Chapter 458 - 443: Misunderstanding

Chapter 458: Chapter 443: Misunderstanding

The Seeking Truth Ship traveled unimpeded within the Great Li Realm. While this was partly due to Bai Zichen following a map to bypass Sect territories, it also served as a testament to the principled nature of the region.

Just from looking at this Flying Magical Treasure, one couldn’t tell if the passenger was a Core Formation True Man or a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

In the Northern Domain, flying so brazenly without a clear sign of identity would very likely invite probing attacks from Tribulation Cultivators.

If the cultivator piloting the Flying Magical Treasure wasn’t strong enough, they would naturally become a target.

But just as it was about to fly out of the Great Li Realm’s territory and cross the well-known Desolate Li Mountain Range, the Seeking Truth Ship was struck by several beams of Divine Light.

The Flying Ship shook violently. Bai Zichen, who was rereading the *True Understanding of Sword Dao* for the umpteenth time, was interrupted. A nameless anger welled up inside him, and he stepped outside.

’I was just saying how principled the people of Great Li were, and now my words have come back to bite me. How did they get so close without me sensing anything at all...’

The beams of Divine Light had been feeble, not even breaking through the Seeking Truth Ship’s surface-level protective Forbidden.

But the fact that they had arrived so silently, evading Bai Zichen’s Spiritual Sense, was deeply unsettling.

He surveyed his surroundings and spread out his Divine Sense, scouring the land. He soon discovered something unusual in a patch of forest directly ahead.

His figure blurred, and in a single step, he crossed a thousand zhang, leaving afterimages at both his starting point and his destination.

Two monkeys, each about a zhang tall, stood on a nearby hill. Cannons were mounted where their arms should have been, and wisps of green smoke still curled from the barrels.

’Tier Three Puppets?’

Bai Zichen could tell at a glance that the two monkeys were lifeless; they had no aura of life, and their joints moved stiffly.

Just as he was about to unleash a Sword Light to obliterate them, the eyes of one of the Monkey Puppets flashed with Spirit Light. It spoke, "Fellow Daoist, please stay your hand. I am Yu Nie, a supervisor from the Hundred Puppet Sect. Unfortunately, a traitor from our Sect has stolen a precious Treasure and fled toward the Southern Domain. We are here specifically to intercept him."

"The traitor’s Magical Treasure is of a similar model to your Flying Ship, both appearing as a white rainbow streaking across the sky. These Puppets have limited Spirituality and can only perform simple identification, which is what led to this misunderstanding. As a token of my apology, I can offer compensation. Once this matter is resolved, I would also like to properly extend my hospitality."

’The Hundred Puppet Sect?’

Bai Zichen’s gaze swept over the two Monkey Puppets, from head to toe. In addition to the cannons on their arms, two Array Plates had been refined into their feet, looking like heavy discs clinging firmly to the ground.

On their backs was a pair of emerald-green wings made from dozens of layers of strips as thin as a cicada’s wings, currently folded up.

After receiving Wuu Sanzang’s Puppetry legacy, he had studied it for a time. However, the art of Puppetry involved a vast array of different skills.

Recognizing that his own aptitude for the Hundred Skills of Cultivation was average, he hadn’t wanted to spend too much time on it and had quickly set it aside.

But it was a Tier Four legacy, after all, so it had given him a general understanding of Puppets in the Cultivation Realm.

The Monkey Puppets before him were vastly different from traditional ones. Each of the mechanical contraptions they carried was incredibly valuable.

When integrated with the Puppets, these devices gave them combat capabilities that far surpassed those of ordinary Tier Three Puppets.

In a real fight, one of them could easily take on three other Puppets of the same tier.

Of course, their production cost and difficulty were on a completely different level compared to ordinary Puppets.

Furthermore, judging by what the man said, the Monkey Puppets’ Spiritual Wisdom was already quite high. They could even independently identify targets for interception based on information provided by their master.

For a Tier Three Puppet to achieve such Spirituality, one of two things had to be true: either a Tier Four Great Demon Essence was extravagantly integrated as its core during the Refining process, or the creator’s techniques were so outstanding as to be beyond the reach of an ordinary Tier Four Puppet Master.

The Town Spirit Beast in the Great Wild Marsh Water Mansion, for example, was a product of the Flesh Puppet path pioneered by Wuu Sanzang, which was vastly different from ordinary Puppetry.

Bai Zichen had heard of the Hundred Puppet Sect even back in the Northern Domain. It wasn’t because the Sect was particularly prominent or powerful, but rather, thanks to the Celestial Principle Sect.

This Nascent Soul Sect, famous for its Puppetry, was a mortal enemy of the Celestial Principle Sect. They had been so relentless that they had even joined forces with other parties to ambush the Celestial Principle Sect during its migration to the Northern Domain.

They inflicted enormous losses on the Celestial Principle Sect and had nearly succeeded in killing Shi Chengdong, which would have left him buried in the Central Domain forever.

He had gathered all this information as background material during his investigation into the Celestial Principle Sect.

"You brazenly launched an attack, and now you think a simple apology and claim of a misunderstanding can resolve the matter? Do you really think it’s that simple?"

Bai Zichen stared at the Monkey Puppet. Its master was hiding somewhere, speaking only through a wisp of Divine Thought attached to the Puppet.

Even if he completely destroyed these two Puppets, the owner would only lose some material possessions. It wouldn’t harm him in any fundamental way.

By severing the connection in time, the wisp of lost Divine Thought could be recovered through a few months of Cultivation.

He had to admit, there was really nothing he could do to this cultivator from the Hundred Puppet Sect.

’Within a hundred li, there are only two or three groups of low-level cultivators... To operate a Puppet from such a great distance requires not only a profound Cultivation Technique but also a Divine Sense far stronger than that of one’s peers.’

Thanks to his various fortuitous encounters, Bai Zichen’s Divine Sense, even at the Core Formation Perfection stage, had a range comparable to that of an Early-Stage Nascent Soul Cultivator.

In theory, this made him perfectly suited for skills like those of an Array Master or a Puppet Master, giving him an innate advantage right from the start.

It was just that he had limited talent for the Hundred Skills of Cultivation, and more importantly, he was unwilling to spend his time on them.

Otherwise, with the power of his Mysterious Holy Body, he could have become a true polymath in the Hundred Skills of Cultivation.

If this Yu Nie appeared in person, he probably wouldn’t survive two of Bai Zichen’s sword strikes. No matter how many Puppets he deployed, they would be useless before his blade; there was no way they could stop him.

But by remotely controlling these Tier Three Puppets, he had placed himself in an unassailable position.

In terms of actual power, though, this tactic was only good for bullying some Core Formation juniors.

No amount of Tier Three Puppets could ever defeat a Nascent Soul True Monarch; at most, they would just be a minor nuisance.

He probably couldn’t even achieve a decisive victory against a particularly outstanding Core Formation True Man.

That is, unless Yu Nie had even more powerful Puppets at his disposal beyond these monkey-like ones.

However, Tier Four Puppets were even rarer than Nascent Soul True Monarchs. Leaving aside the various materials needed for Refining, just acquiring the Tier Four Great Demon Essence for the core was a task that stumped most Tier Four Puppet Masters.

Moreover, a single Great Demon Essence could only sustain a Tier Four Puppet’s operation for a few hundred years.

As time passed, no design, however ingenious, could prevent the Essence from weakening until it could no longer bear the strain of powering the Tier Four Puppet.

As far as he knew, the entire Hundred Puppet Sect possessed only a single Tier Four Puppet, which was treated as a trump card and would not be deployed lightly.

They hadn’t even brought it to the ambush on the Celestial Principle Sect, fearing that some accident might lead to the Tier Four Puppet being lost.

"What do you have in mind, Fellow Daoist? I was in the wrong. As long as your request isn’t too excessive, I can agree to it."

Yu Nie’s voice, coming from the Monkey Puppet’s mouth, was conciliatory, yielding at every turn and taking the initiative to apologize.

This attitude quelled Bai Zichen’s initial anger. If he continued to press the issue, he would be the one who seemed aggressive.

Back in the Northern Domain, a situation like this would never have happened.

Willingly backing down and admitting fault would only be seen as weakness to be exploited, inviting even more outrageous demands.

It seemed the Central Domain was far more civilized. People here truly had a certain refined, otherworldly grace and didn’t resort to shouting about fighting and killing at the drop of a hat.

Even when dealing with a mortal enemy, they had waited until the Celestial Principle Sect was leaving the Central Domain before striking under the guise of Tribulation Cultivators, all to avoid tarnishing their own Sect’s reputation.

Whether it was feigned benevolence, mere posturing, or a necessity born from the pressure of the Super Major Sects above...

...it was a blessing for the lower-level cultivators.

"Fine," Bai Zichen sighed, no longer wanting to get entangled in the matter. "Since no real damage was done, let’s part ways here. I have to be on my way, and you can continue hunting your traitor."

"You are truly magnanimous, Brother. May I ask your name?"

From the depths of the forest, a Tier Three Humanoid Puppet emerged, pushing aside the foliage that had concealed it. Before activating, it looked no different from a dead log.

"This scroll contains a Qi Collection and Transportation Technique. It’s something I acquired by chance and has nothing to do with my Sect. As an Auxiliary Cultivation Technique, it can increase a Qi Refining Disciple’s chance of reaching Foundation Establishment by ten percent. It’s perfect for passing on to the younger members of one’s clan."

"Please accept this little trinket, Fellow Daoist. After you’ve had a look, if you find it has any merit, you can pass it on to your younger disciples to practice with."

A wooden panel on the Puppet’s chest opened, and it placed a Jade Scroll before him. Five clouds were engraved on its surface.

"I’m just a country bumpkin, no need to exchange names..."

Bai Zichen extended his palm, and the Jade Scroll flew from the ground into his hand. He gave a cupped-fist salute, then returned to the Seeking Truth Ship and resumed his journey.

The humanoid Puppet stared in the direction of his departure. In its dark, hollow eye sockets, a flicker of expression seemed to appear as the eyeballs within swiveled.

’What a piercingly sharp aura,’ Yu Nie thought. ’It’s so strong it makes my Divine Thought sting. Could he be the Saint Heir of some major Sword Sect, traveling abroad after just undergoing his Tribulation Crossing and ascending in rank...’

Yu Nie was born with an Innate Divine Sense far beyond that of an ordinary person. Even before he began his Cultivation journey, his Yin Yang Eye had opened, allowing him to see the souls and ghosts invisible to mortal eyes.

After becoming a disciple of the Hundred Puppet Sect, he displayed an even more astonishing talent, especially in the art of splitting his Divine Thought—a skill in which he was unrivaled throughout the entire Sect.

After his Tribulation Crossing to form a Nascent Soul, he had triggered the Duality Wheel phenomenon, granting him the ability to sense fortune and calamity, giving him powerful premonitions.

The moment he laid eyes on Bai Zichen, his heart had pounded in his chest, overwhelmed by a sense of impending doom. That was why he had adopted such a humble posture.

If a mere Core Formation Cultivator had emerged from that Flying Ship, Yu Nie would have swatted him away without a second thought.

He wouldn’t have been so deferential even to a fellow Nascent Soul Cultivator of the same rank. Anyone who knew him would have been flabbergasted to see him act this way.

Every Nascent Soul True Monarch was a true prodigy, the center of attention throughout their journey of growth, and Yu Nie was no exception.

For the first few hundred years of his life, he had been proud and arrogant. That was, until he ran into a Nascent Soul Cultivator from the Celestial Star Sect in a Secret Realm. His prized army of Puppets was defeated in a flash, and after that devastating blow, his personality changed drastically.

He became an aloof and unapproachable old man. Whether meeting people or exploring ruins, he would always send his Puppets to pave the way. Relying on his powerful Divine Sense and unique Cultivation Technique, he would hide himself away, never appearing in person.

’It’s a shame I couldn’t form a connection with him. The intensity of the premonition he triggered was almost on par with when I met a Great True Monarch... He’s clearly not from the Great Li region. Could he be the Saint Heir of the Cyan Lotus Sword Sect?’

The humanoid Puppet leaped a few times, returning to a sunken hollow in the ground. Its body gradually faded, merging as one with a large, dead tree behind it.

’Cyan Lotus Sword Cultivators are known to be free-spirited and unrestrained, paying little heed to trifles. His temperament and strength seem to fit... But why travel by Spirit Ship instead of using his Sect’s unique Cyan Lotus Sword Talisman?’

The Spirit Light in the eyes of the various Puppets gradually dimmed, and they stood motionless, like inanimate objects.

The shadows of the trees shifted, revealing a row of raptor-like Puppets of various shapes, standing perfectly still in the gloom.