Night had fallen completely, plunging Gaojia Village into a “non-static shot.”

Wait—actually, it wasn’t entirely static anymore. Villagers now patrolled the walls in 24-hour shifts. Beneath the flickering dim lamplight, two villagers circled the fortress round and round.

Still, the scene felt unbearably dull. No one could stand watching it for long.

By this hour each day, Li Daoxuan could comfortably shift his gaze away and return to his real-life routine.

Too lazy to boot his computer, he grabbed his phone instead.

Just then, a message from Cai Xinzi popped up: “Daoxuan, after hours of negotiation with the customer, we finally struck a deal.”

Li Daoxuan replied: “Oh? So what’s the verdict?”

Cai Xinzi: “Our Supreme Treasure piece was exquisitely crafted, but sadly, that character lacks broad appeal in that market. It skews too much toward ‘toy’ territory—doesn’t carry much value. The buyer only shelled out RMB 8,888 as a networking gift to open the door.”

Li Daoxuan grasped it immediately: “So if we switch the theme, we can actually make money?”

Cai Xinzi: “Exactly! Buddhist or Taoist deities are worth infinitely more than Supreme Treasure. That’s when it sheds the ‘toy’ label and becomes true ‘art.'”

Li Daoxuan chuckled: “I carved Supreme Treasure just for kicks. I can handle religious statues too. What’s his offer?”

Cai Xinzi: “For a standard, non-parody theme at one centimeter tall, matching Supreme Treasure’s detail level? He’ll pay RMB 48,888.”

Li Daoxuan grinned privately: “Nice! That’s twenty Hakka roundhouses right there.”

Cai Xinzi groaned inwardly: “I painstakingly build you a half-meter model with tires, motors, remote controllers, and over two hundred rooms—gobbling up heaps of sheet metal and materials—and barely charge you RMB 2,000. Yet you sell a one-centimeter wood scrap for RMB 48,888? Unacceptable. I’m coming to punch you.”

Li Daoxuan laughed: “Hahahaha!”

Cai Xinzi added: “The client also tossed out a wild request. See if you can handle it.”

Li Daoxuan: “Oh? Shoot.”

Cai Xinzi: “He wants something smaller. Tinier than one centimeter—down to five millimeters. Can you do it?”

Li Daoxuan: “…”

Seeing the ellipses, Cai Xinzi assumed defeat: “Sigh, impossible after all? He’s willing to pay RMB 228,888 for five millimeters.”

Li Daoxuan: “Why so little faith? You surely added him on WeChat? Ask him right now: isn’t five millimeters too bulky? I can deliver one millimeter—only fear is it’d be too minuscule for him to see. Might refuse it.”

Cai Xinzi: “Holy sht!”

Li Daoxuan: “Language, please.”

Cai Xinzi: “Are you freaking serious? One millimeter? Smaller than a grain of rice?”

Li Daoxuan: “The artisan who made my Supreme Treasure? A micro-sculpting master. So one millimeter’s no hurdle for me. Just ask if he wants it.”

Cai Xinzi: “Hold on. Let me check.”

Two minutes later, Cai Xinzi’s reply lit up: “If a one-millimeter piece holds even half the detail of your Supreme Treasure, he’ll pay RMB 1,288,888.”

Li Daoxuan: “Deal. I’ll take it.”

Cai Xinzi: “You mad lad! How can you pull off such an order? Color me impressed.”

Li Daoxuan: “Hahaha, fine—what’s this thing he wants?”

Cai Xinzi: “A statue of Lord Laozi.”

Li Daoxuan asked, “What can a millimeter-sized Grand Supreme Elderly Lord statue even be used for?”

Cai Xinzi replied, “I was curious too, so I asked. He said it’s for ‘saint statues in beads.'”

Li Daoxuan was astonished, “What the heck is a ‘saint statue in beads’?”

Cai Xinzi teased, “No clue, eh? Ha! Well, neither did I until I asked him. You’ve heard of sandalwood Buddhist prayer beads and Taoist beads? Little round pieces, often strung together to wear around the wrist.”

Li Daoxuan acknowledged, “That much I have heard of.”

Cai Xinzi explained, “The ‘saint statue in beads’ involves hollowing out the center of a bead and placing a tiny deity picture inside. Then it’s filled with a special liquid and sealed, leaving just a small window to peek through. When you hold one bead up, squinting into it, you see an image of a Buddha floating inside. For devotees, it’s practically priceless.”

Li Daoxuan exclaimed, “Wow, that actually sounds quite impressive.”

Cai Xinzi continued, “But an average craftsman can only manage a crude drawing inside. With your micro-sculpting skill, he could cram a lifelike statue in there. Imagine how much more three-dimensional that is! Way more sophisticated than a flat image. The statue could even float and rotate in the liquid – something a drawing could never do.”

Li Daoxuan finally grasped it: the thing really did seem like a clever trick.

Cai Xinzi predicted, “I bet he’ll take your statue for 1,288,888 yuan, pop it into a bead, and then dare to sell that single bead for three million.”

Li Daoxuan chuckled, “Haha, interesting! How much he sells it for is his own skill. We’re fine here. Just be open-minded about it.”

Cai Xinzi insisted, “Open-mindedness is fine for a person, but not for business. I need to haggle harder.”

Li Daoxuan agreed, “Sure, whatever you manage to get is your skill. I just need 1,150,000. Anything extra is your commission.”

Cai Xinzi sighed, “Damn, you really are open-minded. If we were back in ancient times, you’d be one of those ridiculously generous heroes, like that ‘Small Whirlwind’ Chai Jin from Water Margin – handing out money to anyone, useful or not, just making everyone respect you by flinging cash around.”

Li Daoxuan thought: Hey, nailed it. I’ve been flinging money at those villagers all month. Got their ten out of ten respect now. Since being called generous wasn’t bad, he just smiled and accepted it.

…

The time ticked away…

…

Soon, days had passed.

During these recent days in Gaojia Village, aside from Gao Yiye and Thirty-Two, the two newly arrived sculptors had garnered the most attention. After consecutively offering statues to the Deity, both earned substantial rewards multiple times.

Beyond the initial two large pieces of pork loin, they received many bags of flour, rice, canola oil, and a huge lump of pure white lard.

In this time of drought, these items were more valuable than any jewels or gold.

They traded them with fellow villagers for daily necessities and even hired several people. During breaks from constructing the Dao Xuan Deity Temple, these hired hands built simple shelters for the two sculptors’ families.

Thus, the sculptors became the first among the new arrivals to gain solid roofs over their heads.

However, Zheng Daniu, another diligent newcomer who chopped wood relentlessly every day, hadn’t prospered. Though he too received rewards, he only ever asked for happy fat water.

The villagers found it enjoyable to drink, yet none willingly traded their limited supplies for it.

Simply put…

If it was free, they’d happily gulp it down. But asking them to pay? They’d rather die than drink.

Zheng Daniu didn’t mind skipping trade either. He’d slurp down a basinful, gather more wood, then refill his basin. He couldn’t care less if others were willing to work for it; his own happiness mattered most.

And so, amidst this atmosphere of contentment, the Dao Xuan Deity Temple was finally completed…