Card maker? No, I'm a mechanic!

The two instantly transformed into running experts and began sprinting away.

"Buzz... Buzz..."

The whooshing sounds overhead grew increasingly frequent, almost like wasps raiding their home.

During the rush, Zhang Yuan subconsciously glanced back, and his scalp immediately tingled.

In the dim sky, dozens of disc-shaped flying objects came hurtling in.

Their bottoms flashed with a dangerous red light, and their rotating blades hummed incessantly.

"Self-destructing puppet!"

They had encountered this thing before, although the power of a single one was not fatal.

But the sheer number of them was overwhelming, and the support arrived so quickly!

Once locked on, the continuous self-destruction will completely wear them down.

"spread!"

With a roar, Li Kai lunged to the left.

"Bang!"

Almost the instant he left, a puppet crashed violently into the spot where he had just been standing.

Flames shot into the sky, and rubble flew everywhere.

The shockwave even knocked Zhang Yuan, who hadn't run far, tumbling over.

"Cough cough... Ptooey."

Zhang Yuan got up, covered in dust, but before he could even catch his breath, he saw two more puppets swooping down.

"Is this never going to end?"

A flash of light appeared in his hand, and an earthen wall quickly rose from the ground, barely managing to block the bombardment.

"Buzz..."

But the next moment, more bursts of sound rang out, and the sounds became more frequent.

"Damn it!"

Ignoring his disheveled state, Zhang Yuan scrambled and crawled after Li Kai as they continued their escape.

For a moment, the two of them were like headless flies, running around aimlessly.

There's something ahead!

A moment later, Li Kai suddenly stopped abruptly, his pupils shrinking sharply.

Two dark figures suddenly appeared, rushing towards them like lightning from a pipe ahead.

They grip the ground with all four claws, and with each leap, they can cover a distance of several meters, their speed is simply astonishing.

"And dogs?"

Li Kai was startled and almost instinctively threw a heavy punch, attempting to intercept it in mid-air.

"Get out of here!"

The fist whistled through the air, its force enough to shatter stone tablets and split rocks.

However, the two mechanical dogs did not respond.

They twisted their bodies in mid-air, deftly dodging the attack in an extremely strange manner.

"What... is it that agile?"

Li Kai was even more shocked when his punch missed its mark.

This thing is on a completely different level compared to those bulky junkies we've encountered before!

Is it a more advanced puppet?

Just as he was about to adjust his stance and continue his attack, he discovered that the two mechanical dogs showed no sign of stopping.

Instead, it was as if they hadn't seen them at all.

It flashed past them without looking back and then rushed towards the rear.

It was as if something more important was waiting for them.

"Um?"

Zhang Yuan was also stunned for a moment, and subconsciously looked back.

But then they noticed that the two mechanical dogs seemed to have something strapped to their backs, looking bulging.

"That's... a delivery?"

A bizarre idea suddenly popped into his head.

Are puppets now doing delivery work too?

"Forget about it! Run!"

But the next moment, Li Kai's low shout pulled him back to reality.

Whether it's delivering packages or burying them in their final moments.

The most urgent task now is to get rid of those reckless suicide trucks behind us.

With these thoughts racing through their minds, the two sped up again, rushing towards an open area ahead.

But before they had run very far, they stopped again.

Because the air in front of them was strangely rippling with water-like patterns.

"Sizzle..."

As space distorted, two enormous monsters with twisted limbs appeared out of thin air.

"It's over..."

The moment they saw the whole thing, their hearts sank a little.

After all, the miserable state of those two people in Whitestone City last night was still fresh in everyone's mind.

This kind of monster, which can not only become invisible but also has maximum agility, is simply a nightmare for low-level card players.

Lizards blocked his way, and a suicide truck was chasing him from behind.

"Let's give it our all!"

Without hesitation, a resolute glint flashed in both of their eyes.

Since we can't escape, let's give it our all!

At the critical moment...

One of the lickers suddenly opened its mouth.

"Come here~"

The next moment, an extremely strange sound came from its throat.

And it sounds just like an old radio with a smoky voice.

"What the hell?!"

The two were immediately struck dumb, and their movements slowed down by half a beat.

Did you speak?

This damn puppet can even talk?

"Come here if you don't want to die!"

But the Licker clearly wasn't going to give them time to think, and once again uttered strange words in its smoky voice.

He turned around and crawled into a hidden pipe next to him.

"This...?" Zhang Yuan looked at Li Kai, somewhat bewildered.

"Never mind, let's go!"

Upon seeing this, a ruthless glint flashed in Li Kai's eyes.

It's clearly more survivable to go with this guy who can communicate than to wait to die.

……

Led by two Lickers, the two navigated the intricate network of underground pipes.

I don't know how much time passed, until the suffocating buzzing sound completely disappeared.

They finally stopped in a relatively dry open space.

"Phew...phew...I survived..."

Zhang Yuan collapsed to the ground, panting heavily, feeling like his lungs were about to explode.

Given that his physical condition had already deteriorated due to the side effects, engaging in such high-intensity exercise would place an enormous burden on his body.

Li Kai, meanwhile, stared warily at the Licker that had been leading the way, his gaze complex.

"Who are you?"

He asked tentatively.

"Gurgle..."

The Licker tilted its head, and the red light in its eyes began to flash.

"it's me."

This time, although his husky voice was still hoarse, it was noticeably clearer.

And that tone...

"Kang Chul?!"

The two exclaimed in unison, their eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.

"This...this is under your control?"

Zhang Yuan, disregarding his fatigue, jumped up in excitement.

He circled the Licker several times, his eyes filled with disbelief.

"My God! You can remotely control a puppet of this level? And it can even talk?"

"What's the underlying principle?"

As a card maker specializing in handcraftsmanship, he was all too aware of the technical skill involved.

It's important to understand that even within the academy, with its near-perfect environment, this is still a significant achievement.

Repairing or studying this kind of puppet is extremely difficult.

And that's especially true in a complex and dangerous environment like a historical site.

"Alright, it's just a little bit of technology."

The Licker's voice interrupted Zhang Yuan's frenzy.

"Since we're already here, why don't we chat for a bit?"

"Let's chat for a bit," Li Kai said, narrowing his eyes, a plan forming in his mind.

Jiang Zhe's progress was even more exaggerated than he had imagined, but this was precisely the kind of assistance he needed most.

"Let's cooperate."

He took a deep breath and decisively threw out his chips.