363: Chapter 7 Ma Xianhong

Seeing the white puppet and the strange creature with a lion's head and an insect's body, Meng Li was momentarily stunned, then thought to himself, 'Just when I thought all hope was lost, another village appeared.'

Because he had an impression of these two non-human entities; they were creations of Ma Xianhong using the Divine Mechanism Hundred Refinements.

The white puppet was called Bai Ou, and it seemed to be the first mechanical puppet Ma Xianhong ever made.

The strange creature with a lion's head and an insect's body was an offensive Magical Artifact.

Since they appeared, it meant Ma Xianhong was likely nearby.

As for the two youths being pursued, Meng Li had no impression of them.

As the distance between the two parties closed, the two youths also noticed Meng Li.

The yellow-haired youth's expression shifted slightly, and he shouted towards Meng Li, 'Stop standing there foolishly, run quickly!'

The purple-haired youth slightly shifted his body and casually flicked his fingers towards the closing Bai Ou and the lion-headed Magical Artifact. With every flick, a sharp burst of Qi shot out from his fingertips.

For a moment, several bursts of Qi struck the Bai Ou and the lion-headed Magical Artifact respectively, forcing them to dodge.

Meng Li narrowed his eyes, surprised internally.

Because the purple-haired youth's technique strongly resembled the Finger Flickering Technique.

Just then, a figure chased up from behind.

Light pinkish-gray long hair, white bandages wrapped around his forehead, and a mole directly beneath both eyes.

He wore white clothes, was barefoot, and had ornaments around his wrists, ankles, and neck.

Meng Li's eyes brightened, as the person chasing them was precisely Ma Xianhong.

Seeing Meng Li, Ma Xianhong unconsciously frowned, then took out a long-handled golden bell from his robes and shook it gently.

Instantly, a crisp ringing sound erupted, spreading out with an invisible force.

The yellow-haired youth and the purple-haired youth immediately lost focus, their running paused, and their bodies pitched forward due to inertia, causing them to fall to the ground in a prone position.

Meng Li, not far away, keenly sensed the anomaly.

The sound emitted by the long-handled bell could attack the Soul, but its effect on him was almost negligible, only making him feel like a slight breeze had passed by; the Beiming Fish guarding his inner landscape also showed no reaction.

Ma Xianhong noticed that Meng Li was unaffected and immediately looked surprised.

Then, he stopped, recalled the Bai Ou and the lion-headed Magical Artifact, and asked Meng Li, 'Are you also an Awakened one?'

Meng Li nodded and pointed at the two youths climbing up from the ground, 'What is going on here?'

Ma Xianhong said, 'Originally, I shouldn't say, but since you are also an Awakened one, it doesn't matter. My name is Ma Xianhong, and I plan to form an Awakened team. I am currently recruiting. These two were my targets for recruitment this time, but they weren't entirely convinced and wanted to test my skills.'

'And then it turned out like this.'

After speaking, he looked at the yellow-haired youth and the purple-haired youth and asked with a smile, 'Are you convinced now?'

The yellow-haired youth nodded: 'Convinced.'

The purple-haired youth did not respond nor object, which was taken as tacit agreement.

Ma Xianhong immediately took out two transparent bags from his pocket and threw one to each of them.

Each bag contained a bead and a Black Pipe.

Ma Xianhong then introduced, 'These are gifts for joining my team: a Protective Pearl and a Qi Gathering Blade. The Protective Pearl mainly defends; just keep it on you, and it will automatically resist malicious attacks. The Qi Gathering Blade requires Qi to activate; once activated, it forms a Qi blade, which is sharper than most knives.'

Upon hearing this, the two tried them out and found that the effects of both Magical Artifacts were exactly as Ma Xianhong described.

Meng Li looked on with surprise.

Ma Xianhong noticed this and smiled, 'Since you are an Awakened one, why don't you join my team as well?'

'I can also give you two Magical Artifacts.'

Meng Li was astonished, 'This is the first time we've met, and you're inviting me without even knowing my name or abilities. Isn't that a bit too rash?'

Ma Xianhong said, 'Meeting is fate; I go with the flow. The fact that you were unaffected by the Soul Shaking Bell proves you have extraordinary capabilities, worthy of my invitation.'

'As for your name...'

'Let me reintroduce myself. My name is Ma Xianhong, and my ability is Artifact Refining.'

'And yours?'

Meng Li replied, 'Meng Li, my ability is Observation.'

'Observation?' Ma Xianhong raised an eyebrow slightly.

'That's right,' Meng Li nodded, then briefly explained, 'I can obtain some information, even abilities, by observing a target.'

Hearing this explanation, Ma Xianhong was somewhat surprised.

Because this was the first time he had heard of such an ability, and it felt somewhat mysterious.

The purple-haired youth beside him couldn't help but mutter, 'Sounds a bit like fortune-telling.'

Meng Li smiled, 'It's not wrong for you to understand it that way. However, I have a small probability lottery draw that fortune-tellers don't have.'

A flicker of thought crossed Ma Xianhong's eyes, and he tentatively said, 'Then, Mr. Meng, why don't you observe the three of us and see what you can gain?'

'Sure,' Meng Li readily agreed, then looked at the purple-haired youth who had just muttered, and quietly activated the Daluo Cave Observation.

Instantly, an information stream visible only to Meng Li shot out from the purple-haired youth, reflecting in Meng Li's inner landscape and forming two lines of text.

After reading it, Meng Li directly addressed the other person, 'Your name is Zhong Xiaolong, you are an Acquired Awakened one, and your ability is the Finger Flickering Technique.'

Ma Xianhong, Zhong Xiaolong, and the yellow-haired youth Ding Zihuan were all astonished.

Because Meng Li was correct, and they were certain this was the first time they had met Meng Li, and vice versa.

At this moment, Zhong Xiaolong noticed Meng Li couldn't help but curve his lips upwards after speaking, and immediately asked, 'What are you smiling at?'

Meng Li replied, 'Nothing, I just thought of something happy.'

'What happy thing?' Zhong Xiaolong asked.

'A relative of mine just had a baby.'

Zhong Xiaolong: '...'

Ma Xianhong said, 'Sir must have gained something from observing Zhong Xiaolong, right?'

Zhong Xiaolong was startled and fixed his gaze on Meng Li.

Ding Zihuan also looked sideways.

Meng Li pondered for a moment and frankly admitted, 'Indeed, I gained a little.'

Saying this, he flicked his finger, and a burst of Qi shot out, hitting a tree nearby, leaving a hole on it with a dull thud.

Ma Xianhong and Ding Zihuan looked surprised.

Zhong Xiaolong's pupils constricted.

Because the technique Meng Li used was the Finger Flickering Technique, and its power was even greater than what Zhong Xiaolong had used earlier.

Seeing this, Meng Li asked Ma Xianhong and Ding Zihuan, 'Do you two wish to continue?'

Ding Zihuan looked hesitant.

Ma Xianhong, however, was quite interested, 'Of course. We agreed you would observe all three of us. Observe me first.'

Meng Li looked at Ma Xianhong and activated the Daluo Cave Observation.

A moment later, he withdrew his gaze.

Ma Xianhong immediately asked, 'How was it?'

Meng Li carefully replied, 'Your name is indeed Ma Xianhong, you are an Acquired Awakened one, and your ability is Artifact Refining, but due to a secret inherited technique, you are different from ordinary Artifact Refiners.'

'Did you gain anything?' Ma Xianhong asked.

Meng Li shook his head, 'Your Legacy belongs to a secret art and is of great consequence. Furthermore, there are traces of another secret art on you.'

'The combination of the two makes it difficult for me to see the full picture.'

Ma Xianhong narrowed his eyes, feeling shocked and suspicious.

The secret art he inherited was only the secret inherited technique, the Divine Mechanism Hundred Refinements; where did the other secret art come from?

'Is there anything else?'