Mysteries of Immortal Puppet Master

Chapter 1487: Chapter 609: Postwar Strategy (2)

"Strange, yet wonderful..." Ning Zhuo marveled.

This magic fell into the hands of Flowing Gold Guest as a mechanism to disassemble Ning Zhuo’s traps. But in Ning Zhuo’s hands, it became a reference for mechanism defense, filling gaps on the fly, and countering enemy mechanisms.

The Nine Orifice Blood Gold Embryo was the most unique of all.

Ning Zhuo did not rashly refine it but observed it through the Cold Jade Sealing Box. It appeared like a golden-red heart, with blood gold essence liquid slowly coagulating in all nine orifices. It was far more beneficial to Flowing Gold Guest than ordinary magical treasures or elixir pills. One could even say that Flowing Gold Guest was able to hold on until the end in the second battle largely thanks to this embryo.

"Unfortunately, it doesn’t suit me."

Ning Zhuo was well aware in his heart.

The Nine Orifice Blood Gold Embryo and the Golden Liquid Returning Pill Body were too compatible, almost tailor-made for the Flowing Gold Guest. The Flowing Gold Guest had his Upper Dantian disappear, his Divine Sense, Divine Consciousness, and physical golden blood were fused, making him unable to skillfully use most magical treasures. Yet this item did not follow the conventional path of magical treasures, instead acting as a second blood gold heart, directly nourishing the golden blood.

For Flowing Gold Guest, this was a key treasure for sustainability.

For Ning Zhuo, it was more of a material for research.

He gently closed the Cold Jade Box, his mind beginning to review the second battle.

"As expected, the greatest weakness of Flowing Gold Guest still lies in the Divine Sense."

The Flowing Gold Guest had Golden Core cultivation, the Golden Liquid Returning Pill Body, the Nine Orifice Blood Gold Embryo, and the support of various factions. But he lacked the Upper Dantian of a normal cultivator, unable to precisely control most magical treasures. As a result, his support means relied primarily on talismans, elixir pills, semi-automatic magical treasures, and personal exotic treasures.

This meant the Flowing Gold Guest had limited changes.

He could be tougher, more aggressive, and consume more energy, but it was difficult to truly become more complex or have a qualitative change in his methods.

"In this battle, my victory lay in ’anticipating the enemy first.’"

Ning Zhuo prepared a Magic Pool, a Soul Absorption Box, a Cloud Tide Replenishing Talisman, and Five Qi Returning Essence Pills in advance, all of which proved useful. Without these sustainability methods, he wouldn’t have lasted until the Defensive Wheel Slash Formation took shape.

But Ning Zhuo had to admit: purely in terms of sustainability, he still couldn’t match the Flowing Gold Guest under the enhancement of the Nine Orifice Blood Gold Embryo.

His sustainability was patched together in segments, relying on external support. In contrast, the Flowing Gold Guest’s sustainability seemed to grow from deep within, with each beat of the Nine Orifice Blood Gold Embryo providing rejuvenation throughout his body. Such recovery was immediate, highly compatible, and required almost no additional adjustments.

"In the previous battle, I employed a war of attrition to win. In this battle, I relied on the disparity in strength."

"And what widened the gap in strength between me and the Flowing Gold Guest was the Defensive Wheel Slash Formation!"

Ning Zhuo’s Divine Sense swept through the storage waist belt. The knife, sword, axe, and hook, four Golden Core level Mystic Armor pieces, still retained their awe-inspiring presence, their edges keen. The Old Cold Leg and other older Mystic Armor pieces bore wounds, some densely cracked, others with dimmed spirit light, yet they floated quietly, like veterans who had fought in hard battles.

From just this one battle, the Defensive Wheel Slash Formation had already transformed, elevating to a viable card on the table.

Defense and offense alternated, with a stable core and the ability for flexible assaults. Protect oneself first, then strike the enemy in turns. The most wonderful aspect was its ability to change formation mid-battle, using the enemy’s strength to transition into the next round of attack. The closer Flowing Gold Guest engaged in fierce combat, the more the battle formation absorbed, transformed, and counter-slashed his attacks.

"The boss’s Array Realm and Luoshu, truly handy!"

"As for Mystic Armor, I still need to purchase more."

Ning Zhuo then lamented over "tribulation fate."

The tribulation fate upon him garnered far more than participating in Xingyun Trials could ever provide!

Especially now, as he was in the limelight, making it easy for others to set traps during the Xingyun Trials, so carving out another path was better.

Ning Zhuo’s original intention was to join the Myriad Images Sect and find the most suitable position.

Now, establishing a village and attacking the peak was more likely to achieve this goal than participating in the Xingyun Trial!

"But I cannot abandon the Xingyun Trial either."

"I need to select the appropriate ones to quickly participate, claim the first prize, continuously upgrade my token, and maintain a top-tier position among genius cultivators."

Sun Lingtong returned to the cave mansion.

The shadow in the corner of the study flickered slightly, and he silently emerged, his form agile, landing soundlessly.

Upon appearing, he saw the array of treasures on the desk, his eyes immediately lighting up.

"Yo!" Sun Lingtong said in a low voice, "Little Zhuo, your plan worked, eh? Flowing Gold Guest was plucked by you from head to toe, wasn’t he?"

Ning Zhuo chuckled lightly, completely relaxing in front of Sun Lingtong.

He then took out an item and handed it to Sun Lingtong.

"Huaibei?" Sun Lingtong lowered his voice, reaching out to take it in his hand. He gently stroked it with his fingertips, unable to suppress the smile on his face, "The one Gu Huaijiu gave you?"

Ning Zhuo nodded, "This item can sense nearby treasures. Keeping it with me makes it stand out. Boss, you’re more suited to it as you move in the shadows."

Sun Lingtong turned Huaibei over a couple of times, his grin growing wider.

Between him and Ning Zhuo, there wasn’t much room for polite refusal. If an average person obtained such a treasure, they’d feign modesty and refuse it a few times. But Sun Lingtong simply chuckled, stored it in his robe, and patted his chest.

"Alright, I’ll take this thing."

He said it confidently and assertively.

"With your abundance of treasures, it’s not suitable for you to keep it in your hands. You’re absolutely right; with Huaibei, it will be much easier for me to find treasures and paths."

Sun Lingtong’s eyes flashed with brilliance, his voice dropping even lower, "Regarding the matter of the Demon Cultivator’s soul, I’m keeping watch for you. There should be results soon."

Ning Zhuo then took out the sword embryo given by Situ Xing.

A small sword of three inches, deep blue with silver star patterns flowing across the blade like a frozen swath of the starry river. Ning Zhuo handed it over, "Boss, this item isn’t bad either. If you need to use it..."

Sun Lingtong immediately waved his hands.

"No, no, no."

"I don’t want this.

"I already have a small knife that’s more suitable for me than a flying sword."

"Besides, this is a sword embryo. It requires Mana cultivation with the practitioner and sword becoming one. It takes too long, and I don’t want to use it. With that time, I’d rather take Huaibei, explore more treasure sites, and get more practical things for us."

Ning Zhuo couldn’t help but laugh.

He could only store away the sword embryo.

Sun Lingtong said, "Little Zhuo, now that you’ve defeated Flowing Gold Guest again and openly provoked the major forces of Flowing Cloud Peak, what should we do next?"

The flickering light illuminated the objects on the table, such as the Alarm Whistle, Thousand Weight Plunge, and Breakup Blade Talisman, with fluctuating brightness. They were like chess pieces, or hands extending from the shadows.

After a long time, Ning Zhuo finally said, "The line regarding Flowing Gold Guest has already forced out a lot. The factions at Flowing Cloud Peak cannot stay still any longer, and it’s not just one side acting, but multiple forces combined."

Sun Lingtong added, "Bird and Beast Manor, Territorial Expansion Alliance, Thunder Cloud Association, Broken Water Blade Pavilion, Golden Stone Alliance... and from Suspended Pot Residence, the Nine Orifice Blood Gold Embryo. Tsk, no one wants you to ascend the mountain smoothly."

Ning Zhuo replied, "Precisely because of that, we cannot rush."

Sun Lingtong raised his eyebrows, "You just publicly declared that you’ve set your sights on Flowing Cloud Peak."

Ning Zhuo smiled faintly, "That was for them to hear."

Sun Lingtong laughed.

Ning Zhuo continued, "The momentum must be strong, but actions steady. Although Nanming Village looks imposing upon establishment, internally, it has yet to truly integrate. If we rashly assault the peak at this moment, a single defeat would cause unrest among the cultivators in the village."

"As long as we don’t attack Flowing Cloud Peak, we maintain the initiative."

Sun Lingtong frowned slightly, "Flowing Cloud Peak won’t sit idly. They’ll surely manipulate public opinion. How do we address this?"

Ning Zhuo shrugged, "Simple, our Nanming Fire Furnace hasn’t been repaired yet. How can we fully win hearts and ascend the peak?"

Sun Lingtong paused, then burst into laughter.

He gave a thumbs up, "Truly brilliant, Little Zhuo."

Ning Zhuo also smiled, "Boss, I need you to spread some news for me."

Sun Lingtong’s eyes flickered with interest, his grin widening, "Let’s hear the details."

Ning Zhuo said, "Spread the word that although Nanming Village hasn’t assaulted the peak yet, the forces at Flowing Cloud Peak are already anxious. The Thunder Cloud Association, Bird and Beast Manor, Territorial Expansion Alliance, Broken Water Blade Pavilion, Golden Stone Alliance, Suspended Pot Residence, etc., are all eagerly supporting Flowing Gold Guest, hoping he challenges me a third time to hinder me, which is essentially hindering the entire Nanming Village."

"After all, I am the master of the Nanming Fire Furnace and everyone’s debtor; I am the true core."