Living In Another World With A Farm Chapter 8437: Decision _1

A burst of white light flashed, and Zhao Hai along with Ha Jing materialized inside the secret realm. The moment they arrived, Ha Jing gazed at their surroundings and froze in shock. They stood within a structure. It was an enormous hall filled with numerous iron rings. Chains linked these rings together, hanging suspended from above. Engravings on the iron rings bore odd, enigmatic characters.

Turning to Ha Jing, Zhao Hai explained, "Grandmaster, this serves as the central hub for the city's entire mechanical system. To operate a specific mechanism, simply tug on the corresponding iron ring. Naturally, this applies only when handling individual mechanisms. For activating every mechanism at once or shutting them all down, use the two levers positioned nearby. One triggers full activation, while the other halts everything." While speaking, Zhao Hai gestured toward the side, where two short handles, each roughly a foot in length, protruded.

Ha Jing gave a nod, his eyes sweeping over the room's array of iron rings before he murmured deeply, "He truly invested immense effort here. Crafting such a vast array of mechanisms must have been no small feat, right?" From the sheer count of iron rings alone, Ha Jing deduced that this compact city brimmed with traps, explaining the abundance of controls.

Zhao Hai agreed with a nod. "Indeed, the place teems with traps. Given nearly a millennium has passed, it's no shock they devised so many." Zhao Hai understood perfectly: over a thousand years, with undivided focus and endless puppets aiding the task, just how advanced could one become in a single pursuit? Thus, he found it unsurprising that No. 1 had transformed this area into its current formidable state.

Though aware of No. 1's true name, Zhao Hai preferred not to use it, opting instead for the simpler "No. 1." This choice suited him better and aimed to sever ties to No. 1's former life, erasing memories of his old flesh-and-blood existence. Zhao Hai wished for him to embrace solely his role as a puppet, hence the persistent use of "No. 1."

Next, Zhao Hai guided Ha Jing deeper into the structure. They explored the building's scripture repository, stocked with every Jade slip from the Divine Secrets Sect. Ha Jing lifted a few Jade slips and examined their contents, nodding in approval. The records proved exceptionally valuable, covering mechanical arts, magic artifact forging techniques, puppet creation methods, and mechanism designs.

Among them sat Jade slips personally crafted by No. 1, detailing material refinement processes, mechanism layouts, puppet construction, and similar pursuits. Cultivation matters were absent, as they held no relevance for him; instead, he poured his energies into these mechanical realms. Moreover, he meticulously documented every innovation and enhancement on the Jade slips before storing them here.

Zhao Hai pondered No. 1's motives—perhaps mere boasting. In time, he might revisit these notes to reminisce on past triumphs and his former glory. For now, though, Zhao Hai reaped the benefits, filling him with satisfaction.

Following the library visit, they proceeded to the fabrication chamber. It housed countless puppets, diverse talisman matrices, and even a dedicated earth furnace for puppet assembly. All essentials stood ready. Yet, these held little appeal for Ha Jing; his focus lay on the miniature city itself. After all, prolonged stays risked shortening the secret realm's lifespan.

Rather than trailing Ha Jing through the building's interior, Zhao Hai escorted him outside the Eight Trigrams Building. Once outdoors, the full panorama of the small city unfolded before them. The bizarre structures dotting the cityscape left Ha Jing dumbfounded, leaving him baffled at their proliferation.

Zhao Hai promptly clarified the function of each building for Ha Jing. Once the explanation concluded, Ha Jing, his expression brimming with awe, declared, "This individual was a true genius. What a shame. No point scouting beyond the city walls now. I can't linger too long, lest it harm the secret realm's endurance. Time to head back."

Zhao Hai acknowledged the words and trailed Ha Jing back to the Eight Trigrams Tower. From there, they activated the teleportation array to depart. Their exit led only to the secret realm's boundary; direct passage to the Bloody Massacre Sect's islands remained impossible. Entering or leaving the secret realm demanded a specialized teleportation array, not the standard variety. Upon return, they would need to reconstruct this array.

With the secret realm's entrance now pinpointed, flying back across the Blood Sea to the sect was out of the question. Instead, they employed the teleportation array to reach the Bloody Massacre Island's outskirts. Using a portable device, direct entry to the island proved unattainable; they arrived at the perimeter and flew the rest of the way to the Bloody Massacre Sect.

Upon reaching Bloody Massacre Island, Ha Jing hurried to convene with the sect leader and elders. He didn't dismiss Zhao Hai but instructed him to remain on the island. Ha Jing recognized that, regardless of the secret realm's fate, its mechanisms and puppet arts required Zhao Hai's initial disassembly or analysis. Within the Bloody Massacre Sect, only Zhao Hai possessed the requisite skills.

In the meeting with the sect master and elders, Ha Jing recounted their secret realm discoveries. After deliberation, they resolved to assemble a contingent of elders and Array Hall members to accompany Zhao Hai inside. These elders hailed from the Refinement Realm, harboring slim chances for island master roles, and thus channeled efforts into alternative pursuits. Selected for this venture, they would join Zhao Hai, who assumed command of the group.

Zhao Hai oversaw the erection of a teleportation array within the Blood Slaughter Sect. Then, he ushered the team into the secret realm via the array. The sect's directive to Zhao Hai was clear: unravel every mechanism and revert the realm's city to its pristine condition. The city itself must remain intact; only external features required restoration.

The leadership grasped Zhao Hai's predicament, having reviewed his accounts of the city. Without subduing No. 1, breaching the defenses would have consumed months. The city's traps abounded, but the true peril lay in its integrated formation. A formation paired with traps delivered devastating synergy.

The formation in question was an illusory killing array designed to assail intruders. Standing alone, it posed manageable threat. Yet mechanisms operated stealthily, devoid of spiritual Qi signatures. When seamlessly blended with the array, they introduced undetectable assassins into the illusion. Thus, entrants faced inevitable doom.

Looking ahead, the secret realm could serve as the Bloody Massacre Sect's seed preservation site, demanding meticulous preparation. Its current setup was already formidable; even if foes located it, assaulting proved arduous. Consequently, the sect's upper echelons favored preserving the status quo. Still, Zhao Hai and his team bore the responsibility of decoding all traps therein.

Zhao Hai had learned that such secret realms, with their incomplete laws, risked total collapse under potent influences. An expert's energy surges could destabilize the realm, hastening its demise. An Island Lord might endure briefly upon entry, but a powerhouse like Ha Jing would unravel it in short order.

Time in the secret realm spanned not mere years but millennia. A realm might boast a hundred thousand years initially. An Island Lord expert's intrusion could slash that to twenty or thirty thousand. But for someone of Ha Jing's caliber, destruction might strike within years.

Precisely for this reason, the sect avoided dispatching Island Lord experts unless utterly essential. Refinement Realm cultivators, however, exerted negligible strain. Hence, Zhao Hai's expedition consisted solely of Refinement Realm members. Core and outer disciples rarely participated, save those disinterested in cultivation and devoted to array arts; cultivation remained mandatory for others.

Zhao Hai's squad numbered just two thousand. Upon entering the secret realm, he refrained from immediate disassembly or Jade slip perusal. While versed in puppets and arrays, the team lacked mechanism knowledge. Thus, Zhao Hai directed them to absorb the mechanism technique Jade slips. Only after theoretical grounding could practical application commence.

The month-long immersion in mechanism Jade slips kicked off. The entire group shelved cultivation to concentrate on the texts. Full comprehension wasn't demanded, merely memorization of contents. Failure to retain the material after thirty days meant swift expulsion from the team.

This rigorous approach sparked widespread anxiety. No one wished to depart. They recognized their sidelined status in the sect due to niche researches, leading to meager existences. Now, opportunity beckoned: mastery in mechanisms could elevate their standing, securing sect favor and improved fortunes.

Even cultivators craved comfort, particularly sect members. Without island master prospects or plum assignments, earnings stayed modest—especially for the cautious who shunned missions. They subsisted on sect allotments, barely staving off hardship, let alone advancing cultivation. Their specialized studies compounded expenses, ensuring lean lives. This very plight fueled their resolve to seize the chance.