Chapter 765: Reincarnation Mirror Fragment

Except for the Doctor and the Security Guard, most of the tenants who had just fled Longchang scurried back the way they came. It was laughable that these monsters—neither human nor ghost—could still panic and scream.

Total chaos had consumed the outskirts of Longchang. The girl and I slipped out of our hiding spot, hugged the shadowed walls, and blended into the crowd.

Everyone's attention was fixed on the ferocious beast. Even the Red Building Obsessions failed to notice that one of their targets was barely a dozen meters away.

A series of deafening crashes echoed behind us. Every time the massive shadow shifted, it leveled the surrounding trees and shacks like a passing typhoon.

"Roar!"

Another deafening bellow shook the sky. The sound was so overwhelming I felt like Junsheng's remnant soul might shatter on the spot. I quickly covered my ears and crouched down.

I glanced back. The impossibly tall shadow loomed over Longchang, peering downward as if searching for something.

"Its silhouette resembles a horse and a dragon, with twin horns on its head. It isn't exactly the same as the Black Jade Statue in my hand." I didn't dare stare at the monster for too long, terrified it might notice me. Seeing that no one around was paying us any attention, I grabbed the girl's hand and quietly slipped away.

The Longchang residents further inside had no idea what was happening. Some were rushing outward, while the people at the entrance desperately tried to flee back in. The path was only so wide, making it difficult to squeeze through the sea of bodies.

Terrified of getting separated, I clutched the girl's hand tightly. The moment I moved, the ferocious beast outside Longchang seemed to sense the aura it was tracking drifting further away, and it grew even more frenzied.

It tore up the earth and toppled ancient trees, roaring furiously at the Longchang Ancient Buildings. Yet, perhaps for some reason, it didn't actually attack Longchang. It merely paced near the entrance, not daring to step within ten meters of the perimeter.

"What is it afraid of?"

I wasn't the only one; even Longchang's original residents didn't quite understand.

"If that old man runs into this monster, he's absolutely dead. Well, that makes things easy. We don't even have to go out looking for him anymore." The Doctor stared up at the imposing beast, his mouth splitting into a grin. "Now I'm just curious what this thing tastes like."

"You're wrong. The fact that this monster is lingering around Longchang proves exactly one thing." Hiding behind the Doctor, the Security Guard tilted his head, secretly sweeping his peripheral vision across their surroundings. "The person who lured it here is still inside Longchang. They might even be right around us!"

"I was wondering why you were glancing around so shiftily. Spot anything?" The Doctor didn't even turn his head. His casual movements completely contradicted his words. Unless someone was standing directly next to them, outsiders would never know what they were plotting.

These monsters, possessed by obsessions, seemed brutish and careless, but in reality, each one was more cunning than the last.

"Longchang isn't exactly massive, but it's not small either. Don't rush. We have plenty of time." The Security Guard let out a sinister chuckle. "There are still a few people in Room Four whose memories haven't awakened yet. I'll station them at every intersection and stairwell later. After that, we'll search door to door. As long as that old man's soul is still inside Longchang, we'll definitely find him."

"It makes no difference to me. I'm just worried Zhu Li will lose his patience. Being all alone in the Yang Realm puts a lot of pressure on him." The Doctor glanced down at the Security Guard. "Mr. Zhu told me to listen to you on everything. I hope you don't disappoint us."

The Security Guard turned his head stiffly, his voice completely devoid of emotion. "Actually, I've always been curious. A cannibal like you looks at everyone like they're food. Why are you so terrified of him?"

"We're all just remnant thoughts. What's there to be afraid of?" The Doctor's tone suddenly shifted. "But Mr. Zhu isn't quite like the rest of us. He hasn't spent these last few decades sitting idle. That malice on him seems to have undergone some changes."

The Doctor didn't elaborate, and the Security Guard wisely chose not to press. "Stand guard here and watch out for any surprises. I'm going to wake the others."

"Alright. Leave this to me."

While the two conversed, the ferocious beast outside finally lost its patience. A violent gale whipped past as it raised a massive front paw and slammed it down toward Longchang's back door.

The mountain-like claw descended like a meteorite. In the eyes of mortals, that power was unmatched.

But the instant the giant claw struck the back door, piercing light erupted from three separate locations inside Longchang! The night clouds were punctured. The light radiating from Longchang actually managed to pull down the illumination cascading from the Animal Realm's night sky. The two resonated and fused together, then splintered into thousands of radiant threads, forming a colossal, lake-like mirror directly above Longchang!

Everything within Longchang was reflected in the night sky. It was a deeply staggering sight.

The ferocious beast's giant claw slammed into the mirrored surface. The light to the north abruptly dimmed, then returned to normal a moment later.

Roars continually shook the outskirts. The giant beast had initially held back, but after several probing strikes failed to yield results, its patience was finally exhausted. Disregarding the cost, it began frantically battering the radiant mirror hovering over Longchang.

The vast, lake-like mirror flickered under the onslaught, yet it firmly shielded Longchang. It didn't look like it would be broken through anytime soon.

The massive battle on the outskirts left me breathless. Even if my ghost arts broke through to the fifth level, I would be hard-pressed to intervene in a clash of that magnitude. I figured only Daoist master Wan or the Blood Fox in its prime could hold their own against it.

With the mirror directly overhead and no crowds to block the view, it would be much easier for someone to single out a specific person from the reflection.

I looked up. In the mirror, the Security Guard was scanning the area. He had clearly realized this as well and was searching for the girl.

Knowing we couldn't stay here, I wanted to slip away immediately. But as my gaze swept across the Doctor, my feet rooted to the spot.

When the ferocious beast attacked, three separate sources of light had erupted inside Longchang—and one of them was on the Doctor!

His pig face was turned directly toward the ferocious beast, his expression completely devoid of fear. His right hand rested against his chest, holding a broken Mirror Fragment flat. At first glance, the shard looked unremarkable, but upon closer inspection, his immediate vicinity was the only bright spot in the pitch-black Animal Realm. The Mirror Fragment itself wasn't emitting light; instead, the light in the Animal Realm was actively converging around the mirror, aiding its task.

'It's exactly like the mirror fragment I brought out from the Deep Dream Layer. Come to think of it, three lights flared up in Longchang, which means there are three Reincarnation Mirror Fragments buried in this place!'

Someone had refined those three mirror fragments and incorporated them into a grand formation to protect Longchang, allowing it to maintain its original form even while in the Animal Realm.

'Longchang Apartments goes through a cycle of reincarnation every single day. This might be connected to the formation, but unfortunately, my knowledge is too shallow to decipher anything. If only Half-Immortal Liu and Daoist master Wan were here.' I looked at our location in the mirror. A scrawny boy and a somewhat haggard girl huddled together, standing out glaringly amid the herd of pigs. 'No, we have to leave right now!'

Before the Security Guard could look our way, I grabbed the girl and sprinted along the wall toward the main building.

'Three lights. One from the Doctor, and the other two are entirely inside the main building. If the opportunity arises, I should try to steal them.'

The Reincarnation Mirror Fragments were items of immense significance. At first, I hadn't fully grasped this, but watching just three fragments hold back the ferocious beast's attack on the Other Shore of Reincarnation finally made me realize just how extraordinary they were.

'I can't act recklessly yet. The moment a Reincarnation Mirror Fragment is taken, the formation will shatter. When that happens, the ferocious beast outside will definitely come after me. If I want to seize such a massive prize, I'll have to risk my life at the very last second.' With everyone completely distracted by the beast and the mirror overhead, the girl and I managed to slip back into the main building without wasting much time.

With the mirror overhead reflecting the area, I could track the Security Guard's and the Doctor's movements at any time. The enemy was out in the open while I was in the dark; the situation was still under control.

'The Doctor was left at Longchang's back door, and the Security Guard is pacing around that area. They haven't spotted me yet.' Although my scheme to lure the tiger from the mountain hadn't completely succeeded, it had at least worked to some extent. The Longchang tenants were tied down, giving the girl and me plenty of time to hide.

"Follow me." Based on the Security Guard's earlier words, there were still unawakened obsessions inside Room Four, so the main building wasn't guaranteed to be safe either.

'The Security Guard and the Doctor's plan is to conduct a door-to-door carpet search. It's an open conspiracy. They have all the time in the world in this realm, but I only have one chance to escape. Now, it's just a matter of whether they find me first, or if the girl and I can hold out until dawn.'

The Copper Mirror would only activate the exact moment the sun rose in the Yang Realm. I had to seize that opportunity.

Avoiding Room Four, the girl and I ran up the staircase on the other side. Fortunately, we didn't run into any of Longchang's adults along the way.

"This is the place."

Seeing the Copper Mirror hanging above the doorframe, I finally breathed a sigh of relief. "We'll hide in the room across from this mirror. The moment the mirror reflects light, we'll come out. Remember, you have to hold tightly onto my hand when that happens!"

The girl had no idea what I was planning, but she subconsciously chose to obey. Perhaps she felt that Junsheng would never hurt her.

I pushed the door open, but before I even walked in, my brows furrowed.

A foul stench drifted through the room. The bedsheets were crumpled, and the blankets had been haphazardly tossed together. Someone lived in this room; the occupant had merely just left.

'The other rooms are either too far from the Copper Mirror, or you can't see the changes in the mirror immediately...' I tested a few adjacent rooms. Some of the doors were locked and couldn't be opened, while faint breathing sounds could be heard from inside others, which I didn't dare approach. After thinking it over, this room was the only suitable choice.

"If time flows at the same speed on both shores of reincarnation, dawn should be breaking in the Yang Realm soon. I'll take a gamble." I released the girl's wrist and looked into her eyes. "Everything is about to end. We've reached the most critical moment. I know you've forgotten a lot of things, but I'll help you slowly remember them soon."

The girl nodded slightly, reaching out to touch the wrist I had just been gripping. A trace of an indescribably complex emotion lingered on her face—a bit of reluctance, and a bit of sadness.

I looked forward to the dawn's early arrival, yet it seemed as if she was wishing for this dark night to last just a little bit longer.

"You don't need to be like this. Tonight is absolutely not the last night you will spend with Junsheng. Trust me, once the sun rises, I will give you an answer!"