Plague Doctor - Chapter 202

Chapter 202: Ancient Seal

Whether Atal had the Pnakotic Manuscripts or not? Gu Jun had no idea, the whole thing about Barzai’s wishes was just a bet and an educated guess. After all, all of his dealings with mysterious tomes so far had occurred inside his mind, Gu Jun figured it would be the same for Barzai and Atal. Based on the man’s reaction, Gu Jun knew that his bet had paid off. He was quite impressed that the old man had managed to keep the secret to himself for so long…

“The Tattered One.” Tiredness started to line Atal’s face. “Knowledge itself is a burden, the more you know, the heavier it’ll get. Barzai the Wise thought that he had known everything, believing his intelligence can surpass the earth’s god, but see what has befallen him… Why would he ask you to come get the copy from me?”

“I have no idea.” Gu Jun admitted, “Barzai operates in a way that is beyond us, I believe it is best that we just follow his instruction.”

“Perhaps you’re right…” Atal sighed as brilliance returned to his eyes. “The Pnakotic Manuscripts is a hand-written copy of a very ancient scroll. According to legend, there are 5 chapters to the literature but Barzai the Great only has one. How he managed to get it, I too have no idea. The copy is indeed hidden in a sweet dream inside my brain, it is of the time I have spent under Barzai the Wise’s tutelage.

“I can copy a projection of this sweet dream for you with the chapter and the little research I have done on it inside it but I have to inform you, it is not a spell book and it really has no connection with Seven Cryptical Books of Hsan. With regards to what it is, I no longer have intention to find out.” Atal sighed heavily, “After the accident with Barzai the Wise, I have burnt all the physical copies and halted all of my research into it.”

Gu Jun was naturally interested. Whether it was a spell book or not, it definitely had its research value… But he knew that Atal’s warning should be heeded, this kind of mysterious knowledge could often transmute a person’s body and mind. For now, his most important mission was to figure out how to return back to Earth. The last time he managed that was due to the interdimensional pathway built by Elder Tong and the rest but that would not work now. Therefore, Gu Jun turned to Atal with this enquiry.

“I am not that clear about that either.” Atal shook his head. “But there is a creature residing in the nearby Enchanted Woods which might help you with that. I wonder if you have encountered them already, they are called Zoogs, a type of passionate and clever little creature.”

“Zoog?” Gu Jun’s eyebrows raised. ‘Those big rodents have that kind of knowledge? This is perfect, I am looking for them as well…’

“But I do know that the more a person settles in this world, the harder it is for him to leave.” Atal said, “Especially after they become familiar with the deities as they possess mysterious power connected to this place.” Gu Jun nodded silently. Barzai had given him the same warning, knowing too much was not good for him. “So I’d advise you to not sink too deep into this manuscript.” Atal said as he mumbled an incomprehensive language. It made no sense to Gu Jun but he saw Atal raise his hand to pull over a silvery strand from his head. It soon morphed into a sweet dream bubble. “Here.”

Gu Jun reached out to accept the bubble and pressed it against his mind. The formless object leaked into his sea of consciousness. Gu Jun closed his eyes to sense it. In his sea of consciousness, a new sweet dream bubble was radiating beautifully, but even compared to the 3 almost breaking sweet dream bubbles, it still appeared particularly fragile. Just like Atal said, it was just a projection. Gu Jun clicked on it and it felt like he had opened a book…

Even though this was just a single chapter of the copy, there were 50 plus pages in total. It was written in the same ancient Chinese characters as the Seven Cryptical Books of Hsan, so Gu Jun could barely understand them. In any case… just as he skimmed through a few pages, his mind started to blur due to the tenebrous pull from the book.

“The Tattered One, you have seen it for yourself.” Atal’s voice drifted in. “The Pnakotic Manuscripts is not for us to understand, Barzai the Wise thought he had perused the entirety of it and he believed this is the fruit of intelligence of an ancient race that allowed them to resist the power of divinity.”

At that moment, Gu Jun noticed a strange imprint kept appearing between the pages, it appeared like the seal for some kind of ritual. “What kind of seal is that?” he asked.

“No one knows.” Atal sighed as he thought back to his days of study, “Barzai the wise believes the seal contains some kind of power that will help you rise about the gods but you knew what happened up there, he was plucked out of the summit by a horrible force from the abyss. A few months after his disappearance, the people from Ulthar, Hatheg and Mir gathered their courage to climb the mountain in the morning to go look for him. After they reached the summit, they found no trace of Barzai the Wise but they did find a giant imprint on one of the boulders, it looked like it had been carved there by the gods…” Atal paused before continuing, “The imprint is the same as the seal inside the book.”

Gu Jun’s heart chilled. “Is it possible that the imprint was manmade?”

“Impossible, none of us here can manage that, plus, the imprint is not new, it has been… carved into the mountain itself. The people believed it was an imprint left behind by the earth’s god, consecrating the mountain as their home. Walk around the village and the people will sign this seal at you as a symbol of blessing. The Ancient Seal is what they call it.” Atal’s voice darkened, “But I believe that it is a warning given to us mortals by the gods, Barzai believed that the seal can help him surpass the gods and so the gods proved him wrong by carving it where he stood. If you still wish to leave this world, I cannot tell you anymore than this.”

‘Ancient Seal?’ Gu Jun studied the mysterious seal in his mind, he could not understand it nor could he begin to fathom the depth of its power…

This whole chapter appeared to be describing this seal. However, from where he was standing, that only brought him more questions. Atal had suddenly gone quiet. Gu Jun skimmed through the copy and found nothing so he turned to Atal to enquire him about how to deal with the vines around his legs. Atal said they looked like a plant from the Enchanted Woods and the Zoogs would know more about that. Gu Jun thus departed from the melancholic Atal. With the help of the walking stick, he shuffled out. He was immediately accosted by Malachite and Peacock who were waiting at the exit.

“Mr. Nightmare Man.” Peacock asked nervously, “How did it go?”

“I have read the Pnakotic Manuscripts, it is a book of consciousness.” Gu Jun glanced at the duo once before making his way down the hill. “It really does not have any connection with the Seven Cryptical Books of Hsan, that legend came to be because Barzai was studying both of the tomes at the same time. Atal has no idea why your people are stuck at the fifth chapter of the book.” Peacock’s face dropped and Malachite looked desperate. They turned to look inside the tower before deciding to follow the nightmare man.

“Sir, no matter if they are related or not.” Peacock pleaded continuously, “Can you please tell us the content of the book? Perhaps it might be of help to us.” Naturally Gu Jun would not bow their demands so easily. After all, he had not trusted them fully yet. He did not even share the information about the seal with them even though any Ulthar resident would be able to tell them about it.

“Bring me to the Enchanted Forest.” He said, “And I will consider it.”

The pair shared a look. They were given no choice. They could not win the nightmare man in a fight, so they could only follow along in the hopes that the nightmare man would be gracious enough to grant them the book once he was satisfied with their services. After leaving the temple, Peacock went to rent a donkey carriage. She helped the nightmare man into the carriage and the group departed towards their next destination. The Enchanted Woods was a giant piece of untouched forest, it was connected to Ulthar on its eastern side. After half a day of journey, the carriage finally entered the forest. The surroundings turned dark and creepy. Among the twisted trees, there appeared to be mysterious rustling. Gu Jun had the carriage stop. With the stick, he got down from the carriage. He looked around and could sense numerous beady eyes looking carefully at him.

“Zoogs, I know you are here, yes, I have returned.” Ignoring the pair who was clearly confused, Gu Jun took in the forest around him and continued, “I wonder if you have finished the 5000 hens, 5000 quails and 5000 fowls that you have kept for yourself? If not, you better hurry up because you are going to end up as toasted Zoogs soon. Just in case you do not understand me, I will be more direct.” He shouted, “Today, I will burn down this forest!”

Suddenly frantic tapping echoed around them, it sounded like the cursing of ten thousand rats.

“Young man.” Right then, the elder Zoog with the white beard slowly appeared from within the trees. “I am sure we can talk this out. We are peaceful creatures, there is no reason to resort to drastic measures.”

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