The Demon Lord Relied on His Imagination to Get Together with the Protagonist. - Chapter 42

Chapter 42

“Venerable Lord, something seems to have changed inside the Meridian Gate…”

Qing Lin returned with an unusually grave expression to report to the Demon Lord. She had just seen a fierce gale rise inside the Meridian Gate. Countless skeletons fell into the prison fire and never emerged again.

The power of the nightmare realm was still there, but a drastic change had taken place within it.

“What did your disciples do?” Shi Zhihua turned back sharply, waving her sleeve to remove Fu Luan’s veil. “Where is the Phantom Mirror?”

“I don’t know. They did not enter the nightmare realm with me,” Fu Luan was bound and leaning against the wall, looking listless. “I don’t know what the Phantom Mirror is.”

When the veil was torn away by the demonic energy released by the Demon Lord, the tassels of her phoenix coronet swayed. The full moon was large in the sky, and in the darkness, gray shadows flickered behind her.

“At the time, they said Yu Xi burned the Phantom Mirror, and I foolishly believed it. Thinking back now, how could an Immortal artifact be destroyed by a simple fire? That Yu Xi must have secretly stolen the artifact and then defected,” Shi Zhihua said. “You came to the Scarlet Sky Realm this time because you heard news of the Phantom Mirror, correct?”

Fu Luan shook her head: “I truly don’t know.”

“If it weren’t for the Phantom Mirror, there wouldn’t be such a mystical nightmare realm,” Tong Siqing echoed Shi Zhihua. “The scope of this nightmare is too vast for an ordinary person to create. Even my Father Venerable couldn’t do it, so it can only be the work of an Immortal artifact.”

“An Immortal artifact is an inanimate object, so it must be controlled by someone,” Shi Zhihua and Tong Siqing concluded in unison. “And you were the primary authority of the Xinglin Kingdom at the time. Even if an Immortal artifact flowed into the royal palace, it should have fallen into your hands. Perhaps the Immortal artifact recognized you as its master at the time, helped you ascend, and you are now finding an excuse to retrieve it.”

Fu Luan looked incredulous: “Venerable Lord, what are you saying? How could I possibly…”

Tong Siqing rephrased the question: “Then, Immortal Master Fu Luan, have you ever picked up an ugly or broken mirror?”

Fu Luan: “…”

Yes.

She had indeed picked up a broken mirror, only half of it remaining. At the time, the mirror was brought to Xinglin by a blind old woman selling goods. When she passed the stall, the old woman was being harassed by other vendors. Everyone disliked the old woman for being blind and felt that the broken mirror shouldn’t be displayed to offend people.

At the time, she felt a pang of kindness and bought the old woman’s mirror.

In those days, as the Eldest Princess, she was copying Buddhist scriptures for the young emperor for blessing. She was just writing about how even broken things deserve to be treated equally, when this happened. So, she naturally accepted the mirror and returned to ask a craftsman to embed it with jewels, jade, and gold ornamentation, skillfully concealing the mostly shattered mirror into a beautiful appearance.

She had indeed placed the mirror in her bedroom, facing the bed, and used it for grooming every day.

Who knew that was the Phantom Mirror everyone was scrambling for?

“Yes, it is my mirror,” Fu Luan’s heart sank, and her face turned pale. “After I ascended, I didn’t pay any attention to it. If the nightmare realm in the Scarlet Sky Realm is truly caused by this object, then… if I can help, I am willing to follow the Demon Lord’s instructions and assist in dispelling the nightmare here.”

“That’s a good trade.”

Shi Zhihua was very satisfied.

The mirror for me, and I will help dispel the nightmare.

Tong Siqing: “Since it’s confirmed to be the Phantom Mirror, then this inanimate object definitely won’t move. Let’s enter the Meridian Gate again and see how to break this nightmare realm.”

Everyone expressed their agreement.

Half an incense stick later, they unexpectedly encountered the group of Xianning disciples near the Meridian Gate.

The moment Cen Letian saw Shi Zhihua and the others, he was like a beast seeing flesh and blood. His fierce and malicious demeanor made him look more like a villain than the people from the Demon Realm.

The disciples did not say a single word. They immediately drew their swords, unleashing all their skills, determined to fight the Demon Lord and her group to the death.

Shi Zhihua: ???

Do these people have some kind of problem?

“Demon Lord, how dare you come here!” Cen Letian’s eyes were bloodshot with killing intent. His sword energy was full of aggression, holding nothing back. “Hand over my Master now!”

Shi Zhihua dodged his sword energy and let out a soft “Hmph.” “So, the little brat who can’t leave his parent is angry now, is he?”

Cen Letian was enraged: “Die!”

Shi Zhihua flicked her sleeve: “With just you?”

Cen Letian was furious. He only repeated the insults: “Shameless, shameless, utterly shameless!”

Qing Lin and Su Rong were also surrounded by other disciples and drawn into the conflict.

Like the Demon Lord, they did not dare to harm these disciples. After all, Fu Luan would still need to help them find the Phantom Mirror later. They couldn’t offend these people.

Shi Zhihua’s movement technique was ghostly. While effortlessly dodging, she poured cold water on Cen Letian: “Are all the disciples of Xianning so incompetent? With your rudimentary skill, you think you can protect your Master? This Venerable One is taking your Master first. We have important business to attend to. You junior, do not interfere.”

Cen Letian’s realization that Shi Zhihua had indeed initiated the abduction instantly fueled his anger: “It was you! You…”

He couldn’t think of any appropriate vulgarity, his veins throbbing with frustration.

Tong Siqing was caught between the two sides, unable to attend to anything else. She quickly stepped forward to mediate, preventing the Xianning people, who weren’t holding back, from inadvertently harming Qing Lin and Su Rong, who couldn’t fully unleash their skills.

The scene instantly spiraled out of control, everyone descending into chaos.

Shi Zhihua enjoyed seeing these Xianning people exasperated and unable to curse. She provoked Cen Letian in various ways, baiting him to fight hard for a long time, before turning and immobilizing him.

Shi Zhihua stretched, feeling very pleased.

But Cen Letian was having a terrible time. He would either be scared to death or angered to death today.

After a terrifying ordeal, he finally found his Master’s sedan chair. Who would have thought that the moment he carried his Master out of the Meridian Gate, he felt the sedan chair lighten, and when he lifted the curtain again, his Master was gone.

How could Cen Letian accept this result? His eyes instantly turned red.

He waited and waited here for a long time, finally seeing the Demon Lord and her group swaggering toward the Meridian Gate.

And behind the Demon Lord was his very own Master.

Sure enough, they stole his Master!

It was their conspiracy!

Cen Letian let out a painful roar from his throat, wanting to pounce and tear the Demon Lord and the others to shreds.

“Why are you so agitated?” Shi Zhihua found it inexplicable. “That nightmare realm is clearly aimed at Fu Luan. It would be a disaster if your Master stayed inside the nightmare realm, wouldn’t it? It was this Venerable One who rescued her and brought her out. You were simply a step too slow.”

“You’re lying!” Cen Letian practically shouted. “We were the ones who first received Master! But you snatched her away.”

Shi Zhihua was annoyed by his clamor: “I’m telling you again, this Venerable One snatched the sedan chair while it was inside the Meridian Gate. Until just now, I hadn’t seen any of you Xianning people.”

Cen Letian: “Even if you are a villain from the Demon Realm, you shouldn’t lie so blatantly! We personally received the sedan chair! And as soon as we left the Meridian Gate, you, Demon Lord Shi Zhihua, snatched her away.”

Shi Zhihua was astonished. She asked Tong Siqing: “Siqing, don’t your Xianning people generally advocate for truthful speech? Why is there a disciple who loves to lie so much?”

Cen Letian spat, cursing: “I personally received the sedan chair, yet you claim it as your accomplishment and slander me for not rescuing Master in time! I cannot tolerate this insult.”

Tong Siqing, while mediating from a distance, loudly responded: “Venerable Lord, rest assured, our Xianning disciples generally do not lie.”

Shi Zhihua spread her hands toward Cen Letian: “That’s not necessarily true. Isn’t this a liar right here?”

Cen Letian was desperate to prove his innocence and said: “Do you dare to summon my Master to confront you face-to-face! Let’s see who is telling the truth.”

Shi Zhihua was surprised: “After lying, you still dare to ask your Master to listen? Truly courageous.”

“What is there to fear?” Cen Letian sneered. “It’s you, Venerable Lord, who is afraid, isn’t it?”

Shi Zhihua: “What is there to be afraid of? This Venerable One will summon Fu Luan now to see how her good disciple is spouting nonsense in front of everyone.”

Cen Letian rolled his eyes: “Then please do not play any tricks, Venerable Lord.”

Shi Zhihua waved her hand, instructing Fu Luan behind her to step forward. She said: “This Venerable One disdains to play tricks in this matter.”

Cen Letian let out a heavy “Hmph.”

After snorting, he asked the Demon Lord where is my Master?

Shi Zhihua hadn’t called the person over just now and instantly lost her patience. She internally grumbled that Fu Luan was also dense. If she had stepped forward earlier, this incident would have been avoided. But because she was so dilly-dallying, Shi Zhihua had to go herself…

Wait.

Where is Fu Luan?

Shi Zhihua turned around, scanning everyone present, and did not find any sign of Fu Luan.

“Qing Lin, was Fu Luan being watched just now?”

“Venerable Lord, this subordinate does not know.”

“Immortal Master Fu Luan was clearly right there just now!”

The Xianning disciples also put away their swords, shaking their heads in confusion:

“We didn’t see her either. We thought you had hidden her…”

“Senior Brother, don’t believe their sweet talk. They must have deliberately hidden her and are lying to us.”

“Demon, quickly hand over our Immortal Master Fu Luan.”

“A bunch of useless people,” Shi Zhihua said coldly. “Don’t you know whose downfall the nightmare realm primarily plots? If this Venerable One didn’t want to give her to you, would I need to resort to this?”

That’s right. With the Demon Lord’s cultivation and strength, there was no need for such elaborate schemes. At the very least… killing all the Xianning disciples would be faster than lying.

Cen Letian paused: “Did the Demon Lord not snatch Immortal Master Fu Luan just as we were leaving the Meridian Gate?”

Shi Zhihua didn’t know what to say anymore: “I told you, we snatched the sedan chair while it was inside the Meridian Gate.”

The Xianning disciples answered in unison: “We did too.”

Everyone: “…”

Everyone looked at each other, realizing a very serious problem.

One of the Immortal Master Fu Luans was fake!

Shi Zhihua looked at Cen Letian, mocking him: “You claim to respect your Master and care for Fu Luan, yet you were foolish enough to bring out a fake person.”

How could Cen Letian accept this slander? He immediately retorted: “No one knows my Master better than I do!”

Even when disguising and transforming into another person, one must be extremely familiar with the other person’s appearance, otherwise the transformation would appear very strange. The figure, appearance, actions, speech tempo, small habits, and so on, all depend on the degree of familiarity.

“I know my Master well enough. No demon could fool me,” Cen Letian affirmed confidently. “How could anyone be more familiar with Master than I am!”

“No. No one in the world knows themselves better than they know themselves,” Shi Zhihua stood still, somewhat helplessly. “Have you forgotten the name of the Immortal artifact this time?”

The Phantom Mirror.

The person in the mirror, in a way, was another Fu Luan.

Cen Letian: “But that is an inanimate object after all. How did it snatch our Master?”

Shi Zhihua was merciless: “Because an idiot was carrying the sedan chair and moved it out.”

Cen Letian was still stubborn: “Can it run away just because it was moved out?”

“Nonsense,” Shi Zhihua said. “Otherwise? Why do you think it summoned others to enter the Meridian Gate nightmare realm instead of coming out itself? Idiot, it’s because it was trapped inside and couldn’t get out.”

Cen Letian: “…”

He knew it. That’s why his Master hadn’t wanted to walk herself at the time and insisted on being carried in the sedan chair by the disciples.

Argh, what kind of monster did he carry out!

“Where are we going?” Fu Luan noticed that her surroundings had suddenly become very quiet. She asked: “Why did you cover my head with the veil again?”

No one answered her.

“Siqing, Venerable Lord…”

Her voice was clear and melodious, like the distant, clear spring of the Xianning Sect, or the gentle clinking of a jade pendant. Although she was slightly confused, her demeanor remained cold and proper, refusing to compromise her immortal pride.

She asked a few times, sensing someone approaching her.

The person took her hands. The touch was cold and soft. Although it lacked warmth, it fit her perfectly, the knuckles fitting right into the web between her thumb and index finger.

The size of the palm, the length of the fingers, was a perfect match for hers.

This closeness meant it should be a woman she was familiar with, and someone of a similar stature.

Fu Luan chuckled softly: “Siqing, why are your hands so cold? You should wear more clothes later.”

The hands holding hers suddenly tightened upon hearing this, changing from a gentle “leading” to a “clamping.”

Fu Luan gave a soft “Hiss” and scolded playfully: “It hurts.”

The other person did not speak. After a long while, the two seemed to have arrived inside a room.

The door closed, and the faint scent of royal Longxian (Dragon Saliva) incense drifted in the room.

“It hurts. You know you can feel pain too,” the person said. “Immortal Master Fu Luan, who wanders the four seas, has a heart of universal compassion, standing in front of the mortals so they won’t be harmed. But when the knife is plunged into your own body, you don’t realize… that you can feel pain too?”

This voice…

Fu Luan’s spirit was profoundly shaken, and her heart palpitated this voice, why was it identical to her own?

She fiercely tried to tear off the red veil, but her wrist was grasped, stopping her.

Fu Luan naturally wouldn’t let her control her. When struggling with force failed, she intended to use a spell to push the other person away.

She was an Immortal Master of the Xianning Sect after all. How could she be so easily overcome by any random demon or fiend…

Fu Luan suddenly froze.

The moment she circulated the Immortal qi and spiritual energy throughout her body, trying to break free, she was restrained by a completely identical power.

Who is this?

Someone with cultivation equal to hers, and even the Immortal technique they practiced was exactly the same.

How could this be?

Fu Luan gave up the struggle, standing dejectedly in place.

The room held her favorite royal Longxian incense, gently curling around her nostrils, carrying a scent of peaceful years.

But Fu Luan’s heart was in turmoil and she couldn’t appreciate it, especially since the person in front of her also carried a scent of Longxian incense that seemed to have lingered for years, indicating prolonged exposure to it.

But how was that possible? After ascending, Fu Luan had tried to find this type of incense, but Xinglin was destroyed shortly after. Since it was the will of destiny, she did not interfere.

So, later, she naturally couldn’t find the royal Longxian incense of her own country.

In the mortal world, because the previous dynasty had fallen, no one dared to use this kind of incense anymore.

Yet, the person in front of her clearly wore the scent of…

The person gently pressed the area about an inch above her heart, exploring with a knuckle: “It’s here, and here. If the attack had been slightly off back then, you would have died, did you know that?”

Fu Luan’s voice trembled, full of disbelief: “You… how do you know?”

“Because, I am…” The person gently lifted her veil, and as they leaned in for a kiss, they finished the sentence: “…Because I am you, Immortal Master.”

Fu Luan retreated half a step, only to be embraced around the waist with a grip full of hatred.

The other person was wrapped in a faint Longxian incense. The moment they leaned in was deadly.

After struggling for breath for a long time, Fu Luan angrily turned her head, finally managing to avoid the other person.

She was finally able to see the person clearly—the person wore an identical wedding gown to hers, with the same figure and face.

How is this possible?

What kind of demon is this?

Fu Luan’s pupils contracted. She couldn’t speak.

The person removed her phoenix coronet, raised a hand to stroke her hair, turning her dark hair entirely to frosty white: “Immortal Master, do you still remember what you forgot to take when you ascended?”

Fu Luan: “…”

Right. She seemed to have forgotten to destroy her mortal body in time, and then some demon or fiend occupied her body in the mortal world.

Fu Luan’s tone became much heavier: “You demon, what are you doing occupying my body?”

“I am neither a demon nor a fiend,” the person intimately sniffed Fu Luan’s frosty hair, using great force, as if trying to knead her into her own bones and blood. “I am the same as the Immortal Master. If you are an Immortal, then I am also an Immortal.”

Fu Luan was so angry she laughed. She wanted to say what kind of era it was now, that even monsters dared to call themselves Immortals.

“It’s these eyes,” the other person’s hands trembled, tracing her eye area inch by inch. “I see them every day. Every glance you gave me, I remember.”

Fu Luan retorted strangely: “I never look at demons or fiends.”

“On the day of the wedding, you wore the phoenix coronet, stained your lips, and approached me… making my heart flutter,” the person said. “It was your wedding day, but your eyes were full of divine pity. Not just pity, but also cold arrogance and loneliness. How beautiful, how delicate those eyes were, looking at me, and yet also looking at the suffering common people…”

Fu Luan: !!!

She suddenly realized the person in front of her was neither a demon nor a fiend. It was the legendary Immortal artifact, the Phantom Mirror, which she had placed in her bedroom!

This was absolutely absurd.

“Immortal Master, look at me again,” the Phantom Mirror had taken her former body, and was staring at her with the exact same face. It said every word clearly: “The one who forced you has been killed by me. No one will force you again.”

Fu Luan struggled desperately to pull herself out of the embrace, shocked, trying to leave.

The Phantom Mirror intimately pulled her white sleeve: “You cannot leave again. I have waited for you for thousands and thousands of days. How can you be so heartless?”

Insane, everyone is insane.

Fu Luan felt like she was going crazy too. She rushed toward the door in a panic, but after three steps, she was dragged back again.

“How dare you!”

The voice carried less anger, and more astonishment.

“I don’t have a human body, and I didn’t want to borrow someone else’s body,” the Phantom Mirror pleaded coquettishly as it embraced her. “I never expected the Immortal Master to leave such a grand gift for me after ascending, making me so happy.”

Happy about what?

Fu Luan looked at her in despair, looking at her own identical self.

It was like looking into a mirror, the scene utterly bizarre, leaving one speechless.

“I love you, Immortal Master. One glance from you was enough to give me intelligence, a glance that swept my soul away,” the Phantom Mirror leaned affectionately on her shoulder. “Can the Immortal Master look at me again?”

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