Chapter 167: The World in the Mirror, Eternal and Undying

The Mirror Immortal's base was crowded with a throng of people gathered around the three-story bamboo tower.

"The leader just came back."

"Why is he the only one who returned?"

"Where are He Gang and He Meng? And the others?"

"My father didn't come back."

"My husband didn't come back either."

"The leader looks badly wounded—something must have happened!"

…………

Everyone's faces were filled with panic, but guards stood at the entrance, preventing them from entering; they could only stand outside the tower, helplessly anxious.

At the front of the crowd, Yuwen Tao was accompanied by four uncles of the Digging Realm, surrounded by others equally anxious and waiting.

A middle-aged man quickly pushed through from behind and reached Yuwen Tao's side, shaking his head gravely and whispering: "Only the leader returned; no one else came back—not even the second leader. I waited a long time at the rendezvous point and saw nothing. It must be…"

Father, something terrible happened!

The thought flashed through Yuwen Tao's mind, and his expression instantly darkened.

"When the leader returned, black smoke was rising from his face, and he was severely wounded—many saw it. Tonight was a defeat. He Meng, He Gang, and the others probably didn't escape. Could the second leader have…"

"Impossible! Father said he only went to observe—he wouldn't fight!"

Hong Guang hadn't finished speaking when Yuwen Tao cut him off.

He knew his father, Yuwen the Guardian, too well—he never acted without certainty.

So many, including He Meng and He Gang, failed to return. And the way He Yuanhun came back—disheveled and broken—proved the Xia Army's strength far exceeded their expectations.

If that was true, then Yuwen the Guardian, who had secretly followed, would never have intervened.

"Four mid-level cold beasts, over five hundred low-level ones, plus He Meng and He Gang—two Cold-Resisting levels—and 271 Digging Realm cultivators, all led personally by the leader—and still they were utterly defeated. How strong is the Xia Army really?"

At this thought, a chill of dread pierced Yuwen Tao's heart.

Yes, he already knew the full details of He Yuanhun's plan to attack Xia.

The four mid-level cold beasts had been captured personally by Yuwen the Guardian and handed over to He Yuanhun. He didn't know how He Yuanhun managed it, but he had not only controlled them—he'd used them to gather a large swarm of their low-level kin.

When He Yuanhun announced the attack on Xia and excluded them, along with the other forty-one Digging Realm cultivators in the base who hadn't pledged to the Mirror Immortal, father and son had been deeply puzzled.

Learning that He Yuanhun intended to use a cold-beast tide against Xia…

On one hand, they felt profound unease.

On the other, their confusion deepened.

The unease stemmed from the fact that cold beasts, like ghostly monsters, were humanity's natural enemies; using them against fellow humans—the Xia Army—felt profoundly repulsive.

The added confusion stemmed from two points:

First: How had He Yuanhun controlled those four mid-level cold beasts?

Second: Why go to such extraordinary lengths to attack a single Xia outpost?

After all, by all logic, the Xia Army's strength was nothing compared to the Mirror Immortal's base.

His own intervention, He Gang and He Meng as Cold-Resisting levels, plus 271 Digging Realm cultivators—

Such a formidable force, even if Xia's strength tripled, would still be crushed.

There was simply no need for a cold-beast tide.

Of course, the second point of confusion had now been answered.

The Xia Army's strength had indeed surpassed everyone's expectations.

So many went out—only He Yuanhun returned.

And even he came back gravely wounded.

"They didn't just stop the cold-beast tide—they wiped out He Meng, He Gang, and all 271 Digging Realm cultivators. No, no—that's impossible. Even if Xia Hong's strength surpassed the leader's, he alone couldn't have done this…"

Yuwen Tao looked up at the bamboo tower, his brow sharply furrowing.

He had been present when Yuwen the Guardian led the raid on Xia Hong. He knew how fast Xia Hong's power had grown.

But no matter how strong, he was still just one man.

And Xia's total Digging Realm cultivators didn't exceed twenty.

Even if that number were multiplied fivefold—or tenfold—

The outcome tonight still shouldn't have been this.

"There's definitely some terrifying weapon hidden in the Xia Valley!"

Only this explanation made sense!

But what exactly was this weapon?

Was it an extremely powerful person?

Impossible!

The Xia base had been watched by the Mirror Immortal's base for a long time—no such powerful figure could suddenly appear. Lu He and others had said that for decades, the only mid-sized base in Red Wood Ridge was Luo Ge's. For many years, Xia had been nothing but a dying small base.

If not a person, then what?

"Yuwen the Guardian, investigate your own people—and your leader, He Yuanhun. In the future, you'll thank me!"

Suddenly, Yuwen Tao remembered Xia Hong's earlier words. He looked up at the bamboo tower, his gaze sharpening.

He seemed to have grasped something—just barely.

………………

In the partition behind the main hall on the third floor of the bamboo tower.

"Huh… huh… uh… ahh…………"

Dressed in white, He Yuanhun lay sprawled on the floor, his whole body convulsing, emitting low, stifled roars and moans.

His hands clamped tightly over the long, thin gash beside his eyes, black smoke continuously seeping through his fingers.

He Yuanhun suddenly sat up, his shoulder-length hair wild and disheveled, his body still trembling. His silver-white pupils burned with twisted hatred and venom:

"How could Xia Hong be this strong? How could he be this strong? Impossible! He used so much beast blood—he shouldn't have survived! He shouldn't have survived!"

Afraid others outside might hear, He Yuanhun forced himself to suppress his screams, despite his overwhelming frustration.

His silver-white pupils, like mirrors, began to slowly reflect a figure after he growled.

The figure was He Yuanhun himself.

But the He Yuanhun inside the pupils was calm, gentle, and far more composed than the one outside.

After appearing, he smiled faintly and spoke slowly:

"You deliberately used my voice to tell him about the Body Refinement technique, luring him into using massive beast blood to reshape his skin membrane, hoping to kill him—even at the cost of exposing your own secrets. Do you think I didn't know?"

Strangely, as the He Yuanhun in the pupils spoke, the real He Yuanhun's lips moved in unison.

But their voices were entirely different.

The one inside was low, venomous, sinister, brimming with malice;

The one outside was smooth as jade, deliberate, calm, and subtly calculating—as if everything lay perfectly under his control.

"Hehehehehe, isn't this what we both understood? I wanted to kill him; you wanted to use him against me. Otherwise, why would I have let you gain such easy control of this body?"

"It seems I've won. He broke through to the Cold-Resisting level and gained six-man strength. His raw power already far exceeds yours—and with that black oily substance, you can't defeat him, Mirror Immortal."

"Shut up, hehehehehe—still too soon to say who wins!"

"Stop deluding yourself. Xia Hong clearly let you return on purpose—to kill you in front of everyone in the base and win their loyalty. Do you really believe He Meng and the others gave you a chance to escape?"

"Hehehehehe…………"

Hearing He Yuanhun's words, the Mirror Immortal laughed cruelly. Though his face still twisted in pain, his voice carried a hint of arrogance and triumph:

"Do you think I don't know humans are always scheming against each other? Even now, you're still plotting to seize control of the base? He let me return—so did I, deliberately come back here."

Only now did the gentle voice of He Yuanhun grow somber:

"We signed a pact. You cannot force others to become your followers. Your kind, as malevolent spirits, breaking this pact—what consequences will you face?"

"Hehehehehe, He Yuanhun, you have no idea how powerful the lure of immortality is for humans. Just watch. Just watch…"

The Mirror Immortal let out a twisted laugh and suddenly raised his hand toward a corner of the room. A figure was instantly pulled into his grasp.

It was none other than the second leader of the Mirror Immortal's base—Yuwen the Guardian!

But Yuwen the Guardian's body was now covered in cracks, his eyes vacant and lifeless. He made no reaction as the Mirror Immortal gripped him—like a soulless puppet.

The moment Yuwen the Guardian appeared, the He Yuanhun in the pupils lowered his gaze, his face filled with guilt.

"You're embarrassed?"

"He Yuanhun, over the years, to control me, you gave me your body—but you kept partial dominance. Some things appear to be my doing, but in truth, you're complicit."

"Your sworn brother no longer trusts you. I killed him for you—you should be grateful."

The Mirror Immortal's eyes blazed with light, illuminating Yuwen the Guardian's entire body.

The cracks on Yuwen's body rapidly healed. His vacant eyes regained their normal clarity.

"Big brother, how are you feeling?"

The restored Yuwen the Guardian, seeing the wounded He Yuanhun before him, immediately showed deep concern and stepped forward to support him.

Clearly, he remembered nothing of being killed by He Yuanhun in Red Wood Ridge.

"Second brother, the Xia Army is too strong. They'll attack soon. I can't hold back Xia Hong. The base must…"

The moment Yuwen the Guardian was restored, the Mirror Immortal's expression returned to normal, and he began speaking calmly, instructing Yuwen on something—

Something that, to any normal person, would seem absurd and horrifying.

Yet Yuwen the Guardian showed no sign of shock—he nodded repeatedly, fully agreeing.

"Everyone, quiet down!"

Outside the bamboo tower, the Jingxian camp's entire group was anxiously waiting when a voice suddenly rang out from above, and everyone instantly turned their heads upward.

Upon seeing it was Second Leader Yuwen the Guardian, the panic on everyone's faces immediately faded, replaced by quiet stillness.

Among the crowd, only Yuwen the Sinking's expression kept shifting—from initial joy to growing horror, and finally, a trace of sorrow.

Not just Yuwen the Sinking, Hong Guang and four others his age, along with the forty-one Earth-Digging cultivators from Yuanzhou Camp, seemed to realize something, their bodies jerking violently.

"Tao'er, Second Leader…?"

"Don't speak yet. See what he says."

Yuwen the Sinking took a deep breath, suppressing his inner shock, and looked up at Yuwen the Guardian on the third floor, a flicker of hope still burning deep in his eyes.

"The outcome of tonight's operation, I'm sure you've all guessed…"

=9+book_bar

Yuwen the Guardian, his face shadowed with sorrow, continued: "We lost. He Meng, He Gang, and two hundred seventy-one Earth-Digging cultivators all died in Great Xia. Even our Leader was severely wounded by Xia Hong and now hangs by a thread."

Below the bamboo tower, the dense crowd had been murmuring faintly.

The moment Yuwen the Guardian finished speaking, the scene froze.

Everyone stared upward, mouths agape; silence, dead and absolute, swallowed the area around the tower.

Many had already seen He Yuanhun's ragged return, so Yuwen the Guardian's claim that everyone had guessed was not baseless.

But guessing and confirmation are entirely different things.

Even Yuwen the Sinking's pupils trembled uncontrollably.

He could certainly confirm tonight's crushing defeat.

But even in his boldest imaginings, he had only dared suspect He Meng, He Gang, and others were likely left behind in Great Xia.

But what had Yuwen the Guardian just said?

He Gang, He Meng, and two hundred seventy-one Earth-Digging cultivators—all dead.

Before Yuwen the Sinking's shock had subsided, the crowd below began erupting in roars.

"We lost! Great Xia killed all our people!"

"Over two hundred Earth-Digging cultivators—all dead."

"Will Great Xia come to kill us next?"

"Second Leader, just tell us—will Great Xia's camp attack us right away? If so, let's prepare now and fight them to the death!"

"If even our Leader couldn't stop them, how can we fight them?"

"Great Xia slaughtered so many of us—do we just surrender?"

"Second Leader, first tell us—how is our Leader?"

………………

Hearing the crowd's roars, watching the fury swirling around him, Yuwen the Sinking lowered his gaze, his face darkening.

Upon hearing so many had died, the crowd's first reaction wasn't grief.

It was rage.

That alone was bad enough!

He Yuanhun was gravely wounded; nearly all our top combatants were dead. Any sane person could conclude Great Xia was terrifyingly strong.

Under such circumstances, even if no one felt grief, they should at least be afraid.

No fear. No grief.

Yuwen the Sinking even noticed: among the crowd, the families of the two hundred seventy-one Earth-Digging cultivators showed only rage—not a single trace of sorrow.

This reaction was clearly grotesquely abnormal.

Not just Yuwen the Sinking—Hong Guang beside him, and several other elders from Yuanzhou Camp—had all noticed.

But sadly, these forty or so people combined were a mere speck compared to the two or three thousand gathered outside the bamboo tower.

Yet because Yuwen the Sinking and the other forty-odd were the last remaining Earth-Digging cultivators in the camp, they stood at the very front, closest to the tower.

"He Gang, He Meng, two hundred seventy-one Earth-Digging cultivators—all dead. Do you think, with just our numbers, we have any right to fight Great Xia?"

After asking this, Yuwen the Guardian scanned the crowd, his eyes flashing with resolve, then continued:

"There is only one way: help our Leader regain his strength. Only then will we have a sliver of hope."

"Second Leader, just tell us—how do we help our Leader?"

"If our Leader recovers, take my life."

"True. Everything I am today, I owe to our Leader. If I can help him recover, I'll do anything."

………………

One by one, the crowd erupted in passionate cries of loyalty.

A scene that should have moved the heart instead sent chills down Yuwen the Sinking's spine.

He could hear in their voices: they truly meant to give their lives for He Yuanhun.

Emotionally, this wasn't yet strange.

He Yuanhun, as camp Leader, held immense status and authority; some willing to die for him was natural.

But there was not a single hint of hesitation or fear in their tone.

That was the most bizarre thing in Yuwen the Sinking's eyes.

No matter how loyal a person is, they cannot override their biological instincts—certain emotions must surface.

When the crowd heard He Yuanhun had been defeated and all his men killed, not one showed fear or sorrow—only rage. Yuwen the Sinking had already sensed something was wrong.

Now, witnessing this scene, he was certain.

Everyone who had worshipped the Mirror Immortal was deeply corrupted.

And the corruption would erupt imminently.

"Very well. I'll speak plainly…"

Yuwen the Guardian drew his massive broadsword, pointed it skyward, and spoke with fervor:

"The Mirror World our Leader promised has opened to us. Abandon your flesh, let your soul enter—and you will gain eternal peace."

No ice beasts. No horrors. No frost or snow. No endless slaughter, no ceaseless struggle. It is a world infinitely more beautiful than the Ice Abyss."

Endless food. Endless clothes. Unending warmth. Everything you could ever desire… all yours."

As Yuwen the Guardian spoke, he slowly raised the broadsword to his own throat.

His voice, low yet dripping with absolute devotion, made every person below gaze upward with intense longing at his description of the Mirror World.

"If we all enter the Mirror World, we will help our Leader regain his strength swiftly. And once he crushes Great Xia's camp, he can resurrect us anytime in the Ice Abyss, letting us freely travel between both worlds."

As Yuwen the Guardian spoke the final words, veins bulged on his face. He suddenly lifted his head, his pupils turning silver-white.

Hssss…

Then, with one swift motion, he slashed his own throat open with the broadsword.

"Father—"

"Second Leader—"

Yuwen the Sinking's face twisted in horror, but he choked off the cry, realized what was happening, clenched his teeth, and even slapped the shoulders of nearby elder uncles, signaling them to stay calm.

Though his eyes were slightly red, he quickly turned to face the others.

What he saw made him freeze.

Below the bamboo tower, everyone had tilted their heads upward, staring at the sky.

Their expressions were serene, peaceful; faint smiles curled on their lips—as if they saw something profoundly beautiful above.

"Mirror World—eternal and undying!"

A man nearby whispered those eight words, then, like Yuwen the Guardian, drew his weapon and slit his own throat.

"Mirror World—eternal and undying!"

Then a second…

"Mirror World—eternal and undying!"

Third… fourth… fifth…

When Yuwen the Sinking tore his gaze from the empty sky, a hundred or two bodies lay sprawled below—and the rate of collapse was accelerating.

This grotesque, horrifying scene unfolded too fast—leaving Yuwen the Sinking, Hong Guang, and the others no time to react.

"Wake up! Wake up, all of you!"

"Go knock them senseless! Stop them from dying! Hurry!"

"Hong Shu, you four—split up and wake the others! The rest—go warn the camp's commoners! Tell them to run! Run now! Don't come near this tower again! Go, go!"

After roaring several orders and realizing he couldn't wake anyone, Yuwen the Sinking immediately commanded the still-stunned Hong Guang and others, then began kicking those still dazed, trying to rouse them.

(End of Chapter)