"Are you planning to register this spiritual item?" Zhao Huoyan asked. "It could probably qualify as a key-level spiritual artifact. Though, it would also be considered dangerous."
"No need," Song Miaozhu replied. "It's too complicated to make. I can barely keep up with producing Spirit-Gathering Fortune Dolls as it is. I think people would rather I focus on those, wouldn't they?"
Zhao Huoyan had only asked as part of standard protocol, so her answer didn't surprise him.
Master Song had said this item was meant to protect her in underworld. Clearly, she had created it long ago but never intended to sell it. That alone suggested she didn't want to register it.
Which was fine. The SEIU didn't require cultivators to register every spiritual item they owned, only those they intended to sell or share with others.
Just then, Zhao Huoyan's phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen, then said to her, "Master Song, we've traced the leak about the Spirit-Gathering Dolls and your involvement."
She took the phone and skimmed the report.
The investigation pointed to a post made at 1:13 a.m. the night before on a small anonymous forum called Night Owl Cultivators Are All-Powerful. In a trending thread about the "disappearance of spiritual energy," one anonymous user had "accidentally" revealed information about the dolls.
Anonymous: You think I'm lying? I joined the SEIU while you were still clueless about spiritual recovery. The energy didn't disappear. It's being absorbed by a cultivation aid called the Spirit-Gathering Fortune Doll.
Anonymous: You got proof? I say it's just too many cultivators choking off the energy flow.
Anonymous: Just wait.
Anonymous: [Video.avi]
Anonymous: !!! There really are light particles appearing out of nowhere!
Song Miaozhu searched for the post but found that the thread had already been deleted.
"This was originally an old post," Zhao Huoyan explained, "but those comments were added just last night. The thread was sealed soon after. We've identified the commenter. He's not with the SEIU, but his uncle is—Shì Wenhua, who works in the capital as a spiritual item registrar. They had dinner together last night. It's almost certain Shì Wenhua leaked the information."
He sounded deeply apologetic. Key-level spiritual items were incredibly valuable. To protect their creators, everything related to them was supposed to be kept highly confidential.
Only spiritual item registry staff and local SEIU team leaders were supposed to know about new key-level artifacts.
For Song Miaozhu's Spirit-Gathering Dolls to be exposed less than a day after release—and for such public uproar to follow—was a serious failure on their part.
Now, all they could do was damage control.
"Shì Wenhua has already been arrested. He'll face the consequences. But the way the leak spread so quickly and how the public response escalated so fast… this wasn't natural. Someone was clearly fanning the flames.
Our investigation shows that multiple parties were stirring up attention. And most of those involved can be tied, in some way or another, to the masterminds and key planners of the Underworld Project. This may not be a coincidence."
Those who had been dismissed from the SEIU during the scandal had disappeared without a trace. But it was almost certain they hadn't stopped cultivating.
Being blacklisted by the Underworld and burdened with major offenses meant they feared death more than anyone. To them, spiritual energy was a lifeline, a way to stave off mortality.
"You must be especially careful moving forward," Zhao Huoyan warned. "I worry that some of them may act out of desperation. I'll arrange for some combat-capable cultivators to be stationed near Xiaozhu Mountain. Don't worry, they won't enter the courtyard or disturb your cultivation."
Hidden enemies were always the most dangerous.
These people were far more troublesome than greedy commoners.
Song Miaozhu understood that, but was she really supposed to rely on those ten-or-so cultivators, who looked more like military men than spiritualists?
That would be a waste of effort.
Just one of her paper soldiers could flatten them.
If her soldiers were enough to handle the danger, the others were redundant. If even her soldiers weren't enough, then having them around would only mean extra casualties—and make it harder for her to escape.
She could use a substitute paper figure and vanish without a trace. They couldn't.
So she quickly declined, "I appreciate the gesture. Give each of those young men a purchase quota for a Spirit-Gathering Fortune Doll to thank them for making the trip today. But I really don't need them posted here long-term. You saw for yourself—I have paper soldiers. They can protect me just fine."
"Master Song, you don't understand," Zhao Huoyan pressed. "These people aren't ordinary. They may be gone from the SEIU, but that doesn't mean they don't still have people on the inside. They've been hiding for so long, and no one knows what kind of trump cards they're holding. They may even have access to firearms. It's not impossible that they're armed.
"Spiritual items are impressive, but at this stage, they still can't outmatch modern weaponry. The men I selected all have military backgrounds. They're good with both hand-to-hand combat and firearms. Their cultivation may not be high, but their combat skills are top-notch. With them here, you can focus on cultivation and crafting in peace.
If it's convenience you're worried about, you could even consider moving into the SEIU compound. It'd be easier to protect you there…"
If not for all the other duties waiting for him, Zhao Huoyan might have offered to guard her personally.
But seeing his persistence, Song Miaozhu waved her hand. "How about you try sparring with one of my paper soldiers first? Yours would be the type they could take down ten of. Hold on, I'll get you a blade."
She returned with a spirit-breaking Tang sword. "I've already bonded with this, so the spirit-breaking effect won't activate for you. But you can still use it as a regular sword. Even if it did work, they wouldn't be afraid."
She shoved the cold, gleaming sword into his hands.
"You sure about this?" Zhao Huoyan asked. "They don't look like paper figures, but they are made of paper, right? If I break one, I'm not paying for it."
"Go ahead and try," Song Miaozhu said. "You won't break them. But you will lose. If I wasn't worried that showing off their full strength might scare off your enemies before they even arrive, I'd tell you to call in your entire team. Just Zero-One alone could handle all of them."
Zhao Huoyan had been skeptical at first. But when his strike left no mark, and he was immediately pinned down, completely immobilized by the paper soldier, he finally believed her.
"They're immune to blades?"
"If the spiritual energy powering them runs out, they'll stop. But unless that happens, no weapon can break their defense," she explained. "You all worked so hard to train those cultivators. Don't throw them into danger needlessly. My paper soldiers can protect me just fine."