Under One Person: My name is True Lord Huiyuan!

"Did our ancestor intend to replace humans with divine instruments?"

Zhuge Gong said, "That's part of the reason, but our ancestor at that time had not yet emerged from seclusion, was still young, and had not yet forged his own path."

"He had no experience in battle, so he initially used the art of strategy simply to put his knowledge into practice and avoid becoming like Zhao Kuo, who only talked about war on paper."

"Later, he visited Zhuge Liang three times."

"After our ancestors emerged from the mountains, they gradually grew and eventually created the Eight Trigrams Formation, a masterpiece that combines esoteric arts and divine strategies."

"It's true that each of these eight formations requires a large number of people to set them up, but what if we placed the divine mechanism within the formation to replace human labor?"

Zhuge Gong lightly tapped the scroll with his finger: "The Divine Machines are fearless and never lose their composure. They are the most perfect executors of orders, and they can occupy every position in the most precise way."

"Moreover, the divine machines are tireless; as long as the core hub is functioning properly, they can maintain the formation indefinitely."

"A typical sorcerer's formation requires thousands of well-trained armored soldiers who have undergone months or even years of training in order to barely manage to set up a complete formation on the battlefield."

"But with the assistance of divine intervention, only one person needs to sit in the center and use the art of Qimen Dunjia to communicate and coordinate, and the power of the Eight Trigrams Formation can be brought into play."

Upon hearing this, Zhuge Qing couldn't help but ask, "How many divine machines are needed?"

"It depends on the scale of the formation."

Zhuge Gong said, "Back then, our ancestor set up the Eight Trigrams Formation in Kuizhou to trap Lu Xun. He used a stone formation, which was actually the most crude method. He used the rocks as his magic weapon and the terrain as his base."

"But that method is too crude and cannot be moved at all. It can only wait for the enemy to come to it. If the Divine Mechanism Technique is completely integrated with the Eight Trigrams Formation, then the Eight Trigrams Formation will be alive, moving with the enemy and changing with the situation."

Zhuge Qing finally understood what Zhuge Gong had said at the beginning: the Zhuge family owed Zhou Yuan a huge debt of gratitude.

"Therefore, the Eight Trigrams Formation combined with the Divine Strategist..."

"This is the true foundation of my Zhuge family."

Zhuge Gong picked up the conversation, with an undisguised pride: "With it, my Zhuge family may not be able to compete with the old Celestial Master of the Celestial Master's Mansion, but we are definitely second only to the Celestial Master."

He picked up the scroll on the table, carefully rolled it up, and put it away.

"Qing, come to the small training ground tomorrow morning."

"dad?"

"No need to ask any more questions."

Zhuge Gong waved his hand, and before Zhuge Qing could say anything more, he took the scroll and strode out of the study.

The next morning, just as dawn was breaking.

Zhuge Qing walked along the stone-paved path in the village toward the small martial arts training ground.

The small training ground is located in the southeast corner of Zhuge Village. It is a flat area with a radius of about 100 square feet, surrounded by rows of ancient cypress trees with strong trunks and lush foliage.

He had just reached the edge of the training ground when he suddenly stopped.

In the center of the training ground, hundreds of figures were densely packed together.

They are arranged in neat square formations, their bodies are dark iron gray, and their limbs have distinct joints.

Zhuge Liang's brilliant strategy.

Zhuge Qing glanced at them briefly and estimated there were at least three hundred.

In the very center of those three hundred divine machines, Zhuge Gong sat cross-legged on a futon, his eyes slightly closed and his breathing long and even.

Zhuge Qing stepped forward, walked to Zhuge Gong, and stood still.

"Dad."

Zhuge Gong slowly opened his eyes, saw Zhuge Qing, smiled slightly, and stood up.

"Qing, you've come."

Zhuge Qing looked around at the silently standing divine machines and couldn't help but ask, "What is this...?"

"Let me show you."

Zhuge Gong spoke calmly, yet his tone subtly revealed a sense of heroic spirit.

"What is the true Eight Trigrams Formation?"

Zhuge Qing's eyes widened, his usually squinting eyes now filled with disbelief.

His voice suddenly rose several decibels: "Dad, are you saying that you mastered the Eight Trigrams Formation in just one night?"

Upon hearing this, Zhuge Gong chuckled and shook his head.

"How is that possible?"

He stood with his hands behind his back amidst the array of divine machines, looking up at the gradually brightening horizon in the distance, and said in a complex tone:

"I'm not a god."

"What happened?"

Zhuge Qing pressed for an answer.

Zhuge Gong withdrew his gaze, looked at his son, remained silent for a moment, and then slowly spoke.

"Qing, do you know that for the past 1,800 years, the Zhuge family has never given up on restoring the Eight Trigrams Formation?"

Zhuge Qing's expression hardened slightly.

"Our ancestors throughout the generations have deduced, pondered, and reconstructed the meaning of the fragments and incomplete records left by our forefathers."

Zhuge Gong seemed quite moved.

"Although these derived formations have many omissions, many deviations, and even many completely wrong parts compared to the real Eight Trigrams Formation."

"This incomplete deduction has been passed down from generation to generation. By the time it reached my generation, it may not be comparable to the real Eight Trigrams Formation, but it can at least exert some of its power."

Zhuge Qing frowned: "How come I've never known about this before?"

Zhuge Gong glanced at him, his eyes carrying a hint of disdain that a father might have for his son.

"snort."

"You brat, these are things you were only supposed to know after you became the head of the Zhuge family."

"Only then will your father hand over this array diagram, which has been deduced over a thousand years, to you. As for whether you can perfect it in your lifetime, your father never expected it."

Zhuge Gong took the scroll from his bosom and held it in his hand.

"But things are different now; you've brought back the complete Eight Trigrams Formation."

He stretched out his fingers and gently stroked the leather scroll, his voice excited: "The previously blocked joints were all opened up overnight."

Zhuge Gong put away the scroll.

He looked up at Zhuge Qing, his gaze sharp and intense.

"Now, with these 365 divine machines, corresponding to the number of the heavens, you and I might be able to barely demonstrate three-tenths of the power of our ancestral Eight Trigrams Formation."

Zhuge Gong stepped back a few steps and stood in the very center of the Divine Machine Group, slowly raising his hands.

"Blue."

"Are you ready?"

Zhuge Qing took a deep breath, and with a slight movement of his feet, a mysterious formation silently unfolded beneath his feet.

The characters Xun, Li, Kan, Gen... the four plates and eight gates rotate slowly, and the Qi of heaven and earth flows endlessly within this small space.

"bring it on."

Zhuge Gong nodded slightly, a hint of satisfaction flashing in his eyes.

Then, he closed his eyes.

The Qi energy spread out.

When Zhuge Gong opened his eyes again, his entire demeanor was completely different.

It was as if he were a general commanding the central army, every move and command exuding power.

Zhuge Qing looked at Zhuge Gong with a solemn expression, raising his vigilance to the highest level.

Zhuge Gong raised his sword and stood in front of him.

"in this way……"

He spoke in a low, deep voice.

"Then... activate the formation!"