17. Please remember three things

  Nietzsche had traveled to many city-states on the continent and experienced many battles. After becoming a great magician, he observed many wars in a nearly cold-blooded manner, secretly making chillingly meticulous casualty statistics, discovering an overlooked problem.

  First-class warriors seem to have a relatively high casualty rate in prolonged continuous multi-day battles, although lower than that of ordinary soldiers, but much higher than the casualty rate of second-class warriors, which is disproportionate compared to their power difference. For example, in one war with tens of thousands of people, Nietzsche counted that the casualty rate of ordinary soldiers on both sides reached 35%, the casualty rate of first-class warriors reached 20%, and the casualty rate of second-class warriors was only 7%. The casualty rate of third-class warriors was only 5%.

  This result is clearly abnormal. As a fellow practitioner of the same rank, the difference in strength between a first-class warrior and a second-class warrior shouldn't be that great, let alone the difference in combat skills. The old madman continued to study this issue carefully, searching for battlefields wherever there were large-scale bloody conflicts, just like a bloodthirsty person.

  He gradually discovered a detail, many powerful and skilled first-class warriors are prone to "illness" in long-term battles, troubled by various injuries and illnesses, even old wounds that occurred a long time ago. In the cruel battlefield environment, it is easy to be ignored and no one delves deeper. If relying on superhuman willpower and strong physique plus a bit of luck, these people can survive, they often advance to become second-class warriors.

  The old madman continued to follow this thread and did more research, discovering that secondary warriors would be troubled by physical factors before advancing, which is generally considered a normal phenomenon in body technique cultivation. Ordinary people's physique cannot adapt to the extraordinary power, requiring strong willpower to persist in training, achieving the accomplishment of secondary body technique, and then enhancing physical strength to adapt.

  This view is not wrong, but no one noticed the unusual regularity in it. The old madman summed up a rule, which is a test that must be encountered in the cultivation of body skills, manifested as all potential injuries and illnesses in the body being exposed and erupting. If the physical quality is not good, you can't pass this test, but if it appears on the battlefield, the situation becomes serious, and it's not just a matter of passing or failing the test.

  As a first-class warrior who rushes to the front line on the battlefield, they are naturally not people of noble status, but ordinary civilians who have been lucky enough to cultivate their bodies and be recruited to the front lines. They must appear in the most intense battles and need military achievements to change their identity and status, so the high casualties did not attract much attention.

  The old madman called this trial "Purification of the Body", and thinking about the various trials that must be faced in the process of cultivating divine techniques, he guessed that there must be something common and regular among them, and told all these to his student Bell. Now, through the research results transmitted back by Bell, he awakened the power of Amun's two sides, and got a precise proof on this child.

  The old madman finished speaking, and Ah Mon suddenly realized that he no longer worried about his own situation, after all, he was not experiencing this kind of test on the battlefield. The old madman continued to say: "You must pass this test before the disaster comes, I'm still worried whether it's too late or not, unexpectedly you've already taken this step, and now I can rest assured a lot."

  The old madman mentioned the disaster again, and Amun couldn't help but ask: "What kind of disaster is it? Don't you think Ma Qi's affairs are already a disaster?" The familiar neighbor being killed in front of him, the stir caused by the town, and the crying and worrying of Ma Qi's family members were all disasters in Amun's eyes.

  The old madman shook his head and said, "It's not time to tell you yet, but you yourself will soon face another disaster. The day when you leave Du Ke Town is approaching."

  "Leave Duketown? The town's laws don't allow it! And besides, I'm not a great magician yet... What about my father?"

  The old madman sighed: "You don't have to worry about these things, worrying is useless. Everyone here has their own destiny, and you have your fate too. In fact, since you excavated the Tears of the Gods, from the moment that Fayol declared that you had secretly offered them to the goddess Isis, you were destined to accept the punishment of the kingdom."

  "What punishment from the kingdom?"

  The old madman sneered, "Dasti and Xiao Gu will naturally pretend to be unaware, so they won't have any responsibility. The Tears of the Gods were privately offered to the Goddess Isis by you! ... However, Maria should have already arrived at the Temple of Isis and become a Holy Maiden. How she obtained the news about the Tears of the Gods in Du Ke Town must have been made public."

  The Kingdom of Hatti will not openly protest anything, nor can it pursue the matter, but secretly there must be someone who is dissatisfied. A miner excavated the tears of the gods, but did not report them according to the regulations, and instead privately presented them to the temple of the Egu Empire. This is serious! If no punishment is meted out, how can similar things be prevented from happening again? Can't punish Rod Dick, can't you be punished?"

  Amun's eyebrows were tightly locked: "How will the kingdom punish me?"

  Old Crazy: "Find another crime, violating some decree or some oracle, you will be beheaded, otherwise how can we warn others? This is something that even a heel can think of!"

  "Amon took a deep breath: 'Beheading! When?'"

  Old Madman: "Rhode-Dick hasn't left Hatty yet, and the news will probably spread soon. But as for you, we need to wait until the announcement of the Saint's enthronement is made, and then a messenger will be sent from the capital. It should take about two months or so... but don't worry, you won't be beheaded. I still have some old connections here, and I'll make arrangements for your departure in advance. You can start preparing to leave now, just don't tell anyone!"

  Amon's expression became flustered and somewhat at a loss: "I'm going to leave Duketown? Leave my father and you..." He was just a young man who had never been far from home, suddenly hearing this news, for the time being didn't know what to do.

  The old madman patted his shoulder and said, "Kid, you'll grow up one day. I've taught you so much, is it just to be a clerk in Duke Town? The outside world is vast, don't forget your promise to me, unravel the mystery of the gods... As for here, I'll take care of everything, after the storm passes, you can come back."

  Amun: "You can still come back, huh? Well, that's good! But I..."

  "However, you haven't learned more yet, have you? I'll record everything I know and hand it over to you. The rest is up to you. I not only hope you can unravel the secrets of the gods but also verify this path personally, so I don't want you to take a wrong turn. My original path was already wrong from the start, and even becoming a 9th-level magician might be the end. Now, I want to remind you of three things that you must remember, and don't ask for reasons."

  Ammon was taken aback: "You tell me, I'll definitely remember!"

  The three things Lao Fuzi entrusted were very special——

  First, no matter how powerful Amon becomes in the future, try not to kill people directly. It's not that you can't kill people, but rather try to avoid killing people directly - there is a big difference between these two things. If it must be necessary to harm anyone including living beings, achieve the same effect with as little power as possible.

  Second, no matter how great the disaster, try not to make people resent him. If it is unavoidable to incur the direct hatred of some people, then let more people be grateful to him and respect him from the bottom of their hearts.

  Third, if the above two points bring confusion to oneself, contradicting one's beliefs, or when faced with a choice between life and death, and there is no other option but to kill someone, or to make someone resentful, then it can be disregarded, and there is no need to dwell on it in one's heart.

  It's easy to remember these three points, but it's hard to understand. Ah Meng blinked his eyes and thought for a long time. Since the old madman didn't allow him to ask why, he asked another question: "You want me to try my best to avoid killing people directly, but why did you kill Ma Qi directly that day, and with such great force?"

  The old man's eyes seemed to have a deep sense of helplessness: "These, are what I want you to remember, as for me, it doesn't matter anymore!... Kid, do these three points give you any familiar feeling?"

  Ammon shook his head: "Can't remember, it's the first time I've heard of it."

  Old Crazy: "I'm also telling someone for the first time, this is mentioned in the message from Bell, but he didn't explain why... Ah Meng, lend me that branch of yours for a few days, I want to rework it."

  The old madman changed the subject, and the so-called branch was of course referring to Amun's high-quality iron ingot. Amun handed the stick to the old madman, and after returning home, he thought about today's conversation, not only worrying about future disasters, but also having a hint of inexplicable curiosity and longing.

  He was quietly making preparations for his journey, but there wasn't much to prepare for, as he still didn't know where he would be going. He was more concerned about what would happen to his drunkard father after he left. The Azure Water Heart was a must-bring, and he also planned to leave behind the other twenty divine stones, which would be enough for his father to use for several years. Old Crazy had promised to take care of things here, and since he could always come back, there was no need to worry excessively.

  The three things that Old Maniac said to remember were mentioned in the oral message passed back by Bell, but when recalling Bell's oral message last time, these were not mentioned. It seems that he did not tell Ammon about all the situations at least, and it is unknown what else was reserved.

  After a few more days, Ah Mon's "illness" was cured, and all the symptoms disappeared so naturally. That night, Ah Mon sat at home, feeling inexplicably comfortable with every muscle and pore in his body, even every breath was exhilarating. This was truly his own body, and only then could he use the power awakened in his blood vessels without any awkwardness.

  He has passed the "Purification of Body" test, and his physical skills have advanced to level two. According to Old Maniac's words, at this time Amun should continue to cultivate the second-level divine technique. Amun originally wanted to go to the Black Fire Thicket, so he went to Old Maniac's house along the way, wanting to tell him this news and ask what to do next to cultivate the second-level divine technique.

  He walked to the gate of the old madman's courtyard, but felt that this courtyard was a bit off, as if there was an invisible force blocking the entrance. As soon as Amun touched this force, he heard a voice seemingly in his ear say: "Mr. Nietzsche, is the person outside the one you mentioned, that child?"

  This was an old man's voice, not from the townspeople. Immediately afterwards, Amun heard the old madman's voice also seemed to be right next to his ear, answering: "Yes, Ge Lie, he is indeed Amun."

  The old madman's family had a guest, named Ge Lie, a name that Ah Meng had never heard of. Ah Meng only heard this one question and answer, then there was no more sound, and the power in front of the door didn't seem to want to let him in. It was clear that the old madman and Ge Lie didn't want Ah Meng to hear what they were going to talk about, nor did they want him to come in and disturb them. Ah Meng stood quietly at the corner of the courtyard wall outside, waiting patiently.

  I don't know what the old madman and the guest were talking about, but after a while, Ah Meng suddenly heard Gao Lie's voice excitedly saying: "Nietzsche, please do not blaspheme against the gods in front of me. I have my own beliefs, my own faith, my own principles. About that great disaster prophecy, please don't say it again!"