Mu Yun’s words caused a flicker of surprise to pass across Lu Xuan’s face, but it quickly returned to normal.
Good. This way, the task that the Division Master had entrusted to him was also considered complete.
Because the Division Master had only sent him to investigate the identity of this Cataclysm-level anomaly.
If it really was Princess Xingyue, then after he dealt with this ghastly thing, he would also have to make a trip to Mingxin Prefecture to take care of the Wen family.
“Mhm.”
“Division Master Mu, you may leave first.”
“I’ll handle things here. You go back and gather all the Xuan Bird Guards to prepare for the aftermath.”
The moment Lu Xuan finished speaking, a scorching aura suddenly surged around him.
The Primordial Spirit power within his body churned violently, and a vast, surging force burst forth from him, causing the surrounding air to tremble.
Looking out, the entire city of Haoran Prefecture lay in utter silence, devoid of any trace of human life.
Lu Xuan had already anticipated this the moment he set foot in the city.
The entire prefecture had long been thoroughly permeated by the cold, decaying Nether Force of the Ghost Realm.
Every inch of land, every structure, emanated a bone-chilling aura, clearly having all become part of the Ghost Realm.
As for those dense, endless black ghostly shadows that had appeared earlier—
Lu Xuan knew very well that these terrifying specters had been living humans not long ago.
They had been cruelly twisted into these grotesque monsters by the Yin Nether Force of the Ghost Realm.
Alas!
This was still the first time Lu Xuan had encountered something so tragic. This was an entire city’s worth of people.
At this point, Lu Xuan could no longer turn the tide. He could only hurry up and eliminate this thing.
Just then, the void surrounding Lu Xuan and Mu Yun underwent an eerie transformation without any warning.
Everything around them began to slowly grow hazy, sinking into a strange state.
Whether it was the tall, upright human structures or the solid earth beneath their feet—
Even the seemingly empty void itself began to gradually reveal moving, phantom images.
These residual images, as if sketched by the brush of time itself, carried a mixture of realism and mystery.
Every frame of imagery flowed slowly, vivid and lifelike.
It was as if someone’s long-buried memories were being released without reservation in that very instant.
In the next moment, within those countless images, the figures of two women appeared simultaneously.
Their faces were clearly distinguishable, and even their conversation reached Lu Xuan’s ears without any obstruction.
One of the women in the images was unmistakably the pale, eerie face currently hanging high in the sky above.
Suddenly, a gentle, melodious female voice, like a mountain spring, drifted up slowly.
Within the flowing, illusory images, the other woman parted her lips.
“Lan’er, it seems like Mochen has changed. These days, I find him somewhat unfathomable.”
This voice was ethereal yet carried a hint of tenderness, echoing leisurely across the vast heavens and earth.
This woman had a graceful figure, dressed in a stunning, pitch-black robe, like a mysterious nebula in the night sky, clinging perfectly to her form.
The black robe was exquisitely embroidered, every stitch and thread weaving intricate, complex patterns.
Several tiny black birds adorned it, each in a different pose.
Some fluttered as if about to take flight, others stretched their necks as if singing. Every little black bird seemed imbued with a living soul, dancing nimbly and vividly amid the woman’s exquisite garments.
The woman’s entire being radiated an innate noble aura at all times, inspiring involuntary awe.
Every second of these images highlighted the woman’s extraordinarily distinguished identity and status—an inborn elegance and nobility.
“Your Highness, have you forgotten that matter Lan’er mentioned to you last time?”
At these words, Princess Xingyue’s brow furrowed slightly, then she fell into thought.
“You mean the time last time when Mochen received the various regional governors of the Eastern Domain and the prefectural Xuan Bird Guards along with the old master?”
In the image, the woman called Lan’er inclined her body slightly and replied respectfully, “Yes, Your Highness!”
She paused, a glint of caution flashing in her eyes, then lowered her voice. “Lan’er also secretly bribed a few maidservants. They witnessed certain things with their own eyes.”
The princess’s delicate brows knitted together, her eyes full of doubt. Just then, the scene shifted, switching to the Wen family estate.
The Wen family, being relatives of the imperial house, had decked the place with lanterns and decorations, laid out a grand feast, and made a great show of receiving the various regional governors of the Eastern Domain.
The atmosphere at the scene seemed lively and bustling, with everyone exchanging pleasantries, toasting one another. But beneath this surface splendor, an indescribable sense of intrigue lurked faintly.
Such a grand spectacle was truly puzzling, as if hiding secrets that could not be spoken aloud.
“Lan’er, for now, pretend you know nothing of this. Let me ponder it a little more.”
Princess Xingyue said softly. In her limpid, autumn-water-like eyes, a multitude of complex and hard-to-read emotions flickered in an instant—worry, contemplation, and a hint of disappointment buried deep within.
She tilted her head slightly, gazing into the distance, gently biting her lower lip, a faint, elusive melancholy clinging to her.
Clearly, Princess Xingyue was weighing something, her heart full of conflict and struggle.
“Yes, Your Highness!”
In the next instant, the scene abruptly shifted from that extravagant, ornately decorated room to an entirely unfamiliar space.
The first thing that met the eye in this room was a shocking sight: scattered across the floor were countless torn shreds of clothing, carelessly strewn about.
Looking further ahead, a large bed came into view. On it lay a woman, barely clad.
Her skin was as fair as snow, yet now it was covered in dense, purplish-red scars.
They crisscrossed in every direction, as if countless sharp implements had been ruthlessly dragged across her again and again.
Every wound on her delicate body seemed to silently tell of the unimaginable torment she had just endured.
At that moment, a man stood before the bed. He had a tall, straight posture and wore a moon-white robe.
His features were sharply defined, his brows and eyes radiating a natural handsomeness. His every movement and gesture should have embodied a refined, gentle elegance.
But at this moment, the gentle-looking man’s brows and eyes were filled with savagery and brutality, creating an eerily stark contrast with his appearance.
“Wretched slave!”
He suddenly roared, his voice shrill and piercing, completely devoid of his usual cultured demeanor.
“You insolent wench! How dare you threaten this consort with the princess? You’re asking for death!”
The roar carried a terrifying, chilling malevolence that shook the dust from the rafters above.
This level of savagery was enough to make anyone who saw it shudder.
“Come in. This woman has bored this consort. I’m handing her over to you to deal with.”
The refined-looking man cast a look of disgust at the woman on the bed and waved his hand dismissively.
At this command, a flurry of chaotic footsteps sounded from outside the closed door.
Over a dozen burly, muscle-bound giants charged in like wolves and tigers. They exuded a crude, rough aura that clashed utterly with the room’s atmosphere.
“Thank you for the reward, Lord Consort!”
The lead giant wore a fawning grin so obsequious that his features seemed to scrunch together.
In this grim and cruel scene, it looked utterly ridiculous.
With that, the giant eagerly strode toward the bed.
His hands moved restlessly up and down as he frantically stripped off his own clothes.
His eyes blazed with greed and burning desire, as if he wanted to devour the beautiful woman on the bed whole.
The woman on the bed was none other than Princess Xingyue’s personal maidservant, Xu Zhilan.
She was exceptionally beautiful, ranking among the top beauties within the Wen family estate.
Ordinarily, the giant could only secretly covet her beauty from the shadows, that desire suppressed deep in his heart, burning quietly like a small flame.
Who would have thought that fate would be so absurd—the giant’s dream would come true today.
He actually had the chance to lay his hands on this woman he had longed for. Wild joy surged in his heart, his steps growing more urgent, his expression twisting further.
As for the refined-looking man, a hint of amusement curled at the corner of his mouth. He paced over to a chair beside him and sat down leisurely.
Leaning back slightly, his posture relaxed, but his eyes remained fixed on the movements by the bed, his gaze carrying undisguised mockery.
This damned wench had repeatedly gone to the princess to complain about him.
Today, this consort would teach this wretch who her true master was.
Not long after, a loud crash rang out. Outside the room, a dazzling, pitch-black arc of profound energy came howling like a furious dragon.
It suddenly blasted through the room. In an instant, the walls and roof shattered into countless fragments, shooting outward like cannonballs in all directions.
As the surrounding walls collapsed, the scene inside the room was exposed without reservation to the open air.
“Lan’er!”
A grief-stricken cry echoed on the scene, the voice filled with boundless pain and fury.
Then, a piercing, shrill voice rang out, as if it would shatter the very heavens and earth: “Wen Mochen, you deserve to die!”
At the same time, accompanying these two furious roars from the newcomer, a mysterious radiance shimmered in midair.
“Xuantian Hairpin!” As these three words were shouted, the mysterious light that had been shrouding the air slowly faded like mist, revealing a small, delicate object.
It was a pitch-black bronze hairpin, its body smooth and flowing, carved with intricate and mysterious patterns.
Under the sunlight, it glowed with an ancient, cold luster.
The one flying through the air had a light, graceful figure like a swallow, her robes flapping loudly in the wind.
Her black hair streamed in the breeze, her face stunningly beautiful yet covered in frost.
It was Princess Xingyue.
At this moment, Princess Xingyue’s almond-shaped eyes were wide open, blazing with fury as she stared fixedly at Wen Mochen inside the room, as if she wanted to tear him into a thousand pieces.
In her hand she gripped the “Xuantian Hairpin,” its body radiating intense light, as if responding to its master’s towering rage.
This hairpin was no ordinary item. It was a Seven-Pattern Lunar Artifact specially bestowed by the late emperor to protect Princess Xingyue.
The void around Princess Xingyue began to ripple violently like boiling water, sending out terrifying concentric waves.
In the blink of an eye, a surging, pitch-black arc of profound energy emerged from the void.
Then, this black profound energy, carrying the primal power of heaven and earth contained within the Xuantian Hairpin,
hurtled toward the stunned Wen Mochen with cataclysmic force, as if it would completely blast him into dust, leaving not even a wisp of ash behind.
Wen Mochen’s eyes bulged as he stared at the onrushing attack, which carried world-destroying momentum. His face was a mask of terror and despair.
At this moment, his entire body trembled uncontrollably, his legs went weak, and he could barely stand.
His heart was filled with endless fear, not even a single thought of resistance forming in his mind. He could only watch helplessly as that terrifying power bore down on him.
Princess Xingyue was a martial artist at the Outer Gang Grandmaster realm, while he was merely a minor Inner Qi realm martial artist. How could he possibly withstand such a fearsome blow?
However, that pitch-black arc of profound energy, carrying with it towering wrath and immense power—
at the very instant it was about to strike Wen Mochen—vanished without a trace, erased as if by some invisible, mysterious force, like a bubble popping.
In an instant, Princess Xingyue’s delicate body trembled. As if sensing something terrifying, her beautiful eyes widened in disbelief as she gazed into the distance.
Immediately after, an overwhelming, irresistible force crashed into Princess Xingyue’s body like a surging wave.
With a dull thud, she fell heavily to the ground like a bird with broken wings, kicking up a cloud of dust.
“Damn it!”
Wen Mochen snapped back to his senses. A surge of boldness welled up from the depths of his heart, and he erupted like a madman.
“You dared to try to kill me just for a lowly wench!” With that, Wen Mochen channeled all his internal strength and charged at the fallen Princess Xingyue like a starving tiger pouncing on its prey.
His hands clamped down like iron pincers on her limbs. With a twist of force, several crisp cracking sounds rang out as Princess Xingyue’s limbs were cruelly broken.
But Wen Mochen did not stop there. He circulated his inner energy, gathering it in his palm.
That palm began to glow with a faint white light, and without a moment’s hesitation, he slammed it viciously toward Princess Xingyue’s chest, aiming to kill her and vent his hatred.
Just as Wen Mochen’s palm was about to strike Princess Xingyue’s heart—
a figure slowly materialized. It was a hunched old man, his back bent like a bow, yet carrying an imposing dignity.
The newcomer walked with slow but steady steps, softly calling out: “Xiao Chen!”
His voice was not loud, yet it seemed to carry some invisible force, causing Wen Mochen’s murderous palm to freeze in midair.
When Wen Mochen’s gaze fell upon the old man, his eyes suddenly bulged as wide as bells.
The blazing fury that had filled him moments ago dissipated instantly, as if doused with a bucket of cold water.
His hands began to tremble involuntarily, the ferocity on his face quickly fading, replaced by deep-seated fear.
“Ancestor!”
Wen Mochen’s ancestor, naturally, was the Wen family patriarch—Duke Rongguo, Wen Fengyuan!
Wen Fengyuan’s expression was impassive, his lips tightly sealed. Only his eyes suddenly narrowed.
In the next breath, the surrounding void collapsed and distorted violently, like a shattered mirror.
Among everyone present, except for Princess Xingyue and Wen Mochen,
the other dozen or so burly guards, along with the barely-breathing Xu Zhilan, didn’t even have time to let out a scream.
Crushed by this terrifying power of heaven and earth, they exploded in an instant into thick clouds of blood mist that scattered into the intangible air.
………
The images came to an abrupt halt!
Before Lu Xuan could make a move, Mu Yun beside him was somehow already holding a golden bronze mirror, steady in his hand.
Then, Mu Yun inclined his body slightly and said respectfully, “Division Master Lu, the Image-Retaining Mirror has captured all the images.”
This golden bronze mirror was an extremely special Six-Pattern Star-Grade Ritual Implement, capable of capturing all phenomena in the world.
No matter what kind of scene, it could fully absorb it into the mirror.
However, the images stored by the Image-Retaining Mirror could only last for three months.
This mirror was something that Division Master Ziyao had temporarily given to Mu Yun,
for the purpose of recording important events into the mirror.
