Within the Artisanship Commission:
Massive tendrils, resembling coiled dragons, snaked through various areas.
Although Guinaifen had never been here before, she imdiately recognized that this was not its original appearance.
New monsters road the map, unlike any seen before.
They were all examples of demonic chanisms.
For instance, there was a frog sitting atop a bell-like contraption called the Foggy Golden Toad.
And another resembling a goldfish nad the Lit Dragon Fish.
Guinaifen scoffed, "These monsters are way too weak!"
"My Divine Monarch didn't even need to strike before they were all gone."
"The nas are hard to rember..."
"Let's just call them Frog and Goldfish."
Soon enough, on a bridge, they encountered a middle-aged man dressed in the uniform of the Artisanship Commission.
Before him stood both the frog and goldfish, seemingly guarding his presence!
"The Artisanship Commission is strictly confidential. Intruders, retreat—retreat quickly now—yā yā yā!" he shouted. "Stay back! One more step closer, and don't bla this old man for being impolite!"
Upon hearing the master craftsman's voice, Guinaifen burst out laughing through her tears.
"No, Master! Are you practicing your vocal exercises here?"
[Battle Comnced]
March 7th: "Hey, hey, at least let us explain! We're not ba—"
"What's there to explain? It'll just be excuses like 'we happened to pass by,' 'it was unintentional,' or 'the door was already open'—all nonsense."
"A sudden calamity struck our commission today; I suspected foul play from the start! And sure enough—"
"Since security's no help, let show you the might of these chanisms!"
Guinaifen promptly activated Jing Yuan's ultimate ability:
[Radiant Self]
Most of these monsters had weaknesses to lightning, and with one swift strike, only a single battered frog remained on the scene.
"[Foggy Golden Toad]! [Lit Dragon Fish]!... What happened to you?! Quickly, get back up! I raised and taught you as if you were my own flesh and blood..."
"Fine, engage them if you must, but why destroy these little companions so thoroughly—compensate for them!" The old craftsman wailed miserably.
[Are you Master Gongshu?]
"A youngling like you knows this elder's na?"
"Has the reputation of 'First Ingenious Hand at Refining tal,' Gongshu Liang, truly beco that renowned?" he wondered aloud.
After so explanation, Master Gongshu realized that the Astral Express Crew had co to assist him.
"Oh? You're sent by the General? A misunderstanding, indeed! No matter, those trinkets—it's fine if they're broken!
"But alas, there's little I can do myself. This Artisanship Commission has been overtaken by an unknown wood elental fiend! Even our most precious treasure, the Creation Furnace, has been stolen by that wooden demon."
"That creature is formidable indeed! It sohow makes all the chanical devices around it act as if imbued with their own will, circling protectively. Anyone approaching risks certain death!"
"Yet, no matter how I ponder it, we cannot simply leave. After all, within that Creation Furnace lies..."
[Save ti - Where to go, whom to confront?]
Guinaifen decisively chose this option.
Her hands still itched for action, craving a fight—preferably not against those fragile monsters that crumble at the slightest touch. She yearned for a worthy opponent!
Using the Painted Screen of Changing Realms, they arrived at the location of the Creation Furnace. Then, employing Lustrous Flow from the Box simultaneously shattered all surrounding entanglents of the Tree of Foundation.
Having accomplished these tasks, they finally stood before the Creation Furnace itself!
"Young one, hurry and assist ! Together, let's chop down that entity before it breaches the furnace!"
Just as Guinaifen was about to step forward, Old Yang cautioned her, "Be careful! That thing is undergoing a transformation..."
The flower bud near its root system slowly unfurled, revealing... surprisingly, a deer!
Its body shimred with radiant hues, covered in golden pollen.
The Black Deer shook itself vigorously, emitting a powerful aura that radiated outward!
"Just what... kind of monster is this?" Gongshu Master exclaid, astonished.
Tingyun, however, spoke with admiration, "Truly deserving to be called a divine miracle, effortlessly creating life. This force is truly remarkable..."
"Tingyun's tone sounds off!"
"Miss Tingyun, your thoughts are quite dangerous!"
"Don't say that! I also think this monster looks pretty cool. Those shimring golden leaves are captivating!"
"Fire, Ice, and Quantum weaknesses? Seems tailor-made for Seele, huh?"
"Little Gui: "Finally, a challenge worth our ttle!"
Five minutes passed.
Scratching her head, Guinaifen couldn't help but exclaim, "This Abundant Ebon Deer is incredibly tough to fight!"
"It can even summon roots!"
"Every ti Jing Yuan gets controlled, not being able to unleash Divine Monarch's strike drives crazy!"
Watching as the Divine Monarch repeatedly missed his chance, she grew visibly flustered.
They paused the ga and opened the monster's detailed information for inspection.
"Wind resistance...and Lightning resistance?!"
"No wonder it's so hard—this thing has inherent 40% Lightning resistance!"
"Folks, it seems unrealistic to expect our main DPS to effectively deal cross-elent damage. Feathered Spirit really nailed the balance in this ga."
"But here's so good news!"
"We still have an ace up our sleeve—the Erudition powerhouse—Miss Hiko, it's your turn to shine!"
The subsequent battle went relatively smoothly.
After the Abundant Ebon Deer had regenerated twice, March 7th exclaid, astonished, "It can heal from any injury... That's just absurd!"
"...We have no choice but to temporarily retreat. Follow !"
After escaping to a relatively safe location, March 7th continued lanting, "Oh my gosh, no wonder Xianzhou fears these Abominations of Abundance! That regenerative ability is utterly absurd!"
"Miss Tingyun, do all Eternal Life Beings on Xianzhou...have such capabilities?"
"This Black Deer likely serves as a guardian created by the Tree of Foundation, closely connected to its root system. Most beings on Xianzhou don't possess such outrageous abilities..." Tingyun explained.
"The Black Deer seems to heal wounds instantly, but appearances can be deceiving. Perhaps it's drawing sustenance from sowhere." Following Old Yang's line of thought,
their next task was clear—to use Master Gongshu's Lustrous Flow from the Box and dismantle the entanglents around the Tree of Foundation wherever they found them.
Guinaifen seed quite thrilled with this mission, finding it rather stress-relieving to eliminate pollutants en masse in one go.
anwhile, on another side...
A grand procession was making its way towards the cave where the Tree of Foundation resided.
Behold!
Approaching head-on is General Jing Yuan, representing Xianzhou Luofu's local forces!
Accompanying him are the Cloud Knight Lieutenants, including his personal disciple—Yanqing!
They exude vigor and confidence, their presence commanding respect!
Next to enter the scene is the Astral Express Crew:
Welt, Dan Heng, March 7th, and Stelle,
marching with synchronized steps, each stride firm and resonant!
Following closely behind are the Stellaron Hunters: Blade, Kafka, and Silver Wolf.
Lastly,
Jingliu and Luocha join them.
Though silent and expressionless,
they steadfastly keep pace at the rear of the group, refusing to fall behind!
Amidst the crowd, Silver Wolf suddenly burst out laughing softly. "Moving as such a large group... feels quite peculiar."
Gently pulling down her goggles from her forehead, she released a small satellite from her wrist. It positioned itself to capture the entire scene.
"I need to record this mont," she said. "For posting on the 'Star Rail' forums!"
Silver Wolf's subtle action did not go unnoticed by the others. However, most paid it little heed, walking silently ahead like a mixed procession of animated corpses and living beings.
But!
***
March 7th imdiately sensed trouble brewing!
She whispered urgently to Stelle, "Not good! The Silver Wolf has caught on too!"
"She's already started recording!"
"And she plans to leak information as well!"
"No way!"
"Absolutely not!"
"We must beat her to it! We have to expose the insider scoop first!"
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