Magma Fairy Palace.
Room number one.
Puppet parts connected one after another, assembling into several humanoid figures.
Soon, the puppets Zhou Zhu, Zheng Jian, Ning Xiaohui, and Ning Zhuo gathered in one place.
They sized each other up.
Zhou Zhu was tall and strong, Zheng Jian had several wooden hooks circling him, Ning Xiaohui's hands were intricately constructed and noticeably different from the rest of her body.
As for Ning Zhuo...
"Wow, your head is so big!" Zhou Zhu exclaimed.
Zheng Jian nodded slightly, "Seeing it like this, you do seem to have some hidden talent."
Having died so many times, Zhou Zhu and Zheng Jian had gradually learned a lot about the secrets related to puppet forms and innate talents.
Zhou Zhu asked, "What talent causes such a big head?"
Ning Xiaohui replied, "Many. For example, Spirit Platform Celestially Clear, Talent Soaring High, Deeply Rooted Wisdom, Spirit Flying High, Divinely Bestowed Wisdom..."
Her tone was very calm, but her heart was filled with astonishment. She didn't expect Ning Zhuo to actually have a talent!
And this talent was very compatible with mechanical techniques.
Ning Zhuo had an abundance of divine sense. By the time he reached the Foundation Establishment stage, his divine sense evolved into a more refined Divine Sense, making it easier to control Slave Beasts, Gu, Soul Commanding, as well as manipulating Dao soldiers and zombie puppets.
This naturally included various types of mechanism artifacts.
"Is that so?"
"My head is indeed a size bigger than all of yours."
Ning Zhuo looked around at the group, touching his larger head with a delighted tone.
Since the banquet, after Ning Zhuo slightly revealed his advantage in divine sense, he had smoothly piqued the curiosity of others.
Ning Zhuo's divine sense was incredibly abundant, making it highly likely he possessed a related talent.
But testing for talents was quite difficult. Many rare and peculiar talents weren't easy to identify.
Zhou Zeshen came up with a good idea, "We can enter the Immortal Palace with our souls."
"Based on what we know about the Immortal Palace, our puppet bodies reflect our talents, each manifesting unique traits."
"If Brother Ning truly has a talent, it will surely be reflected in this aspect."
"The Magma Fairy Palace is the residence of the Three Ancestral Masters. Testing for talents should be no problem!"
Once this suggestion was made, everyone approved, finding it feasible. They immediately agreed to break up the meeting and return home, then set a time to simultaneously enter the Immortal Palace with their souls.
So now, everyone was gathered around Ning Zhuo, scrutinizing his large head.
Ning Zhuo had to showcase his talent in this aspect.
There was no other choice.
Once he entered the Magma Fairy Palace with his soul, the big head would inevitably draw attention.
This feature was too conspicuous!
In the future, as more people entered the Immortal Palace with their souls, this feature would stand out even more, highlighting the exceptional nature of a puppet with unique traits.
Therefore, Ning Zhuo thought it would be better to voluntarily expose this feature early, allowing him to influence the others' thoughts more conveniently.
Fortunately, there were many talents that could result in a big head.
Some talents required strict testing methods and vast resources to confirm.
Being forced to openly reveal the answer, early wisdom, wasn't easy for Ning Zhuo.
"With this, the Ning Family has two talents now, just like our Zhou Family," Zhou Zhuo thought with a sigh.
Zheng Jian felt even more burdened.
Because the Zheng Family had only him as a genius. The other two families each had two geniuses. At this rate, the Zheng Family would be left behind for a long time.
Thinking this, Zheng Jian quickly said, "Now that our three families are united, Brother Ning showcasing his talent is a great joy!"
"After all, our enemy is Meng Chong."
"He has Immortal Aptitude. Even if we add Zhou Zeshen, it's still hard to deal with him."
Zheng Jian emphasized their opponent's strength to bolster the unity of the three families.
Zhou Zhu resonated deeply, "We've seen Meng Chong before, he pushed open the door and moved like a flash of lightning, twisting and turning, instantly passing through Room Two and entering Room Three."
"With such prowess, he has definitely delved deep into the Immortal Palace, far surpassing our progress."
Ning Xiaohui snorted coldly, unwilling to just raise the spirits of others, "But didn't Meng Chong recently pass out? It shows that the later stages of inheritance in the Immortal Palace are increasingly difficult, even Meng Chong couldn't endure it."
Ning Zhuo nodded, "Immortal Aptitude is indeed very strong!"
"Let's select our rewards and open the door," suggested Ning Zhuo.
"Alright," Zhou Zhu nodded.
The four of them touched the door in succession and each chose a reward.
Zheng Jian had just planned to instruct Ning Zhuo on how to use the hangman's noose when he saw Ning Zhuo tilt his head, think for a moment, and then exclaimed, "Ah, I see how it works, I understand now."
Saying this, Ning Zhuo fired a colorful diamond, anchoring it firmly onto the wall.
Zheng Jian's heart quivered, Ning Zhuo's ability to grasp it was much faster than his own.
"Did he get the intel ahead of time?" Zheng Jian wondered.
"Let me teach you, this is how it works," Ning Zhuo offered as he saw Ning Xiaohui still exploring.
Ning Xiaohui sneered, "No need!"
As soon as she had spoken, she too successfully fired a colorful diamond.
Although she managed it quickly, Ning Xiaohui couldn't help but think, "I figured it out swiftly because I had the shared intel from the Zhou and Zheng Families. Ning Zhuo hadn't accessed any of it..."
Zhou Zhu dared only to open the door a crack.
"Any wider, and spears will shoot through the gap," Zhou Zhu said with an experienced look, "This is the maximum opening distance, I'm sure of it!"
Zheng Jian sighed softly, "At first, there was no such mechanism when we began exploring. The more we explored, the greater the challenges set by the Immortal Palace."
Ning Zhuo nodded, "I see."
Zhou Zhu continued, "After opening the door, our feet will be bound, then we'll be smashed to pieces by hammers."
"If you're fast enough to dash through, you'll be caught by a net, pulled back, and smashed to death by the hammers again."
"If we stick to the walls, sharp spears will pierce through us. Otherwise, we'll be pushed to the center and smashed to death by the hammers."
After hearing this, Ning Xiaohui became increasingly silent.
But Ning Zhuo suddenly spoke, "I have a plan that might work."
"Before that, can I ask, can we use other mechanism parts in the room?" he asked knowingly.
Zheng Jian shook his head, "No, we can't."
"Oh, if that's the case, I'll have to use you all. Please disassemble yourselves," Ning Zhuo said.
"Huh?" Zhou Zhu was taken aback.
"Do you really have a solution?" Zheng Jian inquired.
"Of course, but I can't guarantee it will work," Ning Zhuo responded.
Zheng Jian smiled, "Any solution is worth trying. What's your plan, exactly?"
Ning Zhuo then revealed his plan.
Zheng Jian and Zhou Zhu immediately wore peculiar expressions. Ning Xiaohui stepped back three times, shaking her head vigorously, "No, I won't do it this way!"
Moments later, a monster puppet with four heads, eight arms, and eight legs forcefully pushed the door open.
Its huge body stood firmly in the middle of the passageway. After triggering the mechanism, it used one of its limbs as a shield to block the spears.
Then, it raised all eight arms high, catching the falling hammer.
Deprived of enough height for a powerful impact, the hammer was nudged aside by the monster puppet, albeit at the cost of shattering three of its own arms.
"We did it, we did it!" Zhou Zhu's head cheered jubilantly.
Zheng Jian pondered, "No doubt about it, the Three Ancestral Masters are encouraging our collaboration. This fits perfectly with their mindset."
"What are you dawdling for? Hurry and disassemble us out of this," Ning Xiaohui's head couldn't bear it anymore.
Her head, placed beneath an arm like an armpit, was squeezed uncomfortably every time the arm moved.
"Oh, I'll disassemble us right away," Ning Zhuo quickly responded.
"The thought of passing through the first door like this every time feels terrible," Ning Xiaohui complained.
Zheng Jian remarked, "As long as it works, it's a good plan, practical enough."
Zhou Zhu added, "Yes, Miss Ning, your head is just under an arm. My head was between the legs. Did I say anything?"
"Sorry, sorry. Next time, I'll put Brother Zheng at the bottom," Ning Zhuo said.
Zheng Jian made a sound, "Actually, this can be discussed further."
Ning Xiaohui screamed, "I refuse to pass through this way in front of others!"
Moments later, everyone reverted to their original forms.
Both of Ning Xiaohui's arms were broken, and Zhou Zhu's torso was riddled with holes from the spears.
Zheng Jian and Ning Zhuo's puppet bodies remained relatively intact.
"Brother Ning, well done! You've given me a new level of respect," Zheng Jian said excitedly, patting Ning Zhuo's shoulder.
Zhou Zhu looked around, full of emotion. Finally, after so many tries, he stood unscathed on the other side of the door!
It wasn't easy.
"All thanks to him," Zhou Zhu's view of Ning Zhuo had risen again.
Ning Xiaohui remained silent.
Ning Zhuo suggested, "Shall we continue with the challenges?"
"Yes, I'm eager to see the wonders of the second challenge," Zheng Jian laughed heartily.
Zhou Zhu said, "Brother Ning, you go last, we'll scout ahead."
Ning Xiaohui didn't object.
Though their time together hadn't been long, Ning Zhuo's performance had already begun to win over the others.
So not long after, Zheng Jian and the others fell into traps, their senses cut off, feeling trapped in endless darkness, calling out in vain.
These traps had been set by Ning Zhuo intentionally.
He had foreseen this scenario.
With no one watching him, he used spells and the hangman's noose to easily pass through Room Two.
After all, he had designed most of these mechanisms and traps himself.
Ning Zhuo made his way into Room Three, immediately activating a large number of martial puppets.
He then activated Yuan Dasheng to guard himself.
This time, without even using spells, he walked out of Room Three and entered the preparation room.
Passing by the leaderboard, he glanced up and sighed inwardly.
There lay a flaw.
He had changed his name, now topping the leaderboard! Yuan Dasheng was no longer on it, but if he entered the preparation room in front of everyone, Ning Zhuo's name couldn't appear on the leaderboard.
This would certainly puzzle the others.
"Luckily, Yuan Dasheng is guarding Room Three now. It's uncertain if Meng Chong can pass this hurdle," he thought.
"But any exploration team of the three families, without that lightning speed, will find it quite challenging."