Under One Person, Engage in Black Technology

Chapter 171 Mystery
When Liu Ke came back to his senses and exited the state of inner observation, he found that he had already read through all the cultivation chapters of the manual "Divine Machine Hundred Refinements," and what remained were just various creative inventions of "Teacher Benzai."

When he recalled it in his mind, he found that the profound methods described in the "Divine Refinement" were deeply engraved in his mind, as if he could casually utter words like "fuck," "shiba," "baka," and "fuck you."

Moreover, Liu Ke felt that his body and spirit had been tempered by fire in his sea of ​​consciousness, removing a large number of impurities.

When he came to his senses and examined his body, he found that there was indeed a lot of dirt stuck to his body.

The filth, some as light as the dust of an old house, others as heavy as the foul-smelling mud of a swamp, made him feel uncomfortable and nauseous just by looking at his body.

He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he always felt that his head and neck were covered in far more 'filth' than the rest of his body, as if the 'impurities' of his mind were being burned out from there.

At that moment, out of necessity, he had no choice but to wash himself properly by the stream. He didn't care whether there was any 'pollution source' upstream, and he had no intention of projecting a water purifier or anything like that.

It wasn't until half an hour later that he had thoroughly cleaned his body and face, and then applied shower gel and shampoo several times before stopping.

"Tsk... Why does it feel like there's something wrong with that layer of 'Camellia Mud'? I feel uncomfortable all over if even a tiny bit of it is on my skin?"

Only after he was completely clean did Liu Ke relax. Although he was usually a very clean person, his uncontrollable urge just now was comparable to 'obsessive-compulsive disorder', which he found quite strange afterward.

But before long, his gaze was drawn to the reflection on the clear, mirror-like water.

Looking at his own reflection, Liu Ke couldn't help but shudder. He then snapped his fingers, projecting a large mirror for comparison.

Upon closer inspection, he discovered that his body had indeed been completely transformed, with fair and radiant skin, well-defined and powerful muscles, and clear and bright eyes.

In addition, all the moles and blemishes that he had before were completely removed.

This state of 'great purity' is like a substitute for a beautiful white jade stone, with Vajra hidden within the bones. It is quite similar to the feeling described in the 'Perfect' Divine Mechanism in the 'Divine Mechanism Hundred Refinements' manual: "It can be used in all kinds of ways, and it is not afraid of being cut by knives and axes, struck by fire and lightning. It is forged from heavenly materials and earthly treasures, and it cannot be broken unless both are destroyed."

"My physical fitness has really improved a lot. Did I refine 'me' myself? But that doesn't make sense. If that's the case, then why do I feel that this [Divine Refinement] is even more effective for body tempering than for weapon forging?"

"Oh...right, right, right. Old Ma also has that kind of thing about him, but thinking about it this way, it seems like he only trained his liver, spleen, stomach, and kidneys?"

"With such effects, if he wants to restore his memory, he should focus on training his head and neck."

Liu Ke muttered to himself for a while, then began to observe himself again.

If we were to compare the changes in physical form before and after learning the [Divine Refinement] method, the difference would be immense. It's as if he were truly being put into a furnace and roasted, the impurities being removed and refined.

"Hey... I understand now why Old Ma is so fond of tinkering with furnaces. After this transformation, not only him, but even I can't help but enjoy building furnaces."

Liu Ke chuckled to himself, then picked up the manual again and flipped through a few pages. Perhaps because he had already mastered it, this time, the study no longer produced any extraordinary phenomena in his mind's eye; it was as if it were just an ordinary book.

As he flipped through the pages, he murmured again:
“Teacher Benzai, although you have never met me, the skills you have passed down are indeed remarkable. It is only right that I call you teacher.”

Just as Liu Ke said, since Village Chief Ma passed on this secret manual to Liu Ke, and Liu Ke learned it, Ma Benzai, who was known in the martial arts world as "Three-Foot Little Ban Loser", could naturally be considered Liu Ke's teacher.

This method, in particular, is indeed quite extraordinary.

After Liu Ke stood up in his tent, he summoned a greyhound, stroked its head, and began to circulate the [Divine Refinement] technique.

As his Qi flowed in, the greyhound's form gradually changed, as if it were in an iron furnace, where impurities were constantly being burned away like ashes, and the material of its 'dog' body became increasingly lustrous, filled with Qi energy.

After about ten breaths, the greyhound's body seemed to have changed completely. The previous iron-cast edges had completely disappeared, replaced by a streamlined, natural body, its curves resembling those of a real dog.

Seeing this, Liu Ke was also quite puzzled. He didn't raise the hand that was stroking the dog's head, but instead used his projection ability to [detect] the body of this greyhound.

"...It can actually stabilize the [projection] again? It seems that this Greyhound will continue to exist until the Qi flows out in a unified light."

"Not only that, the internal structure has also changed, becoming more 'smooth and fluid'. Is it... that the materials have changed?"

"Tsk... what is this? A material for superpowers?"

Seeing such results from the initial forging, Liu Ke couldn't help but nod. He was even more amazed as he looked at the steel dog body that was radiating a sense of vitality.

He then once again employed the profound techniques of [Divine Refinement], targeting the chip inside the hound and the area responsible for transmitting AI commands, and began [Reforging].

With a surge of Qi, Liu Ke released his control over the greyhound and allowed it to act autonomously.

After receiving the command, the greyhound shook its body in a very 'dog-like' manner and began circling around Liu Ke. However, after observing it, Liu Ke discovered that the range of its circling was consistent with the 'defense' range he had previously set for it.

Liu Ke muttered to himself for a while, then frowned deeply again and asked, "You... have you developed 'consciousness'?"

As if in response, the [Hundred Refinements - Greyhound] that he was facing actually wagged its tail in a very human-like manner and sat down.

Then, it was heard to say, "No, Master. It's not my consciousness, but rather that my computing power has become inexplicably stronger when I'm linked to this machine."

"The increased 'computing power' has made you think that I have become conscious."

After hearing this, the green code in Liu Ke's eyes flashed repeatedly. After more than ten breaths, he nodded and said, "Indeed..."

"The combat AI, specifically designed for the 'Sorikeet,' was incidentally 'refined' a little bit by [Divine Refinement], and it's already managed to get slightly closer to the Black Wall..."

"……core?"

"Oh my... Master Benzai, how exactly did you comprehend this [Divine Craftsmanship] in the first place?"

At this point, Liu Ke paused, then jokingly said:

"If 'weapon forging' could be attached to missiles, that would be so..."

— If Liu Ke himself were to say it, this [Divine Refinement] would be absolutely useful to him, and even to the entire world.

After gaining a 'first glimpse' of this technique, Liu Ke had many ideas.

The most crucial element is the powerful creations of the "Divine Machines," which, given a well-defined "production line," can mostly achieve standardized production.

For example, the magic artifact that can perform 'spatial storage' function—the Devouring Pouch—can be mass-produced.

Of course, since it involves 'Qi refining', the effect of mass production will definitely be much worse than that of human refining.

Compared to the 'future-defining' attribute of the [Megastructure Catalogue], the [Divine Machine Refinement] can achieve more miraculous effects in a shorter time and is also relatively simpler.

Therefore, Liu Ke devoted himself to this for several days.

After about two or three days, Liu Ke had mastered the [Divine Machine Refinement] technique to perfection. After carefully studying Teacher Benzai's creative inventions, he prepared to leave the seclusion for a breath of fresh air.

Soon after, he discovered that the village had taken on a 'new look'.

Of course, if they are ordinary villagers or extraordinary people, even if there are many of them, they naturally cannot be called new.

Those who can be called a 'new atmosphere' are naturally two very special people—Wang Ye and Zhuge Qing.

Since these two sorcerers entered the village, they brought a different feeling to Biyou Village. Not to mention that they were treated like VIPs and were watched like monkeys by the villagers, there were also many talented people who fawned over them.

In addition, Ma Xianhong, as the village chief, would take time out of his busy schedule to wash his feet by the stream with Zhuge Qing and Wang Ye, and engage in some verbal sparring, hoping to recruit them.

"What are you doing in this village?"

While eating lunch, Liu Ke, who was carefully preparing mutton soup, meat broth, and hot and sour noodles on a stone table, was recognized by the two sorcerers.

Knowing that he was "not so ordinary," Zhuge Qing and Wang Ye naturally couldn't help but approach him, hence the question.

After swallowing the roujiamo (Chinese hamburger) in his mouth and taking a big gulp of mutton soup, Liu Ke picked up a napkin, wiped his mouth, and said, "I guessed how you two got here, so I did the same."

Upon hearing this, Zhuge Qing narrowed his eyes, somewhat at a loss for words. Wang Ye, however, twitched his cheeks, leaned forward, and asked furtively, "How long have you been here?"

Liu Ke reached out again, took a roujiamo (Chinese hamburger) from the food box, and said while eating, "It's been almost two weeks, but I've been staying in the room researching things these past few days, so I haven't come out."

Hearing his words, Zhuge Qing swallowed hard and pointed at Wang Ye, saying, "Old Wang is a 'discarded disciple of Wudang,' and I can be considered a 'family rogue cultivator.' Regardless of whether we want to join this village or not, we are both in the 'free market.'"

After saying that, Zhuge Qing touched his nose and said, "But aren't you someone who knows everything? Will you be okay staying here for a long time?"

Liu Kena quickly devoured the roujiamo (Chinese hamburger) he had just received, then replied, "No problem. I'm still a 'college student,' but I'm just a part-time worker at the company, kind of like an 'intern.'"

Upon hearing his answer, Wang Ye and Zhuge Qing exchanged a glance and then fell into an awkward silence.

Later, Wang scratched his head and said in a very low voice, "No... Liu Ke, if you really want to stay here, we can't stop you, but we're afraid you don't know what's in this village. You've heard of that stove, right?"

Seeing that "Old Wang" looked like he was being overheard, Liu Ke said with a wry smile, "Just say what you have to say, there's no need to be so sneaky."

Seeing this, Wang Ye's face turned slightly pale. Just as he was about to say something, he saw Liu Ke point to a tree.

Wang Ye followed Liu Ke's gaze and asked, "Is there something there?"

Liu Ke glanced at him, then reached for the chili powder on the stone table, flicking it into the mutton soup as he said, "You've all met Village Chief Ma, and he's probably told you about his weapon-forging techniques."

"Among the things he crafted, there was one that resembled a flying insect, capable of acting as a mobile probe to transmit 'images' back to Old Ma."

"Well, you can think of it as a miniature drone."

After saying that, he took a sip of the 'uric acid elevation' soup with a satisfied smile and said, "There must be seven or eight flying insects around you two. To put it bluntly, you two are now 'Truman' and 'anchors' in Biyou Village."

"Don't even mention speaking softly, if you two uttered a single word, Old Ma would treat your voices as ASMR, the eight-channel kind."

Upon hearing these words, Zhuge Qing and Wang Ye were both jolted, as if an electric current had flowed through them.

After a while, Master Wang Ye finally came to his senses and stopped worrying about the volume. He said directly, "Do you know what kind of cultivation furnace they're making?"

Seeing Liu Ke nod, Wang Ye continued, "Then you should know what that furnace is for, right? I guess you do. I think Ma Xianhong invited you here for a reason that it's probably related to that cultivation furnace."

Seeing Liu Ke nod again, Wang Ye frowned and said, "You're someone who knows everything, so you should understand what I'm saying, right?"

After Wang Ye finished speaking, Liu Ke gave him an affirmative look, indicating that he understood Wang Ye's meaning.

Na Du Tong would not allow the existence of something like the Body Cultivation Furnace, which could 'massively' produce superhumans. Based on past practices, Na Du Tong would definitely choose to demolish the entire Biyou Village.

Knowing that Wang's reminder was well-intentioned, Liu Ke patted him on the shoulder and said, "I understand, thanks."

"I'm actually not interested in the method of transforming superhumans using that furnace. The reason I'm here is..."

At this point, Liu Ke stopped talking. He couldn't reveal his idea of ​​recruiting Lao Ma to the capital in public.

As for the idea of ​​helping the village's sick by strengthening the cultivation furnace...
Thinking of this, Liu Ke glanced at the two people in front of him again, but ultimately chose not to say anything.

"...Uh, you two, just consider this my learning experience in advanced weapon forging techniques."

(End of this chapter)