But it was not the way Leisong had imagined; instead, after a violent shudder, Bumblebee directly crashed to the ground. Clearly, even after the spirit artifact was installed in Bumblebee, it was still just a blank slate; it needed a process of practice. And the very first thing it needed to learn was the simplest: walking.

When in the Bumblebee form, Leisong's puppet resembled a humanoid figure, possessing both hands and feet. However, every limb, be it a hand or a foot, was composed of at least dozens of components, requiring the spirit artifact to harmonize the orchestration of over a hundred parts just to execute the simple act of walking. Leisong began to send his divine sense into the spirit artifact, temporarily taking control of the puppet’s movements.

The divine sense followed the puppet’s meridional system, seizing control of every relevant component, meticulously testing the method of controlling the parts drop by drop. The energy powering Bumblebee’s actions came from a formation powered by eight spirit stones. Due to this being a relatively rudimentary puppet, the power formation was basic, meaning the eight spirit stones could be, at most, Mid-grade Spirit Stones.

Even so, just eight Mid-grade Spirit Stones were enough to allow Bumblebee to fight at full capacity for a full twelve hours.

Tuning and adapting a new spirit artifact to a puppet was inherently a lengthy process, requiring constant admonishment and revision, bit by painstaking bit. But since Leisong was, after all, a Nascent Soul stage cultivator, many tasks were not as complex for him as they would be for lower-ranked cultivators. Even so, Leisong spent a full hour before the puppet's spirit artifact successfully memorized and learned how to walk.

Then came running, crouching, lying prone, flying, transforming into its vehicle state, and then learning to shift back from vehicle mode to combat form, throwing punches, kicking, wielding weaponry, firing ranged attacks, dodging, blocking, fleeing, following, and a whole host of other actions. Gradually, the blank spirit artifact began to gain the confidence to manipulate the puppet.

A blank spirit artifact was like a newborn child; one had to teach it all sorts of fundamental movements, and then combine those movements to form a sequence of reactive actions. This was only the beginning; Leisong still had to continuously push the blank spirit artifact toward greater complexity. It was a long and arduous **process, yet one filled with considerable fascination.

For example, to teach it the simplest command—to follow him—Leisong had to sift through a massive pile of basic movements, select the necessary actions, string them together, and form a fixed routine. But the more Leisong fiddled with it, the more he felt that guiding the ** spirit artifact was akin to playing with programming in his past life in university—using programming methods to make a machine achieve various functions.

This realization left Leisong feeling somewhat speechless. While the knowledge Leisong possessed from his past life might not necessarily be more advanced than that of his current existence, it held one distinct advantage: standardization. After the Industrial Revolution, everything coalesced into fixed standards, and all products were constrained by those standards.

But in the era Leisong now inhabited, every individual's experience and standards differed. The transmission of knowledge was haphazard, passed down from master to apprentice, and then from apprentice to apprentice, forming distinct, isolated schools of thought. Even within these schools, numerous sub-factions could arise.

Rather than being restricted by the obscure and complicated methods for debugging spirit artifacts, Leisong genuinely felt it would be better to directly apply the programming knowledge he learned in his previous life—it was clear, straightforward, and even scalable. Unlike the current situation where puppets could only be refined and ** one by one. Leisong, having graduated from a legitimate technical field in his past life, could not fathom engaging in such complex and thankless labor.

It was only slightly regrettable that time was running short; the one-month deadline agreed upon with Old Man Gongsun was almost up. Leisong had no choice but to temporarily set aside the half-finished Bumblebee and depart to meet the appointment.

Almost simultaneously, within the Gongsun family's Valley of Ten Thousand Flowers, the crowd was dense. Though the valley was small, it managed to gather over a thousand people. The majority were servants and maids with little to no cultivation, or extremely shallow power. Another large portion had to be subtracted—those clansmen without spiritual roots. In the end, only thirty or forty people possessed spiritual roots and could truly be counted as core members of the Gongsun family.

Even in cultivating families, the chance of producing someone with a spiritual root was not excessively high. But for the Gongsun family to have only a few dozen formal members demonstrated just how far the clan had declined. Recently, however, the Gongsun clansmen were greatly energized because the family's pillar of strength, the Patriarch, had miraculously broken through to the late stage of Foundation Establishment.

In a major sect, or even a large family, such an achievement would be considered minor. Yet, for the Gongsun family, this was a momentous event. One should not underestimate the difference between the middle and late stages of Foundation Establishment; a late-stage cultivator could generally account for the strength of two or three middle-stage cultivators. This single breakthrough was enough to place the Gongsun family at the apex among the surrounding small, similarly struggling clans.

To celebrate the advancement of the Elder Patriarch, the old man had sent invitations to the leaders of nearby minor clans and several renowned itinerant cultivators wandering in the vicinity. These families and rogue cultivators generally consisted of those at the Qi Refining stage, though a few were at Foundation Establishment. Now, facing a personal invitation from the Gongsun Patriarch, who had reached the late stage of Foundation Establishment, most chose to attend and show face. Moreover, the Elder Patriarch’s successful advancement—did it foreshadow the potential resurgence of the Gongsun family, once powerful enough to boast a Golden Core expert in every generation?

On this day, the Valley of Ten Thousand Flowers was adorned with festive lanterns and banners, teeming with people. Within a thousand-mile radius alone, two to three hundred named cultivators had gathered. It was truly a spectacle of bustling activity. Many of the younger Gongsun generation were extremely excited; they hadn't seen the clan so lively in a long time, and certainly never witnessed so many cultivators gathered at once.

Patriarch Gongsun, in particular, was ecstatic. Dressed in celebratory crimson robes, he was seated on the main dais, receiving congratulations from the patriarchs or representatives of various minor families. His face was beaming, looking as though he had shed several years overnight.

When the guests had fully assembled and most had arrived, Old Man Gongsun slowly rose to his feet.

Those cultivators who were only at the Qi Refining stage or early Foundation Establishment immediately rose from their seats, gazing respectfully at the Elder Patriarch, eager to hear what he had to say. For a moment, the vast reception hall fell utterly silent.

Old Man Gongsun was quite pleased with this scene. At least when he was only at the middle stage of Foundation Establishment, he had never commanded such prestige. This world was simply that cruel and pragmatic. The weak held no dignity, while the strong commanded deep respect. This was merely a major hierarchical shift within the Foundation Establishment realm, and Old Man Gongsun's status and renown had instantly soared. Old Man Gongsun felt a little lightheaded, imagining the degree of prestige and status he might command if he were ever to become a Golden Core expert. These people, before him, likely wouldn't dare utter a single sound, would they?

However, a more likely outcome was that once he ascended to the Golden Core stage, he would enter an entirely different circle. Especially those itinerant cultivators at the Qi Refining stage—he likely wouldn't even have the inclination to spare them a glance. Contemplating this, the receding mood of Old Man Gongsun began to ignite with fervor. Looking down upon these assembled cultivators gave him a profound sense of satisfaction. After clearing his throat twice, he announced, "Esteemed guests, this old man thanks you all for gracing this occasion. Since we have such a distinguished gathering today, I have an even more important matter to announce."

As soon as the words fell, the crowd began to whisper among themselves, riddled with doubt. Murmurs and secret sound transmissions flew back and forth, creating a lively din. These transmissions, while perhaps inaudible to cultivators of the same rank, were perfectly clear and distinct to Leisong, lurking in the shadows, which he found quite amusing. Most people were speculating that Old Man Gongsun, emboldened by his breakthrough to late Foundation Establishment, had grown ambitious and intended to launch a massive annexation to dominate the region.

Fearing that Leisong, hidden in the shadows, might take offense, Old Man Gongsun quickly coughed twice and clarified, "Please, do not jump to conclusions, esteemed guests. What I am announcing is a piece of private joyous news. As you all know, besides my three sons and two daughters, I actually have an additional son whom I left outside the family. Since childhood, he has been secretly and personally instructed by me.

And today marks the day I welcome my son back into the ancestral lineage."

An illegitimate son? Everyone present understood immediately. While secretly amused, they were also greatly relieved. As long as Old Man Gongsun didn't start throwing his weight around just because his cultivation had soared, they genuinely didn't care much about an illegitimate son—whether it was one or eight, what business was it of theirs?

However, while it might not concern outsiders, it was relevant to the core members of the Gongsun family. Gaining a new member was inherently a good thing, but in a certain sense, it meant another person who would share in resources that were already limited. This was especially true for Old Man Gongsun's three sons; the two who were at the early Foundation Establishment stage exchanged glances, their expressions turning somewhat dark. In contrast, his two daughters, married off to other clans, appeared surprised yet pleasantly intrigued.

Regardless of everyone else's reaction, Old Man Gongsun certainly would not permit any disrespect toward Leisong, lest it bring about a catastrophic end to the clan. Seeing his clansmen and juniors begin to murmur amongst themselves, Old Man Gongsun swiftly adopted a stern face and spoke sharply, "All of you, I owe my son Dong much. If anyone has opinions, you may raise them privately with me. Do not speak ill of Dong in front of him, or you will make an enemy of this old man."

After issuing the warning, the clansmen quickly settled down. This Elder Gongsun was not only the most senior in generation but also the highest in cultivation; for the moment, no one dared to openly defy him.

"Dong'er, you may enter now," Old Man Gongsun said privately, letting out a breath of relief, then called out in a loud voice.

Leisong, unusually dressed in a long white robe, leaped gracefully into the reception hall from an unknown location, holding a folding fan in hand. With a smiling face, he cupped his hands in a sweeping bow. "Your junior, Gongsun Dong, pays his respects to all you esteemed seniors and fellow Daoists." He presented a picture of elegant demeanor and exceptional presence.