"Strange?"
Chen Ye raised his brows slightly.
Even for him, hearing that word made his heart give a little jolt.
First, when you care, you get flustered; Foundation Establishment is, after all, a major event in one’s life, a pass of life and death for ordinary Cultivators.
Second is that
this little disciple of his was, in and of herself, an existence that defied common sense.
Whatever happened during her Foundation Establishment would not be surprising.
Zhiwei might be extraordinary, but she was still of the Human Race, unlike Qing Jun, who was a legendary creature.
"Come on, let’s go take a look."
Chen Ye couldn’t be bothered to rest and strode quickly toward Qing Jun’s room.
As soon as he approached,
he immediately sensed something was wrong.
Inside the room, there was a pressure like the rhythm of primordial life... heavy, ancient, and dignified.
The Spiritual Qi within Cangli Courtyard was surging uncontrollably toward that room, forming a vortex barely discernible to the naked eye.
"Creak—"
Chen Ye gently pushed the door open.
On the bed.
Qing Jun was curled up, knees tucked under her chin, arms wrapped tightly around her calves, taking the most primitive fetal posture.
That silver-white Dragon Tail coiled around her waist and limbs, the tip of the tail just shielding her glabella.
On her head, the tender, crystal-clear dragon horns emitted a soft halo, echoing the light at the tip of her tail.
Not only that.
From within her body, a steady stream of silver radiance was surging out, like silken threads of a silkworm, layering over and wrapping her up.
Light flowed, runes flickered in and out of sight.
From a distance, the Qing Jun on the bed looked just like an egg!
"This is..."
Jin’er, following behind, opened her eyes wide at the scene.
Eh?
How did Senior Sister Qing Jun turn into an egg?
"Master, is Qing Jun... reverting to her original form?" Zhiwei was likewise astonished.
She knew Qing Jun’s true identity, and thus asked this question.
"No."
Chen Ye stepped forward, his gaze burning as he fixed it on Qing Jun.
"Just like a cocoon turning into a butterfly, with Qing Jun like this, rather than saying she’s become an egg, it’d be better to say she’s spinning a cocoon, preparing to enter Foundation Establishment."
"Spinning a cocoon?"
"That’s right."
Chen Ye stretched out his hand, wanting to touch that layer of silver light cocoon.
"Buzz—"
As soon as his fingers got close, the light cocoon trembled, actually bouncing his fingers away ever so gently.
"Such powerful protective Spiritual Qi!"
Chen Ye praised silently in his heart, withdrew his hand, and explained,
"It’s fine. When Qing Jun breaks the shell, that will be the day she truly steps into Foundation Establishment, and may even awaken her divine abilities!"
Hearing her Master say this, the worry in Zhiwei’s heart finally eased.
She looked at that round, glowing egg on the bed and couldn’t help but laugh.
Mm...
Even if Qing Jun became an egg, she was a very distinctive egg!
"Then... Master, how long will Qing Jun sleep like this?" Zhiwei asked.
"As short as ten days to half a month, as long as a year; it all depends on how far her bloodline awakens this time."
Chen Ye said thoughtfully,
"However, with that girl’s temperament, I doubt she can sleep for too long. Once she gets hungry, she’ll naturally break out of the shell."
"Pfft."
Zhiwei couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Indeed.
If Qing Jun knew she had turned into an egg, her first reaction probably wouldn’t be surprise, but wanting to see how tasty this egg was.
Even if Qing Jun couldn’t eat it herself, she’d have Master eat some, then have Master tell her what it tasted like.
"Since that’s the case, we’ll just let her be."
Chen Ye waved his hand and laid a few Spirit Gathering Arrays and defensive Arrays around the room, sealing this egg up tight and secure.
"Zhiwei, from today on, aside from delivering Spirit Stones to maintain the Arrays’ operation, no one is allowed to disturb her."
"Even if Instructor Mao and Peak Master Zhao come again, block them for your Master."
"Yes, Master."
Zhiwei replied solemnly.
Chen Ye cast a helpless glance at that light cocoon.
This girl’s changes lately really were huge, causing her Master no small amount of trouble.
Not only had she become a genuine Little Dragon Girl, now she was on the verge of Foundation Establishment!
"Even Qing Jun is working hard to hatch herself; your Master can’t afford to fall behind... Tsk, if I still don’t enter the Late Period of Foundation Establishment, once these three girls all firmly step into the Early Period of Foundation Establishment, working together, I’m afraid I won’t be able to beat them."
This wasn’t to say that Master Chen Ye was useless.
You had to know,
these three disciples could not be judged by common sense one by one.
Although Chen Ye had his own golden finger, they each had their own golden fingers as well!
However,
that was all talk.
How could all three disciples possibly team up against their Master?
"There’s no need to worry about things that will never happen..."
Chen Ye felt somewhat reassured.
...
The next day.
Chen Ye glanced at the sky.
It was close to noon, the sun blazing.
Under the pear tree in the courtyard, Jin’er was squatting on the ground, curiously examining the Spiritual Materials Chen Ye had bought, a wisp of Spiritual Fire occasionally flickering in her little hand as she seemed to be pondering how to refine them.
"Master, are we about to start making Puppets?" Jin’er asked in a small voice.
"Still a long way off. Right now we only have four sets of Second Tier Upper Grade Spiritual Materials. Although these can serve as the main ingredients to refine two Second Tier Upper Grade Magical Treasures, it’s still a bit lacking for refining Puppets."
Chen Ye said with a smile.
Hearing this, Jin’er felt a bit puzzled:
"Master, Jin’er has read quite a few Secret Techniques on Refining Puppets before. By rights, with this many materials, even if we wanted to refine a Second Tier Upper Grade Puppet, it should be enough, right?"
"Well..." Chen Ye didn’t hide anything and said frankly, "What your Master wants to refine is a Second Tier Top Grade Puppet!"
A Second Tier Top Grade Puppet!
Comparing it to a Cultivator’s Realm, wouldn’t that be on par with a Fake Pill Cultivator?
Jin’er was instantly stunned.
Her Master’s attainments in the Puppet path were actually this profound?
"But... Jin’er heard that, in the Ten Thousand Puppet Sect’s Secret Techniques of Refining Puppets, if you want to refine a Second Tier Puppet, you must have a Puppet Core. And the Secret Technique for that Puppet Core is tightly controlled by the Ten Thousand Puppet Sect’s Golden Core True Man."