Chapter 5: The Name of Killing – Four Directions Sound Transmission and Void Probe

[Location: Operating Realm · Battle Platform · Inner Gate of the Process Sect]

“Is that it?”

A newly initiated disciple held a spell called kill with a puzzled expression, “Senior Brother, this spell is called ‘Kill’, does it have no other use besides killing?”

Li-Nux sat cross-legged in the center of the Battle Platform, surrounded by countless PID light points. He slowly opened his eyes, his gaze piercing.

“Foolish! If this spell is only used to kill, then you are merely a butcher wielding a knife, not a cultivator.” Li-Nux said sternly, “In the eyes of the Heavenly Dao (kernel), kill is not ‘slaughter’, but **’sound transmission’**. It is just that people often use it to convey death notices (SIGKILL/SIGTERM), thus misunderstanding its true nature.”

“Today, I will teach you the true meaning of the kill spell – [Four Directions Sound Transmission] and [Void Probe].”

1. Four Styles of Sound Transmission: The Secrets of the Spell

Li-Nux stood up, his fingertips swirling with spiritual energy.

“When casting the kill(pid, sig) spell, the key is not the command (sig), but the coordinate (pid). There are four variations of this coordinate, corresponding to four different attack ranges.”

First Style: Single Target Lock (pid > 0)

“This is the most basic technique. Every grievance has its source; lock onto a person’s true name (PID), and the command points directly to their brow.”

[Practical Exercise: Disrupting Order] Li-Nux casually formed a hand seal, creating a phantom body (subprocess). As soon as the phantom landed, it revealed a sinister smile: “Master, I apologize!” After two breaths, the phantom suddenly directed the spell at Li-Nux (parent process):kill(getppid(), SIGKILL); With a “poof”, before Li-Nux could react, he was obliterated by this irreversible command 9.

(After a breath, Li-Nux’s main body resurrected outside, his face pale.) “Cough cough… Although it is a great transgression, this is Single Target Lock. Precise, without error.”

Second Style: Same Sect Resonance (pid = 0)

“If you are surrounded or want to lead a team to retreat simultaneously, you need to use this technique.” Li-Nux waved his sleeve, and three clones instantly appeared behind him. These four bodies (including the main body) all had the same halo above their heads – Process Group.

“Watch closely! I do not specify anyone, I simply set the coordinate to 0!”kill(0, SIGINT); With a loud shout from Li-Nux, a command spread instantly to everyone within the halo. The main body and the three clones all received the “interrupt” command simultaneously and fell to the ground.

“This is Group Broadcast. All cultivators within the same formation (process group) as the caster are affected by this command.”

Third Style: World Annihilation Wail (pid = -1)

Li-Nux’s expression became serious, lowering his voice.“This technique is forbidden. If you have supreme cultivation (Root privileges), setting the coordinate to -1 means Global Broadcast.” “Except for a being named init, who created the world, all living beings in this realm will hear your command. If you issue command 9, it will lead to a catastrophic end, causing the system to collapse.” “Of course, you ordinary mortals (regular users) can only use this technique to kill all your subprocesses and then be kicked out of the operating realm.”

Fourth Style: Breaking the Formation (pid < -1)

“If the enemy forms a formation (process group), how can you break it in one strike?” Li-Nux pointed to a group of puppets running in the distance, their formation ID (PGID) being 5010. “Set the coordinate to the negative value of the formation ID.” kill(-5010, SIGKILL); A red light did not shoot towards a specific person, but transformed into a large net, enveloping the entire camp numbered 5010. In an instant, all puppets in the formation turned to ashes.

2. The Dao in Command Line

“In the mortal realm (terminal), this technique can also be performed.” Li-Nux summoned the treasure “keyboard”.

“Remember, casting spells in the mortal realm is slightly different from in the sea of consciousness. In the mortal realm, negative numbers are used to represent breaking formations.”

• Point Kill: kill -9 12345 (kill one person)
• Breaking Formation: kill -9 -5010 (annihilate a clan, note the negative sign!)

“Many cultivators only know how to kill one by one, which is brute force; annihilating a clan in one strike is the true way.”

3. Secret Technique: Void Probe (sig = 0)

Finally, a sly smile appeared on Li-Nux’s face.

“Junior Brother, if you want to know whether an enemy is still alive, or if you have the qualifications to kill him, but do not want to disturb him, what should you do?”

The disciple shook his head in confusion.

Li-Nux gently pointed, casting a colorless and formless spell:kill(target_pid, 0);

“Look, the second parameter is set to 0. This means – no command issued.” “But after this spell flies out, the Heavenly Dao (kernel) will do two things for you:”

1. Check Life and Death: If the enemy is dead, the Heavenly Dao will tell you “No such person found” (ESRCH).
2. Check Qualifications: If the enemy is alive but you cannot act against him (insufficient privileges), the Heavenly Dao will tell you “No permission” (EPERM).
3. Confirm Survival: If everything is normal, the Heavenly Dao will return “Success”, indicating that the other party is alive and within your control.

“This is Void Probe. Before killing, first probe the situation; this is the prudent way to navigate the world.”

4. Conclusion of Understanding the Dao

Li-Nux finished his teachings and looked at the contemplative disciples, leaving behind today’s true words:

• kill is not just killing: It is a messenger, a herald.
• pid > 0: A divine archer, hitting the mark from a hundred paces.
• pid = 0: The leader, with one command, the whole team obeys.
• pid = -1: The demon king roars, all beings (or the whole family) suffer.
• pid < -1: Strategic nuclear weapon, flattening enemy positions.
• sig = 0: Invisible reconnaissance, knowing oneself and the enemy.

“Alright, having mastered the sending and generating of signals, in the next chapter, we will face the most bizarre phenomenon in the cultivation world – Race Condition, which is the root cause of countless cultivators going mad due to ‘timing’ chaos…”

(Chapter 5 End)