Harvesting a Little Fan Girl

Early morning.

The cool wind carried moisture, sweeping up scattered leaves and spiraling them away as it saw off a group of people heading toward the Hunting Grounds.

Most of them wore the attire of Hundred Treasures Pavilion.

The man at the front was skinny as kindling, with a weathered face. A dark-red scar ran from the corner of his eye all the way to his chin. His temperament was like a hard, jagged stone, radiating an aura that kept strangers at arm's length.

This man had some renown in White Cloud Market Town. He was the famed enforcer of Hundred Treasures Pavilion in the Central District, a Tier 1 Peak Body Cultivator.

His name was Ma Tuan. Because he often handled dirty work for Hundred Treasures Pavilion—collecting debts and driving people out—he had offended many Rogue Cultivators, who also cursed him as Mad Dog.

Mad Dog leading a team out was already enough to draw attention. Yet the female cultivator walking shoulder to shoulder with him sparked even more hushed discussion among the Rogue Cultivators.

She wore a plain white Dharma Robe and had her hair gathered in a simple Daoist bun, with no other adornments on her body. Yet even so, with bright eyes, white teeth, and brows like a new moon, her clean, delicate air was like a lotus rising from the water. Even the flamboyantly dressed courtesans of Red Sleeve Pavilion could not compare to her.

Of course, perhaps Ma Tuan beside her was simply so ugly and fierce that he made her seem even lovelier than usual.

Qing He's reputation in White Cloud Market Town was even greater than Ma Tuan's.

It was not entirely because of her looks and temperament, but rather her skill in Daoist arts.

Over the past decade or so, nearly every large shipment traveling between Hundred Treasures Pavilion and the surrounding markets and Immortal Cities had been escorted under her leadership. Rumor had it that she was only a hair's breadth away from Foundation Establishment.

She could cast Yellow Grade Daoist Arts with a flick of her hand and had mastered several Profound Grade Daoist Arts. In more than ten years, not a single caravan under her escort had run into trouble. Her capabilities were obvious.

Ma Tuan and Qing He, along with more than twenty skilled fighters—what was Hundred Treasures Pavilion sending such a group out to do?

The Rogue Cultivators whispered among themselves, reluctantly dragging their gazes from Qing He's slender waist toward the group of people in the middle of the convoy.

Though these people were unfamiliar, after comparing notes with one another, the Rogue Cultivators were able to identify them.

The elderly man in a gold-threaded Dharma Robe, his face furrowed with deep lines, was Liang Hai Shun, one of White Cloud Market Town's most renowned Formation Masters.

He only knew how to set up Defensive Formations, but one fresh trick was enough to travel the world. Even Cloud Mountain Disciples treated him with considerable respect.

The Artifact Refiner in a green Dharma Robe, sitting on a flying Magic Artifact with lowered eyes as though dozing, was He Lian Xian.

It was said that he had once been a guest elder of Fate Comes Pavilion, but after ruining a batch of high-grade materials while refining, he had been saddled with enormous debts. From then on, he and Fate Comes Pavilion had looked upon each other with mutual disgust.

He now had a small shop in the Central District. Everyone who used the Magic Artifacts he refined said they were good; everyone who bought them said they were expensive. Even Rogue Cultivators who had never dealt with him would always pass by his shop when visiting the Central District.

The petite female cultivator—though one would have to lie through one's teeth to say she was even four feet tall—was the Spirit Healer Guo Qiao Lian.

Spirit healing ran in her family. Her ancestors had been Spirit Healers for generations, and she had inherited a deep family tradition, along with a quick and clever mind of her own.

Despite her young age, her medical skills were already extraordinarily refined. Countless people had survived at her hands, and Rogue Cultivators held her in high regard. Even those vicious Robber Cultivators would not touch a hair on her head when they encountered her traveling to treat patients, and would even secretly escort her.

Besides these few, there were dozens of other cultivators, old and young, men and women alike.

Without exception, they were all Rogue Cultivators in White Cloud Market Town who had achieved something in the Hundred Arts of Cultivation.

Among them, Su Qing, riding an Iron-Footed Horse, could not be considered famous. His experience was too shallow, and he had made his name too recently. Only when a few Rogue Cultivators mentioned Self-Detonating Puppets did the others nod in realization.

Yet the reason the Rogue Cultivators were interested in Su Qing, who wore a Dust-Repelling Dharma Robe, was that he stood out far too much within this group.

Two Armored War Bears, each three zhang tall, loomed over the procession. Their black iron hides glinted with a cold sheen, and their red eyes looked down upon the passing Rogue Cultivators, making for a truly intimidating sight.

The two bears marched one before and one behind. Compared with the one at the rear, the bear in front looked as though it had starved through an entire winter, somewhat thinner. Yet the Golden Treasure Dog perched on its shoulder had bright, lively eyes and seemed especially spirited and extraordinary.

Besides the two bears and one dog, twelve Lizard Warriors surrounded Su Qing's Iron-Footed Horse. With such a formation, Hundred Treasures Pavilion's escort team almost seemed superfluous. Ordinary Robber Cultivators could be handled by this Puppet Master's puppets alone.

To control so many puppets, this Puppet Master had to be at least at Peak Qi Refining.

That made sense. Only a Rogue Cultivator with such abilities could make a kindhearted, dainty beauty like Guo Qiao Lian chase after him to talk.

Ah, their hearts hurt!

That damned Puppet Master! It was bad enough that he earned their Spirit Crystals—he even hooked up with young girls.

Seeing Guo Qiao Lian riding a White Tooth Elephant alongside Su Qing, leaning over to speak with him from time to time, many Rogue Cultivators who witnessed this scene wanted nothing more than to drag Su Qing off his horse and take his place when they saw his ugly face, so calm and unruffled as though he could hardly bear the disturbance.

What the hell? Little Sister Qiao Lian spoke to you so gently, and you were still putting on airs?

Su Qing swore that he was not putting on airs at all.

He really was a little annoyed by the girl beside him.

The White Tooth Elephant's back was so large and spacious. Couldn't she just lie down there properly? Why did she keep coming over to him for no reason?

Though he was somewhat overwhelmed by the girl's enthusiasm, she was a Spirit Healer. He might need her help one day, so Su Qing could not exactly embarrass her.

"Please, just tell me—how did you make a cultivator with a severed leg establish a Mana Circulation again?"

Guo Qiao Lian's shining eyes brimmed with a thirst for unknown knowledge.

Ever since she had learned from Shopkeeper Liu that the Spirit Lotus Legs refined by Su Qing could allow cultivators with severed legs to experience spring returning to withered wood, she had been endlessly curious about this craft.

She had treated Rogue Cultivators with severed legs before, but at most she could use Spirit Needles and Spirit Thread to stitch their wounds. Perhaps she could prevent them from falling in cultivation due to the lost limb, but allowing them to continue cultivating was beyond her ability.

Not just her—even her Daddy, her Grandfather, her grandfather's daddy and grandfather, none of them could do it.

All along the way, she had stubbornly pursued Su Qing with questions, determined to find out how he had accomplished it.

"You can't do it. It's not an ability from the same system. There's no use being curious."

Just as before, Su Qing shook his head and explained.

Refining Spirit Lotus Legs required mastery of Tier 2 Medical Runes and Tier 2 Biomimetic Runes. Guo Qiao Lian might know Medical Runes, but Tier 2 Biomimetic Runes lay beyond the scope of her knowledge.

What was more, refining puppets required a vast amount of puppet knowledge, as well as the even more crucial assistance of the Spider Doctor, which only Su Qing possessed.

Forget Guo Qiao Lian—any Tier 1 Puppet Master would be incapable of refining Spirit Lotus Legs.

But his answer clearly could not satisfy Guo Qiao Lian.

The girl had a round little face, red lips, and white teeth. She looked like a pure and lovely young beauty, but her personality was stubborn as a mule.

"Of course I know I can't refine Spirit Lotus Legs! But the Hundred Arts of Cultivation all lead to the same destination by different paths. Just tell me the principle behind how Spirit Lotus Legs achieve Mana Circulation!"

Guo Qiao Lian chattered on and on. Seeing that he could not dismiss her without revealing something useful, Su Qing reluctantly said,

"Putting puppet techniques aside, if one wishes to repair a cultivator's damaged body and allow them to cultivate normally as before,

the first thing is mastery of Medical Runes. When a cultivator's body is damaged and blood flows without stopping, that is relatively easy to handle.

But when mana from the sea of consciousness escapes through the breach, that is the true headache. Without Medical Runes or corresponding means to temporarily seal the leak, nothing else can even be discussed."

Seeing that this stingy Puppet Master was finally willing to speak, Guo Qiao Lian's eyes lit up. Her little head bobbed without pause.

"Correct, that leak is exactly what we Spirit Healers deal with. Medical Runes are not necessarily required either. With the Cross Stitch Method, supplemented by Beast Meat Thread, we can accomplish that as well..."

Su Qing shot her a glance, and the meaning in his eyes could not have been clearer.

Guo Qiao Lian's little face reddened. She gave a sheepish laugh. "Go on, go on. I won't interrupt."

"I don't care how you Spirit Healers accomplish it. When we Puppet Masters encounter this sort of situation, we can only use Medical Runes. The runes have their own solutions.

"And that is only the first step. Next, we need to master Tier 2 Biomimetic Runes. Once one has mastered this rune, one can perfectly simulate a cultivator's bodily conditions and make them a new leg."

"Biomimetic Runes? Perfect simulation? How is that possible?" Guo Qiao Lian interrupted again.

Her little mouth kept chattering. "I can understand making the surface of a puppet Prosthetic Limb look just like a real leg. But the joints in both legs, countless nerves, all sorts of meridians, and blood vessels—how could those possibly be replicated?"

Hearing this, Su Qing spoke with a faint touch of arrogance.

"You can't, but I can. Forget legs—even if someone's Male Root were severed, I could replace it for him!"

"You can attach that too? Tell me in detail, I want to hear..." Guo Qiao Lian's eyes shone even brighter.

Having never exchanged professional knowledge with other Professionals before, Su Qing also found himself growing somewhat interested in the discussion.

He and Guo Qiao Lian kept talking until the group left the Living Area, only then stopping reluctantly. Mainly because the girl's White Tooth Elephant was hungry, and she had to feed it.

"Today really opened my eyes. Fellow Daoist Su, you're a good person. If anything happens to you in the future, come find me. Don't worry—as long as you still have one breath left, I can save you!"

As she spoke to Su Qing, the girl pulled all manner of spirit food from her Storage Bag, letting the White Tooth Elephant curl it up with its trunk and stuff it into its mouth.

"Uh, though I hope that day never comes, I'll thank you first all the same."

Su Qing cupped his hands with a smile, glancing at the White Tooth Elephant. When he had first seen it, he had felt somewhat envious.

It was enormous. Guo Qiao Lian had even built a small house on its back. It moved exceptionally smoothly, had a gentle temperament, and if anything truly happened, it possessed Not Bad combat strength.

It looked far more formidable than his own Spirit Dog. It was one thing that the stupid dog refused to let him ride it, but it even liked riding the Armored War Bears. From the looks of it, it probably treated all these puppets as its underlings.

But while he had envied the White Tooth Elephant before, he no longer did. Such a huge spirit beast had eaten spirit food for ages under Guo Qiao Lian's feeding and still showed no sign of being full. The cost of feeding it was truly staggering. With those Spirit Crystals, he could have raised two more Armored War Bears.

Just as he was secretly rejoicing that puppets were easier to raise than spirit beasts, another Rogue Cultivator moved close beside him.