This was not difficult to see.
From a distance, one could see black smoke rising from the village, and some houses were clearly damaged. However, perhaps due to the distance, no sounds of battle could be heard.
Bomb Cat sat on Dun Shan's shoulder and patted his head. "Let's pick up the pace."
"Guagua, gugugugu..."
Dun Shan made a sound and then struggled to continue moving forward. Although...
His speed was still slow, but Dun Shan was doing his best.
Soon, the three arrived at the entrance of the bandit village. As expected, there were signs of battle within the village, but the combatants surprised Bai Ye and the other two.
Bai Ye picked up a giant arm from the ground. "This is a mecha's arm, right? And it looks a bit familiar!"
Bai Ye thought for a moment and then his expression cleared with understanding.
The arm looked the same as the mecha that the bandits had brought during their last raid. It should be the same model of mecha.
"But..." Bai Ye said, "something's not right!"
Bomb Cat asked, "What is it?"
Bai Ye pointed to the corpses nearby. "These people should be bandits, right?"
Bomb Cat nodded. "Judging by their attire, it's likely correct. They're all dressed as bandits."
Bai Ye went to a bandit's corpse and examined it. "Look closely at the bodies. There are no obvious sword or blade wounds. The cause of death was shattered bones. See, this section of the chest has completely caved in. It's clear the bones were pulverized."
Bomb Cat said, "They must have been smashed to death by these mechas around here. What's so strange about that?"
Bai Ye blinked and patted his forehead. "Right, you were still at the border market in the Cloud Desert back then, so you wouldn't know."
Bomb Cat asked curiously, "What?"
Bai Ye explained, "A week ago, a bandit group raided a supply convoy coming from Chang'an. At that time, the bandits had a mecha with them. Judging by its appearance, it's the same batch as these damaged mechas around here."
Bomb Cat pondered. "So, these mechas belong to those bandits?"
Bai Ye nodded. "Yes."
Bomb Cat was puzzled. "If these mechas belong to those bandits, why are they fighting them?"
Bai Ye replied, "That's what I find strange."
At that moment...
"Your hidden quest has changed."
"Investigate the secret of the mechas for the Great Wall Guardians. Quest Reward: Shadow Battle Axe x1"
Bai Ye blinked, and then a light screen appeared before his eyes. He then discovered that his hidden quest had changed.
The original quest was to help Mulan investigate the appearance of "Ghosts." Now, it had become to investigate the secret of the mechas.
Had something happened mid-way that caused the quest to change?
However, although the quest had changed, the reward remained the same: the Shadow Battle Axe.
While Bai Ye was thinking, Bomb Cat suddenly noticed something. He raised a bomb and threw it towards a mud house on the side.
"Careful, move back!"
Bomb Cat shouted to Dun Shan and Bai Ye, and then...
BOOM!
An explosion occurred.
The house was instantly engulfed in flames. The thatched roof burned fiercely in the explosion, the roof beams snapped, and it collapsed to the side.
The outer walls of the mud house developed countless cracks, and then with a crunch, a section of it caved in.
Black smoke spread in all directions.
At the same time...
Two red lights appeared in the black smoke, and the next moment, a giant fist punched out.
Dun Shan immediately rushed to the front, raising a square shield with both hands.
BANG!
A violent collision!
From the sound alone, it was clear that the punch carried immense power.
However...
Dun Shan remained unmoved!
Setting aside everything else, Dun Shan's defensive capabilities were truly eye-opening for Bai Ye. He was simply too sturdy.
Then, Bai Ye looked up ahead. The owner of that giant arm...
It was a mecha!
Bai Ye recognized this mecha. It was identical to the one the bandits had brought when they raided the supply convoy.
However, it was definitely not the same one.
The one that Bai Ye, Mulan, and Kai had jointly destroyed was still piled up in the Great Wall Guardians' camp, awaiting a letter from Chang'an to confirm if that mecha originated from Wanxiang Tiangong.
Looking at it this way, that mecha didn't seem to be a rare item after all. It was a standardized mass-produced model, and there should be many identical ones.
At the same time...
The mecha continuously raised its fists and smashed them down on Dun Shan.
BANG, BANG, BANG!
Dun Shan stood firm like a mountain, holding his shield, not moving at all. Only the ground beneath his feet cracked under the impact.
Bomb Cat moved rapidly to the side and took out a new bomb.
"One sulfur, two saltpeter, three wood, to forge your magnificent life!"
Bomb Cat shouted as he forcefully threw the bomb.
BOOM!
The bomb exploded in the air, creating a massive fireball.
The force of the explosion caused the mecha's giant body to tilt and fall to the side.
Bai Ye seized the opportunity and instantly moved to the mecha's underside, unleashing a punch.
Bai Ye did not use the poison fruit's liquid ability. He had fought it last time, and this mecha had quite high poison resistance, not easily corroded by poison.
Furthermore, using poison could easily harm Bomb Cat.
So...
Since Bomb Cat enjoyed explosions, he would too!
He wondered how many explosions this behemoth could withstand!
Thus, scorching flames surged from Bai Ye's fists, and large swathes of fire shot skyward, colliding with the mecha. The moment the flames enveloped the mecha...
"Flame Burst!"
BOOM!
A second violent explosion occurred.
This time, the explosion came from Bai Ye's attack!
The mecha was like a ping pong ball, being knocked back by Bai Ye's explosion the moment it tilted.
"I love it!" Bomb Cat exclaimed excitedly. "The art of explosion can destroy everything."
As Bomb Cat spoke, he threw another bomb.
BOOM!
The deafening roar of another explosion sounded. The mecha, unable to retaliate, was blasted and swayed by the impact of the explosions. Countless fine cracks appeared on its body, and then it toppled backward.
Before the mecha could get up, the Steel Slime rapidly wriggled its body and transformed into the Vulcan Gatling in Bai Ye's hand.
Without hesitation, Bai Ye held the Vulcan Gatling and pulled the trigger towards the mecha.
...