A Pawn's Passage

Though Pei Shenfu and Star Lord Yuheng looked young, they were both in their fifties. The higher one climbed, the smaller the circle became, so there was barely anyone they did not know. Even if they had rarely dealt with each other, they would at least have heard of one another.

Pei Shenfu recognized Star Lord Yuheng at a glance. “Does the Ziguang Society also have to obey Qi Xuansu’s orders?”

Star Lord Yuheng said, “Sage Qi and Sage Zhang are one and the same in this regard. This is also Sage Zhang’s intention.”

The Ziguang Society had always sided with the Zhengyi Sect, but control over the Ziguang Society had always rested in the hands of the Heavenly Preceptor.

The Heavenly Preceptor chose to bypass Zhang Jucheng, handing that authority directly to Zhang Yuelu. In turn, Zhang Yuelu shared her authority with her soon-to-be Daoist companion, Qi Xuansu. As long as Zhang Yuelu did not explicitly object, the Ziguang Society would generally obey Qi Xuansu’s orders as well.

Of course, Zhang Yuelu likewise shared Qi Xuansu’s authority. In particular, whenever Qi Xuansu was temporarily unable to attend to affairs, Zhang Yuelu could even take his place entirely. This was essentially the same arrangement as that between the Grand Master and the Grand Master Consort. Thus, the couple were effectively a single entity and had to remain of one mind. They could not each go their own way, much less engage in infighting.

Pei Shenfu snorted coldly and swept her sleeve.

Li Tianzhen involuntarily drifted backward. At the same time, Pei Shenfu started circulating the Six Void Tribulations.

Even so, Star Lord Yuheng was not afraid.

Although the Six Void Tribulations was a formidable technique, hers was not the Xiaoyao Six Void Tribulations, so it still fell somewhat short.

When the Holy Xuan consolidated the cultivation methods, he omitted and revised them, watering them down until he deemed them relatively safe. While this certainly raised their minimum standard, it also suppressed their upper limit. It was difficult to have the best of both worlds.

That was why Zhang Yuelu, Yao Pei, Li Tianqing, and the others chose to cultivate the original versions of these methods despite their severe hidden dangers, all for the sake of a higher ceiling.

Among them, Zhang Yuelu’s Five Thunder Celestial Heart Method posed comparatively fewer risks. At worst, it would damage her meridians, heart, and lungs, and the Longevity Elixir Qi Xuansu had given her could make up for such damage. Meanwhile, Yao Pei remained troubled by the side effects of the Taishang Emotionless Sutra to this day. Even if she succeeded in mastering it someday, those effects would probably have already become second nature to her.

The Six Void Tribulations were a simplified version of the Xiaoyao Six Void Tribulations, making it easier to cultivate but also weaker.

Conversely, the Six Curse Xiaoyao Six Void Tribulations was an enhanced version that even an Immortal might not be able to master.

Within the Daoist Order today, perhaps only the Earthly Preceptor had mastered it. Even in the Earthly Preceptor’s case, it was merely a possibility rather than a certainty. Or rather, if one were to ask who was most likely to have mastered this method, the answer could only be the Earthly Preceptor.

Star Lord Yuheng then unfolded her divine domain. She was a follower of True Lord Ziguang, which, according to the Daoist Order’s classification, meant that she belonged to the Godly Immortal lineage.

Star Lord Yuheng’s divine domain was not a vast starry sky but rather a world of mirrors resembling a kaleidoscope.

No matter the direction or angle, there were mirrors everywhere. There was not the slightest gap between one mirror and another. Everything was constructed entirely from mirrors, inside and out, layer upon layer, filling one’s entire field of vision. Innumerable rooms and corridors connected with one another, forming a structure resembling a honeycomb.

The mirrors reflected one another, causing the space to visually extend infinitely, with no end in sight, like a vast labyrinth.

Mirrors were falsehood taken to the extreme.

Standing within the world of mirrors, Pei Shenfu saw countless versions of herself from every conceivable angle. These reflections were all staring fixedly at her as well.

Gradually, the reflections of Pei Shenfu in the mirrors seemed to come alive. Some looked lost and bewildered, some appeared utterly deranged, some were gloomy and despondent, some were twisted in anguish, some wore strange and sinister expressions, some seemed empty and weak, some were hesitant and indecisive, while others were consumed by regret.

These emotions began affecting Pei Shenfu’s true body, threatening to throw her mind into complete disarray.

Pei Shenfu hurriedly cast the Mind-Clearing Spell to steady her mind before beginning to make her way through this world of mirrors.

A divine domain was different from a formation. The person controlling a formation could remain hidden outside it, but the master of a divine domain had to personally preside over the domain, just as a Godly Immortal could only remain within their own divine kingdom. Only then could the power of both the Godly Immortal and the divine kingdom be brought to its fullest extent.

However, as Pei Shenfu ventured deeper into the world of mirrors, her reflections grew progressively younger. At first, she was an elegant woman in her forties, then gradually became a married woman in her thirties, followed by a young woman in her twenties, then a maiden in the bloom of youth, and finally a small child.

Correspondingly, Pei Shenfu’s various memories also began appearing within the mirrors in reverse chronological order.

Giving birth to Yao Pei, marrying into the Yao family, falling out with her brothers, being the young lady of the Pei family, the birth of her younger brother, the siblings being close and affectionate, being doted on by her parents...

Yet these memories differed somewhat from what had truly happened, containing subtle distortions.

This caused Pei Shenfu’s state of mind to waver slightly.

As Pei Shenfu’s mind began to waver, the mirror labyrinth seemed to gain some kind of power and expanded even further, while Star Lord Yuheng concealed herself even deeper within it.

This was the essence of taking falsehood for truth. The less one believed it, the easier it was to see through to its true nature. Conversely, once one believed it, one would sink deeper into the illusion, unable to extricate oneself.

In truth, this sort of technique was highly dependent on its target. Against someone whose resolve was so firm that nothing could shake it, or someone without desires, wants, fear, or dread, it would merely produce countless reflections and have no effect whatsoever.

Back then, Star Lord Xuanji had played a similar game with Zhang Yuelu, but Zhang Yuelu ultimately emerged victorious.

But clearly, Pei Shenfu was no Zhang Yuelu. The stronger one’s selfish desires, the greater the weaknesses within one’s heart.

Pei Shenfu realized this as well. The disparity between the upper and lower limits of a Shaman was enormous. If their abilities were used skillfully and they possessed sufficient divine power, they could even contend with a Banished Immortal.

Star Lord Yuheng had clearly come prepared, whereas Pei Shenfu had acted in haste. After all, according to the original plan, Li Tianqing and the old Buddhist monk should have been enough to capture Qi Xuansu, with no need for her to personally intervene.

With one side prepared and the other caught unprepared, Star Lord Yuheng naturally held the upper hand.

At this moment, Star Lord Yuheng was hidden in the deepest reaches of the world of mirrors. There was even a palace constructed entirely from mirrors.

Star Lord Yuheng sat high upon a throne with her long legs crossed, starlight shimmering within her purple eyes as though a vast starry sky lay hidden within them. In her hand was a glass of red wine, which she gently swirled.

On the hand with which Star Lord Yuheng held the glass, a ruby ring gleamed brilliantly, resembling a blood-red demonic eye. Upon closer inspection, the ring had been carved into the shape of a serpent biting its own tail, its body covered in small runes nearly invisible to the naked eye. Together, these runes formed the serpent’s pattern.

The ruby ring’s crimson glow fell upon the wine glass, reflecting countless rays of blood-red light, which refracted through the countless mirrors and dyed the entire place crimson.

In front of Star Lord Yuheng was yet another mirror. However, it was special. It was the only freestanding mirror in the entire divine domain, floating midair without touching any of the other mirrors. Instead of reflecting Star Lord Yuheng’s face, it displayed Pei Shenfu’s exact location.

Star Lord Yuheng silently watched Pei Shenfu in the mirror.

Eventually, Pei Shenfu still managed to reach the palace where Star Lord Yuheng was located. After all, there was no difference in cultivation between the two, so this was hardly a case of a cat toying with a mouse.

However, Pei Shenfu had not emerged completely unscathed. Her mind was exhausted, as she had spent far too long wrestling with herself, so she was no longer in peak condition.

Upon seeing Star Lord Yuheng, Pei Shenfu finally unleashed the power of the Six Tribulations that she had been building up for so long.

All six tribulations descended at once. Yin fire, black ice, heavenly wind, thunder, the netherworld, and red earth manifested upon Star Lord Yuheng’s body.

Without the slightest suspense, Star Lord Yuheng’s figure shattered outright, turning into countless shards of mirror.

Yet Star Lord Yuheng’s figure appeared once more within the floating mirror and the countless mirrors surrounding it. She remained exactly as before, legs crossed and wine glass in hand, completely unharmed.

“The Six Void Tribulations truly is formidable.” Star Lord Yuheng deliberately gasped exaggeratedly. Countless Star Lord Yuhengs within countless mirrors spoke in unison, their innumerable voices converging into one, like the thunderous echo of millions of people or countless believers chanting hymns of praise to a god in unison.

Pei Shenfu frowned.

There could only be one real Star Lord Yuheng among them. The question was, which one was real, and which were merely illusions? Pei Shenfu found herself unable to distinguish between them, at least not within a short period of time.

Being unable to distinguish truth from illusion meant that a weakness had appeared, which gave Star Lord Yuheng something she could exploit.

Sure enough, the moment this thought arose, every Star Lord Yuheng in the mirrors stood up in unison, transferred the wine glass to her other hand, and pointed the ruby ring on her index finger at Pei Shenfu. A red beam shot from the ruby. In an instant, countless red beams densely intertwined before converging upon Pei Shenfu. They even appeared to penetrate her body, taking aim at her heart from every conceivable angle.

Clearly, this ring was no ordinary object. Although it was not a semi-immortal object from the Central Plains, it was most likely a semi-divine artifact of the Western Continent, powerful enough to pose a threat to a Pseudo-Immortal.

Only one of these red beams was real, but Pei Shenfu had no idea which one it was or from which direction it would strike.

Protecting one’s entire body was easier said than done. It was easy enough when someone of a higher cultivation faced an opponent of a lower cultivation, but against an opponent of the same level, how could it possibly be so simple?

Pei Shenfu gritted her teeth and took out an object.

If Qi Xuansu had been here, he would certainly have recognized it. It was none other than a page from the Scripture of Zuriel.

Back then, the Earthly Preceptor had obtained an entire copy, containing 397 pages. The Earthly Preceptor had given Qi Xuansu only 7 pages, all of which Qi Xuansu had used up before even leaving Poluo. The pages he acquired afterward had all been obtained in the Southern Continent.

As the matriarch of the Yao family, it was not surprising that Pei Shenfu possessed a page from the Scripture of Zuriel.

The world of mirrors could already magnify the weaknesses within a person’s heart. Using a page from the Scripture of Zuriel under such circumstances would undoubtedly cause consequences that might be difficult to reverse, but Pei Shenfu could no longer afford to worry about that.

Pei Shenfu swept her gaze across the characters written on the human skin. Although she did not recognize these strange characters, much less understand what they meant, they possessed a power that transcended the limits of cognition. Like the Buddhist Telepathic Technique, they struck directly at the reader’s innermost heart.

In an instant, Pei Shenfu clearly felt overwhelming pride, arrogance, and conceit rapidly taking root and swelling within her.

Not only was Qi Xuansu beneath her notice, but even Pei Xuanzhi, Su Yuanyi, and Li Wugou amounted to nothing. The Three Deputy Grand Masters were also nothing more than withered bones in their graves, hardly worth mentioning.

The Yao family was already hers for the taking, and so was the Pei family.

She would have Yao Pei take her last name and change her name to Pei Yao. She would also merge the Yao and Pei families into a single clan, surpass the Zhang and Li families, and make it the foremost great family of the Daoist Order.

She would follow the example of Empress Mingkong and ascend to the utmost position as supreme ruler of the world.

With these thoughts came the power of delusion.

Pei Shenfu’s cultivation level rose steadily, breaking through the Zaohua stage and entering the Pseudo-Immortal stage.

At the same time, Star Lord Yuheng launched her attack.