This was something Bailu would never have dared to imagine in the past. But now, not only did she dare to think about it, she even wanted to try.
After all, with Pei Guang by her side, she had seen firsthand the amazing things he could do. With him around, she was confident that the Ambrosial Arbor could become a top-tier medicinal material.
Excited by the thought, Bailu rubbed her hands together. "So, what are we waiting for? Let's go!"
Pei Guang grinned. "Let's move out!"
Taking the lead, Pei Guang led the group to the entrance of the Artisanship Commission. He inserted the 'key' to open the gate, and the massive door swung open.
As they entered the Artisanship Commission, they were immediately met with a giant furnace, its massive structure completely entwined by the roots of the Ambrosial Arbor.
Pei Guang, however, had anticipated this situation.
Based on the feedback from Dan Heng, Seele and Silver Wolf, they knew that the Mara-struck beings here were waiting for the Ambrosial Arbor roots to reach this point and wrap around the furnace.
Pei Guang's gaze turned toward the furnace. The massive structure was already surrounded by the Ambrosial Arbor roots, and from the inside, the pathways were completely blocked by these roots, just like when they had passed through earlier with Seele and the others.
At this point, Stelle turned to Pei Guang and asked, "So, are we supposed to remove these roots first, then free the big guy in the middle so we can move through the map?"
Pei Guang gave her an approving look. "Looks like you've gained some experience. Your guess is pretty close, but... I have a feeling it's not going to be that simple. I'd wager there's definitely an elite monster around here. And... this feeling..."
He glanced down the street, and before them, the mechanical guardians that once protected the Artisanship Commission seemed to come to life, automatically defending the massive roots at the center of the Commission.
They only stopped to briefly reflect on this sight before continuing on. But as they moved a few more steps, they encountered a middle-aged man, accompanied by several autonomous mechanical soldiers, standing in the middle of the road.
Upon seeing Pei Guang and his group, the man, named Gongshu Liang, began to sing loudly, "The Artisanship Commission is a place of great importance! Thieves, retreat now! Quickly—retreat—ya-ya-ya-ya~~!"
March 7th looked at Pei Guang. "What should we do? Should we fight him?"
Pei Guang shook his head and turned to Gongshu Liang. "Let me ask you something. Are you the Master Gongshu they've been talking about?"
Gongshu Liang chuckled. "This kid knows my name? My name, Gongshu Liang, the master artisan who can melt gold and forge iron, is famous indeed! But wait... even if you know me, that doesn't mean I'll let you pass!"
Hearing this, Pei Guang looked at March 7th and said, "Got it. This is the person you're looking for, right? Let's pack him up and take him away!"
As he spoke, Pei Guang snapped his fingers. Entering hacker mode, in the blink of an eye, the machines malfunctioned due to a program conflict, and in just a moment, all of them were rendered useless.
Seeing this, March 7th excitedly spoke up, "Ah Guang, you used hacking skills, right? This is the first time I've seen you use this tech since we've been on Xianzhou!"
Pei Guang sarcastically replied, "Long time? We've only been here for a little more than a day, counting the start and end of it. Besides, there hasn't been a chance for me to use it until now."
When facing closed gates, he either threw something at them or climbed over them. When dealing with machines, he simply dismantled them and shoved the parts into his backpack.
At this moment, Master Gongshu stood there dumbfounded, while Stelle casually walked up to his side. Watching Gongshu flailing about, Stelle pulled out the War-Flaming Lance and the baseball bat.
The two menacingly-glowing weapons, appearing suddenly, left Gongshu utterly silent.
His machines exploded in an instant, and this person in front of him was drawing weapons from thin air, clearly they were no ordinary person!
After a brief pause, Gongshu seemed to suddenly recall something and hastily shouted, "Wait! Wait! She called you Ah Guang, you're the Trailblazer Pei Guang, right?"
Hearing this, Stelle looked at Pei Guang. "Eh? He figured out our identities. Should we…"
Pei Guang replied, "Hold on, let's see what he has to say. If he can't give us any useful info, then we'll…"
Seeing the exchange between the two, Welt sighed. With that kind of 'we might kill you to keep quiet' vibe, any normal person would be scared.
Welt spoke up to explain, "We're the military team sent by General Jing Yuan to the Alchemy Commission. We happened to pass by and noticed some issues here. Is there anything we can help with?"
Pei Guang glanced at Welt. "Uncle Yang, you're too polite. Actually, after we knock him out, everything in the Alchemy Commission will be ours. I've already thought it through—whether it's useful or not, we'll dismantle and pack it all up. If General Jing Yuan asks, we'll say it was destroyed by someone from the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus. With no evidence, heh heh~"
Tingyun, standing by, muttered, "Ah, master~ I'm still here, you know~"
March 7th waved her hand. "No worries! According to Ah Guang's usual habits, even if we pack everything up, we'll return it to the rightful owners in the end. He might even fix some of the damaged things and hand them back, claiming we did it to help General Jing Yuan's reputation."
Pei Guang looked at March 7th, "Even though our relationship is great, do you have to sabotage me ?"
March 7th grinned, "I'm just telling the truth, learned it from you!"
Stelle asked, "What about him? He recognized us!"
Master Gongshu quickly explained, "Wait, wait! I was saved by Miss Seele. She told me that there would be Trailblazers coming to help, so I thought you were invaders, but seeing you now, it seems you are indeed the Trailblazer squad!"
At this point, Stelle looked at Pei Guang. "So, he figured us out. What now?"
Pei Guang: "Let's wait a bit. Let's see what he says. If he doesn't provide anything useful, we'll…"
March 7th added, "If he says something interesting, we might even let him go."
Master Gongshu hurriedly continued, "I was saved by Miss Seele and the others during their fight. At the time, I was about to lead a dog and some machines to fight the enemies here, but Miss Seele saved me and I was escorted to safety by Xueyi.
Miss Seele's group took many items during their time in the Artisanship Commission. Some of them were clever machines, while others were random items like porcelain and clothes. If not for the intervention of the Judge from the Ten-Lords Commission and the Cloud Knights, I would have thought Miss Seele was some sort of bandit."
He paused, then muttered, "Not that it would have been the worst thing, though… Compared to Miss Seele, Dan Heng, and Silver Wolf, they certainly cleaned out the place better than any bandits would."