Chapter 76

Shen Jing held the bronze mirror talisman in her hand, her gaze tense as she stared at the mirror array.

Her fingers quickly tapped the bronze mirror several times, and it flew into the air, hovering above the mirror array to fill the only gap.

The trembling bronze mirrors immediately stabilized, emitting more black mist. So much mist gathered in one place, forming a black iron curtain.

Sweat appeared on Shen Jing's forehead, and she finally let out a long breath, muttering, "Junior Brother Qin, it’s not easy to outsmart you."

A look of hesitation appeared on Shen Jing's face. Finally, she slapped her storage bag, and an ice crystal arrow flew out. She infused it with spiritual energy.

The ice crystal arrow emitted a cold light and shot towards the sky, exploding with a "bang" in mid-air, the sound echoing through the mountains and forests, and ice shards scattered like fireworks.

A moment later, a gray whirlwind howled from the direction they had come. Soon, it landed in front of Shen Jing, and the wind abruptly stopped, the dust settling into a thread, which was then sucked into the belly of a young-looking man.

The man carried a treasure sword on his back, and a green snake was coiled around his left arm.

The green snake flicked its tongue, its body curling and bouncing on his arm, landing in Shen Jing's hand, rubbing its head affectionately against her palm.

The man glared at Shen Jing, his expression clearly very displeased, "Junior Sister Shen, I’ve told you many times that I can refine the century-old stone milk in just a few hours. Once I break through to the seventh level, what’s the worry about not collecting our two jade tokens? Why did you have the green snake wake me up at this time?"

Shen Jing turned her head away forcefully, huffing, "The stone milk won’t be lost if it’s not refined for a while. Is Junior Sister’s life less important to Senior Brother Yang than a few drops of stone milk?"

The man's face turned awkward, hesitating for a moment before walking to Shen Jing's side. He gently lifted his hand, awkwardly grabbing Shen Jing's shoulders, and softly consoled her, "Junior Sister, I was also worried. There are so many experts in the Eight Trigram Forbidden Area. If we can’t enter the Yuanzhao Sect, who knows what the old ghosts of the Kuaiyin Sect will do to us. Besides, this person has already been easily trapped by your Spirit Confusion Mirror, why are you still afraid of him?"

Qin Sang, trapped in the mirror array, heard every word of their conversation. When he heard the man’s voice and Shen Jing’s address, he was instantly shocked.

The person who arrived was also a fellow disciple of the Kuaiyin Sect, Senior Brother Yang Yuancang, who had obtained the Chi Dragon Sword in the Sect Master’s cave.

The three of them had coincidentally ended up in the same area, and these two had already colluded!

Qin Sang’s expression changed, his eyes deeply staring at the black mist barrier around him. At this point, he had a pretty good idea of how he had fallen into the trap.

During the fight with the hooded swordsman, those golden rings were definitely not emitted by the Spirit Confusion Mirror. Shen Jing must have had another defensive talisman, using a deception to hide the true function of the Spirit Confusion Mirror, which he hadn’t noticed.

This wasn’t an unfair defeat; this woman’s acting was too superb, disguising the true ability of the Spirit Confusion Mirror and pretending to be weak to lower his guard.

She must have been plotting how to outsmart him from the moment he appeared.

Qin Sang sighed inwardly, his brows furrowed, feeling uneasy. How could he escape from two fellow disciples with top-grade talismans?

The mist seemed to only have the effect of trapping people. Qin Sang was like being trapped in a hollow iron ball, the mist drifting around him, causing only bone-chilling cold but no other abnormalities.

He waved his hand, releasing a cold energy that turned into ice spikes, which were deflected when they hit the mist barrier.

At the same time, the mirror array outside trembled.

Shen Jing’s eyes widened, and she pointed at the mirror array, shouting, "Easily? Do you know who this person is?"

Yang Yuancang was taken aback, "Could it be..."

Shen Jing nodded, "It’s our fellow disciple, Qin Sang!"

"Is he the one who fainted in the Sect Master’s cave?"

Yang Yuancang laughed, clearly remembering Qin Sang, "I remember Uncle Yue mentioned that he seemed to have a five-element spirit root. He must have had some good luck to consume a strange fruit and barely step onto the path of immortality. Such a cowardly rat is not worth mentioning..."

Shen Jing huffed, "Senior Brother Yang, if you keep underestimating people like this, you might end up in a big mess! You don’t know how difficult Junior Brother Qin is to deal with. I used every means possible but couldn’t gain his trust, not even a chance to leave a mark. I even tried to lure him to the mountain crocodile’s nest with jade tokens and spirit medicines, but he didn’t budge. He never showed me the ability of his winged talisman. I had to rack my brains to find an opportunity to set up the Spirit Confusion Mirror, otherwise..."

Before she finished, Yang Yuancang’s face turned as black as a pot, angrily saying, "What means did you use to gain his trust? Did you...?"

"What do you think I am!"

Shen Jing looked aggrieved, on the verge of tears, "Since I entrusted myself to you, I have been completely devoted to you! After being coerced by Junior Brother Qin, I had to pretend to cooperate, immediately sending the green snake to seek your help, never forgetting to escape. You still doubt me!"

"I only said that because I care about you..."

Seeing Shen Jing’s tears, Yang Yuancang’s anger instantly dissipated, apologizing repeatedly. Seeing no effect, he immediately shouted, "Junior Sister Shen, open the mirror array. Since Qin dared to coerce you, I will use the Chi Dragon Sword to split him open and vent your anger!"

"My greatest enemy is you!"

Shen Jing gave Yang Yuancang a flirtatious glare, "What’s the rush? I estimate that Junior Brother Qin’s winged talisman likely has the ability to fly. The sect’s top-grade talisman, your Void Wind, might not be able to catch up. Let him stay in the array for a while. The mist from the Spirit Confusion Mirror has a mind-clouding effect. Wait until he’s dazed before making a move. He has at least three jade tokens, so don’t fail!"

Yang Yuancang’s eyes lit up, "Three jade tokens, plus ours, that makes seven!"

Shen Jing smiled and nodded.

...

Inside the mirror array, countless ice shards formed a bluish-white cold wind, filling the small space, impacting the mist barrier, and blocking the view.

Qin Sang sat cross-legged, each hand holding a spirit stone. The blackwood sword flew out from his dantian, hovering in front of him, the spiritual energy glow becoming increasingly bright, the sword body trembling continuously, as if eager to kill.

After being trapped in the mirror array, Qin Sang originally planned to wait for Shen Jing to open the array and use the Cloud Falling Wings to escape. But after hearing Shen Jing and Yang Yuancang’s conversation, he immediately decided to use the blackwood sword.

He didn’t feel any mind-clouding effect from the mist in the mirror array; his mind was crystal clear.

To quickly accumulate enough spiritual energy, Qin Sang took a risk, absorbing two spirit stones simultaneously. The terrifying spiritual energy flooded into his body’s meridians, causing them to tear with intense pain, and his dantian felt like it was about to explode.

Qin Sang gritted his teeth, enduring the pain, his face contorted, but his eyes remained calm.

PS: I glanced back, and the status has finally changed!

I hope to get on the recommendation list in the future; being unlisted is too painful.

An old guy who can’t keep up with the times has the courage to write a book, and it’s been a torturous experience.

Thank you for your support; this book wouldn’t be where it is today without you. I even saw a fellow reader helping to promote it elsewhere, which was very touching.

A new journey begins; let’s all work hard together.

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