Chapter 217: The Mechanized City

“Kid! Don’t fumble with the controls!” Old Ban suddenly thrust his face forward, still darkened with poison, clearly not yet recovered. He shouted at Tianming.

Unconsciously, Tianming had instinctively reached toward the mechanism on the mechanical bird. Whether intentional or not, Old Ban caught him red-handed.

“Heh heh...” Tianming gave an awkward, sheepish laugh and withdrew his hand.

“Watch out for the protruding rock ahead, go around it!” After speaking to Tianming, Old Ban noticed a jutting rock in front and quickly instructed Xiao Xie.

“No problem!” Xiao Xie had now mastered the mechanical bird’s traits and easily steered it around the obstacle.

However, after bypassing the rock, a large flock of poisonous birds appeared ahead. The group of birds that had earlier dispersed had circled around, preparing to ambush Xiao Xie and the others from both sides.

“Master Ban, what do we do now?” Xiao Xie asked.

“Wait!” Old Ban kept his eyes fixed on the approaching poisonous birds, remaining calm.

Watching the flock closing in, Tianming was the first to lose patience. He called out, “Old man! We can’t wait any longer, what’s the plan?”

“Kid! Shut your mouth.” Old Ban snapped, displeased.

Just as the poisonous birds were about to collide with the mechanical bird, Old Ban’s eyes suddenly lit up. He shouted to Xiao Xie, “Now! Descend quickly!”

“Got it!” Xiao Xie hurriedly pressed the blue descent lever, but the mechanical bird just trembled slightly and did not descend.

“It’s stuck!” Xiao Xie furrowed his brow and slapped the lever hard. Crack!

At that split second, just as the poisonous birds from front and rear were about to strike, the mechanical bird gave a sharp sound and rapidly descended. The flocks on both sides crashed into each other, leaving many birds dazed and confused.

“Yes! Success, fantastic!” Tianming shouted excitedly.

“Hmm? My hand can move, the poison has faded.” Old Ban joyfully waved his hand, surprised that the paralysis from the poison had suddenly lifted.

“All right, Young Master Xiao, I’ll take over flying the Vermilion Bird from here,” Old Ban said, stretching his wrist before turning to Xiao Xie. But when he saw something familiar in Xiao Xie’s hand, he paused, puzzled. “Wait, what’s that you’re holding? Looks familiar!”

Xiao Xie scratched his head awkwardly. “Master Ban, this wooden control lever of yours isn’t sturdy at all. I suggest you replace it with bronze next time.”

“...” Old Ban was dumbfounded, eyes shifting to the lever, which was now only half intact.

“...” Gai Nie and the others were speechless, staring at the broken half of the lever in Xiao Xie’s hand.

“Old man, think of something fast! We’re doomed... ah...” Tianming cried out in frustration, but before he could finish, the mechanical bird began to plummet directly downward.

Old Ban’s mechanical hand transformed several times, producing a hammer. He rushed to the control lever and solemnly struck the red button.

In the next moment, a gust of air blasted from the tail of the mechanical bird. With a whoosh, it shot toward the cliff wall at high speed.

“Huh?! Old man, are you crazy? You want to die?” As the mechanical bird hurtled toward the cliff, Tianming covered his head with both hands and screamed, “Ah! We’re dead for sure!”

At the critical moment, a rock in the cliff face suddenly slid open, revealing a passage. The mechanical bird instantly dove inside.

The moment the bird entered the cave, the rock sealed shut behind it. The poisonous birds following closely crashed into the rock, scattering feathers everywhere.

Riding the white giant bird, Bai Feng gave a deep glance at the fallen rock, then flew away with the giant bird and the poisonous birds.

On a distant cliff, Chi Lian and Wei Zhuang stood side by side. A spy-winged bird flew over and landed in Chi Lian’s hand.

“News from Bai Feng,” Chi Lian said, deftly extracting a note from the bird’s leg. After reading it, she spoke.

“Read it,” Wei Zhuang said calmly.

“The location of the Mechanism City has been found, but the Mo family is heavily guarded. Bai Feng did not dare to attack rashly,” Chi Lian recited with a sly smile.

...

“All right, Young Master Xiao, I’ll take the Vermilion Bird from here,” Old Ban told Xiao Xie.

“Okay,” Xiao Xie nodded and stepped aside.

“Ying! Sister Rong, where are we?” Yue’er slowly opened her eyes and asked Duanmu Rong.

“Yue’er, you’re awake. We’ve already entered the Mo Family’s Mechanism City,” Duanmu Rong said gently, relieved that Yue’er had come to.

“Yue’er, you’re finally awake!” Tianming called happily from nearby.

“Tianming, I’m sorry. I poisoned Uncle Gai before!” Yue’er, now clear-headed from the effects of the fiery charm technique, felt guilty knowing that Gai Nie was not the killer of her father.

“It’s all right, Yue’er. Don’t blame yourself. It was that wicked woman earlier. You’re a good person!” Tianming quickly reassured her, then glanced awkwardly at Xiao Xie. He recalled that Xiao Xie seemed to call that wicked woman “sister,” but seeing Xiao Xie hadn’t heard him, he breathed a secret sigh of relief.

Tianming quickly changed the subject, calling to Old Ban, “Old Ban, it’s so dark here, we can’t see a thing. Won’t the mechanical bird crash into something?”

“I can fly it blindfolded,” Old Ban smiled confidently. Then he said, “Everyone, be careful, we’re about to turn and slow down.”

“Ah! Why didn’t you say so earlier? I could have sat down. Hmm? Whose hand am I holding? Yue’er, is that you?” Tianming asked eagerly. Such smooth hands must belong to Yue’er! How lucky.

“When do you want to grab it?” A cold voice startled Tianming, making him shiver.

“Why is that strange woman here? This is bad, really bad!” Tianming immediately sat upright, afraid to move, cursing his misfortune silently.

“Clack!”

Old Ban continued flying the mechanical bird, and suddenly there was a sharp sound from above, followed by a strong beam of light!

With the light came a middle-aged man’s voice: “Password!”

Old Ban immediately responded, “Unite the world, love all beings.”

The voice above replied instantly, “Through fire and water, wield sharp blades. Who goes there?”

“Old Feng, it’s me, Miss Rong, Yue’er, and five guests of the leader,” Old Ban replied loudly.

“Understood! Crossbow ramp, clear passage.” After the man’s words, the stone slab above closed again, plunging the surroundings back into darkness.

Master Ban resumed piloting the Vermilion Bird inward. Soon, sparkling lights appeared overhead, growing brighter and more numerous.

“Look! What’s that? You can see stars inside the mountain. How fun!” Tianming pointed up curiously and said happily.

“If you knew what they really were, you wouldn’t find it fun!” Old Ban scoffed.

“Well, tell us! What are these things?” Tianming asked, annoyed.

“These are the first line of defense of the Mo Family’s Mechanism City — the crossbow arrow formation. If enemies invade or fail to give the password, the crossbow volley activates,” Yue’er explained.

“So you mean those white dots are actually countless bows and arrows?” Tianming looked up and swallowed nervously.

“Yes, very sharp. Ever seen candied hawthorn skewers?” Old Ban teased.

Hearing that, Tianming suddenly found it nowhere near fun and sat tensely next to Gai Nie, glancing upward anxiously, afraid one of the crossbows might misfire.

Xiao Xie felt indifferent toward the crossbow formation. Though his current strength was less than one ten-thousandth of his prime, with over two thousand years of inner energy within him, he could easily raise a three-foot thick aura shield around himself. Even if the crossbows fired all day, they wouldn’t penetrate that barrier.