Immortality begins with meditation puppets

The traps surrounding the Evil Sword Realm are everywhere, forming an insurmountable barrier to any force that wants to attack this realm. In the past, various cultivators from all heavens have tried to clear these traps using magical artifacts, puppets, talismans, and beast-taming techniques, but the results have been unsatisfactory.

This is because the traps on the outer perimeter of the Evil Sword Realm were all set up by the Evil Sword Demon using the Immortal Trapping Sword Body, and then various evil demons added all sorts of insidious methods inside. The traps are all of a high level. Not to mention that ordinary bows and arrows are ineffective against them, even first and second-tier talisman puppets would have a hard time breaking them. Only third and fourth-tier killing power can cause some damage to these traps.

In the original cultivation world, those capable of inflicting third- or fourth-tier damage were either Golden Core cultivators or beings at the third-tier body cultivator level or above. If such people were to take action, they would be essentially paying with human lives, as there weren't enough mid- to high-level cultivators in the myriad realms to waste resources on these traps. Alternatively, they could possess third- or fourth-tier talismans, magical artifacts, puppets, or beast taming. While these items weren't as valuable as human lives, they were still quite expensive. The production capacity of the various craftsmen in the myriad realms was previously limited. Even if a seventh-tier talisman master personally crafted third-tier talismans, their efficiency would be quite good, producing at least a hundred or so a day. However, the resources for crafting talismans were not unlimited. Exchanging limited resources for the near-zero-cost traps of the Evil Sword Realm was clearly not a worthwhile deal.

But all of this happened before Su Qing appeared, before the rise of the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, and before the Lingxiao Palace puppet was created.

When Su Qing automated and intelligently created numerous puppet factories to mass-produce puppets, and when the Lingxiao Palace puppets, which had gathered the essence of Su Qing and the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom's years of experience in puppetry, entered the Evil Sword Realm, the traps that had previously been used to defend against attacks from all the heavens and myriad realms no longer posed any threat to Su Qing and his group!
"Boom!"

Amidst the continuous barrage of cannon fire, countless magical cannon puppets were erected on the Lingxiao Palace. These exorcising spirit explosion cannons were not even equipped with exorcising shells at this moment. Instead, they were made with a formula improved by the Divine Weapon Industry and further cost-cutting measures by the Langya Metallurgical Workshop, resulting in second-tier spirit explosion shells that cost less than eighty spirit stones per shot!
The artillery regiment, assembled into a legion, uses spiritual treasure shells that are so cheap that their cost is negligible. Their only advantage is that they explode powerfully and fiercely. If they are used against cultivators, their spiritual explosion power is dispersed or even insignificant. However, they are extremely useful for activating various traps and disabling them.

The firepower of this magic cannon was enough to dismantle most of the low-level traps, leaving only the high-level traps targeting high-level cultivators. After the North Pole Purple Star Emperor, who was commanding the puppet on the Lingxiao Palace, locked down the approximate location of these traps, the already prepared ones were immediately met with a suicidal bombardment by the suicide swarm squadron. The attack method of the suicide swarm determined that their cost could not be high. With the production capacity of the puppet factory in the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, the number of such relatively easy-to-make puppets was not a problem at all. However, when the suicide hummingbirds flew out of the Lingxiao Palace puppet like locusts, even Su Qing's allies were shocked.

"What are these? Are they all puppets? These aren't puppets, the sky is filled with spirit stones!"

"It seems Su Qing has really made a fortune these years. Just this swarm of self-destructing bees is something that ordinary forces can't afford to support. Even if they could build one, they wouldn't be willing to use it like this on him!"

"What do you know! You're making Su Qing sound like a swindler, cheating us out of our money by building his puppets? Do you think Su Qing is that kind of person? At most, he just sells us puppets at a slightly higher price. These self-destructing swarm puppets cost us two or three hundred spirit stones each, and we only get a 10% discount if we buy in bulk. But he makes these puppets himself using scraps from making other puppets, and the workers are those hardworking wooden spirit puppets who work day and night. Even the runes are drawn by low-level puppeteers in the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom who need practice opportunities. So, what cost does he have for these self-destructing swarm puppets? He didn't spend a single spirit stone!"

"Look! The launch system on that Lingxiao Palace puppet has been activated! Exorcism missiles! These are high-level exorcism missiles, firing 3,200 rounds per breath! These missiles are different from spirit explosion shells and self-destructing bee swarm puppets. These missiles are expensive to make. Using them to break traps is like using an anti-aircraft gun to kill a mosquito. It's not cost-effective!"

"No, these exorcism missiles are all equipped with exorcism guidance functions, which can accurately lock onto the aura of evil spirits. They can even find those evil spirits that are hiding in the shadows and constantly setting new traps. These missiles are here to destroy those evil spirits!"

"How satisfying! How satisfying! In the past, these demons would hide behind the scenes and watch us get injured and bleed in their traps. Now, we are the ones standing here, watching these demons frantically trying to escape, helplessly watching their traps, which they relied on, be destroyed by the Lingxiao Palace puppets, and in doing so, annihilating them as well!"

With a mere flick of his wrist, Lingxiao Palace Puppet cleared away all the traps surrounding the Evil Sword Demon. His mere display of skill resolved the most troublesome problem for all cultivators in recent years, a result that naturally amazed everyone.

But while the cultivators were amazed, they also reflected on why they hadn't thought of such a way to solve the problem of the traps on the outer perimeter of the Evil Sword Realm all these years. Or rather, they had thought of it, but had no way to put it into practice.

Without comparison, there is no harm; with comparison, problems can be discovered. All sects and practitioners are not stupid. Those who are stupid cannot embark on the path of cultivation. It is just that they have been shackled by old ways of thinking and influenced by their established environment, so they have not thought about other options or thought deeply.

At this moment, after a little thought, they understood why the great sects of the heavens could not replicate the system of the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom.

Ultimately, it comes down to a matter of productivity!
In terms of puppet production capacity, their various sects were completely outmatched by the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom.

It was the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom that gradually perfected the upstream and downstream industrial chain of puppet production, and with its sound and complete infrastructure, that reduced the cost of each stage of puppet production. Only in this way could they produce a production capacity that left the major sects of the heavens speechless at the lowest cost!
Their various sects trained artisans in the way passed down from ancient times, creating various crafts. They relied on individual workshops for production, and in terms of production efficiency, yield rate, and quality rate, they were completely outmatched by the puppet factories of the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom. Therefore, even though they thought of Su Qing's method, they were powerless to replicate it.

This also helped them understand why puppets like the Lingxiao Palace Puppet didn't appear in ancient sects like theirs, but instead appeared in the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, which had only risen a thousand years ago, and in the hands of Su Qing, who was still a greenhorn compared to them.

Because Su Qing's influence extends beyond simply using puppets to drive productivity innovation; he also excels at leveraging collective power. Unlike the major sects of the heavens who hoard their treasures and hide their valuable possessions for fear of being stolen, Su Qing was able to openly display all the secrets of this immortal kingdom's treasure to others even before his Lingxiao Palace puppet was fully crafted, allowing Lingbao Sect's array masters to set up formations and numerous civil engineers to construct spirit houses. He showed no intention of concealing or hiding anything.

This is because he has the confidence that no one else can replicate, and also because he wants to maximize the power of the Lingxiao Palace puppet, so he must rely on external forces and therefore must give up some secrets!
This was not the first time he had done this. Consider the hundreds or thousands of puppet blueprints he had published in the myriad realms and the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom over the years, and the latest puppet blueprints that his puppet research institute, which he founded, released every ten years.

To other puppeteers, these were the fruits of their cultivation wisdom and hard work. Each puppet blueprint could create immense wealth for them, and a single blueprint could be passed down through three generations. There was a possibility of starting from a single blueprint and eventually becoming an ancient puppetry family. They would treasure these blueprints, considering them more important than their own lives. Yet, he casually released them, allowing puppeteers from all the realms, regardless of their relationship with the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom or whether they had a grudge against Su Qing, to use these puppet blueprints for puppet making and refining.

The puppet world, which was originally confined by sectarianism and personal interests, gradually became more open and inclusive due to the numerous discussions sparked by his puppet blueprints. Many puppeteers spontaneously gathered together to discuss each blueprint he released. The series of puppets released by the Puppet Research Institute, which claimed to have an impact on the next hundred years of the world, caused a heated discussion among puppeteers every time they were released.

The puppetry community became more open, broadening the horizons of puppeteers and promoting exchanges. This led to significant progress in the skill level of puppeteers across the myriad realms over the past few centuries. Many of these puppeteers regarded the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, which brought about all this, as a sacred land of puppetry, and Su Qing, the leader of puppetry across the heavens, as a guide on the path of puppetry. Consequently, a portion of them chose to actively break away from their original forces and come to the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, where the development of puppetry was most prosperous, the atmosphere of puppetry was most intense, all the basic materials for puppetry were complete, and all the knowledge related to puppetry was the most advanced in the heavens. This injected a continuous stream of vitality into the puppetry industry of the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom.

It can be said that this Lingxiao Palace Puppet is not just a seventh-order puppet, but also symbolizes all the changes and efforts made by the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom over the years. These changes and efforts, after a certain period of time, have accumulated to the point that even if they cannot refine the Lingxiao Palace Puppet today, they will eventually refine a seventh-order puppet in a thousand years, ten thousand years, or even sooner or later. And they will inevitably be the first force in all the heavens and myriad realms to refine a seventh-order puppet.

As the various sects and cultivators reflected, they saw the Lingxiao Palace puppet at the very top of the palace, guarded by groups of heavenly soldiers and generals. The Great Emperor of the North Pole Ziwei ordered his flag bearers to wave their array flags, causing the Lingxiao Palace puppet to cast a large shadow over the heads of the cultivators. Then, it roared forward, clearing the way with magic cannons and using exorcising missiles to subdue the enemy. It charged straight ahead and crushed into the Evil Sword Realm.

"You rushed in already? Are you in such a hurry?"

"The Lingxiao Palace Puppet is such a precious treasure, does Su Tianjun really not care at all? He just charges straight into the demon's lair, isn't he afraid that it will be surrounded and destroyed by the demons!"

"If Su Tianjun doesn't feel sorry for us, we should feel sorry for him. The Lingxiao Palace Puppet has already done the kicking down of the door for us. If you're a man, don't just stand by and watch. Let's follow the Lingxiao Palace Puppet and charge into the Evil Sword Realm according to the original plan!"

"No one should try to take the vanguard position from our Lingbao Sect. We have tolerated this demonic realm for too long. Today, we will flatten this realm and kill all the demons in it, especially that Evil Sword Demon. Today, we will make sure it has nowhere to go, no way to escape to heaven or hell!"

"Gentlemen, as you charge forward, don't get too carried away. Remember, we are different from those self-destructing bee swarms of puppets sent out by the Lingxiao Palace. We are made of flesh and blood. When fighting against demons, our priority should be preserving our lives. We must not act impulsively and risk our lives at the hands of the demons!"

With the battle having progressed to this point, all sects and cultivators know what to do next without needing to be told!
With the Lingxiao Palace puppet solving the biggest problem in attacking the Evil Sword Realm, the next battle will be a smooth one for them, unlike anything they've ever fought before. If they can't fight such a battle or can't fight it well, then these great sects of the heavens should give up their current positions and relinquish their resources to the forces and sects below them as soon as possible!
The Lingbao Sect cultivators were even more determined. In the past, they had never had the opportunity to launch a strong attack on the Evil Sword Realm. The major sects of the heavens were reluctant to invest too much power in the Evil Sword Realm because they valued their wealth and lives. The Lingbao Sect itself had few disciples and was not very wealthy. In addition, they had other more important responsibilities to shoulder, so they could only swallow their anger. Now that the situation was so favorable, they could not possibly miss this opportunity.

Despite their eagerness to storm into the Evil Sword Realm, sharpening their blades and preparing to slaughter the demons and seize the main force to avenge their previous defeat, the Lingbao Sect still failed to secure a main force position.

When the puppet from the Lingxiao Palace broke into this evil sword realm, this seventh-tier puppet truly began to unleash its full power.

Previously, on the outskirts of the Demon Realm, the Lingxiao Palace puppets only deployed a magic artillery regiment, a suicide bee swarm squadron, and vertically launched exorcising missiles. While powerful, Su Qing had previously established similar puppet legions. Compared to this one, the only difference was that one was launched from the Lingxiao Palace puppets, which could have their damage amplified and their energy replenished by the puppets' Dao patterns, while the other was launched from Su Qing's storage bag, requiring the wood spirit puppets to continuously supply the cannonballs and provide the puppets with resources. The only difference was in efficiency.

This is clearly not the power that the Lingxiao Palace Puppet should have as a seventh-tier puppet. It is because the previous traps were not of a high enough level and the number of demons was insufficient, so the Lingxiao Palace Puppet only needed to use so few methods.

Now that it has fallen into the lair of the demon realm, this puppet can finally unleash its full power and fight to its heart's content! (End of Chapter)