Innate Divine Calculation

West of Yingdu, the capital of the Chu Kingdom, there was a rather large courtyard.

This courtyard was lush and green, complete with pavilions and waterside structures, possessing a poetic beauty.

However, on the surface, it appeared to be just an ordinary courtyard, with many similar ones throughout Yingdu, perhaps eighty or a hundred. But upon entering the courtyard, one would discover the difference. The interior of this courtyard was extremely well-defended, with guards at every three steps and sentries at every five, to the point where even a mosquito flying in would need to pass through layers of permission.

What kind of place was this? How could such arrangements exist within the capital city?

Could it be...

In the center of the courtyard stood a grand hall, approximately five hundred square meters in area.

Suddenly, a somewhat ethereal green bird materialized in the void less than ten feet in front of the great hall. After appearing, the green bird flew directly towards the great hall.

A green bird flying directly towards the great hall was not strange in itself.

What was strange, however, was that if one followed the direction the green bird was flying, it would clearly crash into the ancient wall built of blue bricks if it continued straight.

At the green bird's speed, a collision would undoubtedly result in a bloody mess. It didn't seem to be trying to dodge or alter its path.

Could it be... that this green bird was a foolish bird?

But it didn't seem like it...

About one breath later, the green bird had flown to the ancient wall. At this point, it was extremely close to the wall, only about half a foot away, yet it showed no signs of slowing down.

By now, it should be too late to slow down.

It seemed the green bird was about to meet its end.

Just as the two were about to collide, abruptly, the green bird's head passed through the wall without any obstruction. Following that, the green bird's entire body quickly submerged into it. The situation was as if the ancient wall had swallowed the bird whole.

On the other side of the wall, inside the great hall, at the same position, a green bird suddenly emerged from the wall.

First its head, then its body, and finally its long green tail.

After emerging, the green bird flew past the figures within the great hall and went straight to a middle-aged man in a white robe standing in the eastern part of the hall.

Stopping on the table, the green bird chirped twice.

The middle-aged man in the white robe then stopped his brush and looked at the green bird before him. Seeing the green bird, the middle-aged man in the white robe was not surprised. With a thought, his spiritual energy surged. The middle-aged man in the white robe then closed his eyes for a moment, revealing an expression of understanding.

A moment later, the middle-aged man in the white robe activated his divine ability. The green bird flapped its wings twice and took flight.

It flew through the wall again.

When the green bird reached the mid-air outside the great hall, it suddenly vanished without a trace.

However, judging by its disappearance point and flight direction, the green bird had likely returned the way it came.

At this point, the middle-aged man in the white robe inside the great hall was observed.

After seeing the green bird fly away, the middle-aged man in the white robe pondered for a moment, then suddenly stood up. He scanned the entire great hall, looking at the figures also busy inside, and the green birds that occasionally flew back and forth, before hurrying towards the backyard.

At this time, the more than a hundred figures inside the hall continued to sit diligently at their desks, some writing with powerful strokes, others manipulating the green birds before them, or whispering to each other...

However, they paid no attention to the middle-aged man in the white robe, not even glancing at him. The middle-aged man in the white robe didn't seem to mind at all.

Perhaps he was used to it.

Inside a large hall in the backyard of the great hall.

The middle-aged man in the white robe from before was respectfully standing before a middle-aged scholar in a green robe.

Suddenly, the middle-aged scholar muttered softly, "So, you're saying the Xiaoxiang Academy doesn't have any news either?"

The middle-aged man in the white robe didn't answer. He knew his superior wasn't asking him.

As expected, the middle-aged scholar continued, "Alright Xu He, you can go down now and continue to monitor news from that area."

The middle-aged man in the white robe, Xu He, nodded in agreement, bowed, and withdrew.

After Xu He left, the middle-aged scholar sat on the chair and pondered for a moment. Suddenly, he tapped the wooden table to his right, then stood up and walked outside.

On Mount Ziyang, ten miles outside Yingdu, there was a Taoist temple named Ziyang Temple.

Legend had it that Ziyang Temple's 'Innate Divine Calculation' was unparalleled in the world, capable of calculating heaven, earth, all beings, and even past lives, present lives, and future lives.

Therefore, Ziyang Temple had always enjoyed flourishing incense, with pilgrims coming and going incessantly.

On this day, the backyard of Ziyang Temple, which was usually inaccessible to anyone, surprisingly received a visitor. This visitor was dressed in a green robe and had a simple appearance.

Indeed, this visitor was the middle-aged scholar.

At this moment, the middle-aged scholar was sitting opposite a Taoist priest in Taoist robes, enjoying tea and conversation.

The Taoist priest had white hair and beard but a ruddy complexion, clearly a master of health preservation.

He was the abbot of Ziyang Temple, 'Tianji Taoist', who was usually elusive, but for some reason, he had come out today to meet the middle-aged scholar.

"Headmaster Wang, does your Tian Shu Secret Court truly have no other news?"

The middle-aged scholar, Headmaster Wang, gave a wry smile and replied, "To be honest, Daoist Priest, there is absolutely no news. Otherwise, I wouldn't have come to bother you again."

In truth, the middle-aged scholar didn't want to seek help, but who could he blame when that person was so deeply hidden, leaving no trace of information? All they had was a name from the Heavenly Dao Virtual Net. How could they investigate?

However, the higher-ups were waiting for a result, and he had to do his best, otherwise, it would appear that their Tian Shu Secret Court had failed in its duty.

The middle-aged scholar could only try the power of the Innate Divine Calculation to see if he could find the other party, though he didn't hold out much hope.

However, he didn't give up easily. Perhaps there was a secret calculation divine power in the Daoist sect that could easily find the other party.

But if it was truly impossible, then he would have to give up for now and wait for the other party to reveal a flaw later.

Tianji Taoist heard Headmaster Wang say there were no other clues. His brow furrowed slightly, and he already knew this attempt would likely be fruitless. However, since the other party was unwilling to give up without trying, Tianji Taoist could only say, "Headmaster Wang, tell me everything you know first. I will do my best to try."

A moment later, Tianji Taoist shook his head.

Seeing this, the middle-aged scholar's heart sank, even though he had prepared for this possibility when he arrived.

Tianji Taoist explained, "Headmaster Wang, I have tried everything with the Five Great Divine Numbers, Tui Bei Tu, Lianshan, Guizang, I Ching, and so on, but there have been no results."

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged scholar knew it was only natural that a calculation couldn't be made with the current information.

One must know that Tianji Taoist before him was one of the most skilled grandmasters in calculation within the Daoist sect. He was extremely proficient in the Five Great Divine Numbers, which were Purple Star Astrology, Nanji Divine Number, Beiji Divine Number, Tieban Divine Number, and Shaozi Divine Number.

If even Tianji Taoist couldn't calculate it, then no one in the world should be able to.

At this point, he was completely disheartened.

However, since Tianji Taoist couldn't calculate it, he had fulfilled his duty and done his best.

In fact, it would have been terrifying if the other party could have calculated it.

"Thank you for your trouble, Daoist Priest."

"It's no trouble. Actually, I am also curious about who this person is. But ultimately, there is too little information. We only have the name 'Anonymous,' and it's within the Heavenly Dao Virtual Net. Furthermore, he has never communicated with anyone, so it's as if the Heavenly Dao has concealed his identity.

If there were more information, such as interacting and conversing with the other party within the Heavenly Dao Virtual Net, then the difficulty of calculation should be greatly reduced."

The middle-aged scholar thought to himself, "As expected."

Actually, their Tian Shu Secret Court also had people who specialized in calculation divine powers, but their attainments in this area were not high, far inferior to the Tianji Taoist before him.

But he also knew that calculation divine powers were based on known information to deduce unknown information.

The more one knows, the easier it is to deduce the result. Similarly, the less one knows, the harder it is to deduce.

The worst case scenario is the situation with 'Anonymous,' the creator of 'Chicken and Rabbit in the Same Cage.' Knowing only the other party's name on the Heavenly Dao Virtual Net, with no other intersection, is no different from not knowing any information about the other party at all.

In such a situation, even a grandmaster-level expert proficient in calculation, spending their entire life, would be wasting their efforts if they went through every city in the world one by one without any other information.

But they lacked information?

It seemed they needed to lure the other party into revealing more information.

Even incorrect information would be better.

It was better than knowing nothing at all.

Headmaster Wang knew that in the art of calculation, the more information one had, the less likely they were to make mistakes. Even if someone intentionally released misleading information, as long as there was enough information, they could calmly avoid it.

With a plan in mind, Headmaster Wang no longer dwelled on the issue. He knew that Tianji Taoist had indeed done his best.

In fact, if Tianji Taoist could deduce the result with only this much information, then nothing in the world could be hidden from the Daoist sect, and the Daoist sect might be in danger. Therefore, regardless of whether Tianji Taoist could deduce the result today, the answer given to Headmaster Wang should be that he couldn't.

Headmaster Wang had long been mentally prepared for this, so he no longer dwelled on the issue.

"Daoist Priest, based on your guess, who exactly is this 'Anonymous'? What is their identity?

Are they a master of mathematics? Or an ordinary peddler? Or perhaps a diligent student?"

"That's hard to say! Actually, any of those are possible. However, the divine power they created is called 'Chicken and Rabbit in the Same Cage.' You can start investigating from there."

"'Chicken and Rabbit in the Same Cage'? That's a problem from 'The Mathematical Classic of Sun Zi.' Does the Daoist Priest mean... we should investigate who is proficient in numerology?"

"That is also a clue.

However, 'The Mathematical Classic of Sun Zi' has been on the Heavenly Dao network for hundreds of years, and anyone can learn it. Moreover, 'Chicken and Rabbit in the Same Cage' is a relatively simple problem in 'The Mathematical Classic of Sun Zi,' and most people should have learned it.

Therefore, Headmaster Wang, you should first investigate everyone proficient in numerology.

It would be best if you could find them.

If you really can't find them, then there's nothing that can be done. We can only wait for the other party to reveal a flaw."

"Thank you for your guidance, Daoist Priest."

"Also, there is a new term in the name of this divine power, 'Mathematics.' You can also start investigating from there, to see if anyone has mentioned this before."

Headmaster Wang's eyes suddenly lit up. This was indeed a clue, but the workload would be immense. He wondered if the higher-ups would allow them to spend years of effort on this?