Three days later.
In the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect's council hall, the sect felt much quieter after that battle.
Half its affiliated factions had chosen to leave, and most of the barracks stood empty.
Yet plenty of factions had expressed interest in cooperation, and the parties seeking Ning Tian's hand had even formed a long line.
Inside the hall, however, there was no air of sorrow.
Ning Zhiyuan had awakened. His hands and feet were now fitted with prosthetics made by the Fatui.
He swung a fist excitedly. "I thought I'd spend the rest of my life paralyzed!
"But you gave me a steel arm!
"When I'm old and my other arm and leg stop working, could I have those replaced too?
"Could I replace all my limbs with machinery, just like that Executive, Miss Marionette?"
Even now, Ning Zhiyuan still believed Marionette had once been a living human being.
He had never doubted it. He chanted excitedly, "The flesh is weak. Ascend through machinery."
Beside him, Ning Tian looked grave.
She worried about the sect's future, but the suitors irritated her even more.
They had seen the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect falter and set their sights on this enormous walking treasury.
They wanted to use her to pry away the key and seize its gold coins.
That left her quite irritated. She had personally driven off five or six of them, and at least ten more parties were on their way to Nine Treasures City.
Xiaozi Bro and the others were in the hall, and Yan Shaozhe was there as well.
He was keeping watch outside the door, gazing at the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect's beautiful scenery.
Owl Bro said, "The Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect urgently needs a strong force to bolster its ranks."
"I