When Zhao Huoyan arrived, Song Miaozhu received him in her paper crafting studio.
Both side walls of the workshop were lined with specially made shelves, each cubby sized precisely to hold one Spirit-Gathering Fortune Doll. Every compartment contained one, sitting quietly with its treasure bowl.
Zhao Huoyan stood stunned, eyes sweeping over the entire display.
A hundred dolls in stock had already sounded outrageous to him, but this was far beyond that. Judging from the sheer number, there had to be several hundred—maybe even over a thousand.
Spiritual energy light points were continuously appearing in the treasure bowls of these Fortune Dolls, seemingly out of thin air. Zhao roughly timed them, and estimated each doll gathered a light point every 18 to 20 seconds.
Many of the bowls had already accumulated a significant amount of spiritual energy. He wasn't foolish. These Fortune Dolls had clearly been in use for quite some time—they were probably for Master Song's personal cultivation.
That "one hundred in stock" she'd mentioned earlier was most likely just the portion she intended to sell. And her claim of producing two per day referred only to what she released publicly. In truth, her crafting and nurturing speed far exceeded that.
"Master Song, how did you…" Zhao Huoyan began, hesitating midway.
"You're wondering how I ended up with so many Spirit-Gathering Fortune Dolls?" Song Miaozhu was about to bring up how she'd used them to cultivate a new color of spiritual energy when she saw Zhao Huoyan shake his head.
"No, I mean… why did you show me this?"
His tone was quiet, but weighted.
"This many Fortune Dolls can gather more spiritual energy in one minute than our entire Lingcheng team does in a full day. Anyone would be tempted by this. So I have to ask, are you testing my character?"
He gave a crooked smile, half self-mocking, half wary.
It was not the reaction Song Miaozhu had expected. She was silent for a beat before answering.
"Well, you're not wrong," she said lightly. "So, did you pass?"
She smiled, but her eyes didn't.
In truth, she didn't care about anyone's moral character. She didn't place her life in the hands of another's conscience. Her trust rested on her own strength, and right now, she was more than prepared.
Had Zhao Huoyan had shown even the slightest malicious intent, he would not have walked out of this room.
Still oblivious to how close he had been to danger, Zhao Huoyan looked at the rows of Fortune Dolls and said slowly, "I passed. I won't tell anyone what I saw here today. But please, Master Song, I beg you—don't show these to anyone else."
"If this gets out, even if you move into the SEIU headquarters and receive twenty-four-hour, full-body protection, I still couldn't guarantee your safety. People's hearts are unpredictable, and benefits cloud judgment.
Right now, the spiritual energy shortage is just too severe."
He meant what he said. In his mind, the true treasure wasn't the dolls. It was the woman who made them. As long as she remained safe, more breakthroughs would follow. But once she was targeted, everything would fall apart. That belief helped him resist the temptation to take those Fortune Dolls for himself.
Song Miaozhu studied his face and, for once, allowed herself a quiet smile. Perhaps she hadn't misjudged him.
She gestured toward a seat and poured him tea with practiced ease.
Her composure, however, unsettled Zhao Huoyan. She didn't seem moved by his warning. Not even slightly alarmed. No flicker of doubt crossed her expression. She was calm—too calm.
It made him question whether she truly understood the risk she was taking. Or worse, perhaps she did understand and simply didn't care.
Just as he opened his mouth to speak again, she interrupted him.
"Captain Zhao," she said, "what you saw today doesn't need to be kept secret."
"What?" Zhao Huoyan almost jumped from his seat.
"Don't panic. Look at this, and you'll understand why I'm not afraid," she said, gathering azure spiritual energy at her fingertips. "You've fully awakened your Heavenly Eye, right? You should be able to see this."
Zhao Huoyan stared at her finger, puzzled. "Is that… spiritual energy? Why is it azure?"
"After completing all nine layers of crimson spiritual crystals, the next to form is azure," Song Miaozhu explained.
"Nine… nine layers?!" Zhao gaped at her. "You mean one full layer of crimson spiritual crystal as defined in the SEIU's Spiritual Power Measurement Guidelines? Nine thousand red crystals per layer, each holding ten units, right?"
Song Miaozhu nodded.
Zhao froze, forgetting the heat of the tea cup in his hand. "You… your red spiritual power exceeds 810,000 units?"
"To be exact, yes—crimson spiritual energy, 810,000 units," she corrected.
Zhao repeated the number to himself, barely believing it.
Master Yu, one of the SEIU's top talents, had only just completed two layers last week, reaching 180,000 units.
Yet Master Song, who had received no support from the SEIU and cultivated entirely on her own, had reached 810,000—and that didn't even include whatever green energy she had now.
The gap was unfathomable.
It made sense now. The phenomenon of disappearing spiritual light points had been happening for a long time.
She must have developed the Spirit-Gathering Fortune Dolls ages ago. With hundreds, maybe thousands, nurturing her, it was no wonder she had outpaced Master Yu. And who said this room was all she had?
"But…" Zhao Huoyan's voice was softer now. "Even with all that spiritual power… it's not like we cultivators can flatten cities or split oceans. Compared to legends of the past, our combat power is still small. So what makes you think you can show me all this safely? What gives you such confidence?"
He hesitated, then asked, "Is azure energy more destructive? Or… is there some hidden spiritual item you've been nurturing? One that protects you?"
Zhao Huoyan would rather believe that she had a strong trump card than assume she was simply naïve.
"Azure spiritual energy is indeed different," Song Miaozhu replied. "But so far, I've only discovered that it improves the efficiency of nurturing spiritual items. I haven't noticed much difference in raw destructive power."
She smiled. "Still, I'm confident I can protect myself.
She met his eyes then, voice steady.
"But I'm not worried about others because I have no intention of staying hidden anymore. That's what I wanted to talk to you about."
She took a slow breath.
"If I'm going to sell these Fortune Dolls through the Key Spiritual Item Treasury, then secrecy won't last. Word will spread. Sooner or later, someone will come knocking."
She paused.
"If that happens, I don't want the SEIU questioning me when I defend myself."
After saying this, she finally looked at ease.
This was, in fact, the real reason she had called Zhao Huoyan over today.
Selling the Spirit-Gathering Fortune Dolls—even if limited to the Key Item Treasury—meant secrecy could no longer be guaranteed.
Once word spread, it was inevitable someone would come looking to "purchase" from her directly.
Even now, she didn't fully trust the SEIU's internal personnel.
She didn't want them assigning guards to her home. Nor did she want to live under their so-called protection.
She wasn't the same as before.
Rather than hiding everything in fear, she preferred to assert her strength openly.
She was laying the foundation now, so when the time came, the SEIU wouldn't treat her as a threat for retaliating.
Zhao Huoyan finally understood. Master Song clearly possessed some sort of dangerous spiritual item—probably the same kind she had used to deal with the Japanese ghosts in the haunted zones.