Chapter 1173 - 1180: Guo Qiang (Part 2)
Chapter 1173 - 1180: Guo Qiang (Part 2)
"I never expected that our ancestors had such a relationship." Guo Liang exclaimed, "Ling Chen, it looks like your guess was correct. Since this matter is related to the Guo Family ancestor, is there anything you need my help with?"
"Mr. Guo, the Guo Family ancestor mentioned that all the secrets are hidden within the Tianling Blade. However, I have researched the Tianling Blade before and found nothing. This Tianling Blade is a craft of the Guo Family. I wonder if you could help me uncover its secrets."
Guo Liang nodded and said, "That’s no problem. However, if we want to unravel the secrets within the Tianling Blade, it’s possible it might get damaged."
"No problem." Compared to the location of Ling Gengqiu’s grave, the value of the Tianling Blade is obviously insignificant.
"Alright, no time to waste; I’ll get started right away." With that, Guo Liang took Ling Chen to a workshop. This was where Guo Liang crafted weapons; not only was the space spacious, but it also contained all kinds of manufacturing equipment, including some advanced modern devices.
"Mr. Guo, I thought the Guo Family’s weapon crafting was all done by hand." Ling Chen remarked.
"It used to be, but things are different now. Our Guo Family needs to keep up with the times. Besides, you can’t deny that some modern equipment surpasses handcrafting." Guo Liang placed the Tianling Blade on a steel work table, fixed it with clamps, and said, "Among our Guo Family ancestors, Guo Qiang’s craftsmanship was the finest. This Tianling Blade encompasses all the skills of the Guo Family. To find other hidden secrets might take a long time. How about you stay at my place for these two days?"
"Alright, I’ll take you up on that."
For the next two days, Guo Liang stayed in his workshop, busy unraveling the Tianling Blade’s secrets. Occasionally, Ling Chen would go and check, but he wouldn’t stay long to avoid disturbing Guo Liang. Such meticulous work needs a tranquil environment, and Ling Chen didn’t want his presence to affect Guo Liang.
Three days later, Guo Liang finally made some progress.
In the workshop, although he hadn’t rested much in the past days, Guo Liang was still energetic. As soon as Ling Chen arrived, Guo Liang immediately pulled him to the workbench and pointed to the disassembled parts.
"These are all components of the Tianling Blade. It took me a lot of effort to take them apart, and each piece is intact." After finishing, Guo Liang took a box from the side and handed its contents to Ling Chen, "These items were hidden inside the Tianling Blade. They might be what you’re looking for."
Ling Chen carefully inspected the box to find it contained thin iron sheets. Moreover, the iron sheets varied in shape, looking much like a puzzle. Thinking of this, Ling Chen dumped all the iron sheets onto the workbench and started piecing them together one by one. Unsurprisingly, within a short time, a complete palm-sized pattern was assembled.
However, the complete pattern on the iron sheets was very peculiar, composed entirely of irregular lines, chaotic and entirely without apparent clues.
"Mr. Guo, what do you think?" Ling Chen asked. This could be a unique Guo Family method of recording information, and as a descendant, Guo Liang should know what these patterns mean.
Guo Liang scrutinized it for a few moments, his eyes also showing doubt.
"I can’t understand this thing."
Upon hearing that, Ling Chen could not help but feel a bit disappointed. Clearly, Guo Liang wasn’t deceiving him.
"Mr. Guo, thank you for all your hard work these past days."
Guo Liang smiled and said, "You’re welcome, it’s something I should do. Now, I’ve done what I can, and from here, you’ll have to rely on yourself. If you need my help, feel free to ask."
With clues from the Tianling Blade in hand, Ling Chen didn’t stay in Beijing for long; he took the flight back to East Sea City on the same day.
For two consecutive days, Ling Chen continued researching the mystery hidden within the pattern, to no avail.
"Hey! You’ve been staring at it for two days. Since you can’t find any clues, perhaps you should set it aside for now," Hu Fei advised from the side. In these two days, he had been helping Ling Chen study the pattern, but even after researching for two days, they found nothing.
Ling Chen nodded, knowing deep down that continuing like this wouldn’t work. Without new clues, there wouldn’t be any progress. Rather than waste time here, he thought it might be better to rest; perhaps a solution would come to him.
"Let’s go, let’s eat at the cafeteria." Ling Chen called Hu Fei, then stepped out of the control center.
After just a few steps, Ling Chen suddenly turned around, staring at the large screen nearby with a peculiar glint in his eyes.
Could it be...
"What are you daydreaming about?" Seeing Ling Chen standing stationary, Hu Fei stepped forward, patting him on the shoulder, urging, "Let’s go!"
"Wait!" Ling Chen snapped back to reality and pointed at the large screen, "What do you see there?"
Hu Fei glanced over it, saying, "Isn’t it just a map of East Sea City? What’s strange about it?"
"You didn’t get what I meant." Ling Chen quickly moved to the large screen, having the technicians zoom in on the map, and pointed to an area, saying, "Don’t you think the lines formed by these roads resemble those on the pattern?"
Hearing Ling Chen’s hint, Hu Fei’s eyes brightened, instantly understanding, and he slapped his forehead, "That’s right; those lines could be intersecting routes, which is why there’s no apparent order. Aren’t we searching for Ling Gengqiu’s grave? We just need to find roads symmetrical to those lines to locate the grave." Saying this, Hu Fei couldn’t help but praise, "That ancestor of the Guo Family was a genius, using such a method to conceal secrets."
"Alright, let’s hold off on praises for now; quickly check East Sea City’s map and see which roads match." Ling Chen said excitedly.
"No problem." With this new discovery, Hu Fei and Ling Chen were so engrossed that they couldn’t spare time for food, immediately pulling up East Sea City’s map and involving all the control center technicians in the search.
Although there was a clue, it was limited, lacking further information. Given the size of East Sea City, pinpointing matching sections was no easy task. The group worked tirelessly from noon until late into the night, with no progress.
Yawning, Ling Chen remarked with a weary expression, "Alright, let’s call it a night. Everyone’s worked hard; rest early, and we’ll continue tomorrow."
As they left the control center, Hu Fei teased, "Not going home tonight? Could you bear letting those beauties keep an empty house alone?"
"Get lost." Ling Chen glared at Hu Fei irritatedly, scolding, "Can’t you have less indecent thoughts?"
"I’m just saying, with so many beauties at home, haven’t you thought about anything? Like the saying goes, seize the moment. If you don’t take action, I’d wonder if you’re even a man."
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