Pei Yan looked down at the few sheets of paper with eerie drawings handed over to him, glanced left and right, unable to understand their meaning, then looked up at Yao Xuefang: "What is this?"

"Do you remember that strange man from the mission by the pond that day?" Yao Xuefang asked in return.

How could Pei Yan forget that battle that nearly cost him his life? He nodded slightly, still puzzled, "Is there any connection between the two?"

"That type of strange man, as we learned later, is called a Devouring Demon. His creation process is very complex and inhumane. We still haven't figured out his weaknesses and methods, but this!" Saying this, Yao Xuefang pointed at the blueprint in Pei Yan's hand and said, "This is one of the results of our recent research. It's the array inscribed on these Devouring Demons by the Daoist Realm, providing energy through Spirit Stone-infused inscriptions."

"Oh! You mean?" Hearing Yao Xuefang's words, Pei Yan quickly thought of what she intended to do.

"Yes, just as you thought, such an array cannot be directly applied to ordinary human bodies because even cultivators can't endure the erosion of Spirit Stone-infused inscriptions on their bodies, let alone that they don't need it, as they already have their own defensive techniques. But, if this could be applied to equipment....!"

"That would be equivalent to an energy shield!" Pei Yan, still recalling the defensive layer on the Black-robed Man that day, couldn't help but feel envious. He had once asked the system if he could sustain a force field shield like in science fiction movies. The system told him that with his current capabilities, he couldn't achieve this, setting aside his technical limitations and the energy supply. Even if he absorbed Song Mingyuan's lightning ability, the shield's maintenance would last less than ten seconds based on his current storage level.

"Exactly! So now we are exploring the feasibility of attaching such arrays to technological equipment. On the day of the meeting, I saw you successfully replicated the array on the Divine Desire Nanomechanical Insect and activated it with the Origin. I was thinking, could you apply such an array to your mechanical body?" Yao Xuefang finished, looking expectantly into Pei Yan's eyes.

Pei Yan lowered his head again to gaze at the blueprint in his hand, thought for a while, extended his left mechanical arm, focused on the blueprint while inscribing similar array runes onto his arm.

Once the entire mechanical arm was successfully inscribed, Pei Yan put down the blueprint and gazed at his left arm. Slowly, he injected the Origin into the engravings, and when the last stroke was completed, a blue light flashed, and Pei Yan cried out in anguish, collapsing to the ground.

"Ugh... ahhh!" Gritting his teeth to suppress the cry due to the excruciating pain, Pei Yan was both amazed and shocked by the distinct sensation of pain emanating from his left mechanical arm.

"Pei Yan, how are you? If you can't take it, just give it up! We'll figure something else out!" Yao Xuefang and the others, seeing Pei Yan clutching his left arm with large beads of sweat dripping from his forehead, quickly helped him up with concern.

Pei Yan waved his hand; the intense pain only occurred at the moment the array first activated. Now the pain was gradually subsiding. He wiped the sweat from his forehead, panting heavily, relieved to see that his flesh was unharmed after removing the mechanical arm.

Over the next two hours, Pei Yan carefully inscribed the arrays from the blueprint all over his mechanical body. By the time the last stroke was completed and activated, Pei Yan, repeatedly subjected to painful stimulation, had bloodshot eyes and was drenched in sweat as if he had just been fished out of water.

"It doesn't have to be completed in one day. You could inscribe a little every day," Yao Xuefang gently suggested, unable to bear his current state.

"If I keep procrastinating to become stronger, then in the future, even if I'm dead, there'll be nowhere to complain," Pei Yan thought of He Yue kneeling and begging for mercy; he never wanted to become like that!

Having done all this, Pei Yan was too exhausted to test the new array's effectiveness. Gu Shenghui noticed his poor condition and instructed Hu Wenjun to take him straight back to the investigation hall.

Upon returning to the empty dormitory, a physically and mentally exhausted Pei Yan remembered his roommate was still enjoying the last day of vacation. Unwilling to even get food, he collapsed into bed and quickly fell into a sound sleep. The whole night he slept well and peacefully, and Liu Yu, who had threatened to give him nightmares, didn't appear in his dreams even once.

While Pei Yan was sleeping soundly, Wang Wenze and others were enjoying their vacation by the sea. That same night, Mu Fanchen and his group transferred from a luxury yacht to a waiting small boat, silently infiltrating the domestic sea region.

"How is the domestic setup?" Mu Fanchen pulled out a bottle of whiskey from the storage ring and poured a glass for Mu, who had come to pick them up on the boat.

Mu took the glass and lightly traced his fingers over the ice; the glass was immediately covered in frost, the surface coated in white rime. He took a sip and said casually, "The preliminary preparations are mostly done, but I have a feeling the investigation hall might have noticed something."

Mu Fanchen sat across from him, crossing his legs, and asked, "What do you mean?"

"Too calm! Too smooth!" Mu tapped the glass lightly with his hand. Indeed, it was too calm! No plan could be flawless; the investigation hall's people weren't fools, and what they did wasn't impenetrable. Yet nothing had gone wrong so far, which made the atmosphere feel eerie.

"Even if we're noticed, I wouldn't find it strange," Mu Fanchen replied, lazily leaning back on the sofa. Then, turning to Mu with a smile, he said, "But with such a big net this time, we'll definitely catch a fish or two."

"But that means the years of effort put into organizing within Huaxia will go down the drain! Is it worth it?" Mu finished his drink in one gulp and spoke with unconcealed reluctance.

"You have to give to get; there it is destined to become a battleground of bloodshed and strife. Rather than letting those otherworldly individuals destroy it, I'd rather be the one to fire the first shot."

In the dim light, looking at Mu Fanchen's unpredictable face, Mu cautiously asked, "Wasn't it said that divine descent would take a few more years?"

"In the face of this flamboyant world, those people can't wait anymore!" Mu Fanchen pointed upward with his finger as he spoke, "In the eyes of those Immortal Mages, we're just lambs on the chopping block, ready to be carved up. They've already run out of patience to feast, but who will end up on someone else's dinner plate remains to be seen."

Mu followed Mu Fanchen's pointed finger upward and understood whom he meant, mockingly remarked, "I know there will be people assigned to assist on this mission, but I didn't expect it to be these otherworldly individuals. These arrogant folks who never do anything without gain, why would they lower themselves to take risks this time?"

"Because there's something they want there!"

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