Chapter 153 The Floating Tree (3w5+
"We've arrived at Beikun City," Lin Chenghai said, staring ahead.
Yu Sui turned to look at him: "Beikun City?"
Isn't it an underwater mechanical city?
Lin Chenghai didn't look at her, still staring ahead, his voice slightly low: "That was its former name."
Yu Sui looked at him with eyes full of curiosity.
Lin Chenghai caught a glimpse of it out of the corner of his eye, but didn't move. He simply asked, "How much do you know about the underwater mechanical city?"
Yu Sui looked at the approaching City of Giant Whales and shook his head: "I don't know anything about it."
Lin Chenghai: "..."
"You dared to come along without knowing anything about it?" He was speechless, yet also somewhat impressed.
Yu Sui asked, "Is it very dangerous?"
Lin Chenghai thought about it again. She was a student of Taiyi Academy and a disciple of Sage Changgen. It was normal that she didn't feel any danger.
“It’s dangerous for people who don’t understand mechanical arts,” Lin Chenghai said. “I’m giving you one last piece of advice: stay on the Spirit Bird and don’t go out.”
Yu Sui flatly refused: "No."
Lin Chenghai said, "Then let's go now."
"Now?" Yu Sui turned her head in surprise, but before she could see clearly, Lin Chenghai raised his hand and waved her along as they jumped out of the Spirit Bird.
The Spirit Bird was sailing below Beikun City when Lin Chenghai and Yu Sui landed below it. Because the two were still within the Spirit Bird's protective barrier, they were spared the corrosive effects of the deep-sea chill.
The huge circular gear mechanism on Beikun City turned slowly, like a blazing sun growing in the sea, its seemingly warm light shining on every part of the seabed. Even at the bottom of the Spirit Bird, its dazzling golden light could be seen.
Yu Sui saw Lin Chenghai reach out and tap her forehead, a white jade bead falling into his palm. The five elements energy within the bead dispersed and transformed into a thin bubble that enveloped her.
She slightly opened her eyes and looked up, seeing that Lin Chenghai, like herself, was also enveloped in a thin, transparent bubble.
You can breathe freely in the water and stay dry. You will feel very light and have a floating sensation.
Lin Chenghai pointed upwards, indicating that Yu Sui should look up.
The Spirit Bird sailed forward, but the two did not follow it. Instead, they floated upwards, the golden light emanating from the gears falling on the bubbles, giving the transparent bubbles a dazzling golden hue.
The bubbles, drawn by the golden light, rose upwards.
Yu Sui didn't know if this was a Buddhist technique or a mechanical technique. She glanced at the departing Spirit Bird and wondered if the people on the helm and observation deck would notice the strangeness outside the Spirit Bird.
Or is it that it won't be detected in these transparent bubbles?
As the bubbles rose closer to the edge of Beikun City, Yu Suicai became certain that they would not be discovered.
As it gradually rose to the edge, Yu Sui caught a glimpse of this colossal creature once more: the tall buildings on the whale's tail stretched as far as the eye could see, and the blooming flowers and plants were full of springtime charm, weaving through the white walls and red tiles.
At the very edge of the whale's tail stands a gigantic, snow-white tree, its branches resembling those adorned with snow and shimmering, transparent icicles. The frost flowers clinging to it are densely packed together, creating a world apart from the spring scenery behind it.
The rising bubbles gradually lost their golden light and moved closer to the tips of the jade tree branches. When they touched the snow-white icicles on the branches, they seemed to be punctured, making a slight cracking sound. The feeling of lightness suddenly disappeared, and Yu Sui steadied herself and landed, looking up at the tall jade tree in front of her.
"The bubble that brought you up earlier is called Floating Light. It's a kind of mechanical gadget, similar in function to the Taoist instant-concealment talisman." After landing, Lin Chenghai stretched his shoulders and neck and slowly explained to Yu Sui, "When Floating Light is illuminated by the first Golden Crow of Beikun City, it will blend into the light and become indistinguishable. Floating Light will also move closer to the first Golden Crow."
“A Golden Crow?” Yu Sui turned around. “Is it that huge round gear? The mechanical Golden Crows I’ve seen outside don’t look like this.”
Lin Chenghai waved his hand and said, "That's why it's the first generation. The one outside is the fourth or fifth generation of the Golden Crow mechanism."
"The most important function of the Golden Crow here is to provide light." Lin Chenghai glanced at the Qiong Tree and walked forward. "It was built by the Gongshu family and is something that later mechanical engineers could not surpass."
Yu Sui followed Lin Chenghai forward and quietly asked, "Senior, have you studied mechanical arts?"
“The art of mechanisms is different from other kinds of arts. You can learn something by just looking at it a lot. For mechanisms with low barriers to entry, you can do them without the five elements if you have someone to teach you,” Lin Chenghai said. “So in the past, everyone could be a mechanism master.”
Yu Sui asked, "And now?"
Lin Chenghai sneered: "Now? Killing one is one less."
Yu Sui asked again, "Why?"
Lin Chenghai turned to look at her: "Didn't your Taiyi Academy teach that?"
“The academy doesn’t teach mechanical arts.” Yu Sui replied with an innocent expression. “If my senior brother hadn’t told me, I wouldn’t have been able to learn about mechanical arts.”
Lin Chenghai raised an eyebrow and asked, "What did your senior brother tell you?"
“My senior brother has told me too much, but he is also very skilled in mechanical arts,” Yu Sui said proudly. “He can also make mechanical scrolls himself and make money by selling them.”
Lin Chenghai's heart skipped a beat: "He's short of money?"
Charging money for sparring is one thing, but expecting people to work as laborers for these organizations selling their scrolls every day? That's outrageous!
"I didn't know before, but after my senior brother met me, he's never short of money." Yu Sui spread her hands, looking innocent and carefree. "I'm very rich."
Lin Chenghai forced himself to turn his head away, raised his hand to rub his temples, his emotions a jumble.
He walked forward along the bluestone path, his eyes scanning left and right, and said in a low voice, "Before the Mechanical Clan was besieged, Beikun City was transferred to Taiyi by the Gongshu Clan and sank into the sea. It became the main construction site for the four major Mechanical Clans of Taiyi and also the place where Taiyi monitors changes in the seawater."
Where were the main government buildings constructed?
Yu Sui looked around. The houses were quiet and there was no one in sight. The light of the golden crow shone brightly in Beikun City, even though it was already late at night outside. Time seemed to stand still.
She glanced at Lin Chenghai, who was leading the way.
Unlike Yu Sui, who was looking around out of curiosity, Lin Chenghai was on guard, and at the same time, he was walking with a clear purpose and familiarity with the route.
"The existence of the Sea Eye predates the initial construction of Taiyi. It was once a threat to Taiyi, as it would devour anyone who got close. There have even been instances where islands were swallowed up by several Sea Eyes working together," Lin Chenghai explained to Yu Sui as they walked along the seashore. "Back then, the sages of Taiyi were helpless against the Sea Eye and could only choose to avoid it. It wasn't until the disaster of islands being swallowed up by the Sea Eye that the sages of Taiyi began to cooperate with the Mechanists."
"The original sea eye was not man-made. It was formed by the coincidence of the five elements of the sea gathering with the wind. Because the sea air gathered with the wind could not be integrated with each other, it was like untamed and ownerless air. None of them submitted to each other. In the endless struggle, they became stronger and stronger, and thus the sea eye that could devour everything was born."
Yu Sui followed Lin Chenghai, looking like a well-behaved child listening attentively. Seeing her focused expression, Lin Chenghai felt a stronger urge to confide in her.
"Finding the location of the sea eye is to predict the direction of the seawater flow and the movement of the five elements in the water in advance." Lin Chenghai pointed down. "Although the sea eye is formed quickly, it extends and gathers from the bottom up to the center, so we must explore deep in the sea to accurately grasp the movement of the sea eye."
Although Lin Chenghai was explaining the birth of the sea eye to Yu Sui, he also concealed some information and did not tell her everything.
After hearing this, Yu Sui pretended to suddenly understand: "So the golden conch on the Spirit Bird was specifically used to detect the chaotic five elements energy in the sea eye?"
Lin Chenghai nodded: "That's one way to understand it."
Yu Sui lowered his head and thought for a moment: "If it is a sea eye born from the battle of unclaimed energy, then it must require a very large amount of the five elements energy, and it would also require a long time, a wide sea area, and a continuous supply of sea energy to give birth to a huge sea eye."
But now, the sea pores near the island are appearing like they're free, three or five popping up in the blink of an eye, and they even merge together to form larger sea pores. What's going on?
Lin Chenghai asked her, "Do you know what a 'water boat' is?"
Yu Sui shook his head: "I overheard the saints talking about this name, but I don't know what they do specifically."
"It's nothing much. It's just that a group of Taiyi Saints took the lead and joined forces with other Saints from the six kingdoms to study how to destroy the strange fire." Lin Chenghai snorted. "The Saints of the Water Boat believe that the sea eye can devour everything. If they can use the sea eye to find the legendary 'Guixu' which is capable of devouring heaven and earth, they can completely destroy the strange fire. Therefore, they began to study the sea eye and how to create it."
Yu Sui stared wide-eyed in surprise: "Was the sea eye on Mechanical Island created by the Water Boatmen?"
“Although the sea eye is a product of nature, it is highly possible to create one if enough conditions are met.” Lin Chenghai pointed upwards again. “The Taiyi Sea is large enough. The abyss sea of the Mechanical Island is in a state of chaos of the five elements all year round. It is not impossible to create a sea eye artificially, as long as enough five elements can be gathered and controlled.”
That's true.
Yu Sui still couldn't fathom how much of the Five Elements energy must be gathered and controlled to create the frequent occurrence of sea eyes. If it was Shui Zhou's experiment, it must have been planned for over a hundred years.
Thinking of Wu Huaiwei and Leng Rouyin's conversation, Yu Sui began to doubt whether the current sea eyes were part of Shui Zhou's plan, because these sea eyes posed a real threat to Taiyi, and if they were not careful, the first thing to be swallowed up would be the Mechanical Island.
"Senior, what is 'Gui Xu'?" Yu Sui looked up at Lin Chenghai and asked, "Is the current mutual devouring of the sea eyes related to finding 'Gui Xu'?"
Lin Chenghai waved his hand and said, "Then you'll have to ask Shui Zhou and his group, or go back and ask your master."
Yu Sui's heart skipped a beat: "Does my master know about this too?"
When the name of Saint Changgen was mentioned, Lin Chenghai's words carried a hint of sarcasm: "Your master has lived for so long, is there anything he doesn't know?"
Yu Sui asked, "How long has my master lived?"
Lin Chenghai turned to look at her: "You don't know?"
Yu Sui innocently replied, "I don't know."
Lin Chenghai pointed at her: "You, as my apprentice, don't even know this? You expect me to know?"
The two stared at each other for a moment, when suddenly a deep bell rang out. The sound struck their very souls, seemingly coming from a great distance, yet also very close. The continuous ringing of the bell startled Yu Sui, who looked up ahead. An invisible wave of energy spread out with the sound of the bell, causing the surrounding flowers, plants, and trees to shake and sway.
Lin Chenghai looked into the distance and sneered, "They're looking for people as soon as they get off the ship. Looks like they're in a hurry."
[Author's Note]
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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