Chapter 2448: Tomorrow is Like Eternity

In Equality Country, the twelve protectors of the Dao are divided into three groups, with the top four known as "Zhao Qian Sun Li, Zi Chou Yin Mao."

At the auspicious beginning of the day, ordinary people went about their lives.

Li Mao was currently being chased and killed, while Zhao Zi, Qian Chou, and Sun Yin were furiously hunting the people of Jing Country. First, they killed Chou Tie, then they ambushed Kuang Ming.

Killing in response to killing.

The long-peaceful Tianfeng Valley suddenly experienced a shocking change!

The entire long street instantly twisted and turned, as if caught between the virtual and the real. Wine houses, common dwellings, hurried passersby, and the light of the sky overhead all became illusory mirror images.

And on the long street, traveling merchants, guests selecting goods, women holding jade pipes... and of course, Kuang Ming, holding a long spear, seemed to have fallen into the same painting scroll, being peeled away from the present world.

That painting scroll, spread out, was a neat and tidy yet killing intent-filled chessboard.

This was not the uninhabited bank of the Yellow River; this was the bustling Tianfeng Valley. To pull away a powerful true person like Kuang Ming in broad daylight, it was almost impossible to conceal their movements.

In the Baiyu Jing wine house, there was suddenly a commotion. After all, the great commander of the central empire's Dangevil army had just been in their sight. One moment he was walking out the door, the next he was ambushed.

It was too exciting!

Of course, it was also too dangerous.

Those eager for excitement flocked like ducks, while the sensible ones avoided it quickly.

"What should we do?"

Chu Yao, who had just been sent back to his practice post, suddenly jumped up and looked towards Shopkeeper Bai.

The righteous little green sheep already had his hand on his sword hilt. His left hand held the iron stick that served as his sword sheath, and his right hand held the iron bar that was his sword. Although the sword's body was rough, it already had sword light flowing within.

Youthful times, in his palm.

As his master had said — "Man's true honor comes from the protection of beautiful things."

Tianfeng Valley's security could not be invaded!

The Baiyu Jing wine house's business could not be disturbed!

"Close the door," Shopkeeper Bai said concisely and to the point.

"Ah?" Chu Yao was slightly stunned.

Shopkeeper Bai impatiently gave him a look. From behind the counter, he lifted his hand and pulled the large door shut himself.

Bang bang bang bang!

The entire Baiyu Jing wine house, all twelve floors, instantly had its doors and windows closed.

The interior of the room became dim, but immediately oil lamps were lit again.

Shopkeeper Bai casually flipped the account book in his hand, and his voice echoed in the ears of all the diners: "Gentlemen, do not panic. The Baiyu Jing wine house will protect the safety of every diner. Everyone, please remain seated. The killing outside will end soon."

His words... did not sound very reassuring.

"Shopkeeper," Chu Yao asked weakly, "Aren't we supposed to protect the safety of all the diners? Then just now, this..."

"He's already gone out the door!" Shopkeeper Bai said.

Chu Yao didn't have any good feelings for Kuang Ming; he was simply upholding the security of the Baiyu Jing wine house: "But he was still our diner, wasn't he?"

"He didn't even eat a meal!"

"At least he drank wine?"

"He said he dropped his wine and didn't touch it!"

Alright!

Young Hero Chu returned his sword to its sheath. There really was no reason to help.

Even Yu Juan, holding a serving plate, said faintly, "You make us look like a gang this way."

"You?" Bai Yu Xia looked over, immediately thought of something, and waved his hand.

A huge wooden board, just like that, hung outside the wine house's big door. There were words on it, and the words said —

"Closed for today!"

This way, they were exempt from responsibility.

Suddenly, there was a loud noise.

By the window of the wine house, Xia Hou Lie, who had just eaten two mouthfuls of food, slapped the table and stood up: "How outrageous! In broad daylight, under a clear sky, they dare to assassinate a great general of Jing Country! Too rampant!"

The wine guests around him all looked at him — curious to see how the great governor of the Jing Country army mansion would stand up for the people of Jing Country.

The great commanders of the military families of two great dominant countries joining battle with the three protectors of Equality Country was also quite a sight to behold.

But then they saw Xia Hou Lie angrily sit back down: "I have already noted down the faces of these thieves, and I also understand some painting! Wait until I write a letter to inform Jing Country, and these thieves must not be allowed to escape."

Bai Yu Xia rolled his eyes, lazily leaned back, and then prepared to activate Nangong Ao Tian to go knock on the door of the Wen Dao Heavenly Palace — something like this happening at this moment required reporting to the boss.

Suddenly, a voice came from upstairs —

"Shopkeeper Bai! That, uh, Proof Dao Wine, give me a pot!"

Bai Yu Xia suddenly became energetic. He casually sent a message, then leaped up and stood there, gracefully dusting off his sleeves.

Chu Yao, already clever, hugged the wine pot over.

Bai Yu Xia held the wine pot, then took one step up to the ninth floor. He dared not let the noble guest wait long.

"Guest officer, here is your Proof Dao Wine!" Shopkeeper Bai's face wore a bright smile: "Taste Proof Dao wine, enjoy Town River life! This is the only place in the world, Heaven's Baiyu Jing, please pay with Yuan Stones —"

Xia Hou Lie waved his big hand: "Put it on the account!"

"Good!" Shopkeeper Bai's smile became even brighter, and he diligently poured him wine. This was the kind of generous guest who didn't ask the price.

Xia Hou Lie seemed to casually look at him: "Speaking of which, Shopkeeper Bai, you also saw that I have always sat here drinking, going nowhere and doing nothing."

"That is natural! Your drinking and eating can all be proven," Shopkeeper Bai's handsome face creased with a smile: "Speaking of which, you have always been drinking here, and I have also always been greeting you. Presumably, you also saw that my small shop has many minor deities and cannot afford to offend anyone. Today, we didn't even dare to open the door."

"This world is too chaotic. No wonder you honest merchants!" Xia Hou Lie said: "One should rest when one needs to rest. Peace is a blessing!"

"I receive your kind words!"

Shopkeeper Bai cupped his hand and then withdrew.

The scent of wine filled the air, and the diners were noisy. Those who were drinking continued to drink, and those who were calculating accounts continued to calculate accounts. Today was like any other day, nothing different.

Everything was unspoken.

When Tianjing City was established, its outlook was eternal.

Ji Yu Su, the first emperor of Jing, said at that time that it should be "today like tomorrow, and tomorrow like eternity."

Four thousand years of wind and rain changes, and the rivers and mountains have changed their appearance several times. Yet the layout of Tianjing City has always remained unchanged. Many key buildings have always maintained the appearance they had in the First Year of the Dao Calendar.

Among them is the "Heaven Mandate View."

The Heaven Mandate View is the royal Daoist temple of Jing Country, specifically a place for the imperial family to cultivate the Dao.

Because the mandate of heaven is with the people, the mandate of heaven is with Jing, and the mandate of heaven is with the imperial family surnamed Ji, it was named "Heaven Mandate."

Within the Heaven Mandate View, two halls are honored in parallel. One is the Three Pure Hall, where the images of the three venerables of the Daoist gate are enshrined; the other is the Former Monarch Hall, which enshrines the memorial tablets of successive emperors of the Ji imperial family, with Jing Tai Zu Ji Yu Su as the absolute core, of course.

The mirror hanging on the standing plaque in the Former Monarch Hall is the famous "Qian Heaven Mirror."

It is also the headquarters of the Mirror World Platform.

Of course, ordinary Mirror World Platform members have absolutely no qualification to enter the Mirror World from here.

Three generations of clear lineage, then enter the Mirror World Platform. Loyal to the country, then one can enter this place.

This is the most crucial gateway to the Mirror World, and it is also the place where one can walk to the most core position of the Mirror World.

A female general, with rigorous steps, slowly walked to the front of the Former Monarch Hall.

She had exquisite features and should have been very likable. But there was a disharmony; her eyes were clear and proud, her armor cold, and there was a cold intent between her eyebrows, which created a distance.

Many people recognized this face, although she was especially cold today.

She was one of the most excellent young people of contemporary Jing Country, namely the Advisor of the Soldier Cao of the Military Affairs Building. She was divinely enlightened and clear, with hope of becoming a Cave True Master — Lou Jun Lan.

Of course, there were not few who were divinely enlightened and proud with hope of becoming Cave True Masters, but those who could prove Cave True were as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns.

But she was born into the famous "Should Heaven First Family." Her father was the vice commander of the imperial decree army, the Heavenly Son's personal army. He held military power on behalf of the Heavenly Son and was a trusted confidant.

With Lou Yue's strength and the degree of trust he received from the Heavenly Son, if there were no accidents, the Should Heaven Lou family would be one of the top-level famous families in Jing Country for the next hundred or even thousand years.

So Lou Jun Lan stood here, even if she only relied on her face, she was self-assured and unhindered.

Not to mention, she also held a letter of order representing Lou Yue.

"On behalf of Envoy Lou Pi, I represent the Military Affairs Building and have come to the Mirror World Platform to coordinate intelligence matters for this action," she said: "Take me to see Fu Tai Shou."

Both bright and dark gazes swept over her body and then moved on.

No one would stop her, even if they had not received prior orders that Lou Jun Lan would be coming — this period was a time of super overload operation for the Mirror World Platform. Every Mirror World Platform official needed to handle too much intelligence.

About the country, the Tianma Plain, the Changhe River bank, the Yunxian Forest, the Xingyue Plain, the islands near the sea...

The Mirror World Platform members, busy to the point where their feet didn't touch the ground, simply didn't have the time to pay attention to whether there were additional tasks from the Military Affairs Building. They only hoped that no more would fall on their own heads.

The Qian Heaven Mirror cast down a mirror light and rolled her into it.

The brilliant mirror light in the sky was like water ripples.

The wave light on the sea surface sparkled.

The silent chase and kill had already continued for a period of time in the seabed.

For Ouyang Jie, catching someone was not a complicated thing, nor was killing someone. Moreover, his current target was still locked by the Qian Heaven Mirror and was fundamentally unable to shake it off.

As the head of the World Apprehension Criminal Division, he cared more about the influence behind this matter.

Qin Guang Wang was not a threat. The Hell No Door was just a group of desperadoes who wanted money and didn't care about their lives. If he had a need, he could also spend money to ask the Hell No Door to do some things — initially, when the central heavenly prison and the Mirror World Platform secretly pursued the Hell No Door because of the matter of Ji Yan Yue. The officials responsible for the chase and kill even received name posts from Qin Guang Wang through different channels.

This person was just this crazy. He dared to take on any job and dared to develop any customer base.

Ouyang Jie even suspected that even if Qin Guang Wang were locked in the central heavenly prison, he would try to get the prison guards to introduce two deals for him. This was a person who never missed an opportunity to move forward — of course, after today, the opportunity would be no more.

The knife that had already been struck was not dangerous; the dangerous thing was the person swinging the knife behind it.

The people of Equality Country hired a group of assassins who absolutely could not save Bo Lu to save Bo Lu, or rather, pretended to save Bo Lu. What was their true target?

Lou Yue, who was going to retrieve Chou Tie's corpse?

Lou Yue was preparing to prove the Dao at any time. They were destined to go and not return.

Go and negotiate with Jing Country about Kuang Ming?

Kuang Ming's position for discussion with Xia Hou Lie was self-selected. His action route was relatively more hidden and also more likely to be betrayed by an inner ghost.

But Kuang Ming was not truly alone.

Ouyang Jie appearing at sea today, responding to King Jin's command, and grandly coming to catch the rats of the Hell No Door, was also to make the released baits look more harmless and sweeter.

If the hidden opponent was trying to lure the tiger away from the mountain, then they had already succeeded.

But the tiger on the mountain... was not the only one!

Those who scheme to skin a tiger must enter the tiger's mouth.

Ouyang Jie walked on the seabed mountains, looking at the dark and deep abyss crack in front — it split open in the middle of the rugged mountains, as if it were already open, about to swallow.

Qin Guang Wang's traces disappeared here.

One had to say that this young true person born in a small country, who could rise so rapidly in such a short time, was indeed very capable. Just this skill in escaping was already rare in the world.

However, tracking and tracing, catching thieves and arresting bandits, was also the old profession of the Apprehension Criminal Division. As the head of the World Apprehension Criminal Division, he was not so incompetent as to let the other party escape.

He had chased from Sea Gate Island, pursuing traces for a thousand li in the seabed, breaking through fifty-three illusion techniques in the middle, wiping out sixty-seven kinds of confusing means, seeing all kinds of symbolic figures, chasing all the way here.

It was almost time.

Calculating the time, if someone really wanted to make a move by a feint, they should not delay any longer.

Ouyang Jie flipped up his right palm and gently swiped in front of him. In the black, dark deep water, three wisps of vague light silk suddenly appeared, all traces left by those who had escaped.

These three wisps of light silk led deep into the abyss crack, in three different directions.

What a cunning rat!

Ouyang Jie lifted his boot and leaped gently, jumping down into this abyss crack, with the composure of a cat playing with a mouse. All the steps had already been completed. Now was the time for him to take over the authority of the Qian Heaven Mirror. He casually hooked a finger, intending to guide the mirror light of the Qian Heaven Mirror —

But... his finger was on empty.

That wisp of mirror light that should have nailed down Qin Guang Wang did not fall.

Mirror World Platform?

Fu Dong Xu?

Ouyang Jie suddenly turned back and looked up at the high vault. He had long known that the Mirror World Platform was severely infiltrated by One True Dao and had failed to clean it up completely several times, but to dare to make a move at this time — did Fu Dong Xu want to die?

The rippling mirror light in the sky was still for an instant.

Just this instant, Qin Guang Wang's last traces had disappeared!

In the Mirror World, in the Grand Bright Hall.

From time to time, people wearing the official clothes of the Mirror World Platform were going in and out, a scene of busyness.

The head of the Mirror World Platform, Fu Dong Xu, stood in front of a huge light mirror. His Dao body also seemed to be condensed from light, brilliantly hidden beneath his official clothes. In his eyes, countless Daoist characters flashed, like a flying waterfall cascading down.

At this moment, he was no longer himself; his body was no longer his body, but the Dao of the Mirror World!

Borrowing the power of the official position as the head of the Grand Jing Empire's Mirror World Platform, relying on the country's momentum and the support of countless Daoist temples in the entire present world, he could maximize the power of the Qian Heaven Mirror.

In the countless flows of intelligence, Lou Jun Lan representing Lou Yue's arrival was also quite important.

A mirror light invested itself in front of him. The figure of the Lou family woman gradually manifested in the mirror light.

Fu Dong Xu did not turn his eyes, only dividing a thought to ask: "How does Envoy Lou Pi need us to cooperate?"

He knew that Lou Yue was also acting as bait outside, fishing for the enemy hidden in the dark.

"My father, on the order of the Heavenly Son, has gone to the Yellow River to welcome back True Person Chou," the Lou family woman manifested and then spoke slowly at the same time: "He ordered me to come find Fu Tai Shou. He said..."

Her voice gradually grew smaller and fainter. Somehow, it wasn't clear.

"What did he say?"

"My father said—" Just at this moment, in the huge light mirror in front of Fu Dong Xu, a brilliant light suddenly surged. In Fu Dong Xu's mirror eyes, in the character flows cascading down like a flying waterfall, one Daoist character lit up very obviously.

The character's shape was like a snake, and its meaning was... "Yin Guan."

The figure of "Lou Jun Lan" then completely condensed at this moment. She took a step forward and lightly opened her lips: "Swear to exterminate One True!"

As she stepped, she had already lifted her hand like a knife. As she opened her lips, frost mist had already condensed in Fu Dong Xu's mirror eyes.

The hand knife, like an ice knife, directly stabbed towards Fu Dong Xu's throat.

This scene was too sudden!

The Should Heaven Lou family had infinite bright prospects and was one of the families least likely to betray the empire.

Lou Jun Lan was even more outstanding among the younger generation and had a great opportunity to enter the center of the empire in the future, with absolutely unlimited prospects.

Why would she suddenly make a move against the head of the Mirror World Platform?

And what did "Swear to exterminate One True" mean?

Was the Lou family accusing Fu Tai Shou of being from the One True Dao?

In the entire Grand Bright Hall, everyone was stunned for an instant.

"Lou Jun Lan! Do you want to die?!" Fu Dong Xu was both surprised and angry.

The frost mist in front of his mirror eyes was instantly driven away. The palm knife that the Lou family woman had struck also shattered bit by bit in the state of an ice knife, scattering.

Compared to the not very forceful assassination by the Lou family woman, the incident itself was more lethal: "The direct female descendant of the Should Heaven Lou family killed her way into the Grand Bright Hall, pointing her sword at him, Fu Tai Shou, as a remnant of the One True Dao."

With the weight of the Should Heaven First Family and the status of Lou Yue, even if he were completely innocent, he would inevitably be investigated a bit and inevitably have a headache for a long time. Suspicion permeated the court and the field and would endure for a long time, difficult to eradicate.

In the position of Mirror World Platform, he had offended too many people. Once there was a downward trend, who knew how many people would tear and bite at him.

This was an extremely vicious accusation!

When did he offend the Lou family?

Fu Dong Xu temporarily stopped controlling the flow of information to the Mirror World, suddenly looked towards Lou Jun Lan. This look, then, revealed the problem: "You are not Lou Jun Lan!"

Although she was of the Lou family bloodline and had Lou Jun Lan's appearance, the temperaments of the two were completely different, especially at this moment when she had made a furious move, her whole arm shattered, and she still had no expression on her face!

She was much colder than Lou Jun Lan.

"Lou Jiang Yue?!" Fu Dong Xu thought of that name that had been hidden very deeply, a name that many people in the empire thought was already dead.

Even the Mirror World Platform had helped cover it up many times!

'Lou Jun Lan' curled her lips lightly, not speaking.

But divine intent killed into Fu Dong Xu's mirror eyes, with a resolute posture within, delivering a fatal freeze — the process by which Fu Dong Xu easily broke the frost was precisely in killing her divine intent.

But this divine intent, without temperature, like an extremely frozen ice river, yet had a kind of burning, unusual passion.

"Please call me — King Chu Jiang!"