? I'm truly impressed by you!" Jun Moxie stared at him, perplexed. "Old Xiong, are you the fourth one in line?"

"Yes! How did you know?" Xiong Kaishan scratched his head, looking surprised.

How did I know? Your Third Brother just introduced you as his fourth brother—how else would I know? I thought just now he was feigning foolishness, but now it seems he’s genuinely dull! Jun Moxie felt a strange mix of exasperation and amusement.

"You truly are the Fourth Fool!" Jun Moxie searched his memory banks exhaustively, but couldn't conjure a better adjective.

"How do you know my nickname? Did Second Brother tell you? Have you met Second Brother?" Xiong Kaishan’s eyes widened, and he suddenly jumped high. "You must have met him! Otherwise, how would you know? I’m warning you! Don't call me by my nickname again! If you do, I’ll get serious with you!"

"Uh, perhaps I should just call you Old Xiong then," Jun Moxie conceded smoothly.

"That's right," Xiong Kaishan nodded smugly. "We are bears by nature, so calling us Old..."

Jun Moxie was utterly speechless. He had met the reckless, the stubborn like a rolling stone—like that whole lot from the Dugu family—and he had met the slow-witted and the simple-minded, but he had never encountered such a perfect specimen.

He’s truly made it to the absolute pinnacle...

Truly worthy of the legendary 'Bear'! He is too utterly bearish!

Jun Moxie appeared weary, for he was constantly employing his spiritual sense to maintain the summoning of the Hongjun Pagoda, desperately trying to preserve the pure, integrated aura of man and pagoda—the sense of unity between heaven and man. He absolutely could not allow these two before him to discern his true strength.

If he were to expose his hand, everything would turn disastrous. A 'master' whose profound strength was revealed would instantly become a piece of highly coveted Monk Tang's flesh. A 'master' without sufficient backing is not qualified to converse as an equal with high-level Profound Beasts of immense power.

"State your true intent," He Chongxiao watched Jun Moxie warily. In his perception, this man in black was shrouded in mystery. While his intuition suggested the man’s power wasn't exceedingly high, what was bizarre was that he simply could not gauge its true depth. Moreover, this person exuded an aura of temptation—a fatal allure that he, and perhaps almost all high-level Profound Beasts, found nearly impossible to resist!

"True intent? It’s actually quite simple: I need to trouble both of you to do something for me," Jun Moxie cut straight to the chase, making no further detours.

"Hahaha. You wish to employ us? Do you have any idea who we are? On what basis do you ask for our assistance?" He Chongxiao let out two booming laughs, tinged with mockery. "Don't think that just because you possess what we crave, you can casually coerce us into doing your bidding! No matter how precious or rare the item, there are things we can let go of! Excellency, you are far too naïve! Even stepping back ten thousand paces, assuming we truly needed that item desperately, couldn't we simply seize it?"

"Just as I calmly seized that Condensing Pill a moment ago, are you confident you are stronger than Shi Changxiao or Ying Bokong?!"

"Is that truly the case? To speak frankly in front of those who command respect: You two are top-tier Profound Beasts. You shouldn't deceive yourselves. If you truly didn't care about that item, why would you have come? You could have simply stayed away! As for the word 'seize,' are you certain you possess the ability to do so? I may or may not be stronger than Shi Changxiao or Ying Bokong, but are you truly so certain..." The Young Master's tone shifted, becoming chillingly severe, "that the prior successful seizure of the Profound Pill was solely due to brute strength that even a Dan user couldn't match?!"

The mysterious duo, though previously imposing, maneuvering skillfully among numerous Divine Profound and Heaven Profound experts, and ultimately escaping with ease, had benefited from two factors: first, their timing was impeccable; second, Shi Changxiao and the others had fought through half the night, their strength already significantly diminished. Otherwise, even with their Profound Beast bodies—possessing immensely tough physical forms far surpassing humans, and being at the Divine Profound level—they could never have slipped away so easily.

Being top-tier Profound Beasts, they understood this crucial point, and respecting their own status, they were unwilling to lie shamelessly, which caused them to momentarily choke on their words!

Young Master Jun was also astute and knew better than to provoke them further. He chuckled twice. "If we cooperate, we both benefit. Why resort to outright conflict? If you two feel my initial offer is too demanding, we can certainly negotiate. It’s just a matter of asking high and settling low, nothing more!"

Young Master Jun paused, then shifted his focus. "If my perception is correct, both of your power advancements have already hit a bottleneck. Despite your exceptional innate talent, breaking through early is far from easy. Especially concerning this matter, there are too few of your kind. Therefore, there is even less experience available to consult regarding breaking through bottlenecks. Even if you wanted to find someone for assistance or reference, it would be impossible. You sensed just now that the power I possess is exactly what you lack the most. Isn't that enough?"

"Strength is the most important thing in this world! Without strength, your ultimate fate might be the same as that Ninth Grade Peak Profound Pill you were fighting for!"

Jun Moxie smiled cruelly. "Although not immediately, judging by the advancement patterns of Profound Beasts on the Profound Profound Continent, once a Profound Beast reaches the peak of its innate potential and remains stagnant for too long, as age advances, its power and vitality will inevitably decline! At that time, I believe even an ordinary Supreme Divine Profound could bring about your demise! Do you wish to remain confined within the lightless Heavenly Punishment Forest for your entire lives?"

The breathing of both of them grew heavy simultaneously. Jun Moxie’s words were admittedly harsh, but they struck the chord they most desperately wished to ignore.

"Think about it—how wonderful the outside world is! Be it food, lodging, status, wealth, beautiful companions—the vast world, full of splendor and color, hehe. As long as you possess sufficient strength, who in this world could possibly control you? Everything would be within easy reach!"

Jun Moxie continued to tempt them with honeyed words. "When the time comes, once you advance, will I still be able to command you? All you are trading is this one task! Perhaps it will only take a few days to exchange for a lifetime of freedom and incomparably immense strength. Isn't that worth it?"

"Your words hold considerable merit, Excellency, but we have a certain habit: we never work for the weak. If you cannot subdue us, cannot display strength surpassing our own, why should we obey the commands of a weaker party?" He Chongxiao pondered for a long time, his gaze flickering.

These two 'beings' were, in fact, the Beast Kings who had emerged from the Heavenly Punishment Forest. Top-tier Profound Beasts possessed their own dignity; even when intensely craving something, they would never bow their heads to the weak!

Ever since Jun Moxie discovered that his aura could attract high-level Profound Beasts, and even more so after that small Iron-Winged Leopard unexpectedly advanced, Young Master Jun had been confident in leveraging his unique asset. He had been planning to target the legendary Heavenly Punishment Sovereign, the King of Profound Beasts, all along. If he could attract the Beast King to his side, Jun Moxie would fear no one in these matters.

However, there was one prerequisite: the Beast King must be willing to obey his commands.

Only then could he emulate the First Sovereign, Yun Benchen, roaming the world with a peak Ninth Grade Profound Beast at his side, laughing scornfully at the martial world.

Yet, Young Master Jun’s target was not a nascent Iron-Winged Leopard, but a dignified, peak Ninth Grade Profound Beast. Therefore, the plan had to be meticulous; any slip-up, and not only might he fail to gain the company of a Ninth Grade Profound Beast, but his very life could be forfeit at any moment!

Thus, for this goal, Young Master Jun devised an exceptionally precise strategy. First, using the lure of a peak Ninth Grade Profound Pill, he spread the news across the realm, certain that the Beast King would receive word. Since other powerful figures were so interested, it stood to reason that the Profound Beasts themselves would not stand idly by.

While Jun Moxie’s goals included increasing his grandfather, Elder Jun’s, strength, or using the situation to incite a major war to weaken enemy forces, his ultimate goal was singular: attract the Beast King and then find a way to subdue it!

His rationale was that although his current strength was insufficient, he possessed the Hongjun Pagoda to borrow power from! And the lack of strength was precisely the reason he dared to entertain this audacious scheme: If he already possessed the strength of a Supreme Divine Profound, why would he need a Profound Beast as an auxiliary force?

To this end, Jun Moxie had been diligently cultivating day and night, purely to strengthen his connection with the Hongjun Pagoda, preparing for this very day. Since obtaining the heaven-defying Yin-Yang Evasion technique, this notion had grown increasingly urgent in Jun Moxie's mind.

And seeking out usable Profound Pills from Jun Wuyi for experimentation was also a preparatory step for this very undertaking!