Madam

Cen Qing stared blankly at her husband, Xiangli Wei, the expression in her eyes filled with inconsolable grief.

The night breeze swept across the water pavilion, stirring her long, ink-black hair like a waterfall. A few strands clung to her bloodless cheeks, adding to her fragile beauty.

Her red lips parted slightly, as if she wanted to offer an explanation, but it ultimately dissolved into a barely audible whimper.

A crystal-clear tear slid silently from the corner of her eye. The moment it left her eyelid, it condensed into a round, flawless Shark Person pearl in mid-air, landing at the bottom of the pool with a soft plop.

This pearl struck Xiangli Wei's heart like a heavy hammer.

He couldn't help but falter.

Looking at his wife's pitiful appearance, memories of their past flooded his mind.

It was she who had used the wealth of the Shark Person tribe to make this residence magnificent, sparing him from mundane worries so he could focus on the Mechanism Art.

It was she who offered gentle, soft-spoken encouragement whenever his experiments failed and he felt disheartened.

And it was she, despite her status as a princess, who managed their household and navigated the undercurrents of officialdom for his sake.

As for the First Emperor's cruelty toward the Shark Person tribe, she had experienced it firsthand. Facing the impending arrival of the Emperor, her fear and desire to flee were not entirely incomprehensible.

A trace of regret and softness quietly sprouted, overriding his initial rage.

Xiangli Wei's tense expression softened slightly. He subconsciously took a small step forward and reached out, wanting to stroke Cen Qing's trembling cheek, as if he could erase the sharp confrontation of a moment ago and return to how things were.

"Qing'er, I..." His voice dropped low.

However, just as his fingertips were about to touch that cold skin—

A sudden change occurred!

The fragile, tearful look in Cen Qing's eyes vanished instantly, replaced by the cold, ruthless intensity of a beast!

Her sorrowful expression twisted into a sneer filled with mockery and murderous intent.

"Heh..."

A short, cold laugh squeezed from her throat.

Immediately after, her body lunged forward with astonishing speed, like a viper that had been coiled and ready to strike!

She opened her mouth, her once pearl-like teeth becoming sharp and pointed, glinting with a cold light. With lightning speed, she bit down hard into Xiangli Wei's defenseless neck.

The distance was too close, the change too fast!

Xiangli Wei could even smell the faint scent of the sea coming from her mouth and see her pupils, now mere inches away, narrowing into dangerous vertical slits.

Squelch!

The sound of sharp teeth piercing flesh was teeth-grinding.

Warm blood surged out instantly, staining Xiangli Wei's collar and painting Cen Qing's lips and teeth red...

Cyan-gold mechanisms erupted from the foundation of the residence, and a massive, fish-shaped wave of water submerged the pavilions and terraces of the Xiangli Residence.

Corridors collapsed, roofs were torn away, and rockeries and bonsai were ground into dust. The clash between Mohist Mechanism Art and the secret arts of the Shark Person tribe exploded in that instant!

"You have received guidance from Jiang Yan, the current Libationer of Jixia Academy. You have unlocked Mechanism Art Mastery."

"Current Mechanism Art Mastery: 10%"

"You have received guidance from Jiang Yan, the current Libationer of Jixia Academy. Your Mechanism Art Mastery has increased by 12%."

"Current Mechanism Art Mastery: 22%"

"..."

"Current Mechanism Art Mastery: 70%"

I didn't expect the bottleneck at 70% Mechanism Art Mastery to be so easy to break through. Could I truly be a genius?

Unable to wait, he picked up the two bamboo scrolls beside him.

Essential Art of Puppetry

Category: Skill Visualization Object

Quality: Rare

Contains methods for spiritual activation and binding souls into vessels. Using spirit jade as a core and inscribed talismans as meridians, it allows inanimate objects to temporarily gain spiritual response and obey commands.

Spend Yanfu Points to study and perform Skill Visualization. There is a certain chance to acquire the relevant skill; visualized skills do not occupy skill slots. The success rate of visualization is related to the Walker's relevant mastery strength.

Each visualization costs 50 Yanfu Points.

Basic requirements: 50% Ancient Language Mastery, 70% Mechanism Art Mastery.

Puppet Form Technique

Category: Skill Visualization Object

Quality: Rare

Discusses the construction of mechanical skeletons, joint configurations, and power transmission techniques. Using metal, stone, and wood as a base, it mimics birds, beasts, and human forms to create puppets for patrolling, heavy lifting, and combat.

Spend Yanfu Points to study and perform Skill Visualization. There is a certain chance to acquire the relevant skill; visualized skills do not occupy skill slots. The success rate of visualization is related to the Walker's relevant mastery strength.

Each visualization costs 50 Yanfu Points.

Basic requirements: 55% proficiency in Classical Literature, 70% proficiency in Mechanism Art.

Regarding "visualization," Yanfu defines it as the right to a profound experience of a skill: the force and technique used when activating the skill, the consumption of essence, energy, and spirit, the burden on bodily functions, and even the sense of urgency when standing on the brink of life and death.

Visualizing a skill may lead to directly comprehending it, or even drawing inferences to grasp a skill of one's own; naturally, it could also be a futile effort.

Chen Jin sank his consciousness into the Puppet Form Technique to begin the visualization.

His consciousness felt as if it had been pulled into a microscopic world composed of gears, bearings, and spirit threads.

At first, the simple skeletons of beasts and birds were built, linked, and demonstrated step-by-step before his "eyes," showcasing the most fundamental balance and power transmission.

The scene shifted, the structures becoming increasingly complex and ingenious. Blueprints of puppet mechanisms began to appear: the Azure Dragon's winding torso exerting force segment by segment, the White Tiger's joints exploding with power during a pounce, the Vermilion Bird's wings soaring with the aid of air currents, and the Black Tortoise's shell forming a defense.

Each divine beast form represented the pinnacle concept of a mechanical structure.

When visualizing the Essential Art of Puppetry, his perspective shifted to the interior of a humanoid puppet.

He "felt" how the spirit jade-carved Heart Pivot pulsed, providing energy to the entire body;

He "saw" how the inscribed "meridians" precisely transported energy to every fingertip and heel;

He "experienced" how, when different "apertures" were activated by specific inscription sequences, the puppet could execute techniques that even the creator might not have mastered. For instance, a puppet designed specifically for swordsmanship had arm joint trajectories and force-exertion methods that perfectly matched the essence of a certain sword style; while an alchemy puppet's precision in controlling heat reached a stability unattainable by human alchemists.

In understanding the core "driving force" of the puppets, Chen Jin clearly felt the difference between the Qi Mohists and the Qin Mohists.

The mechanical creations of the Qin Mohists, such as the Xuanhu Armored Warrior and the Vermilion Bird Annihilation Wing he had seen, derived their immense power largely from their connection to the ubiquitous Law Eye system in the sky. They could draw energy almost infinitely from the Empire's legal network to drive their massive bodies in high-intensity combat.

What the Qi Mohist lineage mastered, however, was a more ancient method closer to nature: "Draw the essence of the sun and moon, absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, store it in the pivot core, and the puppet form will operate automatically, enduring for a long time."

In short, it meant creating a core for the puppet capable of absorbing and storing solar and tidal energy to serve as a driving force.

While this power source might not be as domineering as the Qin Mohists' Law Eye supply initially, it had the advantage of being self-sufficient and independent of external constraints.

Having understood the principles, he gained the confidence for practice.

Aside from the necessary eating, sleeping, and washing, Chen Jin spent almost all his time in the Library Pavilion for the next while.

He selected suitable materials and, guided by the "feelings" obtained from his visualizations, began attempting to turn the blueprints in his mind into reality, step by step.

The air was filled with the fragrance of spirit wood, the chill of metal, and the unique energy fluctuations of inscription carving. He remained immersed in the deep realization and creation of Mechanism Art, tireless.