“Is this a robot? Why is it so terrifying?”
“Are robots created by alchemists?”
“I don’t know. In my world, robots are still in their primitive form. These things are beyond my understanding.”
…
Faced with such formidable entities, the Imperial squad felt a lingering fear. The light-element magician was busy healing the injured, while others were cleaning up the battlefield.
Two of the robots appeared externally intact. An Imperial knight attempted to inspect their internal structures, but after much effort, couldn’t leave a single mark on the mechanoid’s surfaces. This only deepened the squad’s apprehension.
Ultimately, after a brief examination, they could only hypothesize that these fearsome machines had likely never encountered magicians before. As a result, they lacked any defenses against magic. The spells had pierced their steel exteriors and directly damaged their internal systems.
This might explain why the two robots had launched frenzied attacks on the magicians at the start. They must have analyzed that the magicians posed the greatest threat to them.
The Imperial squad’s theory coincided with Shu Bao and the others’ conjecture. In truth, the fact that magic had defeated the robots had left T33674 astounded for quite some time. In his understanding, the mechanoids’ defenses were nearly flawless. Whether it was tangible external impacts, invisible sonic weapons, or certain energy-based weapons, none could kill the mechanical race so quickly and effectively.
“It must be because the mechanoid was created before the chaotic world emerged, so magic didn’t exist in their time. This unique energy wasn’t included in their defensive systems, leading to the current situation. However, this works in our favor.”
Shub Bao calmly analyzed. Both he and Fu Qing were demons, cultivating spiritual power similar to magic, so they should be capable of directly harming the robots. Likewise, Tesla’s talent in mental magic could also be effective.
At this moment, Yu Lingqi’s mind was in complete disarray. It was his first time encountering the mechanoids, his first time witnessing a battle between magic and technology, and his first time experiencing the true chaotic world. All these things beyond his comprehension gave him an almost dreamlike sense of unreality.
However, driven by the compulsive hoarding habit typical of participants, he instinctively blurted out, “Those people stored the mechanoids in their spatial storage!”
Hearing this, Shu Bao cast Yu Lingqi a rare approving look, as if saying, “This kid’s got potential.“
Then he reassured him, “Don’t worry. The Empire is always generous. Last time, they even saved us the trouble of collecting resources by gathering everything in one spot for us. This time will be the same.”
“Really?” Yu Lingqi looked at the distant Imperial squad, feeling that something seemed off.
While Shu Bao and the others discussed the Imperial squad, the squad themselves discovered the stone that had knocked down the Mechanoid’s dagger. After a brief examination, they were shocked to find that it was made of a rare metallic ore unique to the Land of Gold Sources!
The Imperial squad instantly connected the dots. The ones who had secretly knocked down the Mechanoid’s dagger earlier were none other than the targets they had been tracking—Shu Bao and Fu Qing.
“Shu Bao, Fu Qing, come out! We know you’re nearby!”
“Because you just saved us, if you come out now, I’ll plead on your behalf when we return to the Empire!”
“This Titanium Ore is a specialty of the Land of Gold Sources. You’ve exposed yourselves!”
…
The Imperial squad called out in all directions, waiting for Shu Bao and the others to reveal themselves. Yet, after a long while, there was no response or movement.
The squad’s mental magic user extended their spiritual sense outward, scanning the surroundings with magic, but found nothing. If not for the Titanium Ore, they might have thought they were mistaken.
After waiting for some time, the squad finally realized the targets wouldn’t show themselves and likely had their own mental magic user capable of shielding them from detection.
This technological city was so vast and intricate that aimlessly searching was impractical. After a brief discussion, the squad decided to ignore Shu Bao and Fu Qing for the time being and focus on exploring the city, as its value appeared to far surpass that of the two individuals.
Once the decision was made, the light-element magician completed their healing efforts, and the squad set out again. This time, however, they moved with much greater caution.
Yet, their efforts seemed to have limited effect. Defeating two mechanical beings didn’t stop others from arriving. It seemed that as long as the alarm was triggered and no resolution signal was sent, the Mechanoids would continue converging on the source of the alarm and tracking the squad.
The Imperial squad quickly noticed this pattern and found themselves on the run. Although magic was effective against the Mechanoids, their speed and agility made them difficult to hit. Each victory required the knights to risk their lives to hold the mechanical beings in place.
As the battles dragged on, the squad became increasingly fatigued. They had to rely on the mental magic user to create a spiritual domain to temporarily evade the Mechanoids’ detection.
When the spiritual domain faded, they would either resume their journey or seek a safe refuge. This game of hide-and-seek would have to continue until they either destroyed all the mechanical beings or waited for the space magician’s next teleportation ability to recharge.
Despite the constant dangers, they encountered various types of mechanical beings. While all were made of steel, they had distinct classifications. There were the flying types they first encountered, as well as swarm-like beings resembling tiny spiders. These were small, densely packed, and capable of infiltrating any crevice. They could gather to form a single entity or scatter into a swarm, making them particularly troublesome.
Additionally, there were stealthy types adept at camouflage and ambush. One such being nearly killed a magician when it silently approached in a liquid state along the surrounding structures. At the critical moment, there was a sharp ding as another metallic ore struck, saving the magician’s life.
What followed was an almost blindingly intense game of spot-the-difference in attack and defense. In the end, it was only a large-scale fire magic attack by the fire-element magician that managed to take the opponent down.
Such perilous situations occurred multiple times later, but despite the hardships, the Imperial squad reaped great rewards. Every mechanical being that came to attack them was stored in their spatial storage and any movable metal structures along the way were taken as well. All the metal in this city was incredibly rare—prying up a single floor tile was already a major gain.
Thus, even though they faced life-threatening danger at every turn, the Imperial squad didn’t give up on exploring. Instead, they grew braver with every battle. Their only frustration was that Shu Bao and Fu Qing, who were hiding in the shadows, never showed themselves. Every time they paused to rest, they made an effort to search the surroundings but always came up empty-handed.
“I’ve figured it out. They want us to take the fall for them!”
“Unbelievable! We’re Imperial knights and they’re treating us like tools!”
“Those two really are as shameless as the rumors say!”
…
Listening to the Imperial squad’s complaints, Shu Bao reached out a paw to poke Fu Qing. “They’re calling you shameless.”
Fu Qing glanced at the fluffy ball, then reached out and stroked it from head to tail. “Takes one to know one.”
Shu Bao, inexplicably petted, scowled and shuffled away in dissatisfaction. This guy really was shameless!
Still, considering how plentiful their haul had been, Shu Bao decided not to hold a grudge. With the Imperial squad blazing a trail ahead, their journey had been much more relaxed. The squad explored and they collected. The squad fought and they collected. When the squad rested, they still collected. Honestly, having a work team drop from the sky to do the heavy lifting was an absolute blessing.
This arrangement even made Shu Bao feel magnanimous—once the exploration was over, he might just let these diligent workers keep their hard-earned resources. He was generous, after all.
The chaotic world had no day-night cycle, but the ruins seemed to maintain a semblance of it. The Imperial squad’s pursuit hadn’t ceased, but the city, which had abruptly lit up earlier, didn’t stay illuminated indefinitely. Clearly, the city was cautious about conserving energy.
When the city’s lights dimmed, the number of mechanical beings sent to search for them decreased as well. It seemed the entire city had entered an energy-saving sleep mode.
The Imperial squad finally got a chance to rest. They hid in an underground vault, looted all the gold inside, and then took turns keeping watch while the others, utterly exhausted, lay down to sleep.
Even before falling asleep, they continued to grumble, complaining that this city was inhuman and that Shu Bao and that Fu Qing weren’t human either! Wait, wasn’t it true that Shu Bao wasn’t human to begin with?
Not far away, in another building, Shu Bao sneezed, then resumed moving the tables and chairs from the room. Following the principle of “take everything you can”, he even dismantled the chandeliers.
There was no way around it. The chandeliers here were not only exquisitely designed but were actually made from various precious ores and gemstones. Some of the lights didn’t even need an external power source—the gemstones themselves were energy stones, capable of self-illumination. Shu Bao thought these were much better than electric lights.
Tesla felt his skills had been challenged. He developed a strong interest in these self-powering energy stones and, from then on, began specializing in dismantling chandeliers.
Shu Bao couldn’t quite figure out just how powerful the Mechanoids was. The entire city was constructed from metal, including the tables, chairs, bowls, and utensils in the restaurants. What intrigued Shu Bao was that he found both knives and forks, as well as chopsticks in the restaurant!
Sometimes, even the utensils used for eating could reveal a lot of information. The more Shu Bao thought about it, the more he was convinced that the Mechanoids’ origins were deeply linked to humanity.
After collecting everything in sight, Shu Bao and the others stopped to rest. As for the night watch, they simply used the space in their bracelets to summon a few suitable and stealthy magical beasts, which were perfect for guarding the night. Interestingly, most of these beasts came from the Land of Gold Sources and could feed on metal. This city was perfect for livestock farming!
The next day, Shu Bao and the others were awakened by the city’s lights, which had again brightened up like daylight. The Imperial squad resumed their exploration and battles, dragging their battered and exhausted bodies through the metal city, enduring both pain and pleasure.
This day, perhaps because they were getting closer to the city’s center, the number of mechanical beings that came to search for them increased, and their strength also grew. The Imperial squad debated whether to continue advancing or retreat. In the end, they couldn’t resist the allure of the rare and precious metals, so they continued carefully moving forward.
From the shadows, Shu Bao was almost moved to tears. He even wondered if he should sneak over that night to secretly heal the hardworking employees. As he marveled, he ripped up a piece of the floorboard and pointed at the distant Imperial squad, teaching Yu Lingqi, “See? This is what a real worker looks like. Even if the boss doesn’t show up, they never slack off, never just lay around, always pushing forward, never stopping.”
Yu Lingqi: “….” How is this not just cruel exploitation? Why does it sound so motivational? He chose to lie down and be a salty fish, content to just ride the wave of attention and have enough to eat each day.
Seeing Yu Lingqi’s lack of ambition, Shu Bao shook his head in disbelief. He then poked Fu Qing, who was nearby, “Shameless beautiful teammate, aren’t you going to say something?”
Fu Qing, who was dismantling a wall, glanced down at the fluffy ball by his feet. “What’s up? Want to hold hands today?”
Shu Bao immediately scampered to the farthest corner from Fu Qing to tear up more floorboards, refusing to engage in any more pointless fur-stroking behavior!
