When I woke up, the entire cultivation world was talking about my master.

The sound of the earthquake was an ominous sign, and the entire team held their breath.

Even though Chu Xianlan's mind was filled with mechanical puppets, he couldn't possibly be so foolish as to confront them head-on. When he looked down again, the scene had completely changed.

The sand and gravel surged and sank in layers, like waves.

Clang—Clang—Clang—

With several sharp sounds, all the bronze pillars lit up at the same time, their eerie blue light gradually illuminating the scene. Then, all the bronze pillars were swept deep into the bottom by the yellow sand that had been dormant for countless years.

The team leader knew the situation had changed, cursed under his breath, and didn't have time to figure out which idiot in the team had triggered the mechanical puppet. He looked at the stone platform right in front of him, where they were now just a step away from the altar.

The team leader yelled, "Move!"

Suddenly, an enormous stone hand rose from the desert floor. A single finger was as tall as an adult man. The massive stone hand clenched into a fist and raised high—

"Aaaaaah!!" Hua Ling couldn't bear to look anymore and covered her face, screaming in despair.

"Boom!"

He smashed the last stone platform in front of everyone with a single punch.

In the darkness, a violent storm howled, sand and dust flew everywhere, and a sandstorm swept up, stinging our faces with its sharp, slapping force.

Wei Jin steadied himself, his face grim. "If I were to find out who stepped on it..."

Before the word "thunder" could be uttered, a dark shadow that blotted out the sky rose instantly from the bottom of the sand and gravel.

"Every single day..."

Faced with such a colossal creature that overwhelmed them by size, Niu Shi and Ma Mian felt their legs go weak and appeared incredibly small.

Prior to this, the mechanical puppets of Peach Blossom Spring had never been activated; they were the first lucky audience members to arrive.

How can this not be considered a successful start?

It was as if a monster that had been asleep for millions of years had awakened. The grinding sound was deafening. Its body was composed of countless scattered bronze pillars. Blue and green patterns meandered across the surface of the behemoth, with eerie colors and an indescribable sense of strangeness.

Amidst the sandstorm, Chu Xianlan stroked her chin and sighed repeatedly, her tone tinged with excitement: "So this is the mechanical puppet from a thousand years ago."

So handsome.

Yan Ling, who had some knowledge of weapon crafting, crossed his arms and looked him up and down. "It's just a stone man who's mixed in with some bronze ore. What's so special about it?"

"Is this the time for you to admire it!?"

Hua Ling was about to be driven crazy by their relaxed attitude, and warned them with a look that seemed to say, "Are you sick?"

The next second, the merciless iron hand fell again, aiming straight for the heads of everyone!

Unable to fly on swords here, the group leaped into the air and retreated backward, their vision quickly scanning the mechanical puppets before them through the yellow sand.

His body is in decent shape.

The face... is really not good. It's weirdly shaped. The eyes aren't eyes, the nose isn't a nose, and the facial features are all misaligned and crooked. It doesn't look human at all.

It seems that even the skills of our ancestors were not entirely perfect.

"It's so ugly." Yan Ling clicked her tongue and frowned, touching her face. "It's not even as good as one of my toes."

"I won't talk about it."

Chu Xianlan tried her best to salvage the reputation of her ancestor's work, saying, "After all, no one can see the puppet hidden in a place like this, so what's wrong with it growing a little?"

Hua Ling was utterly heartbroken: "Which side are you on? It attacked us with its fists, and you're still defending it?!"

Is there no justice left?!

As they spoke, a dazzling white ice-type sword light flashed past like lightning, the chill seemingly freezing the air, and the overwhelming sword energy pierced straight through the enormous head of the mechanical puppet.

That sword strike was unstoppable, instantly causing countless rocks to explode and the ugly face made of bronze and rock to collapse in an instant.

Before everyone could react, Bu Xizhou had transformed into a streak of sword light and returned to the sword cultivator's hand.

Yi Chen's figure remained as silent as a mountain.

Even though the half-demons had some understanding of the strength of their own race, they couldn't help but feel an instinctive chill when they looked at the man who stood there, cold as frost and snow, holding a sword.

Just like animals are naturally divided into superior and inferior among their own kind.

The half-demons of Peach Blossom Spring present were inwardly shocked and their breathing became rapid. They all reached a consensus in their hearts—this half-demon in front of them was definitely not on the same level as them.

The half-demons were still unsure where this indescribable fear came from. The feeling of having their lives threatened was ineffable and could only be attributed to the suppression of their cultivation.

However, these thoughts only existed for a moment. When danger struck, everyone used their unique abilities and did everything they could to fight against the crisis.

Countless brilliant killing moves flashed by, and the mechanical puppet's hands, arms, shoulders and other parts were gradually shattered. But in no time, the shattered fragments actually gathered together again and returned to their original state.

This is what makes puppets so terrifying.

It is constantly being destroyed, and constantly being rebuilt.

The mechanical puppets have no sense of pain and are not truly living beings. They will only relentlessly attack any outsiders who intrude into the altar. Although their punches are clumsy, their power is enough to shake the earth and the sky.

It appears fragile, yet it is even more indestructible than black iron.

Hua Ling's feelings were complicated, but she didn't hold back her words: "Xian Lan, your wish has come true, are you happy? You should be happy—last wishes are always easier to fulfill quickly."

"Don't say such sarcastic things." Xue Ling raised her shield and stood in front of the boy.

The spirits of heaven and earth chatted amongst themselves, but Chu Xianlan took a moment to ponder something.

What power supports such a massive mechanical puppet?

There is definitely no magical artifact in this world that can be used indefinitely for thousands of years; that would be too heaven-defying.

"If we keep fighting like this, our spiritual energy will be completely depleted!" Niu Dice and Ma Mian were injured one after another, retreating again and again from the edge of the stone platform, their hands holding their weapons becoming slightly numb.

This is where the usefulness of artifact repair comes in, isn't it? A half-demon in the team, desperate for a solution, blurted out, "Hey, aren't you an artifact repairman? Can you dismantle it?!"

In fact, Chu Xianlan really wanted to answer: I can!

But there's no opportunity for experimentation. And repairing equipment isn't something you can just disassemble and reassemble. Practice makes perfect, so let's give him a chance to get used to it first.

Ideally, he would find a beautiful place with towering mountains and flowing water, where he could meet the ancestor of puppet making, and drink tea while playing the zither.

The mechanical puppet had a cup of tea, he had a cup of tea, and his ancestor had a cup of tea. Amidst their laughter and conversation, the secrets of weapon crafting from a thousand years ago clattered into his head.

"What should we do? Should we retreat first?" Another half-demon panted heavily, looking anxiously at the leader.

Although the team leader had been to the forbidden area before, he had never seen the mechanical puppets activated. After all, as long as they followed the spirit array obediently and steadily walked across the stone platforms, they could easily enter the altar.

Even monkeys can learn it; all they need are hands and feet.

He didn't understand either. He hadn't provoked anyone, so how did the mechanical puppet suddenly come to life?

Are they, a team full of hidden talents, really inferior to monkeys?

In any case, if all the stone platforms are destroyed, they will really have nowhere to stand.

The team leader paused for a moment, then said in a stern voice, "This thing exists to protect the altar; it can't possibly harm the altar itself—we need to find a way to get past it quickly, avoid its attacks, and we'll be safe once we reach the vicinity of the altar!"

This is indeed the most feasible solution at present.

The group immediately abandoned their attack and began to move. There weren't many intact stone platforms scattered around, but they could barely make their way to the edge of the altar by taking a winding route.

The mechanical puppet seemed to have anticipated everyone's thoughts, dragging its heavy body and relentlessly pursuing them.

Wei Jin was extremely annoyed. He frowned, turned around, and shouted at Yi Chen:

"Hey, can you use an ice spell to freeze that thing?"

Other half-demons: ? ?

Are you kidding me?

This is a desert! That huge lump of rock, you think it'll just freeze solid like that? Is that a reasonable request?

Chu Xianlan realized this was indeed a good idea, but considering the consumption of spiritual energy and physical strength, he still frowned and asked, "Master, is this alright?"

Yi Chen: "Okay."