Chapter 98: Marionette

“Brother Ning Zhuo, I’m right here!” Zheng Jian laughed heartily as he saw Ning Zhuo step down from the carriage. Taking a few strides, he quickly reached him.

Ning Zhuo hastily clasped his fists in salute. “Brother Zheng.”

“No need for formalities!” Zheng Jian grabbed Ning Zhuo’s arm, stopping him from continuing the salute. “Come, let’s head to the second floor.”

Behind them, Ning Xiaohui slowly descended, stepping leisurely over a servant’s back. Seeing Zheng Jian pull Ning Zhuo away without even glancing at her, a chill settled over her face.

Since the last successful exploration of the Immortal Palace, Ning Zhuo had thoroughly proven his worth among the leadership of the three families, and his status had soared.

In order to better win Ning Zhuo’s favor, Ning Xiaoren hastened to weave evidence to frame Ning Ze.

It was important to remember that Ning Ze had served under Ning Xiaoren for many years, and though he lacked great achievements, he had his share of hardships.

Ning Xiaoren’s conduct was secretly despised and warily regarded by Ning Zhuo.

Arm in arm, Ning Zhuo and Zheng Jian walked into a garden courtyard.

Above the gate hung a plaque engraved with the words “Benevolent Youth Garden.”

Inside, the garden bustled with crowds, all engaged in conversations revolving around the name Li Leifeng.

Li Leifeng had finally passed away of natural causes. According to his will, the Benevolent Youth Garden had arranged a bequest ceremony, during which all of Li Leifeng’s belongings would be distributed.

“I never thought Old Li would ultimately pass on. When I was a child, I grew up watching his puppet shows,” Zheng Jian sighed.

Ning Zhuo echoed the sentiment. “Old Li was a respectable man. Since taking charge of the Benevolent Youth Garden, he saved countless orphans and abandoned children.”

Zheng Jian patted Ning Zhuo’s back. “Old Li passed away peacefully in old age! Look at how many people have come today, that alone speaks to his reputation. His life was truly worthwhile!”

Ning Zhuo nodded slightly, falling silent.

Most of the crowd gathered in a five-story pavilion for the event.

The bequest ceremony was held there.

Ning Zhuo and the others entered the building.

The pavilion was shaped in a square courtyard style.

Climbing the stairs to a private room on the second floor, Ning Zhuo saw the Zhou brothers.

“Come, sit.”

“The food served by the Benevolent Youth Garden this time still carries the old flavors, stirring up memories.”

“Yes, I still remember, as a child I loved watching the puppet shows. That private room opposite was where I often went.”

“When I was young, I liked to lean on the railing to watch the plays.”

Ning Zhuo remained silent, his gaze falling to a corner of the main hall.

As a child, he would sneak in unnoticed while the ticket collectors looked away, hiding behind walls or pillars. Not only could he watch the shows, but sometimes he’d gather leftover pastries or fruits from the guests after the performances before the garden was cleaned.

Though sharp-minded, Ning Zhuo also had a playful side.

His uncle and aunt treated him harshly; many times Ning Ji would snack in front of him without sharing a single sweet.

Even as a child, Ning Zhuo craved treats.

He recalled once being caught and trembling with fear, when Li Leifeng came before him, gently stroked his head, took his hand, and led him backstage. There, he was given untouched, clean pastries and fruits by Li Leifeng.

People coming and going saw this scene but showed no surprise, casting kind glances at Ning Zhuo.

The exact details had blurred with time.

In his memory, this whole experience was enveloped in a gentle warmth, so that every time he recalled it, a soft warmth would ripple through his heart.

This was why, upon Li Leifeng’s passing, nearly the entire city had come to mourn him. The cultivators attending the bequest were mostly figures of notable status.

“Now that Li Leifeng is gone, who knows what will become of the Benevolent Youth Garden?”

“Rumor has it that the next director hasn’t been decided yet.”

“I know why. Li Leifeng entrusted Zhu Xuanji with asking the Divine Detective to find a successor.”

Zheng Jian and Zhou Zesheng exchanged information casually, revealing valuable intelligence.

Ning Zhuo quietly took note.

“By the way, how’s your soul recuperation going?”

“Almost fully recovered.”

“Mine too.”

“When will we explore the Lava Immortal Palace again?”

At this question, all eyes instinctively flicked toward Ning Zhuo.

Last time, it was Ning Zhuo’s performance that led to a qualitative breakthrough.

Ning Zhuo, however, was reluctant. He had recently obtained cultivation methods and spent his days in earnest practice.

Of course, the Five Elements Qi Laws and the Demonic Blood Vein Art were currently beyond his reach. The methods for levels four to six produced an aura quite different from the first three.

But the Spirit Mirror Cultivation Technique was something he could practice.

All disturbances were suppressed and fully contained by his treasured seal, letting Ning Zhuo often appear lost in thought while secretly cultivating his spirit.

Ning Zhuo said, “For now, I can’t think of any good approach. If we continue exploring the Immortal Palace, we might fall into the same trap again, sinking into that pitch-black abyss.”

Zheng Jian and the others shuddered inwardly.

Last time, they had fallen into a trap where survival was impossible and death was not an option—unable to see, hear, or touch anything, they endured in agony until their soul power reached its limit, finally being ejected from the palace.

That nightmarish experience was something none wished to repeat.

“Have you come up with no better ideas all this time?” Zheng Jian asked.

Ning Zhuo shook his head.

Zhou Zhu sighed.

Zhou Zesheng encouraged, “I’m almost at the peak of level three. Once I reach it, we’ll set out together and explore the Lava Immortal Palace again.”

Everyone nodded, agreeing to the plan.

At that moment, the bequest ceremony officially began.

Li Leifeng’s belongings were publicly exhibited for selection.

Whoever chose an item could take it immediately—such was the donation.

Some lower-level cultivators left overjoyed with their finds.

Some families or powerful cultivators took items usually of little value, often gifting the Benevolent Youth Garden large sums of spirit stones or supplies in return.

Zhou Zesheng suddenly made a soft exclamation, reaching out and grasping an invisible force to take a mechanical wooden board, flying back to the second floor.

He examined it, playing with it before chuckling. “So it is this one.”

“I remember, when I was young, my father brought me here. I cried relentlessly, and Old Li took out this toy to cheer me up.”

“This mechanical toy is very complex. We must piece together each transformation to gain snippets of information.”

“Ultimately, assembling these pieces will form a divine immortal legend.”

As he spoke, Zhou Zesheng handed the mechanical toy to Zheng Jian.

Zheng Jian fiddled with it briefly, then lost interest and passed it on.

Zhou Zhu took it, curious. “Did you manage to get that legend in the end?”

“Of course,” Zhou Zesheng said. “It took an entire summer. The immortal legend I obtained was only a fragment, which frustrated me.”

“But I still copied the story onto a jade slip and carry it with me all the time.”

“Because of this experience, I gained much patience. Whenever I feel agitated, I take out the jade slip and rub it a few times, quickly calming my mind.”

He then took out the jade slip again, letting others view it in turn.

Ning Zhuo toyed with the mechanical board and read the story on the jade slip.

The slip recorded an immortal legend.

According to the tale, a Supreme Sage Immortal once traversed the void, growing weary.

He took out a mixed cloth bag, sealed its mouth, and prepared to shake it fifty times. At forty-nine shakes, utterly exhausted, he loosened the bag’s mouth and released a mechanical world.

Within this mechanical world, heaven and earth fluctuated, water and earth mixed, smoke and fire swirled.

The Supreme Sage Immortal then took out a Five Elements staff head and tossed it into the mechanical world, setting the five elements in motion: heaven above, earth below, oceans distributed, rivers winding—all in perfect order.

The Supreme Sage Immortal entered the mechanical world to rest. To have servants attend him, he used three thousand puppet strings, thrice casting them.

The first time, the strings struck the immortal qi, creating an immortal puppet.

The second time, the strings struck the demonic qi, creating a demonic puppet.

The third time, the strings struck the divine qi, creating a divine puppet.

The three puppets served the Supreme Sage Immortal with meticulous care.

Having rested enough, the Supreme Sage Immortal prepared to leave the mechanical world, but the three puppets begged him to take them along.

They all wished to follow him.

The Supreme Sage Immortal told them it wasn’t unwillingness but that the three puppets could not survive.

Forcibly taking the puppets would only cause their demise.

The puppets did not believe him.

So the Supreme Sage Immortal pointed out: “Look at the strings on your bodies.”

The puppets were stunned.

The immortal puppet saw its strings represented ideals, wisdom, freedom, betrayal…

The demonic puppet saw strings of power, chaos, passion…

The divine puppet saw strings of reason, order, fairness…

In that moment, Ning Zhuo’s spirit was deeply stirred!

He suddenly thought of himself.

He thought of the many historical figures he had studied, of their thoughts, and the choices they made at critical moments.

As he grew older, he realized: regardless of strength, their actions all followed discernible patterns!

He thought of Yuan Dasheng.

Though powerful, he was firmly bound by a string of loyalty and righteousness. Ning Zhuo’s ability to outwit him was precisely because he grasped that string.

He thought of his eldest uncle Ning Ze, and Ning Xiaoren—each had strings.

He thought of Han Ming. Even a demonic cultivator had strings named greed.

“As long as I grasp these strings, I can manipulate them like puppets. Isn’t that so?”

“Then…”

“Do I have strings on me?”

At this thought, Ning Zhuo was inexplicably chilled to the bone!

He slowly lifted his head.

In a daze, he saw it.

He saw a nearly transparent, colossal puppet string—that was the thread of life hanging by a thread!

At that moment, the Illusory True Lotus in his divine sea quietly sprouted.

The Lava Immortal Palace.

The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit awoke from slumber, pressing its chest, puzzled by a sudden, inexplicable fear.

The thread of life vanished from Ning Zhuo’s sight, no longer visible.

Ning Zhuo lowered his head, expressionless.

“Quite an interesting little story,” Ning Zhuo smiled, returning the jade slip to Zhou Zesheng.

“It does have a certain charm,” Zhou Zesheng took the jade slip, casually agreeing.

Little did he realize how great a fortune his casual act had brought Ning Zhuo!