Chapter 1523 - 1080: Origins

Chapter 1523: Chapter 1080: Origins

Jiang Yuan nodded in agreement: "The invading demonic energy isn’t that much, and the City Lord has managed to imprison it, making it straightforward to eliminate with a clear objective."

"I don’t sense things outside of the dreamscape as much, but the threat has indeed vanished." City Lord Yan Zheng breathed a sigh of relief, a hint of a satisfied smile on her tired face.

Qin Suyang narrowly escaped death, grabbing the woman named Sister Juan, crying and laughing; the elder and the woman also had faces full of relief from surviving a calamity.

Although they didn’t know when the next crisis would come, at least, for a short time, the city would remain safe, and no one would mysteriously disappear!

"The three of you, please come to my residence for a chat." Yan Zheng pushed open the door, solemnly instructing the three residents: "Keep tonight’s events a secret, when you return, don’t speak carelessly, the more peaceful everyone’s soul waves are, the stronger the city will be."

"Understood, understood! Thank you, sir, thank you, City Lord!"

"Thank you! Thank you so much! I... I don’t even know what to say, I was really scared to death earlier!"

"This is great, I never thought the traveling merchant who came this time could really solve the trouble, now everyone can rest easy..."

The three residents repeatedly bowed to express their thanks, then walked away from Anping Hall, chatting quietly with relief.

In the threat-free night, the moon peeked out from behind the dark clouds, casting a white glow. A few strings of red lanterns swayed slightly on the street, water flow, frog croaks, and grass insects composed a symphony of a tranquil night.

"Everyone, please!" With a thought, a delicate three-story bamboo building appeared across from Anping Hall.

She pushed open the bamboo building’s door, explaining: "What the Daoist friend said is correct, I specialize in the Nightmare Technique, the entire city is a dream realm I meticulously constructed. As a Dream Weaver, I can manipulate things within a certain range, such as moving my residence here to receive distinguished guests like you."

Upon stepping into the bamboo building, the lights turned on by themselves.

To the right of the hall stood a six-layer wooden platform, with at least two or three dozen flickering flames on each layer, illuminating the entire hall brightly.

Cups and teapots on the table rose into the air, arranging cups, adding tea leaves, brewing tea, the entire process smooth and fluid, as if an invisible hand was operating it.

Jiang Yuan glanced instinctively at his rarely used Nightmare Technique skill, thinking that if he remembered correctly, after Level Three he could create dreamscapes. The skill the City Lord is using should be of the same type as the Nightmare Technique; he wondered how many levels she had cultivated to create such a large dream that could accommodate so many souls.

"How should I address you all?" The City Lord invited the group of three to sit, writing their names on the table with tea water, smiling: "My surname is Yan, first name Zheng, and I’ve proclaimed myself the City Lord of the Puppet City.

Since we all know this isn’t the real world, there’s no need for too many formalities. Let’s be straightforward, what do you wish to find here in exchange?"

After a simple self-introduction, Jiang Yuan got straight to the point: "We’re here to look for clues about the Puppet’s Heart."

"The Puppet’s Heart?" Yan Zheng instinctively glanced at the two Puppet Beauties, smiling wryly: "I presume Daoist You wishes to find the Puppet’s Heart to install in these two, allowing them to break free from mechanical constraints. They could then independently absorb spiritual energy and engage in cultivation and advancement like ordinary cultivators, right?"

After receiving an affirmative answer, her expression turned more bitter, "Daoist You, do you know why the entire Ten Thousand Puppet Sect moved away, leaving only this small space? It’s because everything stored here is discarded by the High Tier Puppet Masters, deemed worthless! Treasures as precious as the Puppet’s Heart could hardly be left here."

Yun Shu and Yun Ying exchanged glances, both showing some disappointment.

Yet this result was expected, so they weren’t too disappointed. Would anyone be willing to throw the sect’s supreme treasure into a ’junk pile’?

"An intact, perfect Puppet’s Heart would definitely be taken by the Ten Thousand Puppet Sect. But a perfect product is not made in one go; it needs constant refinement and modification to succeed." Jiang Yuan patiently replied: "I want those failed items, anything related to the Puppet’s Heart, whether manuscripts or scraps, is fine."

Searching for failed products in a pile of discarded items has some possibility.

Yan Zheng pondered for a few moments, her face troubled: "To be honest, constructing this dream realm here, I appear powerful, like a lord of the realm. But in reality, I can only use what I learned in life to accommodate living souls.

The puppets where these souls reside are naturally easy to find; but those soulless objects... the Puppet’s Heart needed for human-shaped puppets is so small, it’s probably hard to locate.

So, besides asking the city residents for clues, I can’t really help in finding it."

She paused for a moment, then asked: "Mr. Jiang, you mentioned you would help clear the invading demonic energy and reinforce our array. That was on the premise of a normal transaction; now that I might not be able to help, the matter of repairing the array..."

As City Lord, Yan Zheng now faced a predicament.

First, she needed to maintain the dream realm she’d constructed and perfected over the years.

Only with everyone’s soul waves being peaceful could they unite, gathering soul power resonance. This not only provided a peaceful residence for souls trapped in cold, incomplete bodies; more importantly, it nourished originally fragile souls, preventing them from easily dissipating.

Therefore, except for those who already knew about the Dream City, most were kindly deceived by her.

If the lie were exposed and the dream shattered, that would be a small matter, but many fragile soul powers would then be insufficient to re-enter the dream realm. At that time, caught in neither dead nor alive, they would be sealed alone in incomplete puppets.