Chapter 96

"Deal!"

If it really took the Seven Stars of the Northern Dipper to become a true emperor, Zhou Xian might really need the information this person provided.

So, in the end, Zhou Xian chose to agree to his conditions.

After all, he was planning to go there anyway, so it would be a two-for-one deal.

Emperor Yun nodded. After they finished talking, they returned to the fast-food restaurant next to the game company.

While eating dinner, they watched the situation across the street.

"I investigated this place a few days ago, and it's not much different from the information I had before. However, most of the people here are ordinary, and the few who aren't, don't have strong cultivation. That's why I decided to come here in person." Emperor Yun looked at the dark building across the street and said, "Sure enough, we found something strange this time. But I have a question: why can't the cameras I enhanced with runes work?"

Even though his cameras were enhanced with runes, they still didn't work. Zhou Xian's modern devices, however, weren't affected.

This was indeed strange.

"Perhaps this place has some kind of design that targets magical techniques," Zhou Xian said. After seeing that terrifying scene, he had been dizzy and disoriented, but once he came out, he seemed fine.

"This is really strange. There's no array or anything like that here. I checked everything, and the props and equipment here don't form any array."

Emperor Yun shook his head. It seemed he had done some research in this area, but still found nothing.

"Hmm..."

Zhou Xian thought for a moment, then suddenly said, "What if... the entire building is part of an array?"

Hearing Zhou Xian's words, Emperor Yun was startled. "That's possible... Yes, that's it!"

He seemed to understand now.

At this point, Emperor Yun took out his terminal and opened a drawing tool.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm drawing the layout of each floor..."

Hearing this, Zhou Xian didn't interrupt him. He watched as Emperor Yun gradually drew the layout of each floor.

"Overlay all the layers." As Emperor Yun gave the command, the drawn layouts merged into one.

Immediately, a peculiar array appeared.

"It's definitely the Sun and Moon Dual Array!"

Emperor Yun's eyes gleamed sharply.

"The Sun and Moon Dual Array?" Zhou Xian looked at the array, but he didn't recall anything similar.

"Yes, it's a special array that combines attack and defense and can hide the true space. I have some knowledge of this array. It's said to have been created by the old ancestor of the Flowing Cloud. Based on the characteristics you mentioned earlier, I now understand. The game company we visited during the day is not the real headquarters, but a fabricated mirror image! No wonder! No wonder there were no mirrors. In the eyes of those with cultivation, the mirror reflects the real world!"

Ordinary people might not notice anything from the mirror, but for someone like Zhou Xian, they could see the real world through it!

"Could the scene I saw be the real game company?" The world depicted in that ghostly house might be the real situation.

Zhou Xian felt a lot of pressure.

"It seems we have to break through the array," Emperor Yun said, thinking. He took out a talisman and began to chant.

"This talisman has a spell to drive away evil spirits. It can usually withstand one attack from a magical technique or spell. When we enter the array, it can also help us resist the false mirror world."

Saying this, he handed the talisman to Zhou Xian and took one for himself.

"Alright, let's go now."

Zhou Xian nodded and followed Emperor Yun out of the room.

When they reached the stairs of the game company, Zhou Xian saw the security guard patrolling inside. The guard just glanced outside and continued his work.

"Let's try it out."

Emperor Yun took a step forward. In front of Zhou Xian, Emperor Yun disappeared the moment he stepped through the door.

"Sure enough, it's an array." Zhou Xian touched the dagger on his back and, holding the talisman, followed.

As soon as Zhou Xian took a step, the scene in front of him changed dramatically!

The originally luxurious building seemed to have turned into an abandoned, unfinished structure: broken windows, rusted iron railings, and once-white walls now black and ugly.

"This—"

The feeling of a cold wind was not pleasant.

Looking at the terrifying and eerie scene, Zhou Xian felt a lot of pressure.

The situation they were facing now was more than just an investigation.

"—That's the security guard from earlier..."

Emperor Yun pointed to the guard walking inside.

Zhou Xian took a closer look and immediately broke out in a cold sweat.

The guard's uniform was now tattered, and the skin exposed on his body had a sickly color.

Since the guard had already walked inside, Zhou Xian couldn't see his face. But at that moment, Zhou Xian felt it was better not to see the guard's face.

"Have the people inside all turned into corpses?"

Zhou Xian thought of the scene he saw when he used the mirror earlier.

"Yes, maybe. The employees we met during the day might have been illusions. I had that feeling when I approached Miss Wu. Now, I'm even more convinced of my earlier thoughts."

"Is that so..."

To be honest, Zhou Xian initially thought Emperor Yun was interested in Miss Wu. Now he understood that Emperor Yun had his own methods of investigation.

But it couldn't be helped; who would have thought Emperor Yun would dress like that? Being misunderstood was normal.

"But these people are not ordinary corpses. The type that can have normal conversations with us is not ordinary. They are likely zombies under a curse," Emperor Yun said.

"..."

"What's wrong?"

"Has this place been abandoned for many years?" Zhou Xian looked around.

"Probably. Look at the walls and the dust in the corners. This place hasn't been entered for a long time. The mirror space is just a projection and illusion of this space. Things here can be reflected in the mirror world, but not the other way around."

Emperor Yun explained, seeing Zhou Xian's serious expression.

"Do you have any thoughts? Feel free to share them with me for reference," Emperor Yun said, patting Zhou Xian's shoulder.

"I'm thinking... if this place has been abandoned for a long time—what about the food in the cafeteria..."

Instantly, Emperor Yun's face changed from sunny to overcast, with an unhealthy blue tinge.

"..."

Clearly, he thought of something very unpleasant.

Emperor Yun had eaten two meals there earlier.

"Don't mention this! Absolutely don't mention this!" He probably felt his stomach churning.

Since this place had been abandoned for so long, what was going on with the food?

Considering Emperor Yun's mood, Zhou Xian decided it was better not to find out for now.

"Can you use a group invisibility spell?" Emperor Yun quickly changed the topic.

"Yes, but it only lasts half as long as a single-person invisibility spell."

"Good. In the mirror world, our invisibility spell only affected that world, not this inner world. That's why those people ignored it. But now, using the invisibility spell will have a different effect."

If they used it now, they could achieve the true effect of the invisibility spell, not the strange situation before.

"Let's use this method to break through the first floor. We must not disturb these 'security guards,' or it might affect the mastermind behind this."

After Emperor Yun laid out the plan, Zhou Xian began to act.

Emperor Yun stood in front and knocked on the door.

"Sir, what can I do for you?"

If this were said by a normal security guard, it would be normal. But when it came from a zombie with a loose jaw, the scene was terrifying and eerie.

"Uh..." This was the first time Emperor Yun had interacted with such a creature in the real world. "Sir, the moon is so round tonight!"

The zombie looked up, and the rotten flesh on its face seemed about to fall off.

"The moon—"

Before the zombie could finish, Emperor Yun, who was invisible due to Zhou Xian's spell, disappeared. The zombie, losing its target, froze as if it had crashed.

After a few seconds, the zombie turned around and continued its "patrol," as if the conversation had never happened.

"Phew..."

On the other side, Zhou Xian and Emperor Yun ran to the corridor, avoiding the guard.

"There are three security guards in total, each patrolling three floors. We avoided this one, so the next two floors should be safe," Emperor Yun said based on his previous investigation.

"Hmm..." Zhou Xian looked at the corridor. He was puzzled.

Although the place was old, it wasn't the blood-red corridor he had seen in the mirror. What was going on?

"Right, Emperor Yun—"

Zhou Xian looked at Emperor Yun and almost screamed.

As he looked, a ghostly figure with a terrifying smile slowly shrank behind Emperor Yun. "Is... there something behind me?"

Emperor Yun looked behind him, but saw nothing.

"You're not trying to scare me—uh!"

Emperor Yun almost screamed when he saw Zhou Xian. He quickly covered his mouth. In that instant, he also saw a pale, black face flash past Zhou Xian.

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