Chapter 22: The Mirror
\n\u201cStrange, there\u2019s no trace of the Black Wind Lord.\u201d
\nZuo Meng openly landed atop the highest structure of Heifeng Fort without concealment. With his current cultivation, none of the Black Wind Lord\u2019s disciples posed a threat\u2014neither the boatman nor the woman could withstand even a single strike from him. On this mountain, he feared nothing except the Black Wind Lord himself.
\n\u201cI clearly saw him ascend during the day, yet no one has descended since.\u201d
\nZuo Meng grew increasingly wary of the Black Wind Lord\u2019s cunning. After modifying the laws, his internal energy had surged by two centuries. He should have detected anyone leaving the mountain, yet this formidable figure had vanished like smoke, cooling Zuo Meng\u2019s recently inflated mentality.
\nThis world held deeper secrets than he\u2019d imagined.
\n\u201cI\u2019ll search the chambers first.\u201d
\nWith a flip, Zuo Meng entered an upper-level room of Heifeng Fort. The boatman had reported here earlier\u2014this had to be the Black Wind Lord\u2019s quarters.
\nThe room lay silent. Dust coated the wooden floors. Shelves held bamboo scrolls while landscapes and calligraphy adorned the walls. Further in sat meditation cushions and a bed, appearing entirely ordinary.
\n\u201cSuspicious. This empty space shows no signs of habitation.\u201d
\nMemories of the Lord who\u2019d escorted him up the mountain prickled Zuo Meng\u2019s instincts.
\n\u201cCommon calligraphy scrolls?\u201d
\nHe inspected a bamboo slip only to find mundane writings.
\nVenturing deeper, Zuo Meng discovered scattered bamboo slips and peculiar puppets in a back chamber. Finding no clues, he returned to study the wall paintings\u2014crude works likely created by the Black Wind Lord. Alongside landscapes and flora, bizarre human portraits caught his eye: all figures faced away, their backs turned as if gazing into eternity. Young and old, monks and Daoists\u2014none revealed their faces.
\nAt the third window-side painting, Zuo Meng froze. Lifting the scroll revealed hollow darkness behind.
\n\u201cStairs?\u201d
\nA hidden staircase ascended where no higher floor should exist. Though cautious, his two centuries of cultivation emboldened him. After momentary hesitation, he climbed.
\nThe world hushed as his foot touched the first step.
\nSilence swallowed all sound.
\n\u201cAbsent sound laws?\u201d
\nZuo Meng instantly recognized the missing fundamental forces.
\n\u201cMore than sound\u2014multiple laws are deficient here. Is this the Black Wind Lord\u2019s true power?\u201d
\nLaw loopholes!
\nTwenty-one steps led to a sparse loft containing only a table and tarnished mirror. As Zuo Meng approached, primal dread froze him mid-step.
\nDanger!
\nExtreme danger!
\nThe bronze mirror\u2019s cloudy surface held a watching figure\u2014a being whose gaze promised death. Instinct screamed that advancing would unleash this entity.
\n\u201cWhat nightmare is this?\u201d
\nDespite his formidable power, Zuo Meng recognized forces beyond mortal comprehension. The mirror\u2019s secret birthed legends\u2014this was how the Black Wind Lord ascended.
\n\u201cDeeper law analysis required. The Dream World needs further development.\u201d
\nSuppressing ambition, Zuo Meng retreated.
\nBack in the empty chamber, he fled through the window into night\u2019s embrace.
\nMoments later in the hidden chamber, the mirror quivered. A pale hand emerged, its touch reducing the table to ash. Black Mist billowed as a silhouette stepped forth.
\n\u201cResisting temptation… Worthy of being my disciple, slayer of the Defiler.\u201d
\nThe figure ascended to Zuo Meng\u2019s entry point. Dissipating mist revealed the Black Wind Lord himself.
\n\u201cSoon,\u201d the Lord murmured by the window, \u201cnew portraits will join my collection.\u201d
\n\u201cWouldn\u2019t you agree, Dao Zuo?\u201d
\nFrom shadowed corners emerged the puppet Zuo Meng had glimpsed earlier.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Chapter 22: The Mirror \u201cStrange, there\u2019s no trace of the Black Wind Lord.\u201d Zuo Meng openly landed atop the highest structure of Heifeng Fort without concealment. With his current cultivation, none of the Black Wind Lord\u2019s disciples posed a threat\u2014neither the boatman nor the woman could withstand even a single strike from him. On this mountain, he feared nothing except the Black Wind Lord\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","categories":[3],"tags":[],"fcn_genre":[],"fcn_fandom":[],"fcn_character":[],"fcn_content_warning":[],"class_list":["post-1401","fcn_chapter","type-fcn_chapter","status-publish","hentry","category-dreaming-to-become-a-creator"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_chapter\/1401","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_chapter"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/fcn_chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1401"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_chapter\/1401\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1401"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1401"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1401"},{"taxonomy":"fcn_genre","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_genre?post=1401"},{"taxonomy":"fcn_fandom","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_fandom?post=1401"},{"taxonomy":"fcn_character","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_character?post=1401"},{"taxonomy":"fcn_content_warning","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_content_warning?post=1401"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}