Under one person: I, Zhang Zhiwei, the arrogant Zhang.

The army was trapped by the Eight Trigrams Formation, and the warlord leader was furious and ordered the village to be bombarded.

At the critical moment, Zhuge Zhen appeared gracefully. He lightly touched the ground with his toes and unleashed a vast Qimen formation covering the entire mountain forest. Within it, time, space, and the interactions of the four plates were all under his control.

Instead of attacking the enemy directly, he used his supreme magic to adjust the entire army to the most ominous position in the formation, the Death Gate, and then continuously weakened their fortune, which kept accumulating.

Ultimately, this attracted a meteorite that crashed down on the warlord's army, causing countless deaths and injuries, leaving only one in ten survivors, forcing them to retreat.

Zhuge Zhenbing averted the threat of annihilating the village without shedding a drop of blood!
The warlord surnamed Liu, who witnessed this scene, was stunned. He then revered Zhuge Zhen as a god and immediately entrusted him with all military and political power, as well as local affairs. He regarded Zhuge Zhen as a lord who would work with him to build a great cause.

Of course, Zhuge Zhen did not disappoint the warlord's trust.

He strategized and used the Heavenly Gate of Qimen Dunjia to deduce the secrets of heaven and discern the strengths and weaknesses of his enemies and allies. Combined with unpredictable and supernatural means, he helped the Liu family warlord sweep away all rivals, drive out Japanese pirates and Western powers, and finally unify China, rebuild the Han Dynasty, and establish the Han Dynasty. Nearly two thousand years later, he recreated the great Han Dynasty.

As the greatest contributor, he held a position of immense power and influence, even surpassing his lord in terms of prestige.

However, he did not covet power. Once the world was at peace, he gracefully retired to Zhuge Village to live out his remaining years.

During his seclusion, he did not slack off. Instead, he carefully passed on all his knowledge, especially the essence of Tian Tong Qi Men, to several talented younger members of his clan, and actually cultivated several geniuses who mastered this extraordinary skill.

As time went by, Zhuge Zhenshou's lifespan came to an end. On his deathbed, he suddenly remembered that his ancestor, Zhuge Liang, had set up the Seven Star Lamp at Wuzhang Plain to prolong his life.

He then followed the example of his ancestors, personally going to Wuzhangyuan and setting up the Seven Star Lamp at the place where Zhuge Liang had set up the altar, in order to defy fate and change his destiny.

Back then, our ancestor failed because of Wei Yan's intrusion, but he was protected by the Heavenly Connection and the Mysterious Gate, and his life was extended. His white hair turned black, his wrinkles smoothed out, and he actually borrowed life from heaven and lived a second life.

Having been reborn, Zhuge Zhen's mindset subtly shifted. The desire for immortality sprouted like wildfire. No longer content with merely prolonging his life, he began to seek greater power, even… the power to reach the heavens!

Therefore, relying on his power and influence, he found fifteen extraordinary people from all over the world who were born with the "Three Wonders and Six Instruments" destiny, used them as sacrifices, changed the timing of the heavens with the Heavenly Connection Qimen, and then used the Returning Origin Formation to sacrifice them, thereby obtaining the power to reach the heavens.

He unexpectedly rose to prominence, his cultivation level skyrocketing, surpassing Zhang Zhiwei, the creator of the Tiantong Qimen, the contemporary Celestial Master, and the Tiantong Daoist.

Speaking of which, Tian Tong Qi Men was actually obtained by his grandson, Zhuge Yunhui, through an exchange of Samadhi True Fire with Tian Tong Dao Ren.

He didn't owe Zhang Zhiwei anything by exchanging goods.

However, out of consideration for their past friendship, Zhuge Zhen still ordered the Emperor of Han to greatly promote Longhu Mountain and honor Zhang Zhiwei as the National Preceptor, whose status was second only to his own.

Several years later, the former ruler surnamed Liu, due to some lingering illnesses from his youthful battles, coupled with his diligent work in government affairs, finally reached the end of his life.

On his deathbed, he held Zhuge Zhen's hand tightly and entrusted him with the care of the young emperor, instructing him to assist the young emperor and protect the Han Dynasty. If the young emperor proved unfit for the task, Zhuge Zhen could take his place. After saying this, he passed away.

Since then, Zhuge Zhen has devoted himself to assisting the young emperor, raising him to be a man of both literary and martial talents, virtuous and capable. The new Han Dynasty is also thriving, and its national strength is growing stronger and stronger.

In the days that followed, the national advisor of Longhu Mountain, Tian Tong Dao Ren, would occasionally come to Zhuge Village to play chess with him, but he never won.

After that, the Heavenly Daoist will ascend to heaven.

Before his ascension, the Heavenly Daoist came to him and said that his realm and strength were already sufficient, so why not ascend with him?

But he refused. Ascension to immortality was not his wish. Now the world was surrounded by powerful nations, and if he was not careful, China would be overthrown. He wanted to stay and protect the new Han Dynasty.

The following day, the Imperial Preceptor ascended to heaven, and the Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain was replaced by a new one.

He, on the other hand, continued to live in seclusion in Zhuge Village, guarding the land of China.

He did not directly interfere in military and political affairs, but he would lend a helping hand at crucial moments or when the Han Dynasty went astray. Under his intervention, the Han Dynasty once again became a celestial empire with all nations paying tribute, and it also wiped out the Japanese pirates in the east.

……

……

Behind Longhu Mountain, beside the stone platform.

With his white hair and frail figure, Zhuge Zhen had been lying prostrate on the stone platform like a stone statue for several hours, staring intently at the scroll of the Heavenly Connection and Strange Gates Diagram, repeatedly murmuring: "The innate one leads the Zhou Tian, ​​covering the changes of the Zhou Tian, ​​transforming me into a king..."

"Brother Zhiwei," Zhuge Yunhui whispered, "The old man has been watching without moving for several hours now. Could something be wrong?"

When he asked the question, Zhuge Sheng and Zhuge Fangye looked at Zhang Zhiwei with nervous expressions. Clearly, they also vaguely sensed that something was not quite right.

“They’ve already fallen into it, they’ve gone mad,” Zhang Zhiwei said bluntly.

"We're trapped?!" Zhuge Yunhui's heart sank.

"What do you mean? Where are we trapped?" Zhuge Sheng pressed, his voice trembling slightly. He had a vague idea, but he didn't want to believe it.

“He has gone mad from practicing qi cultivation,” Zhang Zhiwei said bluntly.

"Impossible. My father is invincible in the art of divination. How could he possibly go mad from his cultivation? He must have been too absorbed and delved too deeply into it. How could he possibly go mad from his cultivation? He couldn't possibly go mad from his cultivation."

Zhuge Fang became agitated, categorically denied the allegations, and even reached out to pull Zhuge Zhen away.

Zhang Zhiwei cautioned, "If you disturb him at this time, you might provoke him and cause him to project an enemy into his inner vision, and then you will be met with his fierce attack."

Upon hearing this, Zhuge Sheng quickly pulled Zhuge Fang back, telling him not to act impulsively. The old man's cultivation was the highest, and if he went berserk, probably no one except the Celestial Master and the Little Celestial Master could stop him.

Moreover, even if the young Taoist priest manages to control the old man, what if some unpredictable harm is caused in the process?
Zhuge Fang also calmed down, looked intently at Zhang Zhiwei, and said with an urgent expression:
"Master Zhiwei, what should we do?"

"Brother Zhiwei, this..." Zhuge Yunhui also looked anxious, as he had not expected this situation.

"It's alright!" Zhang Zhiwei waved his hand and said, "I will take action."

He walked towards Zhuge Zhen, intending to help him escape his predicament. Practice makes perfect, and for him, this was a simple matter.

As they approached, they were stopped by Zhuge Fang.

"Master Zhiwei, with my father's expertise in divination, is it possible for him to break free from the shackles of the inner vision and regain his clarity?" Zhang Zhiwei stopped and smiled, "Of course it's possible. Maybe he'll understand it in the next second, or maybe he'll never understand it in his lifetime. But who can say for sure?"

"This..." Zhuge Fang was immediately conflicted. He firmly believed that his father would soon understand the truth and break free from the predicament, but he was also worried that this was just wishful thinking on his part.

Zhuge Sheng also hesitated. Tiantong Qimen is a divine skill that sorcerers dream of. It is worthwhile to spend several days, dozens of days, or even several years to comprehend it, let alone a few hours.

It would be a great pity to abruptly stop due to momentary concerns.

"Master Zhiwei, what kind of damage will prolonged qi deviation cause to the mind and spirit?" Zhuge Fang asked.

“No!” Zhang Zhiwei shook his head: “It is called going into qi deviation, but it is actually similar to a novice sorcerer being obsessed with the inner visions and music. The mind itself is not damaged. As long as you do not touch any taboos in the inner visions, there is no big problem.”

Upon hearing this, Zhuge Fang breathed a sigh of relief and said, "We'd like to consider it further."

“It’s alright, whether you wake him up or not is up to you!” Zhang Zhiwei said. “In his current state, as long as you don’t provoke him, there shouldn’t be any major problems. But you should feed him water and food to ensure he gets what he needs.”

Zhuge Sheng and Zhuge Fang discussed it for a moment and said, "Daoist Zhiwei, we have decided... to observe for a while longer! If Father is still unable to comprehend it on his own, we will then trouble you to help him!"

Zhang Zhiwei nodded, respecting their decision, and turned to leave. He didn't have time to waste any more time like this.

Zhuge Yunhui stopped him; "Brother Zhiwei, since we're outside, is it possible for us to find out what the old man experienced in the inner realm?"

As a sorcerer, especially one from the Zhuge family, he actually had a way to enter the old man's inner world, but neither he, Zhuge Sheng, nor Zhuge Fang dared to.

For a high-level sorcerer to enter the inner realm of a low-level sorcerer, the risk is generally not high.

However, it is very dangerous for a low-level sorcerer to forcibly enter the inner realm of a high-level sorcerer. If they are not careful, they may suffer mental and physical damage, soul injury, or even die inside.

Although the inner realm is said to be a personal mental space, the more powerful the sorcerer, the more they understand its dangers. Throughout history, countless sorcerers have died mysteriously inside.

Now, none of them know what the old man's inner world is like, so how dare they go there rashly?

Upon hearing this, Zhang Zhiwei looked at Zhuge Yunhui with some surprise, thinking to himself, "What's projected in the inner vision are the most unspeakable desires in my heart. Do you know that you want that old man to suffer a social death?!"

However, since the family had brought it up, he had no reason to refuse.

Zhang Zhiwei said, "If you want to know, there is a way. I can use my abilities to project some of the images from inside the room."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Jingqing, who had already turned and walked quite a distance away, took several large steps back. He probably couldn't be absent from something like this.

"Please, Brother Zhiwei, use your magic!" Zhuge Yunhui pleaded earnestly. "We want to know the truth of what's inside the inner world. If anything goes wrong, please save us immediately!"

Zhuge Fang and Zhuge Sheng exchanged a glance and nodded in agreement. They were well aware of the dangers within the inner realm, and compared to that, a little privacy breach was nothing.

Moreover, they believed that their old man was unlikely to have any shameful or unspeakable desires.

"In that case, let's take a look," Zhang Zhiwei said with a smile.

He walked to the stone platform and looked down at Zhuge Zhen, who was gazing at the Qimen scroll. In the past, he had to immerse himself in the scene to see the inner world of the Qimen.

However, as his level of insight into the Dharma improved, he could perceive the scenes in other people's mental spaces without entering their inner vision, somewhat similar to the Buddhist concept of telepathy.

However, he rarely did that. Although he was sometimes a bit gossipy, in his master's words, he liked to manipulate words, which was different from prying into people's hearts. So, under normal circumstances, he didn't like to use this trick.

Since Zhuge Yunhui and the others are making the request, he won't stand on ceremony.

Zhang Zhiwei formed a hand seal, hooking his ring fingers together with his middle fingers, and extending his thumb and little fingers like a sword. A burst of brilliant golden light shot out from the tips of his fingers and accurately entered Zhuge Zhen's brow and Niwan Palace!

"Buzz!"

It was as if an invisible "heavenly eye" had opened between Zhuge Zhen's eyebrows, and suddenly it shone brightly!

The Heavenly Eye projected a beam of light, which was initially very small, but as it extended forward, the range of the beam of light rapidly expanded, eventually transforming into a hazy curtain of light.

Countless figures and objects appeared on the light screen, but they were blurry and unclear, like scratched old film.

Zhang Zhiwei remained calm and unhurried, reaching out to lightly press the screen, gently plucking and adjusting it as if he were plucking a string on a musical instrument, stretching and shortening it as he adjusted it.

As he moved, the originally blurry scene gradually became clear, and the light and shadow inside became lifelike, like a silent "movie" slowly unfolding in front of everyone!

Coincidentally, movies from this era were also silent.

But this did not affect the people around her watching the movie. Everyone was focused on the images on the screen. Zhang Jingqing even pulled out a small stool from somewhere, sat down, and watched with great interest.

The scene came to life: they saw Zhuge Zhen return to Zhuge Village after learning Tiantong Qimen, and then they saw him practicing in the village. The range of the Tiantong Qimen pattern ranged from a dozen meters to tens of meters, then to more than a hundred meters, and even hundreds of meters...

Upon seeing this, Zhuge Fang, Zhuge Sheng, and Zhuge Yunhui all realized something was wrong.

Because the interior scenes are so realistic, there isn't a single illogical element. If this continues... the chances of breaking free will only decrease.

The experiences within the interior scenes are like a dream, with only the most profound parts depicted, while the mundane scenes are mostly glossed over.

It's like a dreamer suddenly switching from one scene to another without feeling any sense of incongruity.

Then, everyone saw the warlord come to invite him to come out of seclusion. When they saw this, Zhuge Fang and Zhuge Sheng were quite excited.
The preceding scenes were too peaceful, so peaceful that there was no room for change. The more ordinary the scene, the easier it is to become lost in it.

The greater the changes, the more likely one is to discover some illogical details, thus breaking free and awakening.

But soon, their hopes were dashed, for they saw in the interior that the warlord had actually imitated Emperor Zhaolie and made five visits to the thatched cottage.

No one knew better than them how devastating this would be to the Zhuge family.

“A cunning and wicked villain…” Zhuge Fang said through gritted teeth. (End of Chapter)