Back then, Old Lord Foster resolutely stopped The Heir from uncovering the truth, all to protect the reputation of Grand General of Huaihua Ying Shiji and his son Ying Fei. This was to prevent the palace from becoming enraged and stripping the second branch, Ying Shiji’s line, of their inheritance rights, which would have caused the two great hereditary titles of Duke Foster and Lord Foster to fall into the hands of other collateral relatives.

But this action truly wounded The Heir deeply.

He stood there for a long time, and only when Charles’s breathing gradually became steady did Matthew Bolton silently slip out the door. However, he did not go far, instead sitting right outside the door, entering a meditative state to regulate his breath.

Because The Heir had experienced several assassination attempts in his childhood, he had become suspicious and sensitive by nature. Not only did he have no close maidservants or pages by his side, but he also never entrusted his food or drink to anyone in the residence. In fact, since the age of eleven, Charles could only fall asleep peacefully under his watchful care.

Now, with Charles injured and lacking energy, it was the perfect time for someone to make a move. That’s why Matthew Bolton dared not leave, nor did he feel comfortable entrusting the duty of night watch to his subordinates. Although some of them were trustworthy, at this moment, Matthew Bolton could not afford to be careless.

One can’t help but sigh that The Heir, even in his own ducal residence, lives as if in enemy territory.

※※※※

Charles slept for a whole day before finally waking up. By then, the imperial physician had already been brought by Matthew Bolton to change his medicine, using the finest healing ointments and even imperial elixirs to strengthen his foundation and restore his vitality.

That day, Charles had only been struck by the aftershock of the falling star. Aside from the coma, his injuries were not too severe. It was estimated that he would recover in two or three days at most.

After seeing off the imperial physician and eating the meal brought by Matthew Bolton, Charles lay back on the bed, lost in thought.

It was only after waking up that he realized there was indeed a silver pot inside his body. It was located below his abdomen, but when he tried to feel it with his hand, he couldn’t detect any foreign object—he could only sense its presence.

Neither the imperial physician nor Matthew Bolton, who could sense the body’s condition through qi, noticed anything unusual.

Charles remembered seeing in the bamboo slip yesterday that if he wanted to enter the Sun and Moon Divine Refining Pot again, he only needed to focus his mind on the object and will it, and he would be able to enter.

But did he really need to return to that strange place? It seemed there were many benefits inside: the Nameless Cauldron and the Sun and Moon Divine Refining Pot could refine anything, tangible or intangible. The Sun and Moon Divine Refining Pot, fused with the Xuan Zhou Heavenly Pearl, was said to be able to turn one hour into half a day—six hours—every day.

But could this be a trap set by that ‘King Foster’? Was it a deliberate ploy to tempt him with benefits, make him careless, and then ensnare him?

Charles was filled with uncertainty, but then he remembered the girl inside the pot. He had slept for a whole day and night—could the girl have starved to death? In that tiny pot, how did she eat, drink, and relieve herself? This so-called Sun and Moon Divine Refining Pot was hidden inside his belly. The girl was a fairy-like little person, but even a real fairy needs to eat and has bodily needs.

Thinking of this, Charles could no longer sit still. He carefully prepared himself, focused on the silver pot in his belly, and with a single thought, once again felt the world spin—and found himself back in that ten-zhang space.

Upon entering, he found everything exactly as it had been when he left—nothing had changed.

Charles immediately looked toward the girl. This time, she wasn’t crying, but was still curled up, hugging her knees, her gaze vacant and unfocused, her expression still one of utter heartbreak.

Raising his eyebrows, Charles spoke bluntly: “Hey, over there—are you hungry? Do you want something to eat?”

Only then did the girl come to herself. She glanced at Charles indifferently, still silent, and simply pulled up the sleeve on her arm.

At first, Charles didn’t notice anything unusual, but then he was startled, his eyes filled with shock as he looked at her elbow joint. It was made of some unknown metal, part of it exposed and gleaming with a metallic luster.

This girl was actually a mechanical puppet?

If she hadn’t pulled up her sleeve, her appearance would have been indistinguishable from a real person—an absolute beauty, with skin like ice and bones like jade. Every expression and movement was lifelike. Yet her true identity was that of a mechanical puppet?

Could she be an automaton left over from ancient times? He had once seen two such automatons at an underground auction in Xianyang City. They also resembled real people, but were far less lively than this girl.

Their abilities were also much inferior. King Foster Ying Chong had said this girl’s martial strength could rival a high-level Heavenly Rank, which was at least the Xuan Heaven level. The two ancient puppets he had seen were at most at the Minor Heaven level, and due to damaged parts, could only reach the ninth rank of Martial Lord, with extremely stiff expressions—nothing like this girl.

Or perhaps, was this girl personally crafted by King Foster Ying Chong? But Charles thought that was unlikely—could his own puppet-making skills reach such heights in just a few decades?

But if it were true, and the stele said he had inherited the Gongshu legacy, then perhaps it really was possible.

Chapter Four: Detailed Explanation of Artifact Crafting