Gou Zai Liang Jie as a Human Gu

The Qiu Niang puppet truthfully replied, "I am merely a disciple of the Three Immortals Sect stationed outside."

"A formal disciple?"

Lin Mo pressed for an answer.

"Outer disciples," Qiu Niang replied, "are not like inner disciples. They don't have many resources within the sect. The Three Immortals Sect has a merit assessment system. If their merits don't meet the standards, they will be stripped of their management positions outside. Once they are dismissed, they will lose their merit points and find it even harder to exchange them for better resources."

"Merit points?" Lin Mo was taken aback.

Qiu Niang explained, "Merit points are a unique form of currency within the sect. They can be used in place of spirit crystals and spirit stones for barter."

Lin Mo understood; it turned out to be an unlimited money printing machine.

After all, spirit crystals and spirit stones are hard currencies and are scarce in the market.

However, if they print and issue their own money, they can certainly over-issue it.

"Qiu Niang, once you leave the merit points, will it be impossible to move an inch in the Three Immortals Sect?" Lin Mo asked.

Qiu Niang nodded: "Yes, all the resources of the immortal sect need to be purchased. If you want to improve, you have to spend merit points. Without merit points, you will fall behind others. Once you fall behind, you will be beaten, or even killed and refined into magic weapons."

"I still have to work and deal with KPI performance evaluations. It seems that the Three Immortals Sect isn't such a good place after all."

Lin Mo muttered to himself.

You have to put in the effort to earn merit points.

Only with merit points can one exchange them for cultivation resources and improve one's cultivation level.

To advance further in cultivation, you need more resources, and to exchange resources, you need merit points.

To earn merit points, you need to work and earn them.

These three immortal sects look like a large conglomerate, and those who enter to cultivate immortality are all like cattle and horses.

An endless cycle of working and cultivating immortality!

After thinking for a moment, Lin Mo looked up at Qiu Niang and asked, "What kind of spiritual object did you use to cultivate your spiritual body?"

Qiu Niang replied, "I am the spirit object [Red Candle Hairpin] that I purchased. I absorbed its spiritual energy and condensed it to refine my spiritual power, which is how I became a charming spirit body."

"What kind of creature can be considered a spiritual object? What is the [Red Candle Hairpin]?" Lin Mo asked curiously.

Qiu Niang explained, "A spiritual object is a unique object imbued with the essence of heaven and earth and containing spiritual energy. It is not bound by a single form. The [Red Candle Hairpin] that I cultivated was created a hundred years ago when a woman was abandoned by her husband on her wedding night and sold into a brothel. Her hairpin was stained with blood and tears. It circulated in the brothel for a hundred years and was transformed by spiritual energy. Because it was tainted by the dust and grime of the mortal world, I eventually cultivated a charming and alluring spiritual body."

Lin Mo's expression shifted slightly, and he pressed on, "Different spiritual objects provide different attribute bonuses to the cultivated spiritual body?"

"Not entirely."

Qiu Niang supported this, saying, "Spiritual objects are one thing, cultivation techniques are another. If you obtain a spiritual object but don't have a cultivation technique with compatible attributes, you can't absorb its spiritual energy and make it your own. At most, the spiritual object is just a strange object with spiritual charm."

Lin Mo's heart skipped a beat.

He thought of the "Grand Ceremony of the Golden Body of the Arhat of Desire for the Devil" in his sea of ​​consciousness.

He immediately asked, "Is the 'Asura Desire Bone Arhat Golden Body Ceremony' a spiritual cultivation technique?"

Qiu Niang nodded: "Indeed, this is a superior spiritual cultivation technique of the Jade Buddha Sect."

Lin Mo frowned and muttered, "But this cultivation technique doesn't mention using any spiritual objects... Ah! I know, incense!"

Qiu Niang chimed in, "Using the murderous aura of Asura as the bone and the seven emotions and six desires of all living beings as fuel, these are precisely the spiritual materials required for this cultivation method."

"You really think highly of me."

Lin Mo shook his head inwardly.

The "Grand Ceremony of the Golden Body of the Arhat of Asura Desire Bones" is a spiritual object needed for cultivation, which is the evil energy of Asura and the incense of suffering.

One is a murderous aura gathered from slaughtering all living beings, while the other is a manipulative force in the imperial court, abandoning the suffering of millions of people in dire straits.

None of these are easy things to deal with.

"No wonder Qiu Niang was so confident in handing over the cultivation technique; it turns out it's an uncultivable technique."

Hearing Lin Mo's mutterings, Qiu Niang tilted her head to look at him and asked in return, "Who said this technique can't be cultivated? If you want to, you can still cultivate it successfully."

Upon hearing this, Lin Mo's first reaction was that the puppet master must be joking.

How could the incense offerings of those who slaughtered countless lives and toyed with the offerings of hundreds of millions of people possibly be collected?

He raised his head, his face dark as he glared at Qiu Niang: "You think this technique can be successfully mastered?"

Qiu Niang slowly explained, "The Jade Buddha Sect has a treasure of creation that was personally refined by a year-old guardian, named the [Eight Treasures Lotus Platform Glazed Lamp]."

"This treasure contains a universe within, holding four hundred million souls within, transforming them into a blessed land called [Prajna Floating Life, Dream Ruins Blessed Land]. If you wish to refine the treasure or cultivate techniques, enter the cup, and you can freely create a dream world suitable for your cultivation method."

"This dream world is exactly the same as the real world outside, without any difference. However, the passage of time is completely different from that outside. As the saying goes, a thousand years in a dream is but a moment in the real world."

Holy crap!

Lin Mo cursed, "You captured four hundred million souls just to create a dream world for refining magic!"

He couldn't help but gasp.

Is this a Buddhist sect or a demonic sect?

Qiu Niang, devoid of human emotions, said calmly, "Sacrificing a few ants for the sake of cultivating immortality is worthwhile."

Lin Mo's heart sank, and he glared at Qiu Niang with a gloomy expression.

But then I thought, what's the point of arguing with a puppet?

She merely carried fragments of Qiu Niang's consciousness.

The one who truly disregards life is Qiu Niang herself, not the puppet.

"Qiu Niang, you've said so much. Since this [Eight Treasures Lotus Platform Glazed Lamp] is some kind of supreme treasure of creation, it should be an important treasure of the Jade Buddha Sect. Is it possible for me to come into contact with it?"

Faced with the doubts, Qiu Niang remained calm and slowly explained: "In the normal way, it is naturally impossible to access such a treasure. However, in my Qunyu Pavilion, there is a courtesan named 'Sleeping Guanyin,' who possesses a 'Deceitful Dream Stealing Technique.' This technique can induce people to enter a dream. With a bit of true spirit, she can deceive the heavens and the sea, connect with the 'Eight Treasures Lotus Platform Glazed Lamp,' and steal a dream to refine the technique."

"Well?"

Lin Mo looked slightly surprised. The Jade Pavilion actually had such a powerful figure hidden inside.

This "Sleeping Guanyin" possesses such powerful secret arts; she must not be an ordinary woman.

How did she end up in the brothel, eking out a living in the Jade Pavilion?

"Qiu Niang, what is the origin of the Sleeping Guanyin?"

Upon hearing this, Qiu Niang slowly introduced, "Her real name is Su Tanyin. She is the personal disciple of the Jade Buddha Sect Master and the only daughter of Su Yixiu."

"Su Yixiu? Brother Yixiu! That's quite a unique name."

Lin Mo was amused and intrigued, so he asked, "Isn't the Jade Buddha Sect the territory of bald monks? How can they marry and have children there?"

Qiu Niang explained, "This Su Yixiu did not become a monk. It is said that when he was undergoing the [Meditation Tribulation], for some unknown reason, he suddenly betrayed the sect, returned to the mortal world to marry and have children, and was later hunted down by the Jade Buddha Sect. His whereabouts are unknown. Su Tanyin went into exile alone and eventually came to Qinghefang and entered my Qunyu Pavilion after much wandering."

"I understand."

Lin Mo suddenly realized: "This [Deceitful Dream Stealing Technique] was passed down from Su Yixiu to Su Tanyin."

Qiu Niang nodded: "That's right. Because of this method, she has become the most unique existence in my Qunyu Pavilion. She doesn't need to flatter or greet guests, nor is she allowed to undress. With just a stick of incense, she can make her patrons get everything they want in their dreams. She is my most profitable courtesan."

Upon hearing this, Lin Mo's eyes flickered uncertainly, and he stroked his chin with his fingers: "It seems necessary to have a proper meeting with this [Sleeping Guanyin]."

"Dreamland, a blessed land for refining magic within a dreamscape, shaping a spiritual body—this is quite interesting!"

Seeing that Lin Mo was interested, Qiu Niang immediately said to him, "If you want to practice magic in dreams, perhaps you can borrow Zhao Sanjin's identity."

Her gaze fell on the [Thousand-Faced Human Skin] in Lin Mo's hand.

Lin Mo paused slightly, then asked, "Does Zhao Sanjin have a past with her?"

Qiu Niang shook her head and said, "No, it's just that Zhao Sanjin saw that you were so young and already full of desires. After breaking the Yang-Binding Pill Curse, he wasted his life and saw that there was no hope of cultivating immortality, so he had a change of heart and asked Su Tanyin for an opportunity."

"Life is but a fleeting dream, a grand illusion. Perhaps upon waking, the curse of the Yang-binding cinnabar will be broken?"

Lin Mo asked, puzzled, "How do you know all this so clearly?"

A smug look appeared on Qiu Niangmei's face: "He asked me to do this, otherwise, why would Su Tanyin agree to help a mere pimp?"

"Judging by the time, I will use magic to enter your dreams tonight."

Lin Mo's expression hardened; time was of the essence, and he had to hurry.

"Mr. Zhao, I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you for a bit."

Lin Mo put on the [Thousand-Faced Human Skin] and imagined Zhao Sanjin's lewd appearance.

His body shrank considerably, and his face quickly transformed into the unremarkable middle-aged appearance of Su Sanjin, with graying temples and a white, beardless face.