Chapter 8 The Square Mirror He's going to smash the square mirror!
That night.
Dark clouds obscured the moon.
Bai Yuheng arrived outside the Tian Shu Pavilion and looked at the disciples guarding the entrance, as well as the patrols around her.
She had figured out their shift change times: midnight, early morning, early morning, noon, late afternoon, and late evening. Every two hours, a new shift would begin, and these were the times when they were most likely to let their guard down. At that time, she would use the power of her old companion to enter the barrier, then change her form and follow the disciple changing shifts into the Heavenly Pivot Pavilion.
Bai Yuheng arrived at an inconspicuous place, internally regulating the power of the golden snake coiled within her primordial spirit. She chanted incantations while her hands moved continuously. Finally, she softly uttered a single word: "Break!" Then, she quickly made a hand seal, transforming herself into a tiny golden snake, and smoothly slipped into the corner of the broken barrier.
After she entered, the broken corner of the barrier quickly closed, flashing with a light invisible to others, revealing a dense grid, as if it had been reinforced.
Just as the disciples patrolling the back gate were changing shifts, she transformed from a golden snake into an inconspicuous grasshopper, perched on the hem of a disciple's robe, and followed them into the front gate of the Tian Shu Pavilion.
"Senior Sister Zhang, you're on duty again?"
A gentle woman nodded: "It just so happens that Junior Brother Zheng is not feeling well tonight, so I'll take his place."
The person asking the question exclaimed, "Senior sister, you're so kind. You always come here to stand guard for others. Standing guard is so boring; you can't chat or move around freely... Don't you find it tedious?"
Zhang Ju chuckled: "Alright, that's enough. You guys go and get some rest. We'll take care of tonight."
"Okay, then I'll have to trouble you, senior brothers and sisters!"
After finishing their conversation, the group that was changing shifts quickly left.
Zhang Ju stood in front of the door, his eyes bright and his back straight, appearing exceptionally serious compared to the relaxed people beside him.
“Zhang Ju, there’s no need to stand so seriously. In the past hundred years, very few people have been able to break through. Besides, the Emperor and Uncle Pei have reinforced this barrier, so not even a mosquito can fly in. Just rest for a while and lean against the wall. That way, your legs won’t ache the next day and cause you to miss your studies.”
Those around her advised her against it, and even the emperors turned a blind eye to their behavior, since standing guard was truly exhausting.
Zhang Ju shook his head and smiled gratefully: "No need, if you're tired, just rest. I'll take care of things."
The man who was speaking made two "eh" sounds. Seeing how serious she was, and feeling a little embarrassed that he had just arrived and was already slacking off, he scratched his head. But in the end, his laziness overcame his shame and he continued to lean against her.
"..." Bai Yuheng entered Tian Shu Pavilion while they were chatting. She could faintly hear the sounds outside. With her mind at ease, she went upstairs.
The third floor is completely empty except for a square mirror placed on a half-inch high platform.
Bai Yuheng glanced at the surrounding layout and thought to herself that Pei Yuan was indeed a meticulous person. There was a faint barrier around the square mirror, which would not be visible to someone who did not understand magic.
Moreover, this barrier is much stronger and more robust than the outer one.
I didn't expect this kid to be so good at researching barriers.
Bai Yuheng studied it for a long time before she came up with a solution.
A faint golden light flashed, and a square mirror, about the size of a palm, stood on the pillar. The once smooth mirror surface showed the seals that sealed the demons, but now the smooth surface was shattered, and the clear image gradually became blurred.
The Four Directions Mirror is an ancient divine artifact, a magical object used to lock away demons and seal away evil spirits. It is also a treasure that allows one to freely travel through space. If it is broken by someone with ulterior motives and the seal is broken, it will inevitably cause endless trouble.
Bai Yuheng focused her mind and gathered her energy. The small golden snake on her wrist slid from her fingertips toward the mirror, its head merging into the mirror. Suddenly, it was struck by a black force and sent flying. Bai Yuheng pulled her hand back, and pain and numbness pierced her heart.
"As expected, someone tampered with it."
The golden snake coiled around her fingertip, the pain dissipated, and Bai Yuheng frowned, pondering whose possibility was greater.
No one is possible, but anyone is possible.
The Demon Realm and Monster Realm are no longer what they used to be. If new forces rise within them, they might risk destroying the Four Directions Mirror to release the sealed demons and monsters to wreak havoc. It seems necessary to descend the mountain.
Bai Yuheng considered several possibilities, waiting to verify them one by one.
The little golden snake on the fingertip stirred restlessly, its golden-red vertical pupils warily watching the mirror surface shrouded in black mist. It arched its body, flicked its scarlet tongue, hissing, and suddenly charged into the square mirror.
A scream came from the mirror. Bai Yuheng transformed the golden snake into a rope, bound the person in the mirror, and pulled her out with all her might.
A black three-eyed toad fell to the ground.
"Who are you? Who sent you?" The snake that snaked out of his wrist became a rope at his fingertips, emitting a faint golden light as it hung the bound toad in mid-air.
"Let go! Let go!" The toad glared at her with its three large, red eyes. "I won't talk! I won't talk!"
Bai Yuheng squinted and applied some force to her hand.
"It hurts! It hurts! I'll tell you, I'll tell you!"
Bai Yuheng lifted her eyelashes and said coldly, "Speak."
"Let go! Let go!" the toad cried.
"You have no right to negotiate with me." Bai Yuheng looked at them coldly, then made a hand seal, creating a barrier that blocked out unnecessary noise.
"Hey, did you hear any talking?" Zhang Ju looked up at the upstairs.
The person next to him shifted his posture, half-closed his eyes, and picked at his ear: "What?"
"..." Zhang Ju listened carefully and then used his divine sense to probe, but there was no sound and he did not detect anything unusual. He thought to himself that he was probably being too vigilant. "It's nothing, just a hallucination."
upstairs.
The three-eyed toad's eyes darted around, and it was helpless as she tightly bound it, repeatedly begging for mercy.
"I'll talk, I'll talk!"
Bai Yuheng listened attentively.
"A man in black noticed someone approaching the Four Directions Mirror and threw me out!"
"Who? Who is the man in black?"
"I don't know!" the toad struggled. "He said he wanted to smash the Four Directions Mirror! That way he could gather the Four Directions Mirror together! Because he can't get into the Heavenly Evolution Sect!"
Bai Yuheng pursed her lips, pondering how much of the toad's words were true and how much were false.
"Don't you believe me!" the toad cried, pointing its bumpy claws at the square mirror shrouded in black mist. "Look!" it exclaimed excitedly.
Bai Yuheng's eyelids twitched, and the next moment the square mirror shattered into several pieces, floating in the air.
Bang!
An immense force struck the silent night like a thunderclap from a clear sky.
Oh no!
Bai Yuheng was making hand seals, trying to retrieve the fragments, but the bound toad had somehow transformed into a black snake, its gaping maw lunging at her.
The golden snake adapted to the situation and entangled with it, while she fought a duel with the black mist.
The mist had no physical form, yet it trapped her completely, rendering her attacks futile, as if hitting cotton.
Outside the Tian Shu Pavilion, the noise and footsteps were deafening. Bai Yuheng had no choice but to fight quickly. With a graceful somersault, she dodged the attacking black mist, grabbed a fragment in her hand, and blood dripped as golden light exploded.
Those outside the pavilion were all burned by the blinding light and covered their eyes with their sleeves.
The shattered glass seemed to sense a familiar scent and began to slowly come together.
The black mist condensed and dispersed, and a shockwave shattered the lens.
—Bang!
Another loud bang, and the spreading black mist shook the entire pavilion. A large cloud of dust swept in and sent the disciples who had entered with their swords flying.
The shattered shards of the mirror streaked across the night sky like a shooting star, leaving a golden trail behind. Apart from the fragment held in Bai Yuheng's hand, the remaining five pieces scattered and flew away.
Seeing that the mission was accomplished, the black mist flew out of the pavilion and disappeared into the night sky.
Bai Yuheng stared coldly in the direction the black mist had flown away, clenching the shard in her hand, blood dripping from between her fingers.
Meanwhile, the little golden snake had already subdued the toad. Bai Yuheng withdrew her gaze, put away the toad, and transformed into a little golden snake that coiled around the pavilion and concealed its presence.
*
"What's going on!?"
The Eastern Xuan Emperor had not yet arrived, but his angry shouts had already reached him.
"The Four Directions Mirror has been stolen." Emperor Yuanguang remained relatively calm, but his usually gentle voice had turned cold.
"Have you caught the thief?" Emperor Lingzhen also arrived. The three of them stood on the pavilion, looking at the traces of the fight, frowning in thought.
"We must first calm people down," Emperor Yuanguang said in a deep voice. "The news of the theft of the Four Directions Mirror must not be spread, otherwise people will panic and cause more trouble."
Emperor Dongxuan disagreed with his statement: "So many disciples saw something fly out of Tian Shu Pavilion, do you think they would believe it?"
“I think Yuan Guang is right. We should cover this up first, then notify all the sects and factions so that we can search together,” Lingzhen Emperor agreed.
"..." Emperor Dongxuan took a deep breath, "Then what do you suggest we do?"
Instead of answering, Emperor Yuanguang asked, "Has Immortal Master Pei arrived?"
Emperor Lingzhen shook his head: "I didn't see it when I came."
"Send someone to invite Immortal Master Pei first," Emperor Yuanguang said to the person outside the door.
"yes."
As soon as the disciple agreed, a deep voice came: "No need to go."
The disciple was taken aback, then bowed and said, "Uncle-Master Pei."
Pei Yuan nodded and went into the pavilion.
“I have inspected the barrier and there are no signs of damage; in fact, it has been reinforced.” Before they could speak, Pei Yuan cut to the chase, “The Four Directions Mirror cracked from inside the building.”
Pei Yuan smelled a hint of blood.
“But there’s a barrier outside the pavilion, a barrier inside the pavilion, and a hidden door set up by Dongxuan…” Emperor Yuanguang frowned as he analyzed. Seeing him walk straight to the corner, he bent down and wiped his fingertip, leaving a trace of red. “What’s wrong?”
“There’s blood.” Pei Yuan rubbed the still-dry bloodstains.
"Blood? Is it from the disciple guarding the tower?" Emperor Dongxuan asked hurriedly.
Emperor Yuanguang shook his head: "No, I checked just now, and they are not injured."
"That belonged to the thief?"
"That huge shockwave just now might have been left over from that time."
"I just heard from the disciples guarding the building that after the loud bang and before the black mist exploded, there was a golden light. Before that, they could also vaguely hear voices, but they all thought it was a hallucination, since there were only two sounds."
Emperor Dongxuan said, "Since the barrier hasn't been broken, then the problem must lie with the Four Directions Mirror itself. As for the sounds of fighting, the golden light, and the black mist..."
"..." Emperor Yuanguang paused for a moment, not voicing his suspicions, but instead suggesting a possibility, "Perhaps the barrier left by Hengluan injured the thief..."
The little golden snake, who was eavesdropping in the corner, was suddenly startled and subconsciously looked at the tall, indifferent man in the crowd.
Golden light?
Pei Yuan's eyelids twitched, and his heart suddenly felt gripped.
Where did Master Pei go?
"Huh?"
Why is he running so fast?
The three were puzzled for a while, but then, remembering that this person had always had an eccentric personality, they stopped thinking about it and began to deal with the events of the night.
When Pei Yuan went downstairs, his steps were unsteady.
Just before he left, a small golden snake passed by.
A note from the author:
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