Qin Zhen was hiding inside the spatial treasure, so even if she fell from a high altitude, she wouldn't be killed by the impact.

However, the fate of Puppet Yama, weighing tens of millions of catties, was uncertain. Once this puppet lost Qin Zhen's control and its spirit energy was extinguished by the demonic fire wind, it would plummet from such a height onto Wind Flame Mountain. Even if it wasn't smashed to pieces, its body and core functions would suffer catastrophic damage!

Once Qin Zhen managed to survive the Three Disasters and Six Tribulations, if she wanted to continue to the Immortal Mansion Dungeon, she would have to replace it with a Class V puppet. Furthermore, she would have to spend a great deal of energy and resources in the future to repair this damaged Puppet Yama.

In this regard, Qin Zhen indeed owed Shen Mo a significant favor.

Shen Mo placed Puppet Yama on the back of the Evil-eating Centipede and, after casting a spell to erect several defensive barriers around it, paid it no further attention.

Almost every powerhouse at the Divine Bridge Realm (Fifth Stage) and above had to face the Three Disasters and Six Tribulations. Even True Immortals were no exception.

For tribulations originating from external sources, others could indeed lend assistance. However, for this type of internal tribulation, one could only rely on oneself to pacify and resolve it. Shen Mo, despite wanting to lend Qin Zhen a hand, could not intervene in any way!

The ancient Spirit Beast, the Nine-tailed Fox...

Hmph! Fellow Daoist Qin has truly given me a huge surprise! A peculiar glint flashed in Shen Mo's eyes as doubts stirred in his heart.

Seizing the moment his sense surged into the independent small space, Shen Mo activated "Insight into All Beings" to glimpse Qin Zhen's true nature!

The information reflected on the panel astonished him greatly.

As far as Shen Mo knew, this genius disciple from the Mechanic Sect had reached the Divine Bridge Realm two hundred years ago. At the time of her ascension, her age wasn't considered particularly old among Golden Core Realm cultivators. Therefore, in his impression, Qin Zhen should have appeared as a young man in his twenties or thirties!

However, Qin Zhen was not only not male, but she could not even be considered "human."

Her true form was an ancient Nine-tailed White Fox, regarded as an auspicious Spirit Beast by immortals and mortals in ancient times. The figure hiding in the spatial treasure was her appearance after cultivating into a human form!

No wonder she always hid in the small space and did not show her true face; she was clearly deliberately concealing her true identity.

After all, the Mechanic Sect, unlike the Red Flame Sect, was an extremely orthodox Human Race immortal sect.

Although non-human creatures like demonic beasts and Spirit Beasts existed within this sect, they were typically relegated to roles such as Spirit Pets, mounts, laborers, or Sect Enforcers. Consequently, they could not be formally enrolled to become true disciples of the Mechanic Sect!

It was a mystery how this Nine-tailed Fox Demon, Qin Zhen, had managed to obtain the status of a Mechanic Sect disciple, and furthermore, how she had ascended to the position of Law Master.

However, a quick glance revealed to Shen Mo that the Demonic Aura on Qin Zhen was pure and untainted by evil; she had barely been touched by a hint of Bloody Demonic Qi. The panel's feedback also indicated she was cultivating the fundamental method of the Mechanic Sect. It would be inappropriate to simply categorize her as an evil demon cultivator!

In fact, she was even closer to a cultivator of the righteous path than the Marine Race demon cultivators of the Red Flame Sect.

Therefore, Shen Mo said nothing more and did not expose her true identity. He would gain no benefit from doing so. Moreover, if Qin Zhen's identity were exposed, she might become enraged from humiliation, secretly bear a grudge against him, and he would have needlessly made an enemy!

As the Evil-eating Centipede, carrying Shen Mo and Puppet Yama, was about to reach the crater at the summit of Wind Flame Mountain, Qin Zhen successfully suppressed the Three Disasters and Six Tribulations.

HUM!

The dim, disintegrating runes on Puppet Yama reappeared. As they circulated, they formed a thick Soul Shield.

"Fellow Daoist Qin, have you successfully overcome this tribulation?" Shen Mo's sense scanned the puppet as he spoke in a calm tone.

"Yes!"

Puppet Yama's eyes flickered with a blood-red glow as it responded in a muffled, metallic voice.

After a moment of silence, it suddenly asked, "Earlier, Fellow Daoist Qingyun, you used your sense to probe the small space, checking if my Soul Body was afflicted... Did you happen to see my true form?"

Shen Mo pondered for a moment before giving a slight, assenting nod.

To be honest, his actions had been somewhat improper. However, they would face numerous dangers upon entering the Immortal Mansion Dungeon, and Qin Zhen's secretive demeanor made him uneasy.

Furthermore, at that time, Qin Zhen herself had been unable to maintain the barriers of Puppet Yama and the spatial treasure due to the onset of the Three Disasters and Six Tribulations. Shen Mo merely had to sweep his sense over them, regardless of any deliberate intent, to "see" Qin Zhen's true form!

Despite this, Shen Mo still felt a little awkward now that his surreptitious action had been brought into the open.

"Fellow Daoist Qingyun, you have done me a great service. Moreover, the primary cause of this incident was my tribulation erupting, leaving me unable to maintain control over the puppet and the spatial treasure's barrier. Your use of sense to check on me was an act of kindness!"

Her suspicions confirmed, Qin Zhen no longer spoke through the puppet but used her own voice.

Her voice was light and melodious, yet her tone remained firm and resolute, conveying a sense of spirited vigor.

"I certainly do not blame you, Fellow Daoist. However..."

"I only hope that you will keep this secret for me, to avoid damaging the prestige of my Mechanic Sect!"

Shen Mo was rather disgruntled. If Qin Zhen hadn't brought this matter into the open, he could have feigned ignorance. He certainly hadn't planned on publicizing her true identity.

However, addressing it openly wasn't necessarily a bad thing. It was better to resolve any hidden resentments than to allow suspicion to fester between them!

Shen Mo naturally wouldn't refuse Qin Zhen's reasonable request and seized the opportunity to ask about the doubts weighing on his mind. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

Initially, Shen Mo didn't expect Qin Zhen to answer truthfully.

But perhaps Qin Zhen had been feigning for too long and felt stifled. Now that Shen Mo knew her true identity, she decided to stop concealing things and treated him as a confidant.

With hardly any hesitation, she began to recount her story, speaking eloquently and vividly...

It turned out that over four hundred years ago, the Mechanic Sect indeed had a disciple named Qin Zhen.

However, the original Qin Zhen was no puppet-controlling genius. Her cultivation Talent was decent but not exceptional. After many years of cultivation, she remained stuck in the early stage of the Spirit Sea Realm!

During an outing for experience, the Human Cultivator Qin Zhen was killed by a Demon.

By coincidence, her remains and belongings were found by a white-furred fox. Needless to say, this fox was the Nine-tailed Fox who would become "Qin Zhen"!

At that time, she was merely a Class III demonic beast. Relying on the instincts from her extraordinary bloodline inheritance, she consumed spiritual fruit and celestial spring, absorbed the essence of the sun and moon, and grew step by step. She had awakened her gnosis early on and often overheard country folk discussing the "deeds of Immortals," which instilled in her a yearning for cultivation and the Dao.

Among the belongings of the cultivator Qin Zhen, she found her Identity Token, the basic cultivation method of the Mechanic Sect, and a somewhat damaged Third Order Puppet!

After some tinkering, the Nine-tailed Fox, who had not yet cultivated a human form, actually managed to activate this damaged puppet using an incredibly rudimentary method. This filled her with immense joy and simultaneously sparked a profound interest in the Mechanic Sect and the Puppetry Path.