A journey through the world of martial arts

Chapter 466 The Secret Chamber of Ink Core
Upon seeing the Fire Glaze, Gongshu Chou's face immediately darkened, but he then sneered. So what if the Mo family had the Fire Glaze? He was not without other means. Once the Fire Glaze was exhausted, they would still be doomed.

“The Mohists have no will to resist. Otherwise, we would have added fuel to the fire at this time. Master Gongshu, I entrust this to you.”

Wei Zhuang looked at the city gate in front of him, then turned to Gongshu Chou. The latter nodded and released Po Tu San Lang again. Before long, a large hole was drilled in the gate, followed by a loud crash as half of the city wall collapsed, kicking up a cloud of dust. Gongshu Chou waved his mechanical umbrella to block the dust. After the dust cleared, a straight bluestone road came into view.

"Follow this road, and ahead lies the Divine Machine Bridge. Beyond the Divine Machine Bridge lies the heart of the Mo Core. Once we occupy that place, the Mo Clan will perish without a fight. Lord Wei Zhuang, please follow me."

Gongshu Chou and Po Tu Sanlang led the way, followed closely by Wei Zhuang and the others, while the surviving soldiers lagged behind. The group marched in a grand procession, encountering attacks along the way, but all were thwarted, and the losses were negligible.

After walking for half an hour, the group was suddenly struck by a bright light. A long, gray bridge without any support appeared before them, with an oil lamp every five steps on the bridge, illuminating the entire bridge in every detail. The lamp shone brightly, reflecting off the gray bridge and creating a dazzling display of colors.

"Shenji Bridge".

Gongshu Chou stroked his beard and smiled. He then took out the head of the mechanical snake, pressed the trigger, and the huge head split open, turning into dozens of small mechanical snakes, each about the length of a finger. At Gongshu Chou's command, these mechanical snakes swam swiftly toward the Divine Bridge. Once on the bridge, they bit directly at the oil lamp.

In a short while, more than ten oil lamps went out, and the space became darker. This puzzled Chi Lian. She glanced at Wei Zhuang and then came to Gongshu Chou's side, asking, "Mr. Gongshu, why did you deal with those oil lamps? Could they be a trap?"

“Indeed, although these oil lamps are ostensibly for lighting our way, the reason this Divine Mechanism Bridge is named after the Divine Mechanism is because of the rainbow lamps on its body. These lamps might not be very effective outside, but they are extremely powerful in this Mechanism City. Has Lord Chi Lian noticed the white crystal on the dome?”

Upon hearing this, Chi Lian looked up at the dome and saw tiny white crystalline lights scattered across it, resembling stars in the sky, twinkling and looking quite dreamlike. However, upon hearing Gongshu Chou mention it specifically, she immediately became wary.

"The light of this rainbow lamp reflects the crystal, which can pull those with weak wills into a dream. If they cannot wake up within three hours, they will fall into a deep sleep forever. This thing was originally used by the Mo family to select leaders. Later, the third generation leader used it on this Divine Bridge, making it one of the three lines of defense protecting the Mo Core. If this thing is not dealt with, I'm afraid there will be very few people who can cross the bridge safely."

After Gongshu Chou explained, Chi Lian suddenly understood. Just as the two were talking, the mechanical snake extinguished all the oil lamps, and the surroundings suddenly became pitch black.

"Gongshu Chou has already broken the Canhong Lantern, and the Shenji Bridge can't stop him. Is Mo Guichi ready?"

Gao Jianli looked towards the direction of Shenji Bridge and found that it was already shrouded in darkness. He immediately knew that this was Gongshu Chou's doing and turned to look at Master Ban beside him.

"The Divine Mechanism Bridge won't collapse in one blow. At least until all the mechanisms are solved, Gongshu Chou can only break it according to our pace, which will buy us at least an hour. In addition, Mo Guichi is already prepared and can be activated at any time. Xiao Gao, try to avoid fighting with Wei Zhuang and the others before the Grand Master and the others arrive."

After Master Ban finished speaking, Gao Jianli responded. He was now an important spiritual support for the Mo family. The Mo family was already at a disadvantage, and if they were captured and killed by the Quicksand, it would be a devastating blow.

"Don't worry, with these mechanisms in place, we'll definitely be able to buy enough time. We also need to guard against the Black Jade Qilin that has infiltrated. This person is extremely well hidden, and if he is found any later, he will pose a great threat. As for Gongshu Chou, I'll leave it to Master Ban. Ah Xue and I will continue the search."

"Go ahead, leave this place to this old man. It's been many years, I want to see how well Gongshu Chou has improved his mechanical skills."

Master Ban waved to Gao Jianli and Xue Nu, who bowed again before turning and leaving. Master Ban then used his telescope to watch as Gongshu Chou broke through another mechanism on the Divine Mechanism Bridge.

"This Gongshu Chou's mechanical umbrella is quite interesting; it can actually block the fire glass!"

When Master Ban saw Gongshu Chou use his mechanical umbrella to block Huo Liuli, he was immediately astonished, and a look of fear appeared in his eyes.

Gongshu Chou, with his superb mechanical skills, broke through three traps in succession, which amazed Chi Lian and the others. Even Wei Zhuang's eyes deepened.

Just as Gongshu Chou reached the end of the bridge, he suddenly stepped on a protrusion. A rumbling sound rang out, and a tall wooden wall rose up, directly supporting the dome and blocking Gongshu Chou's path. The latter looked at the wooden wall and showed a look of "I knew it," stroked his beard and smiled, reached out and touched the wooden wall, and said in a low voice: "The first locking technique of the Mo family, the Heaven-Slaying Lock, is an old-fashioned thing. Since it was created by the founder of the Mo family, it has not been improved in the slightest. It is truly useless."

The "Heavenly Lock" was also mentioned in detail in the secret scrolls of the Gongshu family. The reason is that when Mozi fought against the Gongshu Ancestor, the Heavenly Lock was one of the several non-offensive mechanisms that Mozi used, which left the Gongshu Ancestor helpless and defeated him in resentment.

Afterwards, each successive leader of the Gongshu family would study the most representative non-offensive mechanisms, but the progress was very small. It was not until Gongshu Chou took over that he developed various mechanisms to target the Mo family. The one that was specifically designed to counter the Jue Tian Suo was the "Po Tu Qi Lang," which was only the size of a finger and shaped like a lizard.

"Go."

Gongshu Chou placed "Po Tu Qi Lang" on the ground, and then nimbly climbed up the wooden wall, reaching the highest point. Using the gap, he came to the back of the Absolute Lock. Not long after, the sound of the mechanism opening was heard, and the wooden wall locked by the Absolute Lock began to slowly separate. However, just as the wooden wall opened a crack, black flames suddenly shot out from inside. Gongshu Chou was not flustered. He used the mechanical umbrella in front of him to block the flames. The flames fell on the umbrella and were immediately deflected, falling to the side, still burning.

"The Heaven-Slaying Lock plus the Flaming Arrows, that's all the Mo family can do."

With a disdainful smile, Gongshu Chou looked at the open wooden wall, turned around and waved to Wei Zhuang and the others on the other side of the bridge. Wei Zhuang's expression changed upon seeing this. He moved in an instant, and a dark red sword light shot out. With a crack, the four-clawed spider mechanical beast in mid-air was knocked to the side. Gongshu Chou was still somewhat shaken and broke out in a cold sweat. He had really been careless.

Coming to his senses, Gongshu Chou hurriedly dodged and released Potu Saburo. The two mechanical beasts immediately began to bite each other, their blades flashing as they fought fiercely. After a brief stalemate, the four-clawed iron spider finally gained the upper hand and gradually suppressed Potu Saburo. Its four iron claws locked onto the eight broad blades, and no matter how hard it tried, it could not achieve its goal.

"If the mechanical snake hadn't been destroyed at the Divine Mechanism Bridge, how could this iron spider have stopped me?" Gongshu Chou's face darkened as he saw Potu Sanlang defeated. He then transformed his mechanical umbrella into a gleaming blue crossbow and fired a chain arrow that pierced the four-clawed iron spider with unerring accuracy. With a single strike, the spider's core power source was destroyed. With a crack, Potu Sanlang seized the opportunity, spun around, and his eight broad blades instantly sliced ​​the four-clawed iron spider into pieces.

But before Gongshu Chou could rejoice, four more iron spiders descended from the sky, blocking his path. Po Tu Sanlang hesitated, not daring to act recklessly. Just then, a figure flashed by, a chain sword whirling in his hand. Before the four mechanical beasts could react, the chain sword had already wrapped around his body. With a forceful thrust, Chi Lian threw the four iron spiders off the Shenji Bridge, where they sank to the bottom of the water with a few splashes.

“These few mechanical beasts are nothing to Lord Chi Lian, but if there are hundreds or thousands of them, Lord Chi Lian will be overwhelmed. To deal with them, we still need to rely on the Gongshu family. Although the Divine Mechanism Bridge has been destroyed, the traps ahead will be even more dangerous. Everyone from Liu Sha should be careful.”

Seeing the disdain on Chi Lian's face, Gongshu Chou immediately understood that Chi Lian looked down on these mechanical beasts. Just in case, Gongshu Chou still gave her a little pointers.

"The Mo family is holed up and won't come out. No matter how good their traps are, Zhenyu Qianye is no ordinary person. Six hours have already passed. Even if there are no poisoned people in the city, they are only a few. We must not miss such a good opportunity."

Although Chi Lian had confidence in Zhen Yu Qian Ye, Duan Mu Rong's reputation as a medical immortal was not undeserved. Therefore, Liu Sha needed to achieve its goal as quickly as possible within a controllable timeframe.

Wei Zhuang slowly passed through the Heavenly Lock and walked inside. Chi Lian immediately followed. Soon, the Liu Sha group and a group of soldiers arrived at a circular pool covering several acres. The water flowing in the pool was black.

On the walls of the pool, humanoid mechanical crossbows were arrayed in preparation, while arrows were scattered all around, ready to be unleashed as soon as the enemy entered the restricted area.

"The Mo family's adherence to city rules is known as the best defensive mechanism. I'd like to see if it's really as amazing as the legends say."

Gongshu Chou reached into his robes and pulled out a bronze sphere, which he tossed toward the Ink Standard Pool. With a flick of his wrist, it transformed into a half-human-sized armored warrior with curved shields on all four sides. Upon landing, it triggered a mechanism, and dozens of sharp arrows shot forth. The bronze warrior's shields were struck hard, and in less than a moment, the warrior was riddled with arrows. The remains fell into the pool, bubbling and frothing, causing Gongshu Chou's expression to change drastically.

"What a blatant adherence to city rules! The Mo family is supposed to be a non-aggressive organization, yet they employ such vicious methods. Old Man Ban, your organization is quite reminiscent of my Gongshu family. Why don't you leave the Mo family and join my Gongshu family?"

Gongshu Chou looked around and loudly mocked, but what followed was a rain of arrows that seemed to fill the sky. Upon seeing this, a glint flashed in Gongshu Chou's eyes, and he opened his mechanical snake umbrella. Then, his mechanical arm transformed into a crossbow, firing twelve shots in quick succession. The arrows shot straight at the surrounding mountain walls with a whooshing sound. Several clangs were heard, and the rain of arrows that seemed to fill the sky thinned out considerably.

"To locate by sound, I never imagined that Mr. Gongshu, who was not a martial artist, had mastered this extraordinary skill. He is truly remarkable."

Wei Zhuang seemed to be surrounded by an invisible wall of energy, which blocked all the incoming arrows. The arrows that flew away landed in the pool and turned into a wisp of white smoke before dissipating.

"This is a mere trick, I've made a fool of myself in front of Lord Wei Zhuang. Once this 'Adhering to City Rules' technique is set up, it cannot be moved for a short time. Although its power is greatly increased, once the most important key points are found, this technique can be broken."

Arrows continued to rain down, but they could no longer harm the group. Gongshu Chou pointed to the southeast, northeast, southwest, and northwest. Chi Lian looked in the direction he was pointing and saw that there was a bronze figurine embedded in each of those four places.

"I used this bronze puppet to block the arrow holes, so no matter how powerful it is, it can't do anything. With these four main arrow holes gone, the others are no match for it. The most important thing now is how to cross this Ink Rule Pool. It's a pity that my mechanical snake was destroyed, otherwise we could cross it with a bridge."

"It's not that complicated. The water in the Inkwell is extremely corrosive, but there are ways to solve it."

After Wei Zhuang nodded, Chi Lian chuckled and activated her secret technique. In no time, countless venomous snakes of various sizes suddenly appeared in the Mechanized City. Following Chi Lian's instructions, they swam towards the Ink Pool. Although the snakes were quickly corroded, even more snakes swam over and attacked the Ink Core Chamber in the center.

"not good!"

Master Ban's expression changed slightly. He had been so focused on guarding against Gongshu Chou that he had forgotten about Chi Lian's move. Right now, Miss Rong was concentrating on preparing medicine, and Xiao Gao and Xue Nu were also away on business. Ordinary mechanical techniques were no longer enough to stop the swarm of snakes. Just as Master Ban was about to use the remaining three iron spiders again, the surrounding space suddenly turned cold, and snowflakes began to fall from the sky. After landing, they condensed into ice crystals. The swarm of snakes immediately froze. Under the corrosive cold, they retreated continuously, but in the end, they could not escape. They were frozen into icicles, then shattered and vanished without a trace.

"Oh, the art of white snow."

With her Crimson Serpent Secret Technique broken, her expression turned slightly grave. Without even looking at the person, she knew that the newcomer was the Snow Woman, and only her Snow White Technique could transform the swarm of snakes into this form.

"Great!"

Master Ban clapped his hands and sighed, but he was too happy too soon. Chi Lian's attack failed, so he activated the secret technique again, summoning countless poisonous snakes. However, this time they did not swim towards the Ink Core Chamber, but began to spit venom towards the Ink Rule Pool.

"With Chi Lian's move, the defense of the Mo Gui Pool has become the Mo family's death warrant."

Gu Xu Yuan Shen stood in mid-air, watching Chi Lian's actions, and was full of praise.

This move can be said to have seized the Mohist school's weakness. As it turns out, blindly defending is tantamount to handing over the initiative, and prolonged defense will inevitably lead to defeat.

(End of this chapter)