Mysterious mirror hanging high

Chapter 978 Preemptive Strike

"Fellow Daoist Bai Yuan, are you alright?"

This sentence was spoken by Guo Tingshu.

Jing Yu withdrew her supernatural powers and shook her head: "It's nothing, this technique is something you were born with?"

"No, that's not it. I obtained the [Heart-Listening Technique] from a secret realm," Guo Tingshu said happily after carefully examining Jing Yu.

“Fellow Daoist Bai Yuan, you are the first person to have practiced the Yin-Yang Scripture and the Heart-Hearing Technique without experiencing any discomfort. I almost thought you were going to repeat the mistakes of those other Daoists.”

"Those fellow Daoists?" Jing Yu's lips twitched. "Just how many people did you give these two cultivation techniques to?"

He couldn't help but say, "Fellow Daoist Guo, I'm not trying to criticize you, but these two cultivation techniques are indeed extraordinary and would be considered top-tier even in the Immortal Realm. However, the conditions for cultivation are far too demanding. You must never give them to others lightly in the future, or you will only harm yourself and others."

"Alas, many friends have said this to me, but if I don't give it to them, many people will think I am hoarding my own possessions and will try to snatch it from them."

Guo Tingshu sighed, "Over the years, I have encountered many cultivators, and they often exude murderous intent at first glance. I don't know why there is so much malice between people. Why do people shout for each other to fight when they are just strangers?"

Jing Yu shook his head: "There are good people and bad people in this world. Cultivators yearn for the path to immortality and want to outlive the heavens. They need to fight even harder, and their plunder of the heavens and the earth and of others becomes even more rampant. Naturally, they will not let go of any opportunity to continue their path."

"Moreover, your two skills are extremely rare in the heavens. Even good people who usually uphold righteousness find it hard to resist the temptation. And you are somewhat... alas, like a child carrying gold through a bustling market, you are bound to be coveted by others."

At this point, Jing Yu thought to himself, "Guo Tingshu must have encountered many wicked people over the years, yet he is sitting here unharmed, clearly having escaped danger time and time again. Why is it that after experiencing so much wickedness, his mind has not grown at all, and he still has no defenses against people and things?"

After a moment, he suddenly realized: "That's right, he has the ability to read minds. If a cultivator has any thoughts of killing someone to seize their merits, they will naturally not escape his supernatural power. It's just a matter of striking first. With such foresight, it's no wonder he has survived until now."

Guo Tingshu clearly understood Jing Yu's thoughts and said hesitantly, "That's not true. I, Guo, never take the initiative to kill."

Jing Yu said incredulously, "You won't take the initiative to kill? What kind of logic is that! If someone has ill intentions, are you just going to stand by and watch them harm you?"

Guo Tingshu hesitated: "A person has hundreds or thousands of thoughts arising and ceasing in an instant. Not all of these thoughts will be put into practice. Many people just think about it, but that doesn't mean they will do it."

"If that person only had a fleeting thought of killing me, and that thought vanished in an instant, then I'm not going to kill someone for a thought that's already gone?"

“My master in the lower realm once said that such matters are always judged by actions, not intentions, because no one in the world is perfect in terms of intentions.”

"Not to mention others, even my master occasionally has the thought of killing me. Do you think I would kill my master for the sake of one or two thoughts?"

Jing Yu frowned: "Although we can't judge someone's guilt based on just one thought, we still need to make a judgment. In fact, if you take into account the environment and that person's past reputation, it's easy to judge whether that thought will be put into practice."

"That's something only smart people like you can figure out."

Guo Tingshu chuckled and said, "The smarter a person is, the more thoughts they have... Fellow Daoist Bai Yuan, you have hundreds or even thousands of thoughts flashing through your mind every moment. You must be a thoughtful and extremely intelligent person, so you are naturally able to make your own judgments."

"But I'm slow-witted and can't think straight. I can only think about one thing. If I think wrong, wouldn't I be taking a life in vain?"

"Generally speaking, if at least eighty out of a hundred thoughts are about killing me, then that person is more likely to carry it out."

Jing Yu asked curiously, "What if you encountered someone whose eighty out of a hundred thoughts were about killing you? Wouldn't you take the initiative to attack?"

"No need," Guo Tingshu shook his head and said, "Even if ninety-nine out of a hundred thoughts are about killing me, that person may not actually kill me."

"Over the years, Guo has developed a supernatural power... called [Heart-Responding Thunder]."

"Normally, this divine power is hidden deep within my dantian and will never be activated on its own. But if someone attacks me..."

"Whenever Guo is attacked, this thunder will automatically leap out of my body, following the trajectory of the attack, striking first and striking back."

Guo Tingshu said seriously, “The power of thunder corresponds to the strength of the killing intent coming at you… If the opponent is just testing me, the lightning will be gentle; if the opponent is determined to take my life… then this thunder will be relentless.”

Jing Yu was stunned for a long time before saying, "Your supernatural ability... truly embodies the principle of 'I will not offend others unless they offend me' to the extreme."

“That’s exactly right.” Guo Tingshu nodded, a clear light flashing in his eyes:

“My master often said that cultivation is not only about cultivating magical powers and supernatural abilities, but also about cultivating the mind and character.”

“I’m not very bright and can’t grasp many profound truths. I only believe in one thing: if you don’t harbor evil thoughts, you shouldn’t be punished. But if you turn the malice in your heart into action, then you have stirred up the cause and effect and should bear the consequences.”

"This [Heart-Responding Thunder] is a boundary I set for myself and for others."

The young man wearing a felt hat spoke calmly: "It ignores the myriad distracting thoughts that pass through people's minds, and only 'sees' the final step taken."

"In this way, the murderer is not killed by me, but by his own murderous intent; the evildoer is not tolerated by me, but by himself crossing the final boundary."

"I can survive in this chaotic world without having to go against my conscience and actively judge other people's ever-changing thoughts."

Jing Yu remained silent for a long time before slowly exhaling: "What a fine way of living that judges by actions, not intentions... Fellow Daoist Guo, your seemingly clumsy method actually aligns with the profound truth of the self-existent Dao and the self-fulfilling of cause and effect. However..."

He abruptly changed the subject, his gaze sharpening: "With your supernatural abilities, can you discern traps? What if someone doesn't attack you directly, but instead sets a snare to lure you into a deadly situation?"

Guo Tingshu scratched his head and gave a somewhat embarrassed smile: "This... is indeed difficult to be perfect. If the opponent's plan is far-reaching and their killing intent is hidden behind layers of calculation, without revealing itself at all before the final strike, my thunder will not be triggered. I have also suffered losses and been seriously injured several times because of this."

He paused, then said, "But Master said that there is no perfect solution in this world. Since I have chosen the path of 'striking after the enemy has acted,' I accept the risks involved. At least, I feel at ease doing things this way."