Chapter 8 A Sense of Crisis

The enchanting woman nodded: "I understand. I always thought the Daxia world wasn't that strong. For example, the Beishan world has three true immortals and celestial gods."

"The Daxia world has immense fortune, ranking among the top in the Three Realms. How could such a world, fully unified, be weaker than the Beishan world?" The cave master shook his head. "You must know that in any unified world, either the ruler's own strength is extremely great, or his background is very significant."

"Oh, then Master... how do we deal with this Ji Ning?" the enchanting woman asked.

"He has learned the Eighty-Nine Arcane Arts, so his master must be one of the most supreme Dao Ancestors." The cave master smiled coldly. "But... no matter who his master is, it's definitely not on our side. If this Ji Ning is allowed to grow in the Daxia world, it will only cause greater trouble. It's best to kill him! Even the Dao Ancestor behind him would have to think twice about whether it's worth getting involved for a disciple."

"How do we kill him?" the enchanting woman pressed.

"Our Ten Thousand Demons Cave specializes in refining puppets; fighting and killing are not our business. Killing some enemies is a merit, but not fighting is as it should be." The cave master laughed. "This Ji Ning is a tough nut, since even Buchasi couldn't handle him. Leave it to the Netherwater Gate. Disciple, go and see the Netherwater Gate master on my behalf, and have them eliminate this variable Ji Ning as soon as possible."

"Yes." The enchanting woman respectfully accepted the order.

Then she left the hall.

This city was very large, divided into many areas, and heavily guarded. The enchanting woman was the beloved disciple of the Ten Thousand Demons Cave master, with status comparable to an ordinary celestial immortal. She soon arrived at the nearby camp of the Netherwater Gate.

The Daxia Dynasty had been searching for the Netherwater Gate's lair but had never found it.

Because...

The Netherwater Gate's lair was right here in the 'Fifth World'. The Fifth World was so powerful that even a celestial immortal who dared to barge in would be killed instantly; a true immortal or celestial god could escape if they fled immediately. But if they dared to force their way in, they would likely die.

In the high sky of the city, figures could often be seen flying. Those who dared to fly in the Fifth World city were at least celestial immortals. The number of celestial immortals here... just those visible in the sky at ordinary times numbered over ten thousand, and the total in the entire city was astonishingly high.

Whether it was the Ten Thousand Demons Cave master or the Netherwater Gate master, they were merely a very small force within the Fifth World.

...

"Nücan pays respects to the Gate Master." The enchanting woman said respectfully.

"What is it?" A woman in a green robe, with loose hair, sat cross-legged with eyes closed, silently. She was the Netherwater Gate master. Beside her stood two maidservants.

The enchanting woman said respectfully: "This matter involves a person named Ji Ning..." Then she explained everything clearly from beginning to end.

"Your master and I have the same task: the three worlds of Daxia, Beishan, and Qumeng." The green-robed woman opened her eyes and said calmly. "Among them, the Daxia world is the hardest to invade, but your Ten Thousand Demons Cave has made a mistake this time, making this task even more difficult. Now you want my Netherwater Gate to clean up your mess. But since your master has spoken, I will accept it. Go back and tell him... tell him... Old Crow, if you can't even handle refining puppets, it's time to find someone else."

The enchanting woman's expression changed.

But she dared not talk back and respectfully replied: "Yes."

"Go." The green-robed woman said indifferently.

The enchanting woman immediately withdrew.

The green-robed woman then instructed: "Zicao."

"Gate Master." One of the maidservants, a girl with purple patterns on her face, quickly responded respectfully.

"You heard just now. The matter of Ji Ning is yours to handle. How to arrange it, how to do it, all up to you. You've been with me for so many years, and you're very familiar with the Daxia situation. Although this matter is troublesome, I believe you can do it well." The green-robed woman's tone became much gentler, showing her affection for her maidservant.

"Gate Master, rest assured. I know Ji Ning very well and have plenty of ways to deal with him." Zicao said respectfully.

"Good, go prepare and then head to the Daxia world." The green-robed woman ordered.

That same day.

A girl in a golden robe embroidered with purple flowers, leading nine celestial immortals, quietly left the Fifth World and arrived at the Daxia world.

...

Within Anchan Commandery, on a wasteland hundreds of thousands of miles from Anchan City, there was a beautiful lake with a wooden cabin by its side.

The sky was now even darker.

Two figures appeared in the high sky and then descended.

"Xiaoxia, we're back." Mu Zishuo said softly, holding the Longhun Jade Sphere in both hands.

"The grass here was all broken and messy back then, but now it's grown back." The woman inside the sphere spoke, also very happy. "Luckily that battle back then didn't reach our home."

Mu Zishuo looked at the wooden cabin.

That wooden cabin was built by their own hands, cutting down trees. Mu Zishuo had used some puppet-refining techniques on it, so even after more than twenty years, the cabin remained intact, and even those with weak strength couldn't enter it.

"It didn't reach us, but that's because we were too weak, so those black-robed men easily captured us." Mu Zishuo also smiled.

"Finally free, finally left that place. Zishuo, from now on we won't have so many worries." The woman in the sphere was filled with joy.

Ji Ning silently watched from the side.

He sighed inwardly.

Originally, his plan was to let 'Yuxia's soul' reincarnate into the Ji clan, then have Mu Zishuo take care of the reincarnated Yuxia, and later find a way to awaken her past life memories! Such a thing was still within Ji Ning's ability, since the original Six Paths of Reincarnation had collapsed, and the great powers had built their own reincarnation cycles in their territories.

Each of these reincarnation cycles was a small one.

For example, the reincarnation cycle in the 'Xieyue world' was a small one. With some effort, he could arrange for Yuxia to reincarnate into the Ji clan and even identify which baby in the clan she would become.

"What a pity..." Ji Ning thought to himself. "She can no longer reincarnate, forever trapped in the Longhun Jade Sphere. Perhaps what sustains Yuxia is her feelings for my junior brother and some attachment to the mortal world."

"Senior brother." Mu Zishuo walked over.

"Junior brother." Ji Ning looked at his junior brother. He could sense that although his junior brother still had some guilt and pain, he now had a new vitality, no longer as gloomy as before.

"If it weren't for you, senior brother, I would have died there." Mu Zishuo said. "You don't need to worry about me anymore. Go back. If you have matters in the future, just come and see me here."

"The Daxia world is now full of undercurrents, and you are a puppet grandmaster. How can I be at ease?" Ji Ning said quickly.

"Really, there's no need. I am at least a returned void earth immortal. If I'm careful, I'll be fine." Mu Zishuo said.

Ji Ning frowned, then flipped his hand and produced some storage treasures. With a wave, six massive puppets appeared beside him. Some were like turtles, some like winged bird-men, some like eight-clawed strange snakes... a total of six puppets.

"These are some puppets I obtained from killing those Bronze Demon Guards and that Qu Huan. They all seem quite powerful." Ji Ning said. "Pick the one that suits you best and can increase your strength the most."

Mu Zishuo looked and his gaze fell on the winged puppet. He exclaimed in surprise: "Winged Immortal? How can there be a Winged Immortal? Ordinary Bronze Demon Guards aren't qualified to have a Winged Immortal?"

"Winged Immortal?" Ji Ning was also curious.

"This is the second-ranked puppet in the forbidden area." Mu Zishuo said. "See its wings? Its wings can release 'Seven Cyclone Wind and Thunder', and it's extremely fast! Even a loose immortal or earth immortal, with the Winged Immortal, would immediately have the strength of a celestial immortal. But its main use is to release the Seven Cyclone Wind and Thunder and then flee. In war, its value is very high."

Mu Zishuo only knew how to refine puppets but didn't fully understand their actual value.

Ji Ning, however, understood clearly. From his junior brother's description, he inferred that this puppet might be comparable to a 'mid-grade pure yang treasure'.

"The others are weaker; it would take four or five of them together to match the Winged Immortal." Mu Zishuo said.

Ji Ning immediately deduced—

Each of the others was worth about a low-grade pure yang treasure.

"Truly wealthy. Every Bronze Demon Guard has at least one puppet. The net worth of an ordinary celestial immortal is probably about the same." Ji Ning thought.

But Ji Ning was mistaken. He thought they were worth a low-grade pure yang treasure, but that was the selling price in the Three Realms. In reality, for the mysterious force, it was just a matter of some materials, which probably cost only ten percent of the selling price. For a truly top-tier puppet, the 'array diagram' was far more valuable. Without a detailed array diagram, no matter how good the materials, it couldn't be refined.

"Junior brother, keep this Winged Immortal." Ji Ning said.

Mu Zishuo was shocked and quickly said: "Senior brother, this Winged Immortal would be very useful to you..." Ji Ning had already saved his life, and he was extremely grateful. How could he accept this now?

"Haha, junior brother, I can come and go freely in that forbidden area, and even that general couldn't do anything to me. This Winged Immortal puppet might be important to others, but it's not very useful to me. If I kept it, I would just sell it." Ji Ning shook his head and laughed. This was the truth. With his Eighty-Nine Arcane Arts, his life-preserving abilities were far superior.

"But..."

"If you don't accept it, how can I be at ease? Enough, no more nonsense. I'm leaving." Ji Ning waved his hand, put away the other puppets, and with a flicker, he vanished.

Mu Zishuo held the Longhun Jade Sphere and murmured: "Senior brother."

"Zishuo, your senior brother has helped us a lot. Keep it in your heart." The woman in the sphere said.

"Mm." Mu Zishuo nodded.

...

In the darkness, Ji Ning watched as Mu Zishuo refined the Winged Immortal puppet, then sat at the door of the wooden cabin, holding the jade sphere, gazing at the lake, occasionally speaking with the sphere. This scene made Ji Ning's heart ache, and then he truly left.

"Time to go to the Daxia capital."

"This time, I saved my junior brother but provoked that mysterious force. I need to get the 'Five Elements treasures' as soon as possible and complete the fourth stage of my Star Picking Hand." Ji Ning felt a sense of crisis, which urged him to strengthen his power quickly!

...