It was a new day as Wang Tong brought people from Dao Cheng Division to Wangdan Pagoda.
They brought a lot of boxes into the pagoda and came out with bottles of elixirs.
“These are all the magic apparel you will get,” Chen Jingzhai said.
“Why’s that?” Wang Tong couldn’t help but ask.
The quality of the magic apparel made in Wangdan Pagoda was of high quality. Everyone from Dao Cheng Division loved wearing one.
Wang Tong even wanted to make more for them.
“I made these to test my ability. Also, the spirit silkworms have gone into hibernation, and we don’t have any silk at the moment,” Chen Jingzhai replied.
Because the silkworms had been fed enough resources, they were now going through their metamorphosis into Grade 2 silkworms.
Other than that, the profit made from selling magic apparel wasn’t much. That was why Chen Jingzhai didn’t want to do it anymore.
“That’s unfortunate.” Wang Tong sighed.
“There’s nothing unfortunate here. You should be able to buy better spiritual item-grade magic apparel. It’s even worth it to exchange your elixirs for one.”
“You’re not wrong,” Wang Tong chuckled.
He had earned a lot as a middleman, even if he had to give some of the profit to the Wang clan.
However, he was sure that buying magic apparel, and puppets for them should be more than enough.
“Did you find out what I asked you to look into?” Chen Jingzhai asked.
“I did.” Wang Tong nodded. “Commandery Prince Hong Yi went hunting in the Eastern Ocean ten years ago and found a Gold Reef. He thought it was a treasure, but it turned out the reef was only hard and had a hint of essence power. So it’s pretty much useless.”
“But, why would they keep something useless in their treasure storage?”
“You sure are quick to catch on. This is what they told everyone.” Wang Tong grinned. “However, the Commandery Prince and his family know that the treasure can multiply any gold or silver put on top of it. For example, if you put ten pounds of gold on it, you’ll get 20 in a week.”
“That’s why it’s called the Gold Reef?”
“It’s also because of its shape. This item is definitely a rare find. Since mortals are not able to touch spiritual stones, gold and silver are worth a lot to them.”
“So, you’re giving me that?” Chen Jingzhai asked without any expression.
Wang Tong smiled and remained silent. There was no way he had the guts to reply to that.
As it was a gift to express their apology, it had to be well-groomed.
They could not give something too valuable, but they couldn’t give something that wasn’t worth anything either.
If they gave something worthless, it would show that they weren’t sincere in their apology.
But, if they gave something too expensive, others would laugh at them for being weak.
In the end, the gifts given to Chen Jingzhai totaled around three boxes worth of items.
Spirit pearls were the most suitable gift, while seeds of spirit plants were Chen Jingzhai’s favorite.
The Gold Reef came from the prince’s vault to show his sincerity.
There was another reason for giving Chen Jingzhai the reef, which Wang Tong understood.
Yet, he did not expect Chen Jingzhai to understand it as well.
Since Chen Jingzhai did, it was natural for Wang Tong to pretend not to know. He just didn’t want to get mixed up in something that he didn’t want to.
“Fine.” Chen Jingzhai waved his arm. “You can leave. Don’t come here again.”
“Master Chen!” Wang Tong gasped. “Did I do something wrong?”
“What the heck are you talking about?” Chen Jingzhai shook his head. “I’m going to start my Seclusion Training, so I won’t be making elixirs for the time being.”
“I can wait.”
“No, you won’t be able to. Just leave.”
Wang Tong let out a sigh and left with a saddened expression.
He had gained a lot of profit from helping Chen Jingzhai, and he didn’t want to lose that.
However, since the gifts from the Commandery Prince had cleared any debt they owed the young man, he knew that he wouldn’t be able to do that anymore.
He came knowing that things were coming to an end, but he still could not accept it when it really happened.
Now, he could no longer get his hands on any magic apparel or elixirs.
The happy times where he lived his best year were now gone.
After walking out of Wangdan Pagoda, he tried his best to keep a poker face.
He was now well-known in the region because of Chen Jingzhai.
There were even rumors that Wang Tong was now working for him and that he was helping the Commandery Prince.
Wang Tong knew that the prince wanted to find a way for Chen Jingzhai to stay, but with all that had happened, they just couldn’t fulfill that wish anymore.
He glanced at Wangdan Pagoda again before walking away.
“Young Master, I think Mr. Wang is quite a decent person.” Hong Yu smiled.
“Decent, you say?” Chen Jingzhai shook his head. “If I’m not the Master-Uncle of the Luo Sheng Sword School, or if I can’t make elixirs, or if I don’t have magic apparel, do you think he’ll still be decent toward me?”
“Ahh…” Hong Yu did not expect that.
“We just benefited from each other. It’s a trade, nothing more and nothing less.”
“I don’t get it…”
“You will one day.” Chen Jingzhai smiled and headed up the stairs.
He first thought of looking for the source of the Innate Spirit Seeds on his own, as he did not think that Wang Tong could find anything.
And he was proven right.
Innate items were hard to come by and would only randomly appear.
One could be considered extremely lucky to get their hands on one, so there was no need for him to want for more.
There was no way he would lose sight of the real treasures because of that.
It just showed that the Commandery Prince wasn’t fated to get his hand on one.
As for Wang Tong, he was nothing more than a cultivator of the kingdom.
He was basically a government official who would do anything to benefit himself.
However, he was cunning enough, which was why people like Hong Yu, who had never experienced the real world, would get tricked.
Chen Jingzhai was already living his second life. Although he wasn’t a social person in his past life, he could still see through it.
When he got to the third floor, he happened to run into Qing Mu, who had just come out of Seclusion Training.
“Junior brother! Just in time!” the Sage exclaimed.
“Did you succeed?” Chen Jingzhai had a surprised expression.
“Let’s try it out and see!”
Chen Jingzhai was excited and invited his senior brother to the fourth floor.
The moment they got there, the Sage took the Bamboo Boat out.
It was a top-grade spiritual item that had the shape of a boat with an awning.
The boat could turn into a large ship with a pagoda on it.
“I have added a lot of ocean star black metals and warm jades into it. The design is different now. It now only has three floors,” Qing Mu explained. “However, I didn’t change the structure of the boat and have only swapped the ingredients for the puppets. That is why it didn’t become a magic treasure, but it now has the potential to become one. The defensive power has increased to around Intermediate Grade 3 as well.”
Item alchemy wasn’t challenging for a puppet master as the processes of making a puppet and an item were similar.
However, modifying a spirit boat was way more complicated than making an item.
In the end, the Sage was not an item alchemist and could only make some modifications.
However, Chen Jingzhai was still satisfied with the result.
He took the boat from Qing Mu and inspected it.
There was a hint of green on its black exterior. One would immediately think that it was made out of expensive metal.
Two vicious-looking puppets stood on both sides of the deck, while on the stern was a humanoid puppet.
It looked like a mortal’s battleship but with something more.
Chen Jingzhai couldn’t help but stop smiling.
The boat was now three times faster than before.
It was faster than a flying sword and could last even longer.
There was no way he was unhappy with the defensive and speed increase.
“Thank you!” Chen Jingzhai bowed.
“Don’t worry about it. You’ve already given me a Grade 3 jade pendant. This is nothing. Why don’t you take a look at your Dark-face Humanoid Puppet?”
He waved his arm, and a puppet as tall as a person appeared.
It was the puppet Chen Jingzhai bought from the Puppet Temple before leaving the clan.
Unlike its previous color, it was now completely black and very unassuming.
However, Chen Jingzhai was even more surprised. “Intermediate Grade 3?”
“That’s correct.” The Sage grinned. “I restructured its frame with ocean star black metal, which basically means I’ve recreated it and used warm jade to create the exterior.”
“You are a genius!” Chen Jingzhai exclaimed.
Even Zhang Kui would be jealous of him for getting a hand on a Grade 3 puppet.
Of course, it wouldn’t be hard for Zhang Kui to get his hands on one now.
After the modification using ocean star black metal, not only did the puppet’s defensive power increase, but its affinity with water also increased.
The most important thing was that it was made according to Chen Jingzhai’s request that he could fuse with the puppet.
That was the form that Zhang Kui had shown on the battle forum.
Once the fusion was done, he would be able to use the puppet’s power to fend off his enemy.
It would also increase his own power exponentially.
The puppet would cover his entire body as if it were a piece of black armor, giving him a menacing aura.
Qing Mu grinned and took out 12 other puppets.
They were the 12 beast puppets, all made out of ocean star black metals as well.
Chen Jingzhai was the one who came up with the blueprint, while Qing Mu was the one who made them.
These puppets could also transform into humanoids, and they all had different elements.
However, since the main material was ocean star black metal, their affinity with the water element was still the highest.
Chen Jingzhai kept them away. He just could not stop himself from smiling.
Some might think that the 12 puppets only resembled mere monsters or animals, but to Chen Jingzhai, they represented the 12 Chinese zodiacs. So it meant a lot to him.
After thanking Qing Mu, Chen Jingzhai headed up to the fifth floor to start processing them.
