RMWDS -Chapter 249 Premium-Grade Panels!

“The Han Yue Sword Sect?”

Princess Ningyu let out a cold snort, anger flashing across her eyes.

“As expected, this is the Eighth Imperial Uncle’s doing.”

“I was wondering why Father would suddenly send a special envoy to inspect the site. So it turns out he’s been stirring things up behind the scenes.”

“It seems that while I’ve been away from the capital, the Eighth Imperial Uncle hasn’t stopped speaking ill of me before Father.”

Looking out at the endless mountain ranges in the distance, Princess Ningyu felt a chill in her heart.

She knew perfectly well that, with her abilities and eloquence, if she personally returned to the imperial palace and defended herself before the emperor, she could still regain his favor and smooth this matter over.

But…

She no longer wanted to waste her time and life on these meaningless political schemes and power struggles.

Nor did she want to continue dealing with those smiling faces hiding false intentions.

After finally reaching this point—

After meeting someone like Cult Leader Miao.

After experiencing such extraordinary opportunities.

After gaining the chance to create a world of her own.

She simply didn’t want to go back.

Just as she was running out of ideas, hurried footsteps suddenly sounded from a nearby mountain path.

A sentry soldier came running up the slope, his face overflowing with excitement.

Even his voice trembled.

“Your Highness! Your Highness!”

“Good news!”

“Second Young Master Mu has returned!”

“Second Young Master Mu has brought back a huge shipment of materials!”

“Ziqi?”

Mu Zigui froze briefly and looked in the direction the soldier was pointing.

On the mountain road, two burly men were pulling a handcart uphill at a brisk pace.

Walking beside the cart was Mu Ziqi.

His long robe was covered in dust, yet he still carried himself with elegant composure.

Stacked neatly on the cart were piles of dark-brown wooden panels.

Every single one was smooth and perfectly flat, with clean, precise edges.

Exquisitely carved patterns covered their surfaces.

Layer upon layer of auspicious clouds.

Lifelike mythical beasts.

Elegant lotus motifs.

Under the sunlight, the carvings seemed to glow with a warm, refined luster.

The moment the cart stopped, the craftsmen at the construction site swarmed around it.

One after another, they craned their necks and stared at the panels with expressions of utter disbelief.

An elderly carpenter tremblingly reached out and touched the cloud pattern carved into the top panel.

His fingertips traced the flowing lines.

Even his lips were shaking with excitement.

“My heavens…”

“This craftsmanship…”

“These patterns are unbelievably precise!”

“Every cloud is exactly the same size and shape!”

“Even the thickness of the lines is perfectly identical!”

Another craftsman quickly chimed in:

“Exactly!”

“Look at this auspicious beast’s eyes!”

“They’re so vivid and lifelike!”

“I’ve spent an entire month carving pieces that weren’t even this detailed!”

A third craftsman stared in shock.

“How is this possible?”

“Even if every carpenter in the capital worked together, carving this many panels would take at least half a year!”

Someone else examined the edge of a board.

“And look at these cuts!”

“How can they be this smooth?”

“There isn’t even a single splinter!”

“What kind of plane could possibly create a surface like this?”

The craftsmen crowded around the cart, talking over one another.

Exclamations of amazement rose continuously.

They had spent their entire lives working with wood.

Yet none of them had ever seen carved panels this perfect.

It was as if immortals themselves had used divine techniques to create them.

Even Princess Ningyu looked stunned.

“This is…”

Mu Ziqi smiled slightly.

“Your Highness, these are forty carved decorative panels.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he took advantage of the fact that everyone’s attention was completely fixed on the cart.

He quickly glanced toward Mu Zigui in the distance.

The corners of his eyes curved mischievously.

He even gave a subtle wink and tilted his chin toward the cart.

The gesture carried a hint of pride, as though he were saying:

“Pretty impressive, isn’t it?”

Mu Zigui was momentarily stunned.

Then he helplessly shook his head.

The gloom that had weighed on him for days instantly dissipated by more than half.

A faint smile unconsciously appeared at the corner of his mouth.

One of the craftsmen exclaimed happily:

“Forty panels!”

“Wonderful!”

“With these forty pieces, we can complete all the doors and windows of the main hall!”

But Mu Ziqi shook his head.

Smiling, he said:

“This is only the beginning.”

“This is just the first batch.”

“There’s plenty more coming afterward.”

“What?!”

“There’s more?!”

“Yes.”

Mu Ziqi nodded.

His tone was calm, yet his words carried immense impact.

“A total of five hundred and seventy-two panels. Various thicknesses, various patterns—we have all of them.”

“Five hundred… seventy-two?”

The previously bustling construction site instantly fell silent.

Everyone froze where they stood.

They stared at Mu Ziqi with wide eyes.

The expressions on their faces shifted from excitement, to stunned disbelief, and finally to complete shock.

Five hundred and seventy-two carved decorative panels!

And every single one was a premium-quality piece like these, with exquisite craftsmanship and perfectly uniform patterns!

Even Princess Ningyu was stunned.

She quickly walked over to the cart and reached out to touch a panel carved with lotus motifs.

Her fingertips met a cool, smooth surface.

She had seen the finest woodwork produced by the imperial craftsmen in the palace.

Yet even those master artisans could never have created works this perfect.

And there was absolutely no way they could have produced more than five hundred such pieces in half a day.

“Ziqi… this…”

“What’s going on?”

She looked up at him, her voice filled with astonishment.

Mu Ziqi bowed respectfully.

“Your Highness, I took the liberty of asking Cult Leader Miao for help.”

“When she heard about our difficulties, she immediately helped us obtain these carved panels.”

“Cult Leader Miao…”

Princess Ningyu murmured the name softly.

A complicated expression flashed across her eyes.

Producing more than five hundred premium carved panels in half a day was beyond merely being capable or influential.

It was simply inconceivable.

Mu Ziqi continued:

“And that’s not all.

“Cult Leader Miao was worried that we might not have enough tools and wouldn’t be able to keep up with the schedule.

“So she specially sent over a batch of convenient tools.”

“And because she was concerned that our craftsmen might not know how to use them, she even dispatched two masters to teach us.”

Stepping aside respectfully, Mu Ziqi began introducing the people standing behind him.

“This gentleman is the renowned Number One Weaponsmith Under Heaven, Master Wei Zhuoshan.”

“And beside him is his nephew, Master Wei Zijun.”

“Both are experts in the crafting and use of all kinds of tools and equipment.”

“For the next few days, we’ll have to trouble the two Masters Wei to guide everyone in their work.”

Wei Zijun appeared to be hearing himself called a “master” for the first time in his life.

His face instantly turned red all the way to his ears.

Waving his hands frantically, he stammered:

“I-I don’t deserve that title!”

“I really don’t!”

“What?!”

“It’s actually Master Wei!”

A fresh wave of astonished exclamations erupted from the crowd.

Wei Zhuoshan’s reputation was legendary throughout the martial world.

Everyone knew his name.

It was said that the weapons he forged could slice through iron as though it were mud, and each one was worth a fortune.

Countless martial artists had fought desperately for the chance to commission a weapon from him.

Yet now, Cult Leader Miao had somehow persuaded both him and his nephew to come help with construction work.

That was an unbelievable display of influence!

As expected—

Cult Leader Miao’s organization was filled with extraordinary talents!