Tianji Stone

Chapter 35: Heavenly Mechanism Stone

Three days later, Gongsun Ye returned.

He was bathed in blood, his aura surging with killing intent.

The moment he returned to Five Sheep Cave, he sent his disciples to find Ning Ye.

The biggest issue with the mechanical stone lion killing Yue Xiuxiu was that it was far too targeted.

To strike at a disciple in such a manner did not seem like something the Extreme Joy Sect would do, especially since Yue Xiuxiu had mentioned Ning Ye on the road to Ancient Spring Town.

Of course, it was mostly nothing good.

However, Gongsun Ye did not let the Extreme Joy Sect off the hook because of this—he stormed the Extreme Joy Sect, personally executed three of their disciples, and extorted a massive amount of wealth before leaving. Then, the moment he returned, he sought out Ning Ye.

But just as he gave the order, a female disciple at his feet said, "Ning Ye has gone to Tianping Mountain; the mountain is currently under lockdown."

"Tianping Mountain is under lockdown? What is going on?" Gongsun Ye was slightly startled.

The female disciple spoke vaguely, and only then did Gongsun Ye learn that just yesterday, a mechanical killing incident had occurred at Tianping Mountain.

"Mechanical killing? How so?"

The female disciple replied, "It is a strange entity. This entity is of the earth element; it can hollow out stone statues, install mechanisms inside them, and coat them with substances that attract body-refining pills. A junior brother happened to pass by, was affected by the scent, and unexpectedly triggered the mechanism, dying on the spot."

"How bold!" Gongsun Ye slammed his hand on the table and stood up.

Now he understood.

It was that strange entity taking revenge.

Clearly, after its tracks were discovered by Ning Ye and Yue Xiuxiu, it harbored resentment. After killing the Extreme Joy Sect cultivator, it first used his mechanical box to set a trap to ambush Yue Xiuxiu, and then it had actually been bold enough to sneak into Nine Palaces Mountain to attempt an ambush on Ning Ye.

However, its luck was clearly poor. The Black and White Divine Palace was full of talent, and Ning Ye was not the only one who walked the path of close-quarters combat and body refinement. As a result, someone else had taken the hit for him.

Upon learning that the strange entity had appeared at Tianping Mountain, the Black and White Divine Palace immediately mobilized to seal off the mountain, and even Ning Ye had participated in the effort.

Knowing the sequence of events, Gongsun Ye no longer had any suspicions about Ning Ye, only astonishment at the boldness of this creature. But thinking back to what he knew before, it was indeed a strange entity with intelligence, so it wasn't entirely strange.

It was just a pity that it had appeared at Nine Palaces Mountain; even if it were caught, it would have nothing to do with him.

The female disciple raised her almond-shaped eyes, looking at Gongsun Ye with a watery gaze: "How about this, when he returns from the lockdown, shall I go call him again?"

Gongsun Ye waved his hand: "Forget it, it's just a pity about Xiuxiu."

The female disciple pursed her lips and chuckled: "If one Yue Xiuxiu is dead, this disciple can find ten more for you, how about that?"

Gongsun Ye narrowed his eyes: "Very good, very good!"

With a wave of his hand, the female disciple's clothes fell away, and Gongsun Ye pounced.

Small hut.

After a night of mountain lockdown, Ning Ye finally returned.

Just as he sat down, he saw the inkstone beside him stand up. It was the Heavenly Mechanism Stone. A face formed on the inkstone, looking miserable: "To clear your name, you exposed me. Now everyone is looking for me. The immortal sects have many wondrous arts and techniques; I'm afraid they'll find me sooner or later."

Ning Ye said lazily: "Rest assured, I have already obscured the heavenly secrets for you. In the short term, they won't be able to find you."

The Heavenly Mechanism was greatly surprised: "You are just an ordinary disciple, how can you obscure the heavenly secrets for me? Could it be that you are a master of numerology and I Ching?"

Ning Ye's ability to obscure the heavenly secrets naturally relied on the Soul-Lodging Wood Counting Rods and the Heaven Stealing Art. The Heavenly Mechanism Sect possessed three great divine art fragments; Ning Ye knew both the Heaven Asking Art and the Heaven Stealing Art, but there was one secret art not recorded in the texts that he still did not know.

However, Ning Ye's Heaven Stealing Art was inferior to the Heaven Asking Art, and coupled with the lack of a foundation in the Heavenly Mechanism mental cultivation method, his forced execution—even with the help of the Soul-Lodging Wood Counting Rods—was far worse than Xin Ranzi's Heaven Stealing Art, capable of obscuring things for only about three years.

He was not yet that close with the Heavenly Mechanism, so he wouldn't tell it these secrets.

So he simply said: "Less nonsense, stay put, and don't pop up when there's nothing going on. If you keep talking so freely, I might not be able to protect you."

"Oh." The Heavenly Mechanism obediently lay back down, but still couldn't help saying: "It's very boring."

"When you were being chased like a stray dog earlier and had to pretend to be a stone statue, why didn't you call it boring?"

The Heavenly Mechanism replied with a cheeky grin: "Isn't that because I have a master now?"

I didn't realize you were such a shameless thing.

Ning Ye thought for a moment and said: "It's not that there's no way to let you move freely."

The Heavenly Mechanism was overjoyed: "Tell me, tell me!"

Ning Ye said: "Find a puppet, put you inside, and claim it's a puppet injected with spiritual intelligence. Wouldn't that work?"

The Heavenly Mechanism was delighted: "That's it, that's it! That really is a good idea!"

Ning Ye already said: "But the premise is that first, I need to have such a puppet; second, I need to have suitable spiritual intelligence; and third, I need a reasonable excuse to possess a puppet."

The Heavenly Mechanism said: "Puppets can be bought, spiritual intelligence can be hunted, and excuses can be found easily. At worst, just choose to study a puppet art."

Ning Ye sneered: "Easier said than done. Do you know how many spirit stones a decent puppet costs? Do you know how high the requirements for spiritual intelligence are for someone as talkative as you? Do you know that the techniques one can choose to study during the Cang Xiang Realm are limited? Do you know that my master doesn't like me making choices outside of the Dao of the Blade? Most importantly, are you my subordinate, or am I yours? Why does it sound like I've become your servant, having to do things for you?"

The Heavenly Mechanism was speechless, not knowing how to respond for a moment.

Seeing it like this, Ning Ye said: "Enough, help me honestly, and when the time is right, I will naturally help you get a body."

"Okay, okay, Boss, just tell me what you need?" The Heavenly Mechanism hurriedly agreed.

What do I want? I want this Black and White Divine Palace turned upside down!

But for now, Ning Ye would not reveal these things to him, saying indifferently, "Naturally, I want to become stronger. I intend to cultivate in seclusion during this period to break through to the fourth layer, so don't come bothering me unless it's important."

There were only two months left until his first year of entry was up; Ning Ye had to promote to the fourth layer before the evaluation period ended, and beyond that, he needed to continue seeking opportunities to obtain the Thousand Mechanism Hall Fragment.

Today, just as Ning Ye was cultivating, Xu Yanwen came over again.

Seeing Ning Ye, Xu Yanwen laughed, "Thanks to you last time, Wanning has grown much closer to me. In fact, she specifically invited me to gather at her Ningxin Cottage in three days."

Ning Ye smiled, "Such a good opportunity to be alone with a beauty; wouldn't my presence be redundant?"

Xu Yanwen shook his head, "I wouldn't want that either, but Wanning specifically named you. It seems your performance last time caught her eye."

There was no jealousy in his words, likely because he was certain Chi Wanning would never fancy him.

To Xu Yanwen, he was like a concubine vying for favor; when he couldn't win on his own, he had to bring along a companion, provided that the companion was inferior to himself.

Ning Ye fit this criteria perfectly: ugly in appearance yet possessing a sharp mind. Taking him out wouldn't lower his own status, and it would serve to highlight his own magnificence, handsomeness, and dashing demeanor, making him the best partner.

Ning Ye had been waiting for this opportunity, so he smiled upon hearing this, "In that case, I shall respectfully decline to refuse."