"This..."
Rozen's explanation caused Yukina's expression to flicker between uncertainty and alarm.
Though still young and relatively inexperienced, as a formally trained Sword Shaman from an Attack Mage institution—and a top student at that—Yukina fully grasped the gravity of the situation.
If someone truly intended to target Itogami Island from the shadows, using the island itself as a ritual site to harness the ley lines and deploy Hokimon military spells, then the situation was dire indeed.
At the very least, if the island remained completely isolated, the perpetrator could simply wait it out until Itogami Island collapsed from within.
If they were ruthless enough to wait a year or even half a year, the citizens wouldn't even need to run out of food—panic would consume them first.
And once that happened, what wouldn't the people of Itogami Island do to escape or secure resources?
Worse still, this was a Demon Sanctuary, home to powerful Demons and Attack Mages.
If even they began turning on each other, the carnage would be unimaginable.
"Who would even want to do something like this to Itogami Island?"
Yukina couldn't fathom it.
Unfortunately, neither could Rozen.
"We can't confirm their identity yet, but one thing's certain—they're no ordinary individual."
That was Rozen's assessment.
After all, to hijack Itogami Island's ritual functions and manipulate the ley lines to deploy a military-grade feng shui spell required extraordinary skill. Whoever was behind this was undoubtedly a figure of renown.
At the very least, even if they weren't on par with the Three Saints, they couldn't be far off.
Given their mastery of Hokimon—a discipline of immense strategic value to nations worldwide—they were likely a highly sought-after expert. That alone could be a clue to uncovering their identity.
But the real question was...
"With this level of feng shui expertise, why target a Demon Sanctuary like Itogami Island? What's their goal?"
Were they an operative sent by another nation to seize control?
Or part of an underground faction plotting something sinister?
What exactly did they want with Itogami Island?
Did they plan to simply isolate it and let it wither away?
Or use this as leverage to force the Management Cooperative into some kind of negotiation?
These thoughts flashed through Rozen's mind in an instant.
Yukina had no idea that, in just a split second, Rozen had already considered so many possibilities.
Then...
"Regardless, let's deal with the immediate problem first."
Rozen turned to Yukina with a calm declaration.
"Eh...?" Yukina blinked, then quickly understood. "Wait, Senpai, do you have a way to counter this Eight Trigrams Formation?"
Rozen smirked.
"If this were me from before, facing such a large-scale barrier spell, I might not have been able to break it quickly. But now? It's not a problem."
With his unparalleled mastery of jujutsu and the analytical power of his Wise Eye, Rozen had already discerned several key points in the feng shui array covering the island.
Destroying those points would collapse the entire formation.
Of course, that was just one method—Rozen had plenty of others.
For instance, he could brute-force his way through the barrier, or summon his Eighth Beast Vassal, Shaula Viola, to drain the ley lines' mana and disrupt the spell.
Moreover, Rozen was intimately familiar with the Eight Trigrams Formation itself.
Of the Three Great Arts—Kimon, Taiitsu, and Rokujin—Rozen had mastered all but Rokujin. Even focusing solely on Kimon, his skill was no less than the perpetrator's.
In other words, Rozen was a master of Hokimon in his own right.
Thus, he knew exactly what they were dealing with.
"The Eight Trigrams Formation, also known as the Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Formation, is an ancient military spell array."
Rozen's voice was steady as he explained.
"Legend says the Eight Trigrams cycle endlessly, their permutations infinite. It has many applications, but the most common is as a maze—a spell meant to disorient and trap."
This was precisely how it was being used now.
The island, shrouded in the formation, had become a mirage to the outside world. Ships and planes could no longer reach it, veering off course or encountering inexplicable obstacles before ever arriving.
"The feng shui master who set this up likely based it on the traditional King Wen arrangement. This version is easy to deploy but difficult to dismantle—probably because they assumed no one could even detect it, let alone counter it."
Rozen's lips curled into a faintly amused smile.
"Well then, let me give them a proper lesson."
With that, he knelt, pressing a single finger against the ground.
Within him, all his magical energy converted to spiritual power.
"Nine is the number of completion, derived from the six lines and threefold permutations—one begets two, two begets three, three begets all things—"
Rozen began chanting an arcane incantation as spiritual power gathered at his fingertip.
"It is said the Supreme Polarity gives rise to the Two Forms, the Two Forms to the Four Symbols, the Four Symbols to the Eight Trigrams, and the Eight Trigrams to the sixty-four hexagrams, cycling without end, infinite in variation—"
As he chanted, his finger traced intricate patterns across the ground, forming a small but precise eight-trigram seal.
"Qian is the horse, Kun the ox, Zhen the dragon, Xun the fowl, Kan the swine, Li the pheasant, Gen the dog, Dui the sheep—"
Finishing the seal, Rozen formed a hand sign.
"Eight Trigrams Formation—rotate."
At his command, an enormous eight-trigram array unfurled across Itogami Island.
...
"Hm?"
At that very moment, in a secluded corner of the island, a middle-aged man abruptly looked up, his expression shifting through shock, disbelief, and finally dawning horror.
"This is..."
He closed his eyes briefly, sensing the changes, then whispered hoarsely:
"My Eight Trigrams Formation... has been stolen?"
His voice trembled with utter incredulity.