Junkyard? Treasure Trove!

At Old Zhang's words, Qin Fei's hand trembled slightly as he held his wine cup, spilling wine across the table.

"Old Zhang, why didn't you tell me beforehand? That's not very decent of you."

"Heh heh, I just haven't had the chance to tell you yet, have I? You don't have much else to do anyway, so come start the job with me in a few days.

"Being an Outer Sect Attendant is pretty easy. All you have to do is repair puppets damaged on the front lines."

Old Zhang gave an awkward laugh, looking like a man with a guilty conscience.

"No, no. I've got no interest in being a repairman."

Qin Fei spoke irritably.

As he saw it, he would be better off spending that time cultivating at home and studying Puppet Techniques.

Besides, he was now buried in debt. How much could he earn as an attendant? It would be a complete waste of time.

But Old Zhang shamelessly dug in his heels, like a dead pig that feared no boiling water.

"I don't care. You have to come with me. I don't know anyone or anything at the Lin Household. How bored would I be on my own?

"Besides, I've already boasted to the Lin Household that ordinary people couldn't possibly compare to you when it comes to puppets.

"And now you're telling me you won't go? Wouldn't that make me lose face?

"Back then, when you had trouble with your Cultivation Method, I carried you on my back across half the city. When you ran out of spirit rice and had nothing to eat, I broke one steamed bun into three pieces..."

As he went on, snot and tears streaming down his face, he recounted all the hardships they had endured over the years.

Listening to all those stale old stories, Qin Fei was at a loss for a moment.

"All right, all right, you win. I'll go, all right?"

At that, Old Zhang's expression changed faster than a page turning, and he burst out laughing.

"Then it's settled. We'll start together in a few days. It's a deal!"

Qin Fei sighed helplessly.

"What a disaster!"

He was used to living as he pleased. He had never imagined becoming an attendant and subjecting himself to someone else's restrictions for no reason.

But on second thought, as an attendant, he would count as half a member of the Lin Household. If anything happened in Shangyu Market, he would have someone to rely on.

And so, with some reluctance, he agreed.

Three days later.

Qin Fei went to the Lin Household with Old Zhang.

Along the way, buildings were being demolished and constructed everywhere, and workers bustled about without pause.

These past few days, the buildings in Shangyu Market had changed with each passing day. A few days indoors might be enough to leave someone unable to recognize the roads.

Looking into the distance, they saw a massive city wall towering into the clouds that had already risen from the ground.

Atop the wall stood a tower every ten-odd zhang, with cultivators stationed in them to keep watch.

The pitch-black surface and thick, sturdy walls gave people a strong sense of security.

Apparently, excavation had also begun on the moat outside the wall. It was over ten zhang wide, so the barbarians' cavalry could forget about ever charging straight to the walls again.

It had to be said that the Lin Household worked quickly, and its various measures had been carried out thoroughly.

No one had imagined that, when the entire market united, it could unleash such tremendous power.

Every Rogue Cultivator's face beamed with a smile. Once life held hope, people had the drive to carry on.

"The Lin Household is just ahead. Honestly, kid, it's your first day on the job, and you couldn't even change into something nicer?"

Qin Fei was still wearing his shabby old Daoist robe, its collar washed almost white and its sleeves bearing several patches.

It wasn't that Qin Fei didn't want to buy new clothes. He just couldn't bear to spend the money.

Ever since he began studying the Puppet Technique, he had grown poorer and poorer.

"I'm just a repairman, not a contestant in a beauty pageant. Why should I care about that?"

Qin Fei retorted stubbornly.

"You and your twisted logic. When you meet the steward later, show a better attitude. Otherwise, he might see how careless you are and make things difficult for you."

"I know, I know. You've been nagging me about this little thing for three days."

Soon, a massive complex of buildings appeared before them. A plaque with an antique air hung above the main entrance.

Lin Residence.

The Lin Residence was an imposing sight. A patrol stood guard at the entrance, every member lean and strong, with a weapon in hand.

Judging by the Qi they gave off, every one of them had reached the Qi Refining Third Layer.

The guards inside the residence were even more formidable, all of them cultivators at the Middle Qi Refining Stage.

A guard led the two men into the Lin Residence, but instead of taking them to a main hall, he turned down a narrow path.

After a winding journey, they finally arrived at a dilapidated little courtyard.

"Old Zhang, you've really done me in. Look for yourself. What kind of dump is this?"

Qin Fei had long understood that even if the Lin Household didn't have a thousand Outer Sect Attendants, it had several hundred.

Calling himself a member of the Lin Household was really just putting gold on his own face. As far as the Lin Household was concerned, whether an Outer Sect Attendant took up the post or left made no difference.

Qin Fei said it now mainly to take a dig at Old Zhang.

"Oh, my dear grandfather, it's my fault. Please just bear with it."

The two traded barbs through voice transmission, but neither slowed his steps as they entered the courtyard one after the other.

The steward was a somewhat plump middle-aged man with a rather amiable face.

Seeing them arrive together, he registered their information separately, then struck up a friendly conversation.

Before long, a woman who looked to be in her twenties came to the courtyard.

"Third Uncle, has the new puppet attendant arrived? Things are a little urgent over there."

"Lin Man, you're here. Just in time for me to introduce you. This fellow Daoist Qin Fei is the new puppet attendant.

"He doesn't yet know where he'll be stationed. Take him there and help him get familiar with the place, and tell him about his future duties while you're at it."

Qin Fei looked at Lin Man. She wore a plain robe and was dressed with great propriety. In his previous life, she would have been the very picture of an elite white-collar professional.

If nothing unexpected happened, she would be his immediate superior.

Lin Man seemed like a woman of swift and decisive action. She brought over two horned horses and took him straight out of the Lin Household, heading north.

The horned horses galloped along, the scenery rushing past them.

They stopped only when they reached the edge of Shangyu Market, where a vast square enclosed by high walls appeared before them.

"Qin Fei, let me formally introduce myself. My name is Lin Man. This is the northern puppet scrapyard, and it's where you'll be stationed from now on."

Qin Fei gave a slight bow, then glanced at the square with a puzzled expression.

"I heard Old Zhang say my main duty was to repair puppets. Where are they?"

"They're in the square. I'll take you to them, but there are a few too many puppets. I hope you won't mind."

Lin Man looked a little embarrassed as she said this.

"It's fine. When you take someone's money, you deal with their troubles. Since I've become an Outer Sect Attendant, naturally I should..."

As Qin Fei spoke, he went around the high wall.

But the moment he entered the square, the sight before him left him stunned, and his words stopped short.

In the middle of the enormous square was a pile of scrapped puppets as high as a small mountain.

Some were missing arms, others legs. Some had only half a body, while others' heads had vanished without a trace...

How was this a puppet scrapyard? It looked more like an enormous junkyard.

Lin Man's face flushed, and she said awkwardly:

"Fellow Daoist, there really are a few too many puppets. Many of them are completely scrapped and can't be used anymore.

"Please put in the effort to pick out and repair the ones you can. Don't worry about the ones you can't. I won't set a quota, and your salary will be paid as usual.

"You haven't seen the other puppet scrapyards. They're even worse than this one. You've got it quite easy here, fellow Daoist."

Because of the war, vast numbers of scrapped puppets were brought to the various sites every day.

What she didn't say was that, although things really were worse at the other sites, the Puppet Masters in charge had long since thrown down their tools and quit.

Having finally managed to recruit someone, she naturally wasn't willing to give up so easily.

But what she didn't know was that Qin Fei wasn't shocked because he thought there were too many puppets.

Rather, the moment he entered the square, the Heavenly Craft Creation Pavilion had appeared on its own and marked the mountain of scrapped puppets.

[Adamantine Wolf, first-tier puppet. Lower leg bones intact and reusable.]

[Raven, first-tier puppet. Beak contains rare material that can be extracted.]

[Golden Armor Lion, first-tier puppet. Core only slightly damaged and repairable.]

Looking at the dense mass of information before him, Qin Fei's eyes shone.

How was this a junkyard? It was clearly a treasure trove!