Hidden Evil
The moment the light from the bronze mirror enveloped Xie Linyang, she did not immediately fall into the illusion of her own obsession.
The gleaming gold hairpin in her hair suddenly burst forth with a light of resistance, fiercely resisting the invading illusionary power. In the midst of this struggle, the image-remembering grass she kept close to her body was unexpectedly activated by the powerful array, forcibly infusing her with fragments of another "possible" future in an unprecedented and almost brutal manner.
It wasn't her memory, yet it felt more real and cruel than any illusion.
She saw a thin boy who had grown up in a dark environment filled with the scent of cosmetics and foul language. He had the same eyes and brows as Meng Yao, eyes that showed he had learned to read people's expressions far too early.
He was shoved and insulted; the label of "son of a prostitute" was like a brand on his body.
The scene shifts to Jinlintai, where a snowstorm rages. Young Meng Yao arrives to claim his mother's keepsake and his last hope, only to be met with a disdainful glance from Jin Guangshan and then brutally kicked down the long flight of stairs by a vicious servant. He tumbles to the ground, covered in mud and snow, his forehead split open, blood mingling with cold despair smearing his face. The pearl that served as the keepsake lies scattered on the ground, stained with filth.
The scene then shifts to a dilapidated inn room.
Lan Xichen, then in exile after the burning of Cloud Recesses, though his clothes were worn, still retained his spirit, yet could not conceal his desolation. Meng Yao carefully poured him hot tea, offered him her own bed, and even gently washed Lan Xichen's dusty cloud-patterned robe by the basin, her movements tender and precious. At that time, his eyes still held pure kindness and reverence for "Zewu-jun".
The scene shifts to the Nie family camp. Meng Yao has changed into Nie family attire, but he is still ostracized by some cultivators of noble birth. After a mission, his military merits are stolen, and he is publicly humiliated. The person steps on his carefully compiled documents and calls him a "lowly bastard."
In the darkness, Meng Yao's eyes hardened gradually. He imitated the Wen clan's methods, orchestrating an "accident" to eliminate the cultivator. Upon learning the truth, Nie Mingjue flew into a rage, pointing Baxia's blade at him, forcing him to confess. Meng Yao knelt on the ground, tears streaming down his face, recounting his helplessness and the humiliation he had suffered. His words were earnest and his logic clear. Ultimately, through a self-inflicted wound and seemingly profound repentance, he moved the upright Nie Mingjue's heart, and he was spared.
Nightless City. Meng Yao feigned allegiance to Wen Ruohan, gaining his trust through his shrewdness and forbearance. He secretly passed intelligence to Lan Xichen and even "coincidentally" saved Nie Mingjue in a battle. Finally, at the moment when Wen Ruohan was most complacent and least vigilant, Meng Yao's sword pierced his heart precisely from behind.
With this outstanding achievement, he rose to fame overnight. Jin Guangshan finally "recognized" his son, naming him Jin Guangyao and bestowing upon him the title of "Lianfang Zun". He, Nie Mingjue, and Lan Xichen swore a blood oath on the high platform, becoming sworn brothers. At that moment, his smile was warm, but his eyes held too many unspeakable emotions.
The scene became fast-paced and dark.
To gain the support of elder Qin Cangye, he proposed to marry Qin Su, Qin Cangye's daughter. On the eve of the wedding, he learned a shocking secret: Qin Su was actually his half-sister! He was struck dumb, his face turned deathly pale, but at the grand wedding, he still smiled flawlessly.
After marriage, Qin Su gave birth to a mentally challenged child, Jin Rusong. Later, the child died "accidentally." Xie Linyang "saw" that it was Jin Guangyao who, with trembling but resolute hands, smothered the child, a symbol of shame and sin.
Jin Guangshan exploited and humiliated him at will, treating him as his most useful weapon but never truly regarding him as his successor. Ultimately, Jin Guangshan died in a meticulously planned "horse stroke." Jin Guangyao wept bitterly at the funeral, but no one saw the coldness and glee in his eyes as he turned away.
Nie Mingjue repeatedly reprimanded him for his increasingly cunning and insidious behavior. During one heated argument, he angrily cursed him, saying, "The son of a prostitute, he will never amount to anything."
These words, like the most poisonous needle, pierced through all his pretenses. So, a master of music, he combined the "Pure Heart Melody" with the "Disorderly Soul Mantra," and while Nie Mingjue was in seclusion, under the guise of "treatment," he used the music to slowly destroy Nie Mingjue's mind, ultimately causing Nie Mingjue to suffer a qi deviation and die from a body explosion. Afterwards, he dismembered and hid Nie Mingjue's body; the cruelty of his methods was chilling.
At Qiongqi Path, he cleverly orchestrated a scenario where the sealed Wen Ning lost control, inadvertently killing Jin Zixuan who came to stop him. He stood in the shadows, watching the chaos and tragedy unfold, and then, quite naturally, shifted all the blame onto Wei Wuxian.
As time passed, he ascended to the position of Celestial Overseer. The scene presents two contradictory extremes:
On one hand, he spent five years building over 1,200 watchtowers in remote and barren areas, stationing cultivators to guard them, protect civilians, and even provide assistance to those unable to exorcise evil spirits. The Lanling Jin Clan reached its zenith under his rule, and Jin Guangyao's name symbolized order and "benevolent governance."
On the other hand, in Yunping City, on the site of the former brothel where his mother had suffered countless humiliations, he built a magnificent Guanyin Temple. The Guanyin statue in the temple, with its compassionate face, faintly resembled his mother, Meng Shi, upon closer inspection. He allowed his mother to receive the kneeling worship and incense offerings of thousands. This almost obsessive act was his deepest and most twisted compensation for the past.
Finally, in a Guanyin temple on a rainy night, he was driven to the brink of despair by Lan Xichen and Lan Wangji. Nie Huaisang's "unintentional act" blocked his last escape route. He was pierced through the chest by his most trusted second brother, Lan Xichen!
He initiated his plan, intending to lure Nie Mingjue's fierce corpse into perishing together with Lan Xichen. But at the last moment, seeing the disbelief and heart-wrenching pain in Lan Xichen's eyes, all the resentment, scheming, and unwillingness accumulated throughout his life... ultimately couldn't overcome the glimmer of initial shelter and trust. With his last ounce of strength, he forcefully pushed Lan Xichen away.
Then, he was gripped tightly by the resurrected, venomous corpse of Nie Mingjue, who was choking him. The sound of his throat bones shattering was clearly audible.
In the end, he and Nie Mingjue, the sworn brother he had respected, hated, and killed, were sealed in the same heavy coffin, forever entangled.
All the images receded like the tide.
Xie Linyang suddenly opened her eyes and found herself still standing in that eerie passage filled with bronze mirrors, surrounded by her companions who were also trapped in their own illusions. Her face was as pale as paper, her back was completely soaked with cold sweat, and her heart was pounding wildly in her chest, as if it would jump out of her chest.
She leaned against the cold stone wall, her fingertips icy and trembling slightly.
Meng Yao, who was always gentle and respectful, with clear eyes, and would softly call her "Master"... that disciple who worked diligently in the alliance and demonstrated remarkable talent...
The future will be like this... a man who embodies both great good and great evil, is extremely contradictory, struggles and climbs in the mire but ultimately falls into the deepest hell... Jin Guangyao, the Venerable Lianfang?
She felt a sudden wave of nausea and dizziness.
The images were too real, too detailed; every detail carried a bloody weight, crashing down on her understanding.
She recalled Meng Yao's occasional expressions of resentment towards her origins and her yearning for recognition; deep within those seemingly gentle eyes, there would sometimes be a complex halo that she couldn't fully decipher... Now, it seemed that she had found the answers to all of that.
Trust and doubt, pity and fear, gratitude to her teacher and the immeasurable sins of the future... all sorts of emotions clashed violently in her heart, almost tearing her apart.
She looked up and couldn't find Meng Yao in the crowd. Where did he go?
Is this disciple, whom she personally took in, a rough gem waiting to be polished, or a... calamity that will eventually destroy everything?
Xie Linyang suppressed the turmoil in his heart caused by the vision of Meng Yao's future, his sharp gaze sweeping over the ominous bronze mirrors lining both sides of the passage. This illusion must be broken!
She took a deep breath and poured her spiritual power into the Radiant Golden Hairpin. The hairpin shone brightly, and the power of pure Yang condensed into a blazing beam of light, which shot fiercely towards all the bronze mirrors.
"Crack—!"
The mirror shattered instantly, and the black and white energies scattered like a punctured balloon. The bronze mirror lost its luster in an instant, turning into fragments of ordinary iron that fell to the ground.
However, the passage remained silent. Apart from the echo of the shattered mirror, Wei Wuxian's face still carried a bewildered expression that seemed to be both sad and happy. Lan Wangji's brows were tightly furrowed, and there were even tear tracks on Jin Zixuan's eyes. As for Jiang Cheng... he stood there, his brows slightly furrowed, but the corners of his mouth held a faint, almost gentle smile. He was more immersed in his own world than anyone else, as if everything outside of him was irrelevant.
Xie Linyang's heart sank. Useless?
The illusion did not end, and everyone remained immersed in it.
Just then, the "thread of flaw" wrapped around her fingertips trembled slightly, conveying a glimmer of understanding.
The core of this "Tuoliao Mirage Array" is not the mirrors themselves. The mirrors are merely the trigger and amplifier. The real illusion is rooted in everyone's inner demons and obsessions. Forcibly breaking the mirrors can only interrupt the energy supply, but cannot awaken the fallen consciousness.
Only by seeing through the illusion and overcoming the deepest obstacles in one's heart can one break free.
She anxiously looked around. Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji were experiencing intense fluctuations in their spiritual energy, clearly undergoing a great shock in the illusion. It seemed that they were at a critical moment and might wake up at any time.
Jin Zixuan's expression shifted, sometimes angry, sometimes guilty. Nie Huaisang even began to mutter to himself unconsciously... Everyone was struggling.
Only Jiang Cheng's breathing was unusually steady, even carrying a kind of... absorbed tranquility? This, in turn, made Xie Linyang even more uneasy. What exactly had he seen? What was it that made him so attached, without even the slightest desire to break free?
We can't wait any longer! Su She and Meng Yao have disappeared!
Her gaze swept across the passage, and sure enough, the two figures were nowhere to be seen. Either they hadn't been under the illusion at all, or they had somehow escaped beforehand! She had to stop them!
Ahead, at the end of the passage, the stone door that was originally shrouded in a halo of light had been opened at some point. From behind the door, one could vaguely hear the sounds of fighting and a scorching, violent aura. It was an extremely yang evil aura, completely opposite to the Yin Iron, yet equally chilling.
Xie Linyang glanced at his companions who were still struggling in the illusion, especially Jiang Cheng, whose breathing was eerily steady, and gritted his teeth.
She couldn't abandon Jiang Cheng, but she also couldn't let Meng Yao and Su She leave with the 'Yang Sha Marrow' or cause even greater damage.
She made a swift decision, and a flash of golden light appeared at her fingertips. Several extremely fine "weak threads" shot out like living spider webs, gently wrapping around the wrists or hems of the clothes of Jiang Cheng, Wei Wuxian, Lan Wangji, and other key figures.
This won't wake them, but it will allow her to sense their condition from a certain distance, and she can detect any danger immediately.
Having done all this, she no longer hesitated. Gripping Zhuoyao tightly, she moved like lightning and rushed towards the open stone door without hesitation.
Passing through the stone gate, the scene before us suddenly opened up, yet it was filled with a chilling atmosphere.
This was an extremely magnificent main hall. In the center of the hall stood three giant puppets, each three zhang tall. They were not made of ordinary metal or stone, but rather had a dark golden metallic luster, and were surrounded by visible, leaping, crimson evil energy—Yang Sha!
In stark contrast to the cold, malevolent aura of the Yin Iron, this power is violent, scorching, and filled with a destructive sense of oppression.
The three puppets were all different in shape and exuded completely different auras. One of them opened its huge mouth as if it were greedily devouring something, and its body was surrounded by a vortex of malevolent energy.
A figure with wide-open, angry eyes, arms pounding its chest, exuding a murderous aura like exploding flames.
The last one had its head bowed and eyes downcast, as if deep in thought, but the lingering malevolent aura emanating from it was the most concentrated and profound.
"The Yang Sha Puppet Tribulation..." Xie Lin Yang immediately understood the test this was, and the scene before her confirmed her worries.
At the feet of the puppet representing "greed" lay a charred corpse, its face still faintly discernible—it was Su She!
He still clutched the communication talisman he hadn't had time to send, his entire being seemingly consumed by the desires within him, his death a gruesome sight.
He clearly intended to seize something, but this triggered the puppet's fiercest counterattack, resulting in his immediate death.
Meanwhile, the battle raged on the other side.
Meng Yao was in a sorry state. His once neat clothes were torn in many places, stained with scorch marks and bloodstains, and his left arm hung down unnaturally, clearly broken.
His face was pale, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. He was struggling to hold on against the combined attacks of two puppets representing "rage" and "obsession," relying on his ghostly movements and exquisite swordsmanship.
His swordplay remained precise, always managing to evade the puppet's devastating blows, enough to shatter monuments, and even manage to find openings to leave wounds at the puppet's joints. However, his spiritual energy was clearly depleted, and facing the erosion of Yang Sha power and the puppet's relentless attacks, defeat was only a matter of time.
His eyes were sharp, devoid of his usual docility, filled with calculation, ruthlessness, and a hint of... resentment.
When he saw Xie Linyang burst in, a complex expression flashed across his eyes. There was surprise, a hint of barely perceptible panic, but more than anything, a sharp glint of hope that he had seen a change in the face of adversity.
"Master!" he cried out urgently, his voice hoarse from his injuries, "Be careful of these puppets! Their cores are in their chests, disciple... disciple can't hold on much longer!"
Before he could finish speaking, the "Raging" puppet let out a silent roar, its body bursting with crimson murderous aura, and a punch carrying a scorching wind slammed towards Meng Yao! Meng Yao had nowhere to dodge, and a trace of despair flashed in her eyes.
As Xie Linyang watched this scene, images from the memory grass flashed uncontrollably through his mind: his ruthlessness in killing Nie Mingjue, his scheming in plotting Jin Zixuan's death, and his tragic moment when his throat was choked at the Guanyin Temple...
To save or not to save?
The thought only lingered in her mind for a moment before Xie Linyang's radiant golden hairpin shone brightly. He activated the "Yang-Generating Technique" at full power, and his supreme yang spiritual energy transformed into a solid golden beam of light. Instead of attacking the puppet, it struck the ground in front of Meng Yao precisely, forming a brief barrier of yang flames!
"boom!"
The puppet's heavy fist slammed into the barrier, causing the golden light to flicker violently. It barely managed to block the attack, giving Meng Yao a chance to catch her breath.
Xie Lin Yang had no time to look at anything else. She gripped Zhuo Yao tightly and looked solemnly at the three Yang Sha puppets that exuded a terrifying aura, and behind them, the deep entrance that seemed to lead to the final core of the ruins.
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