Netherworld Envoy · Qi Bai.
Main body color was black, with accents in gray and white.
It stood six foot five, extremely thin. Its head appeared as if it wore a conical hat, but it was actually a part of its head. The skull resembled a pitch-black, inky, conical hat, spreading outward.
Within the shadows under the brim of the hat, its entire grayish-white head was hidden, evoking imagery of a pale human skull.
On its head, its eye area was a black strip positioned above the nose bridge. In the middle of the strip, there was a faint grayish-white line.
Its torso also bore talisman carvings. The intricate talisman patterns, outlined in various gray and white lines, flickered intermittently. At a glance, it seemed like countless ghosts entwined around its body.
"What a fantastic mechanism." Ning Zhuo excitedly ran forward.
Behind him, Sun Lingtong smiled and shook her head lightly as she watched Ning Zhuo's enthusiastic display.
She knew, Ning Zhuo genuinely loved all kinds of mechanical artifacts.
When he was just two or three years old, Ning Zhuo never wanted to leave the small vendors' stalls. When he attended school, he would linger over mechanical toys like the character Er Lang and Three Hairs, unable to part with them. Ning Zhuo was often short on money and could only look; he couldn't afford to buy.
It was Sun Lingtong, after noticing several times, who bought him a mechanical toy on Ning Zhuo's birthday, which made him deliriously happy for a long time.
"The skeleton seems to be made of Gloomy Blue Nether Iron, most suitable for bearing Yin attribute mana."
"The joints are made of century-old soul wood, quite flexible, and can even serve as housing for ghosts."
"The core is Yin Deficient Spirit Jade. This natural, special spirit stone can store an immense amount of Yin spiritual power!"
Finally, Ning Zhuo grabbed the edge of the conical hat and pulled it at an angle to closely inspect Qi Bai's eyes.
"It seems to be made of Deadlight Glass, although that is just one of the primary materials. The eye components are definitely made of a mixed material!" Ning Zhuo asserted confidently.
"If that's the case..." Ning Zhuo suddenly clapped his hands, "this mechanical puppet should be able to use talents! The special structure of the eyes is clearly designed for the Insight into the Netherworld!"
Thinking about this, Ning Zhuo suddenly turned his head, pivoting his entire face backward, and said to Sun Lingtong: "Elder Sun, what information did you get?"
Sun Lingtong stammered: "I didn't get anything."
"It's my fault, my fault. I got too excited!" Ning Zhuo patted his wooden head, making a thumping sound.
In the next moment, he invoked the Buddha Heart Demon Seal and activated the Life Hanging Thread.
"Got it, I've received a large amount of information," Sun Lingtong said.
Ning Zhuo nodded: "Just like I did back then!"
Sun Lingtong conveyed: "This mechanical puppet is called Netherworld Envoy. Under the central forehead is the mechanical component Netherworld Official Seal, which can summon various ghosts and deities."
"At the neck, there is the mechanical component Soul-stirring Throat Drum, capable of emitting sonic attacks to violently shake the souls of living beings."
"Further down are components like the Echo Chamber and Sound-releasing Bottle, which work in tandem with the Soul-stirring Throat Drum."
"Distributed across the body are mechanical nozzles that, when activated, can spray Gold-threaded Ghost Gauze. This ghost gauze can merge swiftly to form a protective black robe."
As Ning Zhuo listened, he nodded slightly.
The puppet Qi Bai and the Golden Blooded War Ape - Dasheng had an obvious difference, and that was the numerous mechanical components.
Ning Zhuo understood the reason: "Before refining, Elder Sun integrated the Netherworld Ghost God Seal, Soul-stirring Drum, and the shattered Golden Threaded Garment into Qi Bai's dantian."
"During the refining process, the Magma Fairy Palace melted these magical artifacts together, turning them into corresponding mechanical components."
Sun Lingtong suddenly widened her eyes: "Six levels of spiritual nature, able to use the Innate Netherworld Death Gaze twelve times? Each activation would damage the eye structure. Timely replacement parts would be needed for subsequent uses."
"Netherworld Envoy · Qi Bai possesses both the Nine Nether Array and Spirit Communion Array. The former can mobilize Yin spiritual power to replenish itself or enhance spell efficacy. The latter can communicate within a certain range with intelligent beings."
"Netherworld Envoy · Qi Bai retains the Soul Devouring Golden Elixir and can use the Nine Revolutions Soul Devouring Secret to absorb enemy souls, enhancing its state or supplementing its ghostly subordinates."
This was expected by Ning Zhuo, seeing that the puppet Yuan Dasheng could also use the Demon-infused Bloodline Technique.
"It has twelve Ghost Nurturing Jars within its body. Storing the ashes of ghosts' previous lives enhances the nurturing effect."
"It possesses thirty-six talisman spells, which are..."
Sun Lingtong gradually faltered in her speech.
Ning Zhuo, originally engrossed, hurriedly asked: "Elder Sun, what is the matter?"
Sun Lingtong's voice trembled: "This... is a bit terrifying."
"What do you mean?" Ning Zhuo inquired.
Sun Lingtong scratched her head: "Little Zhuo, you know about the Burial Spirit Sect, right?"
Ning Zhuo immediately nodded: "I know, an evil sect, very powerful, but they slaughter and sacrifice all life, only seeking spiritual nature."
"Because they were too heartless, they were besieged and exterminated."
Sun Lingtong nodded: "The Burial Spirit Sect sacrificed countless lives only to seek spiritual nature, and they were besieged and annihilated by both the righteous and demonic paths."
"Look at the Magma Fairy Palace!"
"It not only extracts spiritual nature but also thoughtfully integrates it into a mechanical body."
"Though Netherworld Envoy · Qi Bai is limited by its frame, with a thin body, relying solely on those three key components, it could certainly reach Golden Core-level combat power."
"What if others discover that the Magma Fairy Palace possesses such capabilities? Little Zhuo, what do you think would happen?"
Ning Zhuo's heart quivered slightly, and he immediately fell into silence.
Back when the Burial Spirit Sect merely sacrificed lives for spiritual nature, almost the entire Cultivation World targeted them. They exterminated the entire sect before stopping.
Now, the Magma Fairy Palace not only extracted spiritual nature but even attached it to a mechanical body, giving it immediate utility.
What would happen if they were discovered?
Ning Zhuo thought about it and referenced the Burial Spirit Sect, feeling a chill down his spine.
Sun Lingtong sighed deeply, marveling: "The Three Ancestral Masters are truly formidable. It seems he also participated in the campaign against the Burial Spirit Sect?"
"He had joined the Demon Sect and practiced there for a long time."
"Seeing the mechanical puppet he refined, it's truly demonic!"
One fundamental difference between the Demon Path and the Righteous Path was that the former's cultivation resources came from the cultivator themselves.
The Magma Fairy Palace's method of refining mechanical artifacts using corpses was undeniably a demonic path practice.
Ning Zhuo shook his head: "Elder Sun, these are merely tools. Used righteously, they are righteous. Used evilly, they are evil."
"Just like when we took over the black market and reformed it, stopping countless crimes and evil deeds. That is an act of justice."
Sun Lingtong laughed: "Brother, weren't we originally seeking revenge?"
"Later, as our influence grew, we fought numerous battles for information and profit, eventually becoming the black market's dominant force, and finally the Black Market Master."
Ning Zhuo coughed twice: "Indeed, we prevented much bloodshed, indirectly saving many innocent lives. Elder Sun, would you say that is true?"
"You," Sun Lingtong chuckled, "right, right, right!"
For anyone else being so hypocritical, Sun Lingtong would have rolled her eyes and possibly spat on them.
So phony, so hypocritical.
But with good brother Ning Zhuo speaking this way, she let it slide.
Sun Lingtong could only shake her head, smiling indulgently, as if to say she saw through it but chose not to point it out.
"It's not really Little Zhuo's fault."
"Think about the people he encountered in the righteous path growing up. What were they like?"
"Ning Ze, Wang Lan, Ning Ji, and Ning Xiaoren... Didn't all of them preach one thing but do another?"
"So, in Little Zhuo's initial understanding, the righteous path was supposed to be that way."
Ning Zhuo pondered: "With six levels of spiritual nature, we should best enhance it to ten levels!"
"Spiritual nature is the most valuable and precious part of this mechanical puppet."
"We need more information about Qi Bai."
"That's a bit tricky," Sun Lingtong said, spreading her hands, "I'm currently wanted all over the city, and we've lost the black market. Our previous information channels are mostly gone."
Ning Zhuo sighed: "Well, then we can only take things one step at a time."
Sun Lingtong said: "With Qi Bai dead, the Soul Devouring Sect will definitely react. We should lay low for a while and not rush to investigate Qi Bai, otherwise, we might leave trails that others can follow."
"Yes, I'll listen to you, Elder Sun," Ning Zhuo nodded repeatedly.
This exploration of the Immortal Palace had brought them great gains. They successfully eliminated the potential threat of Qi Bai; simply keeping him sealed was not a solution.
Imprisoning Han Ming before had been a painful lesson.
Next, Sun Ning used the checkpoints to test the powers of Netherworld Envoy · Qi Bai.
The result was that Qi Bai's combat strength was much lower than the two had imagined.
Netherworld Envoy · Qi Bai was made of average materials, so once it unleashed Golden Core-level power, its mechanical body couldn't withstand it.
That was quite embarrassing.
The two key components of Qi Bai were the Netherworld Official Seal and Soul-stirring Throat Drum.
The Netherworld Official Seal could communicate with ghost gods. But these ghost gods were not bound by Sun Lingtong but by Qi Bai. Now, with only six levels of spiritual nature, Qi Bai's ability to communicate with summoned ghost gods was even poorer than Yuan Dasheng's.
While the Soul-stirring Throat Drum was quite powerful, the mechanical puppets in the checkpoints had no souls. Similarly, as before, Qi Bai tried to use the Soul-stirring Drum on the Martial Fighting Ape - Dasheng, but found there was no soul to stir.
Qi Bai could also employ the Innate Netherworld Death Gaze talent, but with only six levels of spiritual nature, it could only be used twelve times.
And this talent was primarily for reconnaissance, so Ning Sun had no intention of testing it out.
Ning Zhuo also noticed that Sun Lingtong's control over Qi Bai was much weaker than his own control over Yuan Dasheng back then.
Ning Sun speculated that it might be because Elder Sun was only in the Foundation Establishment Stage, while Qi Bai retained its Golden Core, creating a master-slave imbalance that made Qi Bai less obedient.
Sun Lingtong speculated: "The Three Ancestral Masters arranged the three Buddhist Gates probably intending for each trial disciple to obtain a fairly refined mechanical artifact."
"This mechanical artifact could serve as a mainstay. Initially, it might be made of ordinary, inexpensive materials."
"The upcoming stages will likely offer numerous opportunities to upgrade and enhance the mainstay mechanism."
"Through this process of assembling and modifying the mainstay, the trial disciples' mechanical techniques skills will continue to improve!"
Regardless, the combat strength of Netherworld Envoy · Qi Bai had significant potential but required future investments to truly reach Golden Core-level power.
"It's almost time, Little Zhuo, we should head back now," Sun Lingtong reminded.
Ning Zhuo replied: "We still have a bit of time. We must make the most of every opportunity to explore the Immortal Palace! I have a good idea."
"Oh? Let's hear it."