Chapter 36: The Eight Extremes Celestial Dipper Formation

Mount Taibai is located in the middle section of the Qinling Mountains, with its main peak, Buxiantai, soaring over four thousand meters above sea level, making it the highest and most renowned mountain in the eastern half of the realm.

As the primary peak of the Qinling range, Mount Taibai boasts even more unique natural and geographical conditions. Its towering, majestic grandeur and its ever-changing, mystical weather patterns have cast a veil of mystery over it since ancient times.

Xiao Lianshan parked the vehicle at the summit, where the path ahead could only be traversed on foot. Mount Taibai is dominated by dense forests, structured by rugged mountains and peculiar peaks, and networked by clear streams and emerald pools, forming a vividly animated scroll of unique style.

Here, layer upon layer of mountains are shrouded in verdant greenery, hills are pristine and waters are clear, while the lake views and mountain scenery are serene, magnificent, and blanketed in misty vapors. Yet these sights failed to capture our interest; judging by the time required, hiking to Daye Lake would take at least three days.

The further we advanced, the colder it became. Without any means of transportation, the simplest way to reach Daye Lake was to climb over one mountain, only to face yet another.

Mount Taibai is renowned throughout the world and stands supreme across China for its characteristics of height, chill, peril, wonder, beauty, abundance, and mystery. The "Snow on Mount Taibai in the Sixth Lunar Month" is one of the famous Eight Views of Guanzhong. When crossing the summit, one could always catch sight of Mount Taibai's spectacular snowscape, radiating a silvery brilliance visible from a hundred miles away.

Crossing mountains is physically exhausting. Although the three girls behind us were panting, they managed to keep going with mutual assistance between Xiao Lianshan and myself. After passing Nantianmen, an endless expanse of primeval forest opened up before our eyes.

"Once we cross this forest, Daye Lake won't be far away," I said, standing at the edge of the forest and catching my breath.

"Zhu Yuanzhang really knew how to pick a spot, hiding the Fourteen Ming Tombs high above Mount Taibai. This place has always been sparsely populated, requiring a trek across mountains even today, let alone back then."

"I truly have no idea how they managed to transport the treasures in here," said Gu Anqi.

"It must have been carried entirely by human labor."

"How many people would that have required? What if someone leaked the secret?" asked Qiu Nuo.

I suddenly thought of Qingyang, who excelled remarkably in the arts of tea and cuisine, and smiled faintly. "Dead men tell no tales."

"You... you mean you killed them all to silence them?" Xiao Lianshan asked in shock.

"A general's success is built upon ten thousand withered bones, let alone here, where the destiny and lifeblood of the Great Ming dynasty reside. The soldiers and guards responsible for transport were destined never to return," I said calmly.

Entering the deep, secluded forest, we were immediately greeted by a sense of refreshing serenity and exceptionally crisp air. Guided by our map and compass, I led everyone eastward. According to written records, this forest was not very large; at our current pace, we should clear it in half a day at most.

Yet by nightfall, I discovered we were still trapped within the forest, and even the compass needle was spinning wildly and erratically.

I frowned, squatted down, scooped up a handful of soil, and sniffed it.

"Laterite?!"

Upon hearing this, Qiu Nuo's expression shifted slightly, and she said in astonishment, "I noticed the soil was red when we first came in, but why didn't I realize the significance? Now that we're already inside, how do we get out without a compass?"

"Iron-bearing soil... that ruins the compass completely. How... how are we supposed to get out?" Yue Qianling asked anxiously.

I took a deep breath, looked up at the night sky, and said calmly, "We'll use the most primitive method—navigating by the directions indicated by the constellations. We should still be able to find our way out, and the deviation won't be too great."

Getting lost in a primeval forest in the dead of night is an extremely dangerous venture, with unpredictable perils lurking at every turn. Yet after walking for two hours, I realized something far more perilous.

A strip of white cloth tied to a branch fluttered in the night wind—a marker I had left precisely two hours ago. Two hours later, we had simply returned to our starting point.

"How is this place a maze? We've walked for so long and ended up right back here?" Gu Anqi asked in bewilderment.

I looked up at the constellations, utterly baffled. "That's impossible. We walked according to the stellar positions; there's no way we could have circled back."

Xiao Lianshan thought for a moment, walked up to me, and said earnestly, "Walking in the forest at midnight is dangerous enough as it is. Let's stop walking for now, build a fire so everyone can rest, and wait until dawn before moving on."

I nodded. Everyone gathered dead branches and withered leaves and lit a campfire, instantly feeling a great deal warmer. The night wind swept through the trees, causing the flames to lean sharply to one side.

I froze, staring in utter astonishment at the flickering flames, and said with profound meaning, "Our current position should be northwest. Judging by the geography of Mount Taibai, the prevailing wind should be from the southeast. Why are the flames leaning toward the southeast?"

"That's right, the direction of the fire is reversed!" Xiao Lianshan, experienced in wilderness operations, was intimately familiar with terrain and orientation.

"Could it be that we aren't in the northwest at all? Did we take the wrong path from the very beginning?" Gu Anqi asked with concern.

I shook my head and said lightly, "We didn't take the wrong path. Unless..."

Stopping mid-sentence, I quickly pulled four sheets of paper from my bag, folded them into the shapes of little figures, picked up four wooden twigs from the ground, and pierced each through the chest of a paper figurine. I lit one end of each stick and placed them in the four cardinal directions around myself.

Forming the Three-Pure Finger seal, I closed my eyes to concentrate for a moment, then pricked my middle finger and drew a talismanic seal in blood upon each of the four paper figures before chanting an incantation:

"Heaven is dark and earth is cleaved, commanding the universe with flying might. Lord of Thunder with winged stars, heaven bless our righteous march. I command you now, make your voices heard at once!"

The moment I finished chanting, the paper figures placed in the four directions actually stood up from the ground. Yue Qianling and the others watched from the side, holding their breaths in utter silence.

Using my Three-Pure Finger seal, I drew a stroke from top to bottom across my own brow, leaving a streak of blood printed between my eyebrows. Steaming the Dipper paces, I circled the four paper figures once before shouting aloud:

"Azure Mystery Daoist Law Thunder Emperor of the East, Blazing Fire Quaking Gate Thunder Emperor of the South, White Spectre Hanging Star Thunder Emperor of the West, Disheveled Hair Quaking Thunder Emperor of the North, Central Earth-Soil Thunder Emperor. Sovereigns of the Five Emperors, names of the Five Emperors! I wield the Five Decrees, execute this with the speed of fire!"

The four standing paper figures slowly lifted into the air, flying off in four different directions before finally vanishing into the dark night.

"What on earth were you doing?" Xiao Lianshan asked curiously once I released my finger seal.

"What I just used was the Incantation of the Four Directional Heavenly Sovereigns. If we were merely lost, these four enchanted paper figures would have helped us find the correct orientation."

"And if they couldn't find it?" Yue Qianling asked timidly.

"How could that be? Just how high my brother's Daoist attainment is, it's not like you haven't witnessed it," Xiao Lianshan said dismissively.

Suddenly, balls of fire flared up from all four directions, striking and conspicuous in the pitch-black night.

"Did they find it?" Xiao Lianshan asked excitedly.

I secretly drew in a breath, my voice dropping low. "Even the Sovereigns of the Four Directions couldn't get out... Could this place be..."

Gu Anqi's face changed drastically. She hurried to my side and said in a panic:

"The Incantation of the Four Directional Heavenly Sovereigns can banish the guardian spirits of the four directions. The only thing that can render this incantation ineffective is... the Eight-Desolation Absolute Dipper Array!"

I nodded, my brows locked tightly. "No wonder we haven't been able to get out. Zhu Yuanzhang truly went to painstaking lengths. It seems that hiding the Fourteen Ming Tombs on Mount Taibai was no casual choice by him. This entire primeval forest consists of towering ancient trees—blocking the sun and moon above, gathering yin and yang below. To set up the Eight-Desolation Absolute Dipper Array here is brilliantly cunning; whoever enters cannot hope to escape unless they break the formation."

"What on earth is the Eight-Desolation Absolute Dipper Array? Is it really that formidable?" Xiao Lianshan asked.

"The Eight-Desolation Absolute Dipper Array was originally created by Zhuge Liang based on Sun Wu's military tactics of drawing out ambushes and deploying troops. Utilizing Heaven, Earth, Wind, Cloud, Flying Dragon, Soaring Bird, Tiger Wing, and Serpent Coil as formations, it can transform into sixty-four distinct tactical arrays. Furthermore, the head and tail interlock, advance and retreat are erratic, twisting like the twelve stars turning the four directions with infinite variations," I said with deep concern. "This array is laid out according to the Eight Trigrams and operates through the eight gates of Rest, Life, Scenery, and Death; only the auspicious gates provide a way out."

"I remember my father once telling me about this array," Gu Anqi said softly from the side. "To break the Eight-Desolation Absolute Dipper Array, one requires the Thunder Department Heavenly Incantation from the Twelve Volumes of the Supreme Three-Grotto Divine Incantations, borrowing the divine power of the four directions to shatter the primordial chaos. With your Daoist cultivation, you should be able to break it."

I managed a wry, bitter smile and sighed. "That is precisely where Zhu Yuanzhang's brilliance lies. It appears he had quite a few metaphysical experts by his side. Although breaking the Eight-Desolation Absolute Dipper Array is not difficult for me, Zhu Yuanzhang was also afraid that someone in later generations might be capable of it, which is why he specifically chose to deploy the array here."

"Is there... is there something different about this place?" Gu Anqi asked curiously.

"Mount Taibai is also known as Mount Taiyi, the eleventh of the thirty-six grotto-heavens of Daoism—the Deyuan Grotto-Heaven. It is a mountain of immortal ascension, where the three teachings of Daoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism merge and harmonize. Mount Taibai enshrines the Three Sages. While the Supreme Three-Grotto Divine Incantations can command Daoist immortals and deities, the Buddhist, Confucian, and Daoist teachings share the same origin and a single state of mind. Therefore, right here, the Supreme Three-Grotto Divine Incantations are completely useless!" I said, shaking my head faintly.

Seeing that even I was shaking my head with no solution, Yue Qianling said anxiously, "Do you mean we'll never be able to get out?"

"If even the Supreme Three-Grotto Divine Incantations cannot command the Eight-Desolation Absolute Dipper Array, then Sister Qianling hasn't spoken falsely at all—we truly cannot walk out," Gu Anqi said in a low voice.

I slowly raised my head and asked thoughtfully, "Which of you was born in the seventh lunar month?"

"Brother, I was born in the seventh month!"

"You're no use, it has to be a woman."

Qiu Nuo nodded with a blank expression. "I was born in the seventh lunar month."

"To get out, there is still one method, though it will wrong you somewhat, Qiu Nuo!" I said with some reluctance.

Qiu Nuo smiled and said with firm resolve, "As long as it helps everyone get out, there's no grievance in it."

"What on earth do you want Qiu Nuo to do?" Yue Qianling asked with curiosity.

I remained silent for a moment, looked at Qiu Nuo, and lowered my voice: "Borrow Yin Soldiers!"