Great Zhou Martial Immortal

Chapter 83 A Group of Scammers and Deceivers (Please Subscribe)

[Successfully created a mechanical artifact; Proficiency +35.]

[Skill: Mechanism (Proficient)]

【Progress: 455/1000】

……

Mechanical arts are not as sophisticated as music, chess, calligraphy, or painting.

You can reach the Grandmaster level in the arts of qin (a stringed instrument), chess, calligraphy, and painting without needing true qi or spiritual sense.

Once you reach that level, music can captivate the heart, chess can bewitch the soul, but mechanical arts are different.

It involves too many categories, such as the wood carving techniques for shaping, the talisman array techniques needed to perfect the meridians, and the alchemy and medicine making techniques for mixing materials. It requires spiritual awareness, comprehension, true qi, and cultivation methods.

Limited by the barrel theory, it is difficult to improve.

Fortunately, carving and woodworking are skills that can be enhanced during the creation of mechanisms. Only talismans and talisman arrays are limited by divine sense, making it impossible for even the most skilled cook to make a meal without ingredients.

The "Tiangong Scroll" is divided into four levels: weapons, war tools, divine machines, and mechanical puppets.

He can only do the first two categories now. No matter how much he improves, he won't be able to do the later ones in the third realm.

"take it easy."

Lu Chenyuan took a deep breath, composed himself, and examined the wooden ox before him.

It is three times more robust than a real cow, and its entire body is made of century-old ironwood. The wood is comparable to gold and iron, but lighter and more agile than steel.

The bull's head is lowered, and its two horns are not decorations, but rather concealed mechanisms that form the "Armor-Piercing Cones"—once an enemy is encountered, the three-foot-long iron blade will spring out with a "clang," its cold light gleaming. The tips of the horns are coated with "Pulse-Sealing Powder," which causes the blood and qi of those struck to stagnate, making it difficult for them to take even half a step.

The wooden ox is engraved with load-bearing runes on its back and limb joints. When it walks, there is a hidden flow of earth spirit energy under its hooves. Even if it carries a thousand pounds of weight, it can walk on flat ground as if it were walking on muddy slopes. If it encounters a river blocking its way, it can simply activate the water-avoiding rune on the bottom of its hooves and walk on water without being touched by the water waves.

The most ingenious mechanism is hidden in the cow's belly—lift the hidden panel to reveal three interlocking compartments that can hold weapons, poisons, or even living people. If a powerful enemy is encountered, the mechanic only needs to press the trigger, and the cow's belly will instantly split open, unleashing a torrent of dozens of poisoned steel needles that are specifically designed to break through internal martial arts techniques.

This wooden ox can carry eight to ten times the load of an ordinary ox, and with the [Flowing Wind Talisman Array], its speed is three to five times faster.

It doesn't eat grass or drink river water; it relies entirely on a [Gathering Yuan Stone] for energy.

Different runestones have different internal energy reserves and can travel different distances, but in general, a runestone made from a third-realm relic can travel a thousand miles in one go without any problem. The only troublesome thing is to replenish the runestone's energy.

It would take several days and nights to move it using only the Gathering Yuan Talisman Array.

To speed things up, we still need people.

Overall, this is a valuable tool for transporting goods, especially for military convoys carrying provisions. It is fast, can carry a lot, and can traverse mountains and valleys, making it a great help.

Even if it consumes a lot of resources and cannot be used on a large scale, it can still be very effective for small-scale escort of provisions or for mountain transportation.

With Wei Shifang, a charlatan, now on the Wu family's side, he needs to quickly achieve something to increase his value, lest he be ruined by a few words—what if refining the elixir of immortality requires gouging out the Wise Eye? This matter is also recorded in the Bi Gan chapter of Investiture of the Gods and the Children's City chapter of Journey to the West!

—The main reason was distrust of Wu Zetian's character, a precaution to prevent future problems.

Li Lingyue also felt a sense of urgency.

Wei Shifang was recommended by Wu Sansi. Whether it's true or not, he's now known as "Master Tongxuan" and "Silver-Green Grand Master of the Palace." If he stirs up trouble, he could easily get into trouble. Right now, he can only keep adding weight to his side.

As soon as Lu Chenyuan finished, she immediately brought the wooden ox into the palace.

With nothing else to do, Lu Chenyuan first took a stroll around Suiming Pavilion, then went to the translation center of Dayun Temple to check on things. After confirming that everything was normal, he returned to Xiaoxiang Pavilion in the Princess's Mansion to study.

Soon.

Yuan Qingshuang rushed over, her face grave: "Quickly! Make the Empress put on her armor!"

The goddess immediately looked at Lu Chenyuan.

Lu Chenyuan's expression changed, and he immediately told the Empress to go to the secret room next door to put on her outer armor, then asked, "What's going on?"

Yuan Qingshuang spoke rapidly: "When the princess presented the wooden ox, Wei Shifang's junior sister was also present..."

"Junior sister?"

Lu Chenyuan was taken aback: "So quickly, even the chickens and dogs have risen to the heavens?"

Yuan Qingshuang sighed: "He publicly reversed his aging and displayed a miracle. His Majesty believed him without a doubt and even relied on him to refine the elixir of immortality to prolong his life. Naturally, he paid great attention to the people around him. As soon as he heard that he had a junior sister who was also a disciple of Ge Xuan, he immediately issued an edict to confer upon her the title of 'Tonghui Zen Master', with a rank equivalent to the third grade, and bestowed upon her a purple kasaya, allowing her to enter and leave the palace to preach the scriptures."

"...Wait a minute, Zen Master? Is his junior sister a Buddhist disciple?" "Wei Shifang said that Ge Xuan comprehended the Great Dao in his later years and had long since transcended sectarian views, not bound by Buddhism or Taoism. Although his junior sister wears a kasaya, she has also inherited the true teachings of the Immortal Elder's 'Golden Elixir Classic'."

"........."

Lu Chenyuan was speechless for a long time, then remembered that there seemed to be a nun in Wei Shifang's fraud gang.

He shook his head and sighed: "And then?"

Yuan Qingshuang's expression was slightly strange: "When the nun Jingyin saw the wooden ox, she first put her hands together and exclaimed, 'Excellent, excellent!' She said that the mechanism of this thing was ingenious and had the style of Zhuge Liang in the past." She imitated the nun's solemn tone, "'The benefactor's ingenuity reminds this poor nun of the Zhuge Liang's legacy that she saw in Shu in the past. I never thought that after hundreds of years, I could see such an exquisite mechanism again.'"

Lu Chenyuan was somewhat surprised: "She really dares to say that, isn't she afraid of being exposed?"

Yuan Qingshuang said seriously, "She spoke so eloquently, even commenting perfectly on the structure of the runes at the joints of the wooden ox, as if she had actually seen it! At the end, she even specifically mentioned..." She paused, lowering her voice, "that she had heard that Lord Lu possessed the 'Heavenly Craft Scroll' and even a wondrous artifact like the 'Empress of Mechanical Armor,' and hoped to have the opportunity to see it if he had the chance..."

Lu Chenyuan roughly understood: "Could it be the Wu family's intention? Targeting the Empress?"

"The princess initially thought so too, but it doesn't seem like it..."

Yuan Qingshuang hesitated and said, "The strange thing is that she spoke with a normal expression, as if she was really just interested in mechanical arts. If you didn't know her background, you would think she was a highly respected nun. Even the princess said that this nun's words and actions were impeccable. If she hadn't lied about her age, she would really have the demeanor of a highly virtuous monk."

"Looks like you did a lot of research, no wonder you dared to eat this kind of food..."

Lu Chenyuan said calmly, "So, she's already here?"

Yuan Qingshuang glanced back and lowered her voice: "There's nothing we can do. She only said she wanted to see, and His Majesty and the princess couldn't refuse. We're already outside the mansion gates, so Lord Lu, please be careful!"

"Ah."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a series of light footsteps could be heard outside the building.

Li Lingyue gracefully entered Xiaoxiang Pavilion, followed by the nun Jingyin, known as "Zen Master Tonghui." Today, the princess wore a crimson dress with gold peony threads, and a nine-phoenix hairpin with pearls swayed gently with her steps, making her incomparably beautiful. She glanced at Lu Chenyuan out of the corner of her eye, pursed her red lips almost imperceptibly, and turned to invite him, "Zen Master, please."

"Thank you for your trouble, Your Highness."

Jingyin clasped her hands in a gesture of respect. She appeared to be in her early thirties, with beautiful features and flowing robes as she walked, giving her an air of otherworldly elegance.

"Amitabha."

Jingyin then turned to Lu Chenyuan, nodded slightly, and said in a gentle voice, "This humble nun has come to visit and take a look at the mechanical puppet. I hope Benefactor Lu will not take offense."

Lu Chenyuan returned the greeting calmly: "You're too kind, Zen Master."

With a wave of her hand, the Empress, now fully armored, stepped forward.

A strange light flashed in Jingyin's eyes. The goddess stood quietly in the sunlight streaming through the window. Her fish-scale armor reflected a faint halo, and the pair of precious eyes on her rat head shone with starlight, as if they could see through everything.

"The Dongxuan Lingbao Jing records that the Divine Queen Yuanchen is in charge of the opportunities for obtaining treasures."

Jingyin slowly stepped forward and observed the Divine Empress's precious eyes. "These eyes are exquisitely carved, exactly like the eyes of the Lucky Rat in the 'Divine and Strange Classic' that can 'appraise treasures and understand the mysteries' and the supernatural power of 'gathering and storing'... and the talisman array at the joints..." She suddenly turned to look at Lu Chenyuan: "Is it taken from the 'Six Harmonies Pivot' method in the 'Spiritual Pivot Manual'?"

Lu Chenyuan raised an eyebrow slightly.

They're actually quite skilled...

The "Tiangong Scroll" did not come from nothing, but rather developed from the ancient art of puppetry. Some of its basic principles are universally applicable.

For example, the "Six Harmonies Pivot" method can make the joints of the puppet as flexible as those of a living creature.

This is not a secret, but the art of puppetry is extremely rare. In the past three hundred years, only two or three people have been qualified to practice it. Even among top-level mechanics, few know about this technique!
These scammers are no ordinary people...

"The Zen Master has a good eye," he said calmly.

Jingyin chuckled softly, circling the mechanical puppet slowly: "The art of puppeteers has a long and rich history. Legend has it that Shennong created the puppets to protect his tribe, which were later passed down to Xuanyuan. Through the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties, by the Spring and Autumn period, all the states had puppeteers. Lu Ban created a wooden kite that would not fall for a hundred days; Mozi created defensive siege weapons that enabled Gongshu Ban to attack and repel nine times..."

Her fingertips traced the runes on the Empress's armor. "It's a pity that many exquisite techniques were lost due to the wars of later generations. Finally, a hidden immortal emerged and restored the divine arts. He was truly remarkable, and even more so, a successor like you, benefactor..."

As she spoke, her eyes sparkled, and before she knew it, she had moved closer to Lu Chenyuan's side.

A faint fragrance wafted from her sleeve, resembling sandalwood but not quite, carrying a touch of alluring warmth.

Ok?
Lu Chenyuan's expression was strange; this didn't seem to be aimed at the Empress...

Yuan Qingshuang's lips twitched.

Li Lingyue's face suddenly darkened!
(End of this chapter)