Proofreader & Editor: Lotas
The final trial was to find the Wind-up Monkey.
Lu Yao clicked his mouse back and forth across the plains, but no hints emerged.
It was the White God, situated in the Golden Plains, that seemed to have discovered something. It dashed to a patch of golden grass, furiously digging until it dragged out an object with a combination of biting and pushing.
It was a brown monkey, about the size of a pixelated figure, with a spring-like coiled long tail. Its eyes were dull, it was missing its left hand, and atop its head was a metallic wind-up key.
Lu Yao placed his cursor over the monkey.
[Wind-up Monkey No.2 LV6]: A mythological marvel.
Originally one of the twelve primordial clay figures created by the Dike Builders to stabilize the world's landmasses. The Forest God remodeled them, reviving them through wind-up mechanisms, bestowing upon them intelligence and self-awareness.
Operators of the Silvanus Tree, supporters of the Golden Plains, repairers of the world's rules.
Health: 0/2000
Damage: 0
Defense: 20
Speed: 30
[Mythical]
Roaming through numerous epochs and myriad worlds, witnessing the rise and fall of gods, celebrated and mythologized by countless beings.
[Rule Repairer]
Possesses the ability to repair and adjust the world's rules.
[Resurrection Glyph]
Upon total destruction, the Wind-up Monkey will reconstitute itself in the Golden Plains and gradually complete self-repair.
These six Wind-up Monkeys were of profound significance.
From the description, they seemed closer to the rules than mere scavengers, akin to programmers behind the world. The Silvanus Tree appeared more like their mainframe device for operating and altering the world.
Lu Yao tried clicking on the monkey's health bar.
Even the Flame of Faith was of no use; it couldn't fill it.
Could it really just rely on winding the key?
Lu Yao commanded the White God to give it a try.
A white mist emanated from the White God, slowly winding the key atop the monkey's head.
As the key was wound tighter, the Wind-up Monkey's health actually began to gradually restore.
1/2000
2/2000
…
2000/2000
Once its health was fully wound up, Wind-up Monkey No.2 wobbled to life.
It looked at the White God, and a dialogue box popped up above its head: "Are you my new master?"
An exclamation mark flashed above the White God's head.
It immediately declared: "Your master is the great God Yao, I am but a divine servant of Lord Yao, His loyal and humble follower."
Lu Yao was satisfied.
Sensible.
"As you command. God Yao is the new master."
The Wind-up Monkey touched its damaged left shoulder: "I am in a state of disrepair. Please restore me to wholeness so I can work further."
The White God inquired: "You're made of clay, would mud suffice?"
The Wind-up Monkey scooped up a handful of dirt, formed a new arm, and attached it to its shoulder. The new left hand moved, then crumbled into pieces.
Self-repair failed, and a question mark appeared above the Wind-up Monkey's head. At the same time, a thought bubble emerged, filled with dense gibberish.
Soon, the question mark on the monkey's head turned into an exclamation mark.
"A craftsman capable of making special tools is needed for a swift repair."
"Self-repair calculation…"
"Requires 372 years."
Lu Yao thought about it and, considering the basic time flow ratio of one day to ten years, it would take over a month at the fastest for Monkey No.2 to complete self-repair.
And this was just one monkey; there were five more to go.
Too long.
Lu Yao noticed the Wind-up Monkey's health was continuously declining, losing one point every second. After half an hour, it became motionless again.
The White God could only continue winding the key.
Lu Yao tried clicking and found he could directly store the Wind-up Monkey in his inventory.
That meant… although he couldn't bring people in from the outside, he could take it out for repairs.
There were plenty of craftsmen in the pixelated world outside.
Lu Yao summoned the Apostle Phileas.
The skeleton himself was a [Bone Craftsman], belonging to the skeletal crafters.
Upon receiving the order, Phileas took Wind-up Monkey No.2 to the Dwarf Fortress.
The Furnace Clan now represented the best group of craftsmen in this world, among them was born a [Clever Craftsman] Hammer Endless, capable of forging equipment with transcendent attributes.
Having them work together to repair the Wind-up Monkey might be a good approach.
After Phileas announced the conscription order, the dwarves in the fortress were ecstatic.
"God Yao recognizes our skills!"
"This is the best commendation given to us by the gods!"
"We will definitely repair this monkey!"
"At any cost!"
"We must fix it! Bring it fully to life!"
Hammer Endless immediately got to work. He circled the clay monkey, discussing with Phileas how to repair its missing arm.
Lu Yao also locked his view to see what they would do.
Soon, Phileas and Hammer Endless each crafted an arm, one made of bone, the other forged from metal.
These two arms were installed on the Wind-up Monkey's shoulders in turn.
The bone arm proved too fragile and broke after a short while.
Monkey No.2 reported: "The arm is too light, unable to withstand pressure and touch."
After the metal arm was attached, it became clumsy, unable to walk straight, always veering in arcs around the left hand.
"The arm lacks flexibility, affecting the body, unable to work."
Phileas and Hammer Endless discussed repeatedly, combining the opinions and suggestions of other dwarves, and came up with a special plan: to retain the internal skeleton of the arm, wrap it with copper sheets section by section, and use sandworm grease for lubrication.
Finally, they cast an all-purpose stone to ensure a perfect connection between the skeleton and the metal.
With the combined efforts of Phileas and the dwarves, a special copper prosthetic limb was forged.
[Agile Copper Bone Arm (Left)][Made by Hammer Endless & Phileas]: Defense +1, Speed +1.
Health: 306/306
Lu Yao felt a surge of joy.
In the process of repairing the Wind-up Monkey, the dwarves actively contributed ideas and attempts, highlighting the craftsmanship of creating transcendent prosthetics. This technology would have far-reaching effects in the future.
After Phileas and Hammer Endless finished tuning, they installed the prosthetic on the Wind-up Monkey's left shoulder.
Wind-up Monkey No.2 moved the prosthetic limb, which performed very flexibly.
A dialogue box popped up above its head: "The arm is suitable for work."
"Combines dexterity and toughness, an impressive craft!"
The Simulator displayed.
[Wind-up Monkey No.2 has been fully repaired, please continue to repair the other Wind-up Monkeys.]
Lu Yao breathed a sigh of relief.
He glanced back at the Golden Plains.
The White God had already found another Wind-up Monkey. However, [Wind-up Monkey No.5] was even more problematic, with only a monkey head with a wind-up key remaining. According to No.5 itself, the rest of its body had fallen off and disappeared.
The repair work became even more challenging.
Lu Yao dragged it out and tossed it to the Dwarf Fortress, letting Phileas and Hammer Endless continue to lead the charge.
This way, not only could the Wind-up Monkeys be repaired, but the dwarves' craft technology could be enhanced.
Wind-up Monkey No.2 proactively joined the work of repairing its kin.
It demonstrated measurement and repair skills far surpassing those of Phileas and the dwarves, quickly designing a brand-new body for No.5, and providing specific material ratios and manufacturing techniques.
But creating a full-body prosthesis was much more difficult than a single arm.
Even with No.2's involvement, the entire repair team's progress was exceedingly slow. One prosthetic limb and body after another were forged, as they tried various combinations and fittings, constantly experimenting and adjusting…
Lu Yao transferred 100 all-purpose stones to Phileas, telling him to use them first.
This matter would take time, and couldn't be rushed.
Lu Yao stretched lazily.
Outside the window, the sky was turning white, and in three hours the train would depart.
It was time for him to leave the warm comfort of his old home and return to his own little house.