The moment he heard Han Li's words, the ecstatic look on the old Daoist's face vanished without a trace, replaced by composure once more: "It seems Fellow Daoist Han intends to use this to coerce this poor Daoist."
"Coerce? Perfected Tianjing, I must disagree. Thus far, I haven't asked you for anything of substance — in fact, I've already handed over several rare Soul Stones. If you feel the deal isn't worth it, consider the second question as though I never asked. I won't be taking those Soul Stones back either." Han Li spoke evenly, his expression unchanged.
Hearing this, Perfected Tianjing's expression froze for a moment, then shifted between dark and light as indecision flickered across his face.
Han Li was in no hurry. He stood across from the old Daoist without any hint of pressing him.
"The puppet technique I gave you — you should be able to roughly tell whether it's genuine or not. But how am I supposed to know whether your claims about the Nether beasts are true or false?" After a long pause, the old Daoist finally spoke coldly.
"To tell the truth, Fellow Daoist, even if you knew the location of the Nether beasts, you wouldn't be able to enter. The place is not only extraordinarily dangerous — even if you somehow made it in, you'd never come back out. I survived only by extraordinary luck all those years ago. But even if you don't believe what I've said, these Soul Stones are the genuine article. Trading a portion of them for the puppet-crafting technique in your hands — you're not losing out. Otherwise, what good is having the puppet-crafting method if you have no Soul Stones to use with it?" Han Li spoke calmly and deliberately.
After hearing these words, Perfected Tianjing furrowed his brow, a look of hesitation crossing his face.
"Fine! I have no interest in puzzling over whether the origin of these Soul Stones you've described is real or fake. I'll simply ask — how many Soul Stones are you prepared to trade for the puppet-crafting technique? If the number is too small, I'd rather keep it for myself." The old Daoist weighed the pros and cons and finally relaxed his expression as he spoke.
"That depends on the value of the ancient puppet-crafting technique you're offering. If it can only produce the kind of puppets we swapped with during the day, I wouldn't be interested even if you gave it to me for free." Han Li was secretly delighted but kept his expression perfectly neutral.
"The puppets we traded with earlier? They were nothing but defective specimens I found among the ruins. From the way you're speaking, it seems the more powerful the puppets you can craft, the more Soul Stones you're willing to offer." The old Daoist's face wore an odd look.
"That's right. If the technique can craft puppets whose full-power strikes rival a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator or above, I'd happily give Perfected Tianjing twenty or thirty Soul Stones — what would that matter?" Han Li pressed his lips together and spoke evenly.
"Would they all be the same quality as those you gave initially?" Perfected Tianjing actually asked with great seriousness.
"Could the ancient puppet-crafting technique really produce puppets comparable to Nascent Soul cultivators?"
Han Li was startled at first, then overjoyed, but he answered without the slightest hesitation: "Since Han Li has spoken, it is no empty claim."
"Good. These jade slips contain the methods for crafting ancient puppets. No need to borrow them — I'm giving them directly to you." The old Daoist quickly produced a white jade slip from his storage pouch and tossed it straight to Han Li, a sly, fox-like glint in his eyes.
Han Li was taken aback by the old Daoist's sudden gesture. Something felt off. But after a moment's thought, he picked up the jade slip without ceremony and swept it with his spiritual sense.
A good while later, Han Li's face flushed alternately red and white. The instant he withdrew his spiritual sense, he stared fixedly at Perfected Tianjing without saying a word.
"What's wrong? The technique provides several types of puppets, and the most advanced can rival a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator's attacks. Surely that meets your requirements?" The old Daoist said with a faint, amused smile.
"Hmph! Of course it meets them! But the primary materials required for these puppets include things like Ten-Thousand-Year Ironwood — that's practically defying the heavens! And the auxiliary materials — forget about being rare, there are several I've never even heard of! Where am I supposed to find them?" Han Li's face showed open annoyance.
"Heh heh! I'm afraid this is something I can't help you with. However, don't the jade slips contain illustrations of all the materials? Perhaps your fortune runs deep and you'll find a chance to gather them all?" Perfected Tianjing replied in an unhurried tone.
"Has Perfected Tianjing perhaps already collected all the materials listed? Otherwise, why would you be scouring everywhere for Soul Stones?" To the old Daoist's great surprise, the anger on Han Li's face quickly faded as he immediately fired back with a question of his own.
"When did I ever say I intended to personally craft puppets? I simply found two semi-finished high-grade puppets in the ruins. Infusing Soul Stones into them makes them ready to use. Why would I bother crafting them myself?" Perfected Tianjing replied without batting an eye.
"You—" Han Li was momentarily speechless. This old Daoist was truly difficult to deal with!
"Alright. I've already handed over the puppet-crafting technique to Fellow Daoist Han, so my—"
"Here!"
Before the old Daoist could finish his insinuating smile, Han Li flicked his long sleeve irritably over the table. With a flash of green light, a small pile of Soul Stones materialized on the surface.
They glittered and sparkled, catching the eye immediately.
Perfected Tianjing was overjoyed but also felt a touch of embarrassment. As he opened his mouth to say something more, Han Li waved his hand: "This time, I was careless and took a loss. But I won't grumble about it. Now that we're even, I'll take my leave." Han Li cupped his fists, his face full of disgruntlement, and turned to walk out of the pavilion without looking back.
The old Daoist watched Han Li's retreating figure, first squinting and shaking his head, then nodding, before calmly collecting all the crystal stones into his storage pouch.
To think that once again, a puppet-crafting technique he'd never actually use had yielded him so many Soul Stones — he was naturally more than satisfied.
With this pile of Soul Stones, he would have more than enough to fully complete those semi-finished puppets.
However, the fact that Han Li had produced so many Soul Stones at once truly startled him, and he found himself thinking slightly more highly of the young man.
What the old Daoist didn't know was that Han Li, now walking several streets away, had long since swept the disgruntled look from his face. Instead, he toyed with the white jade slip in one hand, wearing an eerie smile.
Ten-Thousand-Year Ironwood — impossible for anyone else, perhaps. But for him, it was no problem. It would just take a bit more time.