After Xu Yi resolutely refused, she slid down the wall as if her strength had been drained, leaning against the corner and gasping for breath.
Rejecting the tempting offer was not easy for Xu Yi. Fortunately, the power of stars that had been dormant within her for a long time suddenly appeared and helped her, ultimately solidifying her decision.
While divine soul puppets offered many benefits, they could not compare to the damage they inflicted on the soul.
Xu Yi had once heard Zhang Tianbao mention that the Zhang family's ancestors, after bringing back the puppets from the secret realm, rarely appeared, and passed away more than ten years later.
It was difficult for Xu Yi not to suspect that the early demise of the Zhang family ancestors was related to the division of their divine souls.
Furthermore, regarding the powerful artifact refiner whose name Xu Yi still did not know, judging by his divine soul puppet, Gongshu Er, his cultivation was at least at the Mahayana stage. However, even with multiple puppets, the individual ultimately failed to ascend.
Whether this was also influenced by soul damage, Xu Yi did not know, but she firmly believed that the completeness of the soul was essential for long-term cultivation.
"Won't you reconsider? If you miss this opportunity, you will never grasp the profound mysteries of puppetry."
The more Gongshu Er persuaded, the more determined Xu Yi's attitude became.
"No, I must disappoint Senior Gongshu's kindness."
Gongshu Er repeatedly confirmed, and seeing that Xu Yi truly had no intention of practicing the art of puppetry, he suddenly showed her a smile that could be described as gentle, which made Xu Yi feel flattered.
"You are very good."
As the words fell, the scene before Xu Yi changed again, and a slight dizziness slowly crept in.
Xu Yi gently shook her head and looked at the man sitting on the throne in the brightly lit grand hall ahead, hesitantly asking, "Are you Gongshu..."
"Yes, I am Gongshu San. After a thousand years, a cultivator has finally been able to come before me. Take two steps forward and let me have a good look."
The man sitting in the grand hall wore ornate robes and a golden crown, resembling a prince or noble of the mortal world more than a cultivator.
The only thing that did not surprise Xu Yi was the face, identical to those of Gongshu Yi and Gongshu Er.
Xu Yi stepped forward as instructed, quickly closing the distance with Gongshu San, but felt something strange in her heart.
Although Gongshu Yi and Gongshu Er had subtle differences, their attire and habits were identical. However, Gongshu San, apart from his face, seemed to be a completely different person.
Logically, these puppets should all be transformations of the artifact refiner's divine soul, and should not exhibit such significant differences.
Xu Yi suddenly remembered the puppet in the Zhang family ancestor's home.
Since that puppet could impersonate the Zhang family ancestor's Dao companion without being detected, it meant that his appearance had no connection to the Zhang family ancestor.
But shouldn't that puppet also have been forged by the Zhang family ancestor using his own divine soul? Why was it not influenced by her divine soul?
Or perhaps she had been wrong from the beginning.
Gongshu Yi and Gongshu Er did not become alike after their divine souls were injected; rather, they were cast from the same mold from the start of their refinement, which led to this situation.
Xu Yi stopped at a suitable position as she pondered.
This distance was neither too close nor too far, allowing for a closer connection without offending the other party.
Getting closer, Xu Yi saw more differences on Gongshu San's face.
Gongshu San possessed an elegant and noble demeanor, with an inherent noble aura that made him appear exceptionally dignified, utterly unlike a puppet, and more like a mortal emperor.
Xu Yi became even more perplexed.
Was Senior Gongshu perhaps of royal descent? Otherwise, it would be impossible to capture his bearing so accurately.
"Xu Yi, why are you unwilling to practice the art of puppetry?"
After observing Xu Yi for a long time, Gongshu San suddenly asked.
His tone was steady, his voice neither fast nor slow, yet it carried an oppressive pressure from above.
"Puppetry is an external path for me. My own cultivation is what I pursue."
Xu Yi confessed frankly.
Artifact refining, alchemy, talisman crafting, and formation arrays were all paths Xu Yi cultivated, but her utmost focus remained on the path of cultivating the heart.
When the true heart is strong, all evils are repelled.
Xu Yi was willing to flatten Zhuzhou with a single foot rather than retreat behind others.
Therefore, no matter how powerful the art of puppetry was, she still wished to establish herself through the power of her true heart.
After Xu Yi answered, a long silence followed.
"You have made the correct choice."
Gongshu San's words momentarily stunned Xu Yi, and then her heart sank.
She had guessed correctly.
The art of puppetry was a devious path, a shortcut taken at the expense of danger.
The great artifact refiner, who created the art of puppetry, was also destroyed by it.
And the cultivators who had undergone the previous trials could not resist the temptation and were willing to practice the art of puppetry. They might have died during the process of dividing their divine souls, or after it, but in any case, they could not escape misfortune.
Therefore, none of them had reached this point.
Gongshu San sighed softly, recounting the subsequent events not recorded in the jade slip for Xu Yi.
"The master used the method of dividing the soul and injecting it into the body to give the puppets sentience. The first successful puppet was given a surname by the master and named Gongshu Yi.
Gongshu Yi embodied all the advantages the master sought, possessing not only exceptional comprehension in artifact refining but also a superior intellect. He helped the master avert several life-or-death calamities, which inspired the master with an idea, a bold idea. He planned to use puppets to help him break through the Heavenly Ladder and ascend to the Upper Realm, which is why we came into being later."
Xu Yi's expression was startled. To use divine soul puppets to share the power of heavenly tribulations, so that was the artifact refiner's plan.
But did he only consider the advantages of this puppetry technique and not its drawbacks?
Perhaps dividing a wisp of divine soul would not place too great a burden on a cultivator, but how could dividing a second, third, or even more strands of divine soul not have an impact?
"The master certainly considered it."
Gongshu San saw through Xu Yi's thoughts and sighed, shaking his head.
His master was a paramount expert of the era, and all of this was within the other party's predictions.
"To prevent the divine soul from being overly damaged, the master devised an unparalleled, astonishing method: nurturing the soul with another person.
A tiny portion of the soul would be divided and attached to a human body, then that other person's body would be used to nurture the divided soul. Finally, it would be summoned as a divine soul and injected into a puppet, thus neither harming the soul nor damaging the puppet's spirit, killing two birds with one stone."
Xu Yi was amazed.
Gongshu San's words indirectly explained to Xu Yi why he was different from Gongshu Yi and Gongshu Yi.
Because he was not a divine soul directly divided, but a divine soul nurtured within another person's body, he possessed an inherent nobility.
However, upon hearing this, Xu Yi had new doubts.
Since the great artifact refiner had already devised a way to avoid danger and had succeeded, why did he ultimately fail?
Xu Yi looked at Gongshu San with an inquisitive gaze, and Gongshu San returned a bitter smile.
"The master realized that dividing his divine soul would have adverse effects on him, but he did not anticipate that housing his divine soul in different hosts would also cause the soul to be influenced by the hosts, giving rise to different thoughts.
Take me for example, when I was summoned back and learned that I was a wisp of a celestial being's divine soul, I nearly collapsed. In the mortal world, I was an emperor, the supreme ruler, and this shift in identity was unbearable for me."
Xu Yi froze, a chill running through her entire body.