Chapter 1208: Saint Emperor Receives Divine Mandate

Surrounded, Li Ping showed no trace of panic. These puppets were all driven by source energy, refined and extracted using the Common People's Spiritual Essence Technique. The Enlightenment Spiritual Essence Technique, now practiced by the populace of the Great Sheng Dynasty, was an elevated version of the Common People's Spiritual Essence Technique.

With a single glance, he discerned how the source energy influenced the puppets, and the golden net of source energy within Li Ping's body emitted waves of invisible fluctuations. The energy's purity, almost akin to source essence, created a natural suppression over the puppets controlled by Master Craftsman.

In mere moments, the dozens of puppets that had been menacingly glowering in the secret chamber were now swaying unsteadily and unable to stand. This included the female officer puppet.

Master Craftsman's expression instantly turned incredibly grim. Having dealt with source energy for most of his life, he clearly recognized the methods this mysterious individual used to influence the puppets. He had already abandoned the idea of fighting to the death and began to scheme how to escape, or even to simply abandon his current body and regenerate from a memory backup.

Li Ping watched the shifting expressions on Master Craftsman's face, naturally seeing through his subtle thoughts. Unhurriedly, he calmly listed the hidden locations of Master Craftsman's memory backups, one by one.

Master Craftsman's mind reeled, his horror now impossible to conceal.

"Who exactly are you?!" His voice, trembling with fear, was even a little hoarse. He couldn't win a fight, nor could he escape. Since fleeing to the Xuanhuang Realm, Master Craftsman had never experienced such despair.

"Fellow Daoist Qiaogong, don't misunderstand," Li Ping said slowly. "I am here to offer you a great opportunity."

However, his slightly grim tone, coupled with his unreadable face, was utterly unconvincing. Master Craftsman naturally didn't believe him; in fact, his fear only intensified. He had never mentioned the name Master Craftsman to anyone else in the Xuanhuang Realm. The world only knew him as the enigmatic leader of the Spiritual Essence Sect. But now, a faceless mysterious person had appeared who could reveal his origins with a single word and knew everything about him!

Master Craftsman even began to wonder if there were other survivors from the Heavenly Mystery Realm besides himself. For a moment, Master Craftsman's mind was in turmoil. However, his jumbled thoughts vanished completely as a shining golden orb of light rose from Li Ping's hand.

"Source... essence?!"

"How is this possible!"

Master Craftsman gasped again, his face filled with disbelief. Just as he was about to examine it closely, the golden orb was withdrawn by Li Ping.

"Don't you desire source essence but cannot obtain it? I can teach you," Li Ping said. This single sentence immediately stunned Master Craftsman again.

"Don't you want to reproduce the Immortal-grade Puppet Ancestor? I can also help you," Li Ping continued unhurriedly.

Master Craftsman was now somewhat numb from shock; he wasn't even surprised that Li Ping knew about the Ancestor's existence. While he felt an overwhelming sense of absurdity, a faint glimmer of hope also rose within him. What if the other person was telling the truth?

"What are your conditions?" Master Craftsman asked directly.

Li Ping chuckled softly. "Seeing is believing. Fellow Daoist, please come with me first."

Master Craftsman followed behind Li Ping, traveling eastward from Jiushan Prefecture to the depths of the Congyun Sea, near an underwater volcano.

"Hmm?"

Master Craftsman gazed at the terrain, vaguely sensing that a living being seemed to be slumbering within the underground fire veins below. Li Ping's next words confirmed his suspicions.

"Are you saying, a puppet with complete self-awareness?" Master Craftsman asked, somewhat disbelieving.

"It's not a direct puppet creation, but rather a transformation into a puppet body through mysterious and ingenious methods," Li Ping said indifferently. "After absorbing the power of the earth veins for several millennia, it still hasn't completed its full transformation. If it's awakened rashly, it might result in the puppet body being inherently flawed. I brought you here to see if you have any solutions."

"Transforming one's body into an object?" Master Craftsman repeatedly pondered the meaning of these four words. Then, a golden light shot from his eyes, sweeping over the continuous underground veins below.

After a long time, the golden light faded, and Master Craftsman nodded. "This puppet below, through continuous millennia of tempering by the power of the earth fire, has indeed expanded its strength to an unreachable level. However, the intensity of the earth fire is inherently limited; even after absorbing it for another thousand years, its strength is destined to stop at the perfected God Transformation stage. Further advancement is absolutely impossible."

"Moreover, this earth fire array was set up by him before he went into slumber. After such a long time, the two have already shown signs of merging into one. If we casually modify it, it might awaken him."

"Unless..."

After a moment of contemplation, Master Craftsman mused, "Unless the earth fire that tempers this puppet itself undergoes a change."

"As you know, the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao is exceptionally capricious, often marked by great cosmic shifts. And earth fire is a manifestation of the Heavenly Dao's power..."

"However, this opportunity is extremely rare and can only be stumbled upon," Master Craftsman stated truthfully.

Li Ping spoke slowly, "I understand."

"As expected of a successor from the Heavenly Mystery Realm," Li Ping continued. "My original plan was to use rare treasures to modify and enhance the Earth Fire Reversion Array. But now that I think about it, your suggestion is better: to recreate the universe by borrowing the power of heaven and earth..."

Master Craftsman was slightly stunned, then reiterated emphatically, "I said, this opportunity is extremely rare and can only be stumbled upon."

"Is that so?" Li Ping chuckled dismissively. "Fellow Daoist, just watch my methods."

After making such bold pronouncements, Li Ping, however, closed his eyes and stood still. Master Craftsman thought his opponent was accumulating power to unleash some divine ability and immediately focused on observing. However, after waiting for most of the day, there was no movement or stir. If it weren't for the faint, elusive aura of source essence still locking onto him, Master Craftsman would have considered taking the opportunity to flee. But circumstances were beyond his control; if the other party didn't speak, he could only continue to wait.

This wait lasted for half a month. Only because Master Craftsman was a grandmaster artificer with exceptional composure could he barely endure.

Meanwhile, in a place Master Craftsman couldn't see, within the Great Sheng Dynasty's miniature world, large numbers of captured and factory-produced Nether race individuals began to pray to the Sea of Gloom once more. Perhaps it was because they were naturally created to provide power to the Sea of Gloom. With almost no instruction needed, their prayer efficiency was several times higher than when praying to the Faceless Holy Emperor. A subtle influence began to manifest in the Xuanhuang Realm. The Great Sheng Dynasty's Faceless Holy Emperor, standing at the bottom of the Congyun Sea, was silently sensing these gradual changes in the world. The occurrence of some things is not immediate but gradually accumulates.

Half a month later, when Li Ping sensed that this accumulation had finally surpassed a certain critical threshold...

"Distort the Principles of Heaven and Earth!"

The Faceless Holy Emperor chanted softly, his figure grand and imposing, and lightly pointed a finger towards the continuous underground fire veins below. It was a seemingly casual gesture, yet moments later, Master Craftsman, who had been observing, was struck with sudden alarm!