Chapter 274: This Medical Pavilion Belongs to My Zheng Family
This talisman was oval-shaped, with a deep cyan base, as if it had been faintly coated with oil.
At the center of the talisman was a smooth, silver rune, rippling like water, undulating from side to side, exuding a soft and fluid power.
Four lines extended from the edges of the rune toward the upper-left, upper-right, lower-left, and lower-right corners.
These lines stretched to their endpoints and coiled into small clusters, mimicking the structure of the central rune, only much smaller.
The structure of one large rune surrounded by four smaller ones was exceptionally clear.
Ning Jiufan handed this talisman to him and introduced it, saying, "This is the Oil-Slick Water Glide Talisman, imbued with spirituality and containing much of my Golden Core mana."
"As long as you are attacked, its spirituality will activate, enveloping you in a barrier akin to a slick layer of oil and water."
"Most attacks, as long as they do not exceed the Golden Core level, will be deflected or weakened by the oil barrier and then redirected away."
Ning Zhuo could not contain his joy and exclaimed, "What a talisman! What a talisman!"
Ning Jiufan snorted, "Hmph, you little brat, you’re truly greedy. However, if you want this talisman, it’s not impossible. You should know what needs to be done next, right?"
Ning Zhuo bowed again, "Old Ancestor, how could I, as your junior, be someone who fears death?"
"I only wish to keep myself alive so I can repay your nurturing and contribute more to the Ning family."
"Old Ancestor, I will certainly do my utmost to secure more key positions for the Ning family."
"However, will this talisman truly guarantee my safety? Just to be safe, could you perhaps give me a few more of these talismans?"
Ning Jiufan curled his finger and knocked Ning Zhuo on the head, scolding, "Greedy as a snake trying to swallow an elephant! Don’t go overboard. This talisman, imbued with spirituality, is a treasure of our clan and can be used multiple times."
"Unless someone from the No-Void Sect at the Nascent Soul stage infiltrates, this talisman will keep you safe. Even against Yang Chanyu, it will hold until I come to rescue you."
"Now go! Get out and do your work!"
Ning Jiufan waved his sleeve, feeling a twinge of regret over giving up the spiritual talisman, and became irritated upon seeing Ning Zhuo’s greedy face.
Ning Zhuo left his residence and first sought out several members of the Ning family's restoration team.
When they saw Ning Zhuo, they were visibly excited.
Ning Zhuo told them that when he was weak, he had been secretly controlled by the No-Void Sect, but now things had turned around, and he was completely free.
Moreover, over the past two days, he had been by Ning Jiufan’s side, receiving the guidance and nurturing of the Golden Core patriarch. Although his strength had not greatly increased, his vision had broadened significantly.
The morale of the Ning family’s restoration team was immediately boosted.
They complained to Ning Zhuo that the Zhou and Zheng family restoration teams had suddenly changed their attitudes. Whereas they had been friendly and eager to listen to Ning Zhuo’s advice before, now they were almost turning hostile in the competition for key positions.
Especially the Zheng family, who had always been straightforward and bold. Now that Zheng Jian had secured a medical officer position, they were looking down on others.
Ning Zhuo gathered a lot of information, accomplished his goal, and then bid farewell to the others before heading to the medical pavilion.
As he walked, he pondered, analyzing the current situation.
The new political strategy had caused all three families to undergo rapid and dramatic adjustments.
Previously, the three families had formed a tight-knit alliance, but now, due to the competition for positions, they had begun to compete against each other.
"Such competition is bound to intensify," Ning Zhuo thought.
"Although competition between those on the righteous path doesn't usually result in outright fighting, at a certain point, underhanded tactics will come into play."
"Although the three families signed an alliance, they likely didn’t foresee this situation, so the agreement won’t have much binding power now."
Upon reaching this conclusion, Ning Zhuo looked up at the sky and sighed, "Meng Kui truly lives up to his reputation as the strategist of the Meng family. With just a small political maneuver, he has caused cracks to form in the alliance between the three families."
"This isn’t some underhanded scheme; it’s an open one!"
"The three families and Zhu Xuanji all understand Meng Kui’s plan, but they can't resist it and can only go along with it."
"As for the Zheng family..."
Ning Zhuo understood well why the Zheng family was plotting to take control of the medical pavilion.
The medical pavilion was indeed one of the most valuable structures in the city, with many associated positions that were crucial. Whether in peace or war, they were always useful.
Ning Zhuo frowned slightly.
The current situation was presenting him with some trouble.
Among the medical pavilion, the command platform, and the watchtowers, the medical pavilion was the most important.
This was because the critical care room in the medical pavilion could temporarily block the spiritual sense of Golden Core cultivators from probing Ning Zhuo.
This function was absent from both the command platform and the five-element watchtowers.
"Having someone like Zheng Jian meddling in the medical pavilion is fine, but with so many people coming in and out, it won’t be as convenient as before."
"However, as the head of the pavilion, I hold the highest position here, with great authority. I can completely designate the critical care room as my private domain."
"The Zheng family’s heavy investment benefits me as well. The only concern is..."
Ning Zhuo entered the medical pavilion.
Zheng Jian was engrossed in repairing a mechanical puppet at the workbench. Hearing the sound of footsteps, he quickly glanced up at Ning Zhuo, surprise flashing in his eyes.
"Ning Zhuo, you're here!" Zheng Jian smiled briefly before bowing his head again, "I'm busy at the moment, so we can catch up later."
Ning Zhuo nodded, "Haha, no rush, Brother Zheng. I haven’t taken on any tasks for two days."
After exchanging brief pleasantries, Ning Zhuo selected a workbench behind Zheng Jian’s and began his own repairs.
He repaired three mechanical creations in a row, then, using his position as pavilion head, discreetly assigned Zheng Jian a major task, finishing his own work with a flourish before quietly ascending the stairs.
He made his way to the critical care room and firmly shut the door behind him.
Zheng Jian, engrossed in his work and sweating profusely, did not notice Ning Zhuo’s small actions.
Ning Zhuo first inspected the supplies.
Previously, Sun Lingtong and Yang Chanyu had stolen some treasures from the cloud market and given a portion to Ning Zhuo.
After inspecting them, Ning Zhuo noticed that a drop of the *Highest Good Water* was missing, but there was now a spirit box.
The spirit box could store spirituality for a period of time.
Ning Zhuo had long wanted to come to the medical pavilion to open the spirit box, but in order to keep his actions completely hidden, he endured for two days until even Ning Jiufan couldn’t stand it anymore, and then he took action.
The spirit box contained none other than Ning Xiaohui’s spirituality!
Feeling a subtle shift in his heart, Ning Zhuo first took out a talisman.
This talisman was a long strip of pale blue, resembling a piece of sapphire washed clean by water.
Its surface was smooth, emitting a soft water-like light, and when touched, it felt cool.
The rune on it flowed gracefully, like clouds and water. After staring at it for a few breaths, one could see the rune slowly moving across the talisman like flowing water.
It was the Flowing Cloud Talisman!
This Flowing Cloud Talisman was one of the Ning family's heritage treasures, imbued with spirituality, just like the Oil-Slick Water Glide Talisman.
However, the Flowing Cloud Talisman had previously been used by Ning Xiaohui, depleting much of its spirituality.
Ning Zhuo had been pondering how to restore the spirituality of the Flowing Cloud Talisman.
Now, he pressed the talisman close to the spirit box and then slightly opened a crack in the box.
In the next moment, a small amount of spirituality, like fireflies, drifted out and directly merged into the Flowing Cloud Talisman!
Ning Zhuo’s eyes lit up, "It really works!!!"
In that instant, he was overwhelmed with joy, his eyes even turning red.
Previously, this had been just his hypothesis, but now, through practical application, it had perfectly validated his idea.
To replenish the spirituality of the Flowing Cloud Talisman, one could fully utilize a cultivator’s essence.
Ning Xiaohui had loved this talisman during her life, treating it as a personal treasure.
This connection meant that after Ning Xiaohui had been refined into pure spirituality, a small portion of it could be absorbed by the Flowing Cloud
Talisman, enhancing its spiritual foundation.
Ning Zhuo quickly closed the spirit box, holding the Flowing Cloud Talisman, and stood still for a while.
Gradually calming his excitement, he took out various materials from his storage belt and used the facilities in the critical care room to start crafting a mechanism.
He already had a design plan in mind, and his hands moved with practiced skill.
Half an hour later, a pair of floating ice jade hands had been crafted.
At first glance, these arms appeared as if they were made of transparent ice crystal. Their ten fingers were long and delicate, resembling white jade, and each joint was round and smooth like a piece of art.
The palms and backs of the hands were intricately engraved with frost-like runes, emitting a cold and pure aura.
The entire set of arms exuded a graceful feminine beauty.
The mechanism—*Floating Ice Jade Hands*!
Ning Zhuo tried to manipulate them, testing their effectiveness.
They could release frost, freezing their target into ice blocks, but they lacked healing abilities.
Ning Zhuo tried using them to draw talismans. They couldn’t do so automatically yet, but when Ning Zhuo controlled them to craft ice talismans, the experience was profound. Many rune paths that he struggled to draw himself became effortlessly perfect when using the mechanical arms.
"This must be the natural talent—the Ice Jade Hand!"
"However, right now, Ning Xiaohui’s spirituality is not at full capacity. It needs replenishment."
Only when the spirituality reached a certain level could the natural talent of the Ice Jade Hand be fully restored, giving the frozen blocks the power to heal.
"When it eventually advances to the stage of spiritual intelligence, gaining some wisdom, I can use it to make talismans tirelessly every day!"
"As for how to acquire items frequently used by Ning Xiaohui in life, that shouldn't be too difficult..."
Ning Zhuo checked the time and then left the room.
Staying in the critical care room for too long would arouse suspicion.
He left the newly crafted *Floating Ice Jade Hands* in the room, not taking them out with him.
His storage artifact could still potentially be inspected by other Golden Core cultivators.
Although the likelihood of this happening had greatly diminished, Ning Zhuo wasn’t willing to take unnecessary risks.
"Ning Zhuo, you finally came out. Wait a moment, let me finish this task, and then we’ll have a chat, alright?" Zheng Jian called out to Ning Zhuo as soon as he saw him emerge.
Ning Zhuo nodded in agreement.
After Zheng Jian completed his repair task, he tidied up his workbench and walked over to Ning Zhuo, "I didn’t expect that as soon as you arrived, you were assigned tasks in the critical care room. Do you know any tricks for that?"
Ning Zhuo shook his head, "Why? Haven’t you seen it before, Brother Zheng? Perhaps each person’s task is different."
Zheng Jian nodded, "Time is precious, Ning Zhuo, so I’ll get straight to the point."
"My Zheng family wants this medical pavilion, and I hope you can help make it happen."
Ning Zhuo couldn’t help but frown slightly, "What do you mean by that?"
He wanted to coexist peacefully with the Zheng family, but Zheng Jian’s words suggested that the Zheng family intended to monopolize the medical pavilion’s positions and hog all the benefits.
Zheng Jian chuckled, "This is the decision of the Zheng family. Once it’s made, it won’t be easily changed."
"Ning Zhuo, we’ve worked together before, and I know you’re quite capable."
"Name your price. What will it take for you and the Ning family’s restoration team to steer clear of the medical pavilion from now on?"
(End of Chapter)