Heart-Questioning Mirror

Night pooled like thick ink, wrapping Obsidian City in its dark embrace. Deep inside the Demon Suppressing Department's headquarters, the atmosphere in the secret chamber was heavier still.

The ancient bronze mirror—the Heart-Questioning Mirror—stood silently at the center of the formation. A gauzy mist veiled its surface, as though it connected to another world beyond measure.

Beside the mirror, True Man Tian Shu's hair and beard were as white as snow, and his solemn features seemed carved from stone. Yet deep in his cloudy eyes, a nearly fervent light flickered—a complex emotion blending duty, wariness, and a hint of reverence he could scarcely conceal. His thin fingers slowly traced the obscure ancient patterns on the mirror's frame. Each touch stirred the mist on its surface, as if countless faint, inaudible sighs were seeping out.

Lin Hao stood where shadow met lamplight in the secret chamber. His dark robes nearly merged with the gloom; only his tied-back white hair and pale face stood out in the dim light.

His back was ramrod straight, like an ancient sword sheathed yet still radiating a chill. The weakness brought on by relentless battles and the depletion of his essence ebbed and surged like a tide, battering his every limb. But the calm resolve between his brows had not diminished in the least. His gaze rested on the Heart-Questioning Mirror, deep as an ancient pool. No one could tell what thoughts churned in its depths.

The Demon Emperor's clone's final words, the image of the "egg" on Blue Star, Xiahou Jie's dying warning about another demonic thought... The clues tangled together like a skein of knotted thread. The Heart-Questioning Mirror might help him tease out the crucial strand.

Xuanyu had not come into the secret chamber. Who knew what corner the old coot had holed