Chapter 1602: Breaking the Record

"This, I, I have followed Master to the Flash Gold Plain for twenty years, and haven't seen it." Yang Chi thought for a while, "But I heard from fellow disciples that Master was an official in Lingxu City in the past, and also stayed in the Tiangong for a long time."

"Tiangong?" He Lingchuan and Dong Rui looked at each other, thinking of the few powerful Jian beasts suppressed under the Star-Plucking Tower.

That's right. Since Cao Wendao is a powerful demon puppet master and comes from Lingxu City, it is very likely that he has studied the Tiangong's Jian beasts.

In ancient times, powerful Jian beasts could even compete with great demons. When the Star-Plucking Tower was burned, Chenyuan and Zuju fought to a standstill.

Tiangong, Cao Wendao, Jian beasts. These three connected together always make people feel ominous.

"It seems they are old acquaintances." Then, Cao Wendao is likely hired by Qingyang to take He Lingchuan's life.

Yang Chi then added: "However, I think Master is actually more interested in the people around Island Master He. He believes that there is a fellow traveler hidden in Yongquan Manor, that is, a demon puppet master."

Dong Rui's eyes flickered: "Why do you say that?"

"A few months ago, in the battle of the Dead Village against the Ghost King at the Situ family, a giant ape appeared. Master collected a lot of intelligence to study it, and believed that it might be a demon puppet, although the craftsmanship was very rough..."

"What?" Dong Rui narrowed his eyes, "Who did he say had rough craftsmanship!"

He Lingchuan raised his hand: "Let him continue."

"That technique was quite primitive, but the idea was interesting, and this kind of demon puppet has relatively strong autonomy, which is also not easy to control—this is, this is Master's original words."

"Interesting soul, isn't it better than his brainless insect puppets?" Dong Rui sneered, "Your master is truly narcissistic."

Yang Chi was submissive.

These people were wearing veil hats, but this one was likely Wei Yishan, right? Even if he didn't reveal his true face, seeing him handle several demon puppets with ease, Yang Chi felt this was a fellow traveler.

At this moment, a flash of lightning suddenly streaked across the sky, and the bright aurora illuminated the wilderness.

In this instant, the interior of the carriage was also illuminated as bright as day, and everyone's face was pale white.

Hmm? The power of the thunder passed in a flash, and the world returned to darkness.

Dong Rui looked out the window: "It's about to rain, rare."

It rarely rained in Tian Shui City in winter, but this upcoming rain seemed quite heavy.

It rarely rains in winter in Tianshui City, but this coming rain seemed like it wouldn't be small.

Others wanted to light the lamps, but He Lingchuan waved his hand: "No need."

As they spoke, two more bolts of lightning flashed across, shaped like giant tree branches, even brighter and more overbearing than the first.

It took a good while before the rolling thunder was heard.

He Lingchuan kept staring at Yang Chi, seeing a flash of green light in the corners of his eyes again.

Hmph.

He acted as if he hadn't seen it and continued to ask: "Why are you interested in that puppet master?"

"According to the intelligence we received, Xiao An might have fallen into your... their hands." Yang Chi muttered, "Master spent so much effort on Xiao An, he really wants to find her back."

"Why did Cao Wendao want to inject human souls into Tong Xun's body, and why perform these modifications?"

Yang Chi whispered: "Our research direction is to make the bodies of powerful monsters approach human form. If we use Tong Xun, it's a shortcut, and it has research value."

Tong Xun can turn into a human, which saves many steps, allowing Cao Wendao to directly enter the next research phase.

He Lingchuan glanced sideways at Dong Rui: "Humanoid monster puppets, right? I've discovered that you puppet masters all have wild ideas."

Yang Chi: "Ye-yes."

Dong Rui wiped his nose and stayed silent; he had also researched humanoid monster puppets, but stopped halfway through.

He Lingchuan continued to ask: "Researching Tong Xun is one thing, but why inject human souls?"

"Master said that a humanoid body must be able to match a human soul for this research to have meaning." Yang Chi said earnestly, "A successful match means the human soul can command the monster body to act, the soul doesn't go insane, and the monster body doesn't collapse."

He Lingchuan and Dong Rui looked at each other, both feeling it was eerie: "So far, are there any successful examples?"

"Our most successful case is Xiao An. But Master judged that her remaining lifespan when she escaped was less than half a year." Speaking of this, Yang Chi also had two parts curiosity, "Is she... is she dead or alive now?"

Dong Rui smiled without answering; who is asking whom now? Wan Qiliang flicked the blade, a crisp sound rang out, and Yang Chi shivered, remembering that he was the prisoner.

At this moment, He Lingchuan suddenly said: "Pull over, pull over to the edge of the grove, I'm going down for a moment."

Dong Rui asked curiously: "What for?"

"I drank too much water tonight." Before he finished, He Lingchuan had already jumped off the carriage and disappeared behind the grove.

Several Yangshan guards also got off the carriage and stood outside the grove to keep watch for him.

Nature calls, after all.

The night wind blew into the carriage incessantly; a lock of Dong Rui's hair brushed his nose, making it itch, and he subconsciously reached out to scratch it.

But before he could scratch twice, his movements suddenly paused, and his gaze also slightly solidified.

This state lasted less than a breath before he returned to normal. So to others, he just looked a bit distracted staring out the window.

Not long after, He Lingchuan emerged from the grove, returning to the carriage with two guards:

"Let's go."

The carriage rumbled, continuing toward Yongquan Manor.

He Lingchuan sat down and signaled for Yang Chi to continue.

"Master was furious a few days ago because he heard that the Qian Du Workshop's research progress was faster, and their test subjects lived longer than Xiao An!" Yang Chi recalled, "He kept cursing, saying those people had the help of the Frost Leaf National Preceptor."

Frost Leaf National Preceptor? He Lingchuan didn't expect to hear the name Frost Leaf at this time and couldn't help but be stunned.

Yang Chi continued: "This is the most important task the Tiangong assigned to Master; if we complete it well, we can return to Lingxu City!"

He Lingchuan's heart stirred: "Wait, does the Tiangong have other puppet masters researching this too?"

"Yes. As far as I know, there are four or five other groups, all experimenting outside the Beijia Nation." Yang Chi shook his head, "I don't know why it has to be this way, I just follow orders!"

Injecting human souls into the bodies of humanoid monsters, and requiring the soul and body to be compatible without collapsing. How does this research goal sound so eerie?

Why insist on forcing monsters into human shapes? Why inject human souls? Why not let human souls stay in their own human bodies? Isn't this kind of research redundant?

Dong Rui suddenly asked: "What's the next step?"

"Huh?"

"If Xiao An's experiment is successful, if she didn't die or collapse, what experiment does Cao Wendao want to do next?"

"That would be the next stage of the experiment." Yang Chi thought for a moment, "Master once said that the power of these monster puppets or 'Jian' beasts is better the stronger it is, but there must be a powerful soul to control them; conversely, if the soul controlling them isn't strong enough, these monster puppets themselves cannot become stronger."

Dong Rui nodded, but He Lingchuan and the others were puzzled: "Why?"

Dong Rui explained to them: "Monsters and animals have essential differences and also need to cultivate. After they are transformed into monster puppets, although they can be forced to mutate using divine blood to induce power increases, the cost is also very high, which is that both the soul and body become very unstable. Only by finding a way to stabilize these two can one again attempt to use divine blood to enhance the monster puppet's power. Therefore, the enhancement of monster puppets must be done step by step."

He Lingchuan was thoughtful: "No wonder Cao Wendao is looking for powerful human souls."

He stretched and said to Dong Rui: "Cao Wendao is cunning and cautious; after escaping Huixiang Inn today, who knows when he will show his face again. This is a hidden danger that must be removed."

"What's your idea?"

"Xiao An!" He Lingchuan said sternly, "We'll use Xiao An to set a trap and lure him out of his hole!"

"Set a trap?" Dong Rui was stunned, "Bring her to Tianshui City? That round trip will take quite a few days, can you handle it?"

"A small matter, I have guards in droves, who could I be afraid of?" He Lingchuan laughed, "I just don't know how powerful the bait of Xiao An is."

"Hmph, don't underestimate a puppet master's persistence." Dong Rui was serious, "She is Cao Wendao's most important research achievement; as long as there is the slightest hope of finding her back, Cao Wendao cannot give up; even if Xiao An is dead, her state and performance at the end of her life can also become extremely important data."

Even if? Yang Chi, who was kneeling, widened his eyes; the meaning in these words was that Xiao An wasn't dead yet!

Then her survival period far exceeded seven and a half months! This achievement is remarkable, breaking the Qian Du Workshop's record! "Excellent, I'll send people to escort you back and forth." He Lingchuan never dragged his feet, "No time to lose, you set off early tomorrow morning. By the way, you can't take the original route; the river channels in northern Mangzhou have been dammed for desilting, so you can't take boats."

Rivers are dry in winter, and many waterways have even exposed their riverbeds, so the Yao Nation simply dammed them to clear the silt.

Dong Rui scratched his head: "Then I'll bypass Tianshui City south early tomorrow morning and head west into Zhu County? That way I can still take the water route for half the journey, saving some time..."

At this point, he suddenly looked at Yang Chi.

"Good, let's do that." Just as He Lingchuan finished speaking, he suddenly heard a 'pop' sound, and there was something unusual in his bosom.

He reached into his bosom and took out a Thousand-Thousand Knot; it was broken.

"Something happened at home, we have to go back."

This knot was a warning, meaning there was trouble at Yongquan Manor, and He Lingchuan, the manor lord, needed to be there to resolve it.

Dong Rui and the Soul-Absorbing Mirror said in unison: "Now?"

They had serious business to attend to, this was too inconvenient! But if they went back late and the Yao people discovered He Lingchuan wasn't in the manor, that would also be a troublesome matter.

"Anyway, there's still some time, let's go back first." After saying this, He Lingchuan raised his eyebrows toward Wan Qiliang.

When the rolling thunder sounded at the horizon, the outline of Yongquan Manor was already in sight.

"Logically speaking," He Lingchuan was still in the manor's bedroom, and Dong Rui was still in his own mountain cellar; they couldn't just drive in like that.

(End of chapter)