Fourth Layer of the Embryonic Breath Realm

"The most important formations in a puppet are the Spiritual Pivot Formation and the Spirit-Control Talisman Formation."

"The former gathers and stores spiritual energy from heaven and earth, much like a Spirit-Gathering Formation. Spirit Stones can also be placed at the appropriate nodes, allowing their spiritual energy to power the puppet."

"The latter is the formation that controls the puppet."

Lu Qingfeng pondered.

Puppets came in all sizes. Covering an entire puppet with Internal Breath, True Qi, or True Essence to control it was impractical. Even controlling each formation on its body would exhaust a cultivator.

That was why someone had developed a special magical artifact called the Thousand Mechanisms Stone. Talismans were entered into the stone as "code," and the stone was then linked to the formations on the puppet. A cultivator who held the stone could control the puppet with ease.

That was how Mu Yuanyi controlled his giant puppet. Otherwise, even as a Foundation Establishment Grand Cultivator, he could never have commanded a giant puppet seven or eight zhang tall!

Lu Qingfeng, however, wanted to strengthen, upgrade, or combine the control formations within the Thousand Mechanisms Stone. Whatever it took, he wanted the puppet to be controllable from a distance, or even capable of acting on its own according to set instructions.

It was not impossible!

At the very least, both the Hundred Crafts Sect and the Spirit Mechanisms Institute had methods for operating puppets without a cultivator inside them.

But those methods were reserved for core True Disciples. Even Mu Yuanyi was not qualified to obtain them.

Rumor had it that only the Spirit Mechanisms Institute's exceedingly mysterious director knew how to refine such puppets. No one knew how many lay hidden on Emerald Screen Mountain, and no demon dared invade!

Only with such power could the institute command the mountains for three hundred li around!

In the alchemy room.

Lu Qingfeng closed Analysis of Puppet Mechanism Arts Fundamentals.

He had long since learned the principles of puppet Mechanism Arts inside and out. He had also successfully refined the Scarlet Flame Alchemy Cauldron. Next, he would begin trying to refine a puppet.

By his reckoning, the apothecary in the real world was about to close. Lu Qingfeng logged out there in the alchemy room and vanished.

"Big brother, a clerk from Linchuan Apothecary on West Street brought a letter today. He said their owner invited you to a gathering at Four Seasons Tower tonight."

Lu Qingfeng had just woken when he saw Lu Qingshan standing before him with a letter.

Two months had passed since Lu Qingfeng and his siblings had settled in Miaoyin City.

During those two months,

Black Sand Apothecary, which Lu Qingfeng had taken over, had done a booming trade.

Miaoyin City already had plenty of martial artists, and the Azure Jade Sect was fighting on two fronts against the War God Society and the Return to Truth Sect. The Essence-Nourishing Pills and Clear Spirit Powder Lu Qingfeng refined remained remarkably effective even after dilution, earning him a fortune.

Once his reincarnation progress in Primordial World was complete, Lu Qingfeng simply hired a manager and two clerks to run the apothecary. He, Lu Qingshan, and Lu Qingyu devoted themselves to cultivation.

With no shortage of pills, all three siblings had made great strides in those two months.

Lu Qingyu had consolidated her cultivation at the First Layer of the Embryonic Breath Realm and could break through to the second layer at any time.

Lu Qingshan had broken through only a few days ago, advancing to the third layer.

As for Lu Qingfeng, he had surged ahead without a hitch and had already reached the Fourth Layer of the Embryonic Breath Realm!

Name: Lu Qingfeng (true body)

Race: Human

Affiliation: None

Title: None

Cultivation: Fourth Layer of the Embryonic Breath Realm

Level: 8 (35/40)

Internal Breath: 310/310 (quality: Orthodox Grade)

Lifespan: 16/68

Root Bone: 1

Merit: Unknown

Karmic Power: Unknown

Cultivation methods: Yellow Court Scripture, First Layer (complete), traits: Evolving Method (first layer); Dominion over All Arts (first layer); Karmic Power Erasure (first layer); Azure Origin Sword Art, ninth layer (complete), can be deduced further

Techniques: Fire Bolt Technique (second layer), Heaven's Eye Technique (second layer), Smoke-Wisp Step (second layer), Heartburning Palm (second layer), White Jade True Formula (second layer), Cloak Saber Technique (second layer), True Yang Finger Technique (second layer), Wind-Riding Art (second layer), Golden Light Technique (second layer), Entangling Technique (second layer), Concealment Technique (second layer), Qi-Concealing Technique (second layer), Object-Control Technique (second layer), Voice-Transmission Technique (second layer), Water-Control Art (second layer), Freezing Technique (second layer)

Divine Abilities: None

Equipment: Wolfe-hair Talisman Brush, assorted talismans

Alchemy: Elementary Guide to Alchemy; Alchemy Analysis; Complete Guide to Basic Medicinal Materials... Pills and medicines that can be refined: Grain-Repelling Pill, Yellow Dragon Pill, Clear Spirit Powder, Breath-Restoring Pill, Essence-Nourishing Pill, Entangling Fragrance Pellet, Yellow Chestnut Pellet, Heart-Corroding Pellet, Breath-Nurturing Pill, Essence-Qi Pellet, Golden Marrow Pill, Qi-Circulating Powder, Qi-Harmonizing Pill

Talisman crafting: Detailed Guide to Six Common Cinnabar Preparations, Fundamentals of Talisman Paper, *Complete Compendium of Low-Level Talismans*... Talismans that can be drawn: Peace Talisman, Invisibility Talisman, Earth-Burrowing Talisman, Fire Bolt Talisman, Spring-Rejuvenation Talisman, Golden Light Talisman, Form-Evasion Talisman

Artifact refining: Fundamentals of Artifact Refining, *Detailed Guide to Refining a Spirit-Channeling Talisman Brush*, Scarlet Flame Alchemy Cauldron, Analysis of Puppet Mechanism Arts Fundamentals... Talisman Artifacts that can be refined: Wolfe-hair Talisman Brush, Scarlet Flame Alchemy Cauldron

Beast taming: Skylarks (*9)

Reaching the Fourth Layer of the Embryonic Breath Realm through the Orthodox-Grade Cultivation Method Azure Origin Sword Art was worlds apart from reaching it through the Beginner Cultivation Method Blazing Sun Scripture!

Both the quantity and quality of Internal Breath differed enormously!

When Lu Qingfeng had cultivated the Blazing Sun Scripture, he had possessed only thirty or forty points of Internal Breath at the fourth layer. Now that he cultivated the Azure Origin Sword Art, he had over three hundred!

Nearly ten times as much!

Even cultivating the Blazing Sun Scripture to the Ninth Layer of the Embryonic Breath Realm might not yield such abundant Internal Breath.

Nor could the quality of the two be compared.

One method was Orthodox Grade, while the other was merely beginner level, three major grades below it.

With his abundant Internal Breath and his arsenal of spells and martial techniques, Lu Qingfeng was no longer the boy who could be slaughtered at will in Blackwood Village. Even if an expert of the True Qi Realm came to kill him now, he was confident he could hold his own.

If that expert had only just entered the True Qi Realm, Lu Qingfeng was even confident he could win and kill him.

Of course, that applied only to True Qi Realm cultivators who practiced Beginner or Exquisite-Grade Cultivation Methods. Against someone cultivating an Unorthodox-Grade method, let alone an Orthodox-Grade one, Lu Qingfeng would still run as far as he could.

But Guangyuan Prefecture was a backwater in the cultivation world. Lu Qingfeng had seen the Return to Truth Sect's Guizhen Technique. Though slightly more advanced than the Blazing Sun Scripture, it was still a Beginner Cultivation Method.

If even the Return to Truth Sect treated a Beginner Cultivation Method as its supreme sect technique, it was easy to imagine the caliber of methods practiced by Guangyuan Prefecture's many martial artists and hidden cultivators.

Lu Qingfeng glanced at his Attribute Panel. Reassured, he took the envelope from Lu Qingshan.

The letter merely said that its sender had long admired Lu Qingfeng's reputation and had arranged a banquet so they could meet. The owners of two other apothecaries and three shops in Miaoyin South City would also attend.

It was signed Kang Zizai, presumably the owner of Linchuan Apothecary on West Street.

"Why would the owner of Linchuan Apothecary invite me to a banquet?"

"Could Black Sand Apothecary be cutting into their profits?"

Lu Qingfeng folded the letter, puzzled.

By rights, Miaoyin City was such a large market that little Black Sand Apothecary could barely make a ripple. It was impossible for it to have seriously cut into the other businesses' profits.

That left only two possibilities.

First, Kang Zizai coveted Black Sand Apothecary's secret recipes and intended to seize them by force.

That was the worst-case interpretation.

Second, as the letter said, Kang Zizai genuinely wanted to meet Lu Qingfeng and make a friend.

That was the charitable interpretation.

"That Kang fellow is definitely up to no good!"

"Big brother, don't go!"

Seeing that his brother had yet to speak, Lu Qingshan blurted out his objections.

After all the dangers he had faced in Blackwood Village and the Return to Truth Sect, he had little trust in people. Kang Zizai's unsolicited, sudden invitation did seem suspicious.

Lu Qingshan feared a trap.

"Four Seasons Tower is in the busiest part of Miaoyin City. Even if he has bad intentions, he wouldn't dare make a move there, or anywhere else in the city."

Lu Qingfeng shook his head. "I'll go see what he wants. We can decide what to do after that."