Chapter 2303

Liu Qingdao's words hit the mark—Chu Shidi was already ready to strike, too lazy to even glance at the mortals inside the house, and he blasted them with a raised hand.

After that, Yuan Xilin heard Chu Elder's divine transmission in his ear:

"We've been tricked—these are all empty houses, made of paper!"

Yuan Xilin clenched his fists instantly, a chill running down his back. He immediately said to Chu Elder: "Red Tower, come quickly!"

The enemy wants them scattered so they can be picked off one by one!

Chu Elder's words also made him break out in a cold sweat upon reflection.

Chengnan is not close to here at all—it's at least several wards away, even separated by a dried-up stream. Yet the homes Chu Elder destroyed were also made of paper!

The high tower beside the Dragon God Temple on the southern outskirts is paper-made, and so are the rural homes ten-odd li away. The enemy couldn't have predicted their target and direction in advance, so the only possibility is—

"Is the entire Weian City fake?"

Liu Qingdao stood with hands behind his back, stepping back a few paces to watch the crowd brawl from the outskirts: "Sect Leader Yuan has always been meticulous—how did he not notice it isn't raining here?"

He is the leader of the Bingyuan Si, with plenty of subordinates to do his bidding—he rarely needs to fight himself.

Yuan Xilin swung his sword to force open a giant bear demon, then lifted his head, seeing the night sky still shrouded in dark clouds, but the lightning had ceased.

The ground was also dry, not a single drop of rain having fallen.

Just moments ago, when they left the minor cave heaven, the sky was clearly flashing with thunder and lightning, a downpour imminent.

Seeing Yuan Xilin's realization, Liu Qingdao smiled: "Luring the enemy into the trap—truly not easy."

Yuan Xilin closed his eyes, feeling some self-reproach: "Is this an illusion? Where did we enter from?"

"Right at the entrance of your minor cave heaven." Liu Qingdao shrugged. "In fact, the moment you all left Hudie Creek, you marched straight into this little world!"

Yuan Xilin's face changed dramatically.

The enemy had set up the illusion directly on Qixia Sect's territory, yet they noticed nothing.

What kind of method is this?

Liu Qingdao also admired inwardly: "The Divine Sovereign is truly formidable."

In those precious few dozen breaths, the Divine Sovereign placed his treasure mirror before the Recumbent Ox Stone at Hudie Creek, facing directly toward Weian City. The mirror's diameter reached an astonishing hundred zhang!

Most remarkably, it blended completely with the surrounding scenery.

After those few lightning strikes, what the Qixia Sect disciples saw in the direction of Weian City was actually a simulated scene from the mirror's small world—not only including Weian City, but also the scenery of Xunyang Mountain!

Though the Soul-Capturing Mirror's simulation was not originally flawless, with the aid of the Great Expansion Heavenly Pearl, every object, angle, and contrast in the reflection became flawless—so much so that even those standing at the mirror's side or rear could detect no flaw, which is why it ultimately deceived Yuan Xilin and Chu Elder's spiritual senses.

When the Qixia Sect and others summoned the leaf raft and headed toward Weian City, they had already walked into the trap, rushing straight into the mirror's world.

The Soul-Capturing Mirror needed to buy time for the Bingyuan Si to gather more manpower, so it continuously refined the "Weian City" within, mirroring reality.

Limited by its power, the mountains, wilderness, city walls, and buildings in this mirror world are not exact one-to-one replicas of reality. If He Lingchuan were to search for discrepancies, he might spot seven or eight at a glance. But the problem is, Qixia Sect has never truly paid attention to how many trees are in the forests, how many homes are in Weian City, or what gestures passersby make on the streets—as long as the landmark scenery remains correct, they might not notice.

Everything else was fabricated by the Soul-Capturing Mirror itself.

Since they are inside its small world, the Qixia Sect's discussion on the leaf raft cannot escape the Soul-Capturing Mirror, this local tyrant. The Red Tower Yuan Xilin seeks was originally just a prop; the mirror hastily added details, but the internal diagrams weren't finished in time—it could only reluctantly hand over one blank board after another.

It wasn't trying to expose itself—it's simply that the master's demands were too high, and the mirror couldn't meet them.

Yet, to simulate the entire Weian City and half of Xunyang Mountain in such a short time—even with the help of the Great Expansion Heavenly Pearl—it's incredibly impressive!

Fortunately, the Bingyuan Si have finally stormed into the mirror world. Otherwise, the Soul-Capturing Mirror would have had no confidence in holding the Qixia Sect indefinitely—the combination of two immortals and an ancient xu ling is a heavy burden for it.

Earlier, He Lingchuan had Dong Rui's bat demon puppet secretly attack the Stone Skin Grass Essence, feeding it aphid honey laced with black spot disease. Since Dong Rui had precisely diluted the toxin, after the Stone Skin Grass Essence consumed it, it experienced a period of numbness.

But it didn't know human hearts are treacherous, nor did it realize it had been poisoned, so it gave no warning to the Qixia Sect.

This state lasted about fifty breaths—enough for He Lingchuan to calmly set up the Soul-Capturing Mirror at Hudie Creek and carefully adjust its angle.

He could have used the Great Expansion Heavenly Pearl to sneak in, but while setting up the mirror, he couldn't remain invisible. If the Stone Skin Grass Essence projected this scene onto the Qixia Sect's water mirror, his trick would surely be exposed.

Thus, these fifty breaths are crucial—if successful, they could protect Weian City from the immortals' wrath and allow a peaceful night.

Now, the Qixia Sect is already inside the mirror world.

Before they break out, the true Weian City remains safe.

Now, it's their turn to face Cangyan's wrath!

Yuan Xilin had a strange thought: "Weian City and the Bingyuan Si acting this fast—could it be that your Nine Abysses Divine Sovereign came in person?"

Otherwise, how could the authorities react so quickly?

Liu Qingdao frowned slightly, inwardly thinking this guy actually guessed right, but aloud he said: "What lofty status does the Emperor hold? A mere Qixia Sect—what qualification do they have to make him act?"

He shifted the concept subtly, because He Lingchuan indeed did not follow into the mirror world.

The Emperor has other pressing matters.

At this moment, the Qixia Sect disciples and the Bingyuan Si have already clashed—though the former only number over ten, most have cultivated xu ling, some even more than one, which they've now released for battle. Combined with the Qixia Sect members, their total suddenly exceeds forty.

The situation of being outnumbered has thus reversed.

The Qixia Sect's formation is also extremely formidable—though hastily arranged, the coordination between disciples and xu ling is seamless, truly achieving an effect where one plus one is greater than two. Having secluded for years with nothing to do, they naturally honed their divine abilities, striving for perfection.

Weian City suffers because the Qixia Sect emerged from seclusion suddenly, the great ones live scattered, mobilization is slow, and those from afar can't arrive in time. Facing a Qixia Sect anchored by immortals, their usual advantage doesn't show.

This sect is also not a run-of-the-mill pushover.

Fortunately, at this moment, the surrounding alleys flickered with shadows— the crimson-clad, bright-armored Cangyan great army surged forward with killing intent, joining the battle without a word.

As Weian City is the seventh major city of Cangyan, there is naturally a Dragon God Army garrison nearby, plus the city defense guards, and the mountain patrol army evolved from the Baoxiang Corps.