The next day, I began creating my first Saint Realm combat technique, already named Aegis Caliber for the armor and weapons. Turns out, putting an imaginary weapon on paper was much harder than I thought, especially the soul bolts. There just weren't the exact terms in this medieval language that everyone spoke.

  In the end, I had to use the Vajra Lightning Bolts instead, which were sadly not exploding inside the target. They still did a great amount of damage, partly because the Lightning element itself was a counter towards Demons. Not that humans were immune to lightning or anything. The Heavens didn't pick Lightning as their favorite element for Tribulations at random.

  And since Amelia was the only one of us with a Divine Soul, she was the first to test the new combat technique in the Soul array.

  We all waited outside, while people were reading their own cultivation tablets and hoping they have learned well enough.

  "She's been inside longer than usual. The Aegis armor is certainly more durable." Mai spoke in a confident voice, then shut up as I glanced at her.

  "Boss finished the array wearing it, so of course it's a better armor." Kenta added with a nod towards me.

  I didn't need flattery, though. "The Aegis was customized against Demons only. It may not work well against other enemies." I admitted with a cautious voice.

  "Young Master, this kind of warded armor can also work in the field, right? At least for our Puppet Guardians..." Chen Feng asked with his eyes focused on the metal tablet of the Aegis sutra.

  Grandpa was already working to upgrade the puppets' armor, so yes. I just nodded. "Working on it."

  "The weapon seems quite more difficult to create with metal instead of soul energy. Perhaps a cross-bow instead?" Ming Yue wondered as she raised her eyes towards me.

  "Also working on something like that. But in the field, ranged weapons are not that important. Enemies move too fast and can hide behind cover." I answered with the same caution. There was a good reason why everyone used melee weapons instead of bows, for example. The rare examples to the contrary were the stuff of legend, Saints that could fight other Saints with a bow, like the Sun Archer Saint.

  Ming Yue sighed and fell silent. She knew well enough the realities of this world. There were a few examples of lightspeed weapons too, like the Sunbeam cannons, but those were very expensive and were only used to guard important sects or the Imperial Palace. Plus, aiming a cannon the size of rowboat wasn't fast.

  "We could sell such Caliber cross-bows to the City Guard or smaller towns. Should work decently against beasts or bandits." Mei proposed while smiling a bit evil-ish.

  Hmmm. When we established an Outer Sect and had need for defenses, rapid-fire cross-bows could be useful. And of course, small towns and villages could use more protection, at least from threats below Saint Realm. I could perhaps create a package deal, a few arrays as well. One for detecting enemies, one for chasing away rats and vermin, perhaps one for detecting deaths inside the perimeter. At least if there was a soul left to detect.

  I began informing Grandpa of my plans, and he just nodded gently. 'Demonic energy detection would be important.' he answered in my mind.

  "Mei, my love. Your fine proposal is now your job. These fine new Saints of ours can serve as your agents in selling weapons and arrays to villages all around. Just keep in mind, profit is the least concern. The Tower's reputation comes first." I allowed while gesturing towards the new recruits.

  Mei hid her face behind her sleeve, while her eyes twinkled for some nefarious schemes. "As you say, husband. Just give me the products first, so I can test what I am to sell." she answered in a coy voice.

  An almost complete cross-bow landed in my hand, since Grandpa was always paying attention. He was the closest thing to an omniscient being that I knew, matched perhaps by some inscrutable Buddha playing with the fate of the universe in his hand.

  And considering their cosmic wit battle got me killed, revived and made eternal just last week, I had a cautious respect for both of them. Regular people like me and my Tower members were only ants, dancing on invisible strings for them.

  Just then, Amelia rolled out of the Soul array, leaking blood from a few dozen holes. "Haha! 53 Kills! Best day ever!" she yelled in triumph, then fainted.

  Lin Fei flew off his mobile throne and stopped in front of the Soul array, then turned towards me. "My turn now." he declared confidently, then jumped inside.

  Ming Yue grabbed my arm and leaned on me. "Fighting fire with fire, Master Pef?" she asked in a curious voice.

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  As in, a Demon against other Demons. Well she was somewhat right, but for the wrong reasons. I needed someone loyal to take over the Netherworld for me. Later in the future, of course. But with my time speed increase, the future would come sooner than expected. "Lin Fei is our hero, my wise wife. And much the same as Meadows in the important aspects."

  The red fox turned her ears around, then glanced at me. "Your new fancy armor better work, Tower human. If my precious fur gets torn again..." she growled as a warning.

  The green array around Amelia vanished and she stood up, no longer leaking blood from extra holes. "I need to sleep for a week, husband. Damn Demons hit so hard..." she complained while walking away in a slow pace, somehow managing to suppress the pain inside.

  "Already 53 kills? Our poison girl will catch up with you soon." Ming whispered in faint praise.

  "Ehem. I am barely a Saint, and she has a Divine Soul. You think she can catch up after my soul becomes Divine as well?" I asked a bit rhetorical.

  Ming sighed and punched my shoulder. "You train too much for that. Soon you'll Ascend and leave all of us behind."

  Well, that was kinda true. What could I do, being so brilliant?

  "I realize that. But, too much training isn't good either. We'll start making Sundays free days. Just rest in bed, or do fun stuff." I proposed in a kind voice.

  Bai's eyes lit up, and she jumped on my other arm at the news. "Bed rest, you say?" she asked to make sure.

  "Compulsory rest days, Tower Master?" Zhang Song asked with a worried voice.

  Hmmm. He did have a point. "Not compulsory. It's a free day. Everyone can do what they like most on Sundays. Even training, if you like that more than other things." I declared in a light tone.

  "I see. I could do only half the Sword array runs, then read more of your fantasy economics books. I still think sect points are exactly like this FIAT currency you fantasize about. You can print however many points you want." Mister Song said, making an apt if quite wrong comparison.

  Sect points were precisely not FIAT currency, since they were only issued to those that completed sect missions. Missions increased the sect renown or revenue, which gave the sect a real gain, much like mining gold.

  "I suppose you can test your theory as an Outer Elder, Mister Song. Print millions of sect points and distribute them as you wish. But in that case, my Tower will not back them up." I answered with a grin.

  Zhang Song raised a finger to protest, then lowered it with a sheepish smile. "Ah, I don't have the fantasy Treasury in my power. And even if I learn to make pills and sell them, I could work all day and not be able to refund the sect points I issued so easily."

  "You missed the point, Mister Song. Which is a bit sad, considering your work for the Treasure House auction. They too rely mostly on reputation for their services. Which is why their client tokens have value. If they started giving them away like candy..." I argued with an eye on the Soul array.

  Lin Fei stumbled out, eyes red in anger. '31 kills. Very good.' Grandpa whispered in my head.

  "Sit down and rest, Lin Fei. Killing 31 Divine Realm enemies is a good first step." I spoke in a praising voice, making everyone look at Lin Fei in awe.

  "...I hoped for at least 50." Lin Fei grumbled while sitting down to heal. His soul was fluctuating slightly, a sign he was about to grow another level. Demons did grow faster through war and bloodshed.

  "I'm going next!" Bai yelled a bit too enthusiastically, then ran inside the array.

  "Silly rabbit..." I said softly, and counted down from 10. As expected, my brave wife didn't last long, flying backwards and rolling to the ground in soul pain.

  She did get one Demon kill though, which was pretty good. It was mostly my Caliber weapons, though.

  "I can do better. I have armor now." Meadows declared while jumping inside the Soul array.

  "I bet it's two kills." Ming whispered in a low voice.

  I would have agreed, if Meadows was human. But Spirit Beasts were built different. And now that Meadows learned to use the Vajra Lightning sutra, instead of her racial soul glare, she hit much harder.

  The fox lasted much longer than anyone suspected, and only stumbled out once her soul was depleted. '33 kills. The Aegis works pretty well, Young Master.' Grandpa said in a strangely praising voice.

  Then again, Meadows was mostly a soul specialist. Her illusions involved the mind and soul, and since she drank the Divine Fox blood, she had become even stronger.

  'Do foxes gain a Dao Heart, Grandpa?' I wondered quite curious, while Chen Feng ran into the Soul array with a giant grin.

  'Even a stone can gain a Dao Heart, Young Master. I've only seen a single stone able to cultivate though, so it might be an accident of fate.' the old ghost answered in a serious voice.

  I couldn't even imagine how did a stone even gained enough sapience to think or cultivate, but this was a strange world. Maybe it got struck by a Tribulation? But how did it form meridians or a Dantian? Did it get a silicon brain?

  So many questions.

  Chen Feng fell out of the Soul array, still grinning despite bleeding from his eyes and ears. "I got 3! Bang bang, I shot them down..." he gurgled while spitting blood.

  A long red tail patted his head, and the man fell asleep. "Too noisy. Boys, take him to his room." Meadows ordered in a tired voice, and Romulus and Remus ran to obey like well trained soldiers.

  Miss Feng stood up, then floated towards the Soul array, glancing at me for a second with her purple soul-sucking eyes, before she entered.

  Did that mean something? I was so bad at this. She did grow up into a fine young woman though. And cultivation only increased her charm, making hard to look at her now.

  "Why did she look at me?" I asked Ming, who was quite a bit wiser. She even got a Wisdom Heart for it.

  My wife sighed and patted my head like I was a child. "That's why. How can you be such a pervert and still have a pure soul?" she wondered in a confused voice.

  Caihong, the Rainbow Princess, took my free arm then pinched me for some reason. "You don't deserve your luck, my prince. Maybe one day, you'll find a woman that actually requires you to put in some work."

  My few neurons clicked, getting the hidden message. "Are you saying she likes me?" I asked to make sure.

  "No, she likes another guy who saved her and her only family from bandits, then gave her a wonderful life and resources to become a Saint. Who could that be?" Ming muttered with a jealous tone.

  Yeah, it had to be me. No way she encountered bandits twice.