Chapter 353: Section 140: Stone Statue Ghost Puppet—Awesome!
“Report! Intelligence gathered by spies indicates that a Ship Spirit Repair Alchemy Scroll has appeared at the Black Market auction on Knife Mountain Island. Upon verification, this scroll has been confirmed to be authentic and the work of Alchemy Grandmaster Tuck.”
The intelligence reported by Sea Dog, approximately 24 hours later, was conveyed to the high ranks of the Navy.
Of the two pieces of intelligence he reported, another concerned Soul Crystals and the Undead Mage, which was directly presented to the upper echelons of the spy agency and is currently being investigated.
As for the Ship Spirit Repair Alchemy Scroll, since it’s Navy-related, it was reported to Wei Sheng.
Wei Sheng immediately frowned, his thoughts flashing in his mind, “The Ship Spirit Repair Alchemy Scroll is very practical with extremely broad applicability. Many vice admirals and admirals have reacted positively. Such a scroll must be regulated and categorized as high-grade military supply, and will not be as easily exchanged as this first batch. Direct descendants of the Navy, at least at the vice admiral level. Those recruited pirates, at least must have Holy Domain level permissions.”
“Tuck would absolutely not let this leak, he has signed a strict contract with the Empire, and it’s not worth it for him to do so.”
“Thus, there is only one possibility. Corruption within the high ranks of the Navy!”
“There are a total of 50 Ship Spirit Repair Scrolls, and only 20 from the first batch have been distributed. The question is, which one of those is the scroll in the Black Market?”
Ships possessing a ship spirit are few in number, as the cost of creating such intelligent beings is very high.
The most common method is a spell: Awakening Construct.
This is a magic that can only be performed by at least a Holy Domain level mage. The standards for casting are high, and only a small portion of Holy Domain mages are able to achieve it.
And after successful casting, it causes permanent loss of the mage’s spiritual power, a decrease in the upper limit of spiritual value. It has significant negative impact on mages.
With ship spirits being rare, ships that possess them are naturally far stronger than common ones. And the naval officers who control these beings each have their own powers or backers and connections.
To inquire about the usage of the scrolls from them is extremely difficult.
“The stakes are too high, offending too many people, it won’t be easy for me,” Wei Sheng was very clear in his heart.
But now that the matter has been discovered, it must be investigated.
This is Wei Sheng’s duty, if he doesn’t investigate, once discovered in the future, he would certainly bear the blame for shielding or dereliction of duty.
“The most convenient to start with is still that leaked scroll.” Wei Sheng thought, then asked, “Who is the Navy admiral closest to Dun Dao City?”
His subordinate immediately reported, “It’s General Kan Qiao. As the fleet has been severely damaged by the storm, it is currently waiting for repairs in Tan Mo’s secret harbor.”
Wei Sheng frowned once again.
He knew: General Kan Qiao was very upright and brash, and due to his personal experiences, he detested pirates, making him one of the fierce generals in the Navy.
He was suitable for charging into battle but not for investigating corrupt cases.
“Other than him?” Wei Sheng asked again.
“It’s Vice Admiral Tan Mo,” the subordinate immediately replied.
“Tan Mo, huh.” Wei Sheng slightly raised his eyebrows.
He knew of the man, a magician with decent bloodline, not lacking in personal combat strength, and also had connections in the Empire’s upper echelons.
But this vice admiral was greedy by nature, adept at extortion and sleight of hand, a genuine worm in the Navy, the kind of person Wei Sheng despised the most.
“To hand over this case to him…” Wei Sheng hesitated, asking then about other candidates.
The subordinate shook his head, “There’s no other Navy general within a thousand miles.”
It must be at least at the general level.
The Empire’s Navy vice admirals must ensure personal strength equal or superior to Gold, and only with such strength can they suppress local tyrants and have the power to advance the investigation of the case.
Wei Sheng hesitated for a while between Kan Qiao and Tan Mo, and finally said, “Then issue an order to Tan Mo to immediately head to Dun Dao City to clarify the facts of the case and find the clues.”
Giving the task to Kan Qiao could mess things up, and handing it to Tan Mo could lead to corruption and extortion, but he was still capable of finding some clues.
Despite despising his character, Wei Sheng had to admit that Vice Admiral Tan Mo was still capable.
Soon, Vice Admiral Tan Mo received the military order.
Tan Mo was a middle-aged man, with a portly figure, a short neck, and a pair of small eyes glinting shrewdly. He was carefully wiping a shield with a handkerchief, polishing its surface until it shone.
Under the clear light, he admired the brightly gleaming shield, constantly clicking his tongue in appreciation.
Knock knock knock.
The sound of knocking suddenly came, disturbing Tan Mo.
“What is it?” Tan Mo frowned, noticing a speck of dust, he hurriedly wiped it away with the handkerchief.
“Vice Admiral, an urgent military order has arrived!” The First Officer’s voice came from outside the door.
Tan Mo sighed, placing the shield on the table, “Sigh, what kind of urgent military intel is it this time… Bring it up.”
The door opened, the First Officer entered with a flattering smile, bending over to place the military intel on the desk.
Tan Mo stretched out his fat arm, slapped his hand on the report, then dragged the report across the silky smooth surface of the fine desk to his front.
Then, he leaned back comfortably in the recliner and leisurely opened the report.
After reading for a while, a glint of sharpness flashed through his small eyes, muttering to himself, “It’s not about eradicating pirates, but investigating a corruption case. Hehe, an unexpectedly good assignment.”
“Cough cough.”
He sat up straight, becoming serious, and ordered the First Officer, “The military situation is urgent, change course immediately, heading for Dun Dao City on Knife Mountain Island.”
“Yes!”
The night ocean came alive, with the soldiers exhibiting remarkable efficiency.
The flagship Treasure Chest was the first to change course, followed by the rest of the warships, all headed for Dun Dao Island with great momentum.
They sailed through the night without a hitch.
At dawn, Vice Admiral Tan Mo, eager and impatient, raised his monocular to his eye; on the horizon within his view, a tiny dot emerged—it was none other than Dun Dao Island.
The light of dawn filtered through the ocean, and the Deep Sea Monster Fish lay quietly afloat in the shallow waters.
On its exterior, three fat blue orbs clung to its hull, tirelessly working.
Sunlight passed through the round window, bringing subtle changes to this makeshift alchemy cabin.
Zi Di, busy throughout the entire night, suddenly came back to reality, realizing, “It’s already the third day.”
Her focus returned to the Gargoyle Puppet in front of her.
This half-human-tall Gargoyle Puppet was deep black in color, exuding a glossy, glaze-like luster. It had hands and feet, a pair of large Bat Wings on its back, a head akin to a bat’s, with large ears, a broad and short snout, big nostrils, and a mouth full of sharp teeth.
And right in the center of its chest was a gaping wound, where once a primary Mind Array Core had been shot through by an arrow.
Zi Di had bought this Gargoyle Puppet at a Black Market auction. According to the auction house, it was one of the spoils of a pair of mercenaries who had ventured into an underground tomb.
But because the most valuable Mind Array Core was completely destroyed, the Gargoyle Puppet’s price couldn’t soar. The cost to recover the materials within its body was substantial, and it wasn’t worth it compared to simply buying materials like Obsidian outright.
Such items were typically sold to Alchemists.
However, only a few Alchemists specializing in the Puppet domain actually had such a need.
And they were at least exceedingly rare in Dun Dao City.
Thus, the Gargoyle Puppet was auctioned off as an antique and had been passed over several times.
When Zi Di acquired it, the price was very low.
After creating two Repairer Puppets of Defective Quality and one of Inferior Quality, Zi Di began to repair the Gargoyle Puppet.
The Puppet had at least four alchemy arrays on its body, interconnected and collaborating. The other Arrays were in good condition, but the primary Mind Array was severely damaged.
The core had been utterly devastated.
This fact attested to the archer who subdued this Puppet—their archery must have been extraordinary, at least at the Silver Level.
“Next…” Zi Di took a deep breath before proceeding, her expression grave as she took out a prism-shaped soul gem and inserted it into the central wound in the Gargoyle Puppet’s chest.
Zi Di had previously tended to the edges of the wound, which now perfectly matched the shape of the prism.
The soul gem fit seamlessly into place.
Zi Di then channeled Mana from the Mana Pool, infusing it into the Gargoyle.
A few seconds later, the Gargoyle’s eyes suddenly opened, its pupils appeared to float with two blooms of ghostly blue flames.
Zi Di’s head swam slightly, and she managed to regain her composure.
Her spirit now fully controlled the Gargoyle.
Without her needing to speak, merely by her spiritual manipulation, the Gargoyle obediently opened its mouth and stretched out its arms, shifting from a crouching position to standing.
Zi Di had it extend its wings next.
Its wings were wide and large; when spread, they made its body seem very slim.
“Amazing! This is truly amazing!!” Zi Di was overjoyed.
The aura of the Gargoyle reached the Silver Level, making it a Combat Puppet of decent Grade. With Zi Di’s repairs, it was reborn anew.
Zi Di knew she had taken a shortcut.
She hadn’t repaired the primary Mind Array; such alchemy array repair was highly difficult and required substantial costs to rebuild.
To replace the primary Mind Array, Zi Di utilized the soul gem. Using it as the core, she constructed a very basic and fundamental Array.
Of course, this Array involved knowledge of Undead magic spells. In that regard, she had to thank the ship ghost.
“That said, we could actually mass-produce Silver Level Combat Puppets?” Zi Di’s mind raced with the idea.
They had mastered the creation of soul gems.
There were many blueprints of Gargoyles in the Tower Spirit Memory Library.
“Soul gems and Alchemy Puppets really do match perfectly, completely eliminating the need for Mind Arrays. The cost of those Arrays is too high, whereas soul gems are economical.”
Coming from a merchant background, Zi Di viewed issues with cost in mind first and foremost, especially in terms of business.
“With such a low-cost production, Gargoyles could be sold in large quantities at low prices, quickly seizing market share and becoming a popular long-term business.”
“However, once the Gargoyles are thoroughly analyzed, other magical domains will sooner or later come up with ways to counter the soul gems.”
Zi Di continued her work.
Next, she planned to reinforce the Gargoyle’s heart area with a heavy, sturdy Refined Gold Heart Protector. Of course, the surface of the Refined Gold would also be coated in black, made to look exactly like the Gargoyle’s own body and blend seamlessly.
“It would be best to lay an Array specifically for reinforcing the heart area. Unfortunately, I don’t possess that ability.” Although Zi Di could set up defensive Arrays, she couldn’t integrate this Array with others. This level of skill was beyond her capabilities.
ps: Here is one catch-up update, and we will continue tomorrow.