TL: Etude
Boom! Boom! Boom!!!
In front of a relatively intact building, a group of True Monarchs relentlessly attacked the building’s protective formation.
The ruins of the other buildings contained nothing worthwhile. They were likely destroyed during past battles or scavenged by enemies. Even if any treasures remained, most were incomplete.
As a result, after investigating the ruined structures, the True Monarchs shifted their focus to the intact buildings.
The structure before them spanned a thousand miles and ranked above average among the various ruins. There was likely a trove of valuable items hidden inside. Once the formation was breached and they gained entry, they could collect whatever treasures lay within.
Swish!
Ye Tian arrived at the scene, drawing the attention of many True Monarchs.
“Greetings, Dao Child of Ten Thousand Laws!”
The group greeted him respectfully.They felt some fear toward Ye Tian, as he was a ranked True Monarch, with power far surpassing theirs.
If Ye Tian decided to attack them, they wouldn’t stand a chance against him.
“Let’s work together to break the formation. Whoever finds treasures inside can keep them,” Ye Tian said.
These words put the other True Monarchs at ease.
Rumble!!! With Ye Tian, a ranked True Monarch, joining in, it only took three hours to completely break the formation protecting the building.
Immediately, the group of True Monarchs surged into the interior of the structure.
Inside the building, they found a maze of corridors, each containing hidden dangers.
Soon after they entered, several True Monarchs encountered a group of puppets.
Although there were sects in the Chaos that specialized in puppetry, their creations were typically weak, at most comparable to Heavenly Monarchs. More powerful puppets were rare.
A puppet on par with a True Monarch was worth as much as a top-tier half-Dao Artifact—and was nearly impossible to acquire. Many powerful figures sought to buy such puppets to protect their heirs, but such treasures were incredibly scarce.
Now, however, True Monarch-level puppets were everywhere within this ruin.
These puppets were not only numerous but also more powerful than many formidable True Monarchs.
That said, those qualified to enter these ruins were all exceptionally powerful True Monarchs—ranked within the top 100,000 of the quasi-Dao Realm. In the Chaos, these figures were top-tier True Monarchs, renowned across many regions.
One such expert could effortlessly defeat a group of ordinary True Monarchs. Therefore, facing a handful of powerful True Monarch puppets wasn’t an issue for them.
The real challenge, however, lay in the durability of the puppets. Crafted from extraordinary materials, these constructs were incredibly hard to destroy. If surrounded by them, even the strongest True Monarchs could get bogged down in a prolonged battle, which would delay their search for treasures.
Ye Tian had just entered one of the corridors when he encountered several dozen puppets blocking his way.
“Puppets… What a rare sight!”
Ye Tian stared at the puppets before him, surprised.
As the puppets charged toward him, he swung his saber, sending them flying. His strike left deep blade marks on their bodies but didn’t slice them in half.
“Their defenses are impressive!”
A flicker of interest lit up in Ye Tian’s eyes.
Although he hadn’t used his full strength, that previous strike should have been more than enough to kill even a powerful True Monarch. Yet, it failed to destroy these puppets.
If such a large number of these puppets existed, they could genuinely pose a threat to even a True Ancestor.
Without hesitation, Ye Tian unleashed his full power, shattering one puppet into pieces.
Before long, he had destroyed all the puppets.
In truth, Ye Tian had wanted to keep them intact, but puppets weren’t like cultivators. They couldn’t be controlled through their souls, nor could they be injured to the brink of death and subdued. Since they would resist as long as they remained functional, the only choice was to destroy them completely.
After reducing the puppets to fragments, Ye Tian didn’t have time to study them. He swiftly collected the shards and began searching for treasures.
Room after room, hall after hall, he searched—and he really did find quite a few valuable items.
There were cultivation resources, weapons, and secret manuals. He even discovered several Chaos-level divine ability inheritances.
However, Ye Tian felt somewhat disappointed—most of the treasures were limited to the True Monarch level. There was almost nothing that would benefit a True Ancestor.
It became clear that this ruin must have once been the residence of a powerful True Monarch.
This top-tier True Monarch likely had a retinue of lesser True Monarchs and Heavenly Monarchs as servants. However, for reasons unknown, they had all perished here.
During his search, Ye Tian destroyed about a hundred more puppets.
At this point, Ye Tian’s curiosity deepened.
For a top-tier True Monarch to own so many puppets—this alone represented an unimaginable fortune! Ye Tian knew the value of a True Monarch puppet within the Chaos. These weren’t ordinary puppets either; their worth was beyond estimation.
Each puppet was equivalent to a top-tier half-Dao Artifact. With so many of them, how many half-Dao Artifacts would that amount to? This was an unimaginable wealth! It seemed strange for such wealth to belong to just one top-tier True Monarch.
“Could it be that this sect specialized in puppet crafting, which allowed a True Monarch to obtain so many True Monarch puppets?” Ye Tian speculated.
Meanwhile…
Outside the quasi-Dao Realm, a group of top-tier True Ancestors was using special methods to observe the events unfolding inside the ruins.
When they saw the puppets, they were filled with intense greed.
“True Monarch puppets! So many of them—this is an incredible fortune! I wish I could go in right now!”
“Entering won’t help. If these puppets can’t be reprogrammed to recognize a new master, they’ll have to be destroyed.”
“A destroyed True Monarch puppet is worthless! I suspect these puppets are following the original settings left by their master. Once they detect intruders, they attack, even though their master has long perished. The programming persists.”
“In short, unless someone captures them alive and reprograms them, they can’t be made to recognize new masters. However, crafting such powerful puppets in large quantities must involve complex methods, making reprogramming them nearly impossible.”
“So no matter how valuable these True Monarch puppets are, they’ll have to be destroyed!”
“Perhaps there are some unbound puppets still inside. Securing even one would be a huge gain!”
“What’s the story behind this ruin? How could there be so many True Monarch puppets here? Even the Puppet Saint Sect, one of the most powerful forces in puppet crafting, can’t create this many True Monarch puppets!”
“The Dao Ancestors haven’t disclosed any information. This must involve some hidden secret!”
The True Ancestors discussed among themselves as they kept a close eye on the developments within the ruin.
At that moment…
Ye Tian arrived at the living quarters of the building’s former master—the top-tier True Monarch.
And there, he discovered a shocking secret.