Chapter 142

There weren’t many pools of water around the waterfall. Ning Ning followed Pei Ji, weaving through the lush forest, and after about the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, they finally found the nearest lake.

The lake wasn’t large, reflecting the dim, dark sky. The surrounding spirit mushrooms had already begun to emit a faint glow, casting a layer of green fluorescence over the evening breeze.

Ning Ning stood by the lake, intending to step closer to the water, but Pei Ji gently pulled her sleeve.

They had hurriedly changed clothes before coming here. Pei Ji seemed to have bought numerous sets of similarly styled black clothing, his figure blending into the dim night.

When Ning Ning turned her head, she saw him shake his head slightly with a calm expression. “I’ll go.”

Even without many words, he always quickly understood her thoughts.

After saying this, Pei Ji pulled back a step and walked straight to the lakeshore.

The moon peeked out from the twilight, casting a hazy, warm yellow glow. In the moonlight and water reflection, the lake mirrored the tall, elegant silhouette of the young man.

—Suddenly, the water surface trembled violently, and a skinny, bony, bloody hand shot out from the lake, aiming straight for Pei Ji’s throat.

He had anticipated this and showed no surprise, calmly stepping back to lure the creature from the water onto the shore.

This Mirror Ghost wasn’t much different from the previous one, still bald, short, and frail, gnashing its teeth and emitting a screech that reminded Ning Ning of fingernails on a chalkboard.

She resisted the urge to cover her ears and said to Pei Ji, “Don’t kill it.”

Pei Ji had already drawn his sword but sheathed it again at her words, swiftly dodging the Mirror Ghost’s claws while silently reciting a sword technique.

He didn’t strike to kill. His sword energy surged around him, and in a flash of white light, he struck the creature’s nape with lightning speed.

The Mirror Ghost didn’t even have time to cry out before it lost consciousness and collapsed.

Ning Ning’s eyes dimmed slightly, and she instinctively clenched her fist. “Keep going.”

Pei Ji then approached the lake again.

They experimented six times in total. Each time, Pei Ji acted as bait, attracting bizarre but weak Mirror Ghosts. They never encountered the so-called numerous Golden Core and Nascent Soul stage demon cultivators Qin Niang had mentioned.

The trickery was obvious.

Qin Niang was lying.

“These are just insignificant little monsters, yet she concocted a lie to make sure Qiao Yan stayed away from the lake at all costs.”

Ning Ning crouched down, carefully observing the Mirror Ghost.

“That means Qin Niang’s motive isn’t concern for Qiao Yan’s safety. The reason she doesn’t want Qiao Yan to interact with the Mirror Ghosts—”

A thought suddenly flashed through her mind, a chilling realization spreading from her spine to her brain, making her shiver.

Thinking carefully, all their knowledge about the Water Mirror came from Qiao Yan.

And the information Qiao Yan herself had was from her mother.

The Spirit Fox clan and the Demon clan erupted into a fierce battle overnight. To fend off the demons, they had to use the power of the entire clan to set up the Water Mirror Array, imprisoning the demons on the other side of the mirror.

Qiao Yan was gravely ill and unconscious at that time, unaware of this. This is what Qin Niang told them.

The Spirit Fox clan, their spiritual energy dwindling, was willing to sacrifice their weakening lives to protect Qiao Yan from the demons.

Qiao Yan had been kept in the dark for years, hoping to leave this place with everyone, as Qin Niang had also told them.

But what if none of this was true? From beginning to end, their understanding of that past event and this secret realm was all based on outright lies?

Why didn’t Qiao Yan’s childhood friend have the Thousand Silk Tassel on his wrist?

Because he wasn’t the original person. Even if he tried to mimic, he wouldn’t notice such a trivial accessory.

Why was the Sun Blaze Bow’s whereabouts unknown?

Because this wasn’t the real secret realm, but a mirrored space created by the formation. The Water Mirror could replicate all landscapes and creatures, but it couldn’t duplicate the immensely powerful ancient divine bow.

Why did Qin Niang desperately prevent Qiao Yan from obtaining the Sun Blaze Bow and urge her to leave the secret realm at all costs?

Because once Qiao Yan got the Sun Blaze Bow and went to the other side of the water to eliminate the “Mirror Ghosts,” she would likely notice clues and uncover the buried truth—

Under the lake, those strange creatures that Qiao Yan mercilessly shot, thinking they were monsters, were the real Spirit Fox clan.

And the “kin” she interacted with daily were the demons who had slaughtered the fox clan and wore their masks.

Ning Ning should have realized this earlier.

When she first met Qiao Yan, the fox clan girl had told her, “Mirror Ghosts are mutated demons.”

But thinking carefully, demonic creatures already corrupted by demonic energy wouldn’t become such weak and bizarre beings even if they went berserk.

The only ones who could be affected by demonic energy and mutate were extremely weak humans and beasts with barely any spiritual energy left.

Above the Water Mirror, beneath the secret realm, the formation wasn’t sustained by spiritual energy alone.

It was also maintained by an ongoing lie.