The manager looked a little puzzled, but smiled. "Certainly! This way, Fellow Daoist."

He led Gu Changhuan to a corner of the second floor, where a display cabinet held several humanoid puppets.

Gu Changhuan smiled. "It seems I am the first person to come to Linyao Market to buy farming puppets."

"These puppets sell well elsewhere. It's just the location of this market." That was true enough. No one would plant spiritual fields under the demon beasts' noses; it would hardly be worth the trouble.

As he spoke, the shopkeeper took out a puppet from the cabinet and cast a technique onto it.

The humanoid puppet slowly raised its head, took out a hoe from a compartment in its chest, rotated its head once, then lowered it again. Finding no soil, it put the hoe back.

"This one clears and tills spiritual fields. It can sow seeds and weed, too."

After saying this, he took out two more puppets.

"This one waters the crops, and the largest harvests and stores them. Together, the three do the work of an experienced farmer. They never tire, either. Give them enough Spiritual Power and they'll keep working. Barring damage from outside, they can last a hundred years without repairs."

The manager lifted the top of a puppet's head as though opening a human skull, revealing a slot inside.

"This is where the Spirit Stone is placed."

Gu Changhuan looked at the three puppets, which lacked even basic facial features.

"They sound good. But you haven't told me the drawbacks yet, have you?"

The shopkeeper remained unperturbed.

"You know what to ask. Yes, there are drawbacks. They cannot adapt to changing conditions as well as combat puppets, and they burn through Spirit Stones quickly.

"One Low-Grade Spirit Stone powers a puppet for no more than two days. Most puppets have that problem. The slot holds ten stones, so you won't need to replace them too often."

Gu Changhuan nodded. "What is the price of these puppets?"

Beaming, the shopkeeper replied, "These puppets are cheaper than combat puppets. A complete set costs only eight hundred Spirit Stones."

Gu Changhuan frowned, inwardly wincing at the price. These were only first-tier middle-grade puppets.

"Then I'll take two of each of the first two types, and one of the harvesting puppets."

Brimming with satisfaction, the shopkeeper retrieved a thin booklet from his Storage Bag. "This is the technique to control the puppets, along with some basic maintenance methods. Please accept it, Fellow Daoist."

Gu Changhuan accepted the booklet, catching the faint scent of medicinal herbs.

He paid, then descended the stairs feeling a little dazed.

Fourteen hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones!

He was usually the one earning Spirit Stones from others; he rarely had to part with such a large sum all at once.

Beaming, the shopkeeper escorted him out of Kaitian Hall. "If Fellow Daoist wishes to purchase any puppets or Magical Artifacts in the future, feel free to return to Kaitian Hall. I can personally grant you a twenty percent discount!"

Gu Changhuan smiled politely. "Next time for sure."

Once he turned away, however, his smile hardened into a cold sneer. A Qi Condensation Realm eighth-layer cultivator dared to set a trap for him? Did they truly mistake him for a greenhorn who had just ventured into the world and was foolish enough to flaunt his wealth?

Leaving Kaitian Hall, Gu Changhuan did not return to his rented cave residence. Instead, he headed straight out of Linyao Market.

Less than twenty li from the market, he halted. He climbed into a thick tree and settled down to wait.

Before even half the time it took to drink a cup of tea had passed, two masked men in black appeared beneath the tree.

One of them had a mouse-like spirit beast perched on his shoulder, its small nose twitching as it sniffed the air.

"The Medicine-Seeking Mouse has picked up a trace. That kid is nearby!"

"He probably noticed something and hid. Find him!" the stouter man said, disguising his voice.

Looking down at the two figures from his perch, Gu Changhuan summoned the Azure Cloud Sword and the Haotian Mirror.

"Are you looking for me?"

Startled by the voice, the two men looked up to see a handsome young man sitting among the branches, looking down at them with a mocking half-smile.

"What are you waiting for?! Kill him!" the fat man barked.

Gu Changhuan gazed down coldly. With a clear hum, the Azure Cloud Sword radiated brilliant spiritual light and shot toward them like a bolt of lightning, piercing straight through the thin man's chest in the blink of an eye!

Realizing the danger, the fat man turned to flee without hesitation. But a beam of light instantly enveloped him, freezing him in place as terror washed over his face.

Gu Changhuan jumped down. The Azure Cloud Sword returned to his hand, and he coldly studied the mouse on the fat man's shoulder.

"So it's a Medicine-Seeking Mouse. Your luck was decent, but it ends here."

Staring wide-eyed in horror, the fat man watched as Gu Changhuan raised his sword.

"Wait, Fellow Daoist!" Someone who had been hiding nearby could no longer keep silent.

Ignoring the plea, Gu Changhuan brought his sword down in a swift motion. A head rolled across the dirt twice before tumbling into the bushes.

A dark-faced burly man emerged from the gloom.

"You killed disciples of the Haoran Sect! What do you have to say for yourself?"

"Haoran Sect disciples?" Gu Changhuan regarded him with open mockery.

The rules of the Haoran Sect were exceptionally strict. If disciples dared to murder others for wealth near a market, not only would the perpetrators forfeit their lives, but their immediate superiors would also be implicated.

"These men clearly coveted wealth and attempted to murder me for my belongings. How could they be Haoran Sect disciples?

"Think carefully before you speak, Fellow Daoist."

It was advice, and a warning.

In truth, the dark-faced burly man had regretted speaking the moment the words left his mouth. Seeing that Gu Changhuan had provided a graceful exit, he had no choice but to back down.

He had originally intended to intervene and claim a share of the spoils while holding his subordinates' transgressions over their heads, but Gu Changhuan had acted too swiftly. Everything had concluded before he could make a move.

Left empty-handed and rebuffed by a mere youth, he felt his face burn. Eager to retaliate but lacking any justifiable reason, he could only let out a cold snort and fly away on his sword.

Gu Changhuan shook his head. Why was it that ever since he began his travels, he continually ran into fools?

Gu Changhuan had not considered that rogue cultivators lacked the family protection clan children enjoyed from birth. Even low-ranking sect disciples had to devote much of their time to sect tasks just to keep their places. These people were not necessarily stupid; greed had overwhelmed their judgment.

He collected the Storage Bags from the two dead cultivators and made a grasping motion toward the ground.

A gray stone resembling a Spirit Stone flew into his hand. It was an Image-Retention Stone, an artifact that recorded both images and sound. If only it were not so fragile—it would have been ideal for preserving inheritances.

Carefully stowing the stone away, he incinerated the bodies of the two men and departed.

Sadly, the Medicine-Seeking Mouse had died with the fat man because it was bound to him as its master. Otherwise, it might have been a useful helper.

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