Could It Be Quasi-Emperor Level

Gu Changge's gaze swept over the fifteen puppets standing quietly before him. Five were the original versions obtained from the celestial envoy, and ten were new products he had refined himself.

After a brief moment of thought, he took out fifteen Emperor-grade spirit veins that had been compressed to the extreme and exuded a pure origin aura, accurately inserting them into the core energy furnaces of each puppet.

As the spirit veins entered their bodies, runes flowed around the puppets, and their auras became majestic and stable, possessing an almost inexhaustible source of energy.

"Although Zizhu Peak is quiet, it still needs some protection."

With a light flick of his sleeve, the five optimized peak Emperor-grade puppets turned into streams of light and silently merged into the void around Zizhu Peak, blending with the mountains and earth veins to become invisible guardians.

Right at this moment, the light screen at the entrance of the Eternal Genius Tower fluctuated, and a figure was rather awkwardly "thrown" out. It was exactly Xuanyangzi.

His Daoist robe was torn, his face was bruised, and there was a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth. Obviously, he had suffered a great loss inside the tower.

He was just grimacing and drawing in cold breaths when he looked up and happened to see Gu Changge standing quietly in the courtyard.

"Junior Brother Changge?"

Xuanyangzi looked a bit embarrassed and quickly stood up straight, subconsciously adjusting his torn robes. Although Gu Changge had seen him in a sorry state many times, he still felt a bit ashamed.

Gu Changge's gaze swept over him. Seeing that although he was battered, his aura and foundation were stable and he had no serious injuries, the smile in his eyes deepened. He spoke, "Senior Brother, your aura is quite stable after coming out of the tower this time. It seems that your recent training in the tower has greatly increased your combat power, and you have gained a lot."

Hearing this, Xuanyangzi's face immediately looked a bit sheepish, but a trace of pride flashed deep in his eyes, hard to conceal.

He cleared his throat. He originally wanted to habitually say a few humble words like, "Not at all, I was just barely holding on."

But as the words reached his mouth, he remembered that relying on his Saint King realm cultivation and Emperor-grade cultivation technique, he had actually managed to last over a dozen more rounds against the ancient Emperor in the tower. Compared to the past when he was quickly sent flying, it was a world of difference.

This tangible progress made his desire to show off tickle his heart like a feather.

Thus, the humble words on his lips turned into a sigh with a bit of unconcealable emotion: "Ahem... Junior Brother must be joking. My meager cultivation is still not enough to look at in front of an Emperor. However..."

He paused, straightened his originally somewhat hunched back, and tried to make his tone sound flat, but it still revealed a bit of elation.

"This time, I indeed lasted a moment longer than last time. At least... at least I didn't disgrace the cultivation technique bestowed by Junior Brother."

After he finished speaking, he quietly observed Gu Changge's expression. He wanted to get his junior brother's approval, but he was also afraid that his "pride" was too obvious and would cause him to lose his demeanor as a sect master. His expression was temporarily caught between pride and restraint, looking somewhat comical.

Gu Changge took in Xuanyangzi's forced calmness and unconcealable joy, the smile in his eyes growing thicker, and he casually added another sentence.

"To be able to last a moment longer under the phantom of an ancient Emperor is already commendable. It seems that given time, Senior Brother might be able to match the Emperor's projection."

These words carried obvious teasing, but they also hit the deepest itch in Xuanyangzi's heart, making his old face heat up, and he quickly waved his hand.

"Junior Brother, don't make fun of me. That is an ancient Emperor... Ahem, the road is still long, the road is still long."

He was modest on the surface, but in his heart, because of these words, a trace of fiery longing involuntarily welled up.

Gu Changge smiled faintly and did not continue this topic. Instead, he casually raised his hand and pointed to one side of the courtyard, saying in a flat tone, "Senior Brother, you came at the right time. I will leave these puppets for you to handle."

Hearing this, Xuanyangzi was taken aback. He looked in the direction Gu Changge pointed, and only then did he shockingly discover that in the shadows of the courtyard, ten dark gold puppets were standing quietly at some unknown time!

He was immediately startled.

With his Saint King realm cultivation and divine sense, he had just entered the courtyard and talked with his junior brother for a while, yet he had not noticed the existence of these puppets at all!

They just stood there, but their auras perfectly blended with the surrounding stone steps and vegetation, as if they were originally part of this courtyard. If his junior brother hadn't deliberately pointed them out, he probably wouldn't have noticed them even if he brushed past them.

"This..." The pride and sheepishness on Xuanyangzi's face were instantly replaced by surprise. He subconsciously took two steps forward, his eyes sweeping over these ten puppets with doubt and astonishment.

He saw that these puppets were entirely dark gold, with simple and smooth lines. There was not the slightest fluctuation of spiritual energy or divine sense spilling out from them. If he hadn't seen them with his own eyes, they were almost no different from dead objects. But the more this was the case, the more awe-inspiring he felt.

To be able to conceal their auras to such an extent that even he couldn't detect them, the methods used to refine these puppets were simply appalling.

"Junior Brother, these are...?"

Xuanyangzi restrained his mind, his face showing a mixture of solemnity and curiosity as he looked at Gu Changge.

His mind raced: What is Junior Brother's intention in suddenly bringing out these things? Moreover, looking at this material, it is definitely not ordinary!

He took a few steps closer. His keen perception as a Saint King realm cultivator immediately made him aware of the extraordinary nature of these puppets.

With his experience, he couldn't recognize the dark gold material at all. He only felt that it was incredibly heavy and faintly emitted a Dao rhythm of eternal immortality. The internal structure was even more seamless, as if born from heaven and earth, definitely not something that ordinary artifact refining methods could achieve.

"A few little toys I obtained by chance," Gu Changge said in a flat tone.

Xuanyangzi reached out his hand and carefully touched the arm of one of the puppets. It felt cold and hard to the touch. When he probed with his divine sense, it was like a clay ox entering the sea; he couldn't sense any internal energy fluctuations at all, nor could he determine its specific level.

He frowned slightly, the shock and doubt in his heart growing even stronger. With his Saint King realm cultivation and his discernment as a sect master, he actually couldn't see through the depths of this puppet at all?

"Changge," Xuanyangzi withdrew his hand, the smile on his face growing wider, carrying a bit of probing.

"Give your senior brother a hint. These puppets... roughly how much power can they unleash?"

He calculated in his heart that for his junior brother to bring them out and place them in the courtyard, they must at least be at the Saint realm level, right? Perhaps they could rival a Saint King? That would be a tremendous boost to the sect.

Gu Changge glanced at him, the corners of his mouth seeming to curl up imperceptibly, and said casually, "It's hard to say exactly, probably... just a little bit stronger than you, Senior Brother."

A little bit stronger than me?

The smile on Xuanyangzi's face instantly froze.

He was now at the Saint King realm! A little bit stronger than a Saint King? Wouldn't that be... the Great Saint realm?!

Ten Great Saint realm puppets?!

Xuanyangzi gasped, his eyes suddenly widening!

This generosity, although he knew his junior brother was lavish with his wealth, ten Great Saint puppets, this was too...

His heart began to beat wildly and uncooperatively, and his breathing became a bit hurried. If this were true, the Azure Profound Sect's strength would skyrocket several times over!

However, just as this thought arose, another even more absurd thought that almost froze the blood in his entire body struck his mind like lightning!

Wait!

A little bit stronger than a Saint King... does it necessarily mean a Great Saint?

He suddenly recalled the items Gu Changge had casually produced in the past. A casually modified cultivation technique could directly reach the level of an Emperor Sutra, the tea leaves he gifted allowed the Ancestor to achieve a breakthrough, and the materials he brought out were things he had never even laid eyes on before...

When it came to this unfathomable junior brother, could his claim of being "just a little bit stronger" really be judged by common sense?

Could it be... could it possibly be... the Quasi-Emperor level?!