After Jiang Si came out of the cultivation room, Bingtang did not ask about his cultivation-if he had succeeded, he would say so himself. If he said nothing, there was no need to ask.
"Four Leaves is currently helping Susan investigate the whereabouts of the other two Miracle Seeds, but information from the Witch Association is rather hard to come by-"
As Jiang Si began his workout, Bingtang sat at the table, looking through various documents and reporting on the past few days' work. "We've caught most of the Witch Association members who were active in Beihai, but they were all peripheral personnel. Some were bought with money, while others simply wanted to vent and take revenge. The remaining core members probably aren't in Beihai."
Jiang Si, who was using a machine to stretch his muscles extensively, said nothing. He had little interest in these matters.
That lasted until Bingtang took out a transparent pebble the size of a fingernail. "This is the key to how the Witch Association summoned so many Calamity Beasts this time. They call it a Calamity Egg."
"Before emotions contaminate it, it's a harmless egg. But once negative emotions keep contaminating it..."
As she spoke, Bingtang called over Blue Flower, who was still keeping herself in confinement nearby. "Blue Flower, come here a moment."
Blue Flower jogged over with a somewhat ingratiating smile. "What is it, what is it, Lady Bingtang? I haven't done anything wrong."
Bingtang handed her the Calamity Egg. "Vent some of your recent negative emotions."
Although she was rather bewildered, Blue Flower immediately began muttering.
"I don't want to work, don't want to go to school, don't want to get up early, don't want to do homework, don't want to lose my gacha pulls..."
Wisps of black vapor began appearing inside the Calamity Egg, and the originally transparent egg grew cloudy.
"Wow, how amazing." Blue Flower's eyes widened. "Is my resentment that strong?"
"Newborn Calamity Eggs are more easily influenced, though your resentment is certainly no small amount either."
Bingtang handed the Calamity Egg to Jiang Si. "In short, if you keep feeding it negative emotions, a Calamity Egg gradually evolves toward becoming a Grief Seed. Once it reaches a critical point, the Witch Association members stimulate it using certain methods, and a Calamity Beast is born. All those Calamity Beasts that abruptly appeared in the city were born this way."
Jiang Si took the Calamity Egg and felt its chill. The trace of resentment Blue Flower had just produced was gradually turning into tiny black specks, gathering in one corner of the shell. "Perhaps this is the core of the Witch Association's technology?"
"Very likely. Unfortunately, we didn't catch their core members. Within Beihai's Witch Association, only the captain knows the details of those methods, and he's hidden the deepest. I suspect he isn't even in Beihai right now."
"Find him for me, wherever he is."
"Understood."
Jiang Si stopped exercising and stretched his arms. "I also need more information on the Full Bloom realm."
"At present, the Disaster Countermeasures Bureau headquarters controls information about Full Bloom very strictly." Bingtang was rather helpless too. "We've been doing everything we can to gather information, but unfortunately, we haven't found anything about Full Bloom."
That did not surprise Jiang Si.
The headquarters' control over information was astonishing. Back when Beihai had no Calamity Beasts, its residents could barely find any news about magical girls, whether online or on television.
It was as though the term "magical girl" had been blocked, leaving Beihai as peaceful as an ordinary real world.
Only after Calamity Beasts began appearing frequently and the restrictions on magical girls here were lifted did they discover news about magical girls everywhere. If the headquarters truly wanted to conceal something, digging it up would still be rather difficult with the Azure Cloud Sect's current capabilities.
"Looks like only university research labs have information on Full Bloom."
Although Beihai's magical girls had once been distorted into fictional beings, reduced to concepts such as anime and manga, Beihai University's research into magical girls had never actually stopped. The relevant majors had always remained available, merely under different names during the suppression period.
Even without distorting the concept behind the term, no university in any city allowed its magical-girl research materials to be taken out of the labs. The Disaster Countermeasures General Bureau had plenty of ways to keep active researchers from leaking information, and members who left the labs had the relevant memories erased.
"At the end of the semester, I can arrange for you to take the college entrance exam at another school. We can take it together then-"
"No need. I've already spoken to the principal. He'll arrange it for me."
Nosy old man. Sooner or later, I'm getting you removed!
She grumbled inwardly, but merely smiled.
Bingtang looked a little regretful. "All right, then never mind."
If Jiang Si had agreed to take the college entrance exam with her at another school, she could have arranged a separate classroom for just the two of them. Damn it...
Jiang Si put away the Calamity Egg and was about to leave when Bingtang suddenly called him back.
"Ah, right, Jiang Si. There's something I'd like your help with."
Jiang Si turned to look at her. "Go ahead."
Bingtang took a deep breath and said solemnly, "The Witch Association's attacks are growing fiercer, and the Disaster Countermeasures Bureau is transferring people from headquarters. The Azure Cloud Sect's position will probably become increasingly difficult. We urgently need to improve our disciples' strength."
After some thought, Jiang Si nodded. "That makes sense."
Ultimately, whether it was finding Witch Association members, dealing with the Disaster Countermeasures Bureau, gathering information, or even sourcing Grief Seeds, he needed the Azure Cloud Sect's help. As sect master, helping its disciples grow stronger was naturally his bounden duty.
"Yes, the main thing is improving our practical combat ability. After all, we still haven't found a sufficiently reliable way to advance our realms..."
Although Jiang Si had naturally advanced to Full Blossom by absorbing the contaminated magical power in Grief Seeds.
That method clearly did not work for the other disciples. Setting aside how contaminated magical power diminished after purification, the Azure Cloud Sect had quite a few disciples, and each could only be allocated so much.
Even someone like Bingtang, who had absorbed enough magical power, still could not advance to Full Blossom.
In Jiang Si's view, their mental states were not up to standard.
On the path of cultivation, one's mental state mattered most. Without sufficient resolve to pursue the Dao, advancement could not flow naturally like water into a channel.
The Dao heart, cultivation attainment, the nature of gold, the three flowers of essence, qi, and spirit gathering at the crown, or cultivating both nature and life, and so on.
Advancement in the cultivation world was strict and complicated to begin with. Requiring only the right mental state already counted as simple.
Every Azure Cloud Sect disciple who entered the inner sect was a genius with good aptitude, yet their mental states fell short. Jiang Si found that deeply regrettable.
They could not even bring themselves to strike killing blows when fighting Witch Association members. It truly gave him a headache to watch.
Improving one's mental state was often the most difficult part of cultivation, and one in which others could not intervene.
If this were one of those paths of cultivation that relied solely on pills and techniques to advance, without regard for mental state, things would have been easier.
Unfortunately, magical girls did not follow that path. Theirs was a more traditional method of cultivation: beyond the basic accumulation of magical power, advancement depended on improving their mental state after sudden enlightenment.
That crucial improvement could only wait for them to comprehend things and break through on their own.
If these disciples had even half his motivation to grow stronger, things would not have come to this.
"So we hope you could provide some magical power, Sect Master, and let Blue Flower make a Ziyuan magic puppet, so we can spar and improve."
Hearing Bingtang's request, Jiang Si sank into thought.
His original plan had been for each of them to spar with their own magic puppet, allowing them to discover their weaknesses faster.
But Bingtang had a good point too.
The improvement gained from sparring with oneself was, in fact, far slower than that gained from sparring with a stronger opponent.
Just as he was considering how much magical power would be appropriate, Bingtang hurriedly added, "We'll absolutely only use it for sparring. We absolutely, absolutely won't use it for anything else!"
Jiang Si paused at that and asked casually, "What else can a magic puppet be used for?"
Six Leaves, who had been catching up on homework in the meeting room, immediately shouted, "Dates! Dates! I want to go on a date with Lady Ziyuan!"
But before she could shout much more, her elder sister restrained her.
"If you want something tasty, ask Lady Bingtang to buy it for you. Don't cause trouble at a time like this!"
"Oh..."
Bingtang coughed and immediately said solemnly, "We absolutely won't waste a magic puppet on that sort of thing."
Beside her, Blue Flower nodded repeatedly. "Using it for dates would be a bit of a waste. We could just play dress-up-"
Only after Bingtang knocked her on the head did Blue Flower settle down.
Sighing, Bingtang decided she must not discuss things with Jiang Si in front of these inner-sect disciples who did nothing but cause her trouble...
"Would half my magical power be enough for you?"
Jiang Si did not particularly care what they intended to do. Since they wanted to improve themselves, he had no reason to refuse.
He hoped the pressure from Ziyuan's magic puppet could improve their mental states too, helping them reach Full Blossom sooner.
Bingtang, who had not expected him to agree, froze for a moment, then immediately nodded repeatedly. "Enough, enough, enough! Definitely enough!"
After readily giving half his magical power to Blue Flower, Jiang Si finally left the Azure Cloud Sect.
Tomorrow, he had to go to school to discuss arrangements for the college entrance exam with the principal, so he needed to head home early and rest today.
Once Jiang Si had left, the Azure Cloud Sect suddenly fell into dead silence.
Everyone's eyes converged on the half of Ziyuan's magical power in Blue Flower's hands.
Bingtang cleared her throat first, assuming her usual dignified bearing as deputy sect master. "You all heard him. This Ziyuan magic puppet is for sparring and improving our strength, and it can also help us continue researching magical-power fusion. Therefore, I'll have full control over it-"
"Lady Bingtang, isn't that going a bit too far?" Blue Flower immediately protested. "How can you monopolize it?"
"Who said anything about monopolizing it? I'll control Ziyuan's magic puppet to spar with you."
"With this much magical power, we could make two puppets."
Yumo, wearing a pale green trench coat, suddenly appeared between Blue Flower and Bingtang. All her usual timidity and shyness were gone, replaced by utter seriousness. "Making just one would be too wasteful. Make two. I-I want to control the sect master's magic puppet too."
Even Bingtang was startled by Yumo, then glared at her. "Weren't you sleeping just now?"
"When the sect master shared his magical power, I woke up."
Yumo said firmly, "Lady Bingtang, you can't monopolize it. I want one too."
Four Leaves poked her head around the meeting-room door, watching curiously, while Six Leaves peeked out from below her sister.
This time, she did not shout anything about wanting to control a magic puppet herself. After all, Four Leaves had just lectured her not to cause trouble.
With the smell of gunpowder so strong now, Six Leaves was frightened too and did not dare speak.
Looking at Yumo, who refused to back down an inch, Bingtang could not help feeling somewhat gratified.
Although Yumo usually seemed weak, when it truly came time to fight for something she wanted, she never backed down.
Just as she never showed mercy when facing Witch Association members.
As the sect master put it, inwardly gifted? She had great prospects.
However, competing with Bingtang herself was something she could not permit.
Narrowing her eyes, Bingtang laughed coldly. "Even after the lesson I taught you last time, you still haven't given up?"
"Last time, Yumo was only one move behind. This time, I'll definitely win!"
Blue Flower weakly raised her hand. "But you've already fished all the fry out of the fortune pool. You said you'd restock it last time, but you still haven't."
"No need for the fortune pool."
Bingtang grew serious too and took two boxes out from beneath the table. "Among cultivation's hundred arts, there are plenty of ways to compete. Myriad Dharma Card Array, Four Symbols and Eight Trigrams Diagram, Path of Fate, Secret Realm Trial. Pick one."
With remarkable tacit understanding, Yumo also pulled another box out from beneath the table, took a chessboard from it, and spread it directly across the table.
"Heaven and Earth Chessboard. First to five wins." As she spoke, she set down the rabbit in her arms. "Bing-Lady Bingtang, please!"
"Please!"
Watching the two with swords drawn and bows bent, Blue Flower scratched her head and asked cautiously, "Could I have one too? I can make three magic puppets-"
"No!"
Both rejected her at once. "If the magical power is split three ways, they won't last long enough."
Blue Flower sighed mournfully.
She was clearly the one doing the work, yet she got none of the benefits. She had wanted to snag one herself, then earn a little extra money from Lady Bingtang or trade it for some time off...
Treating her as free labor was too awful.
But looking at the murderous air of the two at the chessboard, Blue Flower did not dare say more.
Jiang Si studied the Calamity Egg the entire way. Pure magical power actually produced no reaction when introduced into it.
Even the contaminated magical power of a Grief Seed could not affect this Calamity Egg.
The Calamity Egg only reacted to negative emotions, and only sufficiently intense negativity left black traces within it, gradually staining and painting over the transparent egg.
Thus, throughout his walk, it had only grown a little.
Yet when he approached home, the black magical power inside the Calamity Egg actually began boiling!
Vast amounts of negative emotion poured in, and the black magical power, which had originally been merely gaseous or even liquid, turned solid.
The entire Calamity Egg also grew rather heavy, completely at odds with its tiny size, as though it were a large iron ball.
This truly exceeded Jiang Si's expectations. He glanced at the Calamity Egg in his hand, then at his front door.
Did Keke have that much resentment?
I haven't seen her suffer any grievances normally. Were children going through puberty just too sensitive?
He found it rather difficult to understand.
But there could be other reasons. Perhaps it was being affected by resentment from other people nearby.
With that thought, Jiang Si pushed open the door and paused at the sight of the person standing inside.
The petite girl was draped in a bathrobe, wearing little else, with large expanses of skin exposed. Her upper body was wrapped fairly securely, but the robe had fallen open below, revealing rather childish cartoon bear panties. Her bare feet rested on the floor, with a trail of water behind her.
She had probably just bathed, and her hair was wet too. Her lovely face held no expression at that moment. Her usually lively eyes were now as hollow as those of a dead thing, staring straight at him, with no reaction to her own state.
Li Yi did not speak, and Jiang Si did not ask.
He merely turned to close the door, changed his shoes, and prepared to go upstairs, without looking at her.
Before long, Keke heard the noise and ran out from the kitchen. After seeing Jiang Si, she noticed Li Yi standing partially exposed in the middle of the room and hurriedly took off her own jacket to cover her, pushing her back toward her bedroom. "I told you to go back to the bedroom first. Why are you just standing in the living room, Yiyi-"
"I'm sorry."
She apologized woodenly, then was pushed into the bedroom. Jiang Si noticed that the Calamity Egg he had put away seemed to have grown a little heavier.
Just as he was about to go upstairs, Keke came out of the bedroom and hurriedly told him, "Yiyi will be staying with us for the next few days. She won't bother you. Things at her home are terrible right now-"
"Mm. Do as you like."
The whole pile of arguments she had prepared was immediately swallowed back down. Keke sighed, unsure whether to be glad he was so agreeable or upset by his indifference.
At least show some concern for Yiyi, won't you?
But remembering that Yiyi had said the person who killed her elder sister Yinluo was Ziyuan, Keke suddenly felt this attitude might be better...
Looking at her friend, who was still listless, like a walking corpse, Keke held her and helped her lie down on the bed.
"Get some rest first, Yiyi. Have something to eat in a little while."