"It’s these dual-cultivation evil path sects that are interesting—creating spirit puppets so lifelike. This buttocks, this waist, these legs, heh heh....."
The disrespectful Saint’s Remnant Soul ogled the departing figure of the stone-carved woman, clicking his tongue in amazement.
Xu Yuan’s eyes twitched at the comment,
this old fellow isn’t human anymore, so no harm done.
Xu Yuan chuckled and gave him a glance:
"Old Man Luo, you really have extravagant tastes, but isn’t this stone-carved woman a Spiritual Charm?"
A Spiritual Charm—a naturally born oddity, which included famed swords that harbored Sword Spirits within.
Of course, although they were said to be naturally born, as the path of cultivation developed over time, and cultivators unraveled the mysteries within, Spiritual Charms could then be artificially created.
The Enchantress Divine Sakura Tree was such.
By employing artificial means, the soul of the Saintess Yuchu was infused into the Enchantress Divine Sakura Tree.
This method appeared evil, but in fact, the soul-refining technique itself was not inherently aligned with good or evil.
Nowadays in the Dayan Empire, there would be officials whose lives were nearing their end, or esteemed elders well-regarded in society who would willingly be transformed into Spiritual Charms, offered to temples such as the City God Temple or Mountain God Temple to protect the peace of the region.
Upon hearing the question, the Saint’s Remnant Soul glanced at Xu Yuan and said with a light laugh:
"If she truly were a Spiritual Charm, she would have attacked you the moment you met. How could you, a man, be the Saintess? Only a spirit puppet would follow the rules such meticulously."
Xu Yuan pondered briefly and nodded:
The corner of the Saint’s Remnant Soul’s mouth curled up in a smile:
"Back in my day, when I consulted the ancient texts in Jiatiange Pavilion, I learned that many disciples of the flourishing Hehuan Sect liked to cultivate a spirit puppet to accompany them—useful at all times, day or night. Now that I see it myself, it does seem rather practical. Xu boy, is there a way for you to take this Second Grade spirit puppet with you?"
Xu Yuan rolled his eyes:
Could you possibly kidnap the boss from its room?
Seeing his reaction, the Saint’s Remnant Soul sighed softly and murmured:
"Such a pity, if this spirit puppet could be taken outside and repaired, I estimate it could barely pass for half-step Mortal Transcendence."
Xu Yuan frowned upon hearing this:
"Repaired? Is it damaged?"
The Saint’s Remnant Soul immediately explained:
"It has been too long; even in the absence of battles, the ravages of time have almost caused the formation pattern structure inside the spirit puppet to collapse."
"So, what strength does it possess now?" Xu Yuan asked the question he was most concerned about.
"Primordial peak strength, but another move would probably break it apart." The Saint’s Remnant Soul had already investigated the condition of the other party.
Xu Yuan breathed a sigh of relief.
Even just once would be enough to stop Tianyan.
Still, the gap between reality and games was indeed considerable. In Cang Yuan, you couldn’t kill the boss without completely depleting its health. No matter how much health it had left, the next time you entered, it would be waiting at full health.
The Saint’s Remnant Soul, however, was staring at the intact Wenyuan Pavilion all around, and after a long pause, he seemed to sigh as he said:
"I wonder what happened to the Qionghua Sect back then, how it could be utterly destroyed despite the gate being intact....."
the Saint’s Remnant Soul gave Xu Yuan a meaningful look, his eyes concealing a certain depth, as if hoping Xu Yuan could clear his confusion.
Xu Yuan indifferently shrugged his shoulders:
"Don’t look at me, I don’t know either."
He truly had no idea.
In Cang Yuan’s maps, this is simply how it appeared. Managing the boss’s rewards and side stories in this dungeon was complex enough—who would delve into why this Sect’s map was so intact?
However, the Saint’s Remnant Soul’s musings did prompt Xu Yuan to realize another issue.
There are too many powerful beings in the Dome Palace.
Counting the Enchantress Divine Sakura Tree and the Blood Leech King at Sakura Leech Lake previously, Xu Yuan now knew of three Second Grade Origin Initial peak powerhouses, four Second Grade Origin Initials, and eight Third Grade Great Grandmasters within the Dome Palace.
Back when it was a game, one naturally wouldn’t think too much of it, after all, it was an 80th level instance. If the BOSS levels were low, they would be giving themselves away to the players. But, were it to become reality, such power brought a chill to the mind.
Moreover, this was just two locations within the vast Dome Palace. Besides these two places, there’s still the Sect Master’s chamber and the back mountain of the Sects.
After a pause, Xu Yuan asked the Saint’s Remnant Soul in a low voice:
"Old man, how many powerhouses do you think the Qionghua Sect had back in the day?"
The spirit puppets and Demonic Beasts present now are merely what remained after the destruction of Qionghua Palace. Before its downfall, the grandeur of the Qionghua Sect was almost unimaginable.
The Saint’s Remnant Soul asked with a light note of doubt, smiling as it replied, "Isn’t this your sect? Why are you asking me?"
Xu Yuan glanced at him, his words tinged with resignation:
"I’ve already told you, I’m not like you. I just happened to come into some fortune and learned of this Secret Realm."
The Saint’s Remnant Soul pondered for a moment before analyzing:
"Okay, judging by these remaining spirit puppets and Demonic Beasts, the Qionghua Sect before its destruction... hm, probably wasn’t weaker than your Prime Minister’s Mansion."
"..." Xu Yuan’s pupils contracted slightly.
However, the Saint’s Remnant Soul was unfazed, speaking with an air of nonchalance:
"What’s so strange about that? Ten thousand years ago, aside from the Pavilion Master and Elders, our Jiatiange also had more than a dozen Saints."
Xu Yuan felt a shock in his heart and tentatively asked:
"Old Man Luo, the cultivation of your Jiatiange’s Saints was...."
The Saint’s Remnant Soul stared into Xu Yuan’s eyes for several breaths, and after finding no cracks, gently shook its head:
"Actually, you shouldn’t think too much about it. The overall strength of an era is influenced by the Origin Qi of heaven and earth. Back then, during our time, it just so happened to be a surge of Origin Qi, which was what created that prosperous age.
"Moreover, every generation has its advantages and disadvantages. If I could choose, I might actually prefer to be born in this current era."
When the Saint’s Remnant Soul spoke of the past, his tone was leisurely, carrying a trace of nostalgia.
"Why?" Xu Yuan immediately followed up.
"Hehe....." The Saint’s Remnant Soul gave him a glance and giggled.
Xu Yuan’s eye twitched, sensing that the old spirit was getting enigmatic again.
Fortunately, after the Saint’s Remnant Soul finished laughing, it let out a phrase:
"Because now, at least Cultivators don’t live in constant fear of their lives."
Xu Yuan stared at the Saint’s Remnant Soul without speaking, waiting for what would come next.
The Saint’s Remnant Soul weighed his words before speaking softly:
"Kid, have you ever heard of the Spectral Wraiths?"
Xu Yuan was startled by the question and nodded, "Of course, I’ve heard of them."
Those creatures made their appearance in quite a few secret instances in Cang Yuan, like the Changhong Valley that the previous protagonist had visited.
Complex emotions flickered through the Saint’s Remnant Soul’s eyes as it said leisurely:
"Ten thousand years ago, our Pavilion Master suddenly summoned a group of us Saints for a meeting, saying that she could no longer see into the future and that we needed to investigate."
The voice of the Saint was casual and light.
Xu Yuan suddenly spoke up:
"Just like Tianyan was to me?"
"Not sure, but it’s probably not the same. That girl just showed that she could still see brief snippets of the future, whereas when our Pavilion Master employed the method of Tianyan to divine the future, what she saw was complete, utter darkness."
"And then the Spectral Wraiths appeared?"
"Yes, even back when there were plenty of powerful beings, much of the world was still slaughtered empty by those creatures."