The True Secret of Connecting the Machine

Gu Fan took out the third jade slip and began to examine it with great interest.

After a long while, Gu Fan put down the jade slip, stroked his chin and pondered it, a strange light flashing in his eyes.

"The True Technique of Pulling the Mechanism" is completely different from any spell Gu Fan has seen in the Star Pavilion. It is more like a cultivation technique than a spell.

To use the "True Technique of Connecting Machines" is not something that can be done by expending magical power; rather, it requires cultivation, just like a martial arts technique.

Furthermore, the spiritual energy required to cultivate the "True Technique of Pulling the Mechanism" is not the basic Yin-Yang and Five Elements spiritual energy, but the energy of killing.

The so-called killing aura is the combination of pure killing intent towards living beings and spiritual energy. Similar to the yin energy and the icy energy, it is a derivative of basic spiritual energy.

According to the jade slip, the aura of killing can attach itself to tools and also exist in places such as battlefields in the mortal world.

After refining the killing energy, one can cultivate the first level of the "True Technique of Pulling the Mechanism" and obtain two effects.

One of them is that it can conceal one's aura, hide the killing intent and spiritual energy that one releases, thereby reducing one's presence and making one appear like an ordinary person.

Secondly, it can sense the murderous intent of others. If someone wants to target it, it will immediately sense it and feel a prickling sensation in its back.

This is only the effect of the first layer; what interests Gu Fan even more is the second layer.

Once this technique is mastered to the second level, one can predict the enemy's next move by observing the killing intent they release, thus gaining the upper hand in combat.

Because in a battle of wits, the mind often moves first, and then the attack is launched. Very few people can achieve a state of no thought or intention in a life-or-death struggle.

The effect of this secret technique is to quickly detect the opponent's murderous intent as soon as it arises, and then, as if guided by the flow of energy, to devise a countermeasure.

Xia Lingfeng cultivated for his entire life, but in the end he only managed to cultivate the "True Technique of Pulling the Mechanism" to the second level. According to the jade slip, the entire technique has four levels. The effects of the last two levels can only be known by deciphering the Daoist text of the technique.

The jade slip also contained some of Xia Lingfeng's insights into cultivating the "True Technique of Pulling the Mechanism," which greatly surprised Gu Fan.

Putting down the jade slip, Gu Fan poured himself a cup of fragrant tea, feeling a bit thirsty.

Regardless of how to collect the killing energy, the effects of the "True Technique of Pulling the Mechanism" have already greatly impressed Gu Fan, and he has made up his mind to cultivate this method.

After drinking the tea in his cup, Gu Fan began to examine the Daoist text in the jade slip.

Many of the Daoist inscriptions mentioned in the secret technique were ones that Gu Fan had never seen before. Fortunately, there were explanations of the Daoist inscriptions in the jade slip, which were inscribed by Xia Lingfeng. His purpose was naturally to prevent future generations from not recognizing the Daoist inscriptions and not understanding the cultivation method.

Gu Fan looked at these Daoist texts and eagerly recorded them.

Suddenly, Gu Fan's gaze paused when he saw a certain Dao inscription.

He put down the jade slip in his hand and took out several sheets of white paper from his storage bag. Each sheet of white paper had a Daoist script written on it.

After careful comparison, Gu Fan finally confirmed that the Daoist script on the white paper was exactly the same as that in the jade slip.

The Daoist inscriptions on the mysterious silver ingot that he had been searching for for so long appeared before him in a coincidence.

Gu Fan quickly browsed and compared the jade slips, finally finding all the Daoist text on the white paper. Then, looking at the interpretation of the Daoist texts, he fell into deep thought and slowly frowned.

"Karma", "Transfer", "Guidance"...

Although the meaning of Taoist texts is very broad and requires context to understand their true meaning, there is always a tendency in their connotations.

Gu Fan pondered the Daoist inscriptions on the white paper carefully. They seemed to be some kind of transference technique, but what was being transferred...

The word "karma" caught Gu Fan's attention.

Whether in past or present lives, the term karma does not represent anything benevolent.

If the effect of a silver ingot is to transfer the karma of others to oneself, then what is the price of bearing this karma?

Gu Fan recalled the day he awakened his past life's wisdom. He was reading Taoist books under the lamp when he suddenly fell into a deep sleep. With his physique nourished by the purple aura of the morning glow for two years, he shouldn't be so exhausted.

At the time, he was so overjoyed by the awakening of his innate wisdom that he later gained the All-Seeing Eye that he completely overlooked the matter!

As for the gray aura that appeared under the Myriad Manifestations Dharma Eye after these Daoist runes were combined, it was clearly the effect of some kind of magic.

However, these Daoist inscriptions were merely a medium, not a magic manual, and Gu Fan could not see the magic hidden behind them.

He raised his hand and set several pieces of white paper ablaze, watching them turn into a cloud of ashes. Gu Fan lowered his eyes, his murderous aura fully revealed.

Whoever is behind this, they must pay the price!

Xia Lingfeng originally came from the Chen Kingdom, and he also obtained the "True Technique of Pupil" in the Chen Kingdom. Therefore, it is most likely that the person hiding behind him is from the Chen Kingdom.

According to the "Lingxiao Baijie", the Taoist traditions of the State of Chen and the State of Wei were different. The sects of the State of Chen believed in the "Wanyuan Fazu". Although they were not as hostile as the States of Wu and Yan, they were not close either.

Because the two countries are not directly adjacent but separated by the Guanlan Strait, they have been able to coexist peacefully.

As for trade between the two countries, it is a spontaneous act by some cultivation families or mortals. As long as the tribute is paid on time, the sects of the two countries are too lazy to interfere.

Chen Guoyuan was on the other side of the Cloud Mist Sea, so Gu Fan could only put this matter aside for now and deal with it later when his cultivation level improved.

After meditating and regulating his breathing for a long time, the anger surging in his chest finally subsided. Gu Fan picked up the jade slip again and examined it carefully.

......

As the first autumn leaf fell, Gu Fan left the Lingxiao Sect once again.

The city of Haifeng remained bustling with activity, the lively atmosphere dispelling the chill of autumn.

In a butcher shop in the east of the city, a bald, round-faced, fat butcher stood behind a wooden table, chopping large bones with a cleaver, making a clanging sound. Blood flowed from the cracks in the table to the ground, emitting a strong, fishy smell.

The bald butcher chopped down a large bone with two strokes, and just as he was about to chop off another one, he noticed that there was another person in front of the wooden table.

After looking up, a smile suddenly appeared in his fierce eyes.

"Sir, are you here to buy meat?"

The newcomer was handsome, with sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes. He wore a moon-white scholar's robe, which seemed particularly out of place in the bloody scene before him. It was Gu Fan, who had returned to Haifeng City.

Although the butcher was curious as to why such a richly dressed person would come to buy meat in person, since the person was already standing in front of him, he naturally had to greet him warmly and didn't want to offend him.

Unexpectedly, Gu Fan gently shook his head and said, "I won't buy meat."

The butcher's smile froze for a moment, and after a pause, he asked, "Does the gentleman need my help to slaughter the livestock?"

"No, not exactly." Gu Fan shook his head again.

"Sir, are you perhaps here to make fun of me?" the butcher asked in a muffled voice, the smile finally fading from his face.

"I did come to buy something, but not meat, but a knife," Gu Fan explained.

"A knife?" The butcher glanced at the knife in his hand, puzzled. "With your refined tastes, what use is this knife to you, sir?"

"Not the one you use to cut meat," Gu Fan shook his head slightly. "I want the one you use to butcher pigs."

As soon as he finished speaking, Gu Fan took out a gold leaf from his money pouch and threw it onto the wooden table.

The gold leaf, stained with blood from the wooden table, still shone brightly in the sunlight, making the butcher swallow hard.

"How about I use this gold leaf to buy you a knife?"