Chapter 2057: Chapter 680: 1,000 Zhuyan, Ancient Puppet Sect! Qian Zhuyan knew that falling into Lu Changsheng’s hands meant that it was almost impossible for him to let her go. She entered the [Vast Sand Illusion Realm] to help Shi Xuan break through to the Nascent Soul, so she could upgrade to a Fourth Rank Puppet and get her revenge. The person in front of her was far more powerful than her, so she had no choice but to seize this opportunity. Looking at the chaotic state of the puppet in front of him, Lu Changsheng asked her gently what was happening. A moment later, Lu Changsheng understood the situation with the puppet in front of him. From the Endless Wilderness, a Core Formation level power called [Qianzhu Sect]. During a childhood spiritual root test, she exhibited the anomaly of a Heavenly Spiritual Root and had a strong divine thought, so the head of Qianzhu Sect took her as a disciple and named her Qian Zhuyan. At the age of twenty-one, she smoothly broke through to Foundation Establishment without needing a Foundation Establishment Elixir, shocking the entire Qianzhu Sect. Later, under the guidance of the sect, she delved into learning Puppet Techniques. Compared to cultivation in Heavenly Spiritual Roots, her talent in the puppet path was more astonishing. In just two and a half years, she created a Second Rank Puppet, becoming a Second Rank Puppet Master, praised by her master as the greatest genius since the founding of Qianzhu Sect. For the time that followed, she focused all her energy on the puppet path, and in just ten years, she created a Second Rank Superior Grade Puppet. What influenced her to continue researching the puppet path was not talent, but her cultivation level. Her master also said that she should prioritize her cultivation. Only by breaking through to Core Formation could she create a Third Rank Sect-stabilizing Puppet. Due to spending too much time on the puppet path, she only reached the peak of Foundation Establishment at the age of ninety-one. With the cultivation and resources prepared by Qianzhu Sect, she created a Third Rank Puppet at the age of ninety-eight and broke through to Core Formation in one fell swoop. At this stage, the sect could offer limited help, so she began to give back to the sect, focusing her research on the sect’s puppet legacy. In a hundred years, she not only created a Third Rank Superior Grade Puppet but also improved the sect’s Puppet Dao Treasure Book, leading Qianzhu Sect to flourish. However, Qianzhu Sect’s development was too aggressive, and its puppet business attracted covetous eyes, especially from top powers in the Endless Wilderness, such as the Ancient Puppet Sect! Like Qianzhu Sect, Ancient Puppet Sect also specialized in puppets. Seeing Qianzhu Sect’s situation, they wanted to make them a vassal, demanding submission of Puppet Dao’s legacy and ninety percent of profits. Qianzhu Sect was unwilling and negotiated with them. No one expected that making them a vassal was just a guise, for they had already colluded with several other forces to carve up Qianzhu Sect. On that day, Qianzhu Sect faced extermination. Though Qian Zhuyan was exceptionally talented and a Puppet Master, able to resist against the peak of Core Formation with puppet battle formations, her cultivation level was only at Core Formation’s middle stage, far from being a match for Ancient Puppet Sect. Watching her sect fall and facing imprisonment by Ancient Puppet Sect, she chose to self-destruct her Core Formation. But at that instant, she recalled a theory she had studied early on regarding puppets—to transform herself into a ghost spirit using ghost cultivation methods, merge into the puppet core, and become a Puppet Spirit. However, transforming a cultivator into a ghost cultivator is akin to rebirth; they are almost unrecognizable from their former self and can be viewed as a completely new life. Not every cultivator can successfully convert to a ghost cultivator, as it requires the aid of Extreme Yin Land, ghost energy, among others. But perhaps due to hatred and obsession in her heart, she succeeded. At the moment of self-destruction, she used the Soul Transfer Technique to merge her soul into this puppet, escaping Ancient Puppet Sect’s pursuit. To stay lucid and fulfill her vengeance, she only turned half of her soul into a Puppet Spirit. However, puppets differ from humans and cannot enhance through cultivation. Instead, they can only upgrade the Puppet Spirit and improve puppet quality. Her half-soul turning into a ghost-like Puppet Spirit caused her soul to constantly suffer from ghost energy and the Puppet Spirit’s obsession and hatred, incessantly transforming towards a fierce spirit. Therefore, she used her self-created cultivation technique "Xiao Yan Jue" to alleviate this by sleeping. This situation also meant her time was limited and she couldn’t do many things herself, so she trained many cultivators. Previously in the [Vast Sand Illusion Realm], the man killed by Lu Changsheng was one of her main partners. They mutually swore a Heart Demon Oath that as long as she helped him gain a Nascent Soul opportunity, he would help her achieve Fourth Rank and exact revenge on Ancient Puppet Sect. "Good heavens..." After learning about Qian Zhuyan’s situation, Lu Changsheng was momentarily at a loss for words. If he said she had schemes, he could believe the rhetoric about first achieving Nascent Soul then moving to Fourth Rank. Yet if he called her foolish, she could improve Qianzhu Sect’s cultivation techniques, create her own, and even achieve the feat of merging her soul into a puppet, maintaining soul consciousness. "It’s fortunate you encountered me." Lu Changsheng sighed secretly. Given Qian Zhuyan’s turbulent soul state, he could tell from the soul fluctuations that she was not speaking falsehoods. In this case, as long as she sincerely submitted, he wouldn’t mind helping her get revenge. If she behaved, obtaining a Spiritual Embryo of Heaven and Earth in the future could even help her reshape her physical body. "Your soul state isn’t good right now, so rest well for now. We can talk more after you wake up." "As long as you can prove your worth, advancing you to Fourth Rank for revenge against Ancient Puppet Sect isn’t too difficult." Lu Changsheng said calmly. Although he wasn’t clear about the exact power of Ancient Puppet Sect, he guessed it had at most one or two Nascent Soul cultivators. If he broke through to Nascent Soul himself, this wouldn’t be difficult. "Thank you..." The puppet seemed unable to suppress its state, body trembling as if to erupt and strike Lu Changsheng and Hong Lian anytime. Hearing Lu Changsheng’s words, it immediately relaxed, the soul fire in its pupils gradually fading into oblivion, like an ordinary puppet. "Buzz!" Lu Changsheng watched for a moment before flicking his fingers to form a barrier with circulating Yin Yang magic power. He asked Hong Lian beside him, "Hong Lian, what do you think?" "Her words are fairly credible, but you can’t believe them entirely." Hong Lian, wearing a simple and elegant red robe, her hair coiled in a cloud-like bun, replied gracefully and imposingly. "However, her talent in puppetry cannot be faked. After verifying, if her words are true, recruiting her could be a useful addition." Though she lacks a physical body or magic body, and has lost the Heavenly Spiritual Root qualification, such talent in puppetry won’t be affected, and as her soul cultivation advances, she could even progress further. "Yeah, later I’ll have Zi Xiao check into this Ancient Puppet Sect situation. There should be intelligence on such events, and one investigation will reveal the truth." Lu Changsheng held his wife’s soft and boneless fair hand, smiling as he spoke. He currently had many Fourth Rank Heaven and Earth Spiritual Materials in his possession. If Qian Zhuyan’s words are true, he wouldn’t mind helping her ascend to Fourth Rank now. As long as she advances to a Fourth Rank Puppet, it would be akin to adding another Fourth Rank combat power to his side!