A Frenzy of Crafting

After putting away the Yama Token, Qin Fei began carrying out his plan to make money.

He had just broken through to the Sixth Level of Qi Refining, and his Divine Sense had more than doubled. With the added support of the Divine Soul Sensing Chapter, the number of puppets he could control had increased greatly.

As the saying went, a craftsman had to sharpen his tools before he could do good work.

Qin Fei decided to expand his army of Technician Number Ones before he started crafting.

Technician Number One was the key puppet behind his automation, each one an engineer who obeyed his every command and worked for him for free.

Back when he was at the Qi Refinement Fifth Layer, he could control more than a hundred Technician Number Ones at once.

Now, at the Sixth Level of Qi Refining, he decided to expand the army to five hundred in one go!

He got straight to work, and the Technician Number Ones in the secret chamber immediately got busy.

Making more of themselves posed no difficulty for them.

A few days later, exactly five hundred puppets stood neatly before him.

A smile appeared on Qin Fei's face. Previously, he had devoted himself to cultivation and had never put his full effort into crafting puppets.

Now, under mounting pressure, he decided to hold nothing back.

Both the Wooden Ox and Flowing Horse and the Zhang Yu Motor Vehicle cost ten Spirit Essences apiece to make. He sold them to Wang Hu and the merchant association for thirty, earning twenty Spirit Essences on each one.

At his current ability, if he produced just one type, two hundred a day would be no problem.

That was a net profit of forty Spirit Stones!

The Second-Generation Puppet Soldier was a Battle Puppet with the strength of the Second Layer of Qi Refinement, so its raw materials were much more expensive. Each one cost fifty Spirit Essences to make.

Accordingly, however, the price he charged the merchant association was also much higher: one Spirit Stone per puppet.

If Qin Fei devoted himself fully to production, he could craft a hundred a day.

That was a net profit of fifty Spirit Stones!

And that was only because the Puppet Soldiers were at the Second Layer of Qi Refinement.

On the market, the price of a Battle Puppet would increase severalfold with almost every rise in its cultivation layer.

Qin Fei had once seen a puppet at the Sixth Level of Qi Refining sell for over a hundred Spirit Stones. As for those at Late Qi Refining, there was demand for them but none to be had.

Unfortunately, his Flame Martial Envoy was an Exclusive Puppet and could not be sold. Otherwise, it would surely cause an explosion in the market.

Even so, the puppets he had mastered were enough to fill his pots and bowls to overflowing.

Even crafting a mix of them would bring in forty or fifty Spirit Stones a day.

In a month, he could easily pocket more than a thousand Spirit Stones. If other Rogue Cultivators found out, they would probably be struck dumb with astonishment.

That was the money-making power of an automated Puppet Master!

As Qin Fei got to work, the entire underground chamber turned into a vast factory, producing puppets one after another.

The happiest of all were surely Tang Zhan and Wang Hu.

The orders in their hands had piled up to an explosive level, but now they were dwindling at a frantic pace.

Eventually, the orders could no longer keep up with Qin Fei's production, and they had to contact their old customers.

This was especially true for Wang Hu. Most of the orders Qin Fei was filling this time came from him, and the staggering profits filled him with hope of reaching Foundation Establishment.

As Qin Fei crafted day and night, the Heavenly Craft Creation Pavilion's experience rose with the tide, and it shot up two levels!

If crafting more Wooden Ox and Flowing Horses and Zhang Yu Motor Vehicles had not stopped providing experience after the upgrade, its level might have risen past ten.

[Heavenly Craft Creation Pavilion (lv7) (0/800)]

[Pavilion Master: Qin Fei]

[Puppets: Image-Recording Spider (Tier-One Puppet), Wooden Kite (Tier-One Puppet), Flame Martial Envoy (Exclusive Puppet)...]

[Bonuses: puppet speed +7%, power +7%, consumption -7%]

[Blueprints available to unlock: Spirit Energy Wings (Tier-One Puppet), Desolate Rock Ghost Python (Tier-One Puppet)]

Looking at the two new blueprints available to unlock, Qin Fei's eyes shone brightly.

[Spirit Energy Wings]

[Rank: Tier-One Puppet]

[Talents: flight altitude +10%, flight speed +10%]

[Function: attached to the back, they can spread their wings and soar through the sky like a bird]

"Spirit Energy Wings?"

After reading the description, Qin Fei smiled with delight.

Although this item was not a Battle Puppet, its function was extremely practical.

He had never had a flying Law Artifact before. He had flown through the air only once, with Fairy Caiyi, and the impression had been so deep that he still remembered it.

Now he actually had wings of his own. How could he not be happy?

Next, he turned his attention to the other blueprint.

[Desolate Rock Ghost Python]

[Strength: Sixth Level of Qi Refining]

[Talents: natural affinity for the earth attribute, skilled at digging through mountains and tunneling underground, earth-attribute power +10%, earth-attribute resistance +10%]

[Formation inscription: Thick Earth Formation]

"Sixth Level of Qi Refining, a Demon Beast-type Battle Puppet!"

Qin Fei was quite excited. It had been a long time since he had unlocked a Battle Puppet blueprint.

His Second-Generation Puppet Soldiers and Flame Martial Guards were only at the second and third layers of Qi Refinement. As his strength rose, they were gradually failing to keep up with the demands placed on them.

Although the Flame Martial Envoy had the strength of the Qi Refining Seventh Layer, it was an Exclusive Puppet, and he could command only one.

In battle, he might look impressive when he waved his hand and sent countless puppets swarming forward.

In truth, they were all self-destructing foot soldiers, far less useful than controlling a few powerful puppets.

With this Desolate Rock Ghost Python, his strength would rise another step.

Qin Fei decided to craft the two new puppets as soon as possible.

During the days he spent in seclusion, winds and clouds gradually gathered over Shangyu Market.

News of the secret realm's discovery had drawn many outsiders, all eager to claim a share.

Most of the Lin Household's and Lu Household's forces were confronting the Barbarian Tribe outside the secret realm, leaving them no time to attend to matters in the city.

For a time, disputes broke out constantly, and killings for treasure occurred from time to time.

Most striking of all, the young master of the esteemed Lu Household had actually been the target of an assassination attempt!

At the Misty Rain Pavilion, the largest house of pleasure in Shangyu Market, Lu Tianchou held a dagger and lightly licked the blood from it.

A naked woman lay before him, a large pool of blood at her neck. She was clearly no longer breathing.

He had been enjoying himself there when, just as he was getting excited, the woman suddenly drew a dagger and stabbed at him.

Fortunately, he was always on guard and kept the habit even when he was most relaxed. That was the only reason she had failed.

"Young Master, this person wasn't a local cultivator of Shangyu Market. She probably only arrived a few days ago."

"An outsider? That's strange. Why would she come after me?"

The Lu Household's young master raised an eyebrow, the gloom in his eyes so heavy it seemed ready to drip.

"This subordinate found a Yama Pendant in their Storage Bag. Presumably, they had accepted a mission from Yama Hall. We also found this."

Lu Tianchou turned to look, and his pupils suddenly contracted.

"The Heavenly Mystery Key!"

"Indeed. Unfortunately, it's a fake. But recently, many have suddenly appeared in the market, and quite a few have been authenticated as genuine. Someone is probably deliberately muddying the waters."

Lu Tianchou was puzzled. As far as he knew, there should have been only one Heavenly Mystery Key.

Now so many had appeared at once that even he did not know what was going on.

"Forget it. Arrange for some people to seize a real one first."

His subordinate immediately accepted the order and withdrew.

Lu Tianchou took the assassin's Storage Bag and, sure enough, found a Yama Pendant inside.

He pondered for a moment, then sent his Divine Sense into it.

When he saw that a bounty of five hundred Spirit Stones had been placed on him, his eyes narrowed slightly.

"There's a bounty on me. Heh, interesting."

He suddenly clenched his hand, crushing the Yama Pendant to powder.

Only then did Lu Tianchou get up and leave.

The next second, however, the Yama Pendant reformed, and a deep voice suddenly rang out from it:

"Destroying a Yama Pendant incurs a fine of one thousand Spirit Stones. If you do it again, Impermanence will personally come to your door and reclaim the Yama Pendant."

Lu Tianchou halted, then a crazed smile appeared on his face.

"Bang!"

The Yama Pendant shattered once more.