Full-Time Magister: I Had No Intention of Reaching the Dimensional Throne

Chapter 395 Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams, Northwest Operation

Since the Bagua diagram cannot be repaired for the time being, is it possible for me to cultivate other diagrams first?

To put it simply, this diagrammatic secret method is an extremely profound application module of magical techniques.

Although the four cardinal directions of the Bagua diagram need to have Kan, Li, Gen, and Dui, which represent the opposing forces of water, fire, earth, and marsh.

But that was in ancient times, when the Bagua diagram was created.

Bai Mo could sense that the Eight Trigrams did not necessarily have to follow the elements or images symbolized by each trigram.

In the traditional sense, Qian, Kun, Zhen, Xun, Kan, Li, Gen, and Dui represent Heaven, Earth, Thunder, Wind, Water, Fire, Mountain, and Lake.

The Eight Trigrams correspond to the Four Symbols, which in turn correspond to the cardinal directions. Coincidentally, the Eight Trigrams also correspond to directions.

Bai Mo wasn't planning to only edit one picture. Since all four pictures—the One Yuan Two Forms, the Four Symbols, and the Eight Trigrams—had their eyes on his, why didn't he want them all?

The four pictures are inherently related.

He has a good appetite, and it's quite large.

As he pondered, he came up with an idea: the Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams, and the Qimen Dunjia (a form of divination).

You can ignore what happens next; there's no such thing as dragon hunting and gold finding in the magical world.

He could easily create a nine-square grid that suits him; there are already so many theories from predecessors.

Others can't create it simply because they lack the ability; after all, even forbidden spells only have five elements.

With this in mind, he began to arrange the star system order in his mental world, using mental power as ink and patterns, or restrictions and secret incantations, to connect the various independent magic systems.

Magic originates from the soul of a mage; just as a person does not feel powerless to control their own hands and feet, so too does this.

At the same time, the glossy black paint on the four walls emitted wisps of energy, as if helping him to advance his evolutionary ideas.

In the void of the spiritual world, only eight different colored magic systems shone brightly, and Bai Mo's consciousness, like a god, gazed down from an infinitely high place.

First, the four directions are defined, and the eight trigrams are matched with the nine palaces. The Kan palace is located in the north and represents water.

He doesn't have a water system, but he can use the two side palaces, Gen Palace in the northeast and Qian Palace in the northwest, to determine the north.

Next is the Li Palace, which represents fire and governs the south. The Zhen Palace, located in the east, represents thunder.

Finally, the Dui Palace represents the west and symbolizes a marsh. Water and earth combine to form a marsh. For the sake of determining the direction, the Gen Palace also represents earth and is located in the northeast.

So Bai Mo first used the chaotic system to replace it, changing the order to deceive the orientation.

Then there are other off-center directions: the Northeast Gen Palace is associated with the Earth element, while the Northwest Qian Palace and the Southwest Kun Palace are worth considering.

The characters 乾坤 have many meanings, but generally speaking they refer to heaven and earth, yin and yang.

Bai Mo arranged the spatial system in the Qian Palace and summoned the system in the Kun Palace.

Both of these have the concept of spacetime. One travels within the world, while the other connects two dimensions. They can be said to be the yin and yang aspects of spacetime.

Then, the wind system is arranged in the southeast Xun Palace, which is standard.

There is another sound system that has nowhere to go in the Bagua, so it is located in the central palace, connecting the eight directions. At the same time, the sound system and divine light construct a uni-shaped diagram in the central palace.

As the final step was taken, Bai Mo felt a jolt in his spiritual sea, as if the eight magic systems were creating a special synergy.

At the same time, this feeling of "forming a whole" made him feel that his transformation back to the origin had become completely automated.

Opening his eyes, Bai Mo stepped forward with his left foot, and a sound wave carrying a mesmerizing glow spread outwards. At the same time, a Bagua diagram expanded outwards from where his toes touched.

A sense of complete control arose spontaneously, and a hint of surprise appeared in Bai Mo's eyes.

Just as he had expected, this feeling was somewhat similar to when he activated the Divine Descent in the Northwest, unifying all magic systems into one.

It's important to understand that even a one in ten thousand similarity can bring tremendous power; this can already be considered a normal, explosive pattern.

There are no such side effects yet.

From then on, whenever the Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams diagram was opened, he would be the king within it.

Bai Mo clicked his tongue, feeling his rapidly depleting magical energy and the somewhat out-of-control Bagua diagram that had covered the entire secret realm, and quickly canceled it.

Without the true Kan water as the location of the North Palace, the Bagua diagram cannot be expanded too much, otherwise it will become unbalanced.

You can think of each position in the Nine Palaces as a node in a formation. Now, the node in the north is not suppressed by the formation eye, just like a road suddenly losing a section.

The car had to perform stunt driving skills to get there, which caused the energy transfer to be disrupted.

Inside the secret realm, many people who were going about their own business looked up at the sky in shock.

In the secret realm, where the sky was originally a hazy gray, now beautiful magical lines extend out, forming a nine-palace eight-trigram pattern.

The eight directions and eight palaces correspond to the four directions and four symbols. The sky above the central palace is a hazy and chaotic scene, with the faint shadow of the primordial unity and duality.

Above the eight directions, the ever-changing light—purple, red, blue, gold, silver, and moon white—seemed to extend and cover the entire secret realm. Thin wisps of light, like clouds of various shapes, fell down, creating a scene of extraordinary wonder!

At the same time, after the light enveloped them, an immense suppressive force suddenly descended upon everyone. Some with lower cultivation levels even felt that their secondary or minor magical abilities were being suppressed.

So everyone stared wide-eyed in horror at the sky. You have to know that anyone who can get here must be at least a high-level mage.

Even many senior masters like Xiang Xuewu, who already held important positions, were shocked.

They knew more than the younger generation, and they understood that this suppression was essentially a suppression of mental strength, which was why they were even more horrified.

There are not many methods for cultivating spiritual power in this world, so the strength of a mage's spiritual power is generally judged by how long he lives.

They had all seen him before; the person who went in was a young man.

This young man actually unfolded the diagram and suppressed them all. Although it didn't reach the level of sealing magic, it was still quite astonishing.

As the light from the diagram faded and disappeared, some people came to their senses and, recalling the appearance of the Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams, couldn't help but exclaim in surprise:

"What kind of picture is that? I've never seen it before."

"Isn't it just a Bagua diagram?"

"It doesn't seem like it. Besides, what do you mean by 'it'? The last person to cultivate the Bagua diagram was the venerable Zhuge Liang, more than a thousand years ago!!"

"Oh my god, it's a Bagua diagram!!!"

The person who hadn't reacted at first suddenly realized what was happening.

Meanwhile, Xiang Xuewu, who was catching up with his old friend, was also dumbfounded. This is a bit exaggerated, isn't it?

Someone actually learned how to draw the Bagua diagram?

However, after thinking about the rumors about Bai Mo again, he was no longer so surprised.

It seems that besides him, there is only one other person who could possibly recreate the Bagua diagram.

"Hey Lao Xiang, what kind of amazing person did you bring this time?" an old professor from the Imperial Capital University asked.

"This is serious. Will the Hanging Temple be under his jurisdiction from now on?" said an honorary senior official from the Forbidden City.

Bai Mo stepped to the top of the mountain and looked down, where he saw a group of people looking up at him.

Their gazes were filled with shock and wonder.

He stepped up to Xiang Xuewu and said, "Dean Xiang, I have learned the secret technique. If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving now."

"Of course you can, no one will stop you from leaving."

Xiang Xuewu nodded, feeling both sigh and wistful, but he didn't say he wanted to leave together.

"I still need to see some old friends here, so I won't accompany you back."

"Okay, see you next time."

Bai Mo nodded, greeted some people who were still staring at him, and then left the secret realm.

Back in the outside world, he keenly sensed that something was wrong with the timing.

It seemed that I had only experienced an illusion, read some materials, and then received a legacy, which didn't seem to take much time.

Actually, it took several days, but you couldn't feel it inside the secret realm.

Back at the temple, Bai Mo found Lingling and the other two in the South Tower. He didn't linger there, but summoned the Wind Spirit, which transformed into a flying phoenix and carried them northwest.

The Northwest Fortress City had returned to the hands of the Western Military Mage a month ago, and in that month, this once formidable northwestern stronghold had come back to life.

It remained under semi-military management, with well-trained military mages dressed in desert camouflage standing atop the city walls.

But more military mages continued to build buildings, high-rises, bridges, paved roads, security formations, and even more residential buildings.

Correspondingly, military buildings within cities are constantly decreasing and disappearing, militarized areas are shrinking, and demilitarized areas are expanding.

"The sand demons of the west, especially the dust storm maggots that had been blocking our westward and northward journeys, have disappeared. Therefore, this place is no longer a fortress city and will become the first economic city in the northwest."

Nan Jue sat in a chair in the teahouse, head bowed, and addressed Bai Mo and his group:

"This major development project is about to begin, and in fact, it needs to start as soon as possible."

"How so?"

Seeing her serious expression, Bai Mo couldn't help but ask. Lingling also turned her attention to the matter at this moment, even though she had done some research herself.

However, she didn't have the extraordinary ability to obtain firsthand information from military mages.

"Although a large portion of the sand demons disappeared due to the Cloud Sky Desert, creating a vast expanse of empty land, the sand demons receded, and the demons within the Tian Shan mountain range to the north began to expand."

Meanwhile, to the south, demons in the Kunlun Mountains and the surrounding Bayankala Mountains began to stir!

Nan Jue's gaze was heavy, because whether it was the demons of Tianshan or the demons belonging to Kunlun, even if they were only subordinates, they were absolutely not to be ignored if they had any connection with Kunlun territory.

It's no less difficult than dealing with the Dust Storm Beetle.

"We can't wait any longer. We need to seize some good areas as soon as possible, and more importantly, we need to occupy a strategically advantageous location as the base for our next fortress city, a new front against the demons!"

Upon hearing this, Lingling nodded in understanding and looked at the Western Development Plan in her hand.

"No wonder the Northwest government has such a large-scale recruitment effort and welfare measures, even promising to build a city and give out the position of city councilor. It turns out they don't have much time."

"Yes, this time we need to act quickly and decisively, before the demons of Tianshan and the surrounding Kunlun Mountains make any moves, and devour this large empty area in the Northwest."

The main force of the military mages was to thwart the demons near the two mountains, leaving the rest of the area to rely on civilian assistance.

As Nan Jue spoke, she pointed to several points on the map spread out on the table.

One is Turpan, which is close to the Tianshan Mountains, and the other is the sacred mountain of fire element that helped the dust storm demon grasshopper complete its transformation, and it was named Daxishan.

Another one is Lop Nur, a vast desert located west of the Daxi Mountain and on the west bank of the Shawang River.

"These three places are key. Turpan is a relatively humid place in the northwest, suitable for living and farming. According to our future plans, it will become a key city, and the fortress city will become its subordinate."

Nan Jue knew what Bai Mo wanted to know when he came to see her.

She was also very grateful to Bai Mo for giving her the complete secret techniques that the Nan family ancestors had not obtained, and for explaining the mysteries of the family crest.

Therefore, even though she was in a teahouse this time, and the tea in her hand had gone cold, she was still talking non-stop:

"And as you know, Da Xishan is a sacred land of fire elements. To its east lies a vast sandy mining area, a rich resource region. If nothing unexpected happens, it will develop into a capital of fire elements."

Nan Jue gestured towards the location of Da Xishan, then glanced at Bai Mo, his expression suggestive.

This is no longer a hint, but an explicit statement.

An agricultural city is not important to a family of magicians.

Unlike resource-based cities, any magical power would want to establish a foothold here.

Bai Mo simply smiled at this. He had come here for the same reason, and he didn't believe that the Northwest authorities had no designs on this sacred elemental land.

"The Lop Nur region is the front line. We need to build a new fortress city here, relying on the Shaqu River, to establish a defense that runs through the north and south of the new state."

There are many demons in Lop Nur, such as the "false demons" that surround the area near the Shaqu River.

After outlining the remaining known demons in Lop Nur, Nan Jue picked up his teacup and gulped it down in one go.

She sighed, then glanced at Bai Mo and the other two who seemed lost in thought, before saying:

"That's all I know. Do you have any questions?"

Bai Mo's eyes swept over Turpan and the Western Hills on the map.

Instead of staying on the land planned for these two rear cities, they landed on the Lop Nur front line on the other side of the Shaqu River.

These two planned lands also have demons that need to be cleansed.

But Bai Mo knew that they were just flies.

The most troublesome nut to crack, the Dust Storm Demon Grass, has been eliminated. The other scattered demons can be dealt with by the Northwest Army mages with a mere wave of their hands.

However, focusing on these two areas will make it difficult to achieve Bai Mo's desired outcome.

With the construction of a city that could potentially become a fire element capital in the future, Bai Mo felt like he was about to rediscover the feeling of playing Skylines.

First, we need to take control of the territory and obtain the 'mayor' qualification.

After all, the Northwest government has already offered benefits for cities that share resources and build together, so it would be disrespectful not to take advantage of it.

If one gains control of the discourse and resources here, then one's fire element will no longer have to worry about supplying the totem egg with elemental seeds.

So, if you want to get such a big piece of the pie, you have to do something.

For example, eliminating all the pseudo-demon west of the Shaqu River, since the ground is full of these things, makes it quite unsuitable for establishing a frontline fortress.

The other demons in Lop Nur should not be spared either.

In short, the best course of action is to settle down in this large area that is essentially a "bed and chair".

Thinking of this, Bai Mo turned his gaze to the Shaqu River again.

The entire Shaqu River has a terrifying gravity. Desert monsters have the innate ability to walk on the sand, allowing them to walk on the surface of the sand without sinking in, even with gravity.

However, humans cannot do this, and if the gravity problem cannot be solved...

The Shaqu River is a dangerous chasm for human mages. If the military really wants to build a fortress on the west side of the Shaqu River, they must take the Shaqu River issue into account.

Otherwise, resupply will be a huge problem.

"Do you have a solution to the gravity problem in the Shaqu River?"

Thinking of this, he immediately asked.

Nan Jue shook his head. "A team of military staff officers and researchers have already started studying this, and these problems can be solved step by step."

"That's true." Bai Mo nodded slightly and glanced at Lingling.

Lingling glanced at the development plan report. "How is this transfer of merit calculated?"

"It depends on the mission and the corresponding level of the mission location. Anyone can accept the mission, and whoever completes the handover with our military mage will have their merits credited."

"Oh, then that's fine."

Upon hearing this, Lingling nodded in understanding. She liked this approach, and the Hunter Alliance's related missions were also conducted in this manner.

Lingling displayed a page of the merit exchange table, pointing to a line in the densely packed list of exchanges:

"Hmph, were you planning to send Bai Mo all along?"

Upon hearing this, Bai Mo and the other two were somewhat puzzled. Nan Jue glanced at the line she was pointing to, paused for a moment, then understood her meaning and smiled:

"It's said that the military commander added him at the last minute, but I don't know if that's true."

The conversation between the two was rather cryptic. Zhao Manyan, who was closer, leaned over to peek at the spot Lingling was pointing to.

"8546. Well Order. A-level merit points can be exchanged."

After reading the line aloud, Zhao Manyan scratched his head, while Bai Mo, who was sitting with Mu Nujiao, had already widened his eyes.

He can't stand hearing anything related to the Seven Mansions of the South now.

"Is this well order real? By the way, what's the character of the Western Army leader like?"

"I've been searching for him everywhere," Bai Mo thought to himself, but he still needed to confirm it.

"I don't know either." Nan Jue shook her head. Even if she was behind such an important person's back, she wouldn't say anything carelessly.

In fact, after becoming a sound-based mage, she gave up her habit of talking badly about people behind their backs.

"Whether it is or not, we'll know when we achieve merit."

Lingling said, glancing at the time.

"It's 4 PM now. The development plan will officially begin at 8 AM tomorrow. We need to go to the Military Mage Mission Building to pick up the mission. Once we complete the mission and earn merit points, we will know the details tomorrow."

Zhao Manyan clicked his tongue repeatedly, looking at the merit exchange list again and again, saying as he looked:

"Luckily I came with you guys, there are quite a few things you can exchange for with the merit points here."

It has everything from the territory or resource mining rights needed by powerful families to the cultivation resources needed by ordinary mage and hunter groups, and even soul seeds!

"Wow, you guys even brought out something as important as the Source Spot!? But how much merit do you need for an S-rank?"

"The tallest row in the martyrs' cemetery is all of them," Nan Jue said with a sneer.

"Well"

Zhao Manyan choked, put down the form, and didn't want to see his father so soon.

"Let's go for a walk around the city and familiarize ourselves with where the military's mission building is located."

Having understood the situation, Bai Mo immediately stood up and said.

The group left the teahouse and followed the road, which still shimmered with magical energy, until they arrived at a low-key, square hall.

There were quite a few people gathered here, obviously they were all there to scout out the location.

Suddenly, the previously noisy crowd in front parted abruptly, and a group of mages in white uniforms stepped out from the crowd.

In the middle of this group of mages was a man with ice-blue hair and impeccable attire.

He was about thirty years old, with a rigid appearance, prominent cheekbones, and eyes that held endless arrogance and indifference, as if he were not a human being in this world, and he was full of contempt for those around him.

"Mu Shi's men!" Zhao Manyan narrowed his eyes, recognizing the group's origins.

Bai Mo nodded slightly, and at that moment, a group of people walked out from the main gate of the mission hall.

The group was all dressed in red, yet they did not appear tacky. Their scarlet uniforms accentuated their somber and imposing demeanor, making them stand out from the others.

The leader, a handsome young man with gloomy eyes, spotted the showy Mu family members at a glance and immediately sneered:

"Mu Feiluan, has your Mu family run out of people? You actually sent someone like this! There's no place for you to interfere in the Northwest!"

"You have no right to yell at me, and your family has no right to tell us what to do. Whether you can interfere or not is up to me."

Mu Feiluan stopped in her tracks, her cold and arrogant eyes only glancing lightly at Zu Xiangtian before continuing on her way, leaving only a faint voice behind, causing Zu Xiangtian's face to turn pale.

"Damn it!! The inland areas are our ancestral territory!"

Zu Xiangtian spoke with a fierce but weak expression, but did not step forward to say anything more.

He knew that would only be self-humiliating, because Mu Feiluan's status in the Mu family was higher than that of his ancestor, Zu Xiangtian, in the Zu family.

"Both the Mu family and the Zu family are here. I'm telling you, Bai Mo, you're going to have a tough time snatching food from the tiger's mouth."

Zhao Manyan crossed his arms and, seeing the show was over, offered his commentary.

You've got one thing wrong.

"What is it?"

"I am the tiger, and the food here is what I hunted. Now I'm just sharing some soup with the others."

Zhao Manyan silently gave a thumbs up and took out a feed bag from his storage ring.

"Give!"

Bai Mo waved his hand and led his group away. He still needed to contact Bai Zangfeng and Bai Hongfei to mobilize the Bai family's resources.

At this movement, a pair of gloomy eyes not far away immediately narrowed and emitted a heavy nasal sound.

Without his orders, a subordinate dressed as a hunter had already quietly followed.

"Zang Feng has become a member of the Military Intelligence Bureau. If you need to make contact with the Western Military Mage, you can contact him immediately."

Bai Hongfei stood beside Bai Mo and said...

"This time, my family has brought one hundred mid-level mages with me, two high-level mages to assist, and some logistics support personnel."

I've arranged for them all to stay at the hotel. Bro, do we have a target yet? Are these people enough?

"The goal is to gain participation rights in urban development. I'll give you the details tomorrow. You and your team will follow me."

(End of this chapter)