Chapter 148 – Sky-Scraping Spell? Blank Divinity!

“Um…”

After a moment’s pause, Zuo Li shook his head and said, “Why would Master think of him? Mu Lin’s strength is indeed good, but he is of the Yin Eight Gates Paper Artisan Lineage, which has nothing to do with Puppetry Art. He simply cannot assist you in advancing. Master, your true disciple and support is Qin Yuan.”

“What our leader wants to tell you is that your efforts in traveling thousands of miles to save him and teach him have borne fruit…”

Zuo Li was still introducing Qin Yuan, trying to steer the future onto the ‘right path,’ but before he could finish, Master Meng Rui interrupted him.

“I know about Qin Yuan’s situation. What about Mu Lin? In the future, didn’t he help me?”

—As for whether Qin Yuan could assist her in advancing, Master Meng Rui believed he could.

It was precisely because she sensed he could help her fuse the final creation that she saved him, taught him, and even held a special assessment competition for him.

However, that was in the past. After witnessing Mu Lin’s talent, she now had a better choice.

“…”

Although he didn’t understand why Master Meng Rui valued Mu Lin so highly and wanted to use the prophecy to mislead her, Master Meng Rui’s gaze was still quite intimidating. In the end, Zuo Li didn’t dare to push his luck and answered honestly, “Mu Lin might just be a passerby, without the ability to change the world. Therefore, he is not within our leader’s observations… Let’s talk about Qin Yuan instead. In the future, he will wholeheartedly assist you in advancing, and he truly succeeded.”

“However, there’s been a small mishap now. Qin Yuan didn’t obtain Flower and Butterfly, which is very important to him… Even for your own sake, we hope you will hand Flower and Butterfly over to him…”

Zuo Li went on and on, emphasizing Qin Yuan’s importance and explaining how it was only with his help that Meng Rui advanced.

Advancement wasn’t just about improving strength, status, or authority—it was an elevation of life’s essence and lifespan.

Thus, advancement was something nearly all cultivators pursued and yearned for.

Master Meng Rui had scrimped and saved, taking on countless disciples, all to accumulate enough resources for advancement.

Zuo Li had originally thought that, upon learning of the future and understanding who could propel her advancement, Master Meng Rui would value Qin Yuan immensely and return Flower and Butterfly to him.

But something unexpected happened. As he spoke, Master Meng Rui… seemed somewhat distracted.

At this moment, Meng Rui wasn’t thinking about Qin Yuan at all. She was pondering Mu Lin’s future.

“With such talent, as long as he doesn’t perish midway, Mu Lin is bound to become a peerless prodigy. Therefore, he absolutely cannot be just a passerby.”

“If Zuo Li’s leader didn’t observe him, it’s either because Mu Lin perished midway, or because he couldn’t be observed…”

At this thought, Master Meng Rui’s heart began to race.

There were many people whose futures couldn’t be observed. For example, emperors, protected by the aura of the Dragon Vein, were difficult to observe.

Sect Leaders of major sects were also beyond the reach of ordinary prophets.

And True Lords—their immense power made ordinary prophets dare not observe them.

In Meng Rui’s view, with his Substitute Paper Figure, Mu Lin was almost impossible to perish midway unless he deliberately courted death.

Under such circumstances, if a prodigy like him couldn’t be observed, there was only one explanation.

“Mu Lin might have become a True Lord in the future.”

After deducing Mu Lin’s future, Meng Rui had no intention of reclaiming Flower and Butterfly.

Not only did she not plan to take them back, she was prepared to continue investing.

The reason for this situation was simple: continuing to support Qin Yuan and following the fixed path would indeed allow her to progress further.

However, even then, the ceiling of Puppetry Art would remain unbroken, and she could only advance one step.

In contrast, investing in Mu Lin could yield unexpected gains.

Most importantly, merging with the Final Creation was a path she had developed herself. Qin Yuan was merely an assistant; without him, Meng Rui would only see a slight decrease in success rate, not an impossibility.

Having made her decision, Master Meng Rui immediately cut off Zuo Li’s incessant chatter.

“What you’ve said is clear to me, but how to reward or punish is my affair. There’s no need for you to meddle.”

“Master…”

Meng Rui’s reply made Zuo Li anxious. Their friendship with Qin Yuan and their efforts to secure benefits for him were not merely out of goodwill.

These people also needed Qin Yuan and Flower and Butterfly’s power to handle certain matters for themselves.

Now, without Flower and Butterfly, Qin Yuan’s strength was greatly diminished, and their plans might fall through.

Thus, in his urgency, Zuo Li threatened Meng Rui.

“Master, don’t be stubborn. Without Qin Yuan’s help, you may not advance. You’ll regret it then.”

These words immediately turned Meng Rui’s expression cold.

“A threat? Hah, as if you’re worthy!”

“Boom!”

With a surge of power pressing down, Zuo Li was forced to the ground. At the same time, Master Meng Rui’s intrigued voice rang out.

“Rather than you dictating to me, I’m more interested in knowing who you really are, and who caused these changes that could collapse the Great Spirit Imperial Dynasty…”

As she spoke, she intended to use a secret technique to probe Zuo Li’s consciousness.

But before she could act, a glow gathered on Zuo Li’s body.

Simultaneously, a voice that was neither male nor female, neither young nor old, echoed in the room.

“Master Meng, I advise against this. Knowing too much is not always a good thing… Also, the royal family of the Great Spirit Imperial Dynasty already knows their nation is doomed. Do you know what they did after learning this?”

“…”

What the two discussed afterward remained unknown to anyone else.

However, after their conversation, Master Meng Rui’s expression turned extremely grim. Clearly, some things had exceeded her expectations.

Meanwhile, before the phantom departed, it asked Master Meng Rui one more question: “Are you certain about shifting your focus to Mu Lin and no longer cultivating Qin Yuan?”

“Yes… I don’t have enough resources to cultivate both.”

“Then leave him to my guidance… You have three days to reconsider. I hope you won’t regret your decision once it’s made.”

…

Unaware of the events in Meng Rui Courtyard, Mu Lin returned to his own courtyard. After casually placing the puppet twins outside, he picked up the sublimated Sky-Scraping Spell and examined its specific effects.

After some observation and personal experimentation, Mu Lin found the function somewhat redundant for himself.

As he had anticipated, the sublimated Sky-Scraping Spell possessed some of the City God’s powers.

Such as protecting the home and ensuring peace, dispelling evil, appointing Yin Soldiers and Ghost Messengers, and even summoning deities.

These abilities may seem numerous… but Mu Lin himself is the City God, so he can use these abilities on his own. Driving the Talismans is completely redundant.

“Wasted my effort… not exactly. While they’re useless for me, they’re quite handy for subordinates and friends.”

“For others, whether it’s protecting their homes and ensuring peace or summoning deities, it counts as a major move…”

Useful for others but useless for himself—this situation was unexpected for Mu Lin. However, he wasn’t discouraged.

“Since I am the City God, imbuing the Talismans with City God Status is naturally useless to me. But what if I imbue the Sky-Scraping Spell with other Divinity and Authority?”

After upgrading to Master, the Sky-Scraping Spell, in Mu Lin’s eyes, had become a blank Divinity (minor deities like Earth Gods, Mountain Lords, and Hebo, not the Divinity of True Gods or Celestial Deities).

Such Talismans could carry many Authorities and Divinities.

If he truly found a Divinity and Authority and sealed them within the Sky-Scraping Spell, then the Talisman would become extraordinary.

…

Mu Lin had many ideas for developing this Talisman.

Unfortunately, these ideas required Divinity and Authority as support. Although Earth Gods, Mountain Gods, and Hebo were not uncommon in this world, Mu Lin lacked Divinity and authority, so he could only set this matter aside for the time being.

Of course, setting this aside didn’t mean Mu Lin was idle.

Living in the Courtyard, he spent every day studying the Twilight Illusion Life-Death Array.

With such dedication, three days quickly passed.

During these three days, Mu Lin gained some insights.

At the same time, the impact and aftermath of his overwhelming victory gradually became apparent in the academy as time passed.

(End of Chapter)