Evil Venerable of the Sword Dao
Chapter 290 - 165 Mingxin Mirror

Chapter 290: Chapter 165 Mingxin Mirror

Ji Tianxu was still daydreaming when suddenly a terribly severe energy fluctuation occurred beside him, followed by two startled and fearful screams that abruptly rang out.

At that moment, Ji Tianxu felt a bone-chilling coldness rising in his heart, as if in that instant, a pair of terrifying blood-red giant eyes had already fixed their dreadful gaze on him.

He didn’t dare to move at all, and his breathing came to an abrupt halt.

But in just an instant, his body was already drenched in cold sweat.

Not far in front of him, Wen Ye and Wen Hua, two Feathered Wings Cultivators, now looked just like Ji Shuitian had, their eyes bulging out, filled with a deep sense of despair.

The two of them died just like that.

They died inexplicably, strangely and eerily.

After the cold feeling left Ji Tianxu’s body, the blood-red eyes that had been staring at him seemed to vanish.

Ji Tianxu finally caught his breath, but his face was still ferociously twisted, "Jia Yongheng, you knew well that Ji Shuitian’s corpse was in extreme danger, and yet you deliberately told me not to touch it. You deserve to die! Once I get the Mingxin Mirror, you’ll see what’s coming to you!"

Ji Tianxu was filled with hatred, but there was also a distinct fear on his face. His actions, which had previously been without any hesitation, now cast an inexplicable shadow over his heart.

...

"Is Ji Shuitian dead?"

An old-middle-aged man inquired.

"Dead, I watched her die before I took the Mingxin Mirror."

A low voice responded.

"Hmm, the Sword Intent of Supreme Forget Love Swordsmanship, actually carrying the intensity of despair, kills invisibly, is indeed somewhat terrifying.

But with the Mingxin Mirror, one can reflect on their True Self and break through all things. We really have to thank Zhou Qian this time; if not for him, the Eternal Spirit wouldn’t have left this opportunity for me."

The middle-aged man remarked with a sigh.

"Do you still harbor hatred towards Zhou Qian, elder brother?" the low voice asked.

"It can’t be described as hatred anymore. Both you and I, as brothers, cultivate the Forget Love Sword Dao and have now understood that such things are unnecessary. Every cultivator will inevitably encounter insurmountable hardships; where there is suffering, there are times when one is left with no choice.

It’s not about understanding others, but as long as we ourselves can do so without guilt, that’s enough."

The middle-aged man said with a sigh.

"Yes, I too have let go long ago. Knowing that brother Gu Yan is just lost and still suppressed in the Ten Thousand Ghosts Sword Tomb, I feel at ease. In my life, Xiao Zhan, even my daughter has not lived up to expectations, but I have made two good brothers. That is a blessing; I am actually already content."

The low voice carried a hint of wistfulness.

"Yes, in life, having a brother is already much, let alone two. However, the situation of brother Gu Yan is a bit worrying, a pity that my Supreme Forget Love is lacking the last step of comprehension. This time, Zhou Qian brought us here, and his purpose is not clear, but I feel it is not so simple."

The middle-aged man said with some confusion.

"It shouldn’t be... after all, he has already treated us very well. And we... in front of such strong cultivators as them, our strength is actually far too little," said the low voice with some disbelief.

"I hope... I am overthinking it. Here’s what I’ll do: If I can encounter Yunjin here, then it will prove that my guesses are correct."

"That’s impossible, she is still suppressed, and it is extremely difficult to enter this place. One needs to comprehend energy corresponding to the Heavenly Dao; how could she come here? Elder brother, don’t overthink it, don’t worry too much, everything will get better."

The owner of the low voice clearly didn’t believe it much.

The middle-aged man just smiled in response, without saying a word.

The Mingxin Mirror in his hand, about the size of a bowl and resembling an Eight Diagrams Mirror, appeared somewhat mystical at the moment.

This mirror had no reflecting surface because the surface would only appear when one truly questioned oneself, and the surface would then show who their True Self really was.

If one’s memories of a past life had not awakened, the Mingxin Mirror could help to awaken one’s self-awareness.

If there was no past life to speak of, and one was merely a common person who had grown up, the Mingxin Mirror could also point to a path that followed the rules of the Heavenly Dao, allowing oneself to combine more effectively with the Heaven and Earth Dao.

This was a truly top-tier treasure, without grade, yet its grade surpassed all other treasures with a grade.

The mirror, in the hands of the middle-aged man, appeared from time to time, but several times, he resisted the urge to question himself, fearful of the unpredictable consequences that could arise after asking.

But he didn’t notice that every time he took out the mirror, the image of a statue-like woman appeared in it.

This woman, with a lonely back, seemed as if she would turn around, yet never did.

Next to her, there stood an Ancient Flute, its desolate tones seemingly emanating from the mirror.

However, as this faint latent energy made itself known, it transformed into a Sovereign energy of the Heavenly Dao that transcended the Dao of Heaven and Earth. This energy carried a mysterious Lonely Sword Intent.

This energy was powerful yet surpassed Heaven and Earth, on the same level as the Heavenly Dao; therefore, even the owner of the mirror could not sense it at this moment.

...

Despair Abyss.

"Zhou Yan, if you want to comprehend a deeper level, the best way here is to grasp the method of utilizing energy equivalent to the Heavenly Dao; this is energy emitted that surpasses the Heavenly Dao and is on par with the intrinsic energy grade of the Heavenly Dao itself."

Beside Zhou Yan, Hou Ling’er was diligently explaining to him.

Zhou Yan nodded and said, "I understand. It’s about comprehending the sovereign energy of this Heaven and Earth, an energy superior to what we usually grasp. I have already sensed it, and it’s precisely because of that I knew Cai Ling would die and knew the Ancient Evil Spirit would die."

"It turns out you sensed it too, no wonder then," Hou Ling’er said thoughtfully.

"I’m close to condensing my Sword Soul and am rejected by the Heavenly Dao of the outside world, but here, I feel a sense of kinship. As soon as I arrived here, the energy of Heaven and Earth, like Spring Rain, nourished my body, so this feeling is quite profound—"

Zhou Yan was saying this when his speech suddenly ceased; he then focused his gaze ahead, and his whole person seemed to become dazed.

His actions caused all the Cultivators present to halt at that moment, looking ahead with a mixture of shock and doubt.

Yet, ahead was still a deep, valley-like environment, with nothing out of the ordinary to see. The sense of danger that had been present since they entered the Despair Abyss hadn’t changed—it had always been there, which left the Cultivators unsure of what had happened.

However, no one knew that inside the Purple Flame Void, Zhou Yan was sensing a different kind of aura at that moment. He was feeling a Sword Intent that transcended the space’s energy, once again grasping the true Lonely Sword Intent.

It suddenly appeared, and then again, it appeared.

This Sword Intent wasn’t surprising because the ’energy equal to the Heavenly Dao’ that Hou Ling’er mentioned was actually what Zhou Yan understood as ’Four-dimension’ energy.

And this term ’Four-dimension’ was actually just his Master’s understanding. Inheriting the memories of his Master on Earth, Zhou Yan had more knowledge in this regard, so he could think and comprehend faster.

At that moment, his Soul within the Purple Flame Void thrummed several times. With each beat, there was a manifestation of Lonely Sword Intent with strength equivalent to the sovereign energy of the Heavenly Dao.

With the appearance of this Sword Intent, the flames of the Purple Flame Lotus Seed morphed into the vague shape of a mirror.

This mirror, similar in size to a bowl-sized Eight Diagrams Bronze Mirror, afforded no view of its face.

But the mirror was extremely ancient.

When this ancient charm emerged, the Purple Flame beat violently.

"Hmm?"

Seeing this, Zhou Yan’s gaze suddenly brightened within the Purple Flame Void.

He became surprised and uncertain.

He initially planned to explode his Split Body as a ’Fake Death,’ to distract others with his forsaken physical body, setting up an immense ruse.

But now, due to the intense fluctuation of the Purple Flame, he began to modify the scheme.

Before carrying out the primary plan, he must obtain the mirror!

Without thinking further, Zhou Yan knew that this mirror must be the ’Mingxin Mirror.’ For Yanyan, the benefits of this mirror seemed to be immense.

The intense fluctuation of the Purple Flame didn’t stop.

Within the Purple Flame, a phantom image of a woman appeared—an image only seen from behind. The silhouette was blurry, and yet it was incredibly lonely, desolate, solitary, and despairing.

Just the sight of this silhouette could pierce through a person’s spirit, making them infected and enslaved by her emotions—this was definitely a terrifying Emotional Tao.

This was the ultimate way of Emotion.

However, this way was unexpectedly terrifying and manifested in the form of a Lonely Sword Intent.

Zhou Yan’s heart trembled. Despite having endured so much and being scarcely moved by anything, he was unexpectedly affected and unavoidably so, which moved him greatly.

The apparition appeared and quickly faded, but left a single teardrop.

The teardrop fell into the Purple Flame, which went from turbulent to suddenly still, then abruptly surged explosively. At that instant, inside the Inner Flame of the Purple Flame, an immense space materialized.

The entrance to this space was now safe for someone to walk directly into without any danger.

But Zhou Yan’s heart suddenly constricted. In that moment, within the internal space of the Purple Flame, he saw a pair of huge, blood-red eyes as vast as the sky obscuring the sun, just standing in the Void.

Zhou Yan’s Soul roiled as if in turmoil, and a restless feeling kept surfacing. But in just a moment, he was drenched in sweat, his scalp tingling and his body shivering with cold.

The scene passed in an instant, and in the next moment, the space within the Inner Flame of the Purple Flame disappeared, and Yanyan stepped out.

When Yanyan emerged, her childish, previously dirt-smudged face was now delicately fair; her eyes no longer looked bewildered but shone bright like stars; and her red padded jacket was not torn but brand new, bright and striking like blood.

But her face wore a strange expression of ’pride’ and ’wilfulness,’ completely different from her formerly pitiful appearance.

She glanced around, inspecting and observing everything in the Purple Flame Void, while deliberately ignoring Zhou Yan.

Afterwards, she saw where Zhou Yan was and even swept her gaze over him several times, only to frown slightly as if she saw nothing.

Then, she withdrew her gaze, her delicate brows knitting tightly together, and she declared with chilling resolve, "Whoever dares to rob my mirror, I will kill them. Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill them all!"

Saying this, her small body walked back into the Purple Flame.

The chaotic fluctuations of the Purple Flame gradually calmed down after Yanyan re-entered it.

Everything was like a vivid dream but was presented before the eyes as stark reality.

Zhou Yan came back to his senses after a long silence, only responding after Hou Ling’er had called out to him several times.

"Zhou Yan, something is not right. Ji Tianxu has led the Heavenly Vein Clan Members here, and they are coming straight for us."

Hou Ling’er said this and finally saw Zhou Yan’s gaze transform from confusion to clarity.