Qian Duoduo had a faint, inexplicable feeling.
The Dao, the Natal, and the Mystic Art—if the right connection could be found between these three, then the Mystic Art of Golden Toad Shedding its Shell could definitely be comprehended.
“From You Sha Village falling into this Immortal Cultivation World until now, what is the Dao I have pursued?”
Qian Duoduo asked himself the first question.
The first thing to figure out was: what is the Dao?
Qian Duoduo felt that the Dao was not as mysterious as those Elders made it out to be.
The Dao, in fact, was very simple.
The Dao is a path; it is the path you wish to walk in this life.
From beginning to end, start to finish—this is the Dao.
One person, one Dao.
Everyone is different, and every Dao is unique.
Those that extend far and wide are the Grand Dao.
Those that are short and narrow are the Minor Dao.
Those who follow others have no Dao.
And the Dao that Qian Duoduo wanted to walk, the one he was already happily walking, was the Dao of Artifact Refining.
Making money was not for the sake of making money, but to create conditions for Artifact Refining.
Money is the medium for all things.
All things are both the conditions for Artifact Refining and its purpose.
Building a manor was not for planting spiritual plant, nor for raising Spirit Beast and Spirit Birds, but for experiencing all things and preparing for Artifact Refining.
Artifact Refining was the Dao Qian Duoduo chose.
He chose this Dao not because it was prominent, wealthy, or impressive, but because he found joy and happiness walking this path himself.
So, what was his Natal?
Was he to choose one from these hundred Puppet as his Natal, or was he to choose one from the fifty Spiritual Artifact he had not yet refined?
From Caizhu, Lei Hong, and Nangong Nizi, Qian Duoduo felt he could not choose a Natal this way.
The Natal must be within the chosen Dao, an object that embodies the Dao itself.
However, this object must be capable of growth.
In short, it must be alive, not dead.
Like Caizhu’s Mill-Grinding Ghost, as Caizhu’s cultivation increased, not only did the number of Mill-Grinding Ghosts increase, but their cultivation also grew with him.
However, the Puppet Qian Duoduo currently knew, whether Dan artifact or Profound Weapon without instrument spirits, or Spiritual Artifact with instrument spirits, were all incapable of growth.
This meant that the Natal he was looking for was not among the more than one hundred types of Puppet he knew.
“The Mystic Art of Golden Toad Shedding its Shell, the difficulty lies here.”
“However,” Qian Duoduo tapped his head, “there should still be traces to follow.”
The Natal, within one’s chosen Dao, is also one’s most proficient and strongest strike.
Thinking of this, Qian Duoduo paused.
His strongest strike right now was the “Ten Coins Unite as One” from the Everlasting Wealth and Nobility Art.
Could it be that “Ten Coins Unite as One” was connected to Golden Toad Shedding its Shell?
Or, was it to make Golden Toad Shedding its Shell unleash “Ten Coins Unite as One”?
Qian Duoduo felt a sudden clarity in his mind.
A Puppet capable of unleashing “Ten Coins Unite as One” already possessed immense power.
Ten Coins Unite as One was merely a Divine Ability that appeared upon cultivating the first layer of the Everlasting Wealth and Nobility Art.
As Qian Duoduo cultivated higher layers of the Everlasting Wealth and Nobility Art, he would gain new Divine Ability.
And a Puppet connected to the Everlasting Wealth and Nobility Art would naturally be able to unleash more powerful moves…
No!
A process of Caizhu, Lei Hong, Nangong Nizi, and others unleashing Mystic Art flashed through Qian Duoduo’s mind; when they unleashed Mystic Art, what they mobilized was not Spiritual Qi, nor Spiritual Awareness, but Battle Intent!
Therefore, the Natal is not a concrete object, but the idea of the Dao that you entrust!
Or rather, whatever you want it to be, it will be; whatever you believe it to be, it will be!
Qian Duoduo laughed; he wanted to create the strongest Puppet in this world.
It would be Qian Duoduo’s Natal.
—Its name would be Golden Toad!
“Golden Toad!” Qian Duoduo softly called out.
As soon as the words left his mouth, his heart trembled, and he remembered the incident when the primal Qi made the Golden Toad recognize him as its master, back when he had just fallen into the Jail.
This magical belt at his waist, not only formed its own space, but also nourished Soul bodies and spirit bodies, and could even evade the detection of Nascent Soul cultivator and Heavenly Human Cultivator.
Qian Duoduo had never heard of such a divine object in Refining Spirit Sect or Kongfang City.
The reason he thought of Golden Toad was because Golden Toad was his first step in Immortal Cultivation.
The Natal would be Golden Toad.
Weren’t the first two characters of the Mystic Art also “Golden Toad”?
Qian Duoduo silently made up his mind.
This Golden Toad was originally a Spirit Beast from the mud, which also suited him.
Coming from a poor village, wasn’t he just a toad that crawled out of the mud?
Finally, only the Mystic Art itself remained.
This Mystic Art was also basically clear: it was to use Battle Intent to condense a Puppet that Qian Duoduo approved of.
A large Golden Toad filled Qian Duoduo’s mind.
However, a cloud of mist then obscured it.
The appearance of the Golden Toad was related to its abilities.
Qian Duoduo relaxed and pondered what offensive weapons the Golden Toad could possess?
It could ram like a spirit alligator turtle, its tongue could stab like a sword or whip like a long lash, its belly could suck in or blow out with force, its large mouth could directly swallow, or it could use sound to attack the Soul…
The more Qian Duoduo thought, the more excited he became, and the Golden Toad in his mind became clearer and clearer.
How its head should be, how its eyes should look, how its feet and sharp claws should grow, how its tongue should be, how its scales should be arranged…
This Golden Toad was not a common toad, nor a Spirit Beast of the Immortal Cultivation World, but his own uniquely created Natal Puppet.
It would draw upon the strengths of a hundred Puppet, condense from Battle Intent, and grow and strengthen continuously with Qian Duoduo’s combat power and Battle Intent.
If Qian Duoduo was invincible, then it would be limitless!
This was the meaning of the Mystic Art.
Qian Duoduo opened his eyes, waved his hand, and collected all the Puppet at the Formation entrance into the Golden Toad.
Qian Duoduo wanted the Sha Soul to attack directly, forcing out his Battle Intent!
Without the Puppet to block them, the Sha Soul swarmed in, a vast army, rushing towards Qian Duoduo, who sat in the center of the Yin Peach Forest.
This scene instantly caused Qian Duoduo’s Battle Intent to skyrocket.
Leading the charge were three Spiritual Pig, mid-grade Jin Beast, with long tusks a full three feet long.
Behind them followed two Spiritual Elephant, high-grade Jin Beast.
A chill shot to the top of his head, and Qian Duoduo took a deep breath.
Even with three spiritual seas opened, Qian Duoduo was not so arrogant as to believe he could survive their attack without defending himself.
“Golden Toad!” Qian Duoduo’s eyes widened, his hands forming the incantation as instructed by the Mystic Art, pressing down, and he fiercely declared: “Shed your Shell!”
However, the Golden Toad in his mind showed no reaction whatsoever.
This was awkward!
The Spiritual Pig closed in by a zhang; Qian Duoduo could already see their grayish eyes, and the endless madness within them.
“Golden Toad!” Qian Duoduo roared in his heart, pressing down the incantation again, “Shed your Shell!”
Something in the air vibrated, but nothing appeared!
It worked!
But it didn’t come out!
Was his Battle Intent not strong enough?
Qian Duoduo’s eyes were wide, staring at the Spiritual Pig, sweat pouring down his back like a spring.
At this moment, the Spiritual Pig’s tusks were less than three feet from Qian Duoduo, already sinking down, preparing to pierce his body the moment they struck him, lift him into the air, and tear him to shreds.
“Golden Toad!” Qian Duoduo softly summoned in his heart.
Suddenly, a mighty roar, earth-shattering, sounded out of thin air.
In front of Qian Duoduo, within a radius of two hundred zhang, a large swamp appeared, and all the Sha Soul sank into it.
With the mighty roar, all the Sha Soul panicked and tried to flee backward.
However, their bodies went limp, and their feet were stuck in the mud, unable to be pulled out, so they could not move at all.
“Shed your Shell!”
Qian Duoduo’s hand, holding the incantation, loosened upwards!