The Qiannang in Qingshui's hand wasn't made by Meng Xuan, but by his grandmaster, the contemporary Mohist Sect Grand Master and academician Ou Yuan.
Meng Xuan's research talent was decent; even without Qingshui, he could be considered to have the potential of an academician. However, his talent in cultivation wasn't particularly good.
He had talent, but it wasn't high.
At least, Qingshui had only been practicing Qi Cultivation for a few months, yet he had already surpassed Meng Xuan in the aspect of life cultivation.
Even with the experience of his main body and several other Avatars practicing Ninjutsu for years, these few months for Qingshui were equivalent to several years of normal cultivation for an ordinary Anomalous Human. Yet, Dr. Meng Xuan had joined the Mohist Sect more than twenty years ago after graduating.
The Mohist Sect's Qi Cultivation technique is not a bad one; on the contrary, it is balanced and harmonious, with the potential to reach the pinnacle of the Anomalous Human world, and its lower limit is certainly not poor.
At the very least, becoming a competent practitioner in the Anomalous Human world is not an issue.
As long as one diligently practices, reaching the second stage, Understanding Ghosts, from the first stage, Against Fate, is only a matter of time. Meng Xuan, after realizing his talent in Qi Cultivation was lacking, dedicated more time to studying and research.
So, he only practiced a little when he had free time, somewhat like working sporadically. He hasn't even reached the Understanding Ghosts realm yet, placing him at the bottom among Mohist Sect disciples of his generation.
Meanwhile, Qingshui had just reached the Understanding Ghosts realm a week ago.
Reaching this realm signifies minor mastery of the Mohist Sect's Qi Cultivation, and it's the standard for most core Mohist disciples. It significantly enhances the body and reflexes, and subtly improves Object Manipulation and Materialization abilities, which is respectable within the Anomalous Human world.
Against Fate senses Qi, Understanding Ghosts connects with spirits. The first realm lays the foundation, strengthening Qi perception and refining vital energy, similar to most mainstream cultivation methods in the Anomalous Human world. The second realm, Understanding Ghosts, primarily involves integrating one's spiritual will into Qi to enhance Qi manipulation, which is necessary to gain the ability to refine Magic Tools.
For Qingshui, reaching this realm meant he could freely convert Qi and Chakra, essentially resolving the unknown consciousness rooted in his Chakra.
The only thing limiting Qingshui's current strength was his life cultivation.
In terms of nature cultivation, as a Puppet Master, his mental strength was already high. He had also studied magic and researched the Mind Stone, so he likely wouldn't encounter any bottlenecks before reaching the Will of Heaven realm.
The dormitory arranged by Kyoto University for faculty and staff was decent, but the space was still too small for Qingshui, so he rented a suite off-campus.
"Not bad. These are all materials with good energy conductivity, and their strength and toughness are also very high. They're enough to make a qualified set of armor."
Looking at the materials scattered across the floor from the Qiannang, Qingshui quickly began brainstorming, designing in his interface.
Soon, the general shape of the new Puppet was refined, with minor adjustments being made.
Having practiced Puppetry for many years, he had mastered almost all the essentials of Puppet creation from the Sand Village and had also learned a great deal of extremely useful engineering knowledge from various sources. Integrating these two, he achieved significant advancements.
In terms of Puppet manufacturing alone, even if the Puppet Master grandmaster Monzaemon were to be resurrected, he might not be able to surpass him.
The former needed the corpses of powerful individuals to create Human Puppets for top-tier Puppets, whereas Qingshui's reliance on materials was much less.
The next day.
A brand new, silver-white Puppet stood on the ground.
[Puppet Name]: Platinum
[Overall Parameters]:
Height: 2.04 meters
Weight: 134.39 kilograms
Material: High-strength lightweight alloy, composite fiber, Graphene-Enhanced Elastomer...
Energy: None
Operation Method: Chakra Threads
[Puppet Rating]: A+
[Overall Evaluation]: Armored combat Puppet, a product of highly integrated modern engineering and Puppetry. Upgraded and modified from the Black Gold type Puppet, it possesses both speed and strength, equipped with ion thrusters and concentrated ray cannons.
Note: Can be equipped with Arc Reactor and rapid-freeze devices, conventional heavy firepower. Currently unequipped.
An A+ rated Puppet was pretty much the limit of what Qingshui could currently create using conventional materials.
Platinum barely scraped into the A+ tier. At least, Qingshui believed Platinum's combat power was still slightly inferior to his other A+ rated Puppets.
At least compared to White Knight and Electrolight, without the Arc Reactor to enhance sustained attacks, and without rapid-freeze equipment to enhance crowd control, its actual combat power was somewhat weaker.
But it should be enough.
If he wanted to reach S-tier without relying on extraordinary metals like Promethium or Vibranium, or heaven-defying mechanisms like the Speed Force, Qingshui estimated that beyond the reactor and rapid-freeze device, he might also need a technology like Tony's Bleeding Edge Armor, capable of fluidly combining and shaping, to barely touch S- tier.
But that was before.
If he could upgrade the entire Puppet, from the inside out, into a Magic Tool, then...
Qingshui patted the two-meter-tall behemoth beside him.
Magic Tools, like strength, don't have strict level divisions. They only have self-assessments based on the cultivation methods and techniques within each sect, hence there are good and bad ones.
But even a low-level Magic Tool, even using a top-tier Divine Mechanisms of the Mohist Sect method, would take at least half a year to complete.
And a huge thing like the Platinum Puppet...
Just its size and weight alone meant one was equivalent to a hundred Magic Tools.
Unless he learned Divine Mechanism Hundred Refinements, even building it into a low-level Magic Tool would exhaust a Puppet Master's entire life.
And Divine Mechanism Hundred Refinements, perhaps, was the cultivation method with the highest compatibility with Qingshui in this world, and it was also one of the Eight Unique Skills he had the best chance of obtaining so far.
As for how to obtain it...
Qingshui opened his phone and scrolled through a photo he had taken with his camera.
The photo was a map.
Yesterday, he had utilized the computing power of Kyoto University's technical school's computing center, combined with his network technology, which was at least a decade or two ahead of its time, to thoroughly investigate the Yao Xing Society.
Computers in this era weren't yet that powerful; NVIDIA graphics cards had only reached the GTX 980, and CPUs were still only fifth-generation.
With such poor hardware performance, Qingshui could only rely on the computing resources of the school's computing center.
On the surface, the Yao Xing Society was similar to a small inn in the martial arts world, belonging to the "information broker" type of intelligence network. However, its leader, Qu Tong, was no simple character. She harbored many secrets, not only mastering Dual Hand herself but also controlling Ma Xianhong, who possessed Divine Mechanism Hundred Refinements. She single-handedly orchestrated the creation of the Body Cultivation Furnace and even maintained a connection with Zhou Sheng, who was still alive and had mastered Wind-Rear Strange Gate to the point of being like an immortal on land, using each other to their advantage.
This woman's ambition was not small, and she hid many things.
Perhaps because Er Zhuang, the temporary worker in the Northeast region, had the ability to move through the network world, the Yao Xing Society's online presence was quite clean.
But as long as one was willing to investigate, there would always be clues.
Even if Qu Tong's true motives couldn't be uncovered, investigating a Biyou Village was considerably easier.
After all, that was an organization that had attracted a large number of ordinary people and some Anomalous Humans who had fled the mainstream Anomalous Human community. Even if it was very secretive, it ultimately couldn't completely sever its ties with the real world.
For one thing, just providing enough food for so many people's daily lives wasn't easy.
"Guizhou, Liupanshui, Wumeng Mountains—it's quite remote."
Qingshui used a map app to find the corresponding location, then turned to pick up his storage pouch, put away the Platinum Armor beside him, and walked downstairs.
A brand-new Volvo XC60 was currently parked in a communal parking spot in the residential complex downstairs.
The car had a decent capacity, quite suitable for a road trip.
Fancy cars were cool, but none were cooler than an Iron Suit, and Qingshui didn't prioritize that aspect much anyway.
In both the Marvel and DC Universes, he had become one of the top thirty wealthiest people in the world through technology; fancy cars were truly just a means of transportation.
Moreover, he currently only had about a million yuan from selling patents, so it wasn't suitable to buy an overly expensive car.
Classes at school had finished, and exam week was approaching. He had entrusted the grading of papers to a doctoral student under Meng Xuan, in exchange for a co-authorship on a major sub-journal publication.
So he could start his vacation early, with nearly two months off. At this point, he could truly relax.
He set off on January 8th after attending the faculty meeting, passing through Taiyuan, Shanxi, and Xi'an, Shaanxi, then heading south to Chongqing. He traveled and played along the way, arriving in Guizhou around the 20th.
(Screenshots of part of the academic calendar from Wudaokou School's official website for that year)
January 21st, morning.
On a section of highway leading from AK City to Liupanshui.
A short-haired girl in a red tracksuit sat by the roadside, panting, wiping sweat from her forehead.
"How, how did these debt collectors chase me all the way from Gansu to Guizhou? Thankfully, no one from the Anomalous Human community chased me, or I really wouldn't have been able to escape."
At the same time, a black car approached from the distance.
"Hey! Driver! Can I get a ride?"
Fu Rong stopped wiping her sweat, her eyes lit up, and she stood up, jumping and waving her hand, shouting.
The car slowly stopped, and a window rolled down.
Qingshui sized up the short-haired girl in front of him, sensing the abundant Qi flowing within her.
"Someone from the Anomalous Human community?"
Fu Rong was startled, thinking the debt collectors had enlisted other Anomalous Humans to pursue her all the way here.
"Is something wrong?"
Phew… good thing.
"Um… sir, are you going to Liupanshui? Could you give me a ride? Just to the intersection is fine!"
Fu Rong said, a bit embarrassed.
"Going to Biyou Village?"
"Eh? How did you know? Oh, I get it, you were also introduced by someone you know, right? I was introduced here by a friend in the Anomalous Human community named Guo Liang. I heard that village..."
Fu Rong immediately started chattering away.
"Get in first. I also have something to do where I'm going."
Qingshui gestured to the back seat for Fu Rong.
He wasn't going to Biyou Village to do anything bad, so taking someone else who was going there wouldn't be a problem.
He didn't know enough about Biyou Village, and he could try to get some information out of this girl.
He remembered that Fu Rong was also quite naive and lovesick, not a bad person. She was just deeply in debt, and because her moral compass was strong, she refused to use her identity as an Anomalous Human or Anomalous Human methods to resolve her debt, which was why she had to hide in Biyou Village.
"Alright, brother! My name is Fu Rong, from Longnan, Gansu. And you?"
"My surname is Zhuo, from Linfen, Shanxi, but my household registration was transferred to the Capital City last year, and I work there now."
"Zhuo, as in 'outstanding'?"
"No, the one with three dots of water. It's a bit obscure. The 'Zhuo' in 'Zhuo Qing Lian Er Bu Yao' (Washing lotuses without being defiled)."
"Oh, like that. A Capital City household registration, that's really valuable. Let me tell you..."
Qingshui didn't even need to say much; he just started the conversation, and the guileless Fu Rong immediately spilled everything she knew.
Two hours later.
In the Wumeng Mountains, at the entrance to a mountain road barely wide enough for a car.
"We're here."
Qingshui took his hand off the steering wheel and spoke.
"Brother Zhuo, can I borrow your phone? I need to make a call!"
Fu Rong reached out to Qingshui.
She owed so much money that her personal assets had long been frozen, and fearing that debt collectors would find her through her phone, she hadn't even brought it with her.
"Hello! Brother Liang, it's Fu Rong. We've arrived at the village entrance. Yes, yes, that's right, in that small car. The one in the front seat is Brother Zhuo. Do you know him? No? He's from Capital City. He's not just a regular person seeking Anomalous Humans; he's also part of the community. He probably found out about our village from somewhere.
Okay, alright, we'll wait at the village entrance."
After hanging up, Fu Rong handed the phone back to Qingshui and got out of the car.
Qingshui unbuckled his seatbelt and used Transparent World to survey the not-so-small village.
The population was around one hundred, and most weren't very strong. There were about ten individuals who could be considered masters. The one with the densest Qi was a long-haired young man in white clothes, lying in a rocking chair, sunbathing.
That was probably Ma Xianhong, the successor of Divine Mechanism Hundred Refinements.
"Hmm?"
As if sensing something, Ma Xianhong looked at a bead hanging on his wrist that had changed from white to green. He then picked up a red pair of goggles from beside him.
At the same time, Qingshui also looked at a few red-eyed flies buzzing at the village entrance.
Were those Magic Tools Ma Xianhong used for surveillance?
The car door opened, and a long-faced young man walked towards them from the village entrance.
"Hello, friend, I'm Guo Liang. May I ask..."
"Zhuo Qingshui, from Capital City. I heard about what's happening here and wanted to visit. Don't worry, I have no connection to the company. I'm just an ordinary Artificer."
Qingshui extended a hand to Guo Liang with a smile.
"If you bear no ill will, then Biyou Village welcomes everyone."
Guo Liang shook Qingshui's hand, scrutinizing him as he spoke.
Just then, Guo Liang's phone rang in his pocket.
"Hello! Okay, I'll bring them right in!"
Guo Liang hung up and said to Qingshui and Fu Rong.
A few minutes later, in a courtyard.
"Welcome to Biyou Village. I'm Ma Xianhong, the village chief."
A tall young man in flowing white robes pushed open the courtyard gate and smiled at the arriving Qingshui and Fu Rong.
"Hello, Village Chief. I'm Fu Rong, and..."
"I know you. Don't worry, here, those debt collectors won't find you. And Mr. Zhuo, I hear... you're an Artificer?"
Ma Xianhong first nodded to Fu Rong, then his tone shifted as he looked at Qingshui.
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