Fu Jin laid his Straight Blade flat on the bluestone table, its edge sending up a few sparks as it made contact.

He bent a finger and tapped the gleaming Copper Crane Lamp Base on the table. With the soft click of a turning mechanism, the lamp’s wick suddenly brightened considerably.

"Ever since we finished setting up camp in the Celestial Craft Cave, Hall Master Mo of the Mechanical Hall has been buried in his work on that Mechanical Bronze Gate left behind by the Mo Family. He’s finally made some headway."

"Oh?"

Xu Yunfan’s expression flickered. After they had established their base in the Celestial Craft Cave, the disciples of the Celestial Craft Department had begun constructing a Celestial Corridor that led straight to the Ghostly Wail Abyss, completely enclosing the Bronze Gate that had been revealed within a fissure in the cliff face.

Since then, Mo Han had thrown himself into studying it. Most of the Mechanical Hall’s affairs were being handled by Mo Shisan. In fact, Xu Yunfan had heard Mo Shisan complain just the other day that he had no time to develop the newest model of Human-shaped Mechanism Armor.

Seeing that he had piqued Xu Yunfan’s interest, Fu Jin gave a knowing grin. "Word came out yesterday. He said the Cloud Pattern on the door knocker secretly corresponds with the *Mo Jing: Celestial Will Chapter*. There must be a Mechanical Treasure Box from the Non-Attack branch of the Mo Family inside!"

"Non-Attack?"

Seeing the doubt in Xu Yunfan’s voice, Fu Jin had no choice but to explain.

"The Mo Family’s mechanism arts are divided into three branches. The ’Punishing the Tyrant’ branch focuses on slaughter and warfare, specializing in things like Siege Hammers and Thunder Fire Bombs. Two thousand years ago, to stop the King of Chu from attacking the state of Song, the Ju Zi built seventy-two nine-hundred-and-ninety-foot-tall mechanical Cloud Ladders in just three days. They were deployed like paved imperial roads, and each one could accommodate ten thousand men."

"The ’Non-Attack’ branch emphasizes defense. The Bronze Gate, the Mercury Hourglass, and the Magnetic Mechanism you’ve seen are all techniques from this branch."

At this, a look of longing appeared on Fu Jin’s face. He couldn’t help but click his tongue in wonder. "The most difficult to grasp is the ’Balance’ branch. It’s all about ’acting with perfect, impartial equilibrium.’"

"That Demon Tiger that came down from the mountains a month ago... why do you think Celestial Craft City’s nine Earth Dragon Valves didn’t crush us into meat paste?"

"Those eight Copper Chains correspond to the principles of mutual generation within the Eight Trigrams. Cut one too many, and the mechanism loses its balance. Cut one too few, and the Magnetic Stones lock it solid. Elder Mo is a successor of the Balance Sect! The integration of offense and defense—that’s the ultimate goal the Mechanical Hall is pursuing."

Fu Jin rambled on, his expression growing more and more excited. He was saying that if Elder Mo could truly unlock the Bronze Lock Valve and retrieve the Mo Family’s Non-Attack Mechanical Treasure Box, then Celestial Craft City might truly become impregnable. Even a Nine Realms Qi Cultivation Supreme Grandmaster wouldn’t be able to breach the Celestial Craft Fortress.

He went on like this for a long time. Seeing that Fu Jin still wasn’t making a move to leave, Xu Yunfan said resignedly, "Senior Brother Fu, could you just tell me what this is all about?"

Fu Jin stopped mid-sentence, a hint of embarrassment on his face. It was quickly replaced by a flicker of worry.

"Master has been gone for over a month. He used to send a message back every three days, but it’s been seven days now, and we still haven’t heard anything."

Xu Yunfan’s gaze shifted slightly. "Have you sent any disciples from the Giant Kite Team to Qingzhou to check?"

"I sent a disciple from the Giant Kite Team four days ago. Once the Mechanical Hall’s Giant Kite Mechanism Birds take to the sky, they can travel four thousand li a day. By my calculations, we should be getting a message back today."

Xu Yunfan glanced at the "Map of Celestial Craftsmanship" on the wall of the Earth Fire Room. It was a chart compiled by the Giant Kite disciples, showing all of Great Zhou’s Six Paths and Seventy-Two States. His gaze came to rest on the area marked "Qingzhou."

"The Giant Kite Team just upgraded to the Double-Winged Feathered Mechanism last month. Its three hundred and sixty Fine Steel Feathers can harness winds from all eight directions to fill their air bladders and soar into the highest heavens."

As Xu Yunfan spoke, he bent a finger and tapped the flight path on the map. "You don’t have to worry too much, Senior Brother," he said comfortingly. "They probably ran into strong winds and had to take a detour."

The Celestial Craft Cave might not be the most powerful, but when it came to convenience, none of the world’s current Six Top Sects could compare. The Celestial Craft Cave even ran a dedicated courier service, delivering messages to every Daozhou in Great Zhou and even to the neighboring Daqian empire.

Fu Jin nodded slightly. Just as he was about to speak, the piercing screech of a Giant Kite suddenly echoed from the listening port on the Earth Fire Room’s wall.

An urgent report from a Giant Kite. If it could be heard in the Earth Fire Room, the sound must be echoing throughout all of Celestial Craft City.

The two men exchanged a look and quickly walked out of the Earth Fire Room. As they did, they heard the roar of grinding gears from the sky.

A single, broken steel wing emerged from the clouds. The Giant Kite’s body, forged from Profound Iron, was riddled with blackened arrow holes. Sticking out of the messenger cabin’s door were three armor-piercing crossbow bolts, each engraved with the totem of the Daqian empire.

The Giant Kite from Yanbei Dao, like a Golden Crow with a broken wing, trailed thick smoke as it smashed heavily onto the platform of cyan jade bricks.

A disciple staggered out from the Giant Kite, shouting.

"Urgent report! Daqian is attacking Yanbei Dao! Qingzhou and Wuzhou have fallen! The one-hundred-thousand-strong Daqian Profound Armor Army broke through Cold Crow Crossing three days ago!" His hoarse voice pierced through all of Celestial Craft City. "All twelve beacon towers in Qingzhou have been extinguished! The Wuzhou garrison commander opened the city gates and surrendered... An eight-hundred-li express from Yanbei Dao!"

Many of the Celestial Craft Cave disciples who had rushed to the Observatory felt their hearts tremble.

A series of sharp gasps rippled through the crowd.

Xu Yunfan and Fu Jin, who had just arrived at the Observatory, couldn’t help but feel a jolt of shock as they heard the news.

At some point, Hong Baichuan, the Sect Leader of the Celestial Craft Cave, had appeared on the Observatory. He stood with his hands behind his back, his brow deeply furrowed.

Great Zhou was currently in a state of utter chaos, all thanks to that Female Witch. Signs of turmoil were everywhere, and the entire empire was on the verge of collapse. Rebellions were rising in every Daozhou, their calls growing louder and their forces stronger.

Even in Lingnan Dao, there were two rebel factions. It was obvious which two powers were backing them from behind the scenes.

Hong Baichuan stared at the letter in his hand. After a long moment, his tightly knitted brow finally relaxed.

"If our Celestial Craft Cave were still in Yanbei Dao, we would have certainly been caught in the crossfire. Now, the Nine Radiance Sect has become the front line instead. Heh, those Daqian Armored Warriors..."

A hint of confusion crossed his face. "Great Zhou and Daqian are separated by a natural chasm. Why would they go to such great lengths to invade Great Zhou?"

Nearby, Mo Shisan, the head disciple of the Mechanical Hall, had rushed over and was now examining the Giant Kite Mechanism Bird, which had been nearly shattered by an arrow. His brow was furrowed in concentration.

"This Armor-Piercing Arrow was shot by a person, not a machine. Drawn from a Hundred-Stone Bow, one arrow to pierce the clouds. It’s a good thing we installed a stabilizer when we improved the Giant Kite. Otherwise, it never would have flown this far with half a wing missing."

A slightly aged voice spoke up from the side.

"Why go to such great lengths? Isn’t it all because of that witch, the Empress? Through blood sacrifice, she stirred up the Primordial Spirits within the Earth Veins of all Great Zhou. Naturally, Daqian wouldn’t let such an opportunity pass."

Xu Yunfan turned to look and saw Mo Han, the disheveled and grimy Hall Master of the Mechanical Hall, walking up from behind. The gust of wind he brought with him made Xu Yunfan’s breath catch in his throat.

’How long has it been since he last bathed?’

Mo Han seemed completely oblivious. He took the arrow from Mo Shisan, who was pinching his nose, and examined it closely before speaking. "Made by the Daqian Military Academy. The craftsman who forged this was quite skilled."

He turned his head to Hong Baichuan. "We’d better prepare. We need to recall our disciples from Daqian. With a great war imminent, I’m afraid others will have their eyes on our Celestial Craft Cave’s mechanism techniques."

(Three more Chapters to go, currently writing)