Chapter 109: Refining Form in the Void, the Treasure Mirror Shattering Light

At this moment, hearing the old Taoist pinpoint the truth with a single phrase, how could my heart not be startled? Such a secret, yet the old Taoist saw through it at a glance—could it be that he is truly skilled in divination and calculation?

“Daoist, your heavenly calculation is admirable. I, Han, am deeply impressed. May I ask what you mean by this?” Han Chong asked solemnly, cupping his hands.

“Heh heh, if I can divine it, others might as well. I only wish to warn you, young friend, to never set foot near the imperial palace before the blood snake transforms into the dragon, or the consequences will be unimaginable.”

With those words, the old Taoist’s figure instantly dissolved like a bubble, bursting with a faint ‘pop’ and vanishing without a trace. Han Chong searched around but found nothing.

Indeed, he was a master of the Spirit Refinement and Void Return realm! According to legend, practitioners at this stage have completed their physical cultivation, with their corporeal embryo just formed, shifting to the cultivation of spirit and Dao god. The most profound can even nurture their yang spirit to dissolve into nothingness, known as true void body refinement.

Han Chong couldn’t even discern whether the old Taoist was truly corporeal or an illusion. It was clear he had met a superior. Their earlier contest of agility had been merely a test.

Yet what exactly was the Daoist’s teaching, his identity, and his intentions remained a mystery.

Meanwhile, atop a small mountain peak in the city, within a refined Daoist temple’s rear hall, a pure aura flowed down from the void and merged into a seated, ethereal figure. His white eyebrows trembled lightly as he opened his profound, abyss-like eyes, a faint smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

At the same time, a faint gleam flickered in his hand, and a gold ingot mysteriously appeared out of thin air.

“Heh, twenty years have passed in a blink. I never expected this youth to advance so swiftly to the late stage of Qi Refinement and Spirit Transformation. Whether this is fortune or misfortune is hard to tell.”

“Eh!” The Daoist’s smile vanished, replaced by surprise. The gold ingot in his palm suddenly transformed into a mere pebble, fooling even him.

“Hmph, this brat dares to play tricks on me. Next time we meet, I’ll make sure you taste some hardship!”

Han Chong pondered for a moment, carefully considering the old Taoist’s warning. From what he now understood about the Dafo Dynasty, it was no ordinary regime but a legendary Fate Dynasty.

As the name suggests, a Fate Dynasty consolidates the fortune and destiny of all its subjects to establish immense imperial power. Officials at every level can enjoy the dynasty’s auspicious fortune.

The higher the rank, the more miraculous the effects of this fortune, which parallels the power derived from cultivating merit.

However, since joining the Demon-Slaying Division, Han Chong had never felt this fortune’s effect on himself. Instead, it seemed pronounced in some mortal high officials, a fact he could not explain.

The Forbidden Air Array over the capital city of Fengdu was sufficient proof that the imperial fortune was not to be trifled with. Thus, the old Taoist’s warning to avoid the palace made perfect sense.

The imperial palace was perilous!

It seemed that rushing to solve the case was unwise. Even without the matter of the blood snake’s transformation, Han Chong’s current cultivation was insufficient after entering Fengdu.

Not to mention the old Taoist, whose true strength he could not perceive, let alone the Demon-Slaying Division, the Inner Guard, the Imperial Observatory, and even the Dafo Imperial family—all surely concealed formidable talents.

...

Han Chong returned to the East Gate of the inner city and found Ming Zhen.

“Brother Han, I came across a bookstore selling maps of Fengdu. Shall we buy one?” Ming Zhen suggested.

“Oh? Very well.”

The two purchased the map and spread it out. It was a simple but orderly distribution chart of the various government offices.

The imperial palace lay in the northern part of the imperial city. The rest accommodated Dafo’s highest administrative and military institutions, the ancestral temple, and the Grand Society for the Earth and Grain Gods.

The Imperial Observatory, Demon-Slaying Division, and secret offices were located in the western part of the imperial city, close to the palace. The mansions of princes and nobles were in the eastern area, while the southern section housed the Three Provinces and Six Ministries.

However, the imperial city was surrounded on all sides by a ten-zhang-high official wall, accessible only to government personnel or imperial relatives.

As the two approached Jingfeng Gate on the east side of the imperial city, they noticed a gold-and-blue eight-trigram iron plaque hanging above the gate, slowly rotating and casting a faint golden-blue light—extremely mysterious.

This object was similar in form to the blood talisman imperial banner hanging in the Prefect’s Mansion—a forbidden law device powered by imperial fortune.

Such a device rendered shape-shifting, invisibility, and earth-penetration techniques useless and could not be employed lightly. If discovered by the city guards, suspicion would immediately arise.

This posed a dilemma: if one did not display official credentials, entry to the imperial city was impossible; but if one revealed their true identity, they might be spotted by the princes’ servants and risk arrest or pursuit.

But Ouyang Jingguan was the only person Han Chong knew in Fengdu; only by finding him could they further investigate the princes’ residences.

Han Chong hesitated briefly, then secretly slipped the Yin Moon Treasure Mirror, which had undergone a blood ritual, into his bosom and mingled behind the officials ahead.

When the golden-blue light from the eight-trigram mirror shone upon Han Chong’s area, it suddenly clicked and began to reverse like a spring, its aura becoming chaotic before halting completely.

“What’s happening?” The city guards looked up, puzzled.

“The Eight-Trigram Demon-Detecting Mirror is malfunctioning? How can this be? This device was newly crafted by the Imperial Observatory and has hung here less than two years. How could it suddenly become so disordered?”

The official before Han Chong was a purple-robed general with a jade belt. Seeing the gate guard’s reluctance to admit him, he grew impatient and irritable.

“Quick, let me through! If I’m delayed from attending the Ministry of War’s meeting, will you bear the consequences?”

“Oh dear, General Wang, please calm down. The Eight-Trigram Demon-Detecting Mirror is malfunctioning, and regulations forbid admitting officials. Otherwise, my head’s on the line!”

“Hmph, nonsense. Take this silver to have a drink. If anything happens, have the Southern Yamen’s troops look for me.”

The purple-robed general tossed out silver coins, shoved aside the guard, and stormed inside.

The guard took the silver with a grimace but secretly felt a glimmer of hope, thinking only the last two officials remained and nothing should go wrong.

Han Chong quickly stepped forward, presenting his official credentials and a gold ingot, and was also admitted.

The city gates then closed, and the guard hurriedly removed the eight-trigram mirror and rushed into the imperial city.

It was clear he was heading toward the Imperial Observatory. Han Chong and Ming Zhen followed closely behind.

After half an hour, they arrived at a towering watchtower resembling a bell tower within a spacious courtyard. Above the gate hung a plaque with blue background and white characters reading “Observation and Timekeeping.” The screen wall vividly depicted the night sky, stars, and moon.

At the eaved gate, the guard held the eight-trigram mirror respectfully and reported to four lacquered and gilded door officers, who dared not make decisions and immediately reported inside.

Soon, a red-robed man wearing a swallow-crowned hat emerged slowly, took the mirror with a frown, spun its dial, and his expression darkened.

He then took out a replica of the device and handed it to the guard, dismissing him. The man lowered his head and paced into the courtyard.

“Ouyang, brother?”

At the sound of a soft call, the white-robed man paused and quickly looked back.

It was Han Chong and Ming Zhen, hastening forward, cupping their hands in greeting. They had not expected to encounter Ouyang Jingguan upon arriving at the Imperial Observatory.

“Brother Han, little master Ming Zhen! So it is you two! Wonderful, wonderful. I’ve been longing for your arrival like waiting for the stars and moon.”

“Heh heh, this place is difficult to enter. If I were still the Seventh Rank Deputy Commander, I doubt I could have met you, Ouyang.”