Jiang Tang was once celebrated as a genius, but his remarkable abilities eventually turned him into a resource that powerful organizations wanted to control. After escaping that role, he enters a world filled with cultivators, factions, and larger-than-life figures who all seem determined to define him before he can define himself. Some see a future ruler, others a dangerous rival, and still others simply a useful worker. Jiang, however, insists that he wants an ordinary life. The problem is that every new encounter makes that ordinary future harder to reach—and reveals more about why his abilities matter.
Chapter 20: The Common Man
Living billboards—the cheapest form of advertising, where earnings are directly proportional to one’s reputation and appearance. Jiang Tang wasn’t well-known, but his puppet’s appearance was definitely top-notch on the first floor of the Immortal Pavilion. But Jiang Tang was quite annoyed, because those four characters on his back could just as easily have been written on a piece of white cloth and hung around his neck—why go to the trouble of wasting the white robe he’d spent an entire hour sewing? Dongfang explained that if the Immortal Pavilion pressed the issue, Jiang Tang could simply say, “What’s wrong with writing a few characters on my own clothes? There’s no rule against it, is there?” Reason, in this world, is fragile, but it can always serve to pull the wool over people’s eyes. The Immortal Pavilion, being such a colossal institution, wouldn’t go so far as to wipe out Jiang Tang over a few characters. Just then, Qiong Sang chimed in: ““Hmm, while you can be deliberate, you can also follow your heart—after all, ‘following the heart’ means letting your heart guide your actions. But it’s even better to pioneer your own path of following the heart, to explore the unknown you’ve never ventured into before, to seek your true nature, and then act according to that. The results will surely be better than simply imitating others, which would only lead you to follow in their footsteps!” “It’s just playing a puppet—is it really that big a deal?” Jiang Tang said with a wry smile. “It is worth it!” Qiong Sang nodded solemnly and explained, “True cultivation isn’t just about sitting in meditation; it’s also about your every word and deed. Eating is cultivation; drinking water is cultivation—and playing the role of a puppet is no different!” “Uh-huh. So even peeing and pooping count as cultivation, right?” Jiang Tang said, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. Despite his expression, Jiang Tang took it seriously—he just wasn’t going to put on a solemn face and listen to the lecture. “Since I’ve made it, let’s just consider it my last knockoff. I don’t plan on selling it anyway.” Jiang Tang looked at the replica in his hand, smiled slightly, then fetched a wooden block and placed the puppet on it to admire it to his heart’s content. “You could put it in the Hundred Treasures Pavilion as a display piece—just don’t sell it,” Dongfang suddenly suggested. Jiang Tang immediately laughed, “Great idea! That should attract plenty of girls to place custom orders—and even some guys!” Jiang Tang was usually very quick with his hands. Although his fighting style was bold and sweeping, his puppet-making was rough yet meticulous. However, after hearing Dongfang and Qiong Sang’s suggestions, even though he had ideas, his progress was extremely slow. He was feeling his way through everything, trying to grasp the details bit by bit and then apply them with his hands—and often, the results still didn’t quite satisfy him. One day, two days, five days! For some reason—perhaps just as Qiong Sang had said—Jiang Tang had experienced a strange, entirely new sensation while crafting the puppets these past few days. It was as if he were raising his own child, wanting only to give it the very best. To that end, he pondered constantly, seeking beauty to spark his inspiration. Ten days—from the moment he began, it took him exactly ten days. When the first puppet—entirely Jiang Tang’s own creation—was finally completed, Jiang Tang himself seemed unchanged, but Qiong Sang was utterly astonished. Staring at Jiang Tang in disbelief, he exclaimed, “Have you broken through?” “No, well—I suppose so. My Sea of Consciousness has reached the mid-stage of the Spirit Martial Realm.” Jiang Tang’s words left Qiong Sang utterly astonished. Breaking through the Sea of Consciousness is the most difficult feat of all; it requires enlightenment and devoted cultivation. Some achieve it by reading countless books, while others, like Jiang Tang, break through through hands-on practice—the same applies to alchemy and artifact forging. Others are able to break through because their Sea of Consciousness is nourished by Yuan Energy, but Jiang Tang didn’t even have a Qi Vortex; the Yuan Energy he absorbed wasn’t even enough to nourish his physical body, and a portion of it was devoured by demonic energy! Yet he had broken through—how could this not be astonishing? “Actually, if those events hadn’t happened, I would have broken through anyway—I just lacked the right opportunity,” Jiang Tang said matter-of-factly, gazing at the first self-made puppet he held in his hands. The faint dimples on his face deepened. “Why do I feel like there’s no difference?” Qiong Sang leaned in, staring at the doll. “No, the difference is huge. Although the bodies look similar, they’re just dolls—how much can the bodies really differ? Unless you deliberately make one fat, what matters are the facial features, hair, clothes, and accessories,” Jiang Tang laughed. “Really? Her eyelashes are still sky-high,” Qiong Sang teased. “Not only are the eyelashes sky-high, but the eyes can blink now, and the mouth can open and close,” Jiang Tang said. After speaking, he suddenly glanced around and asked in puzzlement, “Where’s Dongfang?” Qiong Sang replied, “He went to the Immortal Pavilion, and he hasn’t come out in five days.” “He’s a spirit puppet—he can stay there as long as he wants,” Jiang Tang said. Then, suddenly realizing something, he frowned and asked, “Where’s my Ji Wuxia?” “Didn’t you say it was going to be displayed at the Hundred Treasures Pavilion as a showpiece? He just took it along,” Qiong Sang explained, then grew puzzled. This cave isn’t that big—there’s no way Jiang Tang wouldn’t have noticed. What? Can puppets enter a meditative state too? Jiang Tang, however, paid no mind to these thoughts and continued to gather materials to craft a second one. But before he could begin, a flash of light suddenly appeared on the Immortal Pavilion tray, and Dongfang drifted out. “Here.” As soon as Dongfang arrived in front of Jiang Tang, he tossed a storage pouch his way. “What is this?” Jiang Tang caught it and scanned it with his divine sense, only to freeze in surprise. “Where did this come from?” Jiang Tang stared at Dongfang in shock. “I sold the puppet,” Dongfang said flatly. “Sold? You made it yourself…” Before Jiang Tang could finish his sentence, he suddenly realized something and snapped, “You didn’t sell my signature item, did you?!” Dongfang nodded. “I didn’t expect it either. Someone asked about it as soon as I listed it. At first, I didn’t want to agree, but she kept raising her offer. In the end, she offered five hundred crystals—wouldn’t I be a fool not to sell it?” “But you only gave me two hundred and fifty!” Jiang Tang was at a loss for words. He wasn’t heartbroken over the doll—after all, getting that much for a first-tier decorative doll was practically a windfall. If there was still demand, he’d be happy to make a few more; ideally, he’d earn five thousand crystals in one go to buy three drops of Heavenly Sun Jade Marrow. Hobbies will always take a back seat to life—that’s Jiang Tang for you, a very down-to-earth guy!
