Initial Victory

The fastest update to Seeking the Dao in the Mortal World!

Qin Yi glanced at Ju Yunxiu on the stage.

Ju Yunxiu closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep, completely ignoring him.

Qin Yi was both amused and exasperated. His Senior Sister didn't want him to participate, but he insisted on coming anyway. Senior Sister had taken it to heart and was throwing a little tantrum.

However, Ju Yunxiu wasn't completely indifferent; she gave him several paintings in advance as backup...

I just don't know if we can use a pre-drawn painting... Judging from how Xi Xiangzi was able to use a pre-refined elixir, it shouldn't be a big problem... The craftsmen probably wouldn't make it on the spot; they would bring something already prepared.

After all, even if you are given a Law Treasure, it is still uncertain whether you can bring it to fruition; it depends on your own understanding of the system.

Just go ahead.

Qin Yi stood up and stepped onto the center of the arena.

Ju Yunxiu opened her eyes.

Qing Cha took two camellia flowers and called out from the stands, "Uncle-Master is the best..."

Before he could finish speaking, Ju Yunxiu glared at him, and he pitifully sat back down. Ju Yunxiu was furious; all his fellow disciples were watching, and he had made a fool of himself.

Qin Yi's appearance, however, was not embarrassing at all; in fact, it was quite impressive. Clad in a blue robe and white sash, his garments fluttering, a jade flute in hand, he exuded an elegant and refined air. It perfectly suited her image as Zither, Chess, Calligraphy, Painting Sect, and it perfectly aligned with her aesthetic sensibilities.

The incongruous image of the Wolf Tooth Club flashed through his mind, then he quickly tossed it aside. He'd never seen his junior brother use Wolf Tooth Club in a fight; it must have been a ceremonial weapon he played with...

In the center of the arena, the middle-aged craftsman bowed and said, "I am Gongshu Lu, greetings to Junior Brother Qin."

"A good name!" Qin Yi praised, "You should learn the way of craftsmanship."

Gongshu Lu was puzzled and shook his head, saying, "In terms of name, of course, none is as suitable for your sect as Junior Brother Qin."

Qin Yi laughed and said, "What does Senior Brother Gongshu intend to compete with me in? Who can defeat me Painting Souls or the puppet he creates?"

"There's no need to compare them. Calligraphy and painting emphasize spirit and soul, while our puppets emphasize strength. Each has its own strengths. Victory or defeat can only prove one's own cultivation, not one's understanding of the Dao," Gongshu Lu said. "After all, this is Dao Discussion Assembly, not a martial arts contest."

Qin Yi curiously, "Then what will we be competing in?"

Gongshu Lu said, "We will discuss practicality."

Qin Yi became increasingly interested. "How do you define practicality?"

Gongshu Lu pointed to the distant mountains. "That's our Ten Thousand Dao Immortal Palace's own White Crystal Profound Copper Mine. Currently, our puppets are mining and transporting it, which greatly benefits the Immortal Palace. But Calligraphy and Painting Dao, Junior Brother, ever been of any help to the Immortal Palace?"

Qin Yi was stunned for a moment, then almost laughed.

He suspected that Gongshu Lu had long wanted to compete with Ju Yunxiu on this issue, but the difference in their status and cultivation levels was far too great, and Ju Yunxiu completely ignored him, so he was probably itching to explode. It was quite a feat for this man to so eagerly ask Qin Yi this rare opportunity for "discussion."

He thought for a moment, then chuckled, "We can draw a whole bunch of strongmen to mine anytime, while it takes Senior Brother a long time to make even one puppet, and the materials aren't something you can just find anywhere, are they?"

Gongshu Lu shook his head and said, "For Painting Souls to reach the point where it can mine in a physical form, it would need at least the cultivation of Senior Sister Ju, and it might not even be able to remain outside the painting for long, so it's not practical."

Qin Yi asked, "Senior Brother hasn't answered the second half of my question yet. How long would it take Senior Brother to make one of these mining golems that can act on its own? How many materials would it require? What kind of cultivation is required?"

"The materials used for mining alone don't need to be anything fancy; ordinary iron will suffice. The crafting process isn't difficult either; even a disciple of Fengchu can do it," Gongshu Lu honestly stated. "However, it does take a very long time. Each part of the limb needs to be meticulously polished, which is already quite time-consuming... It would take an ordinary disciple about half a year to complete this. This is our first lesson in the training."

Qin Yi tilted his head and stared at him for a long time, then said with a strange expression, "A disciple independently completed a puppet? He painstakingly refined it himself?"

"Yeah, what else can we do?"

"You've developed for five thousand years, don't you have any concept of modularization or assembly lines?"

"Of course we have molds, but we deliberately maintain the hand-polishing method just to train our disciples' skills." Gongshu Lu frowned and said, "I've never heard of an assembly line before. What is that?"

"Some people specialize in making the feet, some specialize in making the hands, and some specialize in assembly..."

Before Qin Yi could finish speaking, a "Huh?" came from the "chairman's platform," and the dirty craftsman suddenly looked up, his eyes flashing with a glint of light.

Gongshu Lu stood there, muttering to himself. Whispers began to circulate among the artisans' spectators, clearly deeply moved.

They are all professionals, and Qin Yi doesn't need to explain things in great detail. They can understand the intricacies of this as soon as they hear it. It will likely improve the efficiency of their craftsmanship by more than just a little bit, and can be widely applied to various levels.

It's not that they couldn't develop to this point in thousands of years, it's just that the way of thinking in the Immortal Dao is somewhat different.

Because the Immortal Dao immortality emphasizes individual cultivation, the ultimate goal is to gather great power into one's own body. There is very little emphasis on division of labor and cooperation. If there is professional cooperation when going on an adventure, it is already good enough. How could one think about the problem of assembly line operation?

Qin Yi had only just begun, yet it was like a sudden awakening that reminded them of so many things. The craftsmen were probably thinking of even more things than Qin Yi could have imagined, even thinking about many years into the future.

Actually, Qin Yi's initial intention in mentioning these things was to tell them that if you want to make molds, you first need to draw...

But his mouth moved too fast and it all went crooked... Qin Yi was a little dumbfounded. It was so crooked that it had nothing to do with the comparison between the Calligraphy and Painting Dao and painting and the way of craftsmanship. How could it be counted?

As expected, Gongshu Lu realized what was happening and reluctantly said, "Junior Brother Qin's words are very meaningful to us, and we should accept this favor. However, what does this have to do with the Calligraphy and Painting Dao?"

Qin Yi, sticking out his neck, said, "This was something I came up with from reading books, how can it be unrelated? Craftsmen should also read more books and strive to improve their skills..."

Ju Yunxiu smiled. This was a perfect answer; thank goodness her junior brother was so clever.

The craftsman on the platform suddenly spoke up, "We have lost this round. After studying these ingenious techniques for thousands of years, we still need someone skilled in music Zither, Chess, Calligraphy, Painting, and painting to enlighten us. What face do we have left to compete with others? We not only concede defeat, but also sincerely invite Junior Nephew Qin to become a guest elder of our sect. We also hope that Junior Nephew Ju will release the person."

Ju Yunxiu was secretly overjoyed, but she tried her best to maintain an elegant image and smiled slightly, "Martial Uncle Mo, you flatter me. Being a guest advisor is not a problem, just don't poach people."

The craftsman nodded and said nothing more. Gongshu Lu also readily clasped his hands in a salute, then turned and stepped down from the stage.

Qin Yi breathed a sigh of relief, wiped away non-existent sweat, and turned to look at Ju Yunxiu.

Don't say she's detached from worldly affairs or doesn't care about this "discussion on the Dao." In fact, one of her intentions in inviting him to the sect was clearly for this competition. After all, as the head of a sect, she's lost face by not participating in the palace competition for so many years, hasn't she? She's naturally happy that Qin Yi can really bring her honor.

Ju Yunxiu looked at him with a smile. The two stared at each other for a while, then turned their heads away at the same time.

As Qin Yi turned his head, he suddenly noticed out of the corner of his eye that Heavenly Mystery Child, who was sitting next to Ju Yunxiu, turned his head to look at Ju Yunxiu and frowned.

Qin Yi was puzzled. He had thought that Zheng Yunyi had feelings for Senior Sister Ju, but it seemed that his master might have feelings for her.

Heavenly Mystery Child should be a generation higher than Senior Sister Ju, right? What kind of old cow is this, eating young grass?

"Junior Brother Qin." Xi Xiangzi's familiar voice suddenly rang in Qin Yi's ears, interrupting his thoughts.

Qin Yi turned his head and saw Xi Xiangzi smiling and bowing to him from the sidelines, "Shall we have another match?"

Qin Yi glanced at him subconsciously, wondering if he had an itchy rash.

As if sensing where his gaze was directed, Xi Xiangzi shrank back somewhat embarrassed and annoyed, then said, "It is said that the art of the zither has Bewitching Melody and Mind-Soothing Melody; my Dao of Alchemy also has such effects. Why don't we have a competition?"

"Okay." Qin Yi yawned. "But I'm tired today, so let others compete first. We'll talk about it tomorrow."

Without waiting for Xi Xiangzi's reply, he left the stage and ran off to tease Qing Cha.

Xi Xiangzi was so angry he almost vomited blood. You just exchanged a few words with Gongshu Lu, what's so tiring about that?

However, the people of the Immortal Palace have always been full of all sorts of oddballs, and there are plenty of people who go out to drink more than half of them. He couldn't force them, so he could only say, "Then it's a deal. Junior Brother Qin, don't go back on your word."

"I know, I know. With so many sect leaders watching, how could I possibly blame you?" Qin Yi waved his hand impatiently, but what he was really thinking about was that he had to go back tonight and refine a soul-protecting pill to take first.

Do you really think I'm only good at playing Zither, Chess, Calligraphy, Painting? Dao of Alchemy is my real specialty!