GD Ch. 69 Part 2

Chapter 69: Why Do You Make Things Difficult?

The Turbid Mirror instantly became engulfed in fiery red. The houses nestled against the mountain walls, the towering trees piercing through the bright moonlight—all were momentarily illuminated by the fire. Yet, despite the relentless wind, the flames did not extinguish, nor did they consume anything in their path. Everything here was but an illusion.

Zhuyou swept past the sheer cliffs, the jade-green forests and sapphire lakes all stained crimson by the flames clinging to her feathers. She searched frantically, unwilling to leave a single corner unchecked in her pursuit of that hun soul.

“Stop searching,” Changying called, swiftly following behind her. Below them, the raging fire had already climbed several feet high.

In the distance, the screeching Vermillion Phoenix seemed utterly desperate, flying madly forward, as if possessed by a devil.

Seeing this, Changying called out in a sharp voice, “Calm your mind! If you let your emotions run wild, you will give the Turbid Mirror an opportunity to ensnare you!”

Zhuyou’s heart was in utter turmoil. Even though Changying exerted her pressure in an attempt to suppress the Turbid Mirror, it could not counteract the overwhelming pull the mirror had on the desires, greed, and delusions of all beings in the Three Realms.

The Vermillion Phoenix gave no response, still searching feverishly.

Changying lowered her gaze, slightly loosening the fingers she had been clenching tightly. In her palm—was none other than the Devil Lord’s hun soul!

Suddenly, the surrounding scene twisted into a blur, light and shadow mingling chaotically, reality becoming indistinct.

The Vermillion Phoenix let out another piercing cry, clearly on the verge of being pulled into the chaotic realm of myriad illusions!

Changying’s pupils constricted. She shouted urgently, “Zhuyou!” It was the first time she had ever called Zhuyou’s name in such a manner.

She lowered her gaze and stared intently at her clenched fingers for a moment. Then, without hesitation, she fully opened her hand, releasing the restraints on the hun soul.

With a flick of her fingers, that strand of hun soul instantly dispersed, vanishing without a trace. Zhuyou had struggled so hard to obtain it, yet it disappeared so swiftly, so effortlessly…

The Vermillion Phoenix remained unaware. She suddenly halted—and was truly caught in the chaotic realm of myriad illusions.

***

The swirling surroundings rapidly unfolded once more, transforming into the desolate wilderness and sea they had first encountered upon entering the mirror.

Zhuyou found herself staring at this chaotic, indistinguishable world once again. But this time, unlike when she had first entered, she was no longer an observer—she had been pulled inside.

She spread her wings, scattering red flames. The fire burned ever fiercer.

The desert was still filled with countless devil soldiers, yet unlike before, they were now forming a battle formation.

The phoenix flames turned the vast desert into a sea of fire, engulfing the innumerable ancient devil soldiers.

The garments of the devil soldiers burned away, revealing bodies covered in devil markings. Their grotesquely shaped devil horns glowed red-hot in the fire. They all lifted their heads in unison, wary of the Vermillion Phoenix, who fanned her wings and released deadly flames.

The phoenix fire burned with the power to destroy worlds, impervious to ordinary magic.

The devil soldiers, undeterred by the blaze, continued their march, swiftly arranging themselves into a massive formation in the desert. The formation aimed directly at the Vermillion Phoenix in the sky—once completed, it would surely claim her life.

Zhuyou’s mind was slipping into a haze. She was on the verge of forgetting who she was.

Changying was also caught up in the turmoil. Seeing that the grand formation set by the devil soldiers was about to be completed, she quickly transformed into her dragon form and soared toward the sky, chasing after the Vermillion Phoenix, which was circling above with its wings outstretched.

The Obsidian Dragon shot straight up to the heavens, breaking through the Turbid Mirror’s restriction. In the blink of an eye, it carried Zhuyou back to the world outside the mirror.

At that moment, two intertwined strands of hun soul and po soul emerged from the murky treasure mirror and returned to their respective bodies.

However, the instant her hun soul and po soul re-entered her body, Zhuyou did not regain consciousness immediately.

Back inside the Turbid Mirror, her greed, anger, and obsession had all been magnified. Initially, she had remained calm, but later, rage had consumed her entire chest, nearly overwhelming her reason.

This Turbid Mirror truly had the power to drown those who entered it. It seemed capable of exposing the darkest depths of a person’s heart.

Zhuyou’s pupils trembled. She wondered—had she seen the ancient Devil Clan because of her own fixation, or had the Turbid Mirror intentionally shown it to her?

Regaining her focus, she suddenly realized that after struggling so hard to break free from Changying’s grasp inside the Turbid Mirror, she had somehow ended up with their hands pressed together again upon emerging.

Changying also came back to her senses, releasing Zhuyou’s hand and slowly standing up straight. Her face was already pale, but now it looked even worse—like she was enduring a pain as excruciating as having her bones carved and her hun soul forcibly extracted.

Zhuyou couldn’t see the dragon’s expression behind her. She clenched her fingers, thinking about how she had nearly managed to bring out the Devil Lord’s hun soul, only to be thwarted by this dragon at every turn.

She suddenly turned her head, only to see Changying standing rigidly, a bead of cold sweat slowly rolling down her face.

Changying stood motionless, her face icy and ashen, her brows furrowed tightly. Her pupils abruptly turned into dragon eyes, yet they remained still, as if she was suppressing something.

Zhuyou then remembered—inside the Turbid Mirror, Changying had endured the pain of having her po soul torn apart.

The rewritten history had caused Changying’s po soul to be ripped apart, and the agony extended beyond the mirror.

Zhuyou should have been furious. In fact, the anger was still burning in her chest. But when she saw Changying suffering in silence, the words she wanted to say got stuck in her throat.

Changying slowly raised her hand to her head. As she lowered her head, the golden ornament on her forehead swayed slightly. Her slightly narrowed golden eyes suddenly seemed as fragile as that ornament itself.

If it had been like before, inside the Turbid Mirror, she probably wouldn’t have been able to endure the pain—she might have even transformed into her full dragon form. If that dragon tail had lashed out, not just this inn but possibly the entire street would have been razed to the ground.

Changying fixed her gaze on Zhuyou and asked, “Do you feel your spiritual sea swelling, your mind burning like fire?”

Zhuyou frowned. “You didn’t let me share the burden—how could I feel unwell?”

Changying said nothing, but a hint of regret flickered in her eyes.

Zhuyou turned slightly to look at her. She had wanted to ask if the dragon was in pain, but was there even a need to ask? It was undoubtedly unbearable.

If she traced it back to the root cause… it was because of her.

A wave of bitterness surged in Zhuyou’s heart, nearly suffocating her. She stared at the dragon for a long moment but couldn’t force a single word out.

Suddenly, Changying lowered her hand and said coldly, “I won’t take the mirror for now.” With a sharp burst of spiritual power, she blasted open the tightly shut window and, in an instant, leaped outside.

Like a streak of white lightning cutting across the sky, she vanished in the blink of an eye.

The bustling street below remained lively, with no one noticing the commotion.

Zhuyou turned back and saw the Turbid Mirror still lying on her table. She placed a hand over it, but after just a moment, she withdrew her fingers.

She grasped the edge of the mirror and abruptly stored it inside her mustard seed pouch.

No matter what… she wouldn’t enter the mirror so easily again.

When Changying left, she also dispelled the restriction that had been covering the room. The moment Zhuyou raised her hand, the door swung open, startling Hanzhu, who had been standing outside.

Hanzhu’s eyes widened in shock. She stood frozen for a while before cautiously stepping inside, afraid that the dragon’s restriction might still be active and chop off half her leg. She didn’t believe that dragon had truly let go of her grudge—perhaps she was just waiting for the right moment to settle it.

Once she crossed the threshold, she wiggled her toes to check if she could still feel them. Seeing that her feet were intact, she rushed forward, her heart pounding wildly.

“Mistress, th-th-that—”

She had wanted to mention the dragon, but if that dragon was truly the Divine Venerable of the Nine Heavens, then anyone speaking ill of her in the Three Realms would surely be overheard.

So Hanzhu choked on her words and quickly changed course. “Did… did that person trouble you?”

Zhuyou couldn’t bring herself to nod or shake her head.

Inside the Turbid Mirror, Changying had indeed ensured that she wasn’t harmed in the slightest—but at the same time, she hadn’t let her take the Devil Lord’s hun soul out.

So… what had been the point of her entering the mirror these past few days?

Zhuyou felt utterly lost. She had entered in vain.

Hanzhu quickly followed up, “Then, Mistress, are you hurt anywhere?”

“I’m not.” Zhuyou finally spoke. She glanced toward the wide-open window, still wondering why Changying had left the mirror in such a hurry.

Hanzhu looked around the room hesitantly before cautiously asking, “And… that person?”

“She left.” Zhuyou curled her fingers and tapped the table with a dull thud-thud-thud.

“She just left? Without taking this?” Hanzhu pointed at the Turbid Mirror, her disbelief spilling out before she could stop herself. “She… she wasn’t here for revenge?”

Zhuyou thought to herself—no, that dragon truly hadn’t come for revenge.

***

The dragon that had flown out of the window soared into the Nine Heavens. Amid the clouds, she suddenly transformed back into her dragon form. With a single sweep of her massive tail, the sky full of clouds was smashed into a muddy haze.

Divine light shone radiantly. The Obsidian Dragon bathed in it, slowly healing the rips in her po soul.

Changying exhaled a deep breath of dragon breath. Remembering Zhuyou’s expression from earlier, she felt both relieved and stifled at the same time.

Though Changying had suffered the agony of her spiritual po soul being torn apart in the Turbid Mirror, she hadn’t actually lost it. If that po soul had truly been lost, then Zhuyou—bound to her by shared fate—would have experienced the calamity of missing a po soul alongside her.

Recalling Jingyi, Changying’s heart burned with urgency. Yet, she had no choice but to bathe in divine light for a few more days before heading back to the East Sea.