Flesh Puppet

In the Great Qin Imperial Palace, Ying Wushuang sat under the lamp, gazing at the candlestick before her, her eyes unfocused, her mind wandering far away...

In his mind, he recalled the first time he met Zhuge Xiang, when they met because of the Phoenix Egg. At that time, Zhuge Xiang was quite strong, but he was still a little weaker than him.

But today, after the great battle within the Imperial Palace, I believe there is no one in the entire Great Qin Empire who doesn't know Zhuge Xiang. With his strength, he can even kill a powerful Corpse King. In contrast, I haven't even entered the Void Returning Stage.

"Could it be? Is it really because my talent or effort is insufficient?" Ying Wushuang murmured to herself, thinking about Zhuge Xiang's astonishing growth over the years and her own cultivation level.

The feeling of being outmatched in strength back then, yet now being completely forgotten, was incredibly frustrating, especially since Ying Wushuang was inherently competitive.

After the war ended, her father spoke with her personally, mentioning Zhuge Xiang times and discussing the relationship between them. Although he didn't say it explicitly, Ying Wushuang could tell that her father strongly approved of her marriage to Zhuge Xiang.

From the Imperial Clan's perspective, even if there were no rumors of an ambiguous relationship between her and Zhuge Xiang, as a princess, it was absolutely reasonable for her to help the Imperial Clan and win over a Cultivator like Zhuge Xiang, whose future achievements were limitless.

"What? Seeing how powerful and Divine Might I am today, do you feel ashamed?" Just then, the door to Ying Wushuang's Bedchamber was rudely pushed open, and a male voice rang out. The person who walked in was none other than Zhuge Xiang. He had obviously heard Ying Wushuang's mutterings.

"You bastard! Don't you know how to knock before entering? Have you no manners?" Suddenly confronted by Zhuge Xiang's intrusion into her Bedchamber, Ying Wushuang gritted her teeth and scolded him in a delicate voice. After all, she was a virgin, how could he so rudely barge into her Bedchamber?

"Politeness? What is that? When I, Zhuge Xiang, was Beggar in my youth, I couldn't even get enough to eat, so how could I have any regard for politeness? As for later joining the Asura Sect, do you think a demonic Sect like the Asura Sect would specifically teach you politeness?" Zhuge Xiang said nonchalantly as he sat down in front of Ying Wushuang.

"That doesn't mean you can just walk into my Bedchamber without knocking!" Ying Wushuang said through gritted teeth, annoyed that Zhuge Xiang acted so politely. Rumors of an ambiguous relationship with this guy were already circulating. Wasn't his behavior just making things worse?

"Alright, alright. I'll go knock on the door," Zhuge Xiang said helplessly, shaking his head at Ying Wushuang's expression.

He got up, walked to the entrance of the Bedchamber, closed the door, and then knocked on it, asking formally, "Is Your Ying Wushuang here? My name is Zhuge Xiang, and I have something to ask you."

"Not here, please leave," but no sooner had Zhuge Xiang finished speaking than Ying Wushuang's sullen reply came from inside the Bedchamber.

"Well, as expected, politeness is useless in this world." Upon hearing Ying Wushuang's reply, Zhuge Xiang once again rudely pushed open Ying Wushuang's door and walked in. Zhuge Xiang shook his head inwardly at his foolish behavior just now.

How could he tolerate such a woman? Even though he was uneducated, Zhuge Xiang had heard the famous saying that "women and petty men are the most difficult to deal with."

"Hey, just say what you have to say," Ying Wushuang glared at Zhuge Xiang as he rudely walked in again, but knowing she couldn't get rid of him, she got straight to the point.

"I'm not here for anything important, just to ask if His Highness the Sixth Prince has mentioned when we'll be exploring the Twelve Golden Figures Ancient Cave? I'm really looking forward to it," Zhuge Xiang said with a smile, sitting across from Ying Wushuang gazing at her beautiful face.

"I didn't say anything. The invasion of the Hungry Ghost Path just happened. I'm not in the mood to talk about this. Alright, I've answered you. Go back and rest now. I'll let you know when I have a plan," Ying Wushuang replied decisively to Zhuge Xiang, then rudely kicked him out of the Bedchamber.

After being unceremoniously kicked out by Ying Wushuang, Zhuge Xiang smiled but did not get angry.

After returning to the room Ying Wushuang had arranged for him in the Imperial Palace, Zhuge Xiang sat cross-legged on the bed, opened his Bag Space, and a semi-illusory inventory interface floated in front of Zhuge Xiang. Inside the inventory, there was a small, golden box.

Advanced Skill Treasure Chest (Special Consumable): Upon opening, you will randomly receive any advanced Skill Book.

This Advanced Skill Treasure Chest was a reward from the quest Zhuge Xiang received for closing the gate to the Gate of the Hungry Ghost Path. In the heat of battle, Zhuge Xiang hadn't had time to check it. Reaching out, he took out the golden Advanced Skill Treasure Chest and slowly opened it...

A blinding golden light flashed, and the box vanished into thin air, leaving only a Skill Book in Zhuge Xiang's hand, on which were written four large characters in ancient seal script: Flesh Puppet!

Flesh Puppet (Special Skill): Requires cultivation level of Returning to the Void Returning Stage. Can create Flesh Puppet from any target killed by the caster. The target has the Memory, knowledge, Skill, and even its own consciousness from its previous life, but is controlled by the caster. The number of Puppet that can be controlled is proportional to the Skill level.

Looking at the Skill Book for the Flesh Puppet, Zhuge Xiang was slightly taken aback. This Skill was truly terrifying. Although it wasn't a Skill Book that could directly increase combat power, it was extremely convenient and even impossible to defend against in many situations, just like the Emperor of the Great Tang Dynasty, who was essentially made into Flesh Puppet by someone else.

Without hesitation, Zhuge Xiang invested a Skill Point, and the art of Flesh Puppet was officially mastered. At this initial stage, he could only create one Flesh Puppet of the target he had killed. Then, with each additional Skill Point invested, he could create one more puppet, up to a maximum of four Flesh Puppet.

"This Skill is quite good. If I have the chance to assassinate a target, I'll have a useful pawn," Zhuge Xiang thought to himself with a smirk, having only invested one Skill Point so far, as he looked at the information on the Flesh Puppet.

Who should he find to create Flesh Puppet? Someone who could be effective, and also someone he could kill? After pondering for a moment, Zhuge Xiang, a smile on his face, went straight out...

"Excuse me, is His Highness the Seventh Prince Ying Yan, here? Tell him that Zhuge Xiang has something to discuss with me," Zhuge Xiang said to the guards at the entrance of the Seventh Prince Ying Yan's Palace. (To be continued...)