Strongest Scammer: Scamming The World, One Death At A Time-Chapter 578: Novice Puppet Artisan

The inscribing took thirty minutes. He worked slowly and steadily, careful not to slip. If he cracked the crystal, he would need a new one, and that would incur costs.

'Better to do it perfectly the first time.' He thought.

When he finished, the tiny crystal pulsed faintly with light. He infused it with a little Spirit Qi to test it and felt the array respond. The basic commands worked. He placed the crystal into the groove of the head segment and connected the final runes around it.

The puppet was now complete.

He picked it up and held it in his palm. It was light and somewhat silly looking. A wooden worm. Yet it represented a very important gateway for him.

He placed the puppet onto the floor and activated the control array with a gentle flow of Spirit Qi. Then he extended his spirit sense into the crystal.

The puppet twitched.

Han Yu increased the output gently.

The puppet contracted two of its segments and arched its tiny wooden body. Then it extended forward and dragged the rest of its body with it. It wriggled across the room in a slow but steady crawl.

It did not stumble. It did not wiggle off balance. The movement was smooth.

"Perfect."

Han Yu picked up the puppet and placed it inside the examination box at the back of the room.

CLICK

The lid closed automatically.

The box hummed as Spirit Qi flowed inside. Light patterns scanned the puppet again and again. After a few breaths, the lid opened.

Han Yu felt his identity token heat up. He pulled it from his waist and looked at it.

A new line had appeared below his rank.

Novice Puppet Artisan

He let out a slow breath and allowed a faint smile to appear.

"One step closer."

The formation screen gave a brief summary.

Result: Pass

Rating: Adequate

Notes: Puppet structure stable, control array acceptable, movement continuous. Candidate suitable for basic study.

Han Yu left the testing chamber calmly, but inside he was already planning his next move.

Now that he had officially entered the Puppet Path, he could take the next step toward understanding the Mind Modifying Doll Seal.

And with that, one step closer to saving Xuan Qing's mind.

Han Yu stepped out of the testing hall, still holding his token, newly updated and gleaming with the words that now allowed him to access the Puppet Peak's facilities: Novice Puppet Artisan.

A small title in the grand scheme of the Slaughtered Moon Divine Blood Sect, but an important stepping stone for him. It meant access. It meant permission. It meant the right to begin climbing a path that would eventually let him understand the Mind Modifying Doll Seal.

He returned to the same counter where he had met the eccentric middle aged clerk earlier. The man looked up when Han Yu approached, shrugged, and waved for him to show his token.

Han Yu held it out.

The clerk barely glanced at it before nodding.

"So you passed. Not surprising. Anyone with a working brain can pass the Novice exam." he said flatly while trying to adjust a crooked wheel on the tiny chariot toy. "The test is mostly there to keep the Peak funded. A hundred merit points per attempt is a nice trick, after all. Sometimes we get bored ones who take the test ten times just to see how many puppet shapes they can make. Keeps the treasury happy."

Han Yu did not respond to the remark.

He already suspected something like this. Compared to the rigorous alchemy exams in the Twin Leaf Peak Sect, this felt laughably easy. Even the basic formation test he had taken back then required understanding and precision. Here, one only needed to put together pre carved parts and draw five runes correctly.

To the Puppet Peak elders, a Novice was little more than a title for children. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

The clerk yawned, dropped the chariot, picked it up, and continued fiddling. "Well then, Novice Ju Fan, you can now attend any of the basic lectures offered on the lower plateau. There should be three or four every week. Usually the topics are things like structural stability, rune flow adjustment, basic joint theory, and how not to make your puppets burst into flames. Important beginner stuff."

Han Yu nodded. He already planned to attend every single class. Knowledge mattered, especially knowledge he could not get elsewhere.

The clerk continued. "Once you feel confident and want something more advanced, you will need to qualify for the Apprentice Rank. That test is harder. You need to actually make your own puppet parts. No more pre cut bits. You will carve the pieces yourself, inscribe the first layer of channels on your own, and assemble it as a whole. Most people fail. Some fail a lot. I mean a lot."

He gestured at a wall with several dark scorch marks. "That wall is from the last set of exams. We had five consecutive explosions. The air smelled like burnt rope and regret for a week."

Han Yu kept his expression cold and unreadable, though inwardly he was focused.

Apprentice Rank was what he needed. Only then could he be considered a real student of the Puppet Peak. Only then could he gain access to the intermediate libraries where deeper knowledge about cursed construction might be buried.

He would need time to prepare.

The clerk closed the topic with a careless wave of his hand. "Anyway, with your shiny new title you can now use the Basic Puppet Library. It is on the lower terraces. Just show your token and walk in. You can also buy materials from our stores at disciple prices. Do not break anything you cannot afford. The elders are merciless when they catch people damaging supplies."

Han Yu nodded and was about to turn away when he caught sight of a disciple entering the hall.

Thud thud thud

The man was followed by a hulking zombie that walked with loud steps.