Chapter 85: Puppet Soldier Li Yu, Immortal-like Demeanor, Little Black and Little White Burned by Fire Poison (Two-in-One)
Fire Luan was resting in its nest when it suddenly sensed a slight disturbance.
It looked at the nest with some confusion, only to see that the small Puppet Soldier, originally placed in the center of the nest, seemed to have suddenly lost all its magic power and spirituality.
It reverted to a piece of Spiritual Wood full of wood attributes.
“It seems the benefactor has completed a new Puppet Soldier~”
Muttering a sentence, Fire Luan, following Li Zhuo’s instructions, placed this Spiritual Wood where the two Little Fire Wan were.
Slowly enhancing the vitality of the Little Fire Wan.
With the experience of creating Li Zhi, Li Zhuo was now at ease and proficient.
Not long after.
A new Puppet Soldier appeared before him.
With a white beard and long whiskers, and a vibrant spirit.
He looked exactly like an immortal with an immortal-like demeanor.
“With this appearance, if he were to go out fortune-telling under the name of ‘Li Half-Immortal,’ he’d surely earn more money.”
Li Zhuo was very satisfied with his craftsmanship.
The only problem now was…
“He has no clothes to wear. Would it be strange to ask Zhao Xier to send a few sets of clothes?”
“It doesn’t fit my persona of a proud son of heaven living in seclusion in the deep mountains, and it would also expose the fact that Li Zhi is just my Puppet Soldier.”
“What should I do? — Little Flower!”
“Coming, coming~” Little Flower put down the tiger bone, which was already worn smooth, and quickly came before Li Zhuo: “What are your commands, Immortal?”
Li Zhuo said with a smile: “Your Cultivation hasn’t been diligent lately~”
Both Little Squirrel and Little Red were extremely devout in their Cultivation.
Each time they used lianjing stone, they pushed their Physical Body to its limit.
This allowed them to make great progress!
According to Li Zhuo’s estimation, after the Great Secret Realm incident was over, he should be able to give these two Spirit Beasts a second stat boost.
It might even be possible to increase their star rating.
As for Little Flower, it was a three-day fishing, two-day sunbathing type.
Each time, it would just lightly tap the lianjing stone and then constantly groan “Ouch.”
Very lazy!
Facing Li Zhuo’s inquiry, Little Flower scratched its head awkwardly: “Immortal, that, I, I really am—”
“Alright, I know you’re not good at fighting, but improving your Cultivation can also increase your Lifespan! If you die early, who will cook for me then?”
“Yes, I will Cultivate diligently!”
After expressing its determination, Little Flower rubbed its paws and asked: “Immortal, what do you need me for?”
It had been slacking off for a long time, and the Immortal hadn't paid much attention.
Calling it today should not be about slacking off.
Li Zhuo smiled, pointed at the immortal-like Puppet Soldier beside him, and said: “This Puppet Soldier has no clothes. Can you make clothes?”
Little Flower scratched its head, looking quite conflicted: “Immortal, I haven’t made clothes—”
After all, it was a Spirit Beast and didn't need to wear clothes, so it naturally had no experience in making them.
Of course, there were no Materials in the mountains either.
Li Zhuo, however, smiled and said: “Since you can cook, it means you are nimble-fingered. Try making a set of clothes for him.”
After giving the absurd command, Li Zhuo sat cross-legged in the Gathering Spirit Formation and continued his Cultivation.
Little Flower, meanwhile, scratched its head.
It looked up and down at the new Puppet Soldier, estimated its height, and then, with a confused expression, went to the edge of the Safe Zone.
Digging and digging…
It actually dug out a large pit.
—
—The pit was full of Spirit Beast skeletons. Upon closer inspection, they were the bones of Pan Mountain Tiger and Chi She Clan Leader.
This was Little Flower’s collection.
This Spirit Beast loved delicious food, but it was not good at fighting. Before, it mostly ate ordinary beasts.
Since following Li Zhuo, it had even eaten Crimson Patterned Snakes and Pan Mountain Tigers, which were more powerful than itself.
The taste of Spirit Beasts amazed it!
After eating, Little Flower didn't even bear to throw away the bones. Instead, it collected them and occasionally took them out to lick, treating them as delicious snacks.
This time, it rummaged through its collection and finally found a slender and sharp bone.
“I heard that Humans need needles to make clothes. I’ll use this as a needle. What about the thread?”
Little Flower pondered for a while, then looked at the Squirrel’s fluffy big tail.
“No, no, no! If I dare to make that request, I’ll really be beaten to death!”
Shaking its head, it looked at the tiger’s fur again: “Let’s try it first~”
Li Zhuo glanced at the busy Little Flower.
He nodded, then activated the sound transmission jade talisman to give Little Red an order, and then sat cross-legged in the Gathering Spirit Formation to continue his Cultivation.
With his Cultivation speed, it wasn't difficult to Break through his Sea of Consciousness within six months, but to prevent any accidents, Li Zhuo always maintained his Cultivation state.
He dared not be lazy.
After a while, the Little Squirrel, who was fighting, twitched its ears, as if it heard something.
Rustle, rustle, rustle...
Little Squirrel looked up with some confusion, only to see Little Red leading a dense army of Scarlet Snakes into the Safe Zone.
Little Squirrel was startled: “What are you doing? Do you also dislike that kid and want to teach him a lesson? But I advise you to be careful, the only harm these Scarlet Snakes might cause him is a bloated stomach.”
Little Red wagged its tail, smiled, and greeted Little Squirrel.
Then it looked at the outer edge of the Safe Zone.
This area had been neatly tidied up by Little Flower, but it had not been paved with bluestone slabs.
Little Red measured the land, then commanded the Scarlet Snakes: “Dig!”
The Scarlet Snakes raised their tails and vigorously poked the ground, beginning to Cultivate the land bit by bit.
Little Squirrel hopped and skipped to Little Red: “What are you all doing?”
“The master plans to plant some Spiritual Plants needed for Alchemy, but the current number of fields is not enough, so we are here to Cultivate new fields.”
“Oh, this is a big deal, you all continue~”
Several more days passed, and all the fields had been cultivated, but the Scarlet Snakes’ task was not over.
During this period, the Scarlet Snakes had found many Spiritual Plants.
However, after Li Zhuo’s investigation, these Spiritual Plants had no special effects.
They could neither be eaten nor used.
Li Zhuo therefore did not transplant them into the Safe Zone.
But now it seemed these plants could be used for Alchemy.
Following the principle of “trying anything that might work,” Li Zhuo decided to plant all these Spiritual Plants in the fields of the Safe Zone.
What if they were useful?
While the Scarlet Snakes were busy with this, Little Flower finally completed the tiger skin long robe.
“This, this is what you made?” Li Zhuo held the long robe in his hands, feeling the fine stitches and exquisite cutting, his face full of disbelief.
Little Flower nodded shyly: “Yes, Immortal ~ It’s a pity a bit of tiger skin was wasted.”
“Not wasted, not wasted~” Li Zhuo looked at the Puppet Soldier’s height, then at the tattered tiger skin tied around his own waist, and said, “This robe is mine. You make another one.”
“Yes~”
Happily putting on the tiger skin long robe, Li Zhuo admired himself in front of the lake: “There’s no sense of incongruity at all; instead, it gives me more of the air of a reclusive master in the mountains~ Little Flower’s craftsmanship is truly impeccable!”
After a sigh of emotion, Li Zhuo happily began to examine the plants the Scarlet Snakes had brought back:
【Individual Information: Plant Type — Fire Spirit Flower】
【Individual Information: Plant Type — Golden Spike Grass】
【Individual Information: Plant Type: Water Vine】
【Individual Information: Plant Type — Wood Profound Tree 【Individual Information: Plant Type — Earth Ink Moss】
“Just like the last time I investigated, they’re still useless~”
“Just plant them for now~”
The newly opened fields were far from the Qingmu Sheng Sheng Grass, so there was no Spiritual Qi. Li Zhuo could only bury a few Spirit Stones to ensure these plants grew quickly.
After taking care of these matters, Li Zhuo stretched, then opened the sound transmission jade talisman and asked Zhao Xier in detail about the small Alchemy Family.
“Heh heh, it’s practically tailor-made for me.”
“Now is not the time, I haven’t Broken through yet, so I can’t cheat with Puppet Soldiers.”
“Moreover, providing help in times of need is always better than adding to what is already plentiful~”
“Next, I’ll focus on Cultivation~”
With that, he sat cross-legged under the Daosheng Qingwen Banyan, circulating his Cultivation Technique, breathing in the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.
The blessings of various treasures allowed him to focus without distractions.
Little Butterfly quietly perched on a withered tree, observing a small courtyard not far away.
The courtyard was very small and seemed to have been temporarily built, not at all like an Immortal Cultivation Family.
But Divine Hidden Butterfly knew that this small courtyard contained the Alchemy methods needed by its master and required real-time observation.
Divine Hidden Butterfly was very patient. Except for searching for food late at night, it spent all other times perched on the tree, quietly observing.
After three months of perching, it had completely understood the situation of the small courtyard.
Currently, only two people lived in the small courtyard.
A dark-skinned young man and his pale-faced younger sister, who was seriously ill.
Of course, according to the master, they should be called Little Black and Little White.
Little Black went out hunting every day to provide food for the two; Little White, dragging her sick body, tinkered with the Pill Furnace placed in the courtyard.
The two had, of course, tried Alchemy, but it always ended in failure.
On this day, Little Black, as usual, got up early to go hunting, while Little White took out a tattered small booklet, then used charcoal to write and draw, sometimes nodding, sometimes frowning, as if studying something.
Divine Hidden Butterfly watched quietly, a bad premonition rising in its heart, because Little Black had been gone for too long.
It immediately sent a message to Li Zhuo, reporting the situation here.
“Go quickly and find Little Black, he cannot die.”
Upon receiving the order, Divine Hidden Butterfly immediately flapped its wings, ready to go out and search, but suddenly smelled a faint scent of blood, coming from far away and getting closer.
It concealed itself and watched quietly.
Sure enough, Little Black was seen carrying an injured dog, his expression quite excited.
Upon closer inspection, Little Black also held a tender green Spiritual Plant in his hand.
“Little sister, look what I found?”
Hearing her brother’s excited voice, Little White immediately looked up, but suddenly saw a large wound on her brother’s arm: “Brother, cough, cough, cough, are you injured?”
Little Black casually wiped the wound, not caring, but instead held up the Spiritual Plant in his hand: “Look, Water Sand Grass, maybe it can work?”
Little White bit her lip lightly, took out a white cloth strip, and, forcing back her slightly trembling body, came before her brother, carefully bandaging his wound: “Brother, you, cough, cough, cough, you can’t do this anymore.”
“Hehe~ It’s fine! Our clothes are Magical Artifacts, they can help me ward off disaster~” Little Black handed the Water Sand Grass to Little White and said, “Try it, maybe this time we can really refine a Qingyan Pill~”
“Mm.” Little White took the Water Sand Grass with both hands, then pulled out the booklet to write and draw again.
Little Black, meanwhile, dragged the dog into the courtyard and began to skin and butcher it.
Not long after, the scent of meat wafted through the courtyard.
At the same time, Little White finally held up the small booklet and happily exclaimed: “Brother, this time it really seems possible~ Compared to the previous Pill Formula, there’s about a ten percent chance~”
Listening to his sister’s words, Little Black’s expression also showed a slight change.
He was about to say something when he suddenly heard a stranger’s voice from outside the door.
“Alas, Wang Family siblings, you—”
A Disciple dressed in a Zhengyang Sect robe quietly walked in.
He looked up and down at Little Black and Little White, then at the simple small courtyard, and sighed softly: “I told you before to stay far away from here, why didn’t you listen?”
Seeing the newcomer, Little Black opened his mouth and said:
“I, my little sister’s body can’t walk for long. The Wang Family indeed accepted the Zhengyang Sect’s protection, and we siblings are very grateful, but, but we really—”
“According to the Sect’s rules, protected forces should regularly submit a certain amount of Spirit Stones or corresponding treasures and Medicinal Pills. Your Wang Family already owes—”
“I know, we already owe a lot, but the Wang Family’s ancestral land has already been given to your Zhengyang Sect.”
“Not enough!”
The Zhengyang Sect Disciple’s tone became a few shades sterner. He looked at Little Black and Little White, then finally sighed secretly and continued: “The Spiritual Vein of the Wang Family’s ancestral land has dried up and has no value at all. The Sect’s target is it.”
The Zhengyang Sect Disciple pointed to the Pill Furnace in the courtyard.
“No, no, only this Pill Furnace can refine the Qingyan Pill to cure my little sister’s illness!”
“Don’t you understand? That’s not an illness!”
This Zhengyang Sect Disciple seemed to know the Wang Family quite well. Hearing Little Black say this, his anger surged, and he reprimanded: “Your ancestors, in order to become Alchemists, used a secret method to introduce a wisp of Heavenly Fire into their bodies! Since then, the Wang Family has had Fire Spiritual Roots for generations! But the problem is, along with the Spiritual Root, there is also dense fire poison! To suppress the fire poison, your Wang Family generations need to take Qingyan Pills, but where is the Pill Formula?”
“The Pill Formula, the Pill Formula is lost.”
“Nonsense! One generation of your Wang Family, and that precious Pill Formula, all of them—”
Looking at the expressions of the Wang Family siblings, the Zhengyang Sect Cultivator ultimately did not continue.
After a while, he spoke, trying to persuade them: “The fire poison has accumulated over generations. With the current condition of you two siblings, you simply cannot use your Fire Spiritual Roots, and naturally cannot successfully refine Medicinal Pills. To take ten thousand steps back, do you really think the Qingyan Pill can suppress the fire poison in your bodies?”
Little Black and Little White were speechless.
Of course, they knew that what the person in front of them said was very reasonable, but the Qingyan Pill was the Wang Family’s only hope. They dared not think this way, nor could they.
Otherwise, endless despair would quickly consume their lives.
“It’s still the same. As long as you hand over that Pill Furnace, the Zhengyang Sect can continue to protect you. Although it cannot cure your fire poison, it can at least make you more comfortable during your final journey.”
“We, we—”
The Wang Family siblings exchanged glances, still shaking their heads firmly.
They chose that sliver of distant hope.
“Alas, do as you please.” The Zhengyang Sect Cultivator waved his hand and actually turned around and left directly.
“It’s estimated that in about a month, someone else will come to urge you. He won’t be as easy to talk to as I am! Remember, you can’t run around, or he won’t be able to find you.”
“Alas, the Dao of Cultivation—”
Leaving this sentence, the Zhengyang Sect Cultivator disappeared far into the distance.
Little Black looked back at his sister, forcing a smile: “He—he might not be telling the truth. As long as we refine the Qingyan Pill—”
“Mm, I know.” Little White nodded.
After another period of silence, the two each drank a bowl of meat broth, but both felt it tasted like chewing wax.
“Brother, let’s find another place. A month should be enough to go very far.”
“But your body—”
“It’s fine, I’ve felt much better recently.”
“Good.”
Divine Hidden Butterfly watched quietly, occasionally reporting about the siblings to Li Zhuo.
Upon hearing that the two were about to leave, Li Zhuo was startled and quickly instructed Little Butterfly:
“Find a way to stop them. I only need half a month to Break through, and then I can solve their problems!”
“Yes!”