Chapter 539

The mechanical puppets stand quietly, arranged in neat rows.

They are mainly made of wood, with simple metal armor covering their chests, legs, and feet.

Most hold long spears in their hands, but some hold swords and shields.

"Six hundred mechanical puppets! The mechanical puppets controlled by the military advisor have increased quite a bit." Zhang Hei scans with his spiritual sense, discovers the increase in the number of soldier puppets, and immediately transmits via spiritual sense, his words carrying congratulations.

The soldiers of the Three Generals Battalion also look at these mechanical puppets, their expressions full of wonder.

Generals Generals Guan Hong strokes his beard and also communicates via spiritual sense: "According to the military advisor's wealth, he could have made these mechanical puppets more refined. It seems the military advisor wants to use the art of war like the Brave Man Returning Technique."

Ning Zhuo: "General Generals Generals Guan's discerning eyes are correct."

Ning Zhuo could certainly use metal as the main material to make mechanical puppets.

However, firstly, the production time is longer and the consumption is higher; secondly, they are not easily damaged in actual combat, which hinders the performance of the Brave Man Returning Technique. Thirdly, the wood is taken from the Thousand Peaks Forest and Azure Forest Immortal City, which are local specialties and cheaper, while metal is more expensive.

Before setting off, Liu Er walks to Ning Zhuo's side, grabs his hands, and urges him with concern: "It is our incompetence that the military advisor has to attack alone!"

"Remember that your own life is the most important."

"If you encounter Luo Chen, the military advisor can retreat at the first opportunity, lure the enemy to our front, and then engage in battle!"

Ning Zhuo says "hmm" and also cares for Liu Er: "The general does not need to blame himself. Without the general, how could I, Ning Zhuo, have reached today?"

"It is precisely because the three generals paved the way that I have a place to use my skills today."

"At this moment, it is time for me to attack. If I can break the large bell in one fell swoop, I can resolve the current stalemate and lead to the final victory."

"Even if it is risky, it is worth a try!"

Ning Zhuo bids farewell to Liu Er, rides a Foundation Establishment level horse, leads the mechanical army, detaches from the Three Generals Battalion, and marches rapidly along the place where the bell sound comes from.

The raging flames soon cover the figures of Ning Zhuo and the mechanical army.

"Military advisor... it is our Jin Dan incompetence that when things come to a head, a Foundation Establishment cultivator has to stand up." Liu Er sighs. At present, he can only rely on Ning Zhuo's subsequent performance.

Zhang Hei wrings his wrists: "If you want to blame someone, blame these soldiers for being too poor. If I could get two hundred elite soldiers, I would lead the army alone and strike directly at the Yellow Dragon!"

Generals Generals Guan Hong strokes his beard: "Although the military advisor only has Foundation Establishment cultivation, in terms of combat strength alone, he is far superior to any of the three of us. Attacking at this time is the most suitable candidate, which is just right for the art of war."

The three generals grit their teeth and can only hold this place for the time being, waiting for Ning Zhuo to return.

And those who are paying attention to Ning Zhuo are not just the three generals Liu, Generals Generals Guan, and Zhang, and Luo Chen and others.

There is another cultivator, lurking on the side, closely watching the progress of this offensive and defensive battle.

This person is named Gao Cuo. He had adventures in his early years and once served in Azure Sky Mountain. The evil god bone marrow he secretly discovered was obtained by Sun Sun Lingtong by mistake.

"Good, although the main force of the Three Generals Battalion is incompetent, Ning Zhuo can attack."

"If he takes advantage of the situation to break the large bell, he can change the battle situation and tilt the balance of victory toward the Three Generals Battalion."

"If he performs even better and lets him find the location of the Vermilion Bird Incense Burner and destroys this great array, that would be even better."

Gao Cuo estimates the situation, his brows tightly furrowed: "I'm just afraid that Luo Chen will take the initiative to attack and intercept Ning Zhuo halfway, causing his trip to be abandoned halfway."

An old voice sounds in his heart: "There is a way."

Gao Cuo: "Old Sword, what is the way?"

Old Sword continues: "We sneaked in here just for the Fire-in-Wood. This fire is one of the three samadhis. Even if we can't gather the three samadhis in the future, this one alone is enough for you to use until the Nascent Soul stage."

"Luo Chen must also be looking for this thing!"

"The current situation is very clear; the Ten-Mile Burning Forest is close to the main battlefield and will inevitably be swept by the Liangzhu State army."

"Even if the Three Generals Battalion fails this time, subsequent campaign armies will inevitably be endless."

"The Ten-Mile Burning Forest cannot be defended. Luo Chen has his duties and just wants to retreat decently. He cannot take away the Fire-Crowned Divine Cedar and the like. Only the Fire-in-Wood is his best excuse."

"Look, since the Three Generals Battalion attacked, he has never taken action. He must be searching for the Fire-in-Wood with all his might."

A flash of inspiration strikes Gao Cuo's mind: "I understand. Old Sword, you want me to forge a Fire-in-Wood to deceive Luo Chen, let him see the hope that is about to be obtained, and indirectly pin him in place?"

Old Sword smiles with satisfaction: "The child can be taught. The Leaving Form Wrong Shadow Book you practice is just right for forging such things. Hmm?"

Old Sword suddenly stops.

"What's wrong?" Gao Cuo asks immediately.

Old Sword says: "Another outsider has descended here, with a cultivation base of at least the Nascent Soul level."

Gao Cuo: "Long delays lead to trouble! If this battle continues, it will inevitably attract more cultivators. If the Three Generals Battalion cannot win in one blow and the war is prolonged, the interference to us will be more and more."

Above the Ten-Mile Burning Forest.

Lin Lin Bufan hides in the clouds, overlooking the forest burning with raging flames.

"I have the art of a leaf blocking the eyes; I assume that Luo Chen cannot discover me."

"Hmm, has the main force of the Three Generals Battalion pushed here?"

"Strange, where is Ning Zhuo?"

Center of the Ten-Mile Burning Forest, Fire-Crowned Divine Cedar.

A cultivator sits cross-legged under the cedar tree; it is Luo Chen.

Luo Chen closes his eyes to rest, his eyelids move slightly, opening a slit, revealing a sharp light.

"In the clouds, a strange Nascent Soul cultivator has come..."

"Hmph, as expected."

"The longer the war, the more people will come smelling the scent."

"The more people watching the battle, the harder it will be for me to retreat actively."

"Forget it. Let's wipe out this separated mechanical army first! At least we can harvest a sum of military merit."

"The main thing is still the Fire-in-Wood."

"Without it, how can I retreat decently? Hmm?!"

The next moment, he opens his eyes wide, his face full of surprise: "Found it! Heaven really helps me!!"

How to hide a leaf? It's simple, hide the leaf on a certain branch in the forest.

How to hide a fire seed? It's simple, just integrate it into the sky-filling sea of fire.

Since the end of the first great battle, the Ginseng Whisker Dragon King was slightly defeated and fled, and the main force of Liangzhu State stationed on the spot, Luo Chen had already begun to use the Fire-Crowned Divine Cedar to constantly instill spiritual sense to search for the Fire-in-Wood.

However, the vast sea of fire is too huge. Luo Chen's spiritual sense cannot cover all the burning forests and can only search constantly.

He put in a lot of hard work, but didn't even see a trace of the Fire-in-Wood.

Now that he suddenly detects the aura of the Fire-in-Wood, he is excited and immediately throws the matter of destroying Ning Zhuo's army to the back of his mind.

Even if he attacks, it's just a small military merit, which is of no consequence.

Only by obtaining the Fire-in-Wood and bringing it back to the alliance can he retreat decently, with merit and no fault. This is the overall situation!

Luo Chen has long weighed the importance of things in his heart.

Ning Zhuo naturally doesn't know what happened behind his back, so he marches all the way, fully alert, and doesn't encounter Luo Chen's interception.

He discusses with Sun Sun Lingtong.

Both feel that the situation is strange and need to be more alert.

So much so that when they arrive in front of the large bell, they are still a bit unbelievable.

Yan Jin's face is as heavy as water.

He has bitterness in his heart, but cannot speak it.

After all, Luo Chen being able to find the Fire-in-Wood is a major event related to their smooth retreat.

In this situation, letting Yan Jin and Fairy Fairy Yanliu cooperate with each other to resist the mechanical army is also the decision that best serves their interests.

Fairy Fairy Yanliu exerts force, forming a fire wall through the great array, covering Ning Zhuo's army.

Heavenly Craft Forging Sound Score!

Yan Jin swings his fists and palms, hitting the magic treasure-level large bell hard.

Clang—!

The bell sound vibrates and quickly covers the entire mechanical army. The bodies of the mechanical puppets appear with a large number of cracks from the inside out.

And the simple armor on their bodies is even worse than the wooden bodies, directly shattering and cracking.

First Knock · Mineral Shaking Tune!

Ning Zhuo's eyes light up: "It really is the Heavenly Craft Forging Sound Score."

Yan Jin makes a fist with his left hand and swings his palm with his right, hitting the large bell. The bell sound goes dong dong clang clang, forming a series of urgent scores.

The armor fragments on the mechanical puppets decompose again in the bell sound, refining countless trivial particles.

The wooden bodies are also the same, shrinking one after another, and some mechanical puppets collapse directly to the ground.

Second Sound · Gold Extracting Ring!

Ning Zhuo praises aloud: "I once saw an introduction to this technique in the classics and have always wanted to see it. I didn't expect to personally experience the magic of this technique in such a way."

Yan Jin snorts coldly, transmitting via spiritual sense: "A mere Foundation Establishment, also commenting on Yan!"

He changes his fists and palms; this time, his left hand is a palm and his right hand is a fist.

Third Tremor · Shape Molding Rhyme!

This time the bell sound is sometimes thick, sometimes high and sharp, changing very rapidly.

Countless mechanical puppets are refined into various shapes on the spot under Yan Jin's intention and spiritual sense. Some are compressed into spheres, some are refined into wooden poles, some are directly torn apart...

Yan Jin transmits via spiritual sense: "Young boy, your army has already lost more than half."

Ning Zhuo claps his hands, and his voice spreads throughout the battlefield: "Wonderful, Fellow Daoist Yan's artifact-refining attainments are more than ten times mine combined."

!

Yan Jin's eyelids twitch, and he immediately transmits via spiritual sense, refuting: "Boy, even if twenty of you come together, it's just a matter of dying!"

The bell sound rises again.

This time, Yan Jin stretches out both hands. Two palms hit the bronze bell, emitting a long bell sound.

Lingering Rhyme · Quenching Fire Chant!

Crack, crack, crack...

Collapse, collapse, collapse...

A large number of mechanical puppets have experienced the previous three bell sounds and have become strange-shaped. At this moment, they finally cannot support it, completely disintegrating and turning into countless fragments and pieces.

Before Ning Zhuo set off, there were six hundred mechanical puppets.

At this moment, the number of puppets standing beside him is less than one hundred, which is very desolate.

Ning Zhuo bows to Yan Jin with one hand, smiling, his eyes full of eagerness: "Senior Yan has good skills and good methods. My mechanical puppets are nothing strange. Next, I will personally experience it!"

Yan Jin is surprised, transmitting via spiritual sense: "Wait, you..."

Before he finishes speaking, he sees Ning Zhuo give a light shout, rise from the ground, and jump into the air.

He claps his palms and releases a torrent.

The water flow is vast, like a flood peak after the gate is opened, directly crashing through the fire wall, and then surging and rolling toward the large bell and Yan Jin.

Yan Jin hurriedly stomps his right foot hard, stimulating the defensive array on the bell base.

The array opens, forming a spherical light shield, covering Yan Jin and the large bell.

In the sky, a Vermilion Bird-shaped flame suddenly appears, rushing into the water, causing a roaring explosion.

The water flow is instantly evaporated by sixty percent, turning into steam filling the sky.

Then, within a few breaths, the steam is quickly eliminated by the surrounding high temperature.

This is Fairy Fairy Yanliu taking action to help!

The enemy Ning Zhuo faces is never Yan Jin alone, but also Fairy Fairy Yanliu who controls the great array.

"Come again!"

Ning Zhuo laughs, not discouraged at all, his fighting spirit even higher.

He takes a deep breath, pinches finger seals with both hands, and after a few breaths, lifts his palms hard.

The ground bulges rapidly, turning into a mound.

The mound condenses, forming two earth giants, one on the left and one on the right, stepping on the water level that has dropped a lot, attacking the large bell.

Yan Jin swings his fists and palms, stimulating the bell sound, attacking the two giants fiercely.

The giants move slowly, but their steps are large, topping the bell sound, rushing to the light shield, waving their fists, and smashing hard.

Boom, boom, boom.

Each strike is powerful, hitting the light shield with heavy cracks.

Yan Jin does his best, the large bell sways left and right, urging out surging sound waves, attacking with attack.

The two giants are refined by the bell sound, their arms fall off, their fists turn into soft mud, and one of them suddenly becomes half as short, having been cut off at the waist.

In the sky, the Vermilion Bird-shaped flame takes shape again, pouncing on Ning Zhuo.

Ning Zhuo uses one mind for two purposes, pinching finger seals with his left hand, while his right hand grabs directly at the Vermilion Bird fire in the air.

Accompanied by his movements, a torrent is generated out of thin air.

The torrent swirls in the sky, taking shape, becoming a water dragon.

The water dragon opens its mouth wide, accurately biting the Vermilion Bird fire.

Boom!

An explosion, the water dragon and the fire bird perish together.

On the other side, Ning Zhuo's left-hand finger seals have been completed.

Ning Zhuo points like a sword, shooting a golden light from his index and middle fingers.

The golden light is vast, as fast as a meteor, and just as Yan Jin sees it, it shoots onto the light shield.

The light shield only supports for half a breath before being pierced.

The golden light's remaining power does not diminish, hitting the large bell and shooting a small hole in it.

Yan Jin's expression changes completely, questioning Ning Zhuo via spiritual sense: "How is such power possible? This is inconsistent with the intelligence! You have been hiding your strength all along?!"

Ning Zhuo laughs, feeling a sense of accomplishment, learning from Sun Sun Lingtong with hands on hips: "You guessed right!"

"Senior Yan, did you think I came alone just to take a risky gamble?"

"Naturally, I was confident!"

"To tell you the truth, even if Luo Chen came, I have means to deal with him."

He bluffs to his heart's content.

Yan Jin learned Ning Zhuo's intelligence, but the combat strength displayed by the latter at the moment is indeed far beyond what the intelligence said.

This is not because Ning Zhuo was hiding his strength before, but because he himself has made rapid progress during this period of time.

All along, his Brave Man Returning Technique has been limited by his physical foundation, making it difficult to fully bless.

But through the evil path usage of the Fetal Breath Spirit Boat, Ning Zhuo's physical foundation has soared, which can be said to be different from the past.

More than five hundred mechanical puppets were destroyed, not only causing his combat strength to soar to the Jin Dan level, but also far exceeding his past peak, which can be called the first-class level of the Jin Dan level!

Yan Jin's mind also fluctuates uneasily with the large bell.

"Calm down!"

"I still have Lord Luo Chen and Fairy Fairy Yanliu to help, not fighting alone."

The next moment, Fairy Fairy Yanliu transmits information through the great array: "Master Craftsman Yan Jin, you must hold on. The Three Generals Battalion has set off again and is marching in my direction."

The three generals wait for a while and notice that the bell sound has decreased and the fire wall has slowed down. Liu Er makes a decisive decision, leads the army forward, and the obstacles along the way are reduced by more than half compared to before.

Fairy Fairy Yanliu is unable to take care of herself.

Yan Jin hurriedly asks Luo Chen: "My lord, have you made any progress in searching for the Fire-in-Wood?"

Luo Chen's face is gloomy: "That Fire-in-Wood is extremely slippery, as if it has spirituality, and I haven't obtained it yet. You hold on!"

Yan Jin is speechless.

Ning Zhuo's eyes are bright, reflecting the firelight and the large bell.

His fighting spirit is high: "Boss, I feel I still have energy and haven't reached the physical limit. I want to try the limit."

Sun Sun Lingtong laughs: "Little Zhuo, just play as you like, I'll watch the surroundings for you. If Luo Chen comes, I'll remind you."

Ning Zhuo releases three hundred mechanical puppets.

Ning Zhuo controls the puppets to form a Light Body Gale Formation.

The mechanical army moves like the wind, Ning Zhuo flies above the army, pinches finger seals again, his left hand urges the previous sword finger golden light, and his right palm aims at the higher sky, condensing a huge meteorite.

"Senior Yan, take this!" The boy's momentum soars again, his excited and impassioned voice resounding through the battlefield.

Yan Jin: "..."

(End of chapter)