Nature of the Mirrors

[Tsukuyomimagi99]

Now, normally I don't participate in speculation or fan theories, but this one has been circulating in my mind for the past few days. Therefore, I want to purpose a hypothesis on the nature of the mirrors and what their purpose might be. Keep in mind that these are only my thoughts, I could be very wrong with where Shenmue's story is going (in fact, I am sure I am dead wrong), so feel free to critique my hypothesis with ones of your own. With that preamble out of the way, I will now present my hypothesis.

As we all know, when we meet Master Yaowen Chen in Shenmue Chapter One: Yokosuka he explains that "When the Dragon and the Phoenix meet, the gates of Heaven and Earth will open and Chiyou (蚩尤) will resurrect himself on Earth." In another quote, Chen elaborates on who Chiyou (蚩尤) is. "It is a legendary Chinese monster that will devour this world of ours." This is fitting seeing as how the actual Chiyou is believed to be a God of War.

In Shenmue II, we learn from Zhu Yuanda (keep in mind that I am operating on the assumption that he is telling the truth here), that the mirrors act as a map to a treasure from the Qing Dynasty. And finally, we learn in Shenmue III that the Dragon Mirror represents The Emperor and The Phoenix Mirror represents The Empress. Then there's the fact that in 1910 both the Emperor and Empress made a journey through Bailu Village.

What if the mirrors serve multiple purposes? What if they are not only keys to unlocking Chiyou, but also the Qing Dynasty treasure that contains artifacts that when combined with Shenhua's powers and the mirrors would unlock the gateway in where Chiyou resides? What if that flashback in Shenmue II with Shenhua were The Emperor and Empress of Liaoyang whose powers were passed down to Shenhua?

Perhaps those who descend and rule from the Qing or Han Dynasty were blessed with special powers from nature. Such as their ancestors fought a great war against Chiyou in Imperial China and once they defeated him, they sealed him away. However, they could not fully defeat him and his power was locked away in various treasures alongside the mirrors. And when these treasures are combined with the powers of a descendant of this dynasty, Chiyou will be revived.

I honestly don't know what Tentei's purpose in the story is, but perhaps he/she is a chosen one of Chiyou. Or perhaps he/she is ingratiated by Chiyou for summoning him. This would explain why the Chiyoumen are interested in the mirrors in the first place. The only thing I cannot figure out is where the Shenmue tree fits into all this. As we all know, the Shenmue tree is spiritual.

So the story of Ryo's journey will be to either stop Chiyou from being resurrected by defeating the Chiyoumen organization or by destroying Chiyou by being the catalyst for Shenhua's powers. So what do guys think? Am I on the right track or am I way off? I'd like to hear your thoughts on the nature of the mirrors. And thank you for reading my thread as I hope you found it interesting.

 

[Demon's Triangle]

I presume the treasure is a sort of red herring, and not the ultimate goal. The war over the last dynasty's treasure is represented by Chi You, a war diety. The Mirrors apparently serve as keys to the treasures, mythical pieces in the machinations of fate, and they will lead the CYM to further break apart, self destruction, as they fight over the treasure. Sun and maybe Tentei are among the casualties.

This petty war plays a part in setting up the fateful events.. Lan Di and Shenhua meet, the representatives of the Dragon and the Phoenix. The prophecy unfolds and the Mirrors' true purpose is to call the Dragon and Phoenix from the Earth. The villian and the heroine complete each other, and it's Lan Di hate towards the Hazukis, losing his father to the hate of Chi You, that helps motivate Shenhua to destroy the Mirrors.

I think Shenhua's destiny is to die (or be reborn) and to guide the Dragon and Phoenix to the stars, like Shenhua's book about stars in Shenmue II, 'the fate of people' That's what Yushen knew. I don't think they will have a big literal Phoenix or Dragon, but the final shot may be Shenhua returning from her journey and the constellations of the Dragon and Phoenix, glistening in the sky. The Shenmue Trees exists at the heart of the destiny and I guess Shenhua must use her abilities, channel the tree's spirit, to unlock (or destroy the mirrors) Ryo might be 'the morning star', glistening alone, hoping Shenhua will return.

Shenmua may be the reincarnation of an empress, but I don't think that's too important for the story, in the grand scheme of things, but it adds some mystery and implies she may be able to reborn once again.

I believe Shenhua's parents may have been killed by Tentei or the former leader of the CYM, because he believes their interpretations of the Mirrors' purpose was blasphemous. Yushen may have come to deliver Shenhua's flute as present, hid himself and waited for the CYM to leave, then found her hidden and crying, and played the flute to calm her down.