Chapter 67

#Her eyes are like a dog’s.

Xie Zhuo curled his ink-stained fingertips into his palm, as if he wanted to carefully treasure both the ink mark and the name written with it.

Seeing the way he was moved made my heart ache with bittersweet emotion.

Recalling the fragments of his past that I had seen—this kind of warmth and kindness, given without asking for anything in return—he had received far too little of it.

A surge of emotion rushed through me, and I wondered… if I didn’t try to change the course of history, if I didn’t interfere with any of those so-called pivotal events, then maybe—just maybe—I could quietly offer him these fleeting moments of warmth, like summer flowers or a loyal puppy.

Only, now that I had a human body, I could be more precise, more direct in doing so…

“Hey!”

Someone grabbed my arm.

I looked down—it was the scribe by the gate in charge of registration.

He glared at me, visibly annoyed. “And your name? You snatched the pen, wrote someone else’s name, and thought you could just waltz in like that?”

He shoved the pen back into my hand, impatiently. “Write it! Your name!”

Only then did I snap back to my senses. I had absentmindedly followed Xie Zhuo right into the city.

The scribe’s voice made Xie Zhuo, who had just crossed the city gate, turn and look back at me.

I smiled and glanced around. The surrounding guards were watching me with clear wariness, as if I really were some kind of suspicious person.

I didn’t dare act up anymore. I obediently took the pen and wrote a single character below Xie Zhuo’s name: 「伏」(Fu). Then I paused.

“Fu? Fu what?” the scribe asked, eyeing me.

I hesitated, but picked up the pen again. Just as I finished writing 「阿」(A), inspiration struck. My brush landed on the character 「枸」(Gou).

I was quite pleased with myself, genuinely impressed by my own wit.

“Fu A Gou?” came a gentle voice from behind me—Lord Ji. “So that’s the ‘Gou’ you meant.”

I turned to glance at Lord Ji. His expression was perfectly calm, as if there was nothing strange about what he’d just said.

So I could only accept it with equal calm, neatly setting down the pen and saying, “Yes, Lord God, that’s the ‘Gou.’”

“Miss A Gou, this way, please. I’ll have to trouble you to undergo a quick inspection.” Lord Ji lifted his hand slightly as he spoke.

Following the direction he gestured in, I saw two guards standing on either side of a large mirror.

Everyone entering the city had to pass in front of that mirror.

From the look of it, this mirror resembled the stone mirror I’d once seen in Queen Mother of the West’s pocket dimension in Kunlun.

Most likely, this too was a divine artifact—only rarely shown to outsiders.

A twinge of unease stirred in me.

I remembered that Queen Mother’s mirror could project memories from the past directly in front of me.

That was how I had seen the final moments of Xie Zhuo’s life—so vivid and gut-wrenching.

So what would this mirror reveal?

After all, I wasn’t the original soul of this body. The only reason I made it in was thanks to that moment of life-or-death desperation…

Everyone around was staring at me—including Xie Zhuo.

I had no choice but to grit my teeth and step up to the mirror.

The reflection showed a young girl, dressed plainly. Her feet were still bandaged in dirty cloth from an injury.

If I hadn’t channeled the surrounding soul energy to supplement her inner strength, she probably wouldn’t have been able to stand.

But I had used Kunlun’s immortal techniques. If this mirror only detected evil miasma…

Just as that thought crossed my mind, a sudden flash of light flickered in the mirror!

In the next instant, I felt a tightness in my chest, and a wave of weakness swept through every limb and bone.

I could no longer sustain the internal flow of energy. The Kunlun spell abruptly ceased, and without the replenishment of soul force, the body could no longer stay upright. I collapsed to the ground sideways.

Immediately, tension rippled through the crowd. Some of the guards moved to block the civilians behind me, while others quickly surrounded me in a tight circle.

Lord Ji showed no surprise on his face, as though he had long anticipated this outcome.

Xie Zhuo, however, looked at me with mild shock, eyes slightly widened.

I opened my mouth, but before I could speak, I felt the sensation of my blood and heartbeat slipping far away from me.

A breeze brushed past me, and the familiar chill swept through me once more.

I had turned back into a soul.

I floated in midair, stunned.

It took a while before I finally returned to my senses and looked down.

On the ground, the girl’s body had already fallen unconscious. The surrounding guards, if anything, grew even more vigilant.

The scribe who had been in charge of registration now cowered in a corner, clutching his pen and muttering, “I knew something was off about that girl. Something’s definitely off! Please don’t get up and bite me…”

Lord Ji stood within the encircled area, eyes calmly studying the unconscious girl.

Xie Zhuo remained just outside the ring of guards.

After a moment, he didn’t leave. Instead, he stepped forward, walking through the cordon of soldiers.

“This young man—”

The guards tried to stop him, but Lord Ji quietly said, “It’s fine. Let Young Master Xie Zhuo through.”

Xie Zhuo came to the girl’s side. He glanced down at her unconscious form, then looked at the mirror.

“What kind of mirror is this?” Xie Zhuo asked.

“It can reveal…” Lord Ji glanced around. Once he confirmed that the civilians had been cleared to a safe distance, he finished his sentence in a low voice, “It reveals traces of demonic taint.”

Xie Zhuo frowned slightly. He looked at the mirror, then back at the girl on the ground. “She’s not demonic.”

“Demons are different from the ghostly wraiths you fought outside. They’re good at hiding. You may not have noticed.”

Xie Zhuo was quiet for a while, then shook his head. “I know. I’ve seen them. I know the difference between demons and wraiths. But…” He said firmly, “She’s not demonic.”

Lord Ji looked at him in mild surprise. “Can you truly tell, just by looking, who carries demonic energy?”

“I can’t. I’m often deceived by them. I’ve been ambushed more times than I can count.”

“Then why are you so sure?”

Xie Zhuo was silent for a long moment. He looked at Lord Ji, face serious, and said, “Her eyes… they’re like a dog’s.”

As those words fell—

Lord Ji fell into silence.

And in the air, so did I.

My eyes… are like a dog’s?

What’s that supposed to mean? Dogs can’t be possessed by demons?

Or are people with dog-like eyes immune to evil?

Xie Zhuo, this answer… really doesn’t make me feel better…

Maybe because Lord Ji stayed quiet for too long, Xie Zhuo added, “She can’t be one of them.”

But he could give no proof. No reason.

Lord Ji sighed lightly. “The stone mirror of Que Mountain truly cannot fully distinguish demons. It only detects whether the person before it carries a presence contrary to the laws of heaven. It’s not a perfect tool, but for now, it’s all I have to guard Que Mountain’s gates. It’s not that I don’t trust you, but…”

“Demons have already entered Que Mountain,” Xie Zhuo interrupted.

Lord Ji froze.

Xie Zhuo said bluntly, “Like I said, what I came to do is kill the Evil God. I came to Que Mountain because he’s here.”

Lord God Ji might have already guessed a thing or two earlier, but hearing Xie Zhuo speak of it so directly still gave him a bit of a headache. He rubbed at the space between his brows.

“Lord Xie Zhuo, would you be willing to return to the Immortal Palace of Que Mountain with me to discuss this matter in more detail?”

Xie Zhuo frowned slightly. “I need to go in and find him. There are too many people inside—I can’t waste time.”

“Explaining the cause and effect to me is not a waste of time, my lord. The Evil God—I want to kill him too.”

Hearing this, Xie Zhuo thought for a moment, then nodded.

He looked down at the unconscious girl on the ground. “This Fu A’gou…”

Lord God Ji beckoned a soldier over. “Is the temporary camp outside the city set up?”

“It’s already done.”

“Take the girl to the camp. Once she wakes, question her thoroughly. If nothing seems off, bring her to pass through the stone mirror again.”

“Yes, sir…”

The girl on the ground was carried away by the soldiers, while Xie Zhuo followed Lord God Ji into the inner part of Que Mountain.

I hesitated for a moment but ultimately decided to follow the girl for now.

Even though the stone mirror had forced me out, this was still a body I had once been compatible with. If I tried again, it should be easier than randomly trying to merge with another one, right?

Thinking this, I cast a reluctant glance at Xie Zhuo before drifting off to follow the soldiers carrying the girl.