After leaving Heifeng Valley, Xie Zhaolin and Mo Yan didn't return to Heiyan City. They sped in another direction for several days and finally arrived at a major cultivation city called Wangshu.
The city was far larger than Heiyan City, orderly and well-regulated. Powerful city guards patrolled day and night, private fights were strictly forbidden, and public safety was excellent.
Xie Zhaolin chose this place precisely because of its stability. It was perfect for a period of secluded cultivation to familiarize herself with her newly obtained life-bound artifact.
Inside a quiet chamber.
Xie Zhaolin sat cross-legged. The dark-purple ribbon around her wrist loosened on its own, rising into the air in front of her. It shimmered with a gentle, restrained glow, perfectly attuned to her will.
"I was reborn to fulfill the will of my past life, but I'm not here to repeat it," she whispered. Her voice was calm, yet held an unquestionable resolve. "Your sharpness is meant to shake the Nine Heavens, sweep away the darkness, cleanse the demons, and terrify ghosts and gods alike."
"From this moment on, your name is Jingxiao "惊霄" (Jīng Xiāo)."
Shocking the Nine Heavens, stirring the highest skies.
It carried the might of thunder-forging and the unstoppable determination to kill without hesitation.
This name commemorated the heavenly thunder summoned at its birth, and it also symbolized her own path. She wouldn't hide anymore, wouldn't remain dormant. One day, her return would shake all of heaven and earth.
A soft hum echoed.
The ribbon trembled lightly, letting out a clear and resonant cry like a newborn dragon. Dark-purple light surged faster, and the An Jin patterns along its surface gleamed brilliantly. It seemed delighted by its new name, its spirit vibrating with joy. The connection between it and Xie Zhaolin grew even closer.
She curved her lips into a faint smile, satisfaction flickering in her eyes.
A righteous name brought righteous strength. Artifacts possessed spirit, and a name aligned with their essence could nurture and empower that spirit.
After naming Jingxiao, Xie Zhaolin officially began her quiet cultivation in Wangshu.
She rarely went outside. Most of her time was spent reinforcing her mid-stage Golden Core cultivation while using her spiritual power and divine sense day and night to temper Jingxiao Ribbon. She constantly deepened their connection and explored its characteristics.
Although the ribbon was newly born and already possessed spirit, it would still require time and patience to reach its full power.
And now, she finally had a stable environment to learn puppet arts from You You.
Every evening, she called You You out to personally instruct her on the foundational methods of puppet refinement, from identifying yin-wood and other spirit materials used to craft puppet cores, to drawing the energy circuits that controlled movement, to the most fundamental skill that tested divine sense: splitting thought threads.
She needed to split a wisp of divine sense into countless hair-thin strands while maintaining precise control over multiple puppet components or low-grade puppets simultaneously.
The process was mind-numbingly dry and mentally draining, but she fully understood the immense value of puppet arts in future battles and scouting, so she trained with absolute dedication.
Her Primordial Soul was already powerful, and with the experience of two lifetimes, her progress was so fast that even You You often expressed shock.
Sometimes, during short breaks, whenever she sensed the newborn spirit within the Jingxiao Ribbon growing alongside her or as she practiced splitting divine sense into ever finer strands, her thoughts drifted.
She'd think of the sincere young girl outside Heiyan City, the one who poured her entire heart and passion into forging ribbons.
"Had Luo Xinglan returned safely? Was she already immersed in new research? That kind of purity was so rare and precious in this chaotic Cultivation Realm."
And sometimes, a cold smile curved the corner of her lips.
"What was Yu Xiaotang doing right now? That handwritten ancient puppet manual from You You… she'd surely study it very carefully."
Meanwhile, a million miles away at Hehuan Sect, on Meiyin Peak, inside Yu Xiaotang's cave residence.
Unlike the peace of Wangshu City, the air here was thick with the mixed scent of spiritual herbs and subtle restlessness.
At the center of the cave, Yu Xiaotang stood frowning tightly as she stared at a half-finished wooden humanoid puppet.
The puppet's craftsmanship was exquisite. Fine runes were carved into its joints, but the core at its chest was dim and lifeless, and several charred marks were visible. Clearly, another failure.
"Failed again…" she muttered, her tone edged with exhaustion and irritation. She flicked her hand, sweeping the broken puppet into the corner where a pile of similar failures had already accumulated.
For the past half-year, she poured nearly all her energy into studying the "Ancient Puppet Arts Manuscript."
She had to admit that the manual the system restored and rewarded her with was profoundly powerful, far beyond any puppet arts she'd ever encountered.
Just the introductory foundational section had dramatically improved her microscopic control of spiritual power and her understanding of material properties, and even faintly pushed her cultivation forward.
It was exactly because of this ancient inheritance that she'd successfully diverted attention away from the mysterious deaths of two Elders from the Law Enforcement Hall. After all, a disciple with ancient inheritance and limitless potential was far more valuable than two Elders.
Even the remaining trouble from Tianyin Sect had been personally handled by her master, Hua Qiluo, who told her only to focus on mastering the secret technique.
However, progress was nowhere near what she expected. She'd followed the manual's methods to refine several core puppets, yet every time ended in failure.
The puppets were sluggish and stiff, reacted slowly to commands, and their core energy circuits were unstable, as if ready to collapse at any moment. No matter how carefully she followed the instructions, injecting pure spiritual power step by step, everything crumbled at the critical moment.
The Golden Core beast corpse she'd bought for a massive price at the auction was long gone, consumed by repeated failures. Now she was practicing with lower quality materials from the sect's storage, which dropped her success rate to nearly zero.
"Where exactly is the problem?" Yu Xiaotang rubbed her throbbing temples, picking up the jade slip again and sinking her divine sense into it, analyzing every detail yet again. "The steps are right, the spiritual power route is right. Is the material purity too low, or is my control still lacking?"
She compared every image and rune, checking every part of the puppet repeatedly, but couldn't find any decisive mistake.
In the end, she could only blame her lack of mastery or material quality flaws. After all, this was an ancient secret technique validated by the system, mysterious and profound. Difficulty was only natural. If it were easy, it'd feel cheap. She never even considered that the manual itself might be flawed. The system was her greatest reliance, and she trusted it blindly.
"Looks like I need more high-grade materials to practice," she whispered, resolve flashing in her eyes. "I'll have to find a way to take more from the sect storage or the market. If I have to… I'll ask Master again."
She believed that as long as she had enough materials, her talent and effort would eventually conquer the challenge.
Once she mastered puppet arts, her position within the sect would become unshakable. She might even secure a place in the entire Cultivation Realm. Imagining herself commanding countless powerful puppets across the realm, her irritation slowly faded and her determination ignited again.
She took a deep breath and prepared to resume training. But she would never know that the path she was on was already heading toward the wrong destination.
And that was exactly what Xie Zhaolin wanted.
After all, only by delaying Yu Xiaotang could she gain more time.