Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump…
The Vulcan Gatling roared, its barrels spewing fire, then spinning as bullets poured forward, striking the automatons.
The automatons' bodies were already damaged from explosions. Now, they could no longer withstand the assault. Fragments began to peel away from the cracks on their bodies, and finally, they collapsed to the ground, their smoke billowing, completely still.
Bai Ye and Bomb Cat breathed a sigh of relief, but in the next instant…
Thud, thud, thud!
Heavy footsteps echoed.
Bai Ye couldn't help but turn his head and saw three new automatons emerging from the village.
Bai Ye grinned, "Is this ever going to end? How many of these things are there?"
Bomb Cat replied, "It seems entering the village won't be easy."
Bai Ye nodded, "Let's fight!"
The three automatons were a bit troublesome, but not impossible to deal with. Moreover, Bai Ye had a trump card. He still had one draw left on the gacha machine, and one designated gacha pull.
As long as he wasn't unlucky and didn't get anything bizarre, Bai Ye wasn't worried.
As the three automatons drew closer, Bai Ye and Bomb Cat entered combat mode again. Shield Mountain raised his shield, ready to block attacks for them.
But at this moment…
Bang!
A gunshot rang out from a distance!
The next instant, the back of an automaton's head exploded.
Its entire head shattered, a large fireball erupted and spread outwards. Then, the automaton toppled backward, crashing to the ground.
Bai Ye blinked, "Reinforcements?"
"Tch!"
Bomb Cat scoffed with disdain.
Bomb Cat grumbled, "That annoying guy is here."
At this moment, a figure darted rapidly across the rooftops, heading towards the three of them. It was Shou Yue.
"The back of the head," Shou Yue said, holding a uniquely shaped sniper rifle in one arm and pointing to the back of his head with a finger. "The crystals behind the automatons' heads are their power sources. If you shatter the crystals behind their heads, you can destroy them."
A weakness?
Bai Ye's eyes lit up. That made things easier!
Bai Ye immediately said, "I'll do it!"
Bai Ye quickly sprinted forward, but instead of directly confronting the automatons, he circled around to the side.
An automaton raised its fist and slammed it down towards Bai Ye.
Bang!
As Bai Ye leaped deep, the fist fiercely struck the ground.
With a thunderous roar, the massive fist shattered a piece of the ground.
As Bai Ye descended from the air, he casually stepped on the automaton's arm, then leaped forward again, stepping onto its shoulder. Using the momentum, he sprang upwards.
Bai Ye soared over the automaton's head and indeed saw the crystal Shou Yue had mentioned. He reached down, and a mass of black sludge erupted from Bai Ye, transforming into flying swords that stabbed downwards.
Clang, clang, clang…
The crystal was harder than expected, but on the third strike, it could no longer bear the strain and finally shattered completely.
Light spilled from the crystal, and then…
Boom!
An explosion sounded.
The crystal suddenly detonated, directly blasting the automaton's head to smithereens. Then, the automaton's massive body toppled forward.
On the other side, Shield Mountain immediately positioned himself in front of the automaton.
The giant fist descended, colliding with Shield Mountain's shield with a loud clang.
Bomb Cat immediately tossed a bomb he was holding into the air. Then, a roaring explosion occurred, causing the automaton's body to stagger backward.
With the automaton temporarily incapacitated, it was convenient for Shou Yue to aim.
Bang!
Shou Yue stood on the rooftop, swiftly pulling the trigger.
The next instant, the crystal behind the automaton's head instantly shattered. As the crystal broke, a roaring explosion erupted, and the automaton's entire head was blown to pieces. Then, the headless automaton fell forward.
Bai Ye said, "This time, they shouldn't appear again, right?"
Shou Yue leaped down from the rooftop and said, "According to my reconnaissance, there shouldn't be any more automatons. These are the last three."
Bomb Cat asked, "Where's Sister Mulan?"
Shou Yue replied, "Sister Mulan and Brother Kai spotted suspicious individuals and should be back soon."
As Shou Yue finished speaking, Mulan and Kai appeared at the village entrance and slowly walked into the village.
Shou Yue asked, "Sister Mulan, did you catch them?"
Mulan's face showed disappointment. "No, those guys were too fast. And they seemed to know sorcery, their movements were elusive, making them impossible to catch."
After speaking, Mulan looked at Bomb Cat and Shield Mountain, her face showing a slight smile. "You two are back? How did things go in the Cloud Desert?"
Bomb Cat patted his chest. "You can count on me. The situation in Guan City is safe. We not only repelled the bandits who attacked Guan City but also followed the trail to their stronghold. Other bandit forces, like sharks smelling blood, are planning to divide their territory, so they won't bother Guan City for a while."
"Well done," Mulan said, smiling as she ruffled Bomb Cat's head. "Let's head back first."
"Going back already?"
Bai Ye glanced at the screen. His mission wasn't complete yet. "Didn't we not find anything?"
"The suspicious individuals have escaped. If we couldn't catch them, there's nothing we can do," Mulan said. "However, it's not entirely without findings. Those automatons all have carvings from the Ten Thousand Phenomena Workshop, confirming that this matter is related to Chang'an."
"After all, if there was only one automaton, it might be a replica. But with so many, it's impossible."
Bai Ye asked, "Has Chang'an replied yet?"
"How could it be that fast?" Mulan replied. "With the back and forth, it will take at least seven or eight days. So, we still have to wait."
Hearing this, Bai Ye was relieved. He had spent several days in the Honor Arena, and if the clues from Chang'an were lost, this matter would be difficult to handle.
The group left the bandit village and began to retreat towards the Great Wall. When they returned to the outside of the Great Wall, the dense horde of demonic creatures had retreated, and the Great Wall defense forces were clearing the corpses.
Bomb Cat chuckled, "The Great Wall is still safe today."
But at this moment, a Great Wall defender ran up to Mulan and said solemnly, "Lord Mulan, General Su Lie is injured."
…