Early Heaven Bagua and Later Heaven Bagua

"Could the positions of these ghosts follow the Early Heaven Bagua, arranged with the Kun position as the core?" "The Early Heaven Bagua encompasses all phenomena under heaven, using ghosts and monsters to represent all worldly facets. Look, this position is a drowned ghost. A drowned ghost dies in water, representing Water. This position is a wronged ghost, buried in the soil, representing Earth. This position is a seductive ghost—a seductive ghost is the embodiment of lustful fire, representing Fire. And this position is a painted-skin ghost... Well, that one's probably just making up the numbers." "No, to me this great array shows signs of the Later Heaven Bagua. It should be arranged according to the principles of the Later Heaven Bagua, with the array core at the Zhen position." "How did you all even learn arrays? Can the nodes of an array only be ghosts? Can buildings not serve as array nodes?" "Look at Hanshui City. On one side lies the Corpse Driving Sect's Yin Corpse Mountain Range, symbolizing extreme yin. On the other side are bustling areas like brothels, dense with human vitality, symbolizing extreme yang. Centered on the Provincial Governor's manor, yin and yang are balanced, promoting the prosperity of Hanshui City. That was the original intention behind founding Hanshui City!" "Now someone has placed ferocious ghosts in Hanshui City and broken the balance of yin and yang. How can you not understand such a simple principle?" "Bullshit theory! The rumor about Hanshui City's balance of yin and yang has been circulating for tens of thousands of years, and people still believe it!" "It's not about believing it; it's called rational analysis!" "What rational analysis? We're all cultivators here, and might makes right! If you've got the skill, let our fists do the talking!" The array masters bickered and shouted, growing increasingly heated until they were practically about to come to blows. Lu Yang wanted to step forward and stop them, but his words carried little weight, and there was no stopping this bunch of old scholars anyway. Actually, there was a way to stop the old scholars from arguing: he just had to declare that he was the disciple of Daoist Buyu. Lu Yang was certain their focus would instantly shift from the array to him. Though the risk factor of this method was far too high; even the Fairy would have a hard time keeping him safe. Though even if the risk factor weren't high, she still wouldn't be able to keep him safe. "Grandmasters, how is the research on the array coming along?" Provincial Governor Lü emerged from the stone secret chamber and headed straight over, concerned about their progress. Qiu Jin'an and Meng Jingzhou both wore expressions of immense relief, feeling as though the whole world had opened up. "Rest assured. I promised to pass down a secret technique of my sect to you, and once this matter is settled, I'll teach it to you!" Back when Qiu Jin'an controlled Meng Jingzhou to throw punches at Old Ba, he had promised to teach Meng Jingzhou a secret technique. He was a man of his word. "All good now?" Lu Yang asked, feigning ignorance so as not to expose that he had peeked. "Brother Meng, has your curse been lifted?" Man Gu genuinely cared about Meng Jingzhou. Zhao Po, following behind, was equally concerned about Meng Jingzhou's condition. "All good, all good! After so long, it's finally resolved. This young master is a free man again!" "If you had just followed this Immortal's method and committed suicide once, the curse would have been lifted ages ago," the Immortal Fairy muttered. Lifting a curse this way was far too inefficient. "Brother Meng, how was your curse lifted again?" Man Gu suddenly asked, looking somewhat bewildered. He felt like he had remembered it just a moment ago, but now it had slipped his mind. Zhao Po was in the exact same boat. This was the immortal characteristic at work. Meng Jingzhou gave a hollow laugh and didn't answer. Otherwise, if he answered once, Man Gu would probably ask again in half a quarter-hour, forcing him to answer again and be asked yet again—an endless loop. "What a pity Eldest Senior Sister isn't around. Otherwise, we wouldn't have had to run all the way to Huangzhou." Meng Jingzhou sorely missed the days when Eldest Senior Sister was present. Qiu Jin'an was taken aback, not understanding why Meng Jingzhou would say such a thing. "You mean Yun Zhi? She's at the Dao Seeking Sect. When I went to ask where you two had gone, I even ran into her." "When did Eldest Senior Sister return to the sect?" "The day after you departed for Huangzhou." Meng Jingzhou: "..." Lu Yang: "..." "Tell me, why were you in such a rush to come to Huangzhou!" Lu Yang struck first, taking the offensive. "What do you mean I was in a rush to come to Huangzhou? How was I supposed to know Eldest Senior Sister would return so quickly? On the other hand, you follow Eldest Senior Sister around every day—how could you not even know where she went!" Meng Jingzhou skillfully deflected the blame onto Lu Yang. "Who dares pry into Eldest Senior Sister's whereabouts? Do you dare?" "I don't!" Meng Jingzhou replied, utterly righteous and unapologetic. "If you two are asking what Yun Zhi went to do, I actually happen to know," Qiu Jin'an chimed in. "She went to handle the release procedures for Old Scoundrel Buyu." Meng Jingzhou: "..." Lu Yang: "..." "The Sect Master broke the law and got locked up again?" Man Gu asked, thoroughly astonished. Provincial Governor Lü was listening to the opinions of the array masters. "Listen to me, the principle of this array is definitely the Early Heaven Bagua!" "What Early Heaven Bagua? It's clearly the Later Heaven Bagua!" Hearing this, Qiu Jin'an sighed, nursing a bit of a headache. "The dispute between the Early Heaven Bagua and Later Heaven Bagua again. What a hassle." "The dispute between the Early Heaven Bagua and Later Heaven Bagua?" Lu Yang and the others had never heard of this controversy. "This touches upon advanced array theory; it's only normal that you haven't heard of it." "The Early Heaven Bagua and Later Heaven Bagua originated in antiquity. Legend has it that an ancient immortal looked up to observe the astronomical phenomena and looked down to inspect the terrestrial geography, deriving them in accordance with the natural laws of heaven and earth." "This ancient immortal proposed the Bagua theory. However, so much of ancient civilization has been lost that only the Early Heaven Bagua and Later Heaven Bagua have survived to this day. Because of that, both sides constantly argue over which one is orthodox." "If the Bagua theory could be completed, this dispute between Early Heaven and Later Heaven would finally be put to rest." "The Bagua theory? Oh, I know about that." The Immortal Fairy once again showed off her vast experience. Many major ancient legends and events were things she had witnessed firsthand—or had schemed behind the scenes. "You know it?" "What kind of question is that? What does this Immortal not know? The birth of this Bagua theory is intimately connected to me." "You were the one who proposed this theory, Fairy?" Lu Yang was awestruck, suddenly feeling that the Immortal Fairy was remarkably intelligent. The Immortal Fairy waved her hand, not claiming undue credit. "Not quite. This was a theory deduced by Immortal Suiyue. While he was working it out, I was waving flags and cheering him on from the side." Lu Yang thought to himself, *Was there a punishment round too? If Immortal Suiyue couldn't deduce it within the allotted time, would he have to eat your cooking?* Unaware of Lu Yang's mental ribbing, the Immortal Fairy continued reminiscing about the experience: "He looked up and counted stars, squatted on the ground examining mud, pinched his fingers to divine a bit, and came up with a theory." "According to him, this Bagua theory of his encompassed all phenomena in the world and could serve as the foundation for arrays. Arrays arranged using the Bagua theory were profound and enigmatic, making it extremely difficult for cultivators of the same realm to deduce a way to break them. It was a top-notch array theory!" "The complete Bagua theory was divided into four parts: Early Heaven Bagua, Today Bagua, Tomorrow Bagua, and Later Heaven Bagua. Who knows how it was passed down, but by the time it reached the present, only the Early Heaven Bagua and Later Heaven Bagua were left."