Chapter 2 Part 4: The Final Siege and Qinglong's Rampage
He threw Daozhi to the Juzi and said to the women, "Come with me it's over here."
"Return to the city." Whether true or false, they had to go.
"Moon Goddess arrived too have you seen her?"
"I have not seen Moon Goddess."
"We all serve Lord Donghuang; Moon Goddess can, I can don't you think?"
The women never imagined he'd suddenly pressure them now; as elders, their status was high injury allowed Star Soul to force them to choose sides.
"Star Soul, you are Donghuang's right arm. He is wise; plans for Moon Goddess will be arranged."
Junior Grand Commander did not respond, leaving the other to answer she emphasized the words "Donghuang."
Compared to others, Mechanism City fared better; Qin soldiers were cowed by Duanmu Rong's poison, progress was slow, while Quicksand was blocked by Ge Nie he now faced Wei Zhuang, Mohists by his side.
Bai Feng had returned; Duanmu Rong had fallen into Quicksand's hands.
When Bai Feng returned, Duanmu Rong and Xue Nu were distributing poison; Xue Nu's martial skills prevented capture, but Duanmu Rong seemed easy prey.
Quicksand wanted to use Duanmu Rong as a hostage, but Ge Nie attacked; as he blocked Wei Zhuang, the Mohists gathered to face Quicksand outside the core.
Bai Feng relayed news of Yinyang School to Wei Zhuang; his reaction was unknown.
An odd tension hung over both sides. With Ge Nie present, Quicksand's hope of annihilating Mohists vanished; they let the Empire fight.
But Wei Zhuang still threatened Mohists when did Quicksand become the Empire's lackey?
Mohists wanted to save Miss Rong and repel Quicksand, but could only watch as the fate of the Mohists hung on these two brothers.
"Xiaozhuang, what do you want?"
"Brother, do you recognize this?"
Wei Zhuang wore the Ghost Valley Master's ring; Ge Nie gazed and hid his emotions.
"In every generation, only one Ghost Valley disciple walked the world. But you broke away, postponing this duel all these years now it's time to settle it."
A great battle between the Ghost Valley twins was imminent; meanwhile Tianming, Shaoyu, and Yue'er ran into the old man Gongshu Chou.
Their convergence: Shaoyu had gone for Ge Nie, Tianming and Yue'er wandered all night, awaking to the city covered in poison mist. Yue'er and Duanmu Rong had plenty of antidotes; they braved the mist and found Mohist corpses.
Yue'er was frightened by the sight; Tianming, oblivious, led her to find his most trusted friend, and chance brought the three together.
Tianming and Yue'er didn't know Gongshu Chou, but Shaoyu as Xiang clan heir recognized him by his special mechanism hands.
Of the three, two were daring; seeing Gongshu Chou plotting evil, they followed, preparing to ambush him.
Diggers cleared the way; Yue'er quickly realized they were heading for the forbidden area.
"He's after Qinglong," the three whispered. Having just left the forbidden area, Yue'er explained all she knew.
"Just as well; if he finds Qinglong, we'll steal it."
…
"Jue Tian Lock? Ancient tech diggers, tear it down."
With the lock destroyed, the true entrance was exposed. All followed Gongshu Chou inside.
Along the way, they found mechanisms destroyed by Gongshu Chou unstoppable.
They reached a cave with several passages, one already closed clearly Gongshu Chou had chosen his route.
"All Mohist disciples know forbidden area holds more than Qinglong, it also stores forbidden creations and prized treasures left by leaders. These passages must hold different treasures."
"Why not pass the treasures to successors?" Shaoyu and Tianming wondered.
"Master Ban said, the key is innovation. Every researcher hits a ceiling; treasures are left to prevent posterity from being bound by predecessors."
"Isn't more learning better?" Both questioned Mohist thinking.
"Minds are limited, like this cave every door opened by past masters; study too much and you'll get stuck at the door, unable to come out."
"Mohist elders bring disciples to hope they'll forge a new path."
"When I begged Uncle to teach me sword, he kinda said the same."
"Maybe you're just unworthy; Sword Saint didn't think much of you."
"Nonsense Uncle taught me the Ghost Valley breathing method."
"Enough, you two let's pick a route."
"Yue'er, are these paths connected?"
"Hard to say."
"Do any lead to Qinglong?"
"Dad said Qinglong isn't dead, and for its importance, it must be in the deepest place."
"So, any path might reach Qinglong; we should split up to have a chance."
"But it's dangerous; split up and you don't know mechanisms."
"I can handle myself; Tianming?"
"I'm going with Yue'er to protect her."
…
"Shaoyu, be careful. If you hit a mechanism you can't pass, run back."
All three progressed, each gaining something, and surprisingly all reached deep inside.
Tianming and Yue'er opened a big door to find Gongshu Chou gloomily sitting inside.
"It's Old Gongshu the villain," Tianming exclaimed.
"Oh, two more for the grave one hairy kid, this little girl has smooth skin."
They tried to back out, but the door slammed shut; their efforts to open it failed.
"So Mohist disciples are this useless now can't even handle simple mechanisms."
"We're novices, but you're the clan head of Gongshu, the top expert in mechanism arts yet you're stuck like us."
"Nonsense this old Mohist stuff can't stop me."
Seeing them mock his skills, Gongshu Chou was furious.
"This mechanism opens only from outside. Easy enough, but you're trapped like me stay put." He resumed studying the city's plans.
…More or less the same, Tianming was tricked into restarting the mechanisms, leaving Yue'er in Gongshu Chou's hands.
"Little girl, smooth skin a surprise in Mohism. Stay with me."
Gongshu Chou licked Yue'er's exposed neck and groped her body with bony hands.
"Young flesh so tender."
"Pervert! Disgusting!"
"Heh, when I leave Mohism, I'll show you what old men can do. I've done lots with girls like you."
Tianming was lucky blessed by the ancestors, he managed to restart the city's mechanisms and revive the water flow.
With fresh water, the poison dissipated.
In Gongshu Chou's rage, diggers destroyed the forbidden area, revealing a passage for Shaoyu.
…
The Ghost Valley showdown was unresolved, but Juzi's return was relayed by Quicksand's sentinels.
Wei Zhuang took Miss Rong as hostage and fled.
"Want to save her come to Sanghai." Wei Zhuang's ominous words echoed, and the plot remained unfinished.
When Juzi returned, the Mohists were fighting imperial troops; Quicksand's sudden withdrawal deprived the Empire of experts, leaving them routed.
In the chaos, Gongshu Chou snuck away, and Yue'er was captured by Moon Goddess.
Juzi, under the Six Soul Curse, used up his power to save Daozhi, and perished. Tianming unexpectedly succeeded him.
A day later, Mohists activated Qinglong, burying the city.
Qinglong rampaged before vanishing, killing imperial troops en masse forcing retreat.