Hidden moth

Chapter 253: The Sect's Tradition and Pursuit of Jian Ji

He Kao finally regained some face and did not go with Zhang Jingui. Instead, he asked Zhang Jingui to follow him.

Zhang Jingui actually dared to get into his car. Either he really had no ill intentions, or he was deliberately acting calm, or he was confident that He Kao could not do anything to him.

He Kao was not worried anyway. Elder Li had already sent his divine sense and would surely keep an eye on him.

The so-called good food is not any delicacies from land and sea, and it is even not as good as what He Kao cooks at home sometimes. It is just a bit expensive. It is considered a restaurant of decent quality.

He Kao had eaten here more than once. He remembered the first time he came, it was when Qian Guran arranged a meeting with Lin Qingshuang. This restaurant's specialty was Wagyu grilled beef, with a sign saying "Binhai Black Beef," claiming to be 100% domestically produced and absolutely free of nuclear contamination.

The beef of Binhai Black Beef is delicious. More than ten years ago, it was almost all exported to the island country of Zanzibar, where it was sold as some kind of divine Wagyu. Now it has officially launched its own brand to meet the needs of the domestic market.

The two of them asked for a small private room. Since they were inviting He Kao, Zhang Jingui asked He Kao to order the food.

One of their signature dishes is their marbling wagyu beef, sold by the gram at 1.5 yuan per gram, and sliced right in front of the customers. In recent months, they've been running a promotion where they cut a slice and ask customers to guess how many grams it weighs; if they guess correctly, it's free.

He Kao ordered this dish. After the waiter had cut it, he squinted his eyes and said, "Five hundred and thirty-six grams."

The waiter put it on the scale, and sure enough, not a gram was off! After the waiter left, Zhang Jingui used his spiritual sense to gather the sound and said, "I heard that you are a secret disciple of Master Di. Could it be that the rumors are wrong, and you are practicing the subtle art?"

Judging from He Kao's skill just now, if it was not a lucky guess, among the low-level sorcerers, only a third-level appraiser of the subtle gate could be sure of it.

You cannot guess the weight by weighing it with your hands, you can only look at it with your eyes. The sorcerer can cheat by weighing it secretly by using the method of controlling objects, but he cannot reveal any flaws, at least he cannot let others see that the piece of meat has moved on the chopping board.

Even for a high-level warlock, if he has not practiced beforehand, it would be difficult for him to tell the exact amount to the gram when he suddenly encounters such a situation.

He Kao remained noncommittal and said, "Things like secret disciples are just random guesses and rumors spread by some people in private. Why would anyone ask directly? As for how I guessed it just now, all the techniques have their own profound principles. I just dabbled in some of them."

Zhang Jingui: "I'm sorry for being so abrupt. I really shouldn't ask such questions... Then you need to practice it specifically."

He Kao said with a smile, "This activity has been launched for a while. I came here twice before and guessed wrong both times, so I went back to practice, and today I finally guessed it right.

This isn't about taking advantage of others by relying on my cultivation level, it's just about validating what I've gained through cultivation."

He Kao is now a fourth-level sorcerer, but he has never publicly displayed his fourth-level cultivation in an open identity. If we judge based on the means he has shown, he is at most a third-level traveler of the Xinpan Sect, which is also consistent with the speculation of "Elder Gu's secret disciple."

He Kao was indeed a third-level traveler. He mainly practiced the art of mind disk. Because of the relationship with Lin Qingshuang, Huang Xiaopang, Lan Jiuwan, Ye Liangcheng and others, he also dabbled in the art of observing the body and the art of entering into details.

Including the eight types of magic including the Invisible Moth Technique, he has already mastered four of them, and for the time being he does not have the energy to learn more.

It happened today, but if it was a week ago, even if he could guess it almost right, he might not be able to guess it accurately to the gram.

Recently he has been practicing his concentration and trying to refine his sword, so that he can secretly fix an object without revealing any flaws, and can also weigh its weight.

He said this not only to Zhang Jingui, but also to Li Xiuyuan, who was sitting outside. Elder Li actually followed him in without asking for a private room, but sat down at the outdoor table instead.

He Kao had also ordered this dish, and while they were talking, he heard him guessing the amount—and he had actually guessed wrong! He had only guessed off by two grams, but that still counted as an error.

There is no reason why He Kao could guess it right but the old man couldn't. This means that Li Xiuyuan didn't use any magical powers at all. He just glanced at it and said a rough number.

He Kao didn't ask the waiter to help with the grilling. The two of them closed the door and talked. Zhang Jingui introduced himself impatiently.

He was from Lujiang City, Ganpo Province. In his early years, he met an extraordinary person who taught him a secret art, which was the art of promoting the gods.

The master's name was Zhou Zhidan, a common name in that era. Zhou Zhidan's son was a colleague of Zhang Jingui's father, and the two were actually neighbors in the family compound. Seeing his aptitude, the master passed on his legacy.

Later, the master moved to another place because of his son's job transfer. That was twenty-four years ago, and the two never met again. Fortunately, the techniques of the Xingshen technique he received were inherited very completely.

After graduating from university, Zhang Jingui went to visit his master, but he learned that he had passed away. His master had taught him nothing more than the Dharma, and he hadn't begun practicing before his master's passing.

This experience is very similar to Chang Anju's.

Zhang Jingui was already thirty-nine years old this year. In his early years of cultivation, he had never come into contact with other sorcerers, and he didn't even know that there was a school of sorcery...

Maybe the master didn't have time to tell him back then. For many things, the master will not explain them until the disciple has at least started practicing, or maybe the master himself is not clear about it.

Just as he said this, He Kao heard Li Xiuyuan's reminder from his soul: "Ask him if he has ever heard of the name 'Li Siren, the Master of Jianji Palace'?"

He Kao spoke like a megaphone, "Fellow Daoist Zhang, have you ever heard of Li Siren, the master of Jianji Palace?"

Zhang Jingui was surprised and said, "That's my master's great-grandmaster! My master mentioned his name before. How did you know the title of Jianji Palace Master?"

He Kao received another divine thought from Li Xiuyuan and immediately asked, "Fellow Daoist Zhang, do you know Zhou Yuandan?"

Zhang Jingui: "Ah, that's my master!"

He Kao: "Didn't you just say your master's name was Zhou Zhidan?" Zhang Jingui explained: "That was the name he changed later. When he was a child, he was called Zhou Yuandan because he was born on the first day of the Lunar New Year... He mentioned this to me before."

New Year's Day originally referred to the first day of the new year, which was the first day of the lunar year in ancient times. After the establishment of the New East Kingdom, the Gregorian calendar was adopted, and January 1 of the Gregorian calendar was designated as New Year's Day, which is also a legal holiday. However, the first day of the lunar year is traditionally called the Spring Festival.

Zhang Jingui's master was born before the liberation and was given this name by his parents. However, after the establishment of the New East Country, it no longer matched the New Year's Day, which was a legal holiday, and it also seemed not progressive enough, so he changed his name to Zhou Zhidan when he became an adult.

He Kao had driven here and hadn't originally planned to drink, but at this moment he couldn't help but call the waiter to open a bottle of Maotai tea. He personally poured it for Zhang Jingui and said, "Brother Zhang, it turns out you are a direct descendant of the Jianji Palace lineage. Let me drink first as a toast!"

Zhang Jingui was a little dumbfounded and asked, "What do you mean by the Jianji Palace lineage?"

The name Jianji Palace was a very particular term in the art world, and this was the first time He Kao had heard of it. It meant both a "lineage" and a "school." A "lineage" referred to a branch of the Xingshen Sect, while a "school" referred to a faction within the art world.

The "Master of Jianji Palace Li Siren" they just mentioned is Li Xiuyuan's master. He is still alive today. He is 101 years old and has reached the fifth level of cultivation.

Jianji Palace, once a historic Taoist temple in Lujiang, was abandoned around the time of liberation, leaving only its ruins. While the roots of the Taoist tradition lie in Fengwei Township, numerous sects have emerged throughout history, including Jianji Palace.

There are clear records of the art of magic, and since the Ming Dynasty, there have been magicians who have been practicing as Taoist priests in Jianji Palace. Later, many magicians continued to practice in Jianji Palace, and the tradition gradually grew and became the Jianji Palace school.

Back then, it wasn't just Xingshen Sect practitioners who cultivated in Jianji Palace; practitioners from almost every major sect practiced there. Even today, many disciples of these sects can trace their lineage back to Jianji Palace.

Although the term "faction" has become less prominent in recent years, the influence of various traditional factions still looms large within the art of inheritance. The spiritual leader of this faction is, of course, Li Xiuyuan, the elder of the Zongfa Hall.

The Taoist temple Jianji Palace had long been in decline. Li Siren was the last abbot before it was destroyed. He returned to secular life after the establishment of the New East Kingdom. For many years, he had not seen any way to break through the sixth level. He also practiced the art of observing the body and the art of alchemy, mainly for health preservation.

Li Siren has already reached the age of enjoying his retirement and rarely cares about the affairs of the sect. He once held the title of consultant in a health care institution. Now he spends most of his time in seclusion in Fengyu Cave.

The first disciple he taught in his early years was Zhou Yuandan. Later, Zhou Yuandan went to the countryside to work as an educated youth, and he left Lujiang and traveled around. After that, he accepted several more disciples, among whom Li Xiuyuan had the highest achievement.

Zhou Yuandan was considered Li Xiuyuan's senior brother, but he had lost contact. After he went to the countryside to work in the fields, he lost contact, later changed his name to Zhou Zhidan, and moved several times.

Zhou Zhidan's own cultivation achievements may not be very high. When he taught Zhang Jingui the techniques, he was just a second-level angler and was already quite old.

Who would have thought that many years later, Zhang Jingui would actually come to He Kao in front of Li Xiuyuan, and had already broken through to the fourth level of cultivation.

He Kao briefly introduced the Jianji Palace lineage, all of which were told to him by Li Xiuyuan through his divine consciousness, and then said: "Li Siren is your great master, who is still alive and is already a hundred years old!

He also has a direct disciple named Li Xiuyuan, who is now the elder of the Zongfa Hall and the head of the Xingshen Sect."

Zhang Jingui was stunned when he heard this. He always thought that he was just a casual cultivator in the martial arts world, and never expected that he had such a master-disciple background. He even forgot to drink the wine in his hand for a moment.

He Kao asked again, "You have clearly broken through to the fourth level of cultivation. You should be able to sense the call of the cave heaven. As long as you return to the sect to receive the second inheritance, all these things will be clear. Why haven't you gone yet?"

Zhang Jingui sighed and said, "How would I know this? If only I had known you earlier! If what you said is true, then I must have been fooled. I have always been suspicious and didn't dare to go!"

He Kao: "Who is this person and how did he trick you?"

This was a bit strange. Zhang Jingui was a fourth-level beacon who practiced the Xingshen technique. How could he be deceived when he was the only one to kidnap others? The source of the matter actually started with his master, Li Siren.

Zhang Jingui had never met his grandmaster, but his master passed on to him a handwritten note from his grandmaster, which contained the secrets of the magic arts, and was signed by "Li Siren, the Master of Jianji Palace".

Most of the time, the techniques are passed down orally, and the handwritten notes use many secret words. These secret words are also part of the inheritance, and outsiders cannot understand them and cannot practice them according to them.

In fact, Zhang Jingui didn't need to look at the notebook, as his master had already asked him to memorize all the spells. However, the notebook was also a commemoration of the master's inheritance, so he had always kept it carefully.

After Zhang Jingui started practicing on his own, he did not meet other sorcerers with whom he could communicate for many years. For a few years, he often visited the cultivation forums on various websites, but found that most of the comments there were mysterious and mixed, and it was difficult to distinguish the true from the false.

He also met some forum members offline, but was disappointed.

About five years ago, he took a photo of his master's handwritten notes and posted it on a forum, hoping to see if anyone could figure out their origin. And he actually hooked a fish.

A moderator of the forum deleted the post and then sent him a private message, telling him that the real secret method cannot be spread in this way, otherwise it will cause trouble and he may even be hunted down by the magic sect.

Even their private chat records and email exchanges, if there are any mentions of practicing magic, must be deleted in time to avoid trouble... In short, it is right to be as cautious as possible when hiding in the world to practice.

The moderator had never heard of Li Siren, the master of Jianji Palace, but he recognized that what he posted was the real secret of magic.

The other party acted very mysterious and did not reveal his real identity online. The code name he used in private chats was simply "Moderator." The moderator's words were quite scary, but they perfectly captured the psychology of a casual cultivator like Zhang Jingui.

More importantly, Zhang Jingui discovered through communication that the other party truly understood the art of cultivation, which made Zhang Jingui extremely happy. His master had only taught him the fundamental principles of Xingshen Art, leaving out many of the applied techniques, leaving him to figure them out on his own.

The moderator gave him a lot of guidance on cultivation, including introducing several applied techniques. Relying on the applied techniques of one's own cultivation, it was actually not difficult to master; it just required someone to guide them. Zhang Jingui felt that he had gained a lot.

He didn't know any other sorcerers, and almost all the relevant information came from them. The moderator also introduced the current situation of the sorcery school and the spread of the sorcery.

**
(End of this chapter)