What the mirror reflected was what was on the other side of the wall. On the other side. Yin Yu shook Quan Yi Zhen vigourously, "Wake up, wake up?"
Quan Yi Zhen finally came to and mumbled semi-consciously, "Shihong, who bea me uh jus now? Wha sih ye?"
...Poor Qi Ying, he was so bruised up his speech was now unclear, and Xie Lian felt sympathy in spite of himself. "Did you think I could've beaten you?" Yin Yu asked.
Quan Yi Zhen scratched his head, and only then did he seem to recall, "Oh, ih was the emperer who bea me uh." Then, as if he suddenly remembered something, he became pumped up again, "He snach away your shovo, do you wan me to hel snach ih back?"
"Do you think you can beat him..." Yin Yu asked.
Xie Lian finally figured it out. This was the Palace of Qi Ying.
It seemed, Yin Yu was captured by Jun Wu when he came to look for Quan Yi Zhen.
Using the chance Jun Wu had circled back to behind his person, Xie Lian lowered his head and mouthed soundlessly, "Lord Wind Master, are you still there?"
However, it wasn't Shi Qing Xuan who responded but Jun Wu. Jun Wu spoke up from behind him, "Of course not."
"..."
Jun Wu said, "I suddenly remembered that the barrier locking the Heavenly Capital seemed to have leaks, so I've only just barred the Soul Shifting Spell too."
"..."
Jun Wu patted his shoulder and said amicably, "And to think, it was I who taught you the Soul Shifting Spell back then. Xian Le has been making practical usage of all the things I've taught you, I'm very pleased.
Then, he left. It didn't take long before Jun Wu's figure showed up inside that mirror. Quan Yi Zhen was the first to notice, "!"
Yin Yu also whipped around and called out in alarm, "My Lord?!"
Quan Yi Zhen jumped to his feet ready to fight, but Jun Wu only used a swing of his hand and Quan Yi Zhen was smacked back onto the futon, and the entire futon collapsed. Quan Yi Zhen fell back to the ground, his head lolled and lost consciousness again. Yin Yu was extremely guarded, however, Jun Wu said, "No need to be so tense. Think of it this way: even if you're on guard it'd be pointless, so why not relax a bit?"
That was certainly true. Yin Yu didn't know what to say and could only smile awkwardly as he had always done, but then it was quickly withdrawn. Jun Wu on the other hand, appeared to be relaxed and at ease, "My dear Yin Yu, I don't think I've ever chatted with you like this before in the past, am I right?"
Yin Yu replied cautiously, "...That seems to be the case."
In the past, while he was the martial god that ruled the west, his believers base and merits weren't strong and his rank wasn't high. Even though he wasn't the lowest of the heavenly officials in the Upper Court, but he was probably still below average, so he had practically no chance to be near the highest in the Upper Court, the Heavenly Martial Emperor. In the past, he was probably nervous even if Jun Wu was just passing by the entrance of his palace, and now, he was even more nervous. He added, "But there are many heavenly officials I've never conversed with before in the first place, and those who didn't know of me."
However, Jun Wu replied, "That's not necessarily true. There are many who know you. Even if they've never met you before, they know of you."
Yin Yu was taken aback, "Really?"
"Because, many know of your shidi." Jun Wu said, "And when your shidi is mentioned, the subject of you would often be raised. The one that's a foil."
Those were extremely piercing words. While it was only a colourless description without any emotions, but it was precisely because the one describing it was objective, and was only speaking the truth, which made it sting more. Quan Yi Zhen was still dizzy, not yet back to his senses, and Yin Yu hung his head low, clenching his fists.
Xie Lian could vaguely guess what Jun Wu was planning.
It was a good while before Yin Yu gathered his courage, "My Lord, what do you want? You're already the Heavenly Martial Emperor, nothing can bar you, the greatest martial god of the three realms, no one can shoulder your position, so why are you doing this? Just... what do you want?"
Of course Jun Wu didn't answer him. He said abruptly, "Yin Yu, do you want to return to the Upper Court?"
"What?!"
Xie Lian was also surprised by this question. What was Jun Wu planning? What was the meaning in coaxing Yin Yu to change sides at a time like this???
"I don't think you actually like being a mere errand boy in the ghost realm in the lower world?"
"..."
Yin Yu finally snapped to, "My Lord thinks too much. There's never a choice of like or dislike."
Xie Lian cried 'oh no' mentally, 'You can't answer like that. Now he'll probably find your weak point!'
Sure enough, Jun Wu gave a small smile, "Did you know that if you answer like this, what you actually mean is 'I dislike it; I'd rather not talk about it.'"
"..."
Indeed. If Yin Yu really felt confident, and that he really liked his current position in the ghost realm, he would've responded with "I like it very much" directly. Yet to evade being straightforward, his answer was instead very obvious.
Jun Wu continued, "You've come from a renowned household, an orthodox clan that never traversed the path of evil, raised and grew up in the sect, and was influenced since young that to ascend was the ultimate goal in life. A pursuit such as this is very difficult to give up. To fall to the ghost realm could only said to be a forced situation, an act borne of helplessness. Of course you're not able to say you're satisfied with the current position in the ghost realm, because it wasn't what you wanted in the first place."
Indeed Yin Yu didn't have enough confidence, and said weakly, "Chengzhu has shown me grace, he saved me..."
"I know." Jun Wu said, "He even helped you pacify and send off the resentful spirit of Jian Yu who died during banishment, am I right?"
"...Yes." Yin Yu said, "So whether I'm satisfied with the current position, it's all..."
"That's dissatisfaction." Jun Wu said, "You are bound by his grace and had nowhere to go, so you are only forcing yourself."
"..."
Yin Yu hung his head and didn't speak. Xie Lian was breaking out in cold sweat.
He could now somewhat guess how Jun Wu planned to attack, and Yin Yu's every expression, every gesture, from head to toe, was full of weakness!
"Then," Jun Wu said, "Let's turn this around. Let me ask you another question: Have you shown Quan Yi Zhen any grace?"
"..."
Jun Wu continued, "On what basis must you place yourself in a dissatisfactory position to devote yourself and repay kindness when someone irrelevant shows you grace, but when you show Quan Yi Zhen grace, he made you fall this low?"
"Yin Yu, to be in the habit of belittling yourself in order to help others is no good habit. You must know, no one will thank you."
He was pushing on every step, and each step was trampling where Yin Yu hurt the most!
Jun Wu then continued, "You've spent your entire life desiring to ascend. You desired for a good position in the Upper Court, and join the ranks within the Great Martial Hall. Even after Quan Yi Zhen made you such an embarrassment, his background accessory, the joke of the heavens, you still endured it and struggled to remain in the Heavenly Capital. Wasn't that because you wanted to stay here?"
"You belong here, but Quan Yi Zhen made a mess of everything, and easily robbed away everything that should've been yours."
"Who did he think he is?"
"Have you not given as much as him? No, you've given more than he did. And. When it came to overall abilities, he might not even compare. How come Qi Ying is now alone without aid nor support in the Upper Court? Because his mind is simple, ignorant and dumb, blunt and savage, so he's unable to have anyone respect him. But you. Your mind and wisdom are much more mature than his, you know the ways of the world better than him, you know when to charge and when to withdraw, and are more willing to put in an effort. If you had his natural talent, his
spiritual powers, then your achievements would be many, many times greater than his, and all would respect you."
Yin Yu was starting to grow restless, "I'm not understanding why My Lord is saying all this. All 'ifs' are meaningless, his spiritual powers are his..." Suddenly, he screamed and raised his own hand, crying in alarm, "WHAT?! WHAT IS THIS??"
Pure white spiritual light suddenly burst from one of his hands, so blinding it couldn't not be looked at directly. Jun Wu appeared apathetic and said, "No need to be afraid, it's just a bit of spiritual power."
Only then did Yin Yu calm down a little and said in disbelief, "Whose spiritual powers? ...Mine? I'm not this..." His spiritual powers weren't that strong.
"It's not yours yet." Jun Wu said, "But whether if it will become yours will depend on what you choose."
Yin Yu exclaimed, "If it's not mine then whose is it?? Could it be..."
Someone instantly came to mind and he looked over. Coincidentally, Quan Yi Zhen whose life force was stubbornly strong also became conscious again, looking dumbfounded. It seemed he was confused again. Jun Wu replied, "That's correct. This is Quan Yi Zhen's spiritual powers."
"Huh?" Quan Yi Zhen gaped.
"Why is his spiritual powers inside me?" Yin Yu questioned, "How can spiritual powers be transferred like this?? How is this possible???"
"Even fate can be switched, so why not spiritual powers?" Jun Wu said, "There are many things that aren't as difficult as you think. It's only a matter of some words and some brush strokes from great heavenly officials, that's all."
Yin Yu shuddered, "This... THIS...!!"
He tossed his hands as if he wanted to toss away some scalding hot yam, but that forcefully strong spiritual power leapt happily on his hand, blasting wherever his fingers pointed, and abruptly, an entire row of walls inside the Palace of Qi Ying were blown apart by him. The divine statue collapsed and the roof was almost going to cave in. Yin Yu became even more shocked and didn't dare to toss his hand randomly anymore. Jun Wu smiled, "Don't be nervous, take your time, just keep it packed in."
Yin Yu held that hand with his other hand, shaken and terrified, both his arms trembling. Jun Wu said, "Yin Yu, let me ask you again. Do you wish to return?"
Yin Yu panted a few breaths, his eyes red with blood, and he gazed over. Jun Wu said, "If you wish to return, not only can I help you remove the cursed shackle, I can also transfer all of Quan Yi Zhen's spiritual powers to you."
Quan Yi Zhen seemed to never have thought this kind of evil spells existed, and his entire person was dumbstruck. Xie Lian exclaimed dumbfoundedly, "??? ARE YOU CRAZY??!!"
Jun Wu said slowly, "And from now on, there will never be another who only knows of Qi Ying but not of Yin Yu. Who would dare not to remember your name? Nevermore will there be anyone."
Yin Yu stumbled a few steps back, his mind in jumbles, "I... I... I..."
Xie Lian was so high strung and tense he'd even forgotten he was still tied onto the chair by RuoYe. He held his breath, his hands gripped the chair, his body leaning forward.
There was one thing Jun Wu wasn't wrong about. Xie Lian could tell too. Deep in Yin Yu's heart, he looked up to the heavens more. He had belonged to the Upper Court in the first place. This was something that was planted deep within his mind, hard to change.
And, did Yin Yu really have not a single resentful thought towards Quan Yi Zhen?
He couldn't be sure.
Between those with so much to happen between them, it was completely impossible to utter the words "I don't hate you" so easily. This 'hatred' could be big or small, and Yin Yu wasn't a determined character; what he wanted to do was probably greatly influenced by those around him. Since they hadn't been well acquainted, Xie Lian couldn't be sure either just what Yin Yu would do, and could only pray silently in his mind.
Your Highness Yin Yu... watch out!
"I...I..."
Yin Yu was going out of his mind for a long while, and he sat down, covering his face with his hands. A moment later, he finally looked up, and his eyes also grew cold and somber