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“Did he seriously just blow through the Seven Great Techniques?”

After passing on the techniques to the Sword Demon, I headed to Zhuge Clan alone. I had my plan all figured out, and I needed to consult Zhuge Clan about my scheme born from pure intuition.

“Oh, you made it.”

Zhuge Clan was busy crafting something using the toad skin I had given him from Jangryeong Valley. I sneaked a glance; it didn’t look as bloody or brutal as I thought. He was tearing it apart and burning it, trying to make it as thin and small as possible, with various iron tools strewn about.

“What are you making?”

“This skin will be quite useful. If I layer it onto armor, I could create armor that deflects sword qi, and I can even melt it down to use as material for high-tier demon artifacts. I was just enjoying the work!”

“I see…”

With a clank, Zhuge Clan pressed down on a foot pedal, and a blade dropped, slicing the toad skin into six pieces in one go. He must’ve rigged some sort of automaton to help him work fast.

“Looks good. Let me know when you finish something usable. But what’s on your mind?”

“Actually, I’ve got something I want to discuss.”

I explained that after consulting with the Sword Demon and Cheon Woo-jin, I decided to explore the “Original History.” I was a bit nervous about Zhuge Clan thinking I’m a fool, but surprisingly, he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

Then he said, “Ah, so that’s why ‘Zhuge Clan’ has high hopes for you. You’re sharper than I expected for a Reborn Person…”

“Is it a decent plan?”

“I can’t say it isn’t. My version of the answer was a bit different though.”

“What did you have in mind?”

Zhuge Clan shrugged. “Simple. You should offer up all remaining treasures to conduct an offering ceremony in the Celestial Realm and get the Four Great Spirits to enter into the Dao Garden.”

“What? The Four Great Spirits are a one-way ticket, and it takes a day to reuse transportation magic…”

“Just stand in the Dao Garden, don’t touch anything, and wait a day. As soon as you get the Fire Spirit, you can take off using the Four Great Spirits’ powers!”

……

Hmm, that method might work…

Zhuge Clan chuckled, “I was tempted to tell you right then and there, but I decided to hold off since I wanted to hear your thoughts first.”

“Hmm…”

After a moment of thought, I responded, “Are you suggesting that just standing in the Fire Spirit’s garden without disturbing it might provoke the Guardian Gong Gong?”

“Correct. Only those recognized by Gong Gong can enter the Dao Garden, and if anyone else tries to intrude, there’s a high chance they’ll be automatically summoned. So your time as a Reborn Person hasn’t been for nothing.”

“So basically, I’m really stepping into the lion’s den.”

“Hehe.”

Seeing Zhuge Clan’s sinister smile, I realized he was secretly testing me.

Mangnyang might genuinely believe in my abilities, but Zhuge Clan wasn’t so trusting. Regardless, he acknowledged me as his master but clearly wanted to evaluate my skills. And it seemed I earned a bit of his respect by coming up with an answer he hadn’t expected.

Zhuge Clan asked, “Baek Woong, how do you think knowing the ‘Original History’ will change things?”

“Everything will change. The reasons I’ll need to move, the enemies I must defeat, and everything I must achieve will all become clear!”

“Hmm… that’s a rather optimistic thought.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s true that as Baek Woong, you can foresee your future, but it’s not infallible. If the Vermilion Bird Zhuge Yulong could foresee a mutable future, he would have dominated the world and ascended to the divine realm by now.”

Zhuge Clan was indeed correct. As I stared at him, he picked up a piece of leather and tossed it into a grinder.

“In a way, that future-seeing ability is the most useless skill on earth. Why? Because the future seen through those visions is true, but the moment you try to change it with even the smallest action, that future changes. It’s absolutely useless for those trying to alter their fate.”

“I see.”

“So, despite having the chance to claim the Baek Woong’s power in the past, I just gave up and left the Imperial Palace, since that ability was akin to the blunders of Zhuge Mu-hu who wanted to protect the Pa Shu State; it was essentially garbage to me.”

After a brief silence, Zhuge Clan crossed his arms.

“But for you, that ability will be significant… because with your Rebirth ability, that future sight will serve you very well.”

That was true. Even if the futures I could see were mutable, it didn’t matter to me. My goal isn’t to change the future; it’s merely to discover what the “Original History” entails. After all, I’ve continuously created variables every time I reincarnated, leading different lives, so the mutability didn’t hold significant weight. I only needed to know what future could arise given there were no changes.

As I pondered deeply, I suddenly asked, “Zhuge Clan, what’s the deal with Zhuge Bu?”

Zhuge Clan responded irritably, “Why are you asking me?”

“I know you dislike him. I hate him too and have been killing him guiltlessly every time, but I’ve only properly spoken to him once, so I don’t know what kind of guy he is.”

“Hmm…”

“I know he’ll go to any lengths for his goals, but does he have any distinctive traits?”

“Why do you care about stuff like that?”

“Because I don’t understand him. I need to know more for future encounters.”

“I see what you mean. Well, from a typical human perspective, he is definitely peculiar.”

Zhuge Clan nodded and said, “He’s overconfident, overflowing with ambition to reach the pinnacle. He knows quite a bit about the Otherworldly Race but thinks he can control everything.”

“Is that so?”

“His old man, Zhuge Yulong, was just a stepping stone in his quest for greatness. Most from the Zhuge clan are all of a similar mindset; it’s no surprise. He’s just a typical genius, which makes him both boring and unlucky… Ugh.”

Zhuge Clan seemed done talking about it and showed visible annoyance. I waved my hands, realizing I had gathered enough material to discuss with Zhuge Bu.

“Got it. Then I’ll get the Baek Woong from him.”

“Skip all that drama of going to the Prophet. Just call him here. It’ll be easier as this is my base.”

“Fine.”

I took out the Nameless Ritual Book from my wooden armor. This would certainly make Zhuge Bu, who had been tracking the book’s location, instantly respond and show up here.

After a moment, space opened up and Zhuge Bu appeared, shouting without greeting.

“All of you, die!!”

Bang! In an instant, thousands of white charms filled the space around us. But just before Zhuge Bu could unleash his charms, Zhuge Clan next to me raised a finger and cried out, “Explode!”

Boom!

“Aaaaagh…”

Once the caster received a life-threatening injury, the charms lost their power, and Zhuge Bu spat blood like a fountain, collapsing to the ground, fatally wounded. There was no way he could survive this.

Zhuge Clan said with an irritated tone, “Baek Woong, I’m extremely annoyed right now.”

“Why?”

He gazed calmly at Zhuge Bu, crawling on the floor like a bug, and said, “Ever since I implanted the Yin-Yang Heaven Bug in him, I’ve been envisioning this moment of euphoria. But through the obsidian, I’ve already seen that scene several times in your memory. So, it’s not as satisfying as I imagined.”

“……”

“Your life must be awfully dull.”

As I was scratching my head, Zhuge Clan nodded.

“So, what’s next? Are you going to save him and hear him out or kill him?”

I thought for a bit and lunged at Zhuge Bu. “For now, I’ll save him!”

Sure, killing him and extracting information through the Heavenly Secret Technique would be easier, but I felt it wasn’t the right option this time. Somehow, I sensed there was something I could only achieve with Zhuge Bu alive. Whether it was intuition from my past lives or just a hunch, my instincts told me I had to keep him alive.

Even though I’ve spent years honing my medical skills at the Predecessor’s Door, earning a proper physician title, I began to stitch up Zhuge Bu’s grievous wounds, stopping the bleeding as best as I could while utilizing the Sacred Lotus.

Whoosh!

As expected from a powerful spirit, his wounds began healing quickly. I recalled the Master of the White Lotus Sect mentioning the uses of the Sacred Lotus; it could even be used in emergencies like this. I didn’t even need a blood transfusion with the Sacred Lotus on hand. A wound that was normally beyond my expertise was manageable with its assistance.

After putting in temporary care, I quickly moved inside to utilize all my medical techniques to save him.

Swish!

Rapidly, I laid down the acupuncture needles to stabilize his energy pathways while minimizing blood loss. Once he stabilized, I examined the wound again and sutured any torn tissues. Following the learned medical steps, I found it wasn’t all that difficult.

It felt like I hadn’t held the medical knowledge for long, but once I got started, everything I had learned came flooding back. Calmly using acupuncture and surgical instruments, I worked to save Zhuge Bu. For two moments in time, I clung to the use of the Sacred Lotus for treatment, somehow ensuring he held onto his breath.

Once I succeeded in saving Zhuge Bu, Zhuge Clan let out a laugh.

“Hahaha… you’re even more malicious than I am.”

“What?”

“You’re going around killing him, bringing him back, and then doing it all over again… how delightfully wicked! I like it.”

“……”

Without a word, I scratched my head. After all, in the end, that’s how it turned out. But I had no choice; I was determined to tackle the forthcoming tasks while hastily dealing with the future sight matter.

Normally, a regular human would require at least a month of complete rest in his condition, but time wasn’t on my side. I infused my energy into his body to speed up his recovery, and by the next day, Zhuge Bu regained consciousness.

When Zhuge Bu came to, he stared at me with a confused look. I spoke, “You’re completely subdued for now. If you try to fight back, you’ll get hurt.”

Zhuge Bu fell silent. Just as I said, I had sealed away all his energy with blood sealing law, binding his limbs, and Zhuge Clan had magically sealed his powers on top of that. Right now, Zhuge Bu was just like an ordinary person.

Zhuge Bu calmly said, “What do you want from me?”

“You need to give me a detailed explanation of this treasure – everything about its usage, principles, and so on.”

I waved the Baek Woong in front of him. Zhuge Bu stayed silent for a moment before responding.

“If I tell you, will you let me go?”

I smirked. “No. While you’re at it, tell me how you got involved in the Imperial Palace, what the current forces and goals of the palace are, who the main officials are, and what secrets the palace is hiding… consider it a gift if you will.”

“Heh…”

Zhuge Bu chuckled lowly and glared at Zhuge Clan standing next to me. “Uncle, this is all your doing. You managed to lure the Half-Transition Master into a trap to catch me.”

“Hah, does it seem that way?”

Zhuge Clan smiled cheekily and remarked, “You think I’d pull this kind of hassle for fun? Really?”

“……”

“If you still think that after witnessing the implanted Yin-Yang Heaven Bug, then you can hand in your precious title of Treasure of the Central Plains.”

With those words, Zhuge Bu seemed to realize something and looked flustered.

He then faced me and asked, “Who are you? Exactly who are you cooperating with Zhuge Clan to pull this off?”

“It’s not that far in your business just yet. One thing’s for sure: if you don’t cooperate with me, you’ll die here.”

“……!!”

“Choose. Will you cooperate with me, or die? This is a pretty generous deal.”

I could have just killed him and extracted the information using the Heavenly Secret Technique, but that seemed a bit too cruel. So, I at least provided him with a chance to share willingly. If he refused, I would have no option but to resort to the last means, perhaps torture or the Heavenly Secret Technique.

Zhuge Clan scoffed at the futility of it all, but I felt I had no choice but to confront my own contradictions.

Zhuge Bu must have sensed my sincere tone, his expression shifting to that of mild fear. After a moment of cold thought, he replied, “If I reveal everything, will you truly let me go?”

“Yes.”

“… Alright.”

Zhuge Bu seemed to have concluded that his survival took precedence over any betrayal.

And so, I began learning from Zhuge Bu about the use and principles of Baek Woong. I had an inkling about the other things, so I wanted to know specifically about Baek Woong first. During the explanation, I became rather shocked.

“What? You mean I possess the ability to possess the predicted future?”

“Exactly.”

Zhuge Bu nodded, bound in chains against the wall.

“Baek Woong’s foresight doesn’t show future possibilities in a fleeting thought. The Baek Woong reads a great flow of future events and constructs a virtual reality, wherein the owner gets possessed as a character within.”

Thinking it over, I asked, “Can I choose the character I would possess?”

“Baek Woong determines the most suitable character to display that future and creates a virtual reality around it. You’ll experience the future while being that character.”

“Hmm…”

“Of course, that character likely exists in real history with a very high probability.”

Zhuge Bu seemed desperate to explain in detail, clearly wanting to live.

“Experiencing as that character, everything you feel and witness is tied to the future you wish to know. Naturally, it’ll progress as aptly outlined by Baek Woong. All you need to do is observe and let it flow.”

“How long does it take?”

“In your time, it’s but a moment. However, the perceived time inside varies by person.”

What a peculiar treasure! I thought it might work like an ordinary foresight ability, but who knew I’d literally get to experience the situation personally? Of course, since it happens within a constructed virtual space, it wouldn’t affect reality.

“Have you ever used it, Zhuge Bu?”

“Of course. But once you see it and try to change it, everything falls apart, so it was meaningless.”

“Yeah, that makes sense.”

I then began firing off questions related to the Imperial Palace’s current forces and objectives, the main officials, and other confidential information.

“… Our goal is to assist the Emperor with his immortality and eternal dominion. The main officials include myself, the Alchemist, the Xuanwu Commander, the White Tiger Lord of the Golden Eagle Guard, and others… Also, we’ve detained significant figures like General Hwang Yeon in Great Thunder Valley.”

“Sounds about right.”

Since what I learned didn’t differ much from what I already knew, I sighed. I’d uncovered the relevant details of the Imperial Palace through over twenty reincarnations.

‘ So, they don’t even mention using the Emperor as a puppet or that they’re subjects of the Divine Priest or the Old Ruler.’

Seeing that Zhuge Bu refrained from mentioning the Offering Ceremony or the Vermilion Bird Zhuge Yulong, I couldn’t help but scoff inwardly. I wasn’t going to pry, since showing I knew too much would only cause him to despair and clam up; so, I intentionally played dumb to bait him into revealing more.

Once I felt I had enough, I shot a glance at Zhuge Clan. It was a silent way of asking if he noticed anything strange. Zhuge Clan grinned widely and mimed cutting a throat with his finger, causing Zhuge Bu to grit his teeth.

“Darn it!”

But I shook my head. “Zhuge Clan. Leave Zhuge Bu alive.”

“Why let him live?”

“I made a promise.”

“Fine.”

This was different from when I killed the Blood Blade Group Leader. I had a distinct intuition that killing Zhuge Bu now wasn’t the right move. Hence, without much chatter, Zhuge Clan pinpointed Zhuge Bu’s bloodline and knocked him out. After wrapping everything up, I grabbed Baek Woong and made my way toward an open area nearby. I raised Baek Woong high.

“Baek Woong! I, Baek Woong, demand you as your master!”

I gathered my spirit energy into my Dantian and recited the established command. Then, swinging it above my head, I declared, “I want to see the future fifty years from now, should I take no action to stop the [Old Ruler] or save anyone!”

Whoosh…

The next moment, I realized my consciousness was in a completely new location.

Neither Zhuge Clan nor Zhuge Bu nor even Jangryeong Valley was present.

It was likely a virtual reality world shown by the foresight.

‘This place…’

As I gazed at the familiar environment around me, I was stunned.

“Azure Dragon Martial Arts School!”

Indeed, I was in the Azure Dragon Martial Arts School in Guanzhong where my reincarnation journey commenced.

As I inspected my voice and body, I was hit with an astonishing fact upon seeing the mirror in the room.

“Oh…!”

I moaned in disbelief over the absurdity of the possession target.

“No way… No way!”

The reflection in the mirror was unmistakably familiar.

Jin So-cheong!

Despite having aged a little from my current handsome young man self, I could clearly see Jin So-cheong’s likeness.

 

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