Ask the Mirror

Chapter 179: Sound Asleep

Yu Ci’s heart was still pounding when his ears caught another sound. The sound was indistinct, but its rhythm was quite familiar to him:

Incisant tones!

Yu Ci’s mind jolted. He pushed off hard, sidestepping, even as he flung the Nine Yang Talisman Sword from his hand.

With a hiss, a poisonous green smoke-arrow shot into the very spot where he had just stood. The ground there immediately exploded in a burst of phosphor fire. Sparks scattered, landing on the rock, charring it black on contact.

The Nine Yang Talisman Sword flew a full hundred chi before its fiery radiance, moving with the agile grace of a fish, twisted and turned several times among the shadows of wood and stone. Suddenly it looped around, carrying a spray of blood in its wake, and the sword-light flowed back, where he caught it in his hand.

This was a basic Sword Control Technique. After Yu Ci had achieved the Mental Image in his “Primordial Origin Qi Method”, his essence, qi, and spirit had fused into a seamless whole, enabling him to use this art. The next step beyond this was the much-yearned-for Flying Sword Control—though of course, that would have to wait at least until the Core Refinement realm.

Yu Ci hurried two steps forward, rounding an obstruction. What lay before him made him furrow his brow.

On the ground lay two segments of a dark, scaly torso, covered throughout with scales, vaguely humanoid in form. Judging from the intense aura, there was no doubt this was a demon—and a demon that used talismans, at that.

In his entire life, Yu Ci had only seen two demons capable of using talismans. One was this corpse before him; the other had long since turned to cold bones—the two-headed demon that had battled the Ghostly Beast when the Two Realms Passage first opened.

“Where are they all coming from?”

Yu Ci swept his gaze in all directions. Within the clouds and mist, the shadows of wood and stone tangled together chaotically; he couldn’t tell if other dangers lurked beyond. But the bloody scent at his feet slowly spread—if this continued, it would likely attract more trouble.

After a moment’s thought, Yu Ci moved away from the demon’s corpse, simultaneously activating the Divine Illumination Bronze Mirror.

A thousand or more divine-intent star specks scattered down like rain, flying in all directions, automatically seeking out living beings, lodging themselves within their cranial palaces. Instantly, fragmented perspectives presented themselves, extending for ten li in every direction.

Yu Ci was reluctant to use this method. Activating the bronze mirror in this way meant dividing his mind into a thousand pieces, simultaneously receiving information from different directions, bringing with it a sensation of vertigo. Yet soon enough, he was glad he had endured this dizziness.

Among the thousand perspectives, Yu Ci located several crucial scenes.

“One, two, three, four!”

Within a ten-li radius, at least four demons were concealed in different places. The nearest one had already sensed something was amiss. With a whistling cry, it rallied two companions and headed this way. The three demons clearly communicated with each other, maintaining appropriate distances—such coordinated behavior spoke of training.

Yu Ci hesitated not a moment. Grabbing his bundle, he fixed his direction and sprinted with all his might.

He also adjusted the bronze mirror’s perspective, fixing his main viewpoint in the sky—where the large bird was. The bird’s eyesight was excellent, capable of penetrating clouds and mist; from its vantage point, it could monitor a considerable area.

But even so, he remained deeply perplexed: Had he stumbled into a demon’s nest?

******

In places untouched by daylight, faint green fire flickered, casting light on three shadows within. Amidst the wavering flames, sounds both low and sharp flowed—to human cultivators, they were incomprehensible noise, but within this shadowy space, they conveyed clear meaning:

“Another human has broken in?”

Taga’s tone was poor, and his mood matched it. As leader of this small group, his form was close to human, quite robust, his entire body covered in indigo skin densely patterned with gray-black scales forming linked talisman patterns. Both his eyes were blind, but in their place on his forehead, using some unknown technique, a crystal half the size of a palm had been embedded, serving as a substitute for eyes.

At this moment, the forehead crystal emitted an eerie green light: “All of you know how crucial this place is. Since you know, how do you keep letting humans break in one after another? The woman earlier could be overlooked—but this one now, with his weak cultivation, could be crushed with a finger—how has he survived until now? He’s even killed four of our servants!”

From the shadows untouched by the green light, a crunching, snapping sound intermittently arose. Translated into comprehensible speech: “If the cultivator is at the Divine Connectivity realm, he shouldn’t be able to fly… How did he get here?”

Taga didn’t want to waste time on such matters: “No matter how he got here, eliminate him. No more disturbances will be tolerated here!”

No further words were needed; servants naturally passed down the orders.

Taga slightly turned his head. The forehead crystal emitted diffuse light, sweeping back and forth, reflecting two shadowy figures. He said coldly: “The one-way passage to the Black Magic Altar lacks only the final procedure, yet it’s already a month behind schedule. Even without contacting them, you can imagine their fury over there.”

Profound silence filled the shadowy space.

After a long moment, another demon spoke. In the eerie light, its form was as obese as a small mountain, seemingly composed entirely of piled fat, limbs indiscernible. Its huffing, puffing breath was very loud, and its voice came in the gaps between breaths, sharp as a wail:

“No one expected that Lord Diro, having just emerged from the Two Realms Passage, would be killed by the Ghostly Beast. If he were here, this one-way passage would be effortless. But then came the cold current, attracting human cultivators on a massive killing spree. We’re the only ones who’ve infiltrated this realm now—there’s no help for the delay.”

Taga responded heavily: “Lord Diro didn’t die unjustly. The Ghostly Beast sacrificed its own life force in exchange for its former master’s ‘Mind Confusion’ strike—few in either realm could withstand that. It’s a valid reason, but it won’t ease their fury over there.”

The crunching, snapping sound picked up the thread: “A few days ago, the Ghostly Beast returned?”

Taga shook his head: “Its movements are erratic, hard to pin down. Even if we could, it’s not something we can handle. That fool Rube, blinded by greed, brought this massive trouble upon us. Dying now is too good for him.”

“The most urgent matter now is sending the collected ‘Rakshasa Illusory Force’ seeds back to the Black Magic Altar. And of course, we must await Lord Manu’s return from his travels… All of this requires the one-way passage. We’ve had that woman trapped for ten days now—is she still holding out?”

Before an answer could come, new information arrived at this place. Taga smashed the ground surface, shattering it, and rose to his feet: “He broke through? You let a weak human break through?”

******

Yu Ci kept his body low, hugging the ground as he moved, blending the running and crouching postures of the “Concealed Light Evasion Technique” as he wove through the undergrowth and strange rocks. His speed wasn’t particularly fast, but he was utterly silent, his entire aura completely sealed beneath his skin, while his internal organs felt as if they were on fire.

Ahead, a dark mass likewise crouched low, blending seamlessly with its surroundings. Even knowing they were there, the naked eye would be deceived.

But Yu Ci didn’t rely on his eyes at all.

The divine-intent star speck lodged in the dark mass’s cranial palace revealed its position. And when Yu Ci focused his attention on it, the star speck within the cranial palace shone even brighter—not only marking its location, but also feeding back information about its qi-blood circulation and vital points.

Yu Ci swept past. By the time he closed to within seven chi, the dark mass suddenly sensed something amiss. But before it could react, threads of sword-qi had already pierced its body, shredding its heart meridian.

Some time ago, Yu Ci had realized he was inside a large encirclement. When he tried to break outward, he immediately met fierce resistance. The enemy’s deployment was tight. After two such attempts, Yu Ci had to turn inward, striking from behind—this was the blind spot of the now-formed encirclement. Taking them by surprise, his results were brilliant.

Of the six demons he had slain along the way, all were of considerable skill, but only one had managed to face him directly in combat—and even then, it couldn’t reverse its fortunes, losing its head to his sword.

But the demons were also adjusting. The outer net was tightening. He had tried using the Concealed Light Evasion Technique to escape through the earth, but beneath the ground, a layer of talisman restrictions had been laid. The moment he entered, he nearly triggered them and was buried alive.

So he had to follow the mountain downward, entering an area where living creatures were sparse. Overhead, wind sounded—the large bird swooped low.

In the heat of battle, Yu Ci no longer scattered divine-intent star specks recklessly; the fragmented perspectives they created brought additional mental pressure. Now he only used the bird for basic reconnaissance, occasionally manipulating a single star speck for tracking and positioning. The demon just now had died under this very tactic.

Through the bird’s eyes, Yu Ci had avoided many dangers. Now, he again tried to have the bird scout ahead. But after only two more steps, he stopped abruptly. At this moment, he realized his surroundings had changed.

The jagged rocks and lush vegetation remained, but the atmosphere was strange. He looked around and soon discovered signs of combat here—growing more intense as he went deeper.

Additionally, there were demon corpses. After a moment’s thought, Yu Ci followed the traces forward.

At that moment, the bird’s perspective from above revealed something new.

“Someone… eh?”

From the bird’s height, looking down through layers of strange rocks and vegetation, Yu Ci saw a pale color—a faint, almost intangible light blue, gentle and pleasing to the eye.

It was a female cultivator, leaning against a tree, surrounded by toppled, shattered vegetation and rocks—a scene of utter chaos. Amidst it all, she sat, her legs curled to one side, her head slightly bowed, arms cradling a sword, seemingly asleep. Perhaps feeling the mountain’s slight chill, she had draped a gauze-like cloak over her shoulders; from above, this was the color he had seen.

From his height, the bird’s vision couldn’t penetrate the waterfall of hair veiling her face, couldn’t make out her features. He only sensed her slender, delicate form, her heavy, languid bearing—as if exhausted to the utmost, making one reluctant to wake her.

But this was a desolate mountain surrounded by demons!

A strange feeling arose in Yu Ci’s heart, one he couldn’t immediately sort out. After a moment’s consideration, he moved toward her. He didn’t deliberately silence his steps, only lightened them. In his thinking, a cultivator who could sleep peacefully here should be quite alert. Likely, upon touching her warning line, she would wake, and then he could greet her.

But contrary to his expectations, he had already closed to within fifty chi, and the female cultivator hadn’t stirred. 

Forty chi, thirty chi, twenty chi…

Even Yu Ci felt this distance was too dangerous—yet the female cultivator, still wrapped in her cloak, head bowed in deep slumber, showed no signs of waking.

At this range, Yu Ci could now see her delicate chin, could also smell a faint, elegant fragrance. He stopped and called out softly twice, receiving no response.

“Injured?” Yu Ci frowned.

Though they had met by chance on this desolate mountain, encountering a fellow human surrounded by demons inevitably brought a measure of closeness. Yu Ci felt somewhat concerned. After a moment’s thought, he stepped forward two more paces. Now they were within arm’s reach. He reached out, preparing to check her pulse.

At that very moment, the slender form before him trembled slightly. Behind the curtain of hair, a pair of clear, wonderful eyes opened.

“Ah!”