Chapter 157: Puppets with Intelligence

The first battle ended with Yunfan defeating Hubone using his Spiritual Treasure, showcasing the superiority of sentient Spiritual Treasures and making some stubborn traditionalists begin to reconsider whether to accept the new generation of Spiritual Treasures.
The following few battles were similar to Yunfan’s. It became clear that the better the cooperation with the Spiritual Treasure, the stronger the power. Even a mid-Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator with a close connection to their treasure could beat a late-Foundation cultivator with a weak bond.
Ji Zhi nodded with a smile—this was a good start.
After one full round of the Foundation Stage, half the cultivators were eliminated, and the Golden Core Stage matches began.
“Next is a match between a disciple of the Wei family from the Great Zhou Dynasty and a disciple of the Luban Sect from the Tianyuan Dynasty.”
Tianming Daoist began his commentary: “We can see the Wei family disciple taking out a spear, wiping the ground clean, and setting it down. I don’t know if it’s just me, but it looks like this Wei cultivator really values the upkeep of his weapon.”
“…The Wei family disciple brings out an incense burner and three sticks of incense, places them before the spear, bows three times, then inserts the incense into the burner and kneels on the ground himself.”
The Wei disciple knelt there without feeling the slightest awkwardness. Instead, he proclaimed loudly, “I, an unworthy disciple of the Wei family, respectfully invite Master Spear to take the field!”
The spear moved slightly, seemingly pleased with the disciple’s attitude.
Before the fight even began, the Luban Sect disciple was already confused by his opponent’s ritual: “Fellow Daoist, what are you doing?”
The Wei family was a thousand-year-old clan. Though they had no Fusion Stage Patriarch, they had produced several Soul Formation cultivators in succession. Currently, four Soul Formation elders still lived, and the Spiritual Treasures they possessed were naturally nothing to scoff at.
That spear was a high-grade Magic Artifact, powerful enough to be used up to the Soul Formation Stage.
Of course, it couldn’t use its full strength now—at most, it could operate at the Golden Core level.
The Wei disciple explained, “You may not know this, Fellow Daoist, but a few years ago, Master Spear was my grandfather’s weapon. After gaining sentience, it entered a gentleman’s agreement with our clan. Upon my grandfather’s death, it would select a suitable heir from the Wei family and never betray us. We must treat Master Spear with respect and maintain it properly.”
The Wei disciple added proudly, “Master Spear is the exclusive Spiritual Treasure of our Wei clan.”
The Luban Sect disciple cupped his hands. Though he didn’t understand why the Wei family treated their treasure like an ancestor, the basic respect had to be shown.
“We see now that the Luban Sect disciple has also brought out his Spiritual Treasure… hmm, it’s a puppet. Luban Sect’s puppet arts are unmatched—real enough to fool even Divine Sense.”
It was a finely-crafted puppet, shaped like a young woman with black hair and a purple dress. Her features were delicate, expression cold—anyone looking would assume she was an aloof beauty.
“Darling, let’s go together!” the Luban disciple cheered on his puppet.
The ice-beauty puppet nodded—it actually understood what he said.
Now it was the Wei disciple’s turn to be confused: “Fellow Daoist, is this your… wife?”
The Luban disciple proudly answered, “Of course. Four years ago, my wife gained sentience. Since then, we’ve stood by each other’s side in battle. Our elders approved our marriage, and we’ve consummated it. That should prove the depth of our bond. Neither of us can be without the other. Isn’t that right, darling?”
The puppet’s cheeks flushed slightly—she looked a bit shy.
The Wei disciple cupped his hands in return. Though he didn’t understand why someone would treat a Spiritual Treasure as a wife, basic respect was still due.
“…” Tianming Daoist didn’t even know how to comment for a moment.
In the audience stands, everyone turned to look at the Luban Sect Master.
The Luban Sect Master explained, “As you all know, our Luban Sect hails from the Tianyuan Dynasty—a place full of scheming and distrust. Not even your own parents or spouse can be fully trusted. Fortunately, the Yin-Yang Heaven Seal enlightened our treasures, allowing our puppets to gain sentience.”
“Our puppets are cultivated from a young stage. The emotional bond runs deep. After gaining sentience, that bond feels even more natural. Someone suggested, why not just marry them? That way, we’d never have to worry about betrayal again. Everyone agreed. Now our disciples are all married, many even run harems with multiple puppet wives.”
“This actually works pretty well. You want your wife to look a certain way? Just change her form. Like older women? Adjust the design. Prefer seductive eyes? Modify the gaze. Like younger girls? Lower the height. Prefer valiant types? Then…”
The Eastern Sea Dragon King perked up: “Do you have any extra puppets? I want to buy one and learn puppet techniques.”
“I’m a bit interested in puppet arts myself.”
Tianming Daoist chimed in, “Free intel for everyone—he’s the one who first suggested marrying them.”
The Luban Sect Master ignored him: “Our intelligent puppets are already in short supply. I was actually hoping to find Sect Master Bai Hongtu and ask him to use the Yin-Yang Heaven Seal to enlighten a few more. But where is Sect Master Bai?”
Only then did everyone realize—representatives from all the Six Great Sects and Nine Great Dynasties had come to watch the tournament, except for Dao Sect, Dharma Body Sect, and the Tianyuan Dynasty.
Ji Zhi thought for a moment. These factions seemed to have one thing in common—they all had cultivators in the Tribulation Stage…
“Hey, don’t tell me you forgot to invite them?” Jiang Li asked first.
Ji Zhi frowned. “How could I? I definitely sent out invitations.”
“That’s odd. Why didn’t they send anyone?” Jiang Li lowered his head in thought.
Ji Zhi’s thoughts were interrupted, and he didn’t continue pondering.

……

“Look at your Tianyuan Dynasty—so coldhearted! There’s no trust between people anymore. You’ve driven the Luban Sect to marry puppets,” Nascent Soul cultivator Bai Hongtu criticized fellow Nascent Soul cultivator Yu Yin.
“How is that my fault?”
The Sword Sovereign looked thoughtful: “Cultivators in this era really do think differently than in ours.”
“No no no, the times haven’t changed—Luban Sect is just a special case,” Li Er quickly denied.
The Sword Sovereign was intrigued by Li Er. This was someone who had overcome the Immortal Ascension Tribulation. If not for the Stairway to Immortality disappearing, he would’ve already ascended.
“Fellow Daoist Li Er, what was it like to cross the Stairway to Immortality?”
Hearing that, Bai Hongtu and Yu Yin stopped arguing.
“It’s hard. Way too hard. I only made it through by pure luck,” Li Er sighed. “And the second Immortal Ascension Tribulation is even stronger than the first. I definitely wouldn’t survive it. Probably only monsters like Commander Liu and the Old Buddha of Mount Sumeru could manage it. Who knows how Jiang the Human Sovereign managed to survive fifteen times.”
The first Ascension Tribulation is a test. If you succeed, you can ascend.
If you don’t go to the Celestial Realm afterward, the second tribulation will descend—not as a test, but as a push to get you to ascend already.
Commander Liu had survived two Ascension Tribulations. The Old Buddha of Mount Sumeru had survived three. That alone showed how terrifyingly strong they were.
But what puzzled Li Er was this: the time gap between tribulations was usually very long. The Old Buddha had lived over nine thousand years and only encountered three. How had Jiang the Human Sovereign triggered so many?

……

“In the name of my grandfather—Master Spear, charge!”
“Darling, our love is as strong as steel, sharp as blades!”
A battle between a war-hardened spear and a puppet broke out. The cultivators behind them cheered while channeling their Golden Core power. Spiritual energy surged endlessly, and a dazzling array of profound Divine Abilities erupted—truly an eye-opener.
“…” Tianming Daoist was silent for a long time.
Before the tournament began, Tianming Daoist thought commentating on low- and mid-tier matches would be a breeze. He’d seen everything already.
But he really hadn’t seen this.