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“It was like a scream from the Heavenly Spirit!”

At that moment, something bizarre began to descend from the sky. It wasn’t some indirect way like a spirit summoning either—this was real divine power at play!

My jaw dropped as I stared at this creature with a human face, dog ears, and the body of an unidentifiable beast. No doubt about it, it was a monster, but instead of evil vibes, it radiated divinity. Mangnyang, next to me, whispered in awe.

“Shabi God, the apostle of Jejeun, has come down from the East…”

The Shabi God opened its mouth and began to speak in a rumbling heart language.

[The intention of Jejeun is this: both Red Bow and White Arrow belong to the Heavenly Sovereign. It may be too great a blessing for mortals.]

But Yi’s reaction was less than divine; he looked annoyed. I mean, even gods can have bad days, right? Then, without missing a beat, Yi pulled out a red bow from his back and shot back at the Shabi God.

[If that’s the case, what about the feats accomplished with this bow against the legendary Three-Legged Crow, the Great Wind, some other entities, and that Bashe thing? All those deeds even the Emperor couldn’t judge!]

[……]

[Please make a wise decision.]

The Shabi God fell silent for a moment. It then slightly shifted its crow-like body, and suddenly, dazzling lights poured forth around it. Beautiful birds of extraordinary colors flitted around—something I had never seen before. Mangnyang gasped in shock.

“Five-Color Bird!”

Just like that, the birds fluttered and transformed into a dazzling light before darting into the sky. As swiftly as they appeared, the Shabi God also transformed into light and vanished without a trace. We stood there, dumbfounded by what just happened, and then Yi said,

[Jejeun has granted his approval. You shall receive my blessing.]

It seemed that the Shabi God had only communicated Jejeun’s will to Yi. I could sense the urgency in Yi, ready to bestow his blessing; so I hurriedly interjected.

“S-Sorry, but I have a question!”

[What is it?]

“If I receive a blessing without understanding what it is, it might be too much to handle. I need an explanation.”

Last time, I accidentally got Xiang Yu’s blessing and spent days fumbling around not knowing what it meant. I learned my lesson—this time, I had to know. Asking a god might seem disrespectful, but Yi considered my question valid.

[The blessing I grant you is the Red Bow White Arrow. Moreover, it comes with the ability I mentioned earlier.]

“What power does the Red Bow White Arrow have?”

[When you are in danger, the Red Bow will appear, and the White Arrow will be loaded for you. You will be able to escape from peril.]

And just like that, with his last statement, Yi disappeared. Cheon Woo-jin stumbled and then collapsed on his knees. He looked utterly drained, probably from all that divine transit happening around here. I couldn’t help but wonder what would happen if he skipped his turn and invoked another spirit. But alas, that wouldn’t be my concern this lifetime.

As consciousness faded, Woo-jin stifled a nosebleed and managed to say, “The Heavenly Spirit Yi is known as one of history’s most formidable fighting gods. Receiving his power means your actions could potentially disrupt the balance of Heaven and Earth, so please exercise caution.”

Wait, this guy’s giving me advice? That’s a first! My eyes widened in shock. Normally, Woo-jin would be half-passed out and mumbling stuff about the fatigue from divine powers. This instance was extraordinary.

“Be cautious? What do you mean by that?”

“If misused, calamity will follow.”

“Got it. Thank you.”

“Urgh… my head… You should go now.”

With that, Mangnyang and I left Woo-jin behind and exited the village. As I glanced back, it seemed like Master Mangnyang was entirely unfazed, even by such extraordinary events. Just a normal day for him, huh?

We made our way to a little pub we frequently visited. Mangnyang, clearly hungry, devoured some chicken dishes and looked at me.

“If I understand correctly, our next step is to head to the Shadowless Gate and rescue Seo Mun-hye and the others.”

“Exactly. Just business as usual.”

“Hmm… not a bad plan, but what if we take a different approach this time?”

“How so?”

With a mouth full of chicken leg, Mangnyang mumbled, “Before we do that, I should talk to my uncle, Zhuge Sa.”

“Oh…”

“You might have thought this was trivial, but Zhuge Sa’s future is a major issue. That guy won’t die from others.”

I looked at Mangnyang in disbelief. “What do you mean he won’t die from others?”

Mangnyang, wise and discerning, smiled. His judgment had been acknowledged by generals like General Hwang Yeon and other heroes of the realm. I never expected Mangnyang to rate Zhuge Sa so highly.

Mangnyang nodded, “My father always said that once Zhuge Sa serves the Overlord, no one will be able to stop him. Even Zhuge Bu and I will have to join forces.”

“……!!”

“Of course, Zhuge Sa’s pessimistic and negative personality makes him unfit to serve, but his wisdom and tactics are overwhelming. His reputation is not exaggerated.”

Honestly, I could hardly believe that someone could match Mangnyang’s caliber. If I hadn’t known him personally for over fourteen lifetimes, I might have thought he was just boasting. But now I knew—a strategist better than Mangnyang didn’t exist.

“So, to even think Zhuge Sa might be difficult to handle!” I replied defensively. “Whoever he is, he’s just a guy who’s going to off himself anyway.”

“Haha! Maybe I’ll get along with you better than I thought.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“You’ll find out when we meet.”

Mangnyang’s laughter was carefree, and I decided to let it go. Time to talk business.

“By the way, I heard that as a lord of Jangryeong Valley, he gives three riddles to visitors and offers gold to those who solve them. Do you know any answers?”

“I know the answers, but I don’t understand their meanings.”

“What do you mean?”

Mangnyang crossed his arms and replied, “That’s the tricky part… I feel like he doesn’t have fixed answers for the riddles. Instead, he wants to see what kind of responses people give. There’s something he seeks from those who visit.”

“Hmm…?”

“But if I go with you, we won’t have a problem.”

“That makes sense.”

I agreed with Mangnyang. It seemed he had probably solved Zhuge Sa’s three riddles before, and knowing the answers was irrelevant. The main thing was to check whether Zhuge Sa was alive or dead.

‘Time within the wooden armor is nearly frozen. A day or two late wouldn’t matter.’

Finding out Zhuge Sa’s fate as soon as possible was my priority. So, I decided to postpone the Shadowless Gate mission.

After finishing our meal, we used the Golden Lamp technique to travel to a small village. This was the same village where I had received information about Jangryeong Valley in exchange for saving them from a flood.

Feeling nostalgic, I glanced at the chief’s house. As expected, the robust village chief I had rescued before was there. I greeted him, feeling warmly nostalgic.

“Hello!”

To my surprise, the chief grimaced. “Who raised this unruly brat? How dare you greet an elder like that?”

“……”

I felt bewildered but quickly realized I probably deserved it. To the martial arts masters, my level of internal power might look impressive, but to an ordinary person, I was just a kid in his early twenties.

Unperturbed, I dragged Mangnyang and we left the village.

A short while later, as we exited the village, Mangnyang tilted his head. “You know better than anyone not to act arrogant with your physical age. Why make that mistake?”

“It’s just that…”

I hesitated, then explained to Mangnyang why I slipped up. “I unconsciously erred due to memories from before,” I admitted, and Mangnyang appeared thoughtful.

“In the future, you should avoid such mistakes for your own sake. Until now, you might have had little to worry about during your reincarnations, but as you continue gathering memories and connections, they will mix. Eventually, you might face mental health issues.”

“……!!”

I clamped my mouth shut. Mangnyang’s warning felt true; what could seem like a simple mistake could gradually weigh on my mental state. And as my memories accumulated, mental fatigue might become a real concern.

Contemplating this, I turned to Mangnyang and asked, “But what if one day my memory can’t keep up with everything I’ve experienced?”

“That’s a good point to consider. Hmm…”

Mangnyang pondered for a moment before he answered, “I think there may be a solution, but I’m not certain.”

“What is it?”

“First, let’s go to Jangryeong Valley. You can ask your uncle after that.”

I realized Mangnyang’s insistence was meant to divert my mind away from these unnecessary worries. He must have guessed what a dark place I might have been in as a reincarnator. His intuition was eerily accurate, and I smiled bitterly.

Yeah – my memories are definitely stacking up. So far, I’ve managed to remember everything, but I had this nagging feeling that after just ten more cycles, I’d start to forget things. It wouldn’t matter much in the realm of simple experiences, but for areas requiring precision knowledge, it could become a fatal flaw.

So how can I effectively transfer the accumulation of my memories? As I traveled along the mountain path to Jangryeong Valley with Mangnyang, I kept mulling it over. Of course, Mangnyang had likely come up with his own answer already, but that didn’t mean I should stop thinking for myself. He often preached the motto of [think for yourself]. Knowledge that’s learned without personal understanding is worthless.

Before long, we arrived at Jangryeong Valley. Encased like a basin, the space was defined by towering walls at least a couple of meters high. As we approached the entrance, we noticed there were no gatekeepers guarding the entrance.

Mangnyang led the way, “If we walk about five more Li, we will encounter a barrier.”

“A barrier? Can Zhuge Sa perform spells?”

“Of course. He’s a highly skilled sorcerer.”

Last time, we were met with the Long Snake Water Formation, so I figured this place wouldn’t be the same as before. I was gearing up for a whole new battle. “Feeling confident?”

“Not so confident. So if it goes south, I’ll need you to use the Golden Lamp to get us out.”

“……”

Mangnyang’s understanding of formation techniques was top-notch, capable of solving the complexities of the Qimen Dunjia in seconds. Yet he wasn’t sure about Zhuge Sa’s formations? This was going to be a pain.

‘Crap. I should’ve properly studied my spells.’

As I grumbled internally, Mangnyang suddenly halted. We found ourselves in an open area filled with flags. Mangnyang stared at the arrangement thoughtfully before commenting, “If you step one foot forward, the formation will activate.”

“What kind of formation is this?”

“This is the Sky Blending Formation. And it’s an ugly one…”

Mangnyang clicked his tongue, making me raise an eyebrow. “Ugly? Just how wicked is it?”

“It’s not evil; it’s just nasty. Even if trapped, you won’t die, but you’ll suffer so much that you’ll be crying and sniveling in no time. It was made to humiliate.”

“……”

So Zhuge Sa was probably pretty peeved after Mangnyang answered all his riddles last time. Just my luck to have run into a prickly personality like his!

Swish, swish.

Mangnyang calmly made strides forward while carefully examining the movements of the flags. It looked like he was following some sort of precise routine as he navigated through a labyrinth of about twenty flags. After a bit of walking, he finally turned to me, “Just follow my steps. I’ve cracked it.”

“Wait, but I haven’t memorized anything!”

I scratched my head in frustration. Of course, I tried to remember every step he took, glaring intently, but I lost track somewhere along the way. “So, you have to go around and find the core of the formation?”

Mangnyang paused, glancing back at the area filled with flags, and then dashed off in a zig-zag pattern, circling like a whirlwind. Approximately three hundred steps later, he stopped at one point and yanked out a red flag from the ground.

“The formation is dismantled. Now we can just walk through.”

“Seriously? That was it?”

“This Sky Blending Formation is the most fundamental type of formation. Even if a skilled fighter tried to leap through with their light body techniques, they would inevitably get captured, but when followed correctly, even a child can bypass it.”

“Oh…”

“But even if I say that, it’s tied up well enough that it would be futile for anyone without solid knowledge of formations.”

Mangnyang grumbled as he powered through. Turns out he didn’t like Zhuge Sa much either.

Stepping through the dismantled barrier, I was astonished by how an intricate web of tiny flags was meant to ensnare people or manipulate them. Before long, we arrived before a uniquely designed house with alternating blue and green tiles.

The yard was adorned with a bamboo grove, which rustled eerily in the wind.

Click, click.

A strange contraption sat in front, unclaimed by any owner. It was a four-wheeled cart that looked like it was made for someone to sit on and roll around. As Mangnyang stared at it, he suddenly shouted.

“Zhuge Sa! Why are you leaving this cart unattended when you have guests? Come out now!”

No answer came back. Instead, the cart creaked to life and headed toward the tiled house, clearly operating on sorcery. Reluctantly, we followed its lead until the door to the tile house creaked open.

Clunk!

Inside, I sensed a powerful spell was at work. We stepped in to find a panda lying flat on the green-tiled floor.

“……?!”

The Great Brave Monument!

This black-and-white, lazy giant was lounging on the floor of this oddly silent house. I stood there in a stupor for a moment until the panda opened its mouth and started mumbling human words.

[Shhh… here…]

“……”

[Caw… spit…]

This was…

[Shut it… you… shameless… fools…]

It was entirely the sort of trash talk you’d hear from some degenerate public figure! It looked like the real panda was somewhere else, leaving the talking to this lazy ball of fluff. I was stunned, not even feeling angry but completely dumbfounded.

Mangnyang scratched his head. “Aren’t you going to give us a riddle?”

The panda opened its mouth once more.

[Hey~~~ You! You know… I was once… as strong and healthy… as a bull… only to be turned into… this… pathetic….]

It was slow and annoyingly deliberate, but somehow, it got under my skin. The panda reached over and grabbed a bamboo shoot, munching as it continued,

[I’m tired… of this life… so I think I’ll just… lay down here and rest, okay? Hehehe… so just… go away… you fools! I’ve lived… a longer life than you… anyway…]

“……”

From our very first meeting, this insanity had taken root.

And that was my first impression of Zhuge Sa.

 

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