Chapter 515
As I returned to Jangryeong Valley, I freed Zhuge Sa from the wooden armor. Zhuge Sa had been injured with a big gash in his arm, so I quickly tried to heal him with my powers, but he stopped me.
“Leave it. Don’t waste the Apostle’s Power unnecessarily.”
With Zhuge Sa’s strong will, I had no choice but to use my medical skills for the treatment. Then I checked Miho and Musashi’s conditions; Musashi had significant internal injuries, so I had to use my internal power for qi healing.
Afterward, I took Miho to a place away from people and asked her, “Miho, what crime did you commit to be kicked out of the Celestial Realm?” It was the ‘crime’ that the Celestial Sage mentioned. I instinctively felt that I couldn’t move forward without knowing it.
“……”
Miho hesitated greatly. After a moment, she spoke up.
“Baek Woong, I can tell you, but if I do, your companions in the future reincarnation will all find out about my sins, won’t they?”
“Hmm…”
“You’re hesitating.”
Indeed, she must be afraid to speak since her sins would be revealed in the future reincarnation. Who would want their original sins exposed? But it was true that I had to find out.
While Miho was hesitating, I pondered and said, “Miho, trust me.”
“……”
“I will solve the worries you’re experiencing in your future reincarnation. I’ll flip the Celestial Realm upside down if I have to, so you can return to the Celestial Realm.”
“Baek Woong…”
She grasped my clothing tightly with her delicate hand. I held her wrist and met her gaze. I could feel her confusion as she stared into my eyes. After a moment of inner conflict, she sighed deeply.
“Really… you’re toying with my heart.”
“Is that a compliment?”
“Hmph.”
Miho, with a somewhat pouty expression, said, “In the past, I was living in the Celestial Realm with the Queen Mother of the West. At that time, I stepped into a forbidden area where I ended up killing the Qing Bird.”
“The Qing Bird…”
“It refers to the blue bird that serves the Queen Mother of the West. Normally, it disguises itself as a beautiful woman. You could say it was her handmaiden.”
“… Why did you do that?”
Miho turned her head in embarrassment at my question, answering, “At some point, the Queen Mother stopped seeing me often and only stayed in the forbidden area, and I became jealous. So I went to see what the fuss was about.”
“The Queen Mother was only in the forbidden area?”
“Yes.”
It was understandable that Miho held the Queen Mother in such high regard, almost like a mother or more. However, it was peculiar that her jealousy was directed at a specific place rather than a person.
“Can you tell me more details?”
“The secluded place where the Queen Mother was hiding wasn’t any of the Yozhi, Cuishui, or Weak Water. Ah, do you know of the Queen Mother’s palace?”
“Yes. Yozhi is where the banquet for the Peach of Immortality is held. Weak Water is said to be uncrossable even by dragons.”
“Right. It’s the place at the highest point of Mount Kunlun. I lived at the highest spot in the Celestial Realm. Even a mere Earth Immortal wouldn’t dare make eye contact with me.”
Miho had a somewhat arrogant tone. ‘No wonder she has a sense of pride.’ The Queen Mother was a top-tier Great Immortal in the Celestial Realm, as notable as Guang Chengzi, and could hardly be surpassed by the Jade Emperor or the Three Pure Ones. She had been a high divine being since before the era of the Emperors and could be considered an elder of the Celestial Realm.
Due to her status, it was only natural that she would have her palace in the highest location in the Celestial Realm, and Miho would feel proud living there. It was probably also true that Miho was treated far better than an Earth Immortal.
I curiously asked, “Common people believe the Queen Mother possesses the Peach of Immortality, but that wasn’t the crime you committed, right?”
“Huh?”
“I thought you were banished for secretly eating the peaches.”
Miho scoffed at my words.
“Hah! I could eat as many peaches as I wanted when I felt like it. The Queen Mother would give me peaches ten times a day, and for hundreds of years, I could freely pick them without anyone saying a word. Because no matter how many I ate, they grew back by the next day.”
“……”
“There’s probably no one in the world who knows the taste of the peaches better than I do.”
Miho looked up at the sky with a distant gaze. “I miss those times.”
“So, you invaded the forbidden area, but why did you end up killing the Qing Bird?”
“Hmm… That, I still don’t quite understand.”
Miho hesitated before saying, “The forbidden area where the Queen Mother was hiding was the deepest part of the palace and led to a dark abyss. The deeper you went, the more sun and moon patterns repeated, and it was a pattern I had never seen before. I lost consciousness when I was almost at the end of the abyss.”
“You lost consciousness?”
“When I came to, I found myself imprisoned in the Celestial Realm, accused of murdering the Qing Bird and trespassing into the forbidden area. As a result, I was sentenced to banishment from the Celestial Realm.”
“……”
“After that, as you know, I roamed the world, seducing people in Dongyoung and dabbling in power plays.”
It certainly was a strange tale. I asked Miho again, “So, you have no memory of killing the Qing Bird?”
“Right. I don’t even remember encountering it while going through the abyss.”
“So, it’s a false accusation.”
“I believe so.”
“Did the Queen Mother ever explain why she was in the forbidden area?”
“No. She just told me to stay in the Peach Garden and play quietly, but after dozens of years, I got angry.”
It seemed like I was beginning to understand the situation.
‘I’m glad I listened to her story.’ Somehow, it felt like this tale would serve as a major clue for what lay ahead.
“Miho, do you remember the sun and moon patterns you saw back then?”
“I do. I can’t forget, even if I’m wronged.”
Swiftly, as I took out my writing brush and ink from the wooden armor, Miho began to draw the patterns. There were not just one or two but a staggering eighteen different kinds, and she detailed each pattern.
“You have a good memory.”
“I’m naturally smart.”
“… Oh really…”
Anyway, this was useful information. I asked Miho a few more questions. After memorizing the patterns quickly using the Thunder Spirit Classic, I brought the drawings back to my companions. Gathering them, I announced, “I plan to actively dig into the Queen Mother’s secret when the opportunity arises. And from now on, let’s not discuss Miho’s crime.”
Then Mangnyang stepped forward and said, “Of course. If it’s merely a false accusation, it’s our duty as companions to help her.”
Everyone agreed not to press Miho about her sins, and then they began analyzing the patterns Miho had drawn. The first to voice his thoughts was the Sword Demon.
“I can’t say what it is. Besides the sun and moon, it just looks like stars mixed in…”
Jin So-cheong displayed little interest. Zhuge Sa and Cheon Woo-jin also reacted as if they had no clue.
“I don’t recall anything like that.”
“Me neither.”
I looked at them, surprised. “You’ve never seen anything like this?”
“Not knowing is just not knowing. At least not in the knowledge I’ve acquired from the Demon Sorcerer.”
Noticing Cheon Woo-jin’s uncomfortable expression, I asked him, “Do you want to keep sounding weak?”
“A little.”
Now, it was Mangnyang’s turn. My hopeful gaze turned to him since he was still staring intently at the patterns, as if he had caught onto something and was concentrating on honing his memory and thought.
After a moment of silence, Mangnyang muttered, “What the Sword Demon said might be correct.”
“Huh?”
“This may be the Ancient Celestial Chart.”
Then Cheon Woo-jin, who had been listening, frowned. “Older brother, that doesn’t seem likely… I’ve seen many texts and maps depicting the movements of the stars and heavens, but I’ve never seen anything similar in any of the books I’ve come across.”
“I think so as well. Demon Sorcerers must study the movements of the stars just like Sorcerers, but I don’t think I’ve seen anything like that.”
As Zhuge Sa chimed in, Mangnyang’s credibility began to wane. Mangnyang didn’t argue back but continued to stare intensely at the patterns and said, “Ten Wings.”
“……?”
“The classic texts of the I Ching are both simple and profound, making it difficult to understand the hexagrams and lines of the 64 hexagrams. That’s why Confucius annotated the classic for easier understanding, which is what we call the ‘Comprehensive Text’ of the I Ching, shortened to ‘Yi Zhen.’ The Yi Zhen is composed of the ‘Wen Yan’ and ‘Duan Yan’ parts, the ‘Xiang Zhuan’ parts, the ‘Xie Zi Zhuan,’ the ‘Shuo Gua Zhuan,’ the ‘Xu Gua Zhuan,’ and the ‘Za Gua Zhuan,’ totaling seven sections and ten pieces. Hence, it’s called ‘Ten Wings.’”
I recalled the time I studied the basics of the Ten Wings. “I’ve studied the basics of the Ten Wings as well.”
“Indeed. It is a fine text that greatly aids in understanding not only Confucian studies but also Daoist studies.”
Mangnyang continued with his explanation. “If you understand the I Ching based on the Ten Wings and reach a sufficient level, you’ll immediately become a master of the Post-Heaven Eight Trigrams. That said, our Zhuge clan has two additional pieces.”
“Huh?!”
That was an unexpected statement. I looked at Mangnyang in surprise, and Zhuge Sa, who had been watching him, spoke up.
“Indeed. The collection compiled by our ancestor Zhuge Liang Kongming, along with the Heart Book. Zhuge Liang secretly included his interpretations of the Eight Trigrams into it, adding the ‘Two Wings.’”
Zhuge Sa looked somewhat smug. “That was the arrogance of Zhuge Liang. He believed he had far surpassed Confucius in his understanding of the Eight Trigrams. Therefore, the descendants of the Zhuge clan study the Twelve Wings instead of the Ten Wings, significantly increasing their achievement.”
“……!!”
Is that really the case? I asked Mangnyang, “When you taught me literature for three years, you didn’t cover that…”
“It’s not that I didn’t teach you, but I couldn’t. The Eight Trigrams interpretations recorded in the Collection and the Heart Book are an advanced course useful only to those who have dedicated their lives to studying the Eight Trigrams. It wouldn’t have been suitable for you, who were just starting out in literature.”
“……”
When I finally closed my mouth, Zhuge Sa added, “So what about the Twelve Wings? We all studied it anyway, but as far as I know, there are no patterns like this in the Twelve Wings.”
“Uncle, do you know about the existence of the thirteenth book?”
“… What?”
Zhuge Sa’s expression twisted. Mangnyang replied calmly.
“Yes, there is. A newly composed Eight Trigrams interpretation known as the Thirteen Wings by the Zhuge clan.”
“What nonsense are you spouting? If that existed, I would know about it.”
“No, you wouldn’t be able to know. That’s because you despise the book’s author more than anyone else in the world.”
“What…”
Zhuge Sa looked at Mangnyang’s face, and a realization crossed his expression. He then let out a groan of irritation and anger.
“I see. It must be that damn brother of mine.”
“Correct.”
What in the world are they talking about? Mangnyang turned to me to explain.
“Vermilion Bird Zhuge Yulong. My father, your uncle’s brother, and the greatest master of the Eight Trigrams in the current Central Plains created this Eight Trigram interpretation. It is called the Thirteen Wings and encapsulates the essence of the Eight Trigrams.”
“……!!”
“During my brief time working as an Astronomer, I received personal guidance on the Thirteen Wings from my father. Thanks to this, I was able to reach mastery of the Eight Trigrams and the organization method in a short time, even without innate magical talent. Of course, the Thirteen Wings doesn’t grant surreal magical abilities, so I still couldn’t help but be weak.”
“What is the title of that Thirteen Wings?”
“The Collection of Wandering Dragons.”
I couldn’t believe such a secret existed. I wondered if it was possible. I asked Mangnyang, “Could you teach me that Collection of Wandering Dragons? I also want to become a master of Qimen Dunjia.”
“You should understand the 64 hexagrams so that you can freely decode intermediate-level formation techniques. If you can achieve that, you may begin your studies then. You’ll need to understand arithmetic, repair techniques, astronomy, and fate; it’s still a distant goal for you.”
“Hmm…”
That made sense. I could decipher simple formations like Mangyun’s, but my training time in formation techniques was short, so it would be unreasonable to tackle intermediate-level formations. I would need at least three years of dedicated practice before I could even start learning.
“Anyway, I remember seeing those patterns in the Collection of Wandering Dragons.”
Zhuge Sa frowned. “The causal relationship is peculiar. How could the most secret patterns of the Queen Mother of the West in the Celestial Realm be recorded in the Collection of Wandering Dragons?”
“I don’t know that either; I was just rummaging through my memories.”
Mangnyang drew the patterns in the air with one hand. “In the Collection of Wandering Dragons, these patterns were used as a means of explaining the movements of the constellations. Within the vast universe, there are certain constellations, and when those constellations reach specific timings, they undergo significant changes.”
“Constellations.”
Cheon Woo-jin, who had been listening, interjected, “Older brother, there’s definitely a powerful magical significance to those patterns. And Zhuge Yulong didn’t create them independently; he must have learned or observed them from somewhere.”
“……”
Mangnyang thought for a moment before saying, “First, let’s ask someone who knows the Collection of Wandering Dragons better than I do.”
“Who are you talking about? We have no way of knowing Zhuge Yulong’s status.”
“There’s another person.”
He smiled faintly. “Someone who studied the Collection of Wandering Dragons longer than I have, who has the talents of both magical arts and martial arts, and once served as a Grand Astronomer leading the sorcerers of the Imperial Palace; that being is right here in Jangryeong Valley.”
