In the secret chamber, silver spear light and green staff wind intertwined, bursting into brilliant colors.
A woman flew forward, her green staff swirling, causing layers of floral waterfalls to blossom, forcing the Mirage Woman to take two steps back.
The Mirage Woman looked at Zanxing, her gaze full of suspicion. “Who are you, that you are not affected by my illusion?”
This altar was already the center of the illusion. Anyone, even a highly skilled cultivator, would have their power impaired upon reaching this place. Zanxing was merely at the Golden Core stage. Normally, by this point, her power should have been completely drained, leaving her weaker than an ordinary person. But instead, her power seemed to be slowly recovering over time.
“If you went out more often, you would know what it means to have a mountain beyond a mountain,” Zanxing said. “Staying cooped up here all day, don’t delude yourself into thinking you can control everything!” With that, she thrust her staff forward.
However, the tip of the staff struck something hard.
From the front end of the snake staff, two shadows of giant pythons—one green and one red—suddenly shot out. Each as thick as a barrel, they quickly filled the secret chamber. The snake heads loomed over Zanxing, their cold snake eyes a chilling blood-red. Before Zanxing could retract her Panhua Staff, the green snake lunged at her.
“Danger!” A gust of wind swept past from behind. Gu Baiying pulled her back, his Xiu Gu Spear clashing with the massive body of the green snake, making a metallic “clang” as if striking armor.
The Mirage Woman laughed with a snort.
Zanxing’s heart tightened. The next moment, she heard a muffled groan. Gu Baiying was flung away from her side, a crimson giant python slithering behind him, its tongue like a sharp spike. Blood slowly blossomed on the front of Gu Baiying’s white robe.
He fell to the ground, unable to get up for a moment. Zanxing rushed over to help him up.
“Little Immortal, do you really think you can still deal with me?” The Mirage Woman covered her mouth and laughed. “Not to mention that due to the spiritual veins, your energy is already in complete disarray. Even without the spiritual veins, having drunk the water of Wufan City, it is impossible for you to leave Wufan City.”
Zanxing asked, “Water?”
“Disciples from major sects are cautious about not consuming unknown food. Cautious, indeed,” the Mirage Woman said with a hint of mockery in her voice. “But it’s useless. As long as you use anything from Wufan City, even just drinking a sip of its water, you become part of the illusion and must accept my ‘dao’.”
Zanxing suddenly understood.
At Xu Douniang’s house, Douniang had boiled water for them to drink. After exiting the teleportation array, they had traveled a long distance, and in their extreme thirst and hunger, they drank the water there. It seemed that the sensations of “thirst, cold, and fatigue” were likely the Mirage Woman’s illusions, all to lure them into Wufan City. Thirsty, cold, and tired travelers, suddenly seeing a bustling city, would lower their guard, leading them to “eat, drink, rest, and stay” in this place. By using anything from this place, they accepted its “rules,” completely losing their energy.
“Little Immortal, your cultivation is indeed high, but,” the Mirage Woman glanced at Gu Baiying, her eyes sparkling, “with your spiritual veins damaged and trapped in an illusion, your energy completely drained, you are now just an ordinary person and no match for me.” She smiled slightly, her tone turning suggestive, “Why not stay here and become a pair of immortal lovers with me?”
“Stop dreaming,” Zanxing sneered. “My martial uncle is a pure and noble person. How could he stoop to associate with a filthy and disgraceful monster like you?” She stood in front of Gu Baiying. “Being with you day and night is worse than death, right, Martial Uncle?”
Gu Baiying: “…”
Repeatedly interrupted by Zanxing, the Mirage Woman’s gaze at her turned increasingly sinister. She coldly assessed Zanxing. “You are indeed unexpected, able to exert your energy even within my illusion. However,” she squinted her eyes, “it seems you haven’t fully recovered. You can’t open your Qiankun Bag, and your skills are mediocre at best. Having only regained fifty percent of your power, you are not to be feared.” Her voice turned sharp at the end, “I will cut off your head and hang it on the flagpole at the gates of Wufan City!”
At the end of the snake staff, two giant pythons suddenly lunged out, viciously attacking the woman standing in the secret chamber.
Gu Baiying tried to get up and help, but after being bitten by the snake, his entire body felt paralyzed and stiff, unable to move. As his thoughts raced, he shouted to Zanxing, “Be careful, there’s snake venom!”
The giant python’s sharp fangs were right in front of her, its foul breath hitting her face. Zanxing narrowly avoided the attack by stepping on the snake’s head. She saw the other red python slithering towards Gu Baiying, seemingly intending to coil around him.
“Despicable!” Zanxing gripped her Panhua Staff and fiercely struck the python. The force of her attack caused the snake to veer off course, almost crashing into Mimi. Mimi squealed and jumped away with her tail stiff.
Zanxing hurried to Gu Baiying’s side. “Martial Uncle, are you alright?”
Seeing this, the Mirage Woman angrily shouted, “Let go of my prey!”
Zanxing turned around abruptly, defiantly shouting back, “He is not yours. He is mine, both his body and his heart!”
Gu Baiying gritted his teeth. “…Both of you, shut up!”
The Mirage Woman glared intensely at Zanxing and abruptly retracted her snake staff. The two giant pythons vanished, and she charged at Zanxing with the staff in hand. “Bitch, today I will make you wish for death for all eternity!”
The ornate and sinister snake staff, enveloped in immense spiritual power, swept toward Zanxing. There was no doubt that a strike from this staff would reduce anyone to ashes.
The wind generated by the staff seemed to have a form, and from its front emerged the phantom of a giant python, reminiscent of the colossal creature that had lunged from the bonfire on the night of the Ji She Festival. The python screeched as it rushed toward Zanxing, ready to tear her to pieces!
As the giant shadow opened its bloody maw, poised to swallow Zanxing whole, a soft deep blue light emanated from Zanxing’s hand.
The gentle, azure light cushioned the oncoming gust, causing the fierce aura to vanish instantly. The blue light gradually spread, filling the entire chamber with shimmering reflections, like ripples on the sea’s surface stirred by a gentle breeze.
A mist enveloped the chamber, and Zanxing heard the Mirage Woman’s furious curses. She turned to look at Gu Baiying.
Gu Baiying stared at her in disbelief. “You…”
Zanxing walked over to him, crouched down, and opened her palm. A silver scale slowly floated up, rising into the air and spreading the blue light around.
Gu Baiying asked, “The shark demon’s scale?”
“Martial Uncle, do you remember the legend of the Mirage Woman?” Zanxing paused before asking.
Gu Baiying remained silent.
“The Mirage Woman often appears with shark demons in the deserts and oceans,” Zanxing said, as the scale in the air continued to emit a soft, cool glow, like the West Sea in summer. “Shark demons can also perform illusions. Though not as powerful as the Mirage Woman’s mirages, they can still fend off her powers for a while.”