Using the same method as crafting Yin Paper Clothes, Song Miaozhu first cut and glued pieces of paper together, forming a simple white paper T-shirt. At this stage, it was already considered a third-rank Yin Paper Clothes. Normally, by drawing on the yin energy from a hell coin and using the spiritual activation method for Yin Paper Clothes, it could be upgraded to fourth-rank.
But this time, Song Miaozhu had no access to yin energy. Instead, she channeled her own spiritual power and used the activation method for Paper Spirit Armor to awaken the paper T-shirt. Just like when activating paper clothing, a glow of spiritual light enveloped the T-shirt. Once the light faded, the shirt returned to its normal appearance.
But it still looked like paper.
Unlike Yin Paper Clothes, it did not transform into something wearable that resembled real fabric. Song Miaozhu tried pressing it against her body. The moment it touched her, it clung tightly in place.
She picked up a small knife and tested it with a gentle stab toward herself. Immediately, a shimmer of spiritual light flared up from the paper T-shirt, blocking the blade's point.
Water and fire also triggered the same protective glow.
"This is almost just like regular Paper Spirit Armor!" Song Miaozhu sighed.
If this was all it could do, then there was no need to use the Yin Paper Clothes crafting method just to make a Paper Spirit Armor base. After all, the effects were no different from cutting out some paper and activating it casually. Still, she wasn't completely discouraged. She had one more idea she hadn't tried.
Yin Paper Clothes may have originated from Paper Spirit Armor, but their activation methods differed slightly. She attempted to activate it using the Yin Paper Clothes technique, but substituted yin energy with spiritual power.
This time, the small white paper T-shirt, not much larger than her palm, lost its paper texture after activation. It now felt like soft cotton. When placed on the table, it still looked small. But the moment Song Miaozhu lifted it, it expanded in her hands.
She held it up to herself. "Seems like it's just my size!"
She pulled the curtains and tried it on. Not too big, not too small—just right. It even fit better and felt more comfortable than the one she had bought online. Unfortunately, it seemed that the protective effects Yin Paper Clothes offered for the soul didn't convert into physical protection just because she used spiritual energy.
However, it still retained some of the original traits: it was difficult to damage, adjusted its size automatically to fit the wearer, and resisted getting dirty.
Despite that, Song Miaozhu was still pleased.
"If it can't protect the body, I'll just add a hidden layer inside the clothes and stick a Paper Spirit Armor in there!"
This would still give her the protection she wanted. And since Paper Spirit Armor could be replaced whenever it was used up, the setup remained practical. The best part was that she could now wear clothes she made herself.
Since the shirt lacked the full features of Paper Spirit Armor and was activated using the Yin Paper Clothes method, Song Miaozhu named it Yang Paper Clothes. Turning Yin into Yang was simply a matter of replacing yin energy with spiritual power. It wasn't difficult at all.
Yet strangely, the Secret Art of Paper Crafting made no mention of Yang Paper Clothes. Perhaps during the previous era of cultivation, such paper clothes—lacking physical defense—were seen as useless, so the ancestors never explored the idea.
In this age of dwindling spiritual resources, later generations figured out how to activate Yin Paper Clothes based on the methods for Paper Spirit Armor, but never tested what would happen if spiritual power was used instead.
That was probably why Yang Paper Clothes had never existed until now.
After confirming the method worked, Song Miaozhu immediately added her own annotations to the Yin Paper Clothes section in Secret Art of Paper Crafting, documenting the production process of Yang Paper Clothes.
Once that was done, she wondered if there were other techniques like Yin Paper Clothes—developed in the age of decline, derived from spirit-based crafting but relying solely on yin energy—and whether they could be adapted into spiritual versions too.
Unfortunately, in the entire book, Yin Paper Clothes were the only such case.
Song Miaozhu returned her focus to the real world. She quickly asked her little paper servant to bring her a few more sheets of paper. With those, she made herself a paper vest, paper pants, paper socks, and a pair of white paper shoes. Combined with the paper T-shirt, it became a complete outfit that wouldn't get dirty.
She even added a hidden compartment in the back of the vest, where she stuffed several pieces of Paper Spirit Armor. Wearing this set of paper clothes—even if it was just a white shirt, white socks, and black pants, completely lacking in style—still had its perks.
It didn't get dirty.
She didn't even need to bother changing or washing clothes.
She only had to be careful not to wear them outside on rainy days.
As long as the Paper Spirit Armor wasn't triggered, even with spiritual sight, Yang Paper Clothes just looked like ordinary clothing with no glow and nothing out of the ordinary. But if triggered—for instance, when exposed to rain—the armor would emit spiritual light, revealing something strange was going on.
This result stemmed from several factors: her limited crafting and spiritual ability, the relatively low quality of her Paper Spirit Armor, and the natural weakness of paper, which retained its vulnerability to water. Also, Yang Paper Clothes were built to resist physical damage, not moisture.
The underworld had no weather, no sunlight, and no rain.
The ancestors who designed Yin Paper Clothes for spirits never had to overcome the weaknesses of fire and water. To make Yang Paper Clothes truly rainproof, she would need to further refine its activation method.
But that was easier said than done.
Yin paper crafts were simple enough. The yin energy could be drawn from the hell coin's lifespan. Spirit paper crafts, however, had to be activated using one's own spiritual power. Only with deep understanding of spirit paper activation could she even begin to make improvements.
Right now, she hadn't even mastered most of the spirit paper techniques recorded in Secret Art of Paper Crafting, let alone developed any real insight. Still, wearing her Yang Paper Clothes around the house or on sunny days was fine. They were far more comfortable than store-bought clothing. Most importantly, they never got dirty and didn't need washing.
She no longer had to trouble the little paper servants to help her with the laundry or hanging clothes out to dry. That evening, at her scheduled time with Jin Meilan, Song Miaozhu went straight to the ghost shop's warehouse wearing her new outfit.
She had originally intended to test whether Yang Paper Clothes still offered soul protection like the Yin version.
To her surprise, when Jin Meilan tested it using ghostly energy, they discovered that the clothes not only protected her soul, but also had a slight backlash effect against ghosts, thanks to being activated with spiritual power.
The damage was mild, but Jin Meilan did suffer a small loss of ghost energy. Feeling a bit guilty, Song Miaozhu compensated her with some hell coins as a spiritual supplement. Unfortunately, since Yang Paper Clothes were activated with spiritual power, ghosts couldn't wear them, even though they were also fourth-rank paper clothes.