Mysteries of Immortal Puppet Master

The Mechanical Carriage.

Ning Zhuo gazed intently at the Tree Martial Battle Ape, Dasheng, sitting beside him.

Today's results from leaving the city were far more bountiful than expected.

First, Ning Zhuo showcased the Tree Martial Battle Ape, Dasheng, to the outside world, demonstrating the outcome of him collecting Yuan Dasheng's corpse.

Although none of the materials from Yuan Dasheng's corpse were used in the creation of the Tree Martial Battle Ape, Dasheng, this didn’t matter.

Ning Zhuo could easily explain it this way: his initial mechanical creations were prototypes, requiring continuous improvements. Only after obtaining a mature design would he truly use Yuan Dasheng's bones as the primary material.

Second, Ning Zhuo tested the combat capabilities of the Tree Martial Battle Ape, Dasheng, through actual combat and indeed discovered many areas that could be improved and optimized.

"The Tree Martial Battle Ape, Dasheng, needs more slots for talisman inscriptions. Six slots are not enough to fully display Yuan Dasheng's martial prowess."

On this point, Ning Zhuo had to admit that he had underestimated Yuan Dasheng!

The Tree Martial Battle Ape had already been constructed with the most flexible skeleton. Since it was built using a jointed method, almost every bone could move.

Thus, from the very foundation of its design, it allowed Yuan Dasheng to freely perform all sorts of maneuvers.

However, in actual combat, many of Yuan Dasheng's martial techniques required other components to unleash their full power.

The design of the Tree Martial Battle Ape, Dasheng, lacked an array layout. This was mainly because Ning Zhuo didn’t have the time; setting up formations was far more complex and precise.

Ning Zhuo could only use a combination of talismans to fill the mechanical contraption's power as much as possible to meet Yuan Dasheng's combat needs.

Thirdly, Ning Zhuo discovered a way to enhance his control over Yuan Dasheng!

And that was through Yuan Er.

When Yuan Er was being assassinated, Yuan Dasheng grew restless. Under Ning Zhuo's command, it joined the rescue operation. This action perfectly aligned with its spiritual nature!

When Ning Zhuo gave the command, dozens of sheets of parchment flew off. After Yuan Dasheng killed several assassins and drove the rest away, more than thirty sheets of parchment were lifted away.

"If Yuan Er were assassinated a few more times, and I used the Tree Martial Battle Ape, Dasheng, to rescue him each time, wouldn't that achieve the desired result?"

That was exactly what Ning Zhuo thought at the time.

So, he intentionally let the remaining assassins escape.

"If those assassins don't take action, I can stage a few assassination attempts myself."

"After all, Yuan Er is hiding in the Monkey Head Gang's stronghold; he's easy to find."

"This time, after being ambushed and assassinated, he must have realized there's a traitor within the gang. He won't trust anyone anymore and will just cower in the depths of the gang’s headquarters, living in constant fear, barely surviving."

"Who would've thought that such a person could still be of use?"

"Well…"

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"If rescuing Yuan Er from these assassination attempts isn’t enough for me to fully control Yuan Dasheng, then what if I dig up Yuan Yi's grave?"

"If I rob the grave in front of the Tree Martial Battle Ape, Dasheng, and then order it to stop me, that should also align with its spiritual nature, right?"

"Well…"

"I could also find some people to attack the Monkey Head Gang, let the Tree Martial Battle Ape, Dasheng, see it, and then intervene. After all, this was its enterprise in life, maybe that could work too."

Inspired, Ning Zhuo's thoughts began to flow, and he came up with many ideas.

He felt a surge of joy and couldn’t help but show a pure smile.

"Actually, it's quite simple to align with the spiritual nature."

"You just need to find the real needs."

The carriage drove from the Monkey Head Gang's base towards the Ning family's estate.

"Perhaps I should go directly to the Zheng family? My uncle's place doesn’t have a good workshop for mechanical creations."

Ning Zhuo changed his route halfway, but ended up facing a closed door when he arrived at the Zheng family.

The Zheng family informed him that they were currently hosting distinguished guests and could not accommodate him, asking for his understanding.

"What kind of distinguished guests?" Ning Zhuo felt a bit disappointed and had no choice but to return home.

On the way back, he made a detour to check on his small courtyard home.

Since the last attack and explosion, his residence had turned into ruins. However, construction had started again on the same day.

Now, seeing it, the foundation of the house was already rebuilt. The protective formation around the house was several levels higher than before, and thanks to the Ning family’s connections, it could directly link with the grand formation of the entire Puppet Immortal City.

Ning Zhuo returned to the Ning family estate.

A family envoy had been waiting for him to return the items he had previously been given before his outing. The most valuable of these was the Directional Escape Talisman.

Ning Zhuo sighed inwardly as he handed everything back.

Ning Xiaoren received the envoy's report, confirming that the life-saving items had returned to the family treasury, and felt relieved.

He also received first-hand intelligence from the guards, leaving him with mixed feelings.

"This Ning Zhuo really is a mechanical prodigy!"

"The previous Mechanical Explosive Monkey was already quite impressive, and now he’s designed the combat mechanism, the Tree Martial Battle Ape, Dasheng, with extraordinary combat power!"

"The stronger he becomes, the more he can help the Ning family in the three families' alliance."

"However… can Ning Xiaohui continue to hold him down?"

As the main branch, Ning Xiaoren naturally leaned towards Ning Xiaohui, with Ning Zhuo being part of the side branch.

After some thought, he decided to pass this information to Ning Xiaohui's grandmother.

Ning Xiaohui's grandmother was currently overseeing Ning Xiaohui's secret training.

Ning Xiaohui still had layers of bandages wrapped around her throat. Her gaze was focused as she stared at the basin filled with ice in front of her.

She had plunged her hands into the ice and had kept them there for the duration of an incense stick's burning!

The bone-chilling cold invaded her entire body through her hands.

At first, she trembled all over, her face covered in frost.

Later, her hands turned blue and purple, and her body became numb from the cold.

And now, in this final moment, she felt a hint of warmth emerging from her frozen, numbed hands!

It was as if, in a land of extreme cold, a seed of life was hidden within thousands of layers of ice, stubbornly sprouting a green bud.

Ning Xiaohui suddenly had a flash of inspiration and experienced an epiphany on the spot.

Her hands began to emit a jade-like glow, instantly absorbing all the frostbite and cold in her body, transforming it into a surge of vigorous vitality that flowed back into her.

In the next moment, Ning Xiaohui radiated with renewed energy, and all the injuries and coldness throughout her body were completely healed!

Even her damaged throat recovered as if it had never been hurt.

"Grandmother, I did it!" Ning Xiaohui exclaimed, tearing off the bandages around her neck, leaping with joy.

Her grandmother stood beside her, witnessing her granddaughter's breakthrough with great relief, her eyes moistening, "Good, good, good, grandmother saw it all. You truly are my good granddaughter."

"You should now have grasped the essence of the Ice Jade Hand technique."

Ning Xiaohui carefully considered her words, "It feels like a trace of vitality born from extreme cold, a transformation after reaching the limit."

Her grandmother nodded and slowly said, "All things in heaven and earth possess spiritual nature."

"A cultivator's talent is the inherent spiritual nature they are born with. There is an infinite variety of spiritual natures, just as there is an endless variety of talents."

"The reason I had you immerse your hands in ice was to help you, through this arduous training, experience the vitality that persists even under extreme cold."

"As the saying goes, ‘Heaven never seals off all exits!' There is no truly hopeless situation in the world, and even in the most despairing circumstances, there is a glimmer of hope."

"This is the principle of the universe's operation, the truth we cultivators seek, and the essence contained within the Ice Jade Hand technique."

"Here is a message that just came from the young clan leader. Take a look."

Ning Xiaohui glanced at it, "I didn’t expect Ning Zhuo to have such talent. The previous Mechanical Explosive Monkey wasn’t his limit, and he’s already created another excellent mechanical ape."

"However, that’s nothing special."

Her grandmother nodded, "Indeed."

"Xiaohui, now that you’ve grasped the basics of the Ice Jade Hand, your strength will improve rapidly."

"Although you’ve switched to cultivating the Five Elements Qi Regulation Art, the water element within the Five Elements Mana can complement your innate talent."

"Moreover, the earth element and wood element within the Five Elements Mana are also good matches for the Ice Jade Hand."

"If in the future, you obtain the advanced techniques that follow the Five Elements Qi Regulation Art and surpass the limits of our clan's primary cultivation method, the *Ice Heart Sutra*, then for you, switching cultivation paths will be the better option."

"Ning Zhuo is not a threat."

"Even if he has talent, our clan won’t test it now."

"And even if it is tested in the future, he will struggle to

find good ways to develop his talent."

"Take this training of yours as an example. Grandmother specially blocked information for you. In fact, the essence of the Ice Jade Hand technique had long been recorded in the family’s ancient texts."

"If you had read them in advance, it would have been a huge obstacle to your true understanding during arduous training."

"Only by personally experiencing the vitality in extreme cold and despair can you further master your talent."

"This is the heritage of our family!"

"Ning Zhuo's talent clearly isn't one common in our Ning family bloodline. Without the guidance and support of the family's predecessors, he will inevitably take many detours in the future."

"The future is yours, Xiaohui."

Ning Xiaohui nodded, "Not just the future, even the present is mine!"

"Once I’ve fully mastered the Ice Jade Hand, I will return to the team of re-cultivators and show everyone the grandeur of the Ning family’s main branch!"

…

Accompanied by Wang Lan, Ning Zhuo entered Ning Ze's talisman crafting room.

He glanced around and sighed, "With some modifications, this place could still be usable."

Wang Lan, harboring frustration in her heart, forced a smile on her face, "Zhuo, as long as it’s helpful to you, that’s good."

"Unfortunately, I’m just a woman who doesn’t understand mechanical arts. Your uncle is much better at this than I am."

"If he were home, he would surely be of more help to you."

Wang Lan subtly reminded Ning Zhuo that his uncle was still imprisoned in the private dungeon.

Ning Zhuo acted as if he didn’t notice. He took out various mechanical crafting tools from his storage bag, clearing out some of the talisman crafting room's facilities, and temporarily transformed it into a simple mechanical workshop.

Wang Lan watched and even assisted throughout the process, feeling increasingly bitter and indignant, thinking that the servants were lording over their masters and that despicable people were in power. Yet, she could only swallow her feelings.

Ning Zhuo asked Wang Lan to leave, wanting to be alone. He then set out the Tree Martial Battle Ape, Dasheng, and began disassembling it.

The main modification he made was to increase the number of slots for talisman inscriptions.

After some hammering and chiseling, Yuan Dasheng's talisman slots increased from six to ten.

"Next, I’ll refine the various talismans and adjust their combinations. That should basically meet Yuan Dasheng's martial technique requirements."