Jianghu Qimen Lu

The Red Moon said thoughtfully, "The Open Gate is located in the Qian Palace, belonging to the metal element. Qian is the Heavenly Gate and the first of the Eight Trigrams. Qian corresponds to Jia and Ren, with Jia being the first of the ten Heavenly Stems. The Qian position contains Hai water, which is the beginning of all things and the place where Jia wood grows, signifying the start of all things. The ancients called the Open Gate an auspicious gate. In Chinese history, almost all founding emperors established their dynasties from the northwest Open Gate (Qian position). Zhuge Liang and Jiang Wei of the Three Kingdoms period launched six expeditions to Qishan and nine campaigns against the Central Plains, all to seize the Qian position (the throne) through the Open Gate. This Open Gate is so important, of course it is not easy to break through!"

Yu Ruyi was both surprised and delighted. "So we've arrived at the due north gate! Actually, the main building of the Xiaojinchuan official residence is right above the gate! I wonder how the Zen Master Qinxin and some Emei heroes from the five sects and eight schools I dispatched are doing now?"

Little did she know that after launching two signal rockets into the night sky for a full-scale attack, Zen Master Qinxin had led the Emei disciples in a desperate assault on the back gate, which drew all the leaders of the Japanese ninja forces away. As a result, Fujibayashi Shunke and his gang were caught off guard, allowing the two combined forces of officials and civilians, led by Bai Shandian and Yu Ruyi, to successfully infiltrate the heart of Xiaojinchuan's official residence through the tunnels!

He leaped up, splitting in two, and swung his giant axe at the massive iron gate, but aside from sparks flying, it was utterly useless! Red Moon waved him off, saying, "Such a heavy iron gate must have a mechanism to raise and lower it! Everyone should pay attention to their surroundings and see if there's anything unusual! For example, a protruding brick, a small dent, or something unusual about the wall that makes the lanterns stand out!"

Everyone agreed that this made sense and began to carefully search the area. Suddenly, Bai Shandian noticed that on the ceiling of the cave in front of the iron gate, there was a faintly visible Eight Trigrams Formation! Because the writing was very light and there was no color, it was difficult to notice without careful observation! Moreover, there was at least two meters between the ground and the cave ceiling, so no one else had noticed it.

The Thousand-Hand Guanyin stepped forward, bowed, and said, "Amitabha, according to my prediction, this Eight Trigrams Formation is the mechanism to open the door!" The Red Moon smiled slightly and said, "Daoist Master, you are indeed knowledgeable and experienced. Indeed, it is the key to opening the door!"

In a swift somersault, he leaped onto the cave ceiling and, like a gecko, stuck upside down to the stone wall. He aimed at the due north direction on the Eight Trigrams Formation and pointed at the fan-shaped square with the five characters "Birds Soaring Before the Formation, Gold" written on it.

Suddenly, a rumbling sound rang out, like thunder rolling across the sky. The large iron gate slowly sank into the ground, and a huge cave, large enough to hold thousands of troops, opened up before them! Red Moon leaped down from the cave ceiling and led the army into the cave.

Suddenly, the sound of drums thundered and shouts of battle erupted. All eight doors of the cave swung open, and countless masked Japanese ninjas in black poured in. They quickly occupied two-thirds of the cave, forming a perfectly aligned array, instantly changing formations to create a massive Eight Trigrams Formation!

The Eight Trigrams Formation is named after Heaven, Earth, Wind, Cloud, Dragon, Tiger, Bird, and Snake, comprising nine major formations including the central army. The central army consists of sixteen smaller formations, while the surrounding eight formations each consist of six smaller formations, totaling sixty-four smaller formations. Among the eight formations, Heaven, Earth, Wind, and Cloud are the "Four Cardinal Elements," while Dragon (Azure Dragon), Tiger (White Tiger), Bird (Vermilion Bird), and Snake (Tengshe) are the "Four Extraordinary Elements." Additionally, twenty-four formations are deployed in the rear for maneuverability. The Eight Trigrams Formation has a long history, existing before the Three Kingdoms period, and the Eight Trigrams Formation itself was developed by Zhuge Liang through his military strategies. Zhuge Liang's "Eight Trigrams Formation" incorporates the well-field system and the Taoist Bagua (Eight Trigrams) arrangement, integrating astronomy and geography, making it a rare and invaluable ancient battle formation.

Seeing this, Hong Yueliang was shocked and filled with remorse. She blurted out, "If I had known the Japanese could set up the Eight Trigrams Formation, I should have launched a full-scale attack before they could complete it, routing them completely and venting my anger! But now it's too late, all too late!" Yu Ruyi, confused, asked, "What happened, Aunt? Is it that serious?"

Before the Red Moon could speak, Huang Miwu said, "Commander Yu, you may not know this, but back in the Three Kingdoms period, Zhuge Liang, the Prime Minister of Shu, once set up the Eight Trigrams Formation. In less than a single round, he instantly annihilated the 100,000-strong army led by Sima Yi, the Grand Marshal of Wei, resulting in their tragic annihilation! This formation consists of large formations within medium formations, and medium formations within small formations, totaling sixty-four formations! They are intricately linked, with traps within traps, truly treacherous and vicious, difficult to break and unravel!" Yu Ruyi stood there, stunned and bewildered, saying, "The Eight Trigrams Formation—is it really that powerful?"

Bai Shandian walked over and said, "The characteristics of the Eight Trigrams Formation, as Li Jing pointed out in his 'Questions and Answers,' are 'large formations encompassing small formations, large camps encompassing small camps, corners linked together, and twists and turns,' and 'inner circle and outer square'; and its conception is inseparable from the 'Book of Changes.' The arrangement of the Eight Trigrams is actually a 'King Wen's Eight Trigrams Square Dot Array Diagram' (i.e., the 'Later Heaven Eight Trigrams Diagram').

Each of the Eight Formations consists of six smaller formations, drawing inspiration from the six lines of the I Ching. Regarding the principles of the Eight Formations' orthodox and unorthodox methods—that is, the methods of application—Du Mu, in his commentary on Sun Tzu, states, "The unorthodox is also the orthodox of the orthodox, and the orthodox is also the unorthodox of the unorthodox; they mutually exhaust each other, cycling endlessly." It seems that the Eight Formations are arranged in four pairs, with each pair of formations being both orthodox and unorthodox, complementing each other's strengths and weaknesses. It is worth noting that these four pairs are not fixed; for example, the Wind Formation and the Bird Formation are both orthodox and unorthodox, as are the Earth Formation and the Bird Formation. The Eight Formations form a circle representing heaven and earth, mutually restraining and generating each other, like an endless cycle, constantly repeating, leaving enemy troops penetrating their lines struggling to cope.

As for the eight gates of life, death, shock, and opening, I think they are the result of choices due to the differences in troop types and weapons, as well as the objective limitations of training formation changes. Theoretically, all eight gates can be gates of life or gates of death, but such training is too complicated. Soldiers in each formation would have to master all the essentials of formation changes, which is basically impossible to achieve. Therefore, each team of soldiers can only master a limited number of functions according to the principles of the Eight Trigrams, which creates the strength and weakness of the formation.

Personally, I think this is unavoidable. Some are responsible for luring the enemy, some for attacking, and some for providing support. This naturally creates weak points that are lifelines and strong points that are deathlines. The so-called mutual restraint and support refers to the mutual support and coordination between different formations, as well as the combination of weaponry. For example, shields are good for defense, spears are suitable for attack, and bows and arrows are suitable for ranged attacks. However, each weapon cannot be evenly distributed among the teams; otherwise, everything would be complete but lacking, failing to unleash the power of the combined formation. Therefore, they must be grouped separately to leverage the combined advantage of weapons, and then ensure good coordination between the teams. The quality of this coordination constitutes the gaps in the entire formation and the weak points in the defense.

Red Moon suddenly understood, and clapped her hands and laughed, "Lightning, you mean: even if Mount Tai collapses before our eyes, we should remain calm and collected, calmly enter the formation, induce the enemy to launch their attack, wait for them to tire themselves out, use stillness to control movement, avoid their strengths and attack their weaknesses, find their weak points and deliver a fatal blow, thus affecting the whole situation. Then, we can capture the leader first, head straight for their central tent, subdue their general, and break this Eight Trigrams Formation!"

Bai Shandian smiled slightly and said, "I'm quoting classical texts to spark your ideas and strengthen your unwavering belief in breaking the formation! Moon, you are truly the hope of our army and the key to breaking the formation. Everyone is eagerly waiting for you to deploy your troops!"

Red Moon looked around and saw that all the soldiers were indeed staring intently at her, their expressions full of anticipation. She then spoke loudly: "The Eight Trigrams Formation is a complex ancient Chinese military formation, mainly composed of eight basic formations, each representing different tactical significance and application scenarios. Knowing yourself and your enemy is the key to victory! Now I will briefly explain it to you, unveiling the mystery of the Eight Trigrams Formation, so that you will have a basic understanding of it and no longer fear it, so that you can actively cooperate with my command in battle! The following is a detailed explanation of the Eight Trigrams Formation; please listen patiently:"

1. Heaven, Earth, Wind, and Cloud Formations: Heaven Formation (Qian): Represents offense and encirclement, inspired by celestial phenomena, emphasizing rapid and flexible tactics. Earth Formation (Kun): Used for defense and encampment, based on terrain, emphasizing stability and endurance. Wind Formation (Xun): Suitable for marching and rest, using the unpredictable nature of wind as a metaphor, emphasizing adaptability and change. Cloud Formation (Gen): Used for retreat and creating diversion, using the ever-changing nature of clouds as a metaphor, emphasizing the flexible application of strategy.

2. Dragon-Tiger-Bird-Snake Formation: Dragon, Tiger, Bird, and Snake: Represents surprise tactics, symbolized by the four symbols (dragon, tiger, bird, and snake), emphasizing tactical diversity and unexpectedness.

3. Four Symbols Formation: Azure Dragon Formation (Left): Symbolizes the wood element of the east, representing the troop deployment on the left wing. White Tiger Formation (Right): Symbolizes the metal element of the west, representing the troop deployment on the right wing. Vermilion Bird Formation (Front): Symbolizes the fire element of the south, representing the attacking force at the front. Black Tortoise Snake Formation (Rear): Symbolizes the water element of the north, representing the defensive force at the rear.

4. Main Formation and Mobile Formations: The main formation consists of 64 smaller formations (8 x 8) plus 24 mobile formations, forming a total of 88 formations to adapt to different combat needs. Mobile Formations are responsible for mobile warfare, flexibly adjusting according to the actual situation to deal with various emergencies.

The true solution should be to find the weak point and break in, that is, "enter through the life gate". This is correct, but one should not rush out. Once inside, one should effectively prevent the formation of complementary forces between their opposing and opposing military formations, occupy a favorable position to effectively block their formation changes, and force their formations to fight independently, making them unable to change formations in time to meet the enemy.