Puppet Beasts and Spiritual Sense

"You have a good eye, Fellow Daoist. It is indeed a Tier 1 Lower-Grade Dharma Artifact."

A Magic Tool as a meeting gift? How generous. I like you people!

Luo Chen fondly turned the little puppet over in his hands and poured Mana into it, yet it remained completely motionless.

Murong Qinglian covered her mouth and chuckled. "This is a Puppet Artifact. Ordinary Attraction Arts cannot control it; it must be used with the corresponding incantation."

"A Puppet Artifact?"

"Mhm, listen carefully, Fellow Daoist. Spirit and soul merge, soul and object abide, the upper verse twists and turns..."

Under the beautiful woman's guidance, Luo Chen quickly mastered Puppet Art.

First, he injected spiritual energy into the Puppet Beast, then stirred the Spiritual Sense that had always existed in the depths of his soul.

However, a Qi Refining Stage cultivator's Spiritual Sense could not yet leave the body, so he could only use spiritual energy as a medium.

All of a sudden.

Click!

The tiny pangolin suddenly took a step.

Luo Chen's eyes lit up. With another thought, the pangolin began crawling forward step by step.

It started out slowly, then gradually reached an even pace, before finally racing circles around the courtyard.

"Fun, fun! Interesting, interesting!"

"I once heard people say that puppetry could rival the Four Arts of Cultivation. Back then, I had scoffed at it. Now, it truly lived up to its reputation!"

"It is practically a method of creation!"

Luo Chen praised it repeatedly. With a thought, the little pangolin crawled onto his shoulder.

Only when he turned around did he realize that Qin Liangchen and his wife were staring at him in astonishment.

"Good lad, your Spiritual Sense foundation is astonishingly profound!"

Qin Liangchen had once again been startled by this neighbor of his.

First, there had been that exceptionally nimble movement technique. Now, there was a Spiritual Sense foundation far beyond those of the same realm.

Luo Chen was confused. "Spiritual Sense foundation?"

Murong Qinglian nodded at him. "All things possess spirit and are born with souls. Once humans embark upon cultivation, they develop Spiritual Sense. At the beginning of Qi Refining, Spiritual Sense resides in the Consciousness Sea and cannot leave the body. Once one establishes Foundation, Spiritual Sense can leave the body and illuminate everything within several li. If one is fortunate enough to attain the Golden Core Great Dao, it can further evolve into Divine Sense, reflecting heaven and earth."

Soul, Spiritual Sense, Divine Sense.

Luo Chen silently pondered these terms.

He had heard scattered fragments about them before, but only now did he understand how closely connected the three were.

"But how could you tell that my Spiritual Sense foundation is profound?"

Luo Chen did not understand.

By their account, Spiritual Sense could not leave the body during the Qi Refining Stage. How could they possibly know the strength of his Spiritual Sense?

This time, Qin Liangchen answered him.

"The strength of a low-level cultivator's Spiritual Sense truly cannot be directly detected, but it can be judged through external manifestations. The simplest method is controlling puppets."

"Speaking of which, we only learned this trick during this journey."

Qin Liangchen said smugly, "The Fallen Cloud Sect my son joined established itself in the Jade Cauldron Domain through Puppet Art. They have their own methods for testing and training Spiritual Sense. When we accompanied him into the sect, my wife and I got to try them out as well."

"For example, how quickly one first learns to control a Tier 1 Puppet Beast, the maximum duration of control, the Puppet Beast's running speed, and so on. All of these can reveal a corner of one's Spiritual Sense foundation."

Murong Qinglian nodded, echoing her Dao companion. "That is indeed true. I heard that the Fallen Cloud Sect even holds annual Puppet Beast racing competitions. The winners receive very generous rewards."

Puppet Beast racing!

Luo Chen's eyes immediately gleamed at the words.

He had just felt the pangolin's running speed. It was almost no slower than a Mid Qi Refining Stage cultivator using the Wind Riding Art at full force.

And that was while he was still unfamiliar with controlling it.

If someone designed a puppet better suited for running, then once it got moving, would it not rival the physique of a demon beast?

But after the excitement came a touch of gloom.

Sect life was truly colorful and splendid. Unfortunately, he could not go.

"Judging by how quickly you got the hang of it just now, Fellow Daoist, as well as how fast you controlled the Pangolin Puppet Beast to run, your Spiritual Sense foundation far surpasses what my wife and I displayed back then."

"It is said that when Early Foundation Establishment Stage cultivators first send their Spiritual Sense out of their bodies, its usual range is around two li."

Murong Qinglian said admiringly, "If Fellow Daoist can advance to Foundation Establishment, your Spiritual Sense may reach four or five li the very first time it leaves your body."

I'm actually this damn impressive!

Luo Chen grinned, already having a vague idea of the reason.

Either it was a benefit that came with being a transmigrator.

Or perhaps it was because he had passed through a Heart Tribulation some time ago. Ever since then, he had felt much more clear-headed.

He could refine two furnaces of pills a day without feeling tired.

Luo Chen asked curiously, "You just said that the Fallen Cloud Sect has methods not only to test Spiritual Sense foundations, but also to train Spiritual Sense? How does one train it?"

"We do not know that." Murong Qinglian shook her head helplessly. "We only heard that the stronger someone's Spiritual Sense is, the more puppets they can control, and the more powerful those puppets can be. Perhaps methods for training Spiritual Sense are related to the number one can control!"

Qin Liangchen curled his lip. "Puppet Beasts are damn expensive. We bought several Tier 1 ones and planned to give them to you all as local specialties. But even just those few cost a huge pile of Spirit Stones."

"You two have gone to too much expense." Luo Chen reluctantly held out the pangolin.

"Hey, it is not like we are short one. Why be so polite?"

Qin Liangchen waved a large hand and pushed it back.

"Once my son becomes a Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator, I will have as many as I want."

Whenever he spoke of his son, Little Hu, there was always a hint of pride on the man's rugged, imposing face.

Murong Qinglian was the same, radiating the sacred glow of motherhood.

Lifting her skirt, she rose to her feet. "I should go clean up the house first. You two keep talking. I'll call you when dinner is ready."

Can I mooch another meal?

"That would not be very appropriate. I have braised pink porcupine thigh meat simmering in my pot," Luo Chen said bashfully.

Qin Liangchen burst into laughter. "Who would have thought you could cook, lad? Though I doubt it tastes all that good. Do not stand on ceremony with my wife. Bring over that braised pink porcupine you made, and we will eat it together."

"Then Little Luo will gladly accept."

Murong Qinglian went inside to get busy, while Qin Liangchen remained in the courtyard chatting with Luo Chen.

He was a broad-minded and talkative man, and his years of cultivation had already given him wide experience.

Now that he had made a trip away from home and visited the Fallen Cloud Sect, where the customs and local flavor were entirely different, he had even more to talk about.

Luo Chen happened to be someone with an intense thirst for knowledge, perfectly playing the role of an excellent listener.

One spoke while the other chimed in. They truly regretted not meeting sooner, harmonious as zither and lute.

"If Old Man Mi had not sent a letter urging us back, we would have toured Pot Cloud Mountain no matter what. Honestly, why hold some life-and-death battle? Are they so full they have nothing better to do?"

Qin Liangchen cursed as he explained why they had returned, and the Old Man Mi in his mouth was cursed so thoroughly that he was left dripping with blood from head to toe.

Anyone who did not know better might have thought he was some insignificant nobody.

But Luo Chen knew that Old Man Mi was a genuine Foundation Establishment Stage powerhouse, the current gang leader of the Mountain Shattering Gang.

He said in surprise, "Brother Qin, are you going to fight on behalf of the Mountain Shattering Gang?"

Qin Liangchen gave an unhappy snort. "Of course I have to help! Back when I could barely afford to eat, I relied on Old Man Mi giving me a job guarding a warehouse. I was only at the Qi Refining Second Layer then. Now that he is in trouble, I cannot possibly stand by and watch him die."

Luo Chen truly had not expected that it was one thing for his own big brother Wang Yuan to take part in the deathmatch.

Now Brother Qin, whom he had only just begun calling that, was going to participate as well.

What the hell was all this?

After thinking it over, he decided to offer a small warning.

"Brother Qin, I am afraid the Mountain Shattering Gang will have a hard time defeating the Great River Gang this time. The dangers involved require careful consideration."

Qin Liangchen glanced at Luo Chen and fell silent for a moment.

But soon, he waved it off indifferently.

"It is what it is. No matter how dangerous it is, it cannot compare to when I entered the mountains at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer to kill demon beasts. Old Man Mi explained this deathmatch to me clearly. Is it not just the Connecting Cloud Commerce Alliance pulling strings behind the scenes?"

"No need for more words. Just beat them to a pulp and be done with it."