Yefutidaolu

Chapter 176 Team up and conspire (Happy New Year)
Ximen Gong took the initiative to mention this matter.

Obviously, his purpose has been revealed.

In the Imperial Academy selection, in a practical sense, everyone actually forms teams. For example, the three young masters of the Zuo family will form a team together. It is a common practice to form teams based on family and personal relationships to increase fault tolerance.

But there is no such statement in the rules.

In terms of rules, everyone fights alone, and the relationship between you and your teammates depends entirely on your trust. There is no punishment for backstabbing a teammate, except for damaging your personal relationship.

For someone like Ximen Gong, Gao Jian is a good choice.

As everyone knows, Gao Jian has a bad relationship with the Zuo family and is also dissatisfied with some of the practices of the aristocratic family.

The noble families actually didn't feel anything about this. After all, there were too many people who didn't like the noble families. There was no shortage of Gao Jian, so what could he do? This was the arrogance of the noble families.

So whether Gao Jian forms a team or fights alone, it is almost impossible for him to leave the Zuo family.

At this time, if he told Gao Jian some information that he didn't know, perhaps he could let the Zuo family and Gao Jian have a strong collision, driving the tiger to devour the wolf, and the two powerful enemies would fight each other, and he, the fisherman, would benefit.

Although, the fisherman may not be him.

It's just that it's normal to try when there's a chance, right? Ximen Gong was not willing to just come to run with him, even though everyone thought that he was destined to run with him as a bottom-ranked member of a noble family. Even the people in the family didn't come to accompany him, and just thought he was here for a picnic to relax...

But, he... also wanted to study at the Imperial College.

Obviously, this is using Gao Jian as a weapon.

But Gao Jian should be happy about it, right?

Because...Ximen's family is the Dianshi.

"The Ximen family is the registrar. We are responsible for cleaning up the mess for other families and recording all kinds of things. We are also good at calculating numbers. We need to find out how the Wang family corrects their body-refining techniques, how to calculate their own punching power, and how the Liu family's refiners calculate the distance and control the data. All these things need to be found in the Ximen family."

"In fact, in addition to the Shui family's self-sufficiency, even the Zuo family set up an altar to calculate the morning sun, evening moon, and the stars in the sky. These all require numerology."

"So, in fact, although the Ximen family does not understand their core skills, they actually know a lot about their external methods."

Ximen Gong lowered his voice and used magic to cover the surroundings so that no one else could hear.

This is actually the confidence of the Ximen family, and it is also the foundation for the Ximen family to gain a foothold among the aristocratic families.

Every family must have some unique skills as the foundation of their existence and the basis of their family.

The Ximen family is good at numerology. This good does not mean that they only know how to do it, but that in the whole Cangzhou, among all the aristocratic families, no one can surpass them in the attainments of numerology.

Let’s not talk about the immortal sect for now. I heard that the magic of the Zhenjing Taoist Palace is also very powerful, but the aristocratic families definitely can’t use it. Even the people from the Zhenjing Taoist Palace are rarely seen.

Therefore, when it comes to data calculation, various deductions, feng shui, astronomy and geography, and all kinds of things that need to be calculated, other families will let the Ximen family do it.

Just like when the Ximen family needs someone for the end-of-year festival, they will invite people from the Zuo family.

Although the aristocratic families have disputes on the surface, they are still united in the end.

"I can tell you these superficial things, Gao Jian, you really need them, right?" Ximen Gong said.

Gao Jian was stunned when he heard this.

Does he need it?

That is so necessary!

Although this does not mean following the other party, it is similar to knowing the parameters of a thing but not knowing the principle of this thing. If you don’t understand it, it is actually just some trivial things.

If you know the size of an engine, does that mean you know why it runs? Not necessarily, right?
But, Gao’s opinion is different!

He understands!
Through these detailed parameters and data, he might be able to reverse deduce the whereabouts of these young masters and do reverse engineering!

But Gao Jian still has reason.

He immediately said, "Are you looking for death? How can you tell anyone about this?"

And Ximen Gong said in a deep voice: "Gao Jian, you caused the Zuo family to fall into civil strife, and you are on equal footing with the young master of the Shui family, stirring up trouble in Cangzhou, and even exterminating the Baishanjiang Water Clan. You must be very powerful, right?"

"Yes." Gao Jian nodded.

There's nothing to hide.

He is just very powerful, Gao Jian is very clear that he is not an ordinary person.

Ximen Gong said seriously: "So, if you know this and have the ability to break the blockade of others and eliminate them, then... I will have a chance."

"This is a deal, or if you prefer, I'm making friends with you. This is our team strategy."

"Don't touch me. I'll help you. Let's fight for two people."

As Ximen Gong spoke, he stared at Gao Jian, trying to judge his attitude.

This was a strategy Ximen Gong came up with on the spur of the moment.

To be honest, he thought it was still very clever. Gao Jian was an outsider, a variable, and this variable could break the established situation. If he assisted him, maybe he could really... stop himself from being a runner-up.

The Ximen family was originally a supporting family, and he didn't think there was anything wrong with what he did.

Information is also his bargaining chip.

On the other side, Gao Jian thought for a while and finally nodded: "Okay, let's form a team. I don't like trading. Forming a team is good, but, it's usually a team of three, right? I see that other people seem to be in a team of three. This should be the best formation to maintain basic trust."

The triangle is the most stable. For a three-person team, you have to think twice before backstabbing, after all, there are two pairs of eyes.

"You want to invite other people? Can you trust them?" Ximen Gong frowned.

"I can definitely trust him. Originally, I was planning to team up with him." Gao Jian said with a smile, "But before that, you might as well tell me about the situation first. For example, those over there are from the Wang family, right? The Wang family is based on martial arts, so what are their ways? Just think of it as bragging, and tell me about it." Gao Jian pointed to a team of warriors in the distance and said so.

Ximen Gong nodded: "Okay, wait for me."

As he spoke, Ximen Gong took out something that looked familiar to Gao Jian from his mustard bag.

It was a mechanism with yin and yang lines on it. The overall shape resembled several Tai Chi plates, surrounded by countless arithmetic symbols.

The Three Wonders and Six Instruments and the Nine Palaces of the Earthly Branches form a variety of interlaced scales.

Looking left and right, Gao Jian had indeed seen this thing before.

Watching Ximen Gong carefully fiddling with this thing, Gao Jian couldn't help but speak: "Well, wait... where did you get this thing from?" He had already recognized the origin of this thing.

This is the calculating instrument that was in the mustard bag after he killed the leader of the Lijin Sect in Yuezhou!
After arriving in Cangzhou, just a few days ago, Gao Jian sold this thing to Jin Youzhai!

"This? I bought it from Jinyouzhai. It's very expensive. It cost me 20,000 gold! But it's worth it. This kind of Yin-Yang abacus is used in the four realms. It's rare in Cangzhou. It can only be made by people who are good at mechanical engineering. Generally, it's cheaper in Yuezhou. I can be considered to have found a bargain." When Ximen Gong said this, he touched the mechanism with some cherishment, and his tone was also a little complacent.

Twenty thousand gold is not a cheap price for Ximen Gong.

He even looked at Gao Jian with a little worry, fearing that Gao Jian would say he wanted to touch him.

But I can't bear to let him touch...

very expensive!
But Gao Jian didn't mean that. He just widened his eyes with disbelief on his face.

Damn, these unscrupulous businessmen are really invincible!

When they received Gao Jian, they didn't even spend ten thousand gold!

The resale price increased by 120%!

Should I tell Ximen Gong about this?
Forget it.

It’s better not to say it.

On Ximen Gong's side, after fiddling with the mechanism for a while, it finally seemed to have achieved the result he wanted.

So, he said, "Okay, it's done. Take a look first. From your own perspective, what should the Wang family's martial arts be like?"

Gao Jian nodded and looked carefully at the Wang family members who were chatting and laughing not far away.

The Wang family excels in martial arts, and its overall strength ranks third among the Cangzhou families. The Demon Suppression Division is considered an independent armed force, while the Cangzhou city defense forces, local garrisons and imperial camps are all within the scope of the Wang family.

Gao Jian's friend, Wang Long, the captain of the Demon Suppression Division, is actually also a member of the Wang family. However, he is obviously incompatible with the Wang family and has given up on the family early on. Although he practices martial arts, his actual dream is to be an alchemist. After being tortured by life, he has now become a chef. He also grows vegetables and raises fish in the Demon Suppression Division camp and does not care about worldly affairs.

"The Wang family should be practicing swordsmanship. Although they don't carry swords, when they move, there is no one within three feet around them. They also talk to each other within a three-foot range. This range should be the safety zone maintained by their skills. In this area, they don't even trust each other. If there is any weapon within this range, it is probably the sword." Gao Jian observed for a while and made his own judgment.

This judgment obviously shocked Ximen Gong.

No, can you see that?
"Did you know the information about the Wang family in advance?" Ximen Gong asked tentatively.

"You may think so, so what do you think of what I said? What do you want to add?" Gao Jian did not dwell on this aspect, but went straight to the point.

It doesn’t matter if you don’t know it in advance.

Ximen Gong sighed: "You are almost right. The Wang family's skills are sword skills, but they are not ordinary sword skills."

"They use sword energy as pillars to form the 'Sword Room'. The Ximen family doesn't know the specific principle, but as for the data, the last calculation was 'ninety-six'."

"The way of nine sixes, eight directions represent the eight trigrams, nine rooms represent the nine states, and twelve palaces correspond to the twelve zodiac signs. Thirty-six households and seventy-two windows are four households and eight windows multiplied by nine rooms. The height of the sword room is eighty-one feet, which corresponds to the ninety-nine of Huang Zhong. Twenty-eight pillars are arranged in four directions, which also represent the seven constellations. The base is three feet, corresponding to the three systems. The four townships and five colors each represent their movement. The outer width is twenty-four feet, corresponding to the solar terms."

Ximen Gong reported a string of numbers very skillfully.

Although it was very concise, Gao Jian still understood it.

The sword energy is used as the beams and pillars to form the 'sword room' around the body. The sword room is divided into nine grids, eight directions, twelve palaces, thirty-six doors, seventy-two windows, eighty-one feet high, and a reach of twenty-four feet. The foundation of everything is three feet around you.

This is the range and specific parameters of the opponent's swordsmanship.

"Very useful. What about the others? Those three over there, Zuo Si and Zuo Xiu." Gao Jian continued to ask, pointing to the location of the Zuo family.

Unlike the previous warriors, this time the three young masters of the Zuo family seemed to have noticed something. They looked at Gao Jian, then stood up together, walked into the tent, and avoided Gao Jian's sight.

"That's the Zuo family over there. I'm not too clear about the specific principles of the Zuo family, but as shamans, almost all of their magic is based on sacrifice. So their altars are sealed with five-colored soil and stones. They are round in shape, with a top diameter of 12 feet, a bottom diameter of 30 feet, and a height of 9 feet. The sacrifices to the sea, mountains, and rivers are three for mountains, four for water, and five-colored soil, for a total of eight altars." Ximen Gong continued.

Gao Jian was a little surprised when he heard this: "I don't think I've ever seen their altar."

"Unless it's a large-scale sacrifice, a physical altar is rarely used. But it's common to condense a virtual body through 'qi', or simply complete it inside one's own body," Ximen Gong explained.

Gao Jian nodded slightly: "Oh... so we can use Qi to target the altar, right? By destroying the altar itself, we can break all the witch's spells?"

Ximen Gongze said: "In theory, this is true, but in practice it is quite difficult. You have to seize the opportunity very well."

"As long as it's feasible," Gao Jian said.

"Then the next one is the young master of the Shui family, Shui..." Ximen Gong said.

Just as he finished speaking, a voice suddenly came from the side: "What? Someone is calling me?"

Shui Cangcang appeared beside Ximen Gong and Gao Jian like a flash.

Ximen Gong's heart stopped beating.

"Hey, Shui Cangcang, you're here? Didn't we say before that we should team up? I found another very powerful person, this one, Ximen Gong, the young master of the Ximen family. He's very powerful and has great attainments in magic and arithmetic." Gao Jian patted Ximen Gong on the shoulder.

Then Ximen Gong fell down directly, and it was obvious that he was breathing out more than he was breathing in.

Shui Cangcang's sudden appearance obviously caused a great shock to him, and he is now unconscious.

“Hey! Don’t die!” Gao Jian pulled the man up and patted his face anxiously: “Wake up, wake up! This is your future teammate!”

Shui Cangcang looked indifferent and watched Gao Jian perform.

He actually didn't know Ximen Gong.

In fact, he didn't know anyone, and very few of these so-called "gentlemen" left an impression on his mind.

Rather, it is extremely rare to find people who can get along well with him like Gao Jian.

Not everyone can keep up with Shui Cangcang, and if someone can't, Shui Cangcang will just leave him behind and quickly forget him.

On Gao Jian's side, Ximen Gong was woken up by him.

He woke up and took a look at Shui Cangcang.

Then he closed his eyes and died again.

"Hello--!"

(I also updated on New Year’s Eve, are you touched?)
(It’s the end of the month and the New Year, please give me a monthly ticket, brother)

(End of this chapter)