Song Miaozhu had the little paper servant deliver the book back to the Ghost Workshop's warehouse, then retrieved it into her own hands. Upon flipping it open, she realized it wasn't quite what she expected.
It was indeed an ancient manuscript, but it was compiled during the waning years of the previous cultivation era, when spiritual energy had already begun to fade. It was much later than the version of the Secret Art of Paper Crafting stored in her mind.
Still, the structure of this version resembled the Song family's quite a bit: diagrams, notes, and insights passed down by each generation, collected into a single volume of inheritance.
However, the Geng family's version focused purely on craftsmanship—meticulously crafted, inventive designs for paper offering. It felt more like a curated gallery of masterworks than a manual of magical arts. There was no mention of any techniques for spiritual awakening.
Still, the diagrams offered inspiration. Song Miaozhu studied a few and found herself genuinely impressed. Then she turned to the dedication left by the Geng family's founder and finally understood why Geng Qiushan had tried to kidnap her.
"All my life I sought only to glimpse the true Secret Art of Paper Crafting.
My aunt chose to pass it to an adopted daughter rather than to me. That slight has festered in my heart ever since.
The world favors sons over daughters, yet the Song family honors daughters and treats sons like castoffs. So be it. I will no longer bear their name.
I take the surname Geng, and begin anew. Let this shame be etched in memory. From this day forward, the Geng family's techniques shall be passed from father to son, never to daughters.
Should fate grant us the method of spiritual awakening, and should we cross paths with a descendant of the Song clan, let there be no mercy. Let the grudge be avenged."—Geng Qifeng
So the Geng family's founder had originally been a member of the Song clan.
Cross-referencing the timeline in her mind, Song Miaozhu flipped through her mental copy of the Secret Art of Paper Crafting—and found the corresponding record.
"Born an orphan in troubled times, I was taken in by a kind woman who became my foster mother. She passed down the Secret Art of Paper Crafting, giving me a craft to survive by.
My life's ambition was to carry on the Song family's traditions across the realms of Yin and Yang.
But as spiritual energy dwindled, I found myself unable to master the ancient technique of spiritual awakening. The pain of possibly ending the line weighed heavily on me.
So I built a hut beside my mother's grave, where I meditated with her spirit. Eventually, I discovered that hell coins infused with Yin energy could substitute for spiritual energy.
At that time, the Ministry of the Underworld was launching the Heaven-Tier Ghost Shop. My mother's spirit and I poured all our savings into purchasing access to it, hoping that one day a living descendant might wield Yin energy and carry the legacy across realms.
Alas, my mortal years were limited. Even in old age, I failed to complete the work. Thankfully, my daughter, more talented than I ever was, may yet fulfill this long-cherished dream."—Song Sanyu, of the Song Clan
They were the very ancestors who, in the declining days of cultivation, had discovered the method of awakening through Yin energy and invested in the Heaven-Tier Ghost Shop to keep their art alive.
It turned out Geng Qifeng was a man of their era, and he had been the nephew of Song Chunhe. When Song Chunhe passed down the art to her adopted daughter—who took the Song surname and became Song Sanyu—Geng Qifeng rebelled.
Angered by the decision to transmit the art to a girl rather than a male relative, he abandoned the Song name, established the Geng line, and created a new version of the Secret Art of Paper Crafting that deliberately excluded the spiritual awakening method. With no access to the original core, he could only refine the craft's surface.
Now it all made sense.
Geng Qiushan had likely read that dedication and learned that there once existed a version of the Secret Art of Paper Crafting containing the true spiritual awakening method.
Years ago, when the SEIU asked him to craft Fourth-Tier Yin Paper Clothes, he had tried—no matter what he did, the results were only shallow imitations. The missing element was exactly that: the method of spiritual awakening.
At that time, Underworld's Anshou Hall had been selling Fourth-Tier Yin Paper Clothes at a premium, so it would have been easy for Geng Qiushan to suspect the connection.
But perhaps he hadn't yet known Anshou Hall was tied to her.
Then came the SEIU's internal scandal. During Luo Junchi's public denouncement, he had mentioned that she had connections in the underworld. When the new director, Zhao Quanshu, confirmed that she had played a critical role in warning them beforehand, her identity was exposed.
But he had underestimated her. He hired mercenaries to abduct her, yet she tracked down his lair and cursed him to death in a hidden chamber. Only after Geng Qiushan's death did Song Miaozhu discover just how intertwined their family histories were.
Still, all she felt was a moment of solemn reflection.
The Secret Art of Paper Crafting was passed down to daughters not out of favoritism, but because its core—spiritual awakening through Yin energy—was only compatible with female practitioners.
Anyone could learn paper crafting, but the true spiritual awakening method worked only for women. Even the brilliant designs Geng Qifeng left behind appeared in the earlier sections of the version in her mind. That meant he had inherited all the techniques—except the most essential one.
Geng Qiushan's cruelty in ordering her kidnapping left no room for pity. She didn't think her death curse had been excessive at all. What she did worry about was whether Geng Qiushan had shown this version of the Secret Art of Paper Crafting to anyone else.
If so, someone in the mortal world might know that she held the true method. Because of that, Song Miaozhu decided not to recall the little paper servants stationed in Guangcheng just yet. She wanted to see who might come poking around after Geng Qiushan's death.
The next morning, his subordinates noticed he had gone silent. There was a brief period of confusion at the mountain villa, but no one was too concerned. They assumed he was away on some secret errand.
It wasn't until three days later, when the stench of decay spread, that someone traced it to a sealed room. After fumbling around, they found the hidden chamber and discovered Geng Qiushan's corpse. That was when chaos truly broke out.
The men didn't report the death. Instead, they looted the entire villa. Even the warehouse full of paper offering and hell coin templates was stripped bare.
Eventually, a gardener came to trim the trees. When he couldn't find the homeowner and entered the house, he discovered the body and called the police. The autopsy concluded that Geng Qiushan had died of sudden cardiac arrest. The authorities used his bank funds to purchase a burial plot, cremated him, and laid him to rest.
Song Miaozhu had her little paper servant monitor the entire process—from delivery to the police station, to cremation, to burial. It even stood watch at his grave for over a month. Only a few business contacts came to offer incense.
A man who spent his whole life making paper crafts was sent off with mass-produced hell coins. The secret chamber in the villa was never opened again. At last, Song Miaozhu felt secure enough to recall her little paper servants from Guangcheng.
By now, her second batch of paper soldiers had finished refining. She now had ninety-eight in total—each one capable of taking on ten foes alone. Throughout this period, she had never once stopped channeling spiritual energy into her creations. All one hundred of her little paper servants had acquired the "Invisibility" active ability.
And just two days ago, the spiritual armor of her paper garments had begun to evolve as well.