I walk sideways in the game world

Amidst the mist, an ancient stone path twisted and turned, leading to the depths of the unknown. Ren Xiaoyao and Xia Lin parted the dense vines, and suddenly their view opened up to a towering city wall, its mottled walls covered in moss, exuding an air of antiquity and vicissitudes.

"This place... seems to be an ancient city." Xia Lin looked around with a hint of amazement in her tone.

Ren Xiaoyao nodded, his eyes gleaming with excitement: "It seems we have accidentally discovered an incredible place."

The two of them entered the ancient city, where silence reigned. The buildings were well-preserved, yet deserted, as if time had stood still. Shops lined the streets, their signs bearing characters Ren Xiaoyao had never seen before, but he could vaguely make out they were ancient scripts.

"Be careful, there may be danger here." Ren Xiaoyao warned in a low voice, tightening the sword in his hand.

Just as he finished speaking, a deafening roar came from the depths of the ancient city, accompanied by heavy footsteps, and the ground began to tremble slightly.

Ren Xiaoyao and Xia Lin exchanged a glance, each seeing a solemn expression in the other's eyes. They cautiously walked toward the source of the sound, only to see a massive bronze plaza appear before them. In the center, a massive creature slowly moved its massive body.

It was a mechanical dragon, composed of countless gears and metal parts, gleaming with a cold metallic sheen. It had sharp claws and fangs, and its massive wings flapped slightly, stirring up gusts of wind.

"What kind of monster is this?!" Charlene exclaimed. Faced with such a huge mechanical creature, she felt powerless.

The mechanical dragon seemed to sense their presence and suddenly turned its head. Its scarlet electronic eyes locked onto Ren Xiaoyao and Xia Lin. It let out a deafening roar, then waved its huge dragon claws and attacked them with the force of a mountain.

"Get out of the way!" Ren Xiaoyao grabbed Xia Lin and narrowly avoided the mechanical dragon's attack.

"This is not a solution. We are no match for it!" Charlene said anxiously.

While dodging the attacks of the mechanical dragon, Ren Xiaoyao observed the surrounding environment. Suddenly, his eyes fell on a stone pillar in the center of the square. There were complex patterns carved on the stone pillar, which seemed to be some ancient text.

"Xia Lin, look over there!" Ren Xiaoyao pointed at the stone pillar and said, "Do you recognize those patterns?"

Xia Lin followed Ren Xiaoyao's gaze, carefully observing the pattern on the stone pillar, her expression gradually becoming solemn: "This is... the mechanism that controls the mechanical dragon. I know how to shut it down!"

"Really? That's great!" Ren Xiaoyao showed joy on his face, but Xia Lin's next words made his heart sink.

"But..." Charlene frowned. "Activating the mechanism requires something..." She stopped talking and cast her gaze towards the other end of the square. There seemed to be some secret hidden there... Charlene took a deep breath and pointed at a half-collapsed building at the other end of the square. "That should have been the altar. The key to controlling the mechanical dragon is likely in the altar's underground chamber."

"I'll go!" Li Hu volunteered. Although he was impulsive, he never backed down at critical moments.

"I'll go with you." Liu the blacksmith said in a deep voice. Although he was short and fat, the heavy hammer in his hand allowed him to unleash amazing power in battle.

The two exchanged glances, then turned and ran towards the crumbling building without saying anything. Along the way, rubble and broken stone pillars littered the landscape, revealing the terrifying battles that had taken place there.

"Be careful!" Li Hu grabbed Liu the blacksmith, and a huge stone slab fell from the sky, hitting them heavily in front of them, stirring up dust all over the sky.

"These damn mechanisms!" Li Hu cursed. Along the way, they not only had to face buildings that could collapse at any time, but also had to be careful of mechanisms and traps hidden in the dark.

"Stop talking nonsense and hurry up!" Liu the blacksmith wiped the sweat from his forehead. They could already see the entrance to the altar, but at the same time they also felt an invisible pressure enveloping their hearts.

At the entrance to the altar, two huge stone statues guard the gate. The statues have ferocious faces and hold huge axes in their hands, as if they will come alive at any time and tear the invaders into pieces.

"How do I get through?" Li Hu clenched the long knife in his hand. The two stone statues looked lifelike, giving him an extremely dangerous feeling.

Liu the Blacksmith remained silent. He placed his heavy hammer on the ground, pulled out a small tool hammer from his waist, and began to carefully observe his surroundings. The altar was surrounded by ancient runes, which emitted a faint glow and seemed to have some connection with the stone statue.

"Found it!" Liu the Blacksmith's eyes flashed, and he pointed to an inconspicuous stone slab on the ground and said, "The mechanism is right here!"

Li Hu looked in the direction pointed by Liu the Blacksmith. The stone slab was almost identical to the surrounding ones. If Liu the Blacksmith had not reminded him, he would not have noticed it at all.

"What should we do?" Li Hu asked. He knew that this kind of ancient mechanism was usually very dangerous and could trigger a deadly trap if not handled with care.

Blacksmith Liu did not answer. He took a deep breath and gently knocked on the stone slab with the hammer in his hand. The crisp knocking sound echoed in the empty altar. Along with the knocking sound, the surrounding runes began to flicker, the frequency became faster and faster, and the light became brighter and brighter.

Suddenly, the entire altar shook violently, and the two stone statues let out deafening roars, waving their giant axes and chopping down at Li Hu and Liu the blacksmith!

"Get out of the way!" Liu the blacksmith shouted, pulling Li Hu to roll on the ground, narrowly avoiding the attack of the stone statue.

With a loud bang, the stone axe struck the ground, causing the ground to shake and rocks to fly. Li Hu and Liu the blacksmith were shocked and their blood rushed to their knees. Before they could react, they saw the stone statue raise the giant axe high in its hand again...

At the same time, in the center of the square, Ren Xiaoyao and Xia Lin were waiting anxiously. The mechanical dragon's attacks were becoming more and more fierce, and they were almost unable to hold on.

"Why haven't they come back yet?" Xia Lin's face was full of worry. She looked up at the sky. The sun was about to set and night was about to fall.

"Wait a little longer!" Although Ren Xiaoyao was also very anxious, he knew that he could not lose his composure now. Li Hu and Liu the blacksmith were both experienced adventurers, and they would definitely be able to find the key to control the mechanical dragon.

Suddenly, Ren Xiaoyao seemed to sense something and turned back to look in the direction of the altar. His expression suddenly changed. "Oh no! They are in danger!"

Before Xia Lin could react, Ren Xiaoyao had already turned into a shadow and flew towards the altar, leaving only one sentence echoing in the wind:

"Xia Lin, prepare the potion!" The loud noise and vibration at the altar made Ren Xiaoyao's heart clench. He knew that Li Hu and Liu the Blacksmith must be in serious trouble. Without thinking too much, he increased his speed to the maximum and rushed towards the altar.

In the center of the square, Xia Lin's heart leaped into her throat. Ren Xiaoyao's words made her realize the dire situation. She took a deep breath, forced herself to calm down, and began preparing the potion. The mechanical dragon had extremely high defenses, and ordinary potions had no effect on it. She had to concoct a special potion that could temporarily weaken its strength.

Time was running out, and Charlene didn't dare to slack off. She quickly took out various rare herbs from her backpack and methodically ground, mixed, and refined them according to the recipe in her mind...

Elsewhere, Li Hu and Liu the Ironsmith were in peril under attack from two stone statues. The statues were incredibly powerful, each strike carrying a devastating force. They could only dodge them, relying on their agility and years of combat experience.

"This is not a solution. We will be exhausted to death sooner or later!" Li Hu shouted while dodging the stone statue's attack.

"I know!" Sweat was already oozing from Liu the blacksmith's forehead. The tool hammer in his hand kept hitting the surrounding runes, trying to find a way to crack the mechanism, but the stone statue's attacks became more and more fierce, making it impossible for him to concentrate.

Just when the two were about to despair, a figure rushed into the altar like lightning. Along with a deafening dragon roar, the huge body of the mechanical dragon also appeared at the entrance of the altar.

"Xiaoyao!" Li Hu and Liu the blacksmith were immediately cheered up when they saw the person coming.

"I'll deal with the stone statue, you go find the key!" Ren Xiaoyao didn't hesitate at all. He flashed and stood in front of Li Hu and Liu the blacksmith. The long sword in his hand turned into streams of light and met the attack of the stone statue.

Ren Xiaoyao's swordsmanship was extremely sharp, and each sword strike accurately hit the joints of the stone statues. Although it could not cause any substantial damage to the statues, it effectively slowed down their attack speed, buying precious time for Li Hu and Liu the blacksmith.

"Next!" At this moment, Xia Lin's voice came from a distance, and she threw a crystal bottle towards Ren Xiaoyao, "This is the potion I newly mixed. It can temporarily weaken the power of the mechanical dragon!"

Ren Xiaoyao caught the crystal bottle and without hesitation, poured the potion in the bottle directly onto the mechanical dragon's head. As soon as the potion touched the mechanical dragon's body, it turned into a puff of green smoke and quickly penetrated into it.

Roar! The mechanical dragon roared in pain, its movements becoming noticeably slower, and the light on its body dimmed considerably.

"Now!" Ren Xiaoyao seized the opportunity, and the sword in his hand turned into a flash of lightning, stabbing fiercely into the mechanical dragon's eyes.

The mechanical dragon's eyes were the weakest part of its defense. Ren Xiaoyao's sword was fast and fierce, directly piercing its eyeball. Blood gushed out, and the mechanical dragon let out an earth-shaking howl, and its huge body fell to the ground with a bang.

However, just when Ren Xiaoyao thought he had won, a black shadow suddenly appeared beside the mechanical dragon's corpse. Before he could see the shadow's true face, he heard a cold voice ringing in his ears:

"You have done a great job, but the fun has just begun..."