Chapter 155

A place that no one would ever think of, encapsulating the entire secret realm.

It’s not the water beneath their feet.

It’s the sky above their heads.

Or rather, the “sky” they saw wasn’t real but was actually a tranquil pool in the real secret realm, silently reflecting everything above it and presenting it below the mirror surface.

The entire world was within the formation.

This is the true meaning of “water” and “mirror.”

And if one wanted to destroy the formation’s eye—

“I’m in a hurry, so I’ll have to say goodbye to you two now.”

Qi Han smiled coldly as he looked past them. Having been knocked back a considerable distance, Ning Ning and Pei Ji were now teetering at the edge of a cliff, a sheer drop, and the roaring waterfall behind them.

They had nowhere to escape, and Qi Han had already decided to kill them.

“I see you two are quite close; dying together isn’t so bad.”

“Pei Ji.”

Ning Ning gathered her remaining spiritual energy and used a secret voice transmission. The situation was dire, and there was no time for lengthy explanations. She could only give him a brief outline: “I’ve figured out how to break the formation. Staying on top of the cliff is a dead end… You’ll catch me, right?”

This formation’s eye was truly “far beyond reach.”

Now, both she and Pei Ji were under Qi Han’s threat. They could barely move, let alone destroy the formation.

The only feasible way was to jump off the cliff when Qi Han was not expecting it, and then—

Ning Ning took a deep breath and locked eyes with Pei Ji. When he leapt off the cliff without hesitation, she smiled slightly at Qi Han and took a step back.

The immense feeling of freefall instantly engulfed her entire body, making even breathing a luxury. In the howling wind and the silver spray of water, Ning Ning opened her eyes.

Falling off the cliff, this moment was a visual blind spot that Qi Han could not interfere with, and it was her only chance.

“Are all spirit foxes good with bows?”

She had asked this out of curiosity when she first met Qiao Yan.

“Indeed.”

Qiao Yan had replied, “I have many bows and arrows at home. If you don’t mind, I can give you one.”

Later, Qiao Yan indeed gave her a longbow.

All those scattered memories quietly connected, with countless seemingly unrelated people and events intertwining, forming a predetermined chain of fate.

The waterfall hung like a reversed Milky Way, casting a faint golden light under the moonlight. Ning Ning’s white dress and loose black hair fluttered in the night wind as she silently recited an incantation. A faint light flickered from her storage bag.

In her hand appeared an exquisite bow.

It was the bow gifted to her by Qiao Yan.

Everything happened in an instant. Ning Ning gathered all her remaining spiritual energy at her fingertips, tightly gripping the Xinghen Sword with her right hand and placing it on the bowstring.

Since this secret realm was a lie from the start—

What did it matter if she didn’t have the Sun Blaze Bow? She could still use an illusory bow and arrow to break through this layer of illusion.

The Xinghen Sword let out a resonant hum, and amidst the cascading waterfall, a flash of starlight flickered.

Immediately, the sword’s energy surged, like waves crashing in a snowstorm, creating splashes and blossoms. The girl’s dark pupils reflected the white light, gazing directly at the solitary moon in the sky through her fluttering black hair.

The longbow was raised, and the sword’s momentum ascended.

The cold light, like a wandering dragon, cut through layers of water droplets and the evening wind, stirring up waves of snow in the turbulent air. Even the moonlight seemed less dazzling compared to this brilliant light, making the sky appear eerily empty.

Because the sky in this illusion was fake, the dome wasn’t far from the ground. As Ning Ning fell into Pei Ji’s arms, the Xinghen Sword shot straight into the sky, piercing the silent, solitary moon.

It was like a mirror shattering, breaking into countless cracks. The sky erupted with a bright light that covered the entire secret realm with a thunderous sound.

Ning Ning was exhausted, unable to see what the sky looked like now. She only felt her body being firmly caught, no longer surrounded by cold water but by a familiar, warm embrace.

—Pei Ji held her in his arms, shielding her from the splashing waterfall so that the water wouldn’t touch her.

He had caught Ning Ning without hesitation, but now he seemed unexpectedly awkward, and his strength diminished.

Pei Ji had never held anyone like this before, and he felt they were too close.

Moreover, both of them were soaked from the fall, and his hands touched her shoulders and knees, which were cold and wet but also softly warm.

Standing in the water, he should have felt cold, but his heart was inexplicably hot, making his ears quietly burn.

“I’m fine now.”

It was also the first time Ning Ning had been held like this. She remained silent, hearing Pei Ji’s intense heartbeat pound in her ears.

She felt inexplicably shy and whispered, “You can put me down now.”

So Pei Ji awkwardly bent down, carefully placing her down. When Ning Ning’s feet touched the bottom, he finally let go.

—Unexpectedly, as soon as he let go, Ning Ning wobbled and fell forward against his chest.

Ning Ning blushed furiously: …

Help!!! She really wanted to stand up properly… Why did she have no strength left?!

Pei Ji, knowing she had exhausted her spiritual energy, instinctively held his breath when she fell against him. After a moment, he asked in a low voice, “…No strength?”

Ning Ning’s head was buried in his chest, her nose filled with his fresh, woody scent. She didn’t know how to answer, so she forced herself not to blush and made a small “mm” sound.

“Do you need me to continue…”

Pei Ji stared at the water surface not far away, his voice stiff. He seemed embarrassed to say the word “hold,” and after a pause, he muttered, “Help you?”

Ning Ning’s face grew hotter, and she quickly replied, “No, no! I’ll be fine in a moment—”

Before she could finish, she felt a rush of heat on her back.

Pei Ji, without waiting for her reply, picked her up again, deliberately avoiding looking at her face. His hands were hot, unlike his usually cold body.

As she looked up in confusion, she could only see the clear, white neck and smooth jawline of the young man. A few drops of water trickled down his neck, and it seemed like his throat bobbed, faintly pink.

…His ears were also tinged with a soft red.

Ning Ning didn’t say anything, her gaze wandering over Pei Ji’s chest, throat, and chin, finally settling on the dark water surface.

All around, there was only the sound of splashing water. In their silence, they suddenly heard a loud splash behind them, as if something had fallen into the pool.

—It turned out that the talkative demon lord had followed them, determined to strike while the iron was hot. He had leapt from the waterfall to finish them off.

Unexpectedly, halfway down, the formation’s eye was broken. Just as his evil smile of triumph appeared, his spiritual energy backfired, striking his vital points and causing him to spit blood mid-air.

Amidst the floating blood, the demon lord Qi Han twisted and turned like a wild duck flailing, ultimately falling into the water with a resounding splash as the mirror shattered in the posture of ten thousand Buddha pilgrims.