Chapter 1241: Teacher Loves You

Zhang Xuan frowned.

The brain is the control center. Even if the Ruthless One could regenerate from a drop of blood and his body were to split into countless fragments, as long as the brain remained, the other parts would inevitably follow its commands.

It was precisely because of this ability that the other party could easily control Emperor Qingtian, and even so many soulless golden figures and puppets. This also allowed him to so skillfully employ Soul Sorcery, dragging Zhang Xuan's soul into that black hole, where it could be torn apart at any moment!

Previously, Zhang Xuan couldn't resist, but now that he had reached the peak of the Embryonic Infant realm, it was difficult for the opponent to kill him using the same method. However, that didn't mean it wasn't terrifying!

An old monster who had lived for tens of thousands of years, and critically, still possessed memories... Who knew what methods he could employ?

"You don't dare to confront him directly?" Zhang Xuan asked, after a moment of hesitation.

"Yes! Never mind his strength; even if he were weaker than me, as the brain, I couldn't resist him. I'd be easily controlled, unless... he lost consciousness, and my consciousness could infiltrate..." the Ruthless One replied.

"Lose consciousness?" Zhang Xuan gave a wry smile.

That was impossible.

The opponent's consciousness could easily pull him out of the black hole, which showed its immense power. How could he possibly erase it?

It was an utterly impossible task.

The two conversed through soul communication, a flash of thought that took less than half a breath. In the meantime, the other three puppets stepped forward, encircling him. One of them swung a fist, its power bearing down.

"Golden Origin Cauldron!" Knowing that with his current strength, he couldn't possibly withstand three of them, Zhang Xuan called out. The cauldron abruptly appeared, ramming the puppet in front of him with its bottom.

The fist met the cauldron's bottom with a clang like a great bell, sending the puppet stumbling back several steps.

While the Golden Origin Cauldron was no match for Emperor Qingtian, against puppets that only relied on brute force, its defense and weight gave it a significant advantage. In this fight, they were evenly matched, with the cauldron even appearing to have the upper hand.

Zhang Xuan sighed in relief, but before he could relax, the remaining two puppets charged again.

Whoosh! Crash! Wind and thunder churned, auras soared like rainbows, and the surrounding air seemed to rip apart.

"I'm the clone! That one over there is Zhang Xuan! Look how fierce he is..." Zhang Xuan's face paled, and he hastily shouted.

"..." the clone thought.

"I'm really just a clone! Has anyone ever seen a clone more powerful than the main body?" Zhang Xuan yelled while dodging.

Hearing his words, one puppet hesitated, then walked towards the clone. It joined the first puppet, and in the blink of an eye, they once again flattened the clone's head into a pancake.

The clone was on the verge of tears.

Other people's main bodies were upright, selfless, and would step forward in times of danger... What was his main body like?

It was simply unbelievable...

However, it seemed he had also run away prematurely the last time they encountered danger...

Filled with frustration, he fought desperately against the two puppets. It wasn't long before he took several consecutive punches, his chest and ribs caving in.

Fortunately, he was refined from the Nine Heavens Lotus Embryo and impervious to hammering; otherwise, he would have long since perished.

"Clone, try to keep these puppets occupied! I'll deal with one first, then come help you!" Just as he was fuming to the point of explosion, he heard his main body's voice.

"Alright!" Hearing that his main body wasn't deliberately abandoning him, the clone finally breathed a sigh of relief, feeling much better.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Using all his strength, and since he didn't need to defend himself, he fought the two puppets to a draw.

"Interesting... but no matter which of you is the clone and which is the main body, neither of you will escape today..." The Ruthless One clearly hadn't expected the clone to possess such strength, fighting two puppets without losing ground. He scoffed, about to continue, but suddenly paused: "You, you... attack him now!"

Hearing his anxious words, the clone was full of doubt. He landed two consecutive punches, forcing the two puppets back, then hastily looked towards his main body. What he saw made him involuntarily freeze.

The puppet that had been chasing his main body was now, at some point, on its knees, looking at the identical figure before it with an expression of utter worship.

His main body had said something unknown, and the puppet was trembling with excitement, unable to control itself.

"Oh, my..." The clone swallowed, a look of utter disbelief on his face.

He had fought tooth and nail, his head smashed multiple times, without harming the opponent in the slightest, yet his main body had said something unknown, and the puppet was kneeling... The difference was too immense!

He listened closely and heard his main body's encouraging voice: "...Go, your teacher loves you!"

No sooner had the words fallen than the puppet that had been chasing his main body charged straight at him.

"I..." The clone's expression changed, and just as he was about to dodge in fear, he saw the puppet engaging in battle with the other one by his side.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! The two great puppets fought fiercely, neither giving ground.

The clone's mouth twitched, and he breathed a sigh of relief. Just as he was about to deal with the puppet in front of him, his main body approached, speaking with a special resonance: "As a puppet, how tragic it is to only obey the will of others. Come, listen to me..."

Soon, the puppet that had been battering him nearly to death, just like the previous one, knelt before him, looking utterly sincere.

"Go!" With another shout from his main body, this puppet charged towards the puppet that was fighting the Golden Origin Cauldron.

"Alright..." Ignoring the stunned clone, Zhang Xuan breathed a sigh of relief.

Having grasped the Heart of a Teacher, which advocated teaching without discrimination, even Zhang Jiuxiao's weapon could be persuaded to become a disciple. It was naturally even simpler for puppets that possessed their own consciousness.

"That move of yours is amazing! It's incredibly effective against puppets, much better than fighting them directly..." The clone couldn't help but exclaim.

"You want to learn? If you want to learn, I can teach you..." His main body looked over.

"..." The clone's face flushed red with indignation: "We're the same person, stop pretending with me... Isn't it just the Impartation of Teacher's Will? Who doesn't know how to do that!"

Having said that, he swayed, appearing before the fighting puppet, and extended his palm like a priest: "As a puppet, how tragic it is to only obey the will of others. Come, listen to me..."

His head was flattened by a punch.

"I..." The clone was furious.

They were the same person, said the same words. After the main body spoke, the puppet knelt down. After he spoke, he was beaten to a pulp...

This was simply treating the clone like cannon fodder!

"Sigh..." Seeing the clone's appearance, Zhang Xuan shook his head.

Both were split from his soul, but when would this clone learn to be as low-key and reserved as himself?

Always thinking about showing off, never giving him a moment of peace—it was maddening!

"First, let's find the Ruthless One!" Ignoring the fighting puppets and the clone, Zhang Xuan's Eye of Insight flickered as he surveyed the grand hall before him.

It was still an empty hall, with nothing but the four puppets.

"There must be more mechanisms..." Knowing that this so-called 'Ghost Crypt' had been managed by the Ruthless One, with countless mechanisms laid out, Zhang Xuan was about to search carefully when he heard the Ruthless One's resentful voice.

"To be able to use the Heart of a Teacher and the Impartation of Teacher's Will to sway my puppets... As expected, just like Confucius, your eloquence is unrivaled! But do you really think that after countless battles with Confucius, I wouldn't have any precautions for this?"

"Precautions?" Zhang Xuan frowned.

He quickly turned his head to look at the puppet nearby and saw that the puppet which had just listened to him swayed twice, then its head exploded on the spot.

Thud! It fell to the ground.

"You had a backup plan?" Zhang Xuan's face darkened.

As expected of the Ruthless One; he even left contingencies in the puppets he refined. Those who disobeyed could be instantly annihilated.

"If I didn't have backup plans, could I have survived until now?" The Ruthless One sneered.

Having lived for tens of thousands of years and fought Confucius multiple times, if he didn't have such precautions, he would have been annihilated by the Master Teacher Pavilion countless times over.

Zhang Xuan clenched his fist.

Destroying the puppets he had subdued not only cost him two valuable allies but, more importantly, served as a warning.

Although the Heart of a Teacher combined with the Impartation of Teacher's Will was infinitely powerful, it persuaded people through virtue and reason, not by forced brainwashing.

The puppets' sentience, seeing their comrades instantly annihilated, developed resistance in their minds. It would now be nearly impossible to successfully subdue them.

Boom! Just as he acknowledged his opponent's cunning in instantly thwarting his method, he saw the remaining two puppets charge at him with even greater ferocity.

Seeing their comrades' tragic deaths, they felt a threat to their own lives and fought even more desperately.

The clone and the Golden Origin Cauldron were forced back repeatedly by these two reckless attackers.

"Let's see how you defend against this..." The Ruthless One sneered, his pride evident.

"Actually, there's no need to defend..." Seeing that the clone and the cauldron could handle it, Zhang Xuan didn't make a move, but instead shook his head.

"No need to defend?"

"Exactly. Dealing with them is actually quite simple..." Zhang Xuan sighed, then with a flick of his wrist, Demonic Armors A and B appeared before him.

He had collected these Inner Demons when he first entered the underground palace.

"Go, take possession of those two puppets..."

"Yes!" Demonic Armors A and B transformed into two wisps of black gas and flew straight towards them.

Inner Demons were formless and intangible, irresistible to countless cultivators, let alone puppets. In the blink of an eye, they burrowed into the puppets' foreheads.

Thump! Thump! As the Inner Demons entered their bodies, the two puppets immediately lost their fighting ability. They swayed a few times and then collapsed to the ground.

"You... used Inner Demons?" The Ruthless One twitched.

He was the one who created these things... He never expected them to become the opponent's enforcers at such a crucial moment...

"Precisely. Although Inner Demons cannot erase the puppets' sentience, nor can they make them obey my commands, it's quite easy to... trap them for a period, rendering them unable to fight!" Zhang Xuan chuckled softly.

Inner Demons could cause mental confusion and inability to fight. Even if they couldn't control the puppets, rendering them combat-incapable and problem-free was very simple.

"Very well, very well. You can control and stop two puppets, but can you stop... this many?" He scoffed again, and as the Ruthless One spoke, a mechanism in the hall opened, and a horde of puppets poured out, numbering in the hundreds.

"So many?" The clone's face turned pale, and the Golden Origin Cauldron quickly shrank, almost retreating into its lid.

"I have this many puppets, do you have this many Inner Demons?" The Ruthless One roared with laughter.

Before his laughter ended, he saw the young man lift an eyelid and shake his head.

"Sorry, but I actually do!"