Chapter 936: From Ziqing's Gift

In the curtain of rain, Xu Qing was in front, Fan Shishuang in the middle, and Er Niu at the back.

This arrangement made Fan Shishuang even more nervous. Being in the human territory without any help, the feeling of isolation intensified his unease.

After Xu Qing and the other two left, the Fourth Prince's banquet hall was completely silent.

Everyone was quiet.

But beneath this veneer of silence, inner storms raged within each person.

Shock, disbelief, and horror, among other turbulent emotions, churned within their hearts!

Regarding Xu Qing's journey to Yan Yue, they only knew the outcome, not the specifics of how he became a Great Xuan Tian among the Yan Yue Xuan Tian Clan.

Naturally, they were also unaware of the detailed conflicts between Xu Qing and the various great prodigies of Yan Yue during that time.

Nevertheless, they could somewhat infer certain clues.

After all, Xu Qing was the one who ultimately became Great Xuan Tian and defeated Yan Xuanzi.

Yet, clues were merely clues. They couldn't imagine what kind of experience could make Fan Shishuang so terrified upon seeing Xu Qing.

It was important to remember that Fan Shishuang was also a Soul Embodiment realm cultivator.

Moreover, he was a renowned sequential prodigy of the Yan Yue Xuan Tian Clan, famous throughout Wanggu.

Although his choice to go into seclusion upon arriving in the human territory had been puzzling, it was also understandable. As a cultivator who had just entered the Soul Embodiment realm and was at a critical stage of cultivation, seclusion was a natural course of action.

After all, Fan Shishuang's participation in the negotiations wasn't required; as an overseer, he only needed to witness the signing of the treaty at the end.

Previously, even when someone at the banquet mentioned Xu Qing, he immediately stopped them. But these incidents only revealed his displeasure.

Those unaware of the full story would instinctively assume a significant conflict existed between Fan Shishuang and Xu Qing.

But now... everything made sense.

Fan Shishuang's seclusion after coming to the human territory was clearly to avoid Xu Qing.

And when someone mentioned Xu Qing earlier, he immediately stopped them. His displeasure was real, and a conflict certainly existed, but beneath that reality was a deep sense of caution, an act born from fear of being implicated.

Most of the crowd now understood this, and the clamor in their minds intensified.

"Xu Qing in Yan Yue Xuan Tian... he's terrifying to such an extent."

Everyone was astonished!

The Third Princess, meanwhile, seemed lost in thought, involuntarily recalling every moment of her acquaintance with Xu Qing.

From their first meeting at the Seventh Prince's banquet in the Sacred Ocean Domain, until their next encounter when Xu Qing was already the Sacred Ocean Domain Lord, and then their journey together into the Imperial Capital Domain...

His summons by the Sword-Wielding Emperor, the rise of the Heretic Immortal sect, and the slaying of the Seventh Prince—each of these events created immense stir and shook the Imperial Capital in all directions.

She had believed that this was already Xu Qing's peak.

But after Yan Yue, he ascended to become the Great Xuan Tian of Yan Yue, was enfeoffed as a King by the Human Emperor, and appointed as the Imperial Tutor to the princes...

All of this had left her looking up, able to see only a faint outline of his back.

Especially today, she had a direct and visceral understanding of Xu Qing's terror. The formidable Fan Shishuang, whom she and others had to approach with caution, was actually so anxious in front of him!

She could now imagine how fearsome Xu Qing's reputation must have been during his time with the Yan Yue Xuan Tian Clan.

The Fourth Prince beside her also looked utterly confused, his expression shifting, but a strange glint flashed in his eyes for a fleeting moment.

"Someone wants to use me as bait to lure out Fan Shishuang," he mused. "But my master has seen through it all and told me to play along. So, with Xu Qing's sudden arrival, could it be that... they will fall together?"

Thinking of this, the Fourth Prince instinctively weighed the pros and cons in his heart.

Among the crowd, another woman was also moved, her eyes gleaming as she looked outside the hall.

This woman was Su Yue, the well-known music master in the Imperial Capital.

"Is he... that person's younger brother?"

Xu Qing paid no attention to what was happening in the hall. Soon after, the three of them arrived at Xu Qing's Upper Spirit Estate.

Inside the estate, Xu Qing sat cross-legged with a calm expression, observing Fan Shishuang, who wore a gloomy look on his face.

As for the Captain, his face was beaming with smiles.

"Brother Fan," the Captain began, "back at the Yan Yue Xuan Tian Clan, I could already see your extraordinary potential. Your mastery of puppets, especially, has reached its peak! I'm sure you won't disappoint me. After all, if I'm disappointed, my junior brother will be disappointed too, and if both of us are disappointed... then you'll also be disappointed!"

The Captain cleared his throat, giving Fan Shishuang no chance to speak. With a flick of his hand, the makeshift puppet he had cobbled together landed in front of Fan Shishuang.

"Brother Fan, please help me fix it. As for its power... it needs to reach its original level!"

The Captain licked his lips.

Xu Qing remained expressionless.

Fan Shishuang cursed inwardly but dared not show the slightest hint of it on his face. He ultimately breathed a sigh of relief, realizing they genuinely needed his help and had no other ulterior motives.

If it had been anyone else, he might have put on airs, but for Fan Shishuang now, he simply wanted to finish the work as quickly as possible and then leave, getting far away from this place!

So, without a word, he focused on the puppet, then with a wave of his hand, the puppet instantly collapsed with a crash, breaking into countless parts.

He motioned for a piece, picked it up, took a deep breath, and, after forcing himself to calm down, began to examine it.

As he looked, his expression subtly changed.

"This is an ancient artifact, and it appears to be at least tens of thousands of years old! It's also tainted with corpse aura... This is a refining method popular among the Liao Xuan lineage during the Mysterious Nether Ancient Emperor era! Their puppet crafting often relied on live sacrifices, using the blood of living beings as nourishment, meridians as connections, flesh and bone as materials, and then combining them with various other components to ultimately form flesh-and-blood puppets!"

Fan Shishuang was truly a puppet master; with just a single glance, he identified its origin.

Er Niu was impressed, expressing admiration and exclaiming how amazing it was.

After watching, Xu Qing also showed a cooperative look of appreciation in his eyes.

Though Fan Shishuang outwardly appeared indifferent to their shared praise, an uncontrollable sense of pride and triumph swelled within him.

Er Niu blinked.

"Brother Fan is indeed amazing," Er Niu said. "It seems you can definitely restore it to a level beyond perfection!"

Hearing this, Fan Shishuang spoke calmly.

"While there's some difficulty, as long as the materials are sufficient, it's certainly possible!"

Er Niu smiled.

"But we only have these materials. With your skill, Brother Fan, you can surely make seven or eight of them. Never mind, five will be enough. Any extra ones can be your reward!"

Fan Shishuang cursed even more intensely in his heart, thinking, *These two damn guys not only want to use me for free, but they even expect me to provide the materials myself!*

This was going too far.

"These materials aren't even enough for one puppet," Fan Shishuang retorted. "I'm talking about refining materials like Earth Essence Crystal and Scarlet Soul Iron!"

"We don't have any!"

Hearing Fan Shishuang's tone, Er Niu's eyes widened.

Xu Qing's expression also darkened.

Fan Shishuang gritted his teeth, glancing at Er Niu, then at Xu Qing.

After a long moment, he took a deep breath.

"Promise me," he said, "that from now on, all grievances will truly be forgotten."

Seeing Fan Shishuang compromise, Er Niu smiled and readily agreed.

Xu Qing pondered for a moment, then also nodded.

Fan Shishuang gritted his teeth again. With a wave of his hand, he produced a large quantity of refining materials and began to repair the puppet right in front of Xu Qing and Er Niu.

Time flowed by, and soon, over a month had passed.

During this month, Fan Shishuang could be said to have performed exceptionally. Under the watchful eyes of Xu Qing and Er Niu, he completely transformed all the puppet parts, bringing out their inherent spiritual essence.

The amount of refining materials he used during this process was considerable.

Throughout the process, Xu Qing said little, but the Captain's constant encouragement and praise were unending.

Although Fan Shishuang grew impatient by the end, he unconsciously used more and more materials.

Especially towards the end, after some deliberation, he even took out some flesh, blood, and divine souls from fierce beasts he had previously slain.

He incorporated these into the puppet parts, finally making them not only possess spiritual essence but also exhibit vitality.

Until the last day, as he performed hand seals, a towering black-armored puppet, like a giant, appeared before the three of them!

These two puppets emanated a chilling aura from head to toe, and a terrifying pressure spread forth. They seemed even more powerful than the puppet Xu Qing had encountered in the underground cave.

"Their physical bodies have reached the level of the Soul Embodiment realm," the Captain said, moved.

It was known that within the human race, such puppets were unheard of; even with Er Niu's memories from his previous life, they were exceedingly rare.

"This level of puppet is also the first I've ever encountered and refined in my life!" Fan Shishuang declared.

Fan Shishuang took a deep breath, gazing at the puppets before him. A strong sense of greed instinctively rose within him. As a puppet master, he knew the value of these two puppets better than anyone else.

"Too bad these two are watching," he thought, "I can't tamper with them... The reason these puppets reached such a level is not just due to my materials, which played a significant role, but the key element was the original refining and quality of the parts themselves! The cultivator who refined these puppets back then must have been at least a high-level Soul Embodiment realm, or even a Dominator... That's how they could refine puppets at the Soul Embodiment level! Unless there are more of those parts, otherwise... it would be difficult to create a third one!"

Fan Shishuang sighed inwardly, but reality forced him to suppress all greed. He stood up and coldly swept his gaze over Xu Qing and Er Niu.

"May I leave now?"

Er Niu quickly stood up, praising him loudly, and Xu Qing also smiled.

"Indeed, Fellow Daoist Fan, you are truly remarkable!"

Fan Shishuang remained expressionless, but once again, his heart felt a surge of excitement from Xu Qing and Er Niu's praise and recognition. Yet, the next moment, he felt a wave of sadness. He had experienced this conflicting emotion several times over the past month.

At that moment, all he wanted was to leave. Without another word, he flickered out of the estate and hurried towards his encampment.

That same day, he and the two clans awaiting him departed from the Human Imperial Capital.

As for the two puppets, Xu Qing and Er Niu each received one. Er Niu happily left, intending to study his thoroughly, because he had specifically requested Fan Shishuang to add tracking capabilities to his puppet during the last half-month.

"You old scoundrel, I will definitely find you," Er Niu muttered.

After leaving Xu Qing's estate, Er Niu licked his lips, feeling incredibly excited.

And so, time passed.

Days later, with only two days left until the Ancestral Worship Ceremony, Xu Qing, who was cultivating in the spiritual pool within his estate, suddenly opened his eyes and looked outside.

Someone had delivered a wooden box.

It was placed at the front gate.

The person who brought it was a young boy.

"By order of the Grand Preceptor, this item has been delivered!"

After speaking, the boy bowed and turned to leave.

A long while later, the wooden box disintegrated in the wind, revealing its contents.

A cloth doll.

It wasn't related to cultivators but rather originated from the mortal world.

However, this doll seemed to have been torn into countless pieces and then painstakingly stitched back together. Its expression looked as if it were crying.