The Terminally Ill Young Master of the Baek Clan-Chapter 456: Heading To Nanman (4)

They had reached Guizhou without incident thanks to the Eight Trigrams Diagram they’d received from Fuxi.

At the same time, it was also thanks to Yu Jeong-shin, who handled it skillfully.

The Eight Trigrams Diagram was, literally, a picture bearing the forms of the Eight Trigrams.

But simply scribbling the trigrams on paper did not make them special or powerful.

It possessed a numinous effect because it was a diagram bestowed directly by Fuxi, the creator of the Eight Trigrams.

Seureuk.

Yu Jeong-shin, having disembarked from the ship, unfurled the scroll that held the Eight Trigrams Diagram.

The Eight Trigrams Diagram was affixed to a silk scroll.

It had a mysterious appearance, as if it could ensnare a person’s very soul.

On the white paper, the forms of the Eight Trigrams floated up.

They quite literally floated in the air above it.

Like living things, the trigrams rotated in a circle over the paper, while ancient characters orbited along their eight directions.

It resembled the motions of celestial orbits.

It felt as though the universe itself were contained within this diagram.

Yu Jeong-shin steadied his mind so as not to be bewitched by the trigrams.

Then, with his hand, he shifted Qian, Kun, Kan, and Li of the Eight Trigrams.

At that, something astonishing occurred.

Hwiing!

A fierce wind swept in, and clouds began to gather in the sky.

The scorching southern sunlight was veiled by the clouds.

The Taoists following Yu Jeong-shin realized that a sorcerous veil had been cast over them.

From here on they would proceed over land, so this was another check on their concealment.

Some of them looked at Yu Jeong-shin with eyes full of respect.

But Yu Jeong-shin’s expression remained calm despite what he had just done.

Inside, however, it was another story.

‘The power of this Eight Trigrams Diagram is truly incredible.’

He had requested the diagram expecting much from it, yet Taihao Fuxi’s Eight Trigrams Diagram had shown effects beyond his expectations.

It seemed that no divine treasure of any heavenly god could rival the efficacy of this diagram.

With a mere flick of his hand, he could cast a spell that shrouded as many as a hundred people.

And in doing so, he neither expended his Innate True Qi nor exhausted his spiritual power.

If such a diagram were given to a wicked sorcerer or a dark mage, who knew what great calamity might occur?

‘I did prepare offerings, but I never imagined he would grant this level of power.’

Yu Jeong-shin swallowed hard.

He had not been stingy with the offerings he prepared for Taihao Fuxi, one of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors.

The Three Sovereigns were, in the end, the greatest among the great gods.

Aside from the Yellow Emperor, Gongsun Xuanyuan, the gap between them and the other Five Emperors was immense as well.

Taihao Fuxi was both elder brother and husband to Nüwa, said to have created mankind.

Yet he had clearly granted rewards far beyond the offerings given.

‘But why?’

Did Taihao Fuxi harbor some fondness for humans?

Was he pleased by the sight of the Azure Forest opposing the Evil Cult, and so bestowed this upon them?

Yu Jeong-shin could not know.

「Human, do not trust Taihao Fuxi.」

Nezha gave such a warning to Yu Jeong-shin.

“It is something to be grateful for… mm.”

「Hey.」

But of course, Yu Jeong-shin could not hear Nezha’s voice.

Nezha nudged Dam Hyun, signaling him to relay the message.

With an extremely annoyed look, Dam Hyun conveyed Nezha’s words to his master.

Hearing the content, Yu Jeong-shin’s eyes widened.

“What do you mean?”

「I mean Taihao Fuxi is not some kind and merciful being. He is a petty god who never forgets a grudge.」

Nezha spoke as if the very notion disgusted him.

“Then to give us an Eight Trigrams Diagram of this level is…”

「From what I can see, Taihao Fuxi put quite some effort into that diagram. Do you really think he would bestow it in exchange for a bit of dried yellow paper and scraps of scripture? In the old days, you would have had to kill and offer up a thousand humans to receive something like that.」

“Mm…”

「There are things he expects from you.」

In other words, Taihao Fuxi had some scheme of his own.

Of course, there was no way for them to know what it was, and even if they did, there was nothing they could do.

Knowing this, Nezha let out a derisive chuckle.

「To begin with, why did you people choose to make offerings to Taihao Fuxi of all beings?」

Nezha left without waiting for Yu Jeong-shin’s answer.

This was as far as they could come by ship, up to Guizhou.

The bandits had disembarked from the ship and were saying their farewells.

“We wish you good fortune in battle.”

Lee Mu-su cupped his fists as he said this.

The other bandits, looking as scruffy as ever, also cupped their fists.

“Thank you for everything.”

Yi-gang received their send-off.

Nezha passed right by that as well.

He headed instead to a sandbank where the river water lapped in gentle waves.

There was a single turtle there.

It was the turtle they had found beneath the hold and brought with them all the way here.

No one had taken it down, yet at some point it had ended up on the riverside.

「Hey.」

Nezha called out to the turtle.

The turtle turned to look at Nezha, whom humans could neither see nor hear.

Its clear, large eyes blinked.

「I will become your master. How about it?」

Nezha held out his hand to the turtle as he said that.

It was an unexpected sight. The turtle simply stared blankly at Nezha’s hand.

“Kku-ong.”

Then it let out a sound, almost like a yawn.

For some reason, it was perfectly clear that the meaning was a refusal.

Nezha’s face twisted all at once.

「You foolish thing! Go! I shall overlook it this once.」

“Kku-eong.”

「If we meet again, I will take you by force.」

The turtle’s face almost looked like it was smiling.

Nezha glanced back in the direction where Yi-gang was.

At some point, they had already set out.

Befitting that of martial artists, they would travel to Nanman at a speed no slower than galloping horses.

When Nezha turned back to the turtle again.

The turtle had vanished somewhere. It had no wings, and it had not gone into the water. It was enough to make a ghost cry out in bafflement.

「Still disgustingly fast, I see.」

With a regretful look, Nezha turned away.

The group ran toward Nanman.

Their running figures were concealed by the effects of the Eight Trigrams Diagram.

After the sky had turned purple, the temperature in the Central Plains had dropped somewhat.

Even so, Nanman, lying far to the south, was hot and muggy.

Sweltering heat and heavy humidity.

The blazing sunlight from above could not dry Nanman’s humidity.

Perhaps because of that, its vegetation was incredibly lush.

Mount Kunlun was also rich in plant life thanks to its spiritual energy, but it could not compare to the jungles of Nanman.

Broad tropical leaves that were vividly green, filled the sky.

Because of the humidity, all the old trees were covered in moss like a blanket.

Vines hung down everywhere, and insects of strange colors crawled about and buzzed.

A multicolored bird with a large beak clicked its beak and fluttered its wings.

A monkey climbed onto the branch the bird had flown from.

It was a monkey of this region called the Nanman Ape.

Golden hairs showed between its gray fur.

It had a reddish face and a long tail.

If one were to pick the animal that climbed trees best, aside from birds, one would name monkeys without hesitation.

Leaping from tree to tree was no difficult task for it.

The creature grabbed branches and vaulted swiftly from tree to tree.

In this way, it cut through the jungle.

It paid no attention to fruits or insects it would normally eye as food.

Branches flashed past in the monkey’s vision like arrows.

It finally stopped at the end of the seemingly endless jungle.

Nanman was not made up of nothing but jungle.

There were plains and rivers as well.

There were also homesteads and villages where people lived.

But the scene the monkey faced now was something rare even in Nanman.

It was a colossal cliff.

In the distant antiquity before humans existed in this world.

Collisions between layers of rock back then had formed this massive cliff.

The river flowing above plunged down in a great waterfall.

The waterfall raised a fierce spray as it fell and formed a lake below.

This Dragon Pool was so dark that one could not guess its depth.

The water it held flowed again into a canyon cut between the cliffs.

Around the Dragon Pool, houses stood clustered together.

Because of the spray from the falling waterfall, the houses were covered all over with moss.

Naturally, it was not a place fit for ordinary people to live in.

Within it lived the followers of the Evil Cult.

And not just any followers, but the elites among elites, all of whom could use Power Borrowing.

One Evil Cultist perched on a roof glanced at the monkey that had appeared.

The monkey and the Cultist’s eyes met, but the Cultist soon lost interest and looked away.

In this jungle, monkeys were more common than stray dogs in a village.

Thanks to that indifference, the monkey was able to observe more of the Evil Cult’s main altar.

These houses were like guard outposts for the Evil Cultists.

Anyone who wished to infiltrate would first have to break through those Evil Cultists who could use Power Borrowing.

Next came the canyon that extended out from the Dragon Pool between the cliffs.

The monkey crept quietly toward that canyon.

Then it flinched and lifted its head.

They could not be seen from the outside, but grotesque carvings were etched into the canyon.

Some resembled human faces, others huge dragons.

There were holes carved into them, and faintly, people could be seen coming and going.

They had hollowed out the cliff itself and were using it as a building.

And at the deepest part of the canyon stood a gigantic temple.

It too had been carved directly out of the cliff.

A single one of its pillars was easily larger than the biggest pillar of the Forbidden City.

How ancient a temple was it?

On the front of the temple stood the statue of a giant god.

It looked as if it were holding up the sky.

Its majestic form was enough to halt the steps of a mere beast like the monkey.

“What’s with this monkey?”

It seemed someone had noticed the monkey.

The Cultist’s judgment was merciless.

“Catch it and kill it.”

Someone who heard the order approached the monkey.

The monkey, startled out of its wits, immediately fled.

For an elite Evil Cultist, chasing down and killing a single monkey would be as easy as eating porridge, but fortunately they seemed to lack the enthusiasm to bother.

The monkey darted away and plunged back into the jungle.

The jungle was the domain of beasts. The Evil Cultist did not pursue.

It was in that very moment, when the monkey felt at ease.

A black shadow fell upon it without a sound.

What bit into the monkey’s body was a black leopard.

A predator of the jungle had hunted the monkey that was skulking about.

To eat and be eaten was the law of beasts…

The black leopard tightened its jaws.

Kwaddeuk!

With a crack of its neck bones, the monkey died.

And a shock was transmitted to one Taoist whose consciousness had been linked to that monkey.

Taoist Cheok-gol, who was about twenty-five kilometers away from the Evil Cult’s main altar, spat blood.

He roughly wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with his sleeve and cursed.

Taoist Cheok-gol was tall, with a face gaunt as a skull.

He looked like some evil hermit sorcerer hiding in a deep mountain valley, but he was, in truth, a Honor Flower Disciple of the Azure Forest.

Moreover, he was an outer-sect disciple who had spent his whole life operating in the Yunnan and Nanman regions.

He had been using the monkey to scout out the Evil Cult.

He had seized an opportunity for the first time in a while, only for a leopard to bite it to death in the middle of reconnaissance.

Considering that this monkey had been his last chance, it was an utterly regrettable loss.

“It failed again?”

“Yes. A damn leopard bit my monkey to death!”

“Well, we’ve learned about as much as we can now. Just take your medicine. I’ve already brewed it.”

The one speaking with Taoist Cheok-gol was a very wrinkled old man.

He wore dazzlingly colorful clothes, yet here in the jungle, they somehow matched the surroundings.

“I’ll drink it with gratitude.”

Taoist Cheok-gol downed the medicinal decoction.

Knowing the old man’s true identity, it was an act full of courage.

For the old man was the master of the Five Poisons Valley, the Five Poisons Demon Lord.

He was right here in Nanman.

“Do you know where Ri-yeon is?”

Only then did Taoist Cheok-gol look around.

Jin Ri-yeon, who would normally be standing guard, was nowhere to be seen.

“He said the Azure Forest disciples would be arriving soon. He went out to meet them.”

“At last!”

Taoist Cheok-gol broke into a bright smile.

The Five Poisons Demon Lord chuckled as well.

“If it’s that boy Ri-yeon, he’ll guide them well. If they enter the Eight Poisons Locking Formation wrong, it could be a disaster.”

The Five Poisons Demon Lord and Taoist Cheok-gol had set up a powerful formation in this area.

Anyone who tried to infiltrate silently would die without even being able to exert their strength, killed by deadly poison.

Taoist Cheok-gol seemed restless, as if his body were burning to move.

“How about we go have a look as well?”

“…Shall we?”

The Five Poisons Demon Lord also seemed intrigued.

They rose from their seats and headed in the direction Jin Ri-yeon had gone.

How long had they waited for the day when the Azure Forest disciples would join them?

The steps of the two old men were light.

But a short while later.

When they neared the boundary of the Eight Poisons Locking Formation…

What reached the ears of Taoist Cheok-gol and the Five Poisons Demon Lord was a chilling scream, belonging to no one they could yet identify.