Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors
I returned to Jinrang Valley with Miho first. The strange phenomenon of the sun never setting and the continuous clarity was quite concerning; if it was some sort of evil sorcery, that would be troublesome. Mangnyang, upon hearing our discussion, said,
“That’s the Extreme Sun phenomenon. It’s a simple natural occurrence, so don’t worry about it.”
“Extreme Sun?”
“Well… during your reincarnation, I mentioned that this world is shaped like a round sphere, right? This phenomenon occurs because of that principle.”
“……?”
Mangnyang drew a circle on the ground and explained,
“If this is our world, it rotates around the sun. It’s theorized that it also spins on its axis. Because of the spherical shape, while it revolves around the sun, the convex parts receive more sunlight, while the concave parts receive less.”
“Oh…”
“The North Pole is the location that receives the least sunlight. It’s like the very tip of a person’s head, which is why the sun doesn’t set there, and stars rotate around the North Star.”
“What a fascinating place.”
“You don’t need to understand everything. It’s just a hypothesis and not very important.”
While muttering to himself, Mangnyang said,
“Anyway, with it being bright all day, exploration will be easier. So what are your findings?”
“I’m not quite sure. If we’ve actually made it to the Arctic continent, I’m uncertain if we should just keep heading north from here…”
“Is the Maku of Demand responding at all?”
I took out the Maku of Demand that I had kept in my pendant. I had kept it for Mangnyang’s magical training until our departure for the Arctic, but now it seemed it would be genuinely needed, so I brought it along. I placed the Maku on the table and shook my head.
“It’s showing no reaction. I’m starting to doubt whether it’s truly a legendary Spirit Treasure.”
Originally, I expected that upon reaching the Arctic continent, the Maku of Demand would confirm the second seal and provide some kind of signal. However, after wandering nearby for quite a while, the Maku showed no signs of awakening.
Mangnyang crossed his arms and stroked his chin as he said,
“Let’s think about what the prophet from Astana mentioned regarding the Demand Stele.”
“Hmm…”
He sat quietly, contemplating for about a meal’s time. Finally, he said,
“It seems the order is different.”
“How is it different?”
“Firstly, the Demand Stele said, ‘There is no trial.’ But it hints that you must meet the ‘Silent God’ to break the second seal. And to meet this Silent God, one must ‘Draw blood to awaken the ancient bloodline.'”
“Draw blood to awaken the ancient bloodline… I have no idea where or how to do that.”
“……”
Mangnyang thought for a long time. Then he sighed.
“There’s too much uncertainty. It seems we only have one way to properly unravel this.”
“What method?”
“We need to trade.”
I realized what Mangnyang meant.
‘He’s suggesting trading with the prophet of Astana for knowledge!’
Concerned, I said,
“Even if I wanted to trade, I no longer possess any Magical Books. That person has no interest in gold or spirit stones…”
“I have one more Magical Book.”
I had never told Mangnyang about the Nameless Ritual Book during this life. Moreover, I had tried my best to conceal its existence aside from deciphering it in my past lives. However, the way Mangnyang mentioned it felt significant, making me tense up. Then he chuckled and said,
“Isn’t there the Nameless Ritual Book?”
Bam!
Following Mangnyang’s suggestion, I quickly moved to the Inner Imperial Pavilion of the Imperial Palace to steal the Nameless Ritual Book. Of course, I had to be vigilant, so I waited for nighttime to infiltrate. As soon as I entered the Inner Imperial Pavilion, I immediately spotted the Nameless Ritual Book sitting right in front of me, and I couldn’t help but smirk.
‘Wow, I really picked a good time to pay attention.’
In my 12th lifetime, when I offered scriptures to the Heavenly Lord and received a boost of luck, I had sneaked into the palace and confirmed the location of the Nameless Ritual Book. Remembering its exact position allowed me to snatch the Nameless Ritual Book and tuck it into my pendant right away.
I glanced around,
‘Whew, I hope I wasn’t detected by the barrier. I should make a quick exit.’
Just then,
Shiiiii!
A sharp sound pierced the air, and a bluish light emerged in the dark Inner Imperial Pavilion. As it gradually morphed into a human form, my face stiffened. I had thought I went undetected, but upon stepping into the Inner Imperial Pavilion, it seemed I had triggered the detection barrier.
Surely it must be Zhuge Fu, the guardian of the Inner Imperial Pavilion.
If I faced Zhuge Fu one-on-one, it would be difficult to handle with the protection of the Baek Woong artifact.
However, I had enough leeway to manage. Without saying much, I quickly used the Bite technique to teleport to a desolate area near Luoyang.
Bam!
The reason I didn’t go directly to Jinrang Valley was that I was cautious about the possibility of being tracked in that fleeting moment. I stood quietly in the deserted prairie for about an hour, and when no pursuers showed up, I then headed to the Great Temple of Astana.
Upon opening the enormous doors of the temple and stepping inside, the prophet appeared.
[What brings you here?]
“I have something to trade, Prophet.”
I spoke briefly, pulling the Nameless Ritual Book from my pocket. The prophet twitched, sensing the magical energy emanating from the book. His eyes rolled as he stared at me and said,
[A powerful Magical Book. Are you willing to trade that?]
“I believe the Nameless Ritual Book will yield a lot for you.”
[The Nameless Ritual Book… I see…]
The prophet regarded me intently and said,
[Hand it over to me.]
“Before I do, I need to know if you have the information I seek.”
[That’s a reasonable request… So, what do you want to know?]
I stated the information I wanted,
“I traveled to the Arctic to break the second seal of the Maku of Demand, but it showed no reaction. Where do I need to go to meet the ‘Silent God’? And what does ‘Draw blood to awaken the ancient bloodline’ mean?”
Upon hearing my questions, the prophet stretched out his pincer-like claws toward something. As if retrieving something from my pendant, he plucked a large stone from thin air, one that seemed disproportionately large. He rubbed the stone and murmured, then said,
“If you give me the Nameless Ritual Book, I will answer you.”
“I won’t go easy on you if you’re trying to mess with me.”
As I tossed the Nameless Ritual Book to him, he immediately replied,
“Plunge your blood-soaked Maku into the Arctic ground. Then the ancient beast will take you to the Silent God.”
It was a surprisingly clear and straightforward answer. I was suspicious and asked,
“How do you know this so confidently?”
[I have the ability to read fate. I merely amplified the power I received from the Magical Book you gave me for a moment…]
It was then,
Shiiii—
Bam!
Suddenly, a blue light shot up from thin air, and shortly thereafter, Zhuge Fu materialized. My eyes widened in shock at the sight.
‘What the heck?! How did that guy manage to follow me from the Central Plains to here?!’
The reason I spent time lingering near Luoyang was to check if any tracking spells were placed on the Nameless Ritual Book. When I saw nothing, I decided to head to the Great Temple of Astana. Despite being far from the Central Plains, I thought there was no way Zhuge Fu could catch up.
However, Zhuge Fu must have placed a tracking spell on the Nameless Ritual Book, allowing him to fly all the way to Astana from thousands of miles away!
“You thief.”
“How did you make it here?”
“You don’t need to know that. Soon, you’ll be dead.”
Zhuge Fu glared at me once before turning his gaze to the prophet standing by the altar. He uttered a short gasp and directed his energy at the prophet.
“I presume you hold the Nameless Ritual Book. Hand it over immediately! It belongs to the imperial family, and that thief made off with it!”
Since the prophet was an Otherworldly Being, he showed no real change at hearing that. Without an expression, his twisted body merely moved wordlessly. Then, the prophet replied to Zhuge Fu.
[If it must return to its original owner… then the Nameless Ritual Book should return to that evil spirit sleeping in the Rue.]
“……!!”
Zhuge Fu looked taken aback. The prophet moved slowly, stepping to the center of the altar and raising the Nameless Ritual Book.
[I’ve already transferred ownership of the Nameless Ritual Book from So Woong. A price was paid as well. Due to the nature of the Magical Book, while it doesn’t have inherent ownership, it acknowledges the rights of possession in the location, hence the Nameless Ritual Book is mine.]
“That’s absurd! I will take it by force if necessary.”
Zhuge Fu activated his protective artifact, Baek Woong. I had been looking for an opportunity to attack Zhuge Fu up until that moment but had not found a chance. I was also tense, watching to see what kind of magic he would use. If he decided to fight with Nakhonbyeolbu, this place would quickly turn into chaos.
However, the moment the prophet raised his pincer-like arm,
Bam!
Zhuge Fu, who had been preparing for battle, instantaneously vanished from his spot. It was as if he evaporated, leaving no trace behind. I wondered if it was some kind of invisibility, but it didn’t seem that way.
“What have you done?”
[I just sent him back to where he came from.]
Is he skilled in space-time sorcery?
The prophet answered tersely and continued,
[You have some time, so feel free to ask if you have any questions.]
“Um…”
I no longer thought about Zhuge Fu, who had vanished. The prophet appeared to be exceptionally skilled in the sorcery of Otherworldly Beings, particularly adept in space-time sorcery. Although Zhuge Fu, who had traveled thousands of miles to arrive here, was impressive, I wouldn’t need to worry about his pursuit now that the prophet had sent him away.
‘What should I ask?’
Right now, there were countless tangled matters related to Otherworldly Beings that I wanted to ask about. However, given the nature of the prophet, I suspected he wouldn’t answer all of them. It would be best to only ask questions that would benefit me immediately. After thinking for a while, I said,
“I want to learn your sorcery! If I learn it all as payment, how much can I acquire?”
[Sorcery, you say. What specifically do you mean?]
“I mean the most useful or the most powerful sorcery you know.”
Learning the sorcery of Otherworldly Beings!
The artifacts I use, like my pendant and Bite technique, are all made through the magic of the Otherworldly Beings, so the original sorcery must undoubtedly be powerful. Indeed, the prophet had just sent Zhuge Fu flying to the Imperial Palace right before my eyes! Looking at the prophet with anticipation, he rolled his eyes and said,
[That’s not a fair deal. It’s only natural that I have some reservations since I don’t know what you truly desire.]
“It’s only fair? What do you mean by fairness?”
[Your desires… your needs… your psychology… I need to know those in detail. Only then can I impart appropriate sorcery in exchange for my payment…]
“How will you find that out?”
Then the prophet stretched his pincer-like claw out and pointed at me.
[You just need to agree to share the source of your desires. If you agree, I will use the Sharing Sorcery to discover your underlying psyche…]
“……”
The source of desires?
I pondered deeply. Is this really a deal I should accept? This being has lived for thousands of years and is an ancient Otherworldly Being, extremely wise. He might even be smarter than Mangnyang. This made me hesitate to enter into a hasty second deal.
‘Damn it. But if I don’t accept this, it seems there won’t be a trade…’
I bit my teeth together. If push came to shove, I could wait until my next life and extract more from the prophet then. Mangnyang is already putting his life on the line, working tirelessly to grow stronger; I needed to risk crossing a precarious bridge as well.
“I accept.”
[Good.]
Fwhooooosh!
Moments later, a transparent white thread appeared between me and the prophet, forming a bluish light orb in the middle. I felt as if my mind were being pulled into that light orb, and simultaneously, I sensed the prophet’s desires or thoughts were momentarily being revealed to me. However, it felt too profound and deep to be expressed in mere “words,” closer to a primal subconscious world.
‘Is this the source of desire…?’
I wouldn’t be able to learn significant secrets from this. It was simply too abstract. But I could discern the most powerful desires or emotions that he subconsciously craved. As I maintained the thread of sharing, the prophet said,
[Very well. I have discovered the appropriate sorcery for you…]
The prophet ended the sorcery and broke the thread of sharing. When I looked at him, he continued,
[I will pass on to you the sorcery of Obsidian…]
“Obsidian sorcery?”
[Obsidian is the most efficient precious stone for storing memories. You will be able to use this sorcery to retain your own memories…]
“……?!”
What is this random suggestion?
I exclaimed in confusion,
“That’s ridiculous! Why would I need a sorcery for storing memories?”
[Your source of desire clearly indicates that you need it. Because within you lies the pain of struggling to handle the overwhelming influx of information.]
“……”
[Being able to store your memories in Obsidian means that you can also eliminate unnecessary memories, thus enhancing the efficiency of your consciousness. It will allow you to raise the limits of your talents.]
His explanation made me realize what he meant, so I closed my mouth.
‘For sure…’
Recently, I had been finding it increasingly difficult to explain my past lives to Mangnyang or Miho accurately. After 14 lifetimes, I had experienced so many events, and it took an immense amount of mental power just to keep them all clearly in mind. Plus, this concern had made focusing on my training quite a challenge, as I worried about forgetting memories while concentrating on martial arts training.
I asked him,
“Is it also possible for someone else to read the memories I store in Obsidian?”
[Of course. This is the very sorcery intended for that purpose… You can store your own memories and retrieve them whenever you wish.]
Then the prophet boasted a bit,
[Consider yourself lucky. The sorcery of the Magical Book is perfectly matched. This sorcery is something only our great race inherits and is considered quite an advanced technique. You could say I’m losing out quite a bit here.]
“Tch…”
I feigned annoyance and replied,
“Got it. How long will the transmission take?”
[Just the time it takes for an adult human to eat a meal.]
“Just say half a meal’s time…”
I was able to learn the sorcery of Obsidian through memory transfer from the prophet. It seemed that Otherworldly Beings transfer knowledge not through speech or training but by directly imparting memories to the other person. As soon as the knowledge was transmitted, I realized that I had perfectly mastered the Obsidian sorcery.
The prophet also handed me three pieces of Obsidian as a bonus, saying,
[These are gifts… Now you’ll understand, but the larger the size of the Obsidian, the more memories you can store, so find more.]
“Thank you.”
With a satisfied smile, I received the Obsidian and made my way back to Jinrang Valley.
‘Awesome.’
Memory distributed storage!
From now on, the risks of my memories becoming muddled or confused had significantly diminished.
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