Chapter 80 - Point Discharge
Having left the Colosseum, Gu Hai made his way towards the VIP section without further ado!
As much chaos as the core section of Golden Tong was in, the VIP section still wasn"t much affected during this brief period of time. After all, the regions were too far apart. Furthermore, with all this smoke and rainstorm, a majority of the gamblers chose to stay in their residences.
First, Gu Hai visited the blacksmith shop.
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"How goes the forging?" Gu Hai asked in a calm voice.
"Ah? Sir, you came back so soon!? Didn"t you say I had one day? I...I"ve only built a greater half of it, a bit less than half still remains...!" the blacksmith replied, worried.
"Did you built it according to the order I gave you?" asked Gu Hai calmly.
"But of course!" the blacksmith answered forthrightly.
"Very well, give them to me!" Gu Hai said in a calm manner.
"Yes, sir!"
With a wave of Gu Hai"s hand, huge forged copper tubes were stored within the small s.p.a.ce instantly. Having finished everything, Gu Hai turned around and walked out of the blacksmith shop, proceeding towards another blacksmith shop.
"My Lord!" Shangguan Hen respectfully greeted Gu Hai at the entrance.
A slight change took place in Gu Hai"s expression as he stared at Shangguan Hen for a while. Shangguan Hen hadn"t left? Well!
"How many have been forged? Are they forged in accordance with the order I gave you?" Gu Hai asked.
"Yes, My Lord! Just a bit more than half have been forged, there still less than half which haven’t been completed! My Lord, was your trip successful?" Shangguan Hen asked.
"That"s more than enough. Where are the copper tubes?" Gu Hai asked.
Storing away the copper tubes, Gu Hai quickly left with Shangguan Hen.
When they arrived, Shangguan Hen had seen very few Golden Tong disciples along the way because of the rain. And now, when they were returning, they were even fewer in number.
Suppressing his curiosity, Shangguan Hen quickly arrived at the Valley of Crooks, together with Gu Hai. However, instead of entering the Valley of Crooks, Gu Hai made his way up a high mountain beside the valley..
Having made their way up to the summit, Gu Hai waved his hand, and a pile of copper tubes crashed to the ground.
Shangguan Hen"s pupils constricted at the sight of so many copper tubes, because the copper tubes were far more than what he had been ordered to supervise. So, my Lord went to another blacksmith, apart from what he asked me to supervise!? Oh, my Lord didn"t want to put all his eggs in one basket.
"Help me a.s.semble them!" Gu Hai ordered calmly.
"Yes, my Lord!" Shangguan Hen answered, taking a deep breath.
First, Gu Hai took out a ceramic vase and inserted the thickest copper tube into it.
"My Lord, what is this vase for?" Shangguan Hen asked, confused.
"The ceramic is a non-conductor, which will insulate the current from the ground!" Gu Hai explained. Shangguan Hen stared blankly and decided not to ask another question.
Then, Gu Hai took out some more vases and slowly fastened them onto the mountain before connecting the copper tubes one by one, pointing them skyward.
At the foundation, he used a copper support, slanting down towards the valley. Fastened on this support was a chain, descending down the support straight into the mountain valley.
[TLN: I think what Gu Hai is doing is multiple rods are pointing towards the sky and their bases are connected to the copper support, while the other end of the stand is connected to chains that are thrown down the mountain into the valley. The reason he did so can be inferred from the latter part.]
"My Lord, do you want to attract the lightning into the mountain valley to help up break the seal?" Shangguan Hen cried out in shock, his eyes wide.
So, the vases are insulators to isolate the lightning, so that the lightning is only drawn into the copper tubes and is conducted into the Valley of Crooks only!?
"Let"s return to the valley!" Gu Hai nodded in satisfaction.
"But...but...can this even draw the lightning?" A skeptical look showed up on Shangguan Hen"s face. He really plans to use lightning? Are you f.u.c.king kidding me!?
"This is called a lightning rod. In this current weather, lightning could come down at any time. Furthermore, my lightning rod is set on the highest peak, it"s the highest point in the vicinity. Moreover, many free electrons will gather by virtue of grounding, leading to an electrical discharge at the pointed tips of the lightning rods. This way, a great number of negative electrons will be discharged towards the sky, forming an electrical field. If there is lightning in the clouds and an ample electrical field, the lightning will be instantly attracted and guided through the copper tubes!" explained Gu Hai.
Shangguan Hen: "...!"
Obviously, Shangguan Hen didn"t understand even a bit, but it sounded very amazing and powerful.
What the h.e.l.l are electrons… negative charge… point discharge… electrical field… lightning rod!?
"My Lord, your subordinate doesn"t understand!" Shangguan Hen was clear and honest.
"You don"t need to understand for the time being. Let"s head to the Valley of Crooks first!" Gu Hai said calmly.
"Okay!" Shangguan Hen nodded in acknowledgment.
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Arriving at the entrance of the valley, Gu Hai took off the black robes and was escorted by Shangguan Hen once again.
"Open the entrance!" Shangguan Hen shouted.
"How did you return so quickly?" The guard was dissatisfied, as if he was awakened from sleep.
"Boss" orders, and you are asking stupid questions again! I am taking him in and I still have to torture him a bit, it will take some time! And when I do come out, I will be alone, you don"t need to remove the screen again!" Shangguan Hen said calmly.
"Alright! Going in and out in this weather, what a bore!" That guard activated a mechanism, removing the blue screen immediately.
Gu Hai and Shangguan Hen entered the mountain valley soon after.
Redeploying the blue screen right away, that guard cursed towards the valley before heading back to his warm nest.
Numerous criminals came into Gu Hai and Shangguan Hen"s sight as they entered the valley; apparently, they had been waiting for them.
"My Lord, was it you who threw the chains from the sky?" Gao Xianzhi rushed over at once.
"That"s right! Gather everyone and tie up the chains as per my request immediately. Be ready to remove the seals!" Gu Hai replied calmly.
"Yes, My Lord!" Gao Xianzhi obliged at once.
Gu Hai, once again, took out a large number of chains and instructed everyone on how to bind the chains on themselves, and how to connect the chains as well.
The four captains looked at the blueprints given them by Gu Hai, their mouths agape.
"Lightning? Are you kidding me? My Lord, not even Sect Chief, no, not even Nascent Soul Stage cultivator dare to directly receive the lightning. Aren"t… aren"t we courting death with our current bodies, with no cultivation?" Chen Tianshan cried in panic right away.
"Yes, My Lord, the lightning current is too terrifying, we simply cannot stand it!" Scar too cried out in panic.
Gao Xianzhi and Shangguan Hen, on the contrary, didn"t say a word as they patiently waited for Gu Hai to explain. Of course, both of them were also worried. Lightning!? For f**k sake, that"s just seeking death!
Gu Hai raised his head, looking at the sky and explained, "No need to worry, the lightning voltage is about a million volts, and we have thirty-six hundred or so people, my chains are connected in series and in parallel. A series connection will divide the voltage and a parallel connection will divide the current. Each person will only have to bear a very small amount of voltage, the current will be very minimal as well!"
Gao Xianzhi: "..."
Chen Tianshan: "..."
Scar: "..."
Shangguan Hen: "..."
A million volts? Series distributes the voltage? Parallel divides the current? What the h.e.l.l is all this?
"You don"t need to worry so much. I told you this, not because I wanted you to understand everything, but because I wanted you to know a bit. And I have experienced taking lightning into my body myself already, I did this many times when I was cultivating in the Houtian Stage!" Gu Hai said calmly.
"Yes!" everyone answered. Although they might not understand or feel a.s.sured at Gu Hai"s words, but as long as they knew that their lord had experienced it personally, and many times at that, they felt better.
"When it"s time, I will be the first, you don"t need to worry. Now, fasten the chains as I have requested. And make sure that there are no mistakes, not one, or you will have to pay for it with your lives!" Gu Hai said calmly.
"Yes!" the four captains answered at once.
The four captains instructed their lieutenants; the lieutenants, in turn, instructed the sergeants; and thereby the chains were fastened pretty quickly.
Finally, one end of the chain was linked with the chain hanging in the air, while the other end was inserted into the ground.
At the sight of this, a majority of the criminals had beads of cold sweat trickling down their brows.
"Can it attract the lightning?" "We are not going to get struck to death, are we?" "This is plainly seeking death!?"...
An ugly look showed up on the faces of criminals before they looked at Gu Hai together, for Gu Hai, stood at the forefront at this moment. If they were to get struck by lightning, it would be Gu Hai who would bear the brunt of the lightning first.
With Gu Hai in the lead, the group of criminals was naturally not afraid again.
"d.a.m.n, Your Father hasn"t been struck by lightning ever, I still don"t know what a lightning strike tastes like!" "I have been in Thousand Islands Seas for many years, but I have never heard anyone attracting a lightning strike on themselves. Is lightning so easy to control?" "Lightning strike, ha! From the beginning, Father has been waiting for death here. If my Lord says he can help us escape, I will follow my Lord for sure!"...
The congregation of criminals kept on talking, trying to cheer themselves up and drive the fear out of their hearts.
As many times as they might have fought life and death battles, it was all for survival! However, this time, it was no different than seeking death, plain and simple! Lightning was the most terrifying existence in everyone"s mind. How could they go up against it themselves? Had it not been for Gu Hai taking the lead, who would dare to follow Gu Hai in this endeavor that was tantamount to courting death?
Suddenly, the billowing dark clouds in the sky moved.
"Quickly, get ready, it"s about to come!" Gu Hai stated calmly.
The valley quieted down at once.
At this time, outside the valley, the guard from before once again walked out, he himself didn"t know why.
"This is really, odd! That senior brother took the criminal away and then, came back. What on earth does he want to do? This is unprecedented!" That guard knit his eyebrows, immersed in his thoughts.
Slowly, that guard made his way to the entrance of the valley, gazing across the blue screen.
When he took a glance, that guard"s eyes went so wide with shock that they were almost ready fell out. Thirty-six hundred or so criminals were all gathered together. Their bodies were bound with chains and their gazes pointed at the sky. What on earth were they doing?
"Why is there a tower atop the mountain?" the guard wondered in surprise.
Suddenly, lightning flashed in the sky.
The flash from the lightning seemingly illuminated the entirety of heaven and the earth in the blink of an eye.
From the beginning, lightning and thunder in this weather weren"t surprising.
However, in the guard"s opinion, that wasn"t the case. What he saw was that super big lightning bolt immediately charging towards the Valley of Crooks like a lightning T-Rex.
In the blink of an eye, it struck the rod at the top of the mountain with a clap of thunder, and went down the chain, traveling straight into the Valley of Crooks instantly.
In the valley, the criminals, all thirty-six hundred of them, immediately turned into light bulbs. It was so bright that the entire valley was lit up in the blink of an eye.
"What?" The guard"s face changed at once.
Only at this moment did the delayed peals of thunder rumble across the sky.
"Ah~!" "Ah~!" "Ah~!" "Ah~!"...
From the valley came a series of painful screams.
"What"s going on? What the h.e.l.l is going on? Are the criminals rebelling?" A group of guards ran out from their warm abodes right away.
"Junior Brother, what"s going on? What was that with all the yelling?" the oncoming group of guards asked, furrowing their brows.
In response, the guard who had seen everything with his own eyes, pointed inside the valley, his face filled with panic. His mouth remained open for a long time, his lips quivering as if he was unable to say anything.
As everyone looked into the valley together, men with smoke rising from their charred bodies as they lay on the ground came into their view.
"Were they struck by lightning?" "Are they even alive?"...
"Let go in and take a look!" a guard proposed.
At this moment, they noticed one of the criminals, the one standing at the forefront, tremble as he picked himself up. It was Gu Hai who stood up first, struggling to his feet.
Suddenly, a qi blast shook the air around Gu Hai with a loud bang.
Electrical currents seemed to course through Gu Hai"s body.
"I actually broke through to the sixth level of the Xiantian Stage!? That was close, the lightning this time was far more violent than before!?" Gu Hai mumbled to himself as he picked himself up slowly.
Soon after, crackles of electricity burst out from some of the other fallen criminals.
Gu Hai was the first. Chen Tianshan, Scar, Shangguan Heng, and the other Golden Core Stage cultivators in the back were the next ones to recover from their paralysis.
"Hahaha!" "Hahaha!" "Hahahaha!" "Hahahaha!"...
Immediately, creepy bouts of laughter rang out from the Valley of Crooks. It was as terrifying as a ghost town in h.e.l.l.
Listening to this laughter, the guards who were just about to go in felt their scalps tingle. Their feet hung in the air as they halted their footsteps suddenly.