Yefutidaolu

Chapter 145 Left Bank's Follow-up

Gao Jian pondered the matter of the silver charcoal and felt that there was something fishy going on everywhere.

But they all seem to be related to the Left Bank.

Let's put it on hold for now. What we need to do now is to find out where Zuo'an is from.

So he took the initiative and walked towards Zou Shu.

First of all, he is recovering from his injuries, and now the only person he can discuss such matters with is Zou Shu.

He knew Zou Shu's stronghold and had been there before. His injuries were almost healed now. Apart from the inability to fight in high-intensity combat, his movements were hardly affected. So he trotted towards Zou Shu's stronghold.

The stronghold that Zou Shu was in charge of, which was the cave before, was now under strict control of Zou Shu and had been given a greater degree of protection.

So, Gao Jian was discovered as soon as he arrived.

The soldiers were also used to the relationship between this general and their own captain, so when they saw Gao Zhan coming, they shouted, "General Gao!"

"I'm here to see Captain Zou. Please inform everyone!"

"No trouble, no trouble!" Several soldiers sent one person to leave the sentry post and go to report.

Even if it is a brilliant idea, the sentries here will not let you pass easily. This is the rule.

The last time the Zuo family witch came here, he committed a big taboo, so they chose to let Gao Jian go.

However, Gao Jian did not let him go.

Even because of this incident, the Zuo family couldn't speak out, nor could they come to hold Gao Jian accountable, so they could only swallow this loss in silence.

As a direct descendant of the fifth realm, Zuo An's heart must be bleeding.

When he thought of this, Gao Jian felt better.

Not long after, Zou Shu came out, still shaking the mutton-fat jade pendant that belonged to him, looking like he was in a very good mood.

"Why did you come to see me suddenly? Come on, let's talk inside." Zou Shu waved to Gao Jian.

Gao Jian followed Zou Shu inside.

The yellow clouds were still surrounding the area; these were the dust from the underworld, the poisonous smoke emitted by the dead souls.

"Why did you come to me on your own initiative? Did you discover something?" Zou Shu asked while sitting in the tent.

He seemed quite relaxed, holding a steaming cup of tea in his hand, his body stretched out, leaning against the table in a non-guarded posture.

"I found the footsteps of Zuo'an." Gao Jian said.

"Puff!" The teacup suddenly spilled out, and the boiling water splashed all over Zou Shu.

Gao Jian reacted quickly and stepped back two feet, leaving Zou Shu alone with his crotch wet.

"What did you say?" Zou Shu stood up, not caring about the tea and tea leaves all over him: "If you tease me, you will be beaten!"

"Why would I lie to you? He is from the ghost witch lineage." Gao Jian said.

Zou Shu slammed the table and said angrily, "How could I not know that he is a ghost wizard? But can his background be so easily guessed? There are ghost servants, Wu Hanyang, big ghost masters, small ghost masters, and dozens of other types of ghost wizards. Which one are you talking about? What kind of skills do they practice? What kind of qi do they combine? What is the order of opening the orifices? What kind of nature do they use? Are the two words "ghost wizard" considered as a background?"

(Note: Gui Yi, the dark energy of Gui Yi, a kind of ghost messenger.

The witch contains yang, which can be seen as a demon. He is an ally of ghosts. He doubles yin and combines yang, so when the sun is eclipsed, yin prevails.

Ghost Master, Wuman men wear their hair in a bun, women have their hair loose, and all wear cow or sheep skins. Large tribes have a big ghost master, and hundreds of families have small ghost masters.

"Hey, don't be in a hurry." Gao Jian kept it a secret and started pouring himself tea.

Zou Shu jumps around all the time, and Gao Jian finds it quite interesting.

However, Gao Jian was not surprised that the other party clearly stated a bunch of ways of cultivation.

As the captain of the Demon Suppression Division, Zou Shu had to do a lot of things like slaying demons and eliminating monsters, and the Demon Suppression Guards usually had to deal with more than just demons and ghosts.

The title "Demon Extermination Guards" has already indicated that what they have to deal with is 'demon', which refers to all things that are harmful to the human race. Monsters can be demons, ghosts can be demons, and humans... can also be demons.

Therefore, the Demon-Slaying Guards have some understanding of the cultivation methods of various evil practitioners, and even provide special training, so they are naturally more clear about these things.

However, in Cangzhou, one of the guards of the Demon Suppression Bureau, the Huangquan Guard, has actually been abolished. This is because of the oppression of the Zuo family and the constraints of the ancient battlefield, which have led to the almost paralysis of the functions of the Demon Suppression Bureau in these aspects in Cangzhou, making it unable to curb the spread of blood sacrifice.

The Shui family and other aristocratic families may have also contributed to this.

Just as Gao Jian had speculated at the beginning. (See Chapter 45 for details)

The entire Cangzhou's aristocratic groups are not easy to deal with.

He took advantage of the Zuo family's conspiracy to let the Zuo family help him suppress the Demon Suppression Division. At the same time, he used the Zuo family's exposed weaknesses to balance the Zuo family and other families. At the critical moment, after Gao Jian caused trouble, he forced the Zuo family to its current point.

Although Gao Jian has been fighting against the Zuo family, he is actually also wary of the Shui family who have been calm and steady behind the scenes.

The other party's methods are more sophisticated than those of the Zuo family.

On the other side, Zou Shu watched Gao Jian slowly pour the tea.

He goes up and kicks him!
What the hell are you pretending for?
Gao Jian took another step back to avoid the attack, then hurriedly reached in and tried to take out the two pieces of charcoal from the mustard bag.

The mustard bag is a bag, so the things inside it will not appear out of thin air in the palm of your hand when you turn it over. Instead, you need to reach in and feel around. Therefore, if the mustard bag is too big, it will not be easy to use, and you may not be able to feel the things inside at the critical moment.

It is said that many of these methods of using the Sumeru to hold mustard seeds are not used on mustard seed bags, but on things like treasure bags.

Gao Jian's hand groped in the mustard seed bag, but could not fill it any more.

I guess if I keep pretending, Zou Shu will get serious. After all, Zou Shu is still in the fourth realm. It would be embarrassing if I get pinned to the ground and beaten by him.

Soon, he took the things out.

Zou Shu's attention also shifted to Gao Jian's hand: "Silver? Charcoal? No, it smells so good, what is this?"

"It's charcoal, but it's silver charcoal made using a special method. You should have heard of it." Gao Jian said. Zou Shu was not from a wealthy family, so he must have used charcoal to keep warm when he was a child.

"Silver charcoal? This is silver, right?" Zou Shu reached out, picked up the charcoal and weighed it.

It is very heavy, almost as heavy as a piece of metal, and quite hard. If you tap it lightly, you can hear a tinkling sound.

But it wasn't silver. Silver wouldn't have this kind of texture. When I pinched it with my fingers, some silver charcoal powder actually came out.

"Is this really charcoal? What kind of charcoal can be burned like this?" Zou Shu was a little surprised: "Is it something that only the inner city families use? Charcoal used to make pills?"

"This is ghost wood. It is not used exclusively by aristocratic families, but this kind of charcoal is now commonly used in the outer city." Gao Jian said.

"Ghost tree? Is it related to Zuo'an? Is this the Zuo'an's follower that you mentioned?" Zou Shu immediately connected the clues.

"Yeah." Gao Jian nodded.

Then, Gao Jian began to repeat what he and Feixiang had said before, but he omitted the conversation between him and Feixiang and simply narrated the origin of these ghost trees and their possible relationship with Zuo'an.

Gao Jian told Zou Shu everything about Guimu's situation, the current status of the Zuo'an, and his own speculations.

Zou Shu's character is still guaranteed. He has saved his life several times before, so Gao Jian does not doubt him.

After hearing this, Zou Shu opened his mouth.

Then he fell into deep thought.

After a long while, Zou Shu raised his head and said with a sad face, "I almost understand what you want to say, but I have a question. If this thing is really one of Zuo'an's followers, how do you catch these clues? Between us, who looks like the one who can find out the skills from a piece of charcoal?"

"Do you have any doctor you know? I don't. We can't just tell anyone about what we did. The doctors in Cangzhou City are all related to the noble families. If we go to them for analysis, it will definitely attract the attention of Zuo'an. Sigh... It's a good clue, but we can't understand it!"

This is a very real problem.

It is a common practice to infer the other party's background through clues, but the prerequisite is that you have a vast reserve of knowledge.

There are indeed such practitioners, who form a school of thought among scholars and are called "doctors".

As the name suggests, a learned person who is able to understand the past and present, has profound knowledge, compiles works, and is able to impart knowledge and cultivate talents can be called a doctor.

It is said: "Among the scholars, there are scholars from all corners of the country. They should all be knowledgeable about the past and present, review the past to learn the present, and be well-versed in the state system. That is why they are called doctors."

Such scholars have mastered all kinds of Taoist details, and can even draw inferences about other situations by analogy, and can identify a person's background at a glance.

But the warrior Zou Shu...can't do it.

Why practice martial arts if you can do it?
But if I go to Cangzhou City to look for those famous doctors, I'm afraid I'll inevitably have to get involved with Zuo An. If I'm exposed at that time, I'll be in big trouble.

Seeing Zou Shu's gloomy face, Gao Jian smiled and said, "I will."

"Hmm?" Zou Shu looked up and sneered, "Don't make a fuss. We are all martial artists, so who doesn't know who? So you have a doctor you know, and the Zuo family doesn't know about him, or can't even find him?"

Seeing that he didn't believe it, Gao Jian immediately changed the subject and said, "Your sword energy, the wild beast, this is your sword move, right?" (Details in Chapter 137)
Before, when facing the hundred-year-old cicada monkey, Zou Shu had demonstrated his sword skills. With one strike of the sword, hundreds of beasts ran wild, including cattle and sheep in the first realm, jackals in the second realm, lions and tigers in the third realm, and some exotic beasts and spirit species in the fourth realm.

"What?" Zou Shu seemed to realize something.

Gao Jian talked eloquently: "Yu Heng Star makes all the beasts dance and the spirit turtle leap. In the past, in the wilds of Banquan, bears, badgers, wolves, leopards, foxes, and tigers were the vanguards, and eagles, pheasants, hawks, and kites were the flags. This is how the beasts are controlled by force. When the rocks are struck, all the beasts dance. This is how the beasts are controlled by sound."

"The Qilin, one of the most primates in the universe, also has similar abilities. It is the leader of all beasts. Yuheng Star is one of the Celestial Gangs, which is in line with Qilin. There are records in history books about Qilin's abilities, saying, 'At that time, Qilin appeared in Jinze County, and all beasts followed it.'"

"Your sword energy commands all beasts, and it has astrological signs, so I guess that your approach is to use the astrological signs to simulate the Qilin energy, so as to command all beasts in your body."

"As for your method of controlling the beasts in your body, I guess that the best way for warriors to refine is to eat. You eat the beasts, condense the spirit of the beasts, store it in your body, and then use the Qilin spirit to control them and use it to resist the enemy. What do you think?"

Zou Shu was stunned when he heard this.

This... is indeed the basis of his martial arts!

Its name is 'Yuheng Qilin Sword Qi', which takes the image of Yuheng Tiangang, condenses Qilin sword energy, and commands all beasts with Qilin energy. Practicing it requires devouring all beasts, condensing the energy of various exotic beasts he has eaten into the Qi sea, and cultivating the Qi sea into a 'Chongchi', so as to achieve 'having a hundred beasts in the body'.

The so-called Chongchi is based on a mysterious place called "Chongshan".

The Chronicles of Emperor Mu says: "Chongshan is where all kinds of beasts gather. The swamps of Chongshan are filled with clear water and hot springs, where birds and beasts eat and drink."

This is an extremely sophisticated practice. When one practices to a high level, one will have the Qi of a Qilin and be able to command all kinds of strange beasts at will. It has enormous power and many functions.

"You--!?" Zou Shu opened his mouth, but could not say anything.

No, if you have this ability, why do you come to learn martial arts?
A warrior has to fight and kill, be stabbed with swords and knives, and be covered in sweat. If you don't have the talent for studying, who would want to be a warrior?

Even if they have mastered the skills, the greatest role of a warrior is actually to be an assassin or a bodyguard, protecting or assassinating those uncles who have large-scale killing capabilities and all kinds of magical methods.

If you can be a master, who would want to be a warrior...

But Gao Jian did not explain.

He just said, "Do you believe it now? But I need more clues. Brother Zou, can you come up with something to make Zuo An take action once? I have seen him take action once. If he does it again, I will observe carefully from the side. With these ghost trees, it is not impossible to find his footing and make arrangements."

Gao Jian has received special training on this ability!
During the journey to the Dragon Palace in the East China Sea, Gao Jian had been training himself on this skill all the time, and he has never relaxed even now! (See Chapter 101 for details)
At that time, he had already deduced the cultivation method of the leader of the three realms through simple observation, and now it has only increased the difficulty a little.

Although the difficulty has increased a bit, from the third level to the sixth level.

Zou Shu seemed to want to say something, but he opened and closed his mouth and hesitated again and again. Several times it seemed that he was about to say it, but he gave up in the end.

He hesitated about four or five times, and maybe he got fed up, so he slammed the table and said, "Fuck, if you can really do it, let's do it!"

"Isn't it just about letting Zuo'an take action once?! I'll do it!"

"What are you going to do?" Gao Jian asked.

"I won't tell you. Just wait and see." Zou Shu dusted off the tea leaves on his body.

"Ah?" Gao Jian raised his eyebrows.

"What? You are allowed to keep it a secret? Just wait for a few days!" Zou Shu said with his arms folded across his chest.

(End of this chapter)