Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors
I returned to Jinrang Valley with Miho first. The strange phenonon of the sun never setting and the continuous clarity was quite concerning; if it was so sort of evil sorcery, that would be troubleso. Mangnyang, upon hearing our discussion, said,
“That’s the Extre Sun phenonon. It’s a simple natural occurrence, so don’t worry about it.”
“Extre Sun?”
“Well… during your reincarnation, I ntioned that this world is shaped like a round sphere, right? This phenonon 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 seed 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 so 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 ntioned regarding the Demand Stele.”
“Hmm…”
He sat quietly, contemplating for about a al’s ti. 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 et the ‘Silent God’ to break the second seal. And to et 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 ti. Then he sighed.
“There’s too much uncertainty. It seems we only have one way to properly unravel this.”
“What thod?”
“We need to trade.”
I realized what Mangnyang ant.
‘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 Naless 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 ntioned it felt significant, making tense up. Then he chuckled and said,
“Isn’t there the Naless Ritual Book?”
Bam!
Following Mangnyang’s suggestion, I quickly moved to the Inner Imperial Pavilion of the Imperial Palace to steal the Naless Ritual Book. Of course, I had to be vigilant, so I waited for nightti to infiltrate. As soon as I entered the Inner Imperial Pavilion, I imdiately spotted the Naless Ritual Book sitting right in front of , and I couldn’t help but smirk.
‘Wow, I really picked a good ti to pay attention.’
In my 12th lifeti, when I offered scriptures to the Heavenly Lord and received a boost of luck, I had sneaked into the palace and confird the location of the Naless Ritual Book. Rembering its exact position allowed to snatch the Naless 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 erged 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 seed 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 mont. 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 sothing to trade, Prophet.”
I spoke briefly, pulling the Naless Ritual Book from my pocket. The prophet twitched, sensing the magical energy emanating from the book. His eyes rolled as he stared at and said,
[A powerful Magical Book. Are you willing to trade that?]
“I believe the Naless Ritual Book will yield a lot for you.”
[The Naless Ritual Book… I see…]
The prophet regarded intently and said,
[Hand it over to .]
“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 et the ‘Silent God’? And what does ‘Draw blood to awaken the ancient bloodline’ an?”
Upon hearing my questions, the prophet stretched out his pincer-like claws toward sothing. As if retrieving sothing from my pendant, he plucked a large stone from thin air, one that seed disproportionately large. He rubbed the stone and murmured, then said,
“If you give the Naless Ritual Book, I will answer you.”
“I won’t go easy on you if you’re trying to ss with .”
As I tossed the Naless Ritual Book to him, he imdiately 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 rely amplified the power I received from the Magical Book you gave for a mont…]
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 from the Central Plains to here?!’
The reason I spent ti lingering near Luoyang was to check if any tracking spells were placed on the Naless 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 Naless 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 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 presu you hold the Naless Ritual Book. Hand it over imdiately! 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 rely moved wordlessly. Then, the prophet replied to Zhuge Fu.
[If it must return to its original owner… then the Naless 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 Naless Ritual Book.
[I’ve already transferred ownership of the Naless 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 Naless 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 mont 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 mont 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 so kind of invisibility, but it didn’t seem that way.
“What have you done?”
[I just sent him back to where he ca from.]
Is he skilled in space-ti sorcery?
The prophet answered tersely and continued,
[You have so ti, 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-ti 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 imdiately. After thinking for a while, I said,
“I want to learn your sorcery! If I learn it all as paynt, how much can I acquire?”
[Sorcery, you say. What specifically do you an?]
“I an 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 so reservations since I don’t know what you truly desire.]
“It’s only fair? What do you an 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 paynt…]
“How will you find that out?”
Then the prophet stretched his pincer-like claw out and pointed at .
[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, extrely wise. He might even be smarter than Mangnyang. This made 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 ca 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!
Monts later, a transparent white thread appeared between 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 montarily being revealed to . However, it felt too profound and deep to be expressed in re “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 mories. You will be able to use this sorcery to retain your own mories…]
“……?!”
What is this random suggestion?
I exclaid in confusion,
“That’s ridiculous! Why would I need a sorcery for storing mories?”
[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 mories in Obsidian ans that you can also eliminate unnecessary mories, thus enhancing the efficiency of your consciousness. It will allow you to raise the limits of your talents.]
His explanation made realize what he ant, 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 lifetis, I had experienced so many events, and it took an imnse amount of ntal 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 mories while concentrating on martial arts training.
I asked him,
“Is it also possible for soone else to read the mories I store in Obsidian?”
[Of course. This is the very sorcery intended for that purpose… You can store your own mories 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 sothing 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 ti it takes for an adult human to eat a al.]
“Just say half a al’s ti…”
I was able to learn the sorcery of Obsidian through mory transfer from the prophet. It seed that Otherworldly Beings transfer knowledge not through speech or training but by directly imparting mories 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 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 mories you can store, so find more.]
“Thank you.”
With a satisfied smile, I received the Obsidian and made my way back to Jinrang Valley.
‘Aweso.’
mory distributed storage!
From now on, the risks of my mories becoming muddled or confused had significantly diminished.
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