Chapter 5: The Backdoor
The White Crane Sect wasn't just a martial arts school; it was the region's primary firewall. Situated atop a hill overlooking the city, its white marble walls seemed to emit a constant glow. To the average citizen, it was a place of divinity. To Han, watching from a distance, it was a central server protected by massive physical encryption.
"Fifty guards at the main gate, all above the fifth grade of refinement," Han muttered, adjusting his paper mask beneath his robe. "Trying to go through there would be like trying to hack the Pentagon's database with a calculator."
He needed an open port. A security vulnerability.
He spent the next two days gathering data. He didn't do it by meditating, but by observing the flow of supplies. He noticed that every morning, a group of workers transported barrels of "Spiritual Water" from a nearby spring toward the sect's kitchens and alchemy labs. The barrels were fitted with runic seals to maintain the water's purity.
Han approached the loading zone disguised as a porter. As the guards inspected the shipments, he activated his debugger vision.
[OBJECT: Supply Barrel | Security Seal: Active]
[REFRESH RATE: 60 seconds]
He noticed that when the guards passed an inspection talisman over the barrels, the seal glowed green for a brief instant. There was a tiny delay—a latency of milliseconds between the scan and the locking of the security gate.
"There it is," Han smiled. "A timing exploit."
That night, Han intercepted one of the barrels in the transit warehouse. He didn't break the seal; that would trigger an immediate alarm. Instead, he used a fine brush and the optimized ink he had created in Elder Mo's shop. He drew a tiny additional line on the edge of the runic seal—a logical "backdoor."
[OBJECT MODIFICATION: Injecting Script "Trojan_Horse.exe"]
[STATUS: Seal will now respond as "AUTHORIZED" to any low-level scanner]
The next morning, Han hid inside one of the supply wagons, covered by a tarp. When the wagon reached the sect's gate, he felt his heart hammering against his ribs. A guard approached and passed the inspection talisman.
Han held his breath. In his vision, the runic seal's code lit up. Han's script activated, intercepting the inspection signal and returning a "Zero Errors" value.
"Clean cargo. Move through," the guard ordered.
The wagon moved forward. Han had crossed the firewall.
Once inside, he slipped away from the wagon and hid behind a row of marble pillars. He was in the outer courtyard. The air here was so pure that his system began to absorb Qi passively, filling his energy bar without him doing a thing.
[ENVIRONMENT: Sect Internal Network | Connection Quality: Excellent]
[NOTICE: Large quantity of "Cultivation Technique" files detected in Northern Area]
However, the danger wasn't over. As he moved toward the library, he crossed paths with a group of disciples walking in a hurry. Among them, one figure stood out for her elegant bearing and a spiritual pressure that made the air vibrate.
[ENTITY: Zhou Ling | Level: Foundation Establishment (Grade 1)]
[WARNING: Superior processing level. Contact not recommended]
Han pressed himself into the shadow of a statue, slowing his heart rate. Zhou Ling stopped suddenly, glancing toward where Han was hiding. Her eyes, sharp as swords, searched for any trace of intruders.
"Is something wrong, Senior Sister?" one of the disciples asked.
Zhou Ling remained silent for a moment. She felt something... a slight distortion in the air, like a flat note in a perfect song. But Han's "Concealment Protocol" was based on a logic so different from this world's that she couldn't identify it as a human presence.
"Nothing," she finally replied. "Just a minor glitch in the ambient Qi flow. Let's continue."
As they walked away, Han let out a silent sigh. His hands were drenched in sweat. "That was close. She doesn't just feel Qi; she feels the harmony of the system."
He reached the entrance of the technique library. It was protected by a massive bronze door with a complex spiritual locking mechanism. There were no physical keys; a disciple identification jade was required to enter.
Han placed his hand on the cold bronze. Dialog boxes began to rain down in his vision.
[FILE SYSTEM: RSA-2048 type encryption]
[ESTIMATED BRUTE FORCE UNLOCK TIME: 400 years]
"I don't have 400 years," Han grumbled. "But I don't need to break the door down if I can convince the door I'm already inside."
He closed his eyes and connected to the lock's energy flow. He didn't try to force it; he looked for the "log file" of users who had recently entered. He found the energy signature of a disciple who had entered just minutes ago and copied it.
[CLONING IDENTITY: User "Disciple 402"]
[EXECUTING COMMAND: /open --access=granted]
With a soft mechanical click, the massive bronze door opened just enough for Han to slip inside. The interior was a labyrinth of shelves containing thousands of scrolls and jade slips, each glowing with the knowledge of centuries.
To Han, it was paradise. This wasn't a library; it was a data center full of freeware waiting to be downloaded.
"Time to update my system," Han said, walking toward the "Movement Techniques" section.
[Soul Synchronization: 0.15%]
[Initiating mass data download...]
But just as he laid his hand on the first scroll, a red light flashed in his mind. The world's "Antivirus" hadn't forgotten him. The Sector Administrator had just noticed that someone had accessed the central database without proper privileges.
[SECURITY ALERT: Intrusion detected in Central Repository]
[EMERGENCY LOCKDOWN IN 60 SECONDS...]