It Died

"Roll around! Roll around!"

"Jump! A big jump!"

"Oh dear, how clumsy! You fell down again!"

The child, holding Xiao Mu, directed his Little Figure to perform various actions like a commander. Feng Xue watched from the side and spoke up:

"This is because the wooden dummy you made was too rough. The range of motion of the joints is limited, so any movement outside that range will be very stiff."

Upon hearing Feng Xue's words, the child's face immediately fell, and he looked at Feng Xue and said:

"How can we increase the range of motion of the joints...? And also, how can we make it look like your Little Figure?"

The child thought his Little Figure was quite fun, but compared to the flying, transforming, and merging Little Figure in Feng Xue's hand, it was really far inferior.

Hearing him say this, Feng Xue smiled and said:

"This is no simple matter. It took you so long to learn the basics of body modeling; it will probably take you quite some time to master it!"

"It's okay! I don't have anything else to do anyway!"

The child said nonchalantly, but Feng Xue looked up at the sun and said:

"It's getting late, you should go back."

"I..." The child wanted to say that he didn't want to go back, but when he remembered that he had secretly run away before, been caught and put in solitary confinement, he couldn't say it. He could only hold his Little Figure up with some unhappiness.

But just as he was about to turn around, Feng Xue's voice came from behind him—

"I'll be staying in Chentang Pass for the next few days. If you have time, you can come and learn from me. Of course, how much you learn before I leave depends on yourself!"

"Yes!" Upon hearing this, the child immediately nodded vigorously, a childlike innocent smile appearing on his face, as if the beating, pressure point manipulation, and reprimand he had received were all just illusions.

Feng Xue wasn't surprised by this situation. She reached out and, in a few steps, returned to the place where she had seen the child before. The child looked at the outer wall of his house, about to leave, but then turned back and said:

"Hey, what's your name?"

Upon hearing this, Feng Xue casually replied, "My name is Mo Ju, but others call me Xuan Jun. What about you?"

"My name is Nezha. See you here tomorrow!"

"OK!"

As Feng Xue watched Nezha use his thin, two- Hunyuan Silk to push open a passage in the barrier, a slight smile appeared on her lips. She turned around, found a sky bridge, spread out a small blanket, took out her Erhu, and began to play.

Wow! You know what, it's actually quite profitable!

After scaling the courtyard wall, Nezha carefully looked around to make sure no servants were nearby. Then, he hung the Little Figure on the red string of his bib, darted around the main gate, and slipped into the room through the window he had left open.

He had quite a few toys: rattles, bamboo horses, bamboo swords—he had everything a child his age could play with. However, these toys would often get damaged in his hands, not because he couldn't control himself, but because he didn't really like them.

But the Little Figure I got today was different. Although the body I carved out piece by piece couldn't compare to the exquisite Little Figure of "Mo Ju," it filled me with a sense of accomplishment. While using my innate strong spirit to direct the Little Figure to walk around, I imagined in my mind how this Little Figure would become more and more exquisite.

"Hey, Mo Ju, I'm here!" As soon as his father left home in the early morning, Nezha shook off the servants, jumped over the wall, and saw that the spot where he had been standing yesterday was empty, leaving him feeling a sense of emptiness.

But before he could feel disappointed, that somewhat unfamiliar voice came from the side:

"Why are you out so early? I thought you wouldn't come out until the afternoon! By the way, isn't your mother worried about you running out alone?"

"My mom went to visit relatives! She won't be back for at least three or four days." Nezha shrugged nonchalantly, then imitated Feng Xue by placing the Little Figure on his shoulder. However, due to his poor craftsmanship, the Little Figure's bottom wasn't flat, so he had to deliberately shrug his shoulders to make Little Figure sit steadily.

Hearing Nezha say this, Feng Xue felt more at ease, and then led Nezha to a small courtyard that they rented with the money they earned from performing.

"Is this your home?" Nezha looked at the messy little house with some disdain, but Feng Xue shook her head and said:

"Just a temporary place to stay."

"This is too... never mind, let's not talk about that. Teach me how to make a more exquisite wooden dummy!" Nezha wanted to say something, but after seeing Feng Xue's wooden dummy that jumped down to perform the routine, he forgot what he was about to say.

He had a wonderful dream last night, just like in his dream, where he pointed at his wooden dummy and, just like in his dream, pinned his father down on a bench and spanked him!

"Alright, let's start by talking about how to use these tools. Don't get bored; if you knew how to polish, your Little Figure's butt wouldn't be so pointy!"

Nezha and Feng Xue played together for three whole days. Perhaps it was because of his exceptional talent, perhaps it was because Feng Xue 'Imparting Knowledge and Teaching was extraordinary, or perhaps Nezha really liked the Wooden Person. Almost every day, the Xiao Mu figure in Nezha's hand would change its appearance. As its appearance became more and more exquisite, Nezha could also feel that his wooden figure was becoming more and more agile when he was controlling it.

Although it's not as powerful as Mo Ju's wooden puppet, it no longer requires my precise commands. A vague order is all it needs to execute smoothly.

This change filled Nezha with a sense of accomplishment; in fact, if Feng Xue hadn't reminded him every day, he wouldn't have wanted to go home at all.

"Xiao Mu, when will you be as good as Mo Ju's wooden puppet?!" In the evening, after dinner, Nezha returned to his house, placed the wooden puppet on the table, and muttered to himself as he watched it perform all sorts of strange movements. Just then, his Room Door was suddenly pushed open, and his father's voice followed—

"Nezha, what's this... in your house?!"

When Nezha heard his father's words, he panicked and instinctively used his body to block the wooden figure. However, although Li Jing was only an ordinary cultivator and had not even crossed the gap between immortals and mortals, he had learned some Five Elements Evasion Arts and could naturally sense the abnormality in Nezha's room. It was impossible for Nezha's small body to block him.

He took a step forward and stood before the table. Looking at the Xiao Mu, he immediately frowned and said:

Where did this come from?

"I made it myself!" Nezha said defiantly. Li Jing didn't comment, but reached out to grab him. Nezha was immediately shocked and raised his hand to protect him. But how could a child under ten years old compare to an adult with broad shoulders and long arms?

Before anyone could push or shove, the Little Figure was grabbed by Li Jing, and then...

"Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa blame you squeezing it!!!!!"