Tongtian Jade Ruler
"He wasn't charred by lightning; these are the remnants of his scorched leather coat and feathers!"
Zhou Rihui wasn't as badly off as Zhou Tianhao thought. When Zhou Rihui was sent to North Rehe, Zhang Xuezhou checked him over and recognized his leather jacket very well.
However, very few Sequence Holder are struck by lightning as soon as they enter the Sixth Sequence, and even fewer survive.
In today's world, Zhou Rihui is perhaps the only one like him.
"Can this charred crust really be peeled off?"
Zhou Yueyan was still vomiting in Western Capital City; Zhou Tianhao was the one who brought Zhou Rihui over.
He watched Zhang Xuezhou cut the charred crust with a knife, and couldn't help but feel terrified.
When Zhang Xuezhou cut him open, what was revealed was not Zhou Rihui's internal organs, but rather patterns of electric shocks and a body with a bluish-steel sheen. Only then did Zhou Tianhao feel much relieved.
"Of course it can be peeled off if it's not skin!"
Zhang Xuezhou quickly peeled the shells.
When he cut down to Zhou Rihui's thigh, he saw a piece of jade about the length of a finger embedded in the charred shell.
The jade was initially reddish-brown, but once Zhang Xuezhou held it in his hand, its color returned to a pure white and translucent state.
"It can still grow?"
Zhang Xuezhou picked up the jade and was amazed to see it change color. But when the jade suddenly shrank to the length of a palm, he blinked in surprise.
If it weren't for the deception of the eyes, the jade in his hand would indeed have been prolonged.
As Zhang Xuezhou channeled his Law Power to shield the jade from potential harm, he felt the jade in his palm transform into the size of a ruler.
At the same time, he felt the weight of the light and insignificant jade stone rapidly increase, quickly becoming several kilograms.
When Zhang Xuezhou reached out and grabbed it, the jade ruler had grown to the length of a long sword and weighed seventeen or eighteen pounds.
How did my dad end up with this genetically engineered weapon hidden in his pants leg?
Not only was Zhang Xuezhou startled, but Zhou Tianhao was equally shocked.
"Is this your father's genetic weapon?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.
"I don't know either," Zhou Tianhao shook his head repeatedly. "My dad doesn't like using weapons. He only uses blunt objects when there's a need, like long sticks, clubs, heavy stones, or steel plates!"
"Wait until your dad wakes up and ask him!"
Zhang Xuezhou released the jade stone, and it quickly shrank after returning to its original position.
In the blink of an eye, the jade stone was only the length of a finger.
This type of jade cannot be a genetic weapon; genetic weapons are precisely designed and are essentially precision mechanical structures.
As long as it is a mechanical structure, there is a time for its form to change, and it is unlikely that Zhang Xuezhou would not even be aware of the change.
This was a seamless change, and Zhang Xuezhou, lacking experience, found it difficult to discern at first. He would only wait until Zhou Rihui regained consciousness before making a decision.
Holding a fine steel knife, he repeatedly sliced across the surface of the charred shell. Once the charred shell was torn away, a body with a bluish-steel luster was revealed, as if Zhou Rihui were wearing a layer of armor.
"Is your father experiencing a self-protective mechanism of his body?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.
Apart from the red patterns that appeared on his steel-colored body from the electric shock, Zhou Rihui had no other injuries, and even his stiff feathers had been completely removed.
Zhang Xuezhou felt that Zhou Rihui was affected by the lightning strike, but it shouldn't have caused his capillaries to rupture, rendering him unconscious or even leading to death.
"It looks like he's acting out of self-defense, but my dad's all-black appearance is terrifying. I thought he'd been burned to a crisp by lightning!"
With a single knife, Zhang Xuezhou peeled away the black shell, and Zhou Tianhao felt as if the sky had finally been put back on hold.
Although Zhou Rihui was burned so badly that he was completely blackened and had no hair left, his body remained intact.
For the Zhou Household, as long as their bodies don't break down, they can survive.
"He was a newcomer to the Sixth Sequence, possessing defensive capabilities nearly identical to other Seventh Sequence individuals. It would be such a shame if he died so easily!"
Zhang Xuezhou threw down the knife.
Zhou Rihui is only in a coma; his bodily functions will eventually lead to his awakening.
What interested Zhang Xuezhou was the jade ruler that could change size.
Zhang Xuezhou didn't understand why taking two pieces of jade would be considered a sin against heaven. The jade for nourishing the heart and the jade for brewing tea each had their own merits, but Zhang Xuezhou felt that things weren't so serious precisely because he knew their uses, and he dared to take them away without worry.
The jade ruler that Zhou Rihui found might be something that shouldn't have been taken out of the tomb, which also made Zuo Quan lose his temper and become furious.
He played with it several times, only to find that the ruler changed shape extremely arbitrarily, sometimes long and sometimes short.
This is clearly not a weapon for fighting. With its constantly changing length, not only will the opponent be caught off guard, but the person wielding the jade ruler will also be unable to maintain stable control.
Moreover, jade has limited durability and lacks sharpness, so the damage it can cause to the body is limited.
"It is finitely short, and it is finitely long!"
Zhang Xuezhou played with it several times. The longest the jade ruler ever reached was 1.2 meters, and the shortest it ever was only 2 centimeters.
He used the jade ruler for chopping, throwing, and other purposes, but found that even though he could change its length at will, it was of little use.
"Could it be some kind of certificate?"
Zhang Xuezhou felt that the jade ruler must have a great effect, since it could make Zuo Quan use his magic to curse for half an hour.
"Or perhaps it involves fate?"
Considering Zuo Quan's abilities and Huang Daoxian's involvement with fortune, Zhang Xuezhou couldn't help but make another guess about the role of the jade ruler.
The credentials involve access to potentially hidden areas of the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum, while the only possibility related to destiny is that they belong to a vessel of destiny.
Zhang Xuezhou not only read materials related to transporting implements, but he also possessed a dragon-shaped jade pendant that was a gift from the King of Huainan.
As long as one possesses the artifact, the holder can receive some protection, and may even ward off misfortune.
"The secret location pass involves access to hidden places. We have the key, but this secret place might not be so easy to find. It's very likely that only Zuo Quan knows about it. As for the movement artifact, it only shows its effect in tactical combat. Its nourishing effect on the body is subtle and almost imperceptible in normal times. No matter which possibility it is, it's difficult to judge accurately!"
Zhang Xuezhou pondered for a while, and only after he reduced the jade ruler to 1.2 meters in length did he notice that one end of the jade ruler was engraved with the ancient character for 'heaven' and the other end with the ancient character for 'earth'.
"Heaven and earth, measured by a jade ruler?"
Zhou Tianhao suspects that the jade is Zhou Rihui's secret genetic weapon, while Zhang Xuezhou suspects that the jade ruler is related to Extraterrestrial Heavenly Demon such as Zuo Quan and Huang Daoxian, and may involve credentials and weapons.
Only after seeing the ancient inscriptions on both ends of the jade ruler did he realize that it was an artifact belonging to the Luofu Dynasty.
This prompted him to quickly recall the relevant information he had reviewed, and he remembered an item that belonged to Luo Yan.
Emperor Fu had three treasures that he wore on his person all year round. One of them was called the "Tongtian Jade Ruler". However, this treasure had no pattern or description of its shape, only a name.
Now that he had the jade ruler in his hand, Zhang Xuezhou was able to confirm his name and background.