Chapter 5: What a Marvelous Mechanism This Is

The next day.

Ning Zhuo arrived at the Flying Disc Workshop to formally pay a visit to the master of the workshop, Chen Cha.

After explaining his intentions, Ning Zhuo was smoothly led by the gatekeeper into Chen Cha’s study.

Chen Cha was an elderly man, clad in a black robe, his face lined with hardship, beard streaked with white, and deep-set eyes. He looked Ning Zhuo up and down—a youth in pristine white robes, his gaze calm and profound like a dark, still pool. Most notably, a jade pendant at his waist was inscribed with the character Ning.

“Ning clan?” Chen Cha’s heart stirred.

In Fire Persimmon Immortal City, four major powers stood above the rest. Foremost was the City Lord’s manor, governed by a Nascent Soul cultivator. The other three were the Zhou family of formations, the Zheng family of weaponry, and the Ning family of talismans.

“Junior pays his respects to Master Chen Cha, the Living Formationist,” Ning Zhuo greeted politely.

The old man gave a wry smile. “I am hardly worthy of the title ‘Master.’ As for ‘Living Formationist,’ that is mere flattery from others. Young man, if you please, simply call me Old Chen.”

Ning Zhuo continued, “My surname is Ning, given name Zhuo. I’ve heard from others that you, Old Chen, are willing to impart knowledge of formations. I have come with related questions, hoping for your guidance.”

Chen Cha replied, “Indeed, I do this as a business—specific questions, specific prices. Young Ning Zhuo, state your question so I may set my fee.”

He was in dire straits; even as the workshop master, he had to craft mechanisms himself to pay off debts. Under normal circumstances, he would not take on such consulting work, but now he had no choice but to scrape together money by any means.

A contract was drawn up and signed, binding both parties to strict confidentiality regarding the question and its answer.

Ning Zhuo then adjusted his address. “Senior, my question concerns mechanism constructs.”

“Every year during the Fire Persimmon Festival, there are casualties. I wish to design a mechanism construct to harvest fire persimmons.”

“I’ve named it the Explosive Monkey. The design is complete, save for the final hurdle.”

“Its body isn’t heat-resistant. If a fire persimmon explodes during picking, the Explosive Monkey will be severely damaged.”

“To resolve this, I believe a dynamic formation should be devised to stabilize its form.”

“Therefore, I seek your advice.”

Chen Cha stroked his beard. “Hmm… Did you bring the mechanical monkey? Let me take a look.”

He was rather unimpressed. As the workshop master, he was often consulted on puppet mechanisms. He had seen this sort of thing many times and was quite experienced.

The young cultivator before him was so youthful and had independently designed a mechanism construct—surely this so-called mechanical monkey would be unremarkable.

“Young people, after all, have limited vision and don’t know the limits of heaven and earth. Yet they are often proud, never having suffered hardship or rebuke, unable to recognize their own place or reality.”

“This Ning family youth, hailing from a great clan, is likely even more arrogant.”

He reminded himself to be mindful of his words, to avoid sounding critical—after all, the boy was paying for advice, and there might be further business to come.

After Ning Zhuo’s introduction, he promptly produced the mechanical monkey from his storage pouch.

With a heavy thud, the mechanical monkey was placed on the desk.

Chen Cha’s pupils dilated slightly!

The moment the mechanical monkey was revealed, his heart skipped a beat. Years of experience told him immediately that this construct was anything but simple.

“Be gentle,” he couldn’t help but admonish, his tone tinged with reproach. He held a deep passion for mechanism arts and cherished such creations, feeling Ning Zhuo’s handling of the monkey was a bit rough.

Ning Zhuo thought Chen Cha was worried about his desk and offered an embarrassed smile.

At this moment, Chen Cha’s gaze was locked onto the Explosive Monkey, as if his very soul had been ensnared.

As a Foundation Establishment cultivator, Chen Cha released his spiritual sense to examine the monkey.

His brows soon arched high, his expression growing increasingly animated.

Running his hand over the monkey’s bright red, sleek fur, Chen Cha could not help but praise, “This monkey hide is made from the pelt of a fire-tinder mouse. The craftsmanship is excellent—stitched seamlessly, like a single piece. The inner lining is inscribed with talismans, enhancing the fur’s toughness. The work is meticulous, the layout precise—on par with a master tailor of many years.”

Ning Zhuo was momentarily taken aback and quickly deflected, “You flatter me, senior.”

He added, “These stitches are merely basic skills, done in the most traditional way—nothing innovative, certainly nothing worth praise.”

Chen Cha’s spiritual sense swept the monkey’s skeleton. “The frame is made of celestial gold—light, tough, with spatial properties. Indeed, you’ve embedded a storage array into the frame, making full use of the material.”

“Excellent, excellent. The array is laid out with great care. The maker was clearly cautious, compressing the formation as much as possible. To achieve this degree of compactness reveals formidable formation skills. Moreover, the design allows for future upgrades—true foresight and strategic thinking.”

Ning Zhuo blinked and replied, “Senior, you truly overstate it. These are just the basics. The choice of celestial gold was by the book. As for the storage array, I did make minor adjustments, but these are all incremental, built upon prior work—nothing to boast of.”

But Chen Cha ignored him, utterly absorbed in studying the mechanical monkey.

He continued, “The musculature is made from soot-clay, further enhanced for fire resistance? No, that’s not quite it… It appears the soot-clay was refined with alchemical methods into a new material. The muscle shaping is exquisite—beautiful, truly beautiful!”

“Just this level of material shaping would qualify the maker as a second hammer at a refining workshop. For crafting small magical tools, one could easily be chief hammer.”

“And to develop a new material based on soot-clay is quite impressive. To my knowledge, this is an original creation—the result of independent experimentation. Very good, very good. Such talent in alchemy could well produce a master alchemist in the future.”

Ning Zhuo was feeling embarrassed by the praise and quickly demurred, “Senior Chen, you are too generous.”

“My attempts are still rudimentary, and these innovations lack method—merely flashes of inspiration, with many flaws and shortcomings.”

“My reason for seeking your guidance is precisely because the body material is unstable and cannot withstand high temperatures. With such a flaw, your praise is truly undeserved.”

For the first time, Chen Cha looked up at Ning Zhuo, feeling a strange sensation: for a youth to craft such a mechanism and remain so humble?

He continued his examination.

This time, Chen Cha gently spread open the monkey’s hand, his eyes lighting up in astonishment at the intricate formation embedded within the palm.

“Marvelous—truly exquisite!”

“These micro-formations are nested together, making the monkey’s hand movements dexterous and complex—capable of intricate finger actions.”

“Crucially, this configuration is highly novel, not a common arrangement, demonstrating the maker’s skill in formation and ingenuity in design.”

Ning Zhuo coughed awkwardly, his smile growing a little stiff. “Senior, your praise is misplaced.”

“These designs are nothing special—just a small integration of existing knowledge.”

“These formation designs are mere experiments; I’m still exploring. They are far from any real innovation or talent and need much improvement.”

Chen Cha glanced at Ning Zhuo again, inwardly muttering, “Is this youth not too modest? Perhaps it’s the family style of the great Ning clan—nobility in all things?”

Suddenly, Chen Cha’s eyes widened in astonishment.

He had reached the monkey’s skull and discovered that within, three Orbiting Marbles had been installed!

“Orbiting Marbles are normally attack tools—remotely controlled, able to change flight paths. But here, they’ve been modified to spin inside the monkey’s skull, serving as a spiritual sense receiver. I’ve never seen such a thing!”

“Oh, and there are numerous talismans inscribed inside the monkey’s brain for coordination.”

“Another original innovation.”

With a few calculations, Chen Cha could tell this arrangement would work.

“Brilliant—absolutely brilliant!” His eyes shone with admiration.

Ning Zhuo, sixteen, had always been reserved, never before praised so effusively to his face. The flattery made his scalp tingle. “Senior, your compliments are truly overwhelming, almost too much to bear.”

“As for this arrangement, I am still only experimenting. Its practical value and stability are yet to be proven.”

“In fact, transforming Orbiting Marbles into spiritual sense receivers was a last resort. The Explosive Monkey is meant to be sold for profit. If I used a formation disk, costs would rise significantly. So I opted for this design.”

“I still feel it isn’t the best solution—there are hidden risks and unknowns with this approach.”

Having finished his examination, Chen Cha looked up at Ning Zhuo, frowning slightly, full of doubt toward the youth before him: such an outstanding mechanism—was it truly the work of this young man?

Ning Zhuo’s humility only deepened Chen Cha’s suspicion. In his eyes, the Explosive Monkey was a superb mechanism. If he were the creator, he’d hold his head high and proclaim it everywhere—after all, this was a testament to his abilities, not something an ordinary person could achieve!

Yet Ning Zhuo’s self-effacement struck Chen Cha as excessive.

Almost as if he lacked confidence—perhaps even passing off another’s work as his own.