Chapter 156

When Qi Han fell into the pool, he created a splash that could startle the heavens and move the ghosts. Accompanying the splash were the continuous, noisy shouts from the elders outside the Mystic Mirror.

“I can’t see… Why can’t I see anything all of a sudden?”

Lin Qian slammed the table and stared fiercely at the pitch-black screen of the Mystic Mirror, her gaze terrifyingly intense, like a wolf or a tiger: “That brat Pei Ji broke the spirit vision orb under the waterfall! Damn it! Make him pay! At least double, no, ten times the price!”

After taking a few deep breaths to calm down, she turned to Qu Feiqing beside her, flashing a knowing smile: “Tsk tsk, is this camaraderie between disciples? Pei Ji even risked his life to protect Ning Ning.”

A female cultivator clasped her hands to her face, eyes full of contentment and joy, smiling as if it were her own wedding night, her grin almost reaching her ears: “Ah, to be young. Youth is wonderful.”

Zhen Xiao was displeased: “Can’t fellow disciples sacrifice their lives for each other?”

Qu Feiqing, always close to Lin Qian, chuckled and lazily responded, “Oh, but I’ve never seen you princess-carry Elder Tianxian in your arms.”

Caught off guard by being named, Tian Xianzi sneezed and quickly turned his head to look at them. Perhaps the image Qu Feiqing conjured was too disgusting; his face turned as white as a sheet.

However, his skeptical gaze didn’t linger long before he turned back to the table in front of him, where a suspenseful gambling game had just concluded.

The sect master of the Haoran sect was furious, his beard trembling: “Damn it! Why didn’t that fool, Qi Han, use his body as the formation’s core! Now I’ve lost 50,000 spirit stones for nothing!”

Tian Xianzi himself looked withered like a drought-stricken weed, as if the last drop of water had been drained from his body. Dejectedly, he pushed his spirit stones, which had been wagered, forward:

“I’m so stupid, really. I knew the formation core was related to the water mirror, but I didn’t think the sky could count too—honestly, who would’ve guessed that layer? Breaking the sky, seriously? How did Ning Ning come up with that?”

The head of Liuming Mountain, He Xiaochen, looked utterly defeated, continually glancing towards the Mystic Mirror:

“Why did I even bother? Overestimating myself and gambling with you all. Now I’ve lost all my spirit stones and missed the most exciting scene—the elders at the Mystic Mirror are going crazy with excitement.”

Amidst the mixed reactions, Ji Yunkai was the only one beaming with joy.

As the sole winner, Sect Master Ji stood on tiptoe, stretching out his little arms to gather the spirit stones cheerfully.

“Thank you, everyone. Thank you.”

After securing all the spirit stones into his storage bag, he ran excitedly to Zhen Xiao: “Quick, quick! How are they doing?”

Compared to him, Zhen Xiao looked like a giant human-shaped ice cube and pointed at the mirror without changing his expression.

A pitch-black scene with no trace of anyone visible.

“It was Pei Ji, right?”

Ji Yunkai narrowed his eyes and smiled, his face full of innocence and harmlessness: “Ask him to pay double, oh no, fifty times.”

=====

Outside the Mystic Mirror, there were sighs all around. Below the waterfall, Pei Ji turned silently, looking at the figure floating on the water.

Qi Han still looked bewildered, eyes wide and mouth agape, spurting a mouthful of pool water like a fountain, his limbs flailing in the water.

His half-alive, frantic struggle vividly illustrated the saying about a drowning frog or a small boat braving the waves.

He couldn’t understand it.

Using the sky as the water mirror was such a brilliant, unconventional design. He had been confident that unless he deactivated the formation himself, the water mirror formation would never disappear.

Yet, such a meticulously designed formation core was seen through by a little girl? Impossible, right? It had to be fake.

Oh, she didn’t just “see through” it.

She had somehow found a bow and directly broken the formation core.

Don’t ask; asking means you are questioning your life.

At this moment, he also saw Pei Ji. He used to be so evil, crazy, and invincible, but now their positions were reversed, and it was really awkward for them to look at each other.

Despite being a powerful demon lord, even with his severely damaged spiritual energy, Qi Han refused to appear humiliated in front of a younger generation.

Unable to rise, he coldly huffed, his tone still arrogant: “What are you looking at? Never seen someone cool off in the water?”

After gritting his teeth, he added bitterly, “You got lucky this time, but luck runs out. Just wait and see.”

Pei Ji usually didn’t argue with others, ignoring negative remarks about himself. But after hearing Qi Han’s last words, he replied calmly:

“It’s not luck. My senior sister is simply smarter than you.”

Such a matter-of-fact tone was infuriating. Qi Han’s mouth twitched, nearly spitting blood.

Ning Ning, surprised, blinked and asked quietly, “Does that count as… a compliment?”

Pei Ji didn’t respond, so Ning Ning took it as an affirmation, smiling even more brightly and gently swinging her legs: “This seems to be the first time you’ve praised me.”

She hoped he would keep it up, though she didn’t say it out loud.

“She wants you to praise her more! Repeat after me—”

Cheng Ying, ever the reliable middle-aged uncle, seized the opportunity, melodiously reciting with great emotion in Pei Ji’s ear: “Ah, senior sister, your eyes are so beautiful, I can’t tell if I’m seeing a sky full of stars or your eyes. You taught me the meaning of breathtaking beauty. Senior sister is like a fine wine; anyone who drinks it will be intoxicated—ah! Intoxicated!”

Pei Ji: “…Quiet.”

He felt goosebumps on his back and wanted to slice the voice to pieces, but Cheng Ying ignored him, continuing more nauseatingly: “This whole pool of water is from my saliva for you—”

Pei Ji couldn’t take it anymore, mentally blocking him out.

The water mirror formation was sustained by most of Qi Han’s spiritual energy. Now that it was broken, the vast spiritual energy dispersed, unable to return to his body.

With his spiritual energy depleted and suffering severe backlash from the formation’s collapse, Qi Han was as powerless as Ning Ning, unable to stand.

Knowing Qi Han was no longer a threat, Pei Ji, uninterested in further confrontation, turned to leave the pool, carrying Ning Ning.

Having expended most of his energy during the demonic tide and soaked in the freezing water for so long, Pei Ji staggered when he tried to move forward.

Fortunately, he quickly regained his balance.

But Ning Ning’s hands had somehow ended up around his neck.

Pei Ji’s hand on her shoulder tightened instinctively, feeling a strange tickle on his neck.

Realizing it was Ning Ning’s quiet breath warming his skin, spreading a gentle heat.

This delicate sensation grew like vines, traveling through his skin, blood, meridians, and bones, finally reaching his heart.

As if under a strange spell, his heart inexplicably felt ticklish.

“S-Sorry!”

Unlike him, Ning Ning couldn’t hide her emotions, hurriedly pulling her hands back.

She had reflexively hugged him when he staggered, only realizing their close proximity once he regained his balance.

So embarrassing.

She had thought being held by him was the limit, never imagining she’d end up in such an intimate position, her heart racing with confusion.

Amidst the roar of the waterfall, she clearly heard Pei Ji’s heartbeat quicken.

Pei Ji must have been startled by her.

…So embarrassing.

The moment didn’t last long. After a low “sorry,” Pei Ji carried her to the shore.

Ning Ning pondered for a while, then tried to ease the awkwardness by changing the subject: “What about the one in the water… how should we deal with him?”

Pei Ji’s chest lightly vibrated as he spoke. With her head resting there, she felt a subtle tremor—a strange sensation.

“I’ll handle it.”

He said, “Let’s get you ashore first. He’s not important.”

——That is to say, she can barely be considered “important”.

“Oh.”

This made her happy.

Ning Ning began to swing her legs again, glancing at the distant sky.

The moon had a huge crack, caused by the Xinghen Sword, its dim yellow glow and sharp sword aura spreading, creating more jagged fissures.

It looked like a cracked mirror, about to shatter and fall apart.

“Are the two worlds about to merge?”

She yawned lazily: “I wonder what the secret realm on the other side of the water mirror looks like.”

=====

Xu Ye never expected the other side of the water mirror to look like this.

He had entered the water hastily, unable to cast a water-repelling spell in time, so he was covered in blood and mud when he crawled out, feeling utterly disgusted and wanting to chop himself into pieces and feed himself to the fish.

But that wasn’t the most troublesome part.