Master's Bronze Mirror, the Foundation of Dao Proving

Night stretched on. Gu Baishui found a study in the tavern and made do for the night.

Another fierce storm erupted outside the window. Tree shadows danced wildly in the wind and rain, like monsters clinging to the walls, baring their claws and fangs.

Thunder rumbled outside now and then, and brilliant flashes of lightning split the sky, illuminating the empty tavern.

The rain fell hard that night. Sitting on a wooden chair by the window and listening to the wind and rain rage outside, Gu Baishui silently took the Bronze Mirror from his chest.

Since leaving the Great Emperor's Forbidden Zone, Gu Baishui had never taken out this strange Bronze Mirror again.

He had followed the Luo River north alone, doing everything he could to conceal his scent and fluctuations, hoping the mysterious person with the Purple Cauldron in the Emperor's Tomb wouldn't find him.

Gu Baishui didn't know who had attacked him that day. It might have been his Eldest Senior Brother, or it might not.

But without a doubt, the Great Emperor's Forbidden Zone now concealed a dreadful terror and dangers that touched upon taboos. And everything had begun with this Bronze Mirror, whose origins were unknown.

It was the only keepsake his Master had left him, and also a strange artifact capable of watching over the entire Great Emperor's Forbidden Zone.

Gu Baishui had also wondered whether the furry, ominous monster had come looking for him precisely because of this Bronze Mirror. He even suspected that behind the mirror was another pair of eyes, watching him just as he watched it.

As his Second Senior Brother had said, "When you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes back at you."

That was why Gu Baishui hadn't taken out the Bronze Mirror at all in recent days.

But tonight was different. It wasn't a whim; Gu Baishui had simply come up with a strange idea.

He wondered whether the Bronze Mirror could still be used outside the Great Emperor's Forbidden Zone.

If the Bronze Mirror could ignore all restrictions and Principles in the outside world just as easily, and effortlessly watch everything around it, then it was an unbelievably powerful treasure.

It could freely explore High Antiquity secret realms and spy on the secrets and Cultivation Methods of Mighty Ones. For a resourceful cultivator, it might even be no less than an auxiliary Extreme Dao Emperor Weapon.

At the thought, Gu Baishui's breathing suddenly grew heavier, and the heart in his chest began to beat faster despite himself.

With an enormous fortuitous opportunity in his hands, Gu Baishui even suspected that this Bronze Mirror might have been one of the foundations that had allowed his Master to prove the Dao and become a Great Emperor.

His index finger brushed lightly across the mirror's surface. An almost imperceptible ripple spread outward.

With a thought, Gu Baishui submerged his Divine Sense into the unremarkable-looking Bronze Mirror and slowly closed his eyes.

Then... he saw all of Luoyang City.

Within a hundred li, everything from the tavern beneath his feet to the Willow Tree and stream beside the Luo River was rendered in perfect detail, reflected in the mirror.

All things under heaven were reflected in his hands. He was like a god, supreme and looking down upon the ancient city from on high.

Luoyang City's streets were empty and lifeless. The storm beat wildly against every shop with its doors firmly shut.

A strand of Divine Sense, imperceptible to anyone, quietly merged with the wind and rain. It swept soundlessly past every object beneath the cover of night.

No one could sense it, and no one could know.

It turned out the Bronze Mirror wasn't usable only inside the Great Emperor's Forbidden Zone. It was only under the suppression of those Great Emperor's Mausoleums that it became less unrestrained, less... terrifying and strange.

But starting tonight, a certain youth in the tavern would be able to peer at every secret hidden across the continent as freely as an invisible ghost.

From then on, the Great Dao lay within reach.

Gu Baishui fell silent for a brief moment, then was overcome by emotions too complicated to describe.

There was the marrow-deep thrill and delight, the confidence and hope of having the Great Dao within reach, and also a trace of melancholy and confusion he couldn't quite explain.

"My Master was actually a Peeping Tom? Did he prove the Dao and become a Great Emperor by spying on people and staying alive?"

Gu Baishui smiled, and his mind opened up considerably.

With such an unbelievable treasure in hand, where in this vast world could he not go?

No matter how dangerous a place was, as long as he didn't take risks and end up trapped in a situation with no way out, it couldn't threaten his life.

As he thought this, his awareness drifting through Luoyang City happened to pass through a thin wall.

In the bedroom behind it sat an old man with white hair and beard, along with a refined, dignified middle-aged man.

The two seemed to be talking about something, but the thunder and rain outside were so loud that Gu Baishui couldn't make out their words.

The strand of Divine Sense drifting through the bedroom trembled lightly, hesitant and uncertain.

That was because the Green-Robed Youth behind this strand of Divine Sense recognized the two people in the room.

One was the Old Holy Lord of the Shaking Light Holy Land; the other was the current head of the Ji Clan in the Central Continent.

Both were terrifying beings at least in the Old Saint Realm, held in the highest esteem across the continent and looked up to by countless cultivators.

Gu Baishui didn't know whether these two Saints, with their realms and foundations, could detect his gaze. This was a risk for him, and a thrilling attempt.

At last, perhaps unable to resist the temptation to use the Bronze Mirror to uncover other people's secrets, the strand of Divine Sense in the room crept a little closer to the two men speaking.

The voices in his ears gradually grew clearer.

"Everyone should be here by now, right?"

The Old Holy Lord of the Shaking Light Holy Land narrowed his eyes indifferently. "I saw plenty of familiar faces outside the city: that Old Jade Purity Sect Member, the New Saint of the Central Continent Jiang Clan, and that Old Beggar whose origins I don't know."

"Those who haven't entered the Saint Realm probably wouldn't dare come to Luoyang City at a time like this."

The refined, dignified middle-aged man nodded and smiled calmly. "Right now, this Luoyang City has gathered nearly half of the Saints across the continent. The other half should also be secretly keeping an eye on what's happening here."

"The wind sweeps through the tower as the storm gathers over the mountains. Our fellow Saints without the courage wouldn't dare wade into this deadly mire. What happened in the Myriad Poison Domain was nothing more than a petty squabble among the younger generation, and a way to cover up the gathering of Saints in Luoyang City. After all, the stories that unfolded in this city are what might truly change the continent's balance of power."

In truth, since the beginning of the year, the Central Continent's Imperial Clans and the Ancient Sects had seemed just as they always were: closing their doors to guests and keeping silent.

This year, the continent's Saint Aristocratic Clans and sects seemed especially low-key, steering clear of conflict and keeping to themselves.

But in places no one knew of, one unassuming old figure after another had quietly slipped out the back gates of their sects, leaving their Holy Lands and clans behind.

Without a word, they had crossed mountains and ridges, making their way step by step from the far corners of the world toward the old city on the banks of the Luo River.

From dusk until dawn, dozens of Human Race Mighty Ones in the Saint Realm had not once flown through the air. They had walked all the way to the outskirts of Luoyang City, one step at a time.

Now, almost every tavern in Luoyang City housed an aged old thing.

But only the Old Saints in Luoyang City knew why the Human Race's Saints had gathered here.

The room fell briefly silent. Suddenly, the Old Holy Lord of the Shaking Light Holy Land turned his head slightly, his expressionless gaze settling on the refined middle-aged man as he asked, "That Li Shiyi-just which Great Emperor was he?"