A journey through the world of martial arts

Chapter 465 Breaking into the City
Outside the Mechanized City, Wei Zhuang stood leaning on his sword, gazing at the towering, perilous peaks before him with deep eyes. Just then, Chi Lian approached him and said, "Lin'er has succeeded. The Mechanized City has lost most of its fighting strength. Should we make our move now or wait for Li Si to send reinforcements?"

"Wait a little longer. To find out how deep the waters of the Mechanized City are, we need someone to wade through the waters for us. We'll have to wait three hours."

"Yes."

When news of Gongshu Chou reached Li Si, he was furious. However, he knew this was not the time to punish him. He immediately wrote a dispatch order, ordering the nearest military camp to send 3,000 men to provide emergency reinforcements. He also wrote down what had happened on bamboo slips and sent them to the Qin Palace immediately.

"Lord Wei Zhuang, the Empire's troops have arrived. Shouldn't we make our move?"

Gongshu Chou's confidence soared as he saw the reinforcements of even more elite soldiers. However, he had lost his leadership and looked at Wei Zhuang.

"Wait an hour. The Mechanized City won't be chaotic enough. Victory in chaos is the least effort and yields the greatest reward. Lord Gongshu, rest assured, your help will be indispensable in breaking through the Mechanized City."

Wei Zhuang glanced at Gongshu Chou, who smiled awkwardly and repeatedly agreed. Chi Lian, standing to the side, stroked the blue-scaled flame snake on her arm.

Another hour passed, and Chi Lian came to Wei Zhuang's side, nodded to him, and Wei Zhuang picked up Shark Tooth, flicked his sleeves, and took the lead towards the inner city of the Mechanized City. Chi Lian and the others immediately followed. Gongshu Chou was also very excited when he saw this, and rode his mechanical snake behind them. The soldiers followed closely behind in unison, and the ground rumbled, which could be clearly heard for miles around.

"Wei Zhuang is about to make his move. Tell your disciples to be on guard."

Gao Jianli looked down at the soldiers moving below, his expression immediately becoming serious. He gave an instruction to a disciple beside him, who immediately obeyed and left. In less than a quarter of an hour, all the remaining disciples received the order to retreat immediately if they encountered an enemy.

"Although the overall map of the mechanism is fake, it is not entirely useless. The gate of this mechanism city is integrated with the mountain peak. Unless it is opened from the inside, it can only be broken open by strong external force. Lord Wei Zhuang, please wait a moment and watch how I break this gate."

Because the Mohists abandoned their outer defenses, although they suffered some losses along the way, the damage was not significant. A few feet ahead of them was a large, indigo-blue gate. They had just rammed it with wooden pillars, but it remained unmoved. When their weapons struck it, they only sparked a few fireballs.

"Then it's up to Lord Gongshu."

Wei Zhuang waved his hand, and the people of Liusha immediately retreated to the side. The leading soldier also ordered his soldiers to step back. Gongshu Chou clapped his hands, and several disciples carried up bronze parts and placed them in front of him. Gongshu Chou activated the mechanical arm, and in a short while, he assembled a strange-looking bronze armored beast. This bronze armored beast was about ten feet tall, with eight sharp and broad blades on its back. The cold light emanating from it was chilling. It had a long tail, a pointed head, and a pair of lively eyes that darted around.

"This is Potu Sanlang, a siege weapon specially crafted by the Gongshu family for the empire. This time, in order to deal with the Mo family, I have made ample preparations. Let's see whether the Mo family's mechanical skills are superior or my Gongshu family's mechanical skills are better. Go, Potu Sanlang."

Gongshu Chou gave the order to "Breaking Earth Third Brother," and instantly the bronze armored beast's eyes glowed red. Then, its body shrunk into a rolling ball and rolled rapidly towards the gate of the mechanical city. Just a few steps away from the gate, there was a cracking sound, and eight sharp, broad blades appeared simultaneously, crashing into the gate. The hissing sound was incessant. Chi Lian frowned upon hearing this, while Wei Zhuang watched the incredibly powerful Breaking Earth Third Brother with great interest.

"The Mohist mechanism is that wood and stone can move, and bronze can open. If you want to ask Gongshu, you must know that Mr. Gongshu's mechanical skills are already superb. He has inherited the achievements of his predecessors and innovated on them, which is truly rare. However, although bronze is good, it cannot last. Mr. Gongshu, is your initiative to join this project in order to integrate the two schools of thought, combine their strengths, and further advance the art of mechanical mechanisms?"

Chi Lian's eyes flashed, and she chuckled as she looked at Gongshu Chou. The latter was slightly surprised upon hearing this. He did indeed have this idea in mind. The bronze mechanical arts of the Gongshu family had almost reached their peak in his generation. To make a breakthrough, he needed inspiration. The Mo family, which was also a school of mechanical arts, could certainly provide him with a lot of inspiration. Therefore, he took the initiative to ask Ying Zheng to join them. On the surface, it was to resolve the feud between the two schools, but in reality, it was just to collect the Mo family's mechanical arts manuals.

"Lord Chilian hit the nail on the head. This is indeed another of my purposes. Each of the Hundred Schools of Thought has its own strengths. The Gongshu family will not be complacent. It will be able to integrate with the Hundred Schools and learn from their strengths to make up for its weaknesses, so that the family can be passed down for a longer period of time. In recent years, the Mo family has been willing to act as traitors. Their assassination skills have become much quieter, but their mechanical skills have become worse with each generation. Fortunately, there is another old man named Ban who has revitalized the Mo family's mechanical skills. He is a worthy opponent, but unfortunately, he can only improve the mechanisms and cannot innovate. In this battle of mechanisms, I will definitely make him suffer a crushing defeat."

Gongshu Chou's confident words made Chi Lian nod in agreement. Regardless of Gongshu Chou's character, the domineering mechanical beasts he created were enough to prove his strength. Works best reflect a person's temperament. These mechanical snakes and Potu Sanlang are both extremely domineering and exude confidence in every way.

Just as they were talking, the gate of the mechanical city was forcibly cut open by Potu Sanlang, leaving a large hole. It was pitch black inside, and the situation could not be seen clearly. Upon seeing this, Gongshu Chou gave another order to Potu Sanlang, who then reverted to his original beast form and rushed inside. After a while, Potu Sanlang returned, and Gongshu Chou discovered that there were many arrow marks on his bronze armor.

"As expected, there was a dense array of arrows inside."

Upon hearing this, Wei Zhuang said, "Then we will send a small team of fifty men to clear the way with an iron shield formation."

At a command, fifty soldiers were drawn out, each holding a sword and shield, and lined up neatly. Led by Saburo, they walked towards the gate. The group waited outside for about half an hour before someone came out to report.

"My lord, the arrow formation has been broken."

Upon hearing this, Wei Zhuang immediately led Liu Sha and the others to walk quickly inside. Gongshu Chou stroked his beard and smiled, riding his mechanical snake into the interior. The remaining soldiers, except for three hundred who stayed behind, advanced in one team after another.

"The arrow formation is incredibly versatile and ingenious. If Lord Chi Lian hadn't poisoned it beforehand, its power would have been far greater than this."

Gongshu Chou picked up an arrow and found that the arrowhead was slightly curved and the shaft was greasy, indicating that it had been coated with tung oil. The only path was only wide enough for three people to pass side by side, and below was a bottomless pit. If one was not careful, he would surely drag others down with him.

"No matter how sophisticated the mechanism is, it's just a pile of junk if no one controls it. The first line of defense of the Mechanized City was broken through with ease."

Gongshu Chou stood on the mechanical snake, playing with the mechanical umbrella in his hand, looking with slight disdain at the destroyed crossbow mechanisms on the mountain walls on both sides.

"This is just an appetizer; the main course awaits Mr. Gongshu."

Chi Lian gave a charming laugh and followed Wei Zhuang straight ahead. After passing through the changing path, they came to a city wall that looked like a whole, several feet high. There were figures moving on it, and cold light flashed. Wei Zhuang hummed and waved his hand, and everyone stopped in their tracks.

"Gao Jianli." Wei Zhuang sensed a chilling sword aura hidden in front of him and immediately realized it was the Water Cold Sword. However, Gao Jianli was not worthy to fight him. Wei Zhuang glanced at Bai Feng, who nodded upon seeing this. She lightly touched the ground with her toes and leaped into the air until she reached a point level with the city, where she met Gao Jianli's gaze.

"The Water Cold Sword is ranked seventh in the sword manual. I want to see if it's just a name without substance."

As soon as Bai Feng finished speaking, Gao Jianli saw a white shadow appear and disappear in an instant. He thought to himself, "What speed!" Before he could react, a blade of light was slashing towards Gao Jianli's neck. Gao Jianli was immediately startled. With a cracking sound, the Water Cold Sword was drawn. With a hiss, the sword light and the blade light collided. Then, Gao Jianli turned around and countered the palm energy that was attacking from the shadows with a backhand palm strike.

Who knew that the master of the palm energy was just an illusion, and Gao Jianli's powerful strike landed on empty air, leaving an opening. Gao Jianli immediately sensed something was wrong and hurriedly withdrew his sword and turned around. But at this moment, two more white phoenix phantoms appeared from the side, and two blades of light attacked from the left and right.

Gao Jianli, unsure whether the illusions were real or fake, immediately shook his longsword, and ice shards flew out, transforming into streaks of ice crystal arrows that pierced the air. The two illusions were instantly shattered like bubbles. Gao Jianli's heart sank upon seeing this; in these few exchanges, he had been led by the nose, especially on his home turf.

"The Water Cold Sword Master is indeed worthy of his reputation. He was able to break through three of my illusions in a row, which is commendable. I just don't know if he can deal with four at the same time."

The sound came from all directions. Gao Jianli looked in the direction of the sound and saw four identical white phoenixes standing in mid-air with their arms crossed, looking at him with mockery.

"Phoenix Dance Six Illusions, Bai Feng's ultimate move, changes between reality and illusion, making it impossible to defend against. Although only four of them have appeared so far, it is already quite troublesome. If all six are used at once, only Yi Shuihan can fight against it. However, the cost of using this move is too high. Wei Zhuang is still on the Quicksand side, and the Crimson Serpent Ghost has not yet made a move. If the battle continues for a long time, it will only be detrimental to our side."

Bai Feng looked at Gao Jianli, who was deep in thought, and her eyes flashed. Four phantoms shot out like lightning, positioned in four directions, their blades flashing, and attacked Gao Jianli. But at this moment, dozens of arrows suddenly shot from above the city. The four phantoms hurriedly dodged and quickly merged into one, revealing Bai Feng's figure.

With a series of swift slashes, she cut down all the incoming arrows, her figure moving swiftly and silently landing beside Wei Zhuang.

"This Gao Jianli is quite something. His name, 'The wind howls and the Yi River is cold,' truly lives up to its name."

Although Gao Jianli only slightly used his Water-Cold True Qi, Bai Feng keenly sensed it. She realized that although she could withstand the attack, she had no strength left to fight. She guessed that Gao Jianli dared not use this move for the same reason.

"The poison of Qianye has worked; the people who have appeared now represent almost all of our fighting strength."

When Bai Feng fought Gao Jianli, he also used the telescope given to him by Gongshu Chou to see the scene in the city. The black mist condensed into a thin fog, which had already covered most of the mechanical city, with only a few places still untouched.

Upon hearing this, Wei Zhuang nodded and looked up at Gao Jianli above the city. Gao Jianli immediately felt a heavy pressure and hurriedly circulated his true energy to break through it. He then took a deep breath and looked at Wei Zhuang below with a solemn expression.

"Just standing there gives people a sense of oppression. The Ghost Valley Twin Swords are truly remarkable. I held out for half an hour, but I couldn't take it anymore and could only rely on the mechanism of the Ink Core Chamber."

Gao Jianli gave a signal to his disciples, and a rain of arrows rained down. However, thanks to the iron shield formation, Wei Zhuang's side suffered almost no losses. Gongshu Chou chuckled and was about to have Po Tu San Lang repeat the same trick when suddenly the ground shook, and cracks extended to everyone's feet. With a loud bang, the ground collapsed. Wei Zhuang, Chi Lian, and Bai Feng hurriedly retreated. Gongshu Chou's expression changed drastically upon seeing this. He quickly opened the mechanical umbrella and activated the mechanism of the mechanical snake. Instantly, the ten-foot-long mechanical snake transformed into a rolling ball about the height of a person and retreated rapidly.

However, some soldiers were not so lucky. Dozens of soldiers fell into the abyss before they could react, and their screams echoed throughout the cave.

"So this is the Mo family's Earth-Overturning Mechanism? However, such a mechanism can only be used once. It's a pity. If we wait until all the soldiers are standing on the mechanism before activating it, it will definitely severely damage our strength. Gao Jianli was too hasty."

Gongshu Chou looked at the deep pit, about ten feet in diameter, and shook his head, thinking it a pity.

"Gao Jianli is trying to buy time. With Duanmu Rong's abilities, she might actually be able to make the antidote within twelve hours."

Chi Lian brandished her chain sword, her expression somewhat grave. Gongshu Chou chuckled upon hearing this and said, "Even if the Earth-Covering Technique is activated, this deep pit will not be a problem for the Gongshu family."

Gongshu Chou stroked his beard and smiled, then reopened the mechanical snake. He immediately gave a command, and the mechanical snake shot towards the opposite side with a whoosh. Its two fangs bit directly into the city, while its tail stuck into the mountain wall on this side. Its body straightened, and after a transformation, it turned into a relatively wide bridge.

"Lord Wei Zhuang, please."

Gongshu Chou gestured, and Wei Zhuang led the Quicksand men onto the mechanical bridge. Gao Jianli, seeing this, had a glint in his eye and waved his hand. Fire arrows shot down one after another. Gongshu Chou smiled disdainfully. The soldiers wanted to protect the bridge, but Gongshu Chou said it wasn't necessary. The men had no choice but to use their shields to protect themselves.

The rocket struck and landed on the bridge, bursting into flames with a whoosh, but was quickly extinguished, leaving the soldiers puzzled.

"The flaw I showed you was just what I wanted you to see. You made a mistake, old man Ban. Your skills in mechanical arts are getting worse and worse. You can't even deal with mechanical snakes. What do you have to fight me with?"

After Wei Zhuang and the others crossed the bridge, Gongshu Chou was about to retract the mechanical snake when suddenly, dark spots appeared on the snake, densely packed and looking quite eerie. These spots continued to spread. Upon seeing this, Gongshu Chou's expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly used his mechanical hand to cut off the snake's head. Instantly, a foul and pungent odor was released.

"Fire Glaze!"

Gongshu Chou's heart sank. This fire glass was the nemesis of bronze. Just a little bit of it was enough to corrode the bronze mechanism completely. However, this thing was too difficult to make. He never expected that the Mo family would make it.

(End of this chapter)