Eternal Life: Talent Grows with Age-Chapter 320 - 199: Puppetry Technique at Great Success!_2
Lu Chang’sheng said.
This kind of high-level power struggle is a real hassle—god knows how it could all turn out in the future.
Plus, with this many people involved, it’s not just risky for someone at my current strength to get involved, I might even end up as cannon fodder.
Not worth it!
People like Huo Zun and the rest aren’t exactly upstanding citizens—you can see that from the way they treated Lin Yan.
"That’s all the resources of the whole White Cloud Cave Mansion. Master Baiyun actually has a pretty solid reputation in the Guangnan Domain, and most of the resources he gathered over those centuries are all up here in the White Cloud Mountain Range." Huo Zun tried to persuade him.
Their faction is noticeably weaker than Thunder Cauldron’s group. Lu Chang’sheng’s Qi Cultivation at the fourth layer doesn’t impress them, but his alchemy skills are top-notch.
The main thing is, Lu Chang’sheng was the main victim back then in that Grade A alchemist potential evaluation fiasco.
That whole thing can be used as ammo against Thunder Cauldron’s camp.
"I’m tempted too, but I know my limits. You only eat what you can stomach. With matters like this, I’d rather keep to myself and live a peaceful life."
Faced with Lu Chang’sheng’s "sincere" refusal, Huo Zun could only leave, helpless. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦
After that, quite a few others came to pay Lu Chang’sheng a visit.
All of them trying to rope him into their faction.
Lu Chang’sheng turned them all down, one by one.
There was even someone from Thunder Cauldron’s camp, though the people they sent left Lu Chang’sheng speechless.
Because Thunder Cauldron’s side actually sent Steward Yang to ask on their behalf.
Clearly, those folks didn’t really want to be doing this—maybe they had no choice, maybe someone forced their hand, but they still couldn’t swallow their pride.
Sure enough, once he got Lu Chang’sheng’s answer, Steward Yang left with a sigh.
Next thing, he was off to report to a Grade B Alchemy Institute.
This once-in-a-century upheaval in White Cloud Cave Mansion—if he wanted to get ahead, of course he had to pick a side.
After rejecting six or seven people in a row, no one else came knocking for Lu Chang’sheng.
There are plenty of risk-averse alchemists—even for someone as well-known as Lu Chang’sheng, he wouldn’t draw so much attention if it weren’t for his fame.
About all this, Lu Chang’sheng felt a mix of resignation and relief—it didn’t trouble him much.
As long as he stayed inside Immortal City, his life wouldn’t be in danger. Even if the sect tore itself apart, they wouldn’t use someone like him—a so-called "outsider"—as a sacrifice.
It’s just not worth it!
At most, the resources he got as a Grade B alchemist might get held back.
But that would only happen once things became very clear-cut. Before the dust settled, if anyone tried to cut off their rightful benefits, it’d be considered aiding the enemy.
"These days, I’m past the point where I need my reputation for protection—it’s time to keep things steady."
A Grade B alchemist’s position was enough to cover his current cultivation expenses.
No need to stir up further trouble.
······
The news of Master Baiyun’s death couldn’t be kept secret for long. Within a few days it spread like wildfire, setting all of Platinum Immortal City abuzz—plenty of cultivators talking in private.
The Supreme Profound Sect didn’t dare comment, so they turned their attention to White Cloud Cave Mansion instead.
Soon enough, rumors started swirling that there was division inside White Cloud Cave Mansion.
Thankfully, at this point, only the Gu Family still had Foundation Establishment cultivators left.
Being an affiliated force of the Supreme Profound Sect, without their permission, it’s impossible they’d stick their hands in easily.
A month later, some news circulated in the sect—stuff about Lu Chang’sheng’s "Grade A Evaluation Dispute" during his entry examination.
Lu Chang’sheng didn’t even have to think to know he was being used as the vanguard for some faction.
And odds were, it was definitely Huo Zun and company.
The only reason he couldn’t say for sure is because, with his cautious and suspicious nature, he reckoned there might be a third or fourth party just slacking off in the chaos.
Could be the Gu Family, or maybe some of the top Qi Cultivation clans in Platinum Immortal City.
"Good thing I didn’t pick a side—or I’d be the one getting pushed out right now."
As long as he didn’t stick his neck out, nobody could settle that old matter of his for good.
Sure enough, the next day, someone stepped up to refute those statements.
That person was no ordinary character—a core higher-up of White Cloud Cave Mansion, top tier both in seniority and power, not beneath Zhen Heitu.
He just hadn’t shown his face on the White Cloud Hall steps last time. Now it seemed he’d appeared to handle this very thing.
Lu Chang’sheng didn’t buy that he was standing out of fairness; he was obviously standing up for Thunder Cauldron and company, trying to pave the way for Zhou Lin.
The reason he could be so sure was that this elder, Liu Jiu, was the very one who brought Zhou Lin into the sect himself.
You could say he was pretty much Zhou Lin’s half-master.
"Everyone’s a fox in this game—they’ve got some real long-term vision."
Lu Chang’sheng couldn’t help but sigh.
As expected, after Liu Jiu spoke out, the chatter outside died down a lot.
Lu Chang’sheng just smiled at that—actually felt a lot more relaxed.
As long as they didn’t drag him in, they could fight it out however they wanted.
Every day, he focused on his cultivation. If he got tasked, he’d just refine something in passing.
With so many alchemists in White Cloud Cave Mansion, there was always plenty of work.
······
In the blink of an eye, over seven years had passed.
His training chamber was piled high with discarded puppet beast parts—beast heads, human heads, limbs, bodies, all sorts.
Fang Yuan’s puppetry technique had reached such high quality for a reason—it really was unique.
At the entry level, you could make a dozen types of very basic puppet beasts, each about as strong as a normal warrior—barely at the first layer of Qi Cultivation strength.
Lu Chang’sheng made one for Lu Chang’an—a humanoid type, overall similar to a cultivator, though "resembles" might be generous.
The real trick to puppetry was in the insides—the outside didn’t need to look sophisticated or exquisite.
So, on Lu Ziyou’s suggestion, Lu Chang’an put a Grade 1 magical robe on his puppet beast, covering its face, making it look like a servant tagging along.
That way, going in and out with Lu Chang’an, it could at least serve as a bodyguard.
It’s not that making a higher-tier puppet beast was impossible—Lu Chang’an’s strength just wasn’t high enough. Even with plenty of resources, he’d only barely reached peak Martial Dao, about at the Martial Saint level.
At most, he could only control a lower Grade 1 puppet beast.
Anything stronger, and it’d be like a toddler hefting a broadsword—no way to use its strength right.
By contrast, Lu Ziyou had it a bit easier, having reached Qi Cultivation at the second layer now.
Compared to that, Lu Chang’sheng realized he didn’t just have a poor Immortal Dao Root Bone—he had his Golden Finger cutting short his cultivation time too. Otherwise, with Lu Ziyou’s Grade D lower spirit root talent, after all these years, even if she didn’t catch up to him, she’d be close.
"The time my Golden Finger shows should be way shorter than what my original talent would require."
Thinking about it, that made perfect sense.
Normally, with poor Immortal Dao Root Bone, it could take decades just to go from Qi Cultivation level one to two.
Maybe even longer.
But for him, even without counting bonus effects from pills, it only took a few decades to rise a layer.
"So, in the future, once my talent reaches Grade A, I’ll actually be ahead of those native Grade A prodigies in the Spirit Realm." Lu Chang’sheng thought, delighted.
Ka-ka~
As the last rune was etched, the puppet on the table suddenly lit up—a glow covering it in layers of soft light.
The runes looked like veins of bone, each emitting spiritual light, and then, the puppet beast lying there suddenly twitched, then went still again.
It was like that single spasm had used up all its energy.
And honestly, that was exactly what happened—Lu Chang’sheng hadn’t etched the core energy rune pathways into this puppet beast.
So, it couldn’t stay running—not that he was cutting corners, but inscribing that part would’ve cost almost forty percent more resources.
If he made every puppet beast like that, he’d run out of materials in no time.
This one was already a mid-Grade 1 puppet; in full, it could reach Qi Cultivation sixth layer strength.
Suddenly, a wave of insight surged in Lu Chang’sheng’s mind—at that instant, everything about puppetry technique became clear as crystal.
"Finally leveled up."
After spending nearly a decade, at long last, he’d raised his puppetry technique to the state of Great Success.
