Ning Zhuo stood on the broad and sturdy shoulder of the Mechanical Monkey, opening the latter's skull.
Then, he took out a set of mechanism components from his storage waist belt.
It was a drum.
The drum body looked like a short and stout cylinder.
The drum body was bright red and had a polished surface, giving it an ancient and solemn appearance.
The drum had two drumheads, appearing yellowish-brown, tightly stretched, thick, and elastic.
A circle of copper nails was embedded around the drumhead, each nail head being quite smooth.
On the drum body, there were numerous patterns and designs depicting a battlefield. Warriors from both sides were engaged in a bloody struggle, all roaring with fury.
This was the Rampant Thoughts Chaotic Drum—mechanism components—claimed by Ning Zhuo from the Magma Fairy Palace.
Beating this drum produced a deep and resonant sound that echoed in the mind, capable of forming various chaotic and irritable thoughts and emotions.
The orthodox use was to strike it during combat, affecting surrounding enemies, causing them to fall into a state of rage and lose their rationality, leading to various flaws.
But Ning Zhuo thought he could use this drum to help the Mechanical Monkey think.
Various chaotic and irritable thoughts were still forms of thinking. However, the result was often furious attacks, disregarding its safety to kill the enemy!
"That doesn't matter."
"Yuan Dasheng's spiritual nature had already advanced to the Wisdom Spirit stage, and he already had strong cognitive abilities."
"Using Yuan Dasheng's spiritual nature could suppress the chaotic thoughts, preventing it from losing rationality completely."
"Of course, if the drum was played for an extended period, the chaotic thoughts would fill the mind, overwhelming Yuan Dasheng's rationality."
But this was precisely the state Ning Zhuo desired.
At that time, Yuan Dasheng would become completely berserk. According to the mechanism arrangement on him, he would explosively unleash at least twice his combat power!
Ning Zhuo had already lifted the Mechanical Monkey's skull. After taking out the Rampant Thoughts Chaotic Drum, he inspected it to ensure it was intact, then placed it inside the monkey's skull.
A base had already been prepared inside the skull.
The Rampant Thoughts Chaotic Drum was placed on the base.
Ning Zhuo took out several round rods, each capable of folding in the middle. He inserted the rods into the base, then bent the middle section of the rods, inserting the other end into the mechanism socket of the drum body.
Ning Zhuo infused mana, lightly activating it, and a drum sound immediately rang out, echoing inside the skull.
After confirming it was working, Ning Zhuo began arranging the inner wall of the skull.
He took out a talisman brush, drawing on the inner wall, and pulled out dozens of talismans from his pocket, sticking them each in place, even covering the inner wall of the skull.
After completing these, he reattached the skull.
"I should set up a resonance formation, but for now, the talismans will suffice."
Ning Zhuo was drenched in sweat from his urgent work, not daring to relax even for a moment, let alone rest.
"Elder Sun is in a dire situation; I must race against time and give my all to buy more time for him!"
"Sigh, it must be because of me that he's in trouble."
"My Divine Power Life Thread hangs over his head. If I am impacted, he becomes collateral damage."
"In fact, if not for me, he could have left Fire Persimmon Immortal City long ago."
"But he stayed all this time, wanting to help me, to protect me."
"For someone like him, staying hidden in these underground bases is worse than death. Yet, he's endured it all without a single complaint."
"It will be alright; it will be alright!"
"These days, I have been working hard to gain recognition, planting the Life Thread in many people."
"My divine power is complete, able to borrow others' fortunes. With a substantial fortune foundation, I can counteract the misfortunes."
"So, Elder Sun, you will be fine!"
"Elder Sun, please don't get into trouble."
While hastily equipping the Mechanical Monkey, Ning Zhuo was also trying to adjust his emotions.
Underground base.
Inside the Ghost Mist Whirlpool.
"Hehehe, caught you, Sun Lingtong!" Yang Chanyu had a foolish smile, her eyes filled with affection, enough to make one's heart flutter.
"Yang Chanyu, calm down, calm down!" Sun Lingtong was held tightly by Yang Chanyu, struggling with all his might but to no avail.
"Wait, let go of me, let go of me; I can't breathe!"
His face was buried in Yang Chanyu's chest, almost suffocating.
Yang Chanyu giggled, tightly hugging Sun Lingtong, swaying her body as if trying to absorb him into herself.
Ghostly energy enveloped Yang Chanyu entirely, filling her mind with boundless lust, leaving her devoid of reason.
At the brink of life and death, Sun Lingtong, in desperation, made a breakthrough!
"Empty Seal!!" He pushed himself to the limit, calling out the seal of the Treasure Seal in an unprecedented frenzy.
The seal emitted a faint glow, spreading from Sun Lingtong's body to Yang Chanyu's.
It worked!
Yang Chanyu immediately showed hesitation and struggle, with many of the ghostly seduction energies being expelled from her body.
She released Sun Lingtong, but her hands still held his arms tightly.
"They're breaking, they're breaking!" Sun Lingtong shouted, "Yang Chanyu, wake up!"
Yang Chanyu's expression constantly fluctuated between infatuation and clarity.
Sun Lingtong, suppressed by the ghost fog and restrained by Yang Chanyu, was still trapped, unable to break free.
"Little Zhuo, Little Zhuo, come save me!"
Sun Lingtong's pupils contracted as he saw Yang Chanyu wavering, her expression once again turning infatuated. She giggled foolishly and leaned in to kiss Sun Lingtong.
Sun Lingtong turned his head to the right, avoiding the kiss.
Yang Chanyu pulled back and leaned in again.
Sun Lingtong turned to the left, dodging Yang Chanyu's lips once more.
Yang Chanyu tried again and again, while Sun Lingtong dodged left and right.
Having failed repeatedly, Yang Chanyu laughed seductively: "Little brother, I didn't think you'd be so shy. But it's useless!"
Saying this, she activated a secret technique—Sunrise Yin Replenishment!
"This is bad, this is bad!" Sun Lingtong's face turned red with urgency. He was bound and could only be hit by the technique.
"This is bad!" The same exclamation appeared in Zhu Xuanji's mind.
Leading the Golden Cores from three families, he had delved into the depths of Fire Persimmon Mountain, reaching the heart of the Magma Demon Ape's palace.
Not only had they been ambushed, their attempts to break out had failed, and now they were cornered by waves of Demon Apes.
Zhu Xuanji stood at the forefront, forming a defensive line by himself!
Since the battle began, he had continuously unleashed magical treasures, displaying personal combat prowess far superior to that of the three families' Golden Cores.
With furrowed brows, after repelling yet another Golden Core-level Magma Demon Ape, he squinted at a distant cave entrance.
"Look over there. There is a cave entrance. Whenever we chose that direction during our break-out attempts, the Demon Apes became highly anxious and fortified their defenses."
"That cave likely leads to the outside!"
Zhu Xuanji conveyed his speculation through voice transmission.
"It could also be an ape nursery." Zhou Nongying, who had retreated to the rear for self-healing, added.
Zhu Xuanji continued, "Soon, I will release a Quasi Golden Core-level mechanism artifact towards that direction to draw the Demon Apes' defenses."
"With their attention diverted, there will be vulnerabilities in other areas. We will strike elsewhere, seize the opening, break through, and return the way we came!"
Zhu Xuanji instructed the three families' Golden Cores to prepare and then began a countdown.
When he reached "one," he shouted, "Go!"
Zhu Xuanji released a tiger-shaped mechanism artifact, which charged towards the cave entrance.
As he expected, the Golden Core-level Demon Apes reacted anxiously, swarming to stop the tiger-shaped mechanism.
"Move!" Zhu Xuanji charged forward, exploiting the Demon Apes' defensive gaps.
Roar.
In the next moment, the Fire Mingle Demon Ape King descended like a demon god, intercepting Zhu Xuanji's advance.
Seeing Zhu Xuanji blocked, the three families' Golden Cores behind him also attacked.
However, their various spells had minimal effect on the Demon Ape King, reducing their power by at least thirty percent.
Instead, they awakened the ferocity of the Demon Ape King, who roared and sent Zhu Xuanji flying with a combination of punches and kicks.
It then attacked the three families' Golden Cores.
The Golden Core cultivators panic and scatter, causing the Demon Ape King to miss its target.
Zhu Xuanji suddenly shouted, "Don't resist me!"
He then took control of the previously charging tiger-shaped mechanism.
The tiger-shaped mechanism, badly damaged and on the brink of collapse due to the siege of several Golden Core-level Demon Apes, instantly shot out several beams of light under Zhu Xuanji's control.
The beams of light struck the human Golden Core cultivators, exerting a powerful and irresistible force of attraction.
Since Zhu Xuanji had forewarned them, the three families' Golden Cores did not resist and allowed the light beams to pull them.
The tiger-shaped mechanism directed the light beams, swiftly moving towards another direction.
Roar!!!
The Fire Mingle Demon Apes roared in unison, falling into a frenzy.
With the human Golden Cores being pulled at breakneck speed, they reached the far side in the blink of an eye.
And this side was precisely the entrance to the cave mentioned earlier.
"Hahaha, well done, Lord Zhu!" Ning Jiufan laughed.
"Let's go in, leaving these Fire Mingle Demon Apes helpless!" Zhu Xuanji led the charge again.
Throughout the battle, he had always taken the lead. His valorous demeanor earned the admiration of the three families' Golden Cores.
"No good!" In the next instant, Zhu Xuanji abruptly stopped, exclaiming in surprise.
The three families' Golden Cores all looked up, their faces changing.
They saw an old ape awakening from its slumber, slowly opening its eyes. Its aura was unmistakably of the Nascent Soul level.
Roar, roar.
Outside the cave entrance, the Golden Core-level Demon Apes crowded together, none daring to enter the cave.
Trapped midway, the human Golden Core cultivators faced a Nascent Soul-level old ape ahead and several Golden Core-level Magma Demon Apes behind, making their situation dire.
"This is bad!"
"There is a Nascent Soul-level demon monkey among the Demon Apes!!"
"Why did it not appear earlier when the Magma Fairy Palace was shaking?"