190: Chapter 189 Ghost Valley Treasure

The founder of the Mohist school, Mozi, was skilled in craftsmanship and manufacturing. Famous for his mechanical arts that reached the pinnacle of excellence, unsurpassed throughout history, Mozi invented many practical devices widely used in military and agricultural fields, greatly increasing productivity in ancient China. Along with Gongshu Ban and Yanshi, he was revered by later generations as the ancestor of craftsmen.

However, this mechanical box was not crafted by Mozi himself; it must have been forged by the successors of the Mohist school. I say "forged" rather than smelted or manufactured because the level of perfection in this box is beyond what an ordinary person could achieve. Looking solely at the metal composition, the material of the box can no longer be considered orthodox bronze. The hardness of bronze cannot reach the level of this box; it is comparable to tungsten steel. It is no wonder others could do nothing about it. It was not that they dared not cut it open with force, but that it was impossible to cut it precisely at such a high hardness without damaging the treasures inside.

That it originated from the Mohist school was merely a hypothesis made by the smart brain based on the craftsmanship. This hypothesis is plausible but not entirely accurate. Combining the conclusion that there were no excess impurities in the metal material and that the ancient people could not smelt such rare metal elements, it should more accurately have come from the hands of a Mohist school Ability User of the pre-Qin period.

The mechanical structure of the box actually featured springs, gears, bearings, screws, and other mechanical parts that should not have appeared in that ancient era, only being invented in modern times. Furthermore, they were as precise as modern mechanical watches. It is hard to imagine how the Mohist ancestors achieved this without the conditions for high-precision machining. Even if the abilities of an Ability User cannot be measured by common sense, that kind of trans-era design philosophy is not something that can be possessed just by having a powerful ability, breaking through the shackles of the era's thinking. This in itself is an unsolved mystery. Too many legendary figures have appeared in Chinese history whose wisdom makes it difficult for people today, even in this era of great ideological leaps, to explain or come to terms with.

Cao Xiao would not go looking for trouble, getting a headache over these unsolvable eternal mysteries. The mechanical box was already in his hands, but he did not intend to return it to Xiao Pinger. This kind of thing was not something a common family like Xiao Pinger's could possess. Now that the mechanical box had been targeted by others, returning it to her would only bring disaster to her family. Besides, returning it to her was meaningless. It was not that Cao Xiao underestimated others' intelligence, but to open this mechanical box, one would need to be a peerless scholar in astronomy, geography, Qimen Dunjia, mechanical design, Taoist thought, etc., possess monstrous intelligence, and have great luck to even have a chance of opening it.

The mechanisms of this box were complicated to a perverted degree. There were a total of nine mechanisms, but each mechanism had no fixed way of opening because every mechanism had countless variations. As long as a mistake was made midway, one had to start over from the first mechanism after the variation. Each variation involved various natural and metaphysical knowledge, so the chance of opening it by luck was almost zero. Relying on powerful mathematical probability calculation ability without understanding the relevant knowledge would make it impossible to open. Apart from Metal Control Ability Users, Space Ability Users, and Cao Xiao himself, he simply did not believe anyone could open it step by step. Even with the smart brain's vast knowledge reserves, it had only calculated sixteen ways to open it so far. Yet, facing this combinational opening mode, it would still require heaven-defying luck to encounter the calculated answer combination. He wondered if the person who designed this mechanical box simply did not want people to open it. Moreover, there was a self-destruct device inside. As long as it was forcibly dismantled, the entire mechanical box would instantly collapse. Furthermore, under the action of the huge internal mechanical force, it would explode like a bomb, ejecting countless tiny parts to kill the person dismantling it, and the things inside would naturally be destroyed instantly.

After marveling at the wonders of the mechanical box, Cao Xiao wondered what kind of magical treasure the Mohists had gone to such great lengths to put inside. To his disappointment, there was nothing inside except a roll of animal hide. In ancient times, animal hides were mostly used to record information and wrap items. This was just a single roll of animal hide, and it did not wrap any items, so it could only be for recording information. Thinking of those qualified to use the mechanical box, he first thought of the First Emperor, and then the elixir of immortality. But he felt there was another possibility: it recorded imperial secrets that were now outdated, or a map of the Qin Mausoleum, etc. Regardless of the possibility, the information on this roll of animal hide had no meaning. If the elixir of immortality really existed in the world, the Qin Dynasty would not have perished so quickly. Moreover, the First Emperor died suddenly; the elixir of immortality was just a joke. He was even less interested in the Qin Mausoleum. Digging up graves and tombs was too damaging to one's virtue, and the location of the Qin Mausoleum had long been discovered, but no one dared to rob it to this day. If Cao Xiao really wanted to target the Qin Mausoleum, he could easily succeed by taking a tour, so why would he need a mechanical map?

With an indifferent attitude, he unfolded the roll of animal hide in the space. The map was a regular octagon with a diameter of about fifteen centimeters. One side was covered with countless strange symbols as fine as cow hair, and the other side was a micro-map and a small amount of text. To confirm, Cao Xiao ordered the smart brain to compare the map with ancient maps in the database and translate the limited text by comparing it with ancient Chinese.

The analysis result left him terrified. Both the map and the text were closely related to a name that made him somewhat horrified—Ghost Valley! Just these two words made him lose his focus instantly; he couldn't look at anything else. The ancients were dead, and even if they were powerful in their lifetime, later generations could at most respect them, not fear them. But in the long river of history, there were quite a few figures who made a person with big secrets like him turn pale at the mention of them, all of whom were mysterious prophets from legends like King Wen of Zhou, Guiguzi, Zhuge Liang, Yuan Tiangang, Li Chunfeng, and Liu Bowen, who could know five hundred years into the past and five hundred years into the future. Imagine these people writing you a letter countless years ago, and this letter appearing in your hands in a bizarre way. The letter not only wrote out the secrets of your past but also exhausted your future destiny, and every word was accurate and effective. Would you be horrified?

Among these figures, the one Cao Xiao feared most was Guiguzi, but he happened to have an intersection with Guiguzi now. A sense of panic, as if he were about to accept the judgment of fate, made him at a loss. But this was only a momentary psychological reaction. Cao Xiao had always had a ruthless streak in his bones. When facing things that could not be compromised, this ruthlessness would erupt, making him dare to risk everything to fight. So he braced himself and carefully understood all the information recorded on the animal hide.

When he finished reading, he truly felt relieved. The animal hide did not mention any information related to him at all, but was a map of Guiguzi's place of Guixu. The strange thing was that this map was made by Guiguzi himself. The text on it was not a mysterious prophecy, but an appendix to the map and Guiguzi's words of emotion.

Guiguzi was a figure with extremely mysterious colors in Chinese history, known as a genius throughout the ages. He was good at self-cultivation, proficient in psychological analysis, deeply understood the situation of hardness and softness, understood the art of Zongheng, and possessed unique, heaven-reaching wisdom! Guiguzi, whose real name was Wang Xu, also known as Wang Chan and titled Xuanweizi, was a person from the Spring and Autumn and Warring States period. Because he lived in seclusion in Qingxi Ghost Valley, he called himself Master Guiguzi. A famous thinker, representative of Taoism, master of military strategy, and the originator of the Zongheng school, he was proficient in the learning of the Hundred Schools of Thought, including the Yin-Yang school, diplomats, linguists, Legalists, Ming school, inventors, and medical experts. He was also a great educator. For over two thousand years, military strategists have revered him as a saint, the Zongheng school has revered him as the ancestor, fortune tellers have revered him as the ancestor, strategists have revered him as the Sage of Strategy, the Ming school has revered him as the founder, and Taoism has revered him as the Old Ancestor Wang Chan. Guiguzi's master was the founder of world dialectics, the father of world philosophy, and the head of the world's top ten writers of all time.

Guiguzi gathered herbs and cultivated Taoism with Songren Mozi in Yunmeng Mountain. Mozi did not marry or have children, wandering the world, benefiting people and things, saving the endangered and helping the poor. Guiguzi Wang Xu was heaven-reaching and earth-penetrating, and his knowledge was so profound that no one could match it: "First is mathematics; the sun, stars, and constellations were in his palm, observing the past and examining the future, with every word being verified; second is military science; the Six Strategies and Three Tactics had infinite changes, and his formations and troop movements were unpredictable to ghosts and gods; third is the study of speech; with extensive knowledge and wide hearing, he understood principles and judged situations, and his words were unstoppable; fourth is detachment; cultivating truth and nourishing nature, eliminating diseases and prolonging life, taking food and guiding breathing, he could ascend to the sky from flat ground."

He lived in seclusion in Ghost Valley for an uncountable number of years, and his disciples were countless. Su Qin, Zhang Yi, Sun Bin, Pang Juan, Shang Yang, Li Si, Lu Buwei, Bai Qi, Li Mu, Wang Jian, Xu Fu, Mao Sui, Fan Li, Le Yi, Fan Ju, Zou Ji, Fan Sui, Li Bing, Zhao She, Tian Dan, Li Kui, and more than five hundred elites were all his disciples. Before entering the mountain, these disciples were nobodies, but after coming out, each of them shined brightly, becoming generals and ministers, famous for a thousand years! Su Qin was a famous military strategist during the Seven Kingdoms' wars, while Zhang Yi was a famous strategist during the Warring States period, and Bai Qi was the number one general of the Warring States period who deeply understood Guiguzi's military strategy. In addition, Fan Li, a strategist who helped King Goujian of Yue endure humiliation and defeat King Fuchai of Wu to successfully restore his country, was also Guiguzi's disciple; the famous diplomat Mao Sui during the Warring States period was also Guiguzi's disciple; Xu Fu, the master of medicine and health in the Qin Dynasty, was also Guiguzi's disciple. Guiguzi also had a junior sister, who was the founder of Qimen Dunjia, possessed the Nine Heavens Secret Manual, and was well-versed in the secrets of heaven, human ways, and earth veins, the Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady. The two senior and junior siblings were both disciples of Laozi, the founder of Taoism.

Ghost Valley was mysterious, covering social strategies, natural geography, and the mysteries of the universe. His talent peered into everything, entered every gate, broke through the six paths, and mastered all schools of thought! He taught countless disciples who turned clouds and rain, shocked the world, and all achieved great things later. It is no exaggeration to call Ghost Valley the teacher of all saints! Guiguzi not only had the talent to manage the world but also had a compassionate heart to save the world. To end the chaos of the Warring States period for hundreds of years, so that the flames of war would not continue, and to save the people of the world, he made huge contributions! One can use the sentence "Establish a heart for heaven and earth, set a life for the people, continue the lost learning for the past saints, and open up peace for all generations" to summarize his life's work.

Guiguzi was also a cave immortal in Taoist legends, ranking thirteenth in the fourth seat on the left, and was revered as the Xuanwei True Man, self-styled as Xuanweizi. In Taoism, a true immortal is also called a True Man; only those who have attained the Tao and become immortals can be called True Man, so they do not age through generations. It is said that Guiguzi had the technique of invisibility and concealment, the method of moving the sky and shifting the earth, and could also undergo rebirth, transcend life and death, and could scatter beans into soldiers and cut grass into horses. "Records of Strange Things" recorded: "Master Guiguzi was a true immortal of ancient times. His surname was Wang. From the era of Xuanyuan, through the Shang and Zhou dynasties, he followed Laozi in two transformations through the quicksand, and returned to China at the end of the Zhou Dynasty. He lived in Guigu Mountain in Hanbin." Even Qin Shi Huang sought help from Master Guiguzi, asking him for the grass of immortality. Historical records state: "There is an immortal grass on the Divine Land, which looks like a millet seedling. When a person is dead, covering it with this grass will bring them back to life. During the time of Qin Shi Huang, there were many people who died unjustly in Dayuan. A bird-like creature held this grass and dropped it on the ground to cover the dead, and the dead person sat up. The First Emperor sent someone to ask Master Guiguzi in the north of the city, who said that there was an immortal grass on Yingzhou in the East Sea, growing in the Qiong field. He then sent Xu Fu to seek jade vegetables and golden dishes, as well as one-inch mulberries."

There are countless magical stories about Guiguzi. Those ethereal and unverifiable ones will not be discussed for now, but the more than five hundred famous elite disciples he educated are enough to prove his heaven-reaching and earth-penetrating abilities. Now Cao Xiao was no longer afraid, but extremely excited. What did Guiguzi's place of Guixu mean? It was highly likely to have Guiguzi's lifelong inheritance. Cao Xiao was not moved by the academic studies of other schools, but thinking that there might be Guiguzi's junior sister Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady's Nine Heavens Immortal Scripture, the wordless heavenly book left by Laozi to Guiguzi, and the legendary Taoist cultivation manuals such as Guiguzi's "Benjing Yinfu Seven Arts" and "Guan Lingyin Xi Inner Biography", Cao Xiao could not help himself and wished he could go there immediately to take them out. Later generations have a poem "Ode to the Ghost Valley of All Saints": The five elements and yin and yang open the world, vertical and horizontal alliances determine life and death! A grand plan shocks the wind and clouds, and a thousand-year hegemony shakes the universe! The Hundred Schools of Thought claim the century, and the Qimen Ghost Valley are all true scriptures! As long as it is a secret manual collected or written by Guiguzi, obtaining just one can benefit him for a lifetime, or even exist forever with the world!

He always had a question in his heart: were those great beings of ancient times who could measure the sky and earth really dead? If they were not dead, where did they go? Guiguzi lived through several eras, but there were no historical records of his death, at most a sentence saying his birth and death were unknown and could not be verified. The animal hide only recorded the place of Guixu, not Guiguzi's tomb. Cao Xiao had a strange premonition in his heart. If he went to the place of Guixu and saw a living Guiguzi, should he say it was seeing a ghost or seeing a living ghost?

Although the animal hide map clearly marked the specific location and mechanical formation of the place of Guixu, and it was said that one could enter it step by step, although his heart was moved, Cao Xiao did not intend to go. He had no bottom in his heart, at least he would not go until he had the confidence.

From the information, he learned that this piece of animal hide itself was a Taoist treasure, a formation map called the Eight Extremes Yin-Devouring Formation, and it was also the only proof to open the place of Guixu. Otherwise, according to Guiguzi, even his master Laozi could not crack the bizarre formations and Qimen Dunjia mechanisms in the place of Guixu. Moreover, the Eight Extremes Yin-Devouring Formation map was also a protective treasure. Carrying it on one's body could protect oneself from any yin objects, and if driven by Taoist profound arts, it could exert the power of reversing yin and yang.