Half a month passed.
Instead of studying the Ocean Book in a hurry, Han Fei refocused his attention on the Spirit Gathering Scripture that Old Jiang gave him.
The Ocean Book clearly had many more arrays than the Spirit Gathering Scripture did. It was much more complicated and harder to learn than the Spirit Gathering Scripture, a systematic tutorial.
Fortunately, after only half a month, Han Fei was already able to paint most of the arrays on the Spirit Gathering Scripture with one touch.
The more complicated arrays were usually combinations of simple ones. All he needed to do was to turn the small arrays into lines and regather them.
At this moment, Han Fei was painting a new array. He completed a pattern with nine lines.
Han Fei didn’t seal the array with his spiritual power, but simply threw the fish skin out casually.
Immediately, an array of a hundred meters wide appeared, with auras surging inside.
Han Fei walked into the array, and he was instantly surrounded by overwhelming sword auras.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
“I only used two thousand points of spiritual energy during the painting. It was almost the power of an advanced Hanging Fisher. If a common advanced Hanging Fisher were here, it would take them at least two minutes to crack the array.”
A moment later, Han Fei painted another array and added a Spirit Gathering Array to it with one stroke.
This time, when the array was thrown out and the swords were unleashed, spiritual energy gathered from all directions.
Han Fei walked inside again.
“Huh! It didn’t get more powerful, but it can last longer. Considering the consumption, it can last 150 seconds. It can hardly kill an advanced Hanging Fisher, who can crack it by fusing with a contractual spiritual beast. However, it could be extremely dangerous against intermediate Hanging Fishers.”
Han Fei concluded that if he were to increase the power of the killing array by using ten thousand points of spiritual energy and a Grand Spirit Gathering Array, it shouldn’t be a problem to trap and kill a peak-level Hanging Fisher.
Cracking his own array easily, Han Fei turned back with a smile. “Senior, what do you think of it?”
“Not bad!”
The middle-aged man showed no response except a casual remark.
Han Fei found that the middle-aged man had been painting a flood dragon since he came here twenty days earlier. He estimated that the man had left ten thousand strokes on the painting.
“Hiss! Can it be ten thousand arrays?”
Han Fei was quite frightened. He could only fuse a dozen arrays at this moment, and the gap between him and the middle-aged man was truly huge!
All of a sudden, Han Fei saw that the middle-aged man stopped.
Han Fei asked in surprise, “Senior, it’s not tea or dinner time yet, is it?”
The middle-aged man chuckled. “The painting has been completed.”
“Completed?”
Han Fei asked curiously, “Senior, what array have you painted?”
Without keeping it a secret, the middle-aged man said casually, “A killing array.”
“Hiss!”
Han Fei instantly gasped hard. A killing array? Thousands of strokes for a single killing array? How terrifying must the killing array be?
The middle-aged man rolled the fish skin and said to Han Fei casually, “It’s a gift for you.”
“Huh? A gift for me?”
The middle-aged said with a smile, “You can’t use it for now even if I give it to you.”
Han Fei was instantly lost for words. Why would you give it to me if I can’t use it?
The middle-aged said, “It may be useful to you later.”
Han Fei accepted the fish skin in a daze. “What if I use it by force?”
The middle-aged man shook his head. “You can’t. It’s not the right time yet.”
Han Fei secretly remarked, How will I know when the right time is?
The middle-aged man asked, “Do you know what divination is?”
Han Fei shook his head. How could he know that? Isn’t divination, by nature, learning of the divine?
The middle-aged man smiled. “Learn after me.”
“Huh? Learn what?”
Han Fei instantly gasped hard.
Back in the treasure trove, Luo Xiaobai mentioned that someone performed a secret technique and caused a half-month of rain in the Scattered Stars Prison when he was away.
However, Shu Shan also mentioned that one had to be an Explorer in order to perform such a thing as fortune telling.
Han Fei pointed at himself. “Can I do that right now? Won’t I be struck by lightning?”
The middle-aged man’s lips curled. “Of course, you can’t really perform this yet. However, you can still learn the simple methods to predict danger.”
Han Fei said quickly, “Wait a moment, Senior, should we get this straight first? You’re giving me food, teaching me arrays, and showing me how to perform these techniques for nothing in return? Why?”
The middle-aged man chuckled. “Do you really want to know?”
Han Fei nodded solemnly. “Yes! I’m fine with owing other people favors, but I have to know the reason. Who are you? A Senior Uncle from the Thug Academy?”
The middle-aged man chuckled. “I have my own reasons. I’m teaching you how to predict danger because you’re lucky. Apart from my purpose… There’s also the Sea Quelling Painting!”
“Huh!”
Han Fei was instantly stunned and subconsciously stepped back. The Sea Quelling Painting again! He hadn’t even found the Bone Yard yet, and someone was already talking about the Sea Quelling Painting with him?
Han Fei’s pupils contracted. “What do you mean? What’s the Sea Quelling Painting?”
The middle-aged man smiled casually, “You’re from the Thug Academy, aren’t you? You must be carrying a Sea Token, aren’t you? Don’t deny it yet. Do you know how long the Sea Quelling Painting has existed?”
Han Fei slightly shook his head. He had a feeling that the man was telling him a big secret.
The middle-aged man smiled. “The Sea Quelling Painting was acquired by Ren Tianfen from the remains of the Divine Palace three hundred years ago. Don’t ask where the Divine Palace is. You don’t need to know that. All you need to know is that Ren Tianfen was hunted by many experts afterwards and almost killed. However, he was able to separate the Sea Quelling Painting from its essence and transform the essence into 99 Sea Tokens… Any guesses on what happened next?”
Han Fei gasped hard. Was Ren Tianfen behind this?
He thought that Ren Tianfen was still living a carefree life in the Heavenly Water Village three hundred years earlier!
Han Fei frowned. “Did the Thug Academy gather the Sea Quelling Painting?”
The middle-aged man slightly shook his head first, but then nodded. “The Sea Quelling Painting was indeed gathered, not when the Thug Academy was declining but when it had already declined. Many experts robbed the Thug Academy for the Sea Tokens it found. A great war took place. After that, another great war happened.”
“Another great war?”
Han Fei held his breath. He could totally imagine how miserable the Thug Academy was back then…
If the Sea Quelling Painting was an ultimate treasure, countless people must’ve been coveting it, just like how people fought for a Divine weapon in the level-three fishery.
The middle-aged man said with a casual smile, “Yes, there’s more. But I won’t tell you what happened later.”
“Pu!”
Han Fei felt like vomiting his blood. Bro, are you kidding? You’re only telling half of the story? That’s torture!
Seeing that Han Fei was lost for words, the middle-aged man chuckled. “It’s not because I’m unwilling to tell you, but because our fate will be changed if you know what happened. So, you don’t need to know it yet.”
Han Fei took a deep breath and asked in surprise, “I can’t even learn what happened?”
The middle-aged man chuckled. “You will know what happened, but not right now. I’m teaching you all this exactly for you to seize the Sea Quelling Painting.”
Han Fei rolled his eyes. “Senior, are you overestimating me? If what you said is true, so many top experts fought for that, but all of them failed and died. I’m just a Hanging Fisher. Even if I become a Hidden Fisher later, is it really something I can do?”
The middle-aged man’s lips curled. “It’s not a matter of strength. Ren Tianfen was a Venerable back then, but he almost died too. Nowadays, the experts are checked by other experts, so it’s up to those who have acquired the Sea Tokens to fight for the painting.”
“Gudu!”
Han Fei could totally imagine the picture where a bunch of Hanging Fishers and Hidden Fishers fought for the painting and the bigshots watched them until one of them got the painting. Then, the bigshots joined the battle and killed all the sacrificial lambs.
Seeing the fright in Han Fei’s eyes, the middle-aged man said casually, “It’s not as huge as you think. The painting itself doesn’t matter; what’s important is the secret inside. Those who compete over the painting all come from renowned families. The top experts dare not attack them easily.”
Han Fei was completely befuddled. “Secret?”
The middle-aged man chuckled. “Although the Sea Quelling Painting is a treasure too, that’s not important. It is not a one-of-kind treasure that deserves such competition. Whoever has Sea Tokens is merely seeking the secret in it.”
Han Fei ventured, “So, those searching are actually the safest?”
The middle-aged man nodded. “Yes! Any of you may find the painting in the end, but none of the top experts will. That’s the key here.”
Han Fei asked unhurriedly, “Senior, do you know what the secret might be? What if you kill me after I get the painting?”
The middle-aged man smiled and didn’t say anything. He simply asked softly, “Do you want to learn it?”
“Yes!”
Han Fei blurted out without hesitation.
The man had made himself loud and clear. He wouldn’t attack Han Fei until Han Fei got the painting. But after Han Fei got the painting, he still had the Thug Academy and the Sky Dissecting Finger.
Han Fei was quite confident of killing anyone with the ultimate method. When worst came to worst, he could always hide inside Forge the Universe. Nobody could find him at all.