Chapter 120

At Luoxian Mountain, inside the puppet workshop, Han Luo took out a colorful blueprint from his bronze ring.

It was a detailed design for a squirrel puppet, complete with precise measurements, crafting instructions, and clearly labeled components. The origin of the blueprint was unknown, but similar diagrams were abundant in the sect’s library—most of them harmless animal models like squirrels, rabbits, and various birds. This particular one was intended for beginners.

He unrolled the design and pressed down its corners with four spirit stones.

Generally, puppet crafting followed two main paths.

The first type was known as spirit puppets. These were the most common, making up over ninety-five percent of all puppets in the market. The core feature of a spirit puppet was the infusion of the creator’s own blood essence during the crafting process, allowing full control over the puppet’s actions. The puppet would also inherit a portion of the creator’s strength—how much depended on the maker’s skill. Achieving even fifty percent strength was considered the peak of the field. In essence, spirit puppets acted like a specialized external avatar of the cultivator.

The second type was the soul puppet. Unlike spirit puppets, which used one’s own blood, soul puppets required forcibly extracting someone else’s soul and embedding it into a puppet. These constructs were inherently more powerful, since they had independent consciousness—essentially becoming new lifeforms, rather than mere extensions of their creators.

However, crafting soul puppets was a serious taboo. Not only did it violate imperial law, but it was also considered an unforgivable evil in the cultivation world. Anyone caught practicing it would be hunted by all righteous sects.

Naturally, Han Luo had no interest in soul puppets. His focus was solely on crafting spirit puppets.

He fetched a piece of spirit wood, a carving knife, a spirit pen, and activated the array that gathered spiritual energy. Carefully, he began shaping the spirit wood into components according to the blueprint.

In puppet crafting, the stronger the puppet, the more complex its structure. The squirrel puppet in his hands had only six parts: four limbs, a torso, and a head. Though Han Luo had never studied sculpture, as a Foundation Establishment cultivator, his hands were steady.

Before long, he had completed carving all six components. Instead of assembling them immediately, he placed the pieces into a pre-prepared cleansing array—called the Impurity Removal Array—to purge residual turbid energy.

Because spirit wood often changed hands before use, it could carry lingering impurities. If not removed, these would affect the effectiveness of the spirit patterns and diminish the puppet’s overall quality.

The cleansing was fast. Once done, Han Luo removed the parts and placed them into a dust-free array, assembling them into the shape of a small squirrel.

Then, using the spirit pen, he began meticulously inscribing spiritual patterns onto the puppet’s surface, copying directly from the blueprint.

Since this was the lowest-tier puppet, surface engravings were enough to animate it. More advanced models, such as humanoid puppets, required internal inscriptions and core devices—tasks far more complex.

His hand remained stable throughout, a result of his previous experiences in setting up arrays, refining pills, and carving talismans—all skills that laid the groundwork for puppet crafting.

He completed the squirrel’s spiritual inscriptions in one smooth motion—no pauses, no errors.

Satisfied, he activated the puppet using a special array. After placing the squirrel within the formation, he pricked his finger and dropped a bead of blood essence onto the activation circle.

The formation pulsed violently, and a spark of spiritual light flickered within the squirrel puppet’s previously dull wooden eyes.

“Squeak, squeak, squeak…”

The little creature let out high-pitched cries—it had come to life.

At the same time, Han Luo sensed a faint, almost imperceptible thread connecting his consciousness to the puppet. For such a basic construct, even that level of mental linkage was impressive.

“Alright, little guy, take a few laps.”

At his mental command, the squirrel puppet began hopping enthusiastically around the cage, even trying to reach Han Luo through the bars.

Han Luo, meanwhile, equipped a pair of observation spectacles and began analyzing the puppet carefully.

After a long while, he shook his head.

Although it looked full of life and behaved like a real squirrel, it had many flaws. Its movements, while fast, were stiff. The spiritual patterns on its body were also slightly flawed, making its spiritual aura appear more like that of a dead object—something an expert could spot at a glance.

Yes, this was only a beginner-level puppet, but Han Luo understood that mastery came from perfecting the fundamentals. Whether in formations, pill refinement, or puppet crafting—everything began with the basics.

He couldn’t afford to be careless.

He had to produce a flawless squirrel puppet before moving on to more advanced techniques.

Determined, he nodded to himself and picked up his carving tools once again.

Soon, the second squirrel puppet was completed. This time, he ensured its joints were smoother and more rounded, eliminating the sharp angles from before.

With the activation array and another drop of blood essence, he animated it and issued commands.

The puppet responded with agility—running, doing push-ups, sit-ups, squats, pelvic lifts, even a spinning Thomas flair. From every angle, it was far more lifelike than the first.

But Han Luo still wasn’t satisfied. Something’s missing…

He continued observing and refining the design.

So the cycle went: tweak, test, adjust, repeat.

Seven days later...

“Squeak, squeak!”

A lifelike squirrel dashed through the forest, bouncing along tree branches with cheerful energy. It reached the marketplace and leapt onto a young girl’s stall. With wide, curious eyes, it began sniffing around.

“Hey there, little one. Come here,” the girl cooed, her heart melting at the sight.

She pulled a snack from her pouch, holding it out in her palm to tempt the squirrel.

The puppet approached cautiously, sniffed the food, and then swiftly grabbed it and stuffed it into its tiny mouth.

“Giggle~”

The girl laughed with delight, reaching out to stroke its soft fur while it nibbled away, oblivious to her touch.

“What an adorable little thing.”

Gently, she lifted it to her cheek and affectionately rubbed her face against its plush fur.

“Squeak!”

With a final chirp, the squirrel scampered down her shoulder, dashed off, and vanished from sight.

High atop an ancient tree, it perched quietly, its beady eyes observing the bustling crowd below with keen curiosity.

“So interesting… truly fascinating.”

Back in Luoxian Mountain’s puppet workshop, Han Luo whispered those very words to himself, a rare smile playing on his lips.