Ming Dynasty, New Rome, and Infinite Divine Machine

"I can probably see a line. It connects to the center of the Sacred Forest."

"That's right. There's actually no 'center' here. You come in from different routes, pass through different doors, and may see completely different scenes. Possessing a vision that penetrates all of this is precisely the ability of the Venerable."

"Huh?" Shang Luo was stunned for a moment. "Then why didn't Miss Lu say that just now?"

"Her duty is to guard the temple, not to read fortunes. She won't do anything that's not related to guarding the temple. Let's go. I feel much more inspired. Finally, a brave man has come to solve all this. The mission imposed on me has finally come to an end. Finally, I can rest."

With Karin's guidance, they didn't look for cypress trees anymore, but went straight in the "right" direction. The more cypress trees there were along the way, the more they knew they were on the right path.

"It's not far ahead. Wait, I think I heard something?"

"I heard it, too." Apollonia, who was walking in front, stopped. "It's the same feeling, cold, like Diana's doe. But this time it seems much smaller and faster! It's moving at high speed!"

Before he could finish his words, a fiery red shadow rushed across the middle of the road ahead - and then fell back.

That's a fox.

"Mr. Fox?"

A surprised expression appeared on the fox's face. Then he stood up.

"Kalin is here too? But I'm not looking for you. Excuse me, who is Shangluo?" The fox spoke in human language.

"I'm."

"Please prove you are Shangluo," the fox said, speaking human language again. "Answer me a question and you'll know for sure: What does a fox bark?"

"what?"

"Answer wrong once. You have two more chances. Answer me: What does a fox yell?"

“Mimi mimi mimi, mimi~mimi~, like this?”

"You answered incorrectly twice. You have one more chance. Just a reminder, this is a verification question set by Mr. Han, who wishes to remain anonymous. To ensure his safety, I need to confirm that you are not a clone, impersonator, ghost, mirror image, or any other dangerous entity that looks similar to Shangluo. So please answer as his classmate."

"Ah! I know, it's this!" Shangluo cleared his throat: "The Great Chu will rise, and Chen Sheng will be king!"

"Verification correct." Fox looked behind him. "Mr. Han Xingzhi, your navigation has ended. You may exit. Please pay according to the meter display. The service charge and consumption tax total 47 drachmas. Thank you for your patronage. Welcome to visit us next time."

I will start adding more chapters tomorrow. I will finally have a day off tomorrow.

Chapter 170 Joint

The fox took out a small notebook and pen from somewhere and was signing the invoice. He signed the invoice for a total of 47 drachmas including tax, no more, no less.

The moment he put pen to paper, the ground suddenly began to shake. But the tremors weren't coming from deep within the earth; they were being caused by something nearby—the engine revved, and out of the brush emerged a white Mars IV chariot. The tall chariot, loaded with bundles of grass, resembled a rolling haystack. A whole column of Roman infantry, armed with large shields and submachine guns, rushed out from behind the tanks, blocking their path. They too were clad in white armor, their shields and submachine guns also white.

The hatch opened, and Han Xingzhi showed half of his head, holding a bunch of branches:

"Brother, is that you?" A pair of eyes appeared from the branches, looking out. He saw Shangluo himself, but still did not believe it.

"It's me. Where did you get this?"

"Answer the question! How did the fox..."

"Great Chu will establish Chen Sheng as King, okay?"

Han Xingzhi, revealing half of his face, kept asking, "There's a man in the east, and a man in the west—"

"Only when the deer enters Chang'an can there be no trouble. Is that okay?" Shangluo asked.

"I'm asking you: If a rooster crows once, it sticks its tail out once. If a rooster crows twice, it sticks its tail out twice! What are the next two sentences?"

"Huh? This is..."

"You can't answer that! You can't even recite the poems in the syllabus, I know you are..."

"Ah!" Shangluo remembered, he had indeed learned this: "It's this one, right? Three calls call out the Fusang sun, sweeping away the remaining stars and the morning moon."

"Oh, you're too slow to answer. Let me ask you again: When Emperor Taizu collapsed from hunger after his defeat, what did an old woman bring him to eat? Answer quickly!"

"Is there a fixed answer to this? Doesn't everything you eat go upwards?"

"You dummy, there are obviously different details every time. When a monk collapses from hunger, he eats sesame oil and mung bean cakes. When a defeated soldier collapses from hunger, he and an old woman only eat the same food. What is it? Tell me!"

"Is it a hamburger?"

"You're right. For the last question, a true big brother would definitely be able to answer it: What was the move that the Invincible King Lingguan defeated the treasure-stealing monster in Chapter 491?"

"(*Jinling Yayan*) How would I know!!! I don't watch 'The Invincible Wang Lingguan'!"

"That's the correct answer. My elder brother doesn't watch 'The Invincible King Lingguan'! The person who answered that must be a fake!"

[This guy almost tricked me. I was just about to tell you the answer.]

After confirming that everything was safe, Han Xingzhi emerged from the hatch and crawled out of the turret. He first jumped onto the engine and then landed on his feet.

As soon as he landed, he was surrounded by infantrymen holding large white shields. He was shorter than the infantrymen and the surrounding area was so crowded that he could not see the end.

"Make way, please make way." He just stretched out his hand to squeeze out. The infantry on both sides heard the order to "make way" and retreated to make way like Moses parting the sea.

"Ah, this." He was stunned for a moment, and then immediately walked out from a group of Roman soldiers holding large white shields.

"I was so scared. I was so scared." Han Xingzhi, who was still in shock, walked behind the golden armor and felt relieved.

"What is this?"

Han Xingzhi pointed at the fox next to him and said, "What should I call this guy? Mr. Fox?"

"You can call me that." Mr. Fox was still writing something in the notebook.

"That's Mr. Fox. When I first entered the forest, my original plan was to complete those side quests and then see if I could deal with the Great Spring Elf - it wasn't necessary to deal with it anyway. Then, just two steps into the forest, I met Mr. Fox. He walked towards me, sniffing all the way, and when he smelled the drachmae in my bag, he said he wanted to talk to me. Then I gave him this..."

He took out the notebook he had from the meeting:

"I showed this notebook to Mr. Fox. He flipped through it a few times and said he could help me get through it quickly, but I'd charge by the hour."

"And then? What about these Roman legionnaires?"

"Then I came all the way here. As for these soldiers—to ensure my safety, he took me to a tree hollow on the way and found a glass test tube. The cork of the glass test tube had rotted away, and inside was something that looked like a tooth. It was as big as a dagger, not like ivory, but with the same glossy color as ivory. He asked me to take the tooth out and bury it in the ground, so I did. And then..."

He pointed to the chariot next to him:

"Then this chariot suddenly sprouted out of the ground, and this whole army of legionnaires emerged from it and beside it. The armor on the chariot and the soldiers was the same color as the tooth."

"This is... Dragon Tooth Soldier???" Shangluo reacted.

"Ah!!!" Han Xingzhi also remembered, "I think I heard Mr. Titus mention it the other day, and I found that their functions are the same as the profession called Sphinx in "Heroes' Tour"."

"But how can you just pick up something like this on the side of the road?"

"Of course, this isn't something you can just pick up casually." The fox adjusted his non-existent glasses. "He paid for it. After assessing his needs, I provided him with services worthy of the salary."

After saying this, he reached behind him, pulled out a purse, took out three drachmas, and handed them over along with the list he had been writing.

"Here is the change and the receipt. Please keep them."

"Ah, thank you." Both sides nodded slightly to each other.

"Well, that's it." Having completed the transaction, Mr. Fox didn't want to stay even a second longer. After all, his current worth had increased to about one drachma per minute.

"Karin, see you next time if there's a chance." He waved to Karin for the last time, and then disappeared into the woods again, just as he had suddenly appeared just now.

[Disappeared.] Apollonia reported in private chat, [Sure enough, this kind of heartless spirit is hard to find. Once out of sight, there's no trace left, unless you've signed a contract with it.]

"By the way." He looked at Han Xingzhi, "So this is how you got here?"

"Yes. I was sitting in the chariot the whole time. I was also sitting in the chariot when you were on the phone. It's quite spacious inside. I occasionally heard a 'clang, bang, bang' noise outside, but it seemed like after each incident, there were more Dragon Fang soldiers nearby. I'm not sure how many more, but the footsteps were definitely getting louder."

Chapter 171: Dragon Tooth Soldiers

Chapter 171 Dragon Tooth Soldiers - Earthborn

Shangluo stood on tiptoe and peered into the distance. Besides the Dragon Tooth Soldiers surrounding the chariot, there seemed to be a large group of them occupying the grass behind it. Even from quite a distance, traces of white shields could be seen. Each Dragon Tooth Soldiers wore identical cream-colored armor, their entire body gear white. Their faces were concealed beneath masks, but the small amount of "skin" exposed at their wrists looked, upon closer inspection, the same color as the marble statues.

"Good guy, so they listen to you now?"

"That should be the case. That's what's written in the rulebook. Whoever plants the Dragon Tooth Soldiers becomes their master. The Dragon Tooth Soldiers will constantly upgrade in battle, and will be upgraded to different lines of troops based on different combat methods. They will adjust the proportion of troops based on actual conditions. For example, in ancient Greece, they would differentiate into heavy infantry phalanxes and cavalry, and in modern times, they would differentiate into line infantry, drummers, and musicians. Now, it seems that chariots will grow. But I'm a little scared. These ever-increasing soldiers always make me feel something is wrong.

As a Xuan cultivator, he did occasionally have some "mysterious" premonitions. However, he could sense the danger posed by these Dragon Fang soldiers without even needing a premonition. This was because they were so professional.

They had only emerged from the ground less than an hour ago, yet their tactical maneuvers were as skillful as those of veterans. They were indeed carrying out Han Xingzhi's orders, but all were given verbally, without a second confirmation. What if they made a mistake? What if they spoke nonsense? He simply didn't dare to stay among these murderous weapons for long, so he ran away as soon as he found Shangluo.

"The Romans said that these dragon teeth soldiers should be destroyed after each use."

"I think they should be destroyed. They can even 'grow' something as big as a tank. When I was sitting in it, I didn't notice any difference from a real tank, except that it was pure white. I don't think there's anything they can't make. If they keep going like this, I have a hunch. Wait, let me try it first."

He turned around and shouted, "Everyone, stand at attention! Count!"

There was a "pop" sound coming from the woods in front and in the distance, and the entire team of Dragon Tooth soldiers stood at attention.

"I'm looking to see how they communicate with me, because they've never proactively communicated with me before."

Suddenly, Shangluo and Han Xingzhi looked at each other: the earphones in their helmets rang at the same time.

A rustling voice filled with electronic noise read out a number:

"118 people."

Although the sound was very vague, they did hear a meaningful response.

"Brother, this could become increasingly dangerous. They seem to develop necessary functions based on the needs of the 'commander'. I thought it was dangerous at first, so a chariot suddenly appeared. I think the next critical point should be 148 people. This is because relevant research shows that the human brain's cognitive ability can only maintain direct contact with a maximum of 148 people. I'm a reclusive person, so I probably don't take up too many positions. However, if the Dragon Tooth Soldiers find that I can't give orders directly to everyone, then they may separate... Command center. Brother, do you understand what this means?"

"This means that there's an extra 'simulation layer' between you and the Dragon Fang soldiers, and your direct orders begin to become indirect orders. They will begin to simulate, understand, translate, and process your orders, and can even issue more complex orders that you personally cannot understand."

"That's exactly what's going on. I even think that as their numbers grow, even more intelligent individuals might emerge from among them. They might even begin to understand how to be more efficient in serving me. It's terrifying! They don't even need any information, they can directly copy the most suitable weapons and equipment for the current conditions. These Dragon Fang soldiers must be destroyed immediately after they are used up."

Shangluo nodded. In such a short time, they had reached the same conclusion as the Romans. For now, these Dragon Tooth Soldiers should be able to force a 50-50 fight against any opponent, and it would be almost impossible for them to make a mistake.

"wait a minutes."

Shangluo turned around and privately chatted with Apollonia: "Should we use these Dragon Fang soldiers? Or should we let them self-destruct now? I'm a little worried that something uncontrollable will happen."

"No, actually, you don't have to worry too much," Apollonia explained. "As I mentioned before, when the Dragon Tooth Soldiers exceed 148, they'll start fighting among themselves. As you might have guessed, after 148, conflicting orders will arise, and their understanding of those orders will circulate and overflow, leading to internal fighting. While more complete individuals will indeed emerge from them, those won't happen until after their first internal fight. In total, five individuals will emerge, each with distinct functions, symbolizing the five founding fathers of Thebes. Therefore, those more advanced individuals will only emerge after internal fighting, rather than simply appearing out of thin air."

"Wait, does this also mean that there will be more complex individuals? Not just a simple military?"

Of course. By the time they'd built the city of Thebes, they couldn't simply be called Dragon Tooth Soldiers; 'Earthborn' would be more appropriate. Thebes and Troy, these are two of the most important storylines in Greek mythology—thus, the Dragon Tooth Soldiers must be destroyed. As long as you destroy them after use, the Romans won't mind. Tools are just tools, so use them with confidence. The Dragon Tooth Soldiers are very useful.

"Okay, it's not a big deal." Shang Luo breathed a sigh of relief. "Where are they now?"

"Let me ask." Han Xingzhi took out the jade token. He was much faster than anyone else in operating the jade token, almost as fast as Shangluo.

"They both said the plan is going smoothly. They've cleared the side quests one by one, and now they're heading towards the center. The completion rate for both quests is around 95%, which means there are only one or two left to complete. Big brother, it looks like you're in for a treat."

"It's nothing, just a meal. Then send the signal and gather here. We have Karin here to lead the way, and we can get to the Forest King without any mistakes. Tell them to bring the Great Spring Elf with them, especially Karin. Oh, and since we need to use the Dragon Tooth Soldiers now, can you have them bring out some heavy machine guns and shovels? Let's build a front-line position around the Forest King first and prepare the heavy weapons. Only with firepower can we be sure of success."

Chapter 172 Torch

In the sacred forest by Lake Nemi, there is a big tree. Around this big tree, there is always a creepy figure wandering there alone. People can see him at any time, day or night.

"I see!" Shangluo raised his telescope. The figure of the Forest King appeared clearly beneath the tree. He wore a gray-black toga, the hems of which had ripped from dragging on the ground, draping over him like a cloak. His silver sword, unsheathed, served as a walking stick. With each step, the tip of the sword dug into the ground, lending strength to his aging body.

The Forest King's face was expressionless. It was painted red. Many technological barbarians treasured faded Roman statues, but the Romans themselves painted their own gods. Each deity's skin, hair, and clothing were painted in a specific pattern, using a specific pigment, in a specific color. All of this was described in the tourist brochures.

Redface held a special meaning, symbolizing life and vitality. Many gods, such as Mars, could be painted red. But redface held a special purpose in Rome: during triumphal ceremonies, Roman generals were honored with redface, receiving the full homage of deity throughout the ceremony. Thus, redface here came to symbolize "divine power."

The same thing happened to the Forest King. It wasn't very convenient; even if you wore makeup, you had to remove it; you couldn't keep it on all the time. And this mask-like layer of red paint, as thick as a mask, seemed to have grown on the Forest King's face, and it was probably impossible to remove it.

He did his utmost to assert his divinity, and not only in his blushing face. He wore a golden laurel wreath on his head, but it was not a golden bough, but a golden branch. In this way he tried to draw the golden branch closer to him, but it was in vain.

The true golden bough still hung on the tree: a laurel. If the cypress was Diana's sacred tree, the laurel was Diana herself. Its branches spread out in all directions, swaying gently in the evening breeze. As they swayed, the throne of the Forest King tottered.

Circle after circle, the Forest King's figure slowly wandered under the tree, guarding the perfect circular open space with a radius of 100 meters around the laurel tree. However, his vigilance against cold weapons seemed to have not helped him understand the range of heavy machine guns.

The Dragon Fang soldiers had already begun constructing their positions. Like unpainted soldiers, they were busily engaged. A hundred-meter radius was still too narrow; they needed to carve out more space to deploy a multi-layered firepower network.

With only about a hundred men, they didn't dig trenches, but instead dug foxholes. The weapons team was deployed in the rear, primarily with heavy machine guns and anti-tank rifles, weaving a fire network from all directions.

A company-level position slowly took shape, with a dense array of light and heavy weapons trained on the Forest King in the center. They only needed to wait for the position to be completed, and then the order from behind, before the attack could begin.

"Professional, so professional." Shangluo lowered the telescope. They hadn't charged directly forward, but were prepared to charge under the cover of the Dragon Tooth Soldiers. However, judging by the Dragon Tooth Soldiers' tactical prowess, they were definitely qualified.

"It does look very professional." Wen Yuan leaned against his gun. "Is this really the standard of Roman soldiers?"

"Do you think they can take it down on their own?"