C1269
The black and white chess pieces soared into the sky amidst the clash between the archdemon and the alien beast. Each piece, stark in its black or white hue, emitted a mysterious glow. Suddenly, the pieces whirled into the air, coalescing into a peculiar Mystic Gate that vibrated with palpable spatial tremors.
Whoosh!
It was as though a smooth mirror had been yanked through the trembling Mystic Gate. Within the mirror, the silhouettes of two figures could be faintly discerned, standing together in a shadowy realm, peering out intently.
"Mirror of the Infinite!"
Yu Yuan's recognition was instantaneous upon glimpsing the mirror, and his gaze turned icy. The Starfallen Oracle, Beru, had warned him that Pei Yuling, regardless of his disguises, would be no ally due to Yu Yuan's control over the Dragon Slaying Stage. Indeed, he had come to sense this animosity himself.
Unexpectedly, on the renowned extraterritorial battlefield, Mr. Pei, known in the Everlands for his peaceful demeanor and non-confrontational nature, was covertly surveilling him. And Yan Qiling had caught him in the act.
"So it is you!"
Upon hearing "Mirror of the Infinite," Yan Qiling, who had previously interacted with Yu Yuan, immediately recognized his identity.
"Why so sneaky? If you want to come, then come forth!"
Yan Qiling's laughter rang out as she interlaced her fingers, weaving strands of radiant white light that shot toward the unstable Mystic Gate like strands of silk.
"You're the ones interfering with our plans!"
A sinister voice speaking in an awkward human tongue echoed from within the Mystic Gate. The figure, not Pei Yuling, erupted in anger, bellowing, "Soul Bind!"
The bright white light emanating from Yan Qiling's palms hadn't even neared the Mystic Gate before it vanished into thin air. Suddenly, the master of space magic felt a sharp pain at his brow, and his consciousness grew foggy.
An eerie psionic power surged from the depths of the Mystic Gate and the Mirror of the Infinite, swiftly enveloping the surroundings.
Yu Yuan felt a jolt in his heart.
To his astonishment, a myriad of bizarre thorns, shrubs, and Magic Trees began to sprout wildly within his Mindscape, siphoning the strength from his soul.
"Wraithbinding!"
The Lunar Spirit, standing firm in the Mindscape, concentrated his thoughts and conjured countless Titanblades he had envisioned a thousand times over.
The "Titanblade," forged from his Soul Power, was unleashed with a formidable sword spell.
Scarlet sword light flooded his mindscape.
All the weeds and trees he had conjured with his Soul Power were obliterated.
Yu Yuan instantly snapped back to reality, breaking out in a cold sweat.
He then noticed that the Crucible of Evil had transformed into exquisite armor, now adorning Yu Yiyi's body. The cauldron spirit seemed tense, clearly marshaling its strength to confront the anomaly within the soul.
Glancing around, he saw a sudden proliferation of thorns and bushes within Yu Yiyi's brain.
Yu Yiyi was frantically trying to address the unusual disturbances in her mind.
Every archdemon and frenzied alien beast with a soul felt the impact at that moment, infiltrated by a malevolent thought. Thorns, weeds, and shrubs sprouted within their souls, rapidly growing with the aid of their demon souls.
The beasts' slaughter came to a halt.
The black tar oozing from the Tar-Backed Bull ceased to burn.
The vibrantly colored, wounded fish demon writhed in agony, screaming as it fought the bizarre vegetation sprouting within its demon soul.
"No, don't listen to..."
Pei Yuling's cry of alarm emerged from the Mystic Gate.
He was desperately trying to dissuade the spellcaster from heeding Yan Qiling's taunts, from traversing through the Mystic Gate from another world. "Don't lose your mind; the secular bird still exists!"
The mention of the "secular bird" seemed to wield a mystical force, abruptly calming the Otherkin on the other side.
The archdemon, alien beast, and Yu Yiyi, whose minds had been overrun with rampant growth, saw the invasive plants wither away in an instant.
"Secular bird..."
A deep, raspy voice from the Otherkin resonated from the Mirror of the Infinite, laced with surprise and confusion.
The figure within the Mirror of the Infinite, previously swelling to cross over, now hesitated, weighing the consequences, reluctant to take any precipitous action.
"I am a disciple of the Origin Deity. We do not interfere with each other's affairs, so please refrain from disrupting our endeavors!"
The Otherkin on the other side left this message in the Shadowkin tongue.
And just as quickly, the Mirror of the Infinite vanished from the Mystic Gate that Yan Qiling had opened.
Dozens of black and white chess pieces cracked and shattered.
Yan Qiling's expression was icy as his lips parted, yet not a single drop of blood seeped out.
He turned his gaze to the Mystic Gate, feeling his wounds. Abruptly, he clenched a black chess piece and pressed it against the Mystic Gate.
The chess piece vanished instantly.
...
Amid the eerie meteorites, in the shadowy underground space.
Pei Yuling, with the Mirror of the Infinite in hand, grappled with the elder of the Shadowkin who was attempting to break into the mirror.
A black chess piece suddenly shot out from the Mirror of the Infinite.
"My name is Yan Qiling, from the vast Everlands' Boulderdawn, serving under Taishi."
The black chess piece burst in a dark glow, leaving behind those words, declaring his identity.
The warning was unmistakable.
"Boulderdawn, Taishi..."
Pei Yuling released his grip, watching the words fade away until they vanished completely. He repeated the message in both the languages of humans and the Shadowkin, his eyes tinged with a hint of gray.
His mood was somber.
Unlike the long-slumbering elder of the Shadowkin, he was acutely aware of the terror that was Boulderdawn, and the depth of its foundations.
The Boulderdawn, which had once dominated the five great sects, was not an entity to be trifled with.
"Why bother? You've been awakened by me, yet there's so much you don't understand. Why cause trouble?"
He looked at the elder of the Shadowkin, whose hair intertwined with the roots of the ancient tree, and managed a wry smile, "I mentioned the secular bird, and you ceased your spellcasting, avoiding further turmoil. But why, after stepping back, did you feel the need to chastise that Yan of the Boulderdawn?"
"The Boulderdawn doesn't hold any significant memories for me," the elder stated gravely.
Pei Yuling's brow furrowed. "In this day and age, the Boulderdawn is even mightier than the secular bird. You've missed out on too much, unaware of the Boulderdawn's resurgence. Alas, attracting the attention of the Boulderdawn so early on is hardly auspicious."
"How splendid can it be? I only recognize the five supreme sects of the Everlands as the pinnacle of power," the elder retorted with scorn.
Pei Yuling shook his head. "It looks like I need to enlighten you about the vast situation in the Everlands."
...
"It was an elder from the Shadowkin causing trouble. He could have, at one point, become a tenth-level Mighty."
Yan Qiling retrieved the black and white chess pieces, cracks appearing on his lips and neck.
Since he wasn't made of flesh and blood, no blood flowed out. "Unless something unexpected occurs, he, like Pei Yuling, has been seduced by the enigmatic Origin Deity."
Yan Qiling then informed Yu Yuan about the existence of a peculiar Origin Gate deep within the Brugeth Star Sector.
"I'm aware."
Yu Yuan nodded, choosing not to mention the anomalies he had detected through the Dragon Slaying Stage.
"Their influence seems to have vanished," Yu Yiyi remarked, puzzled.
The frenzied slaughter between the archdemons and alien beasts had abruptly ceased following the turmoil.
The Shadowkin elder, who had cast "Wraithbinding," invoked the name of the Origin Deity and reached an understanding with the secular bird to keep their waters separate. Though he withdrew, the strength of his bloodline's secret technique appeared to still disrupt the empress's malevolent influence over the creatures.
The eighth-level archdemons and alien beasts stood still in the void, clearly still in a daze, processing the recent events.
However, Ogeus at the ninth level, along with the Tar-Backed Bull and the vibrant fish demon, had managed to purge the empress's evil thoughts, thanks to the Shadowkin elder's interference.
"Ogeus! Report to the Shadow's Keep at once!"
The fish demon bellowed.
