Hunyuan Immortal Sect

Chapter 103 Puppet Refining

Spiritual roots cannot be detected with the naked eye; special spirit-detecting talisman paper is required. Only after transcending the mortal realm and entering the path of cultivation can the specific properties of spiritual roots be detected, which in turn requires spirit-detecting stones.

Previously, Song Xian did not test the spiritual roots of those in Shizhai Village because the sect was financially tight. Now that the sect has more money, he naturally has to take charge of this matter.

The continuation of the sect requires fresh blood from the next generation, and this money cannot be saved.

"Junior Brother Qi, your Alchemy Hall can also recruit some cultivators with fire-attributed spiritual roots for training. If you are an alchemist, you don't need to go through the assessment and can join the sect at any time."

"Okay. I'll pay attention."

After giving a few instructions and letting the two go, Song Xian summoned Zhang Ningyuan alone. He had noticed that he had not said a word during the entire meeting, and it was obvious that he was dissatisfied with the distribution of money and property.

"Master, what instructions do you have for me?" After entering, Zhang Ningyuan saluted with an expressionless face. He was indeed a little angry, but he didn't dare to say it directly.

Originally, he was in charge of the sales of Yuxiang Dan, but now Feng Yan came along and took away his responsibilities. As an elder in the sect, he felt humiliated to be overshadowed by a newcomer who had only joined the sect for less than a few months.

Especially since Nanyuan Valley Market had only sold 200 pills in the past few months, while Qingfeng Market had sold more than 1,000 pills. The comparison between the two seemed to make him seem extremely incompetent.

That would have been fine, as he considered himself to have done his duty and worked hard in the Yuxiangdan affairs, but in the end, Feng Yan rewarded him with 385 spirit stones, Qi Xiaobai rewarded him with 480 spirit stones, and he only received 95 spirit stones.

Such a huge gap made him feel dissatisfied. Obviously everyone contributed. After all, he was the director of the sect's external affairs. It was only because he was in charge of the Nanyuanfang shop that he sold less.

If he were put in charge of the Qingfengfang shop, he would definitely do no worse than Feng Yan.

"Brother Ning Yuan, do you have any different opinions on the distribution plan for this meeting? I saw that you didn't seem very happy just now."

Zhang Ningyuan opened his mouth, wanting to say something but stopped himself.

"There's no one else here now. Whatever you say will enter my ears. Just say it. I promise no one else will know. There's nothing to hide between us."

"Since the Sect Master has said so, I will speak frankly. Speaking of which, I am the person in charge of the sect's external affairs, and I was also the first to be involved in the Jade Fragrance Pill business. Now, the entire Jade Fragrance Pill sales are under the management of Junior Sister Feng Yan. So what will I do in the future? Just look after that Nanyuanfang shop? If that's the case, I request to be transferred back to the sect."

Zhang Ningyuan spoke at a rapid speed, like beans pouring out of a bamboo tube. Obviously, he had been holding these words in his stomach for a long time.

Song Xian also knew that he was quite resentful, so he said calmly and kindly, "Of course, you are still the chief steward of the sect's external affairs. However, we have nothing to do except the Jade Fragrance Pills right now, and we will definitely expand into other industries in the future. For now, I will ask Senior Brother Ning Yuan to take care of the shop temporarily. I will replace you when we have more manpower."

"Excuse my bluntness, but if the Sect Master insists that I stay in charge of the shop, why not transfer me to Qingfengfang? I have no objection to Junior Sister Feng Yan, but now she's letting her take charge of the Yuxiang Pill sales while leaving me to manage that shabby shop in Nanyuanfang, as if I were her subordinate. I can't understand why. In terms of cultivation and experience, how am I inferior to Junior Sister Feng Yan? I should be more than qualified to manage that shop!"

"No one knows the situation at Nanyuanfang better than the Sect Master. The reason I only sold two hundred Jade Fragrance Pills this year isn't because I'm incompetent, but because this place is so remote. If I were transferred to Qingfengfang, I would definitely not be worse off than Junior Sister Feng Yan."

Zhang Ningyuan's words were very straightforward, and Song Xian sighed slightly in his heart. Since ancient times, people have been the most difficult to manage.

Everyone has different thoughts, and it is impossible for everyone to be of one mind. When there are too many people, conflicts and frictions are likely to arise.

As the headmaster, he can only try his best to be fair and just. Even a god cannot treat everyone equally and satisfy everyone.

When Hunyuan Sect was first established, everyone was harmonious and dedicated to the development of the sect. Now the situation has just improved and it has gained a firm foothold, but with the addition of a few more people, the contradiction has emerged.

From Zhang Ningyuan's perspective, what he said was completely correct. He was an old man who followed from Qingyun Sect. In terms of seniority and cultivation, he was superior to Feng Yan. Since he was asked to be in charge of the Yuxiangdan affairs, he naturally had to be the main person.

The current situation is that Feng Yan is in charge of the sales team of Yuxiangdan, and he is in charge of the sales of Yuxiangdan in Nanyuan Valley Market, which makes his position very awkward, and he is naturally dissatisfied.

But in Song Xian's opinion, it is most appropriate to let Feng Yan be responsible for the sales of Yuxiangdan team. First of all, the customers of Yuxiangdan are all women, and being a woman has innate advantages. There are some topics that can only be discussed between women, and it is difficult for men to touch upon them.

For example, when it comes to friendship between lovers, it is easy for women to talk to each other and resonate with each other, but it is impossible for a man to continue the conversation when facing a strange woman.

Even more bluntly, some women will talk about sexual pleasures, which is a topic that men and women who are not in a romantic relationship will never touch upon.

Secondly, Feng Yan is more suitable for this job. She is more delicate and sensitive, good at observing people's expressions and eloquent.

Although Zhang Ningyuan was considered dedicated and responsible, he was clearly not as talented in sales as Feng Yan. He was unaware of this, as the two had never met before. Furthermore, Feng Yan was currently doing very well at Qingfengfang, and Yuxiangdan sales were booming.

Therefore, it is impossible for Song Xian to agree to the request to replace the general, but he cannot directly tell Zhang Ningyuan that you are not as good as Feng Yan. This will not only fail to convince him, but will also intensify the conflict between the two.

After a moment of silence, Song Xian considered his words.

"Brother Ning Yuan, I know you've put a lot of effort into the Yuxiang Pill. But transferring you to Qingfeng Shop at this time might not be appropriate. Sales at Qingfeng Shop are booming, and Junior Sister Feng is just as dedicated as you are. What would Junior Sister Feng think if I transferred you to manage that shop?"

"She must feel like she worked so hard to establish Yuxiang Dan, and now she has so many customers, but in the end, she's just helping others. And she's a newbie. If I really did that, not only would she be disheartened, I'm afraid even Junior Brother Qi would think I'm being biased and kicking them out once I achieve some success."

"You are an elder of the sect, so you should consider the overall situation. Go to Nanyuanfang and hold the fort for a while. If you really don't want to manage that shop, I will transfer you back when there is an opportunity and more manpower. You will always be the director of the sect's external affairs, and you are currently only in charge of the shop."

Zhang Ningyuan said, "Since the Sect Leader has said so, I have nothing to say."

After seeing Zhang Ningyuan off, Song Xian called over other disciples of the sect one by one, chatted with them and understood their thoughts.

By dusk, the banquet was ready and everyone gathered together.

This banquet cost a full three hundred spirit stones. There were all kinds of delicacies, spirit wines and spirit food on everyone's table. Everyone clinked glasses, drank and chatted, and was naturally very happy.

.........

The next day, Feng Yan, Jiang Zichen, Qi Xiaobai, Kalisa, Zhang Ningyuan, Zhang Yi, and Zhong Yang left the mountain gate again and returned to their posts.

The days at the mountain gate were very peaceful. Song Xian continued to practice and study magic every day as usual.

More than a month later, Zhong Wenyuan went to Bianxi City and came back with a lot of training materials in big and small bags.

Among them are more than ten kinds of materials such as crystal powder, star sand, titanium stone, black gold soil, fine iron wood, ice essence, etc., all of which are used to refine puppets.

The materials used to refine low-level puppets are not complicated and are all relatively common materials.

At night, Song Xian summoned Shen Fan to his house to study the manufacturing of puppets with him.

"This crystal powder should be added with adhesive to condense it into a stone pillar. The book says that it should be piled up to three inches first, then glued together on all sides. Place it in a dark place for an hour, and then add adhesive every three inches until it condenses into a one-foot-wide crystal pillar. This step is called crystal condensation."

"Twelve small holes must be drilled into the titanium stone, three holes each on the top, bottom, left, and right sides. Then, a mixture of star sand and black gold soil is poured into the titanium stone. The outer surface is sealed with black gold soil, and then placed in a fire for three days. This step is called brain refining."

"Fine ironwood must be cut into a cone shape, smeared with ice essence, sealed with black gold soil, and placed in fire for five days. This step is called bone forging."

"This amethyst needs to be carved into a four-inch diamond shape and inserted beneath the titanium stone. This step is called the Sealing Body."

…………

The two of them studied the puppet secret record step by step. Of course, Shen Fan did all the rough work, such as condensing crystals, refining the brain, strengthening bones, and sealing the body. Shen Fan did all the steps personally.

Song Xian spent most of his time giving instructions, and sometimes he would get involved because he was interested.

He still practiced in the training room during the day, and studied these things with Shen Fan at night.

Shen Fan was immersed in refining puppetry all day long and was busy for more than two months. According to the records in the puppet secret book, the first snake-shaped puppet finally completed all the steps, but the finished product was ridiculous.

How could this be a snake?! Its waist was much thicker than its neck, its tail was like a lion's, its head was like a lizard's, and there were obvious fractures on its trunk, head, and tail. Its trunk was like a bamboo with distinct sections.

There is no need to proceed to the next step of condensing consciousness into qi, as you know this is bound to be a failure.

(End of this chapter)